Being a mage’s apprentice was not a glorious life. My master demanded absolute obedience from me, and I gave it willingly, or I risked losing the tutelage of one of the greatest manipulators of arcane energy since the ascension of Krokus. That was a long time ago, more than a thousand years, or so the histories claimed. Zenin, my master, might as well have been a god himself in my eyes. The way he wielded magic with such ease made my attempts look pathetic in comparison. It only served to frustrate me when Zenin gave me seemingly meaningless tasks like cleaning out his alchemy supplies of sweeping the floors, things he could have done with a simple gesture or word he had me do by hand. I knew I was lucky, and that many of my peers would literally kill to be in my position.

I was grateful, it’s true, and at first, I had done my masters chores with great enthusiasm, eager to please. Even though I was practically reduced to a housekeeper, the few times Zenin actually got around to teaching me something made it all worth it. Getting to pick the brain of one of the foremost magical minds alive advanced my understanding of magical theory by leaps and bounds. So I was very eager when Zenin told me we would finally start building my mana pool. It did not go as I had hoped after my master helped me discover my well he had put a spell on me. Feeling all my newly discovered mana drain away from me was horrible, it was like something reached into my chest and ripped the magic away. I was powerless to stop it, just as Zenin had intended. The old man told me that this would help me take control of my magic. If I could keep it from leaving my body and break the spell he had put on me, he said he would begin teaching me some spells.

This was a great incentive, but no matter how hard I tried, the mana would just slip through my fingers, sucked away by the spell. It took me months of trying to even hold on to a small piece of it, but success was still success no matter how small. I progressed steadily from there until I could keep all my mana from leaving my body and the spell that was put on me shattered.

Zenin congratulated me on my victory, he seemed genuinely pleased at my success, and he finally explained the purpose behind the exercise. Every apprentice of his went through this, he told me, the test was to see how strong my willpower was, to see if I could gain control of my mana. The mind needed to be trained first before I would be allowed to cast spells. Magic was a strange thing, and without the proper strength of mind, it could warp your perception of reality until you went mad. It was a quick way to gain power, but such people burned brightly until they burned themselves out, like the warlocks of old.

I had heard about them. I think everyone has, they were wizards who didn’t bother with training their thoughts before getting drunk on the intoxicating power of magic. They often went on mad killing sprees when they gained enough strength with magic, unable to tell friend from foe. It was from them that all the distrust and resentment towards mages came from. Before the mages guild, before mages made their minds strong enough to handle the pressure, the warlocks had the people continually living in fear. The mages guild had put a stop to that long before I was borne, rooting out the last warlocks almost a thousand years ago. The threat of the warlocks was so long ago that it had faded from peoples minds, even in the mage guild it was a bit of an unpopular opinion. Master Zenin was one of the few master wizards that still put the training of the mind before all else. He was incensed that normal merchants were allowed to sell books about magic and spell tomes. When I asked him why they didn't do anything about it he shrugged his shoulders in defeat and told me it had to do with money, selling spell books was so profitable that the guild had begun ignoring the risks involved.

With my new understanding of my master’s reasons, I grew more appreciative of his lessons and more conscious of the risks involved. I shuddered when I thought about what could have happened to me. Before being accepted into the mages guild, I had bought books on magic myself, trying to teach myself how to cast spells on my own. What if I had succeeded? I probably wouldn’t have gone mad right away, but it would only have been a matter of time. I could only hope that I would have come to my senses and joined the mages guild before I was too far gone. Then they would have had to hunt me down to execute me as a warlock. I promised myself that I would listen to Zenin’s teachings with increased focus and follow his instructions to the letter from here on out.

My attention was further motivated by the fact that Zenin began teaching me how to cast spells. Small cantrips at first that required no incantation to cast. They weren’t very powerful, but they still drew heavily from my still small mana pool. They wouldn’t be very useful in combat but they made my chores a breeze. There were spells for boiling water, drying and cleaning sheets, a minor levitation spell, stuff like that. My mana pool grew with each passing day as I used my newly learned cantrips to do the work for me. Soon casting them became second nature and the drain on my magic lessened significantly.

My master judged me ready, and I was taught what I would consider being the bread and butter in every mage’s arsenal. Magic missile and the shield spell, they were good places to start for a beginner like me. Magic missile was very versatile, shooting out a fastmoving projectile made of pure mana that could break bones if aimed right. You could curve it around corners or split it into multiple missiles mid-flight if you practiced hard enough. Shield was your standard protection spell, forming a translucent wall of force around the user. This was a must-have for any mage going into a dangerous situation. You could intercept spells flung at you if you were skilled enough. There was generally nothing you could do if you were hit, except deal with the damage. Physical damage could be healed, but there were more subtle spells that were harder to deal with. Things like curses that made you unable to see or speak could be devastating. A mage was crippled if we couldn’t say the incantation required to cast our spells.

With my cantrips helping me lighten my workload, I had a lot of time to spare before my lessons with Zenin began in the evening. I used it to research new spells in the guild library I had always had the dream of soaring through the skies. The spells I found either required that you keep your concentration. If you were interrupted mid-flight the spell would be canceled, and you would plummet to the ground or some type of horribly painful transformation. I settled for learning a feather fall spell, mirage, and a minor lightning bolt, the first spell that lay within my affinity. Now I had a pretty diverse set of spells all I was missing was something to help me escape an overwhelming situation. Everything wasn’t about combat, of course, and there were more subtle ways of winning a fight with magic, but my affinities didn’t allow for much else.

Lightning, one of the more destructive elements, had no real practical use. Fire was equally as damaging, if not more so, but a fire mage could always find work at a forge. The dwarves were especially fond of them as their smithing methods demanded incredibly hot flames that not much else but a fire mage could provide. Maybe a dragon, but we all knew that wouldn’t go down well. No, lightning just wasn’t very useful, except when it came to killing things, then it was extremely effective. The road of a battle mage lay open to me, both the king's army and the mage guild's combat branch would likely welcome me with open arms.

I had never used a lightning spell, it always made me queasy imagining it. Ever since Zenin had confirmed my affinity, someone twitching out of control as their body burned from the inside. That’s why I had chosen spells from other schools of magic. Mirage being an illusion spell and feather fall a wind spell, they would cost me more man to cast then someone who had the affinity, but at least they didn’t make me want to hurl. Maybe I could become an adventurer, at least they didn’t have to kill people.

My research was interrupted a few days later when it was announced that the guild was organizing an expedition. There had always been rumors of undiscovered islands in the westerns sea, but no one had ever found one. Someone in the guild had apparently been taken in by the tales. Well, it was no skin off my back, they could get smashed against the cliffs for all I cared, what fool would sail on the open sea in the middle of storm season chasing crazy stories? I was one of the fools as it turned out for Zenin was going, so I was forced to come with him as his apprentice.

The journey had been horrible so far. I had spent most of my time on the ship filling the role of a mana battery, recharging all the enchantments keeping the boat held together, and the rest of my time hurling over the side of the railing. We had left the capital early in the morning, the overcast sky and biting wind should have been major clues to the bad time I would have aboard this floating vessel. We traveled through Yhester and down to the ports of Eimgate where the ship and her crew of seasoned sailors were waiting. The sight of it made my terrible mood rise a bit, it was truly a marvel of engineering and mage craft combined. Layered into the wood of the hull were various protection spells and a force field could be erected to keep out the worst of the elements. The waves still buffeted the hull violently, however, making me seasick for the whole first day.

There were six mages on board not counting the three master wizards and their apprentices, making the number twelve in total. Zenin was one of them, he stood at the front of the ship, always scanning the horizon while stroking his long white beard. Dretaz and Elyn were the other two master wizards. I hadn’t gotten to know their apprentices yet, a girl and a boy respectively, but I suspected we would have plenty of time when I gained my sea legs. At least we seem to be actually heading in a single direction and not just aimlessly searching.

We had picked up a judge from Yhester of all people. He had apparently struck a deal with Dretaz to be allowed to come along. The judge brought with him a whole party of adventurers. I wasn’t sure how useful they could be on the open sea, they looked capable enough. Hopefully, they aren’t too disappointed when this fool's venture comes to nothing. When I get back home, I’ll probably sleep for a day, or my name isn’t Leeland Everdeen.