The Apprentice

Lyle, Rasha, and Migel went to the inn to rest for the night. They figured they would head to the tower in the morning, after they were completely refreshed. That way, there was a much better chance of being able to fight off any monsters that the group might encounter along the way.

In the middle of the night, Rasha awoke with a start. She had just had a nightmare where she saw Lyle stab her in the heart with a strange sword. Three shadows were standing behind him, looking like they were there to help the warrior out. One of them was tall and strong like Migel. The second looked to be a long-haired swordswoman. And the third seemed to be a squirrel woman.

'What was that all about?' she wondered, 'Is it a vision of the future? Or a fear in my heart? And who were those people with Lyle? I know Migel must have been one, but what about the other two?'

But no one was there to answer her. The sorceress lay down and tried to get back to sleep. It took her some time, but she was finally able to return to her slumber.

* * *

The next day, the three began to head to the tower in the west. Along the way, they encountered a few groups of monsters. All three of them began to dispatch of them instantly.

Even in the tower, there were demons waiting in the corridors. Lyle and Migel began to hack them with their swords, while Rasha used her Flash, Dew, or Bang spells, mattering what types there was or how many monsters were attacking. If she ever ran out of MP, the group had brought Hi-Magic items back in Grenoble. In order to save in MP, the boys were using Hi- Potions instead of her healing spells.

After traveling through what seemed like an endless number of corridors and countless flights of stairs, the group made it to the top floor. There, they found a door to another room in the center of the large chamber. Lyle opened it, and they all went in.

There, they saw a young man with brown hair, training with his sword. Nearby, Lyle spotted a bow and a quiver of arrows. A target was set up on one side of the room for target practice.

"Excuse me, are you the one who was the apprentice of Artea?" inquired Lyle.

The man said, "Yes, I am. But why do you ask me that question? Looking for a mentor?"

Lyle shook his head. "I am searching for Artea. You see, I would like to meet with him and talk to him. So where does he live now? Please, it is truly important."

"I cannot tell you that," the man replied, "How can I trust you? You might be out to kill him for whatever reason. There's no way I would put my master in such danger."

"Lyle never lies! How dare you accuse him of such?!" yelled Rasha, clearly annoyed.

Lyle said, "My name is Lyle Rehbart Reon. I am the descendant of Maxim."

Migel's jaw dropped to the ground. "You mean the hero of Doom Island Maxim? The man who wielded the legendary Sargus into battle against the Sinistraels. Why didn't you tell me?"

"It never seemed necessary to bring it up," stated Lyle, "I didn't want to sound like I was bragging or something. After all, not everyone has the luck of being a hero's descendant."

"Maybe you are his descendant. But how can I be sure?" the man asked.

Lyle told him, "I don't care if you believe me or not. But the Sinistraels are about to return. I need to speak to Artea on the subject. He's the only one of the four heroes left now."

The man looked him in the eye. "You don't appear to be lying. But I still need to test you. If you are truly Maxim's descendant, you will be able to defeat me without any problems."

Lyle nodded. He pulled his sword out of his sheath, and pointed it at the other man. The apprentice also brought out his weapon, and the battle began.

The apprentice leapt forward at Lyle, swinging his mace. But Lyle jumped out of the way, and the mace only hit the ground. Then Lyle swung the sword, knocking the man's helmet off.

"You aren't half bad, for a kid your age," he admitted, "But I still will be able to defeat you. Prepare to die boy." With that, he charged the young swordsman again.

"Just because I'm young, it doesn't mean that I can't win. Remember, I'm in the prime of my life, the age range between fifteen and twenty-five. That's the age where we have the most energy to spare, and the best speed I will ever be able to achieve," he reminded the apprentice.

Lyle caught the mace's chain with his sword blade. He began trying to fend off his opponent, who was pushing him towards the ground. But Lyle eventually pushed him backwards.

Rasha began yelling, "Get him Lyle, knock him to the ground. You can do it Lyle. Fight!"

Migel sweatdropped. "Calm down Rasha. He's doing ok for himself. Why do you have to keep yelling? My ear is beginning to ache from all of this."

"Can't I cheer on my best friend," she chided, "Just leave me alone stupid." To illustrate her point, Rasha stepped on Migel's foot, and he began hopping around in pain.

Suddenly, Lyle saw an opening in his enemy's defense. He ran at him, and knocked him to the ground. When the apprentice looked up, he saw Lyle's sword pointing at his throat.

"You win boy. You truly are Maxim's descendant. I will now tell you what you want to know. Artea is in the Squirrel Village of Efrea. It is a long way, but you can make it," he stated.

Lyle told the man, "I thank you for your assistance. I promise that I won't allow the Sinistraels to return. They will be destroyed by the power I possess."

The three left the tower. From the look of the map, they would have to travel south, and then east around the mountains. So they all began to head out, knowing that time was of the essence.

- - - -

The difference in the three spells are that Flash is a Lightning spell affecting a single target, Dew is a Water spell affecting a group of targets, and Bang is an Explosion spell affecting all targets. And no...for all you new readers...this title was not taken from Donald Trump's reality show. The show hadn't even come out when the first draft was posted (I only know now b/c I'm editing some mistakes in all my fics)