Chapter Four: The Burden of Power
Hysperea woke up early in the morning woken by the face of Darkalar. "Time to wake up! Bright and early have some breakfast and then we can be quick to training!" The young drow nodded. He rose from his bed to look at the gold walls. He gave a smirk and then changed to his rugged training clothes. He made his way down to breakfast no one was there except the young servant boys cleaning the tables. The drow ate the food and then left the room to the golden hallway.
He entered the golden lit room there waiting for him was Darkalar. "Today we will learn your innate drow abilities." Hysperea nodded and followed him to the training room at the end of the hall. He recognized there had been accidents here before just by looking at the room. The gold was scorched and melted and there was blood smeared all over the wall. Hysperea gulped, Darkalar smirked.
"Now let us start the training." The old archmagi lifted his hand and he and Hysperea were enveloped in a globe of darkness. Of course both of them could see in infravision but they could not see anything out of the black. He felt cold inside like he was afraid he might never escape from the globe.
The globe of darkness evaporated and the older drow gave the motion for Hysperea to try. The drow rose his hand and tried to think of the black globe. "Think of nothing." Said the elder drow. The drow concentrated and erased everything from his head the whole room seemed to evaporate and it was only Hysperea Baenre and there was nothingness beyond that.
A black circle formed in the drow's hand it grew to the size of his hand then his in tire arm was covered then his body was covered. The room started turning black he could only see the outline of his master. Then he could not see his master anymore everything went black.
"Do you think he'll live?" Hysperea heard a voice it was Darkalar's and a second. "Yes, his heart is beating in a steady pace he will be fine." Hysperea recognized the second voice it was Diekara. "Could you see that power he had put magic into the globe. No drow has been able to do that for a millennium." Said Darkalar. "He will be an extraordinary wizard or even archmagi he maybe able to take down the rogue."
The rogue, Hysperea thought the rogue. He knew who the rogue was, Drizzt Do'Urden the one who had killed his mother the one who had followed a righteous path and gotten away from the darkness of the drow city even the drow underground world the Underdark. He lived on the surface now he wondered what the surface was like, much better than the Underdark thought Hysperea.
The drow opened his eyes the two were looking at each other intently with smirks on their faces. They turned to look at the young drow. "I see you have awoken young one." Said Darkalar still holding the smile into place. "You gave us much a fright you blackened all of House Baenre. I hope you are not planning to do that again."
The high priestess of Lloth nodded and rose from the bed, which Hysperea had just realized he was lying on. She stalked out of the gold plated corridors and into the normal stone passageways. "Priestesses of Lloth, think they know everything." Said Darkalar said sighing. Of course he wouldn't say that to a priestesses face fearing the dreaded snake headed whip.
The next day they worked on the basics once again this time he had mastered the Orb of Darkness and learned not to concentrate on doing it fear of putting magic into it and making the whole mistake repeat itself. He learned to do fairy fire while learning it he had to use fairy fire on a goblin but accidentally set the goblin actually on fire.
After learning the basic drow ability's like levitation, Orb of Darkness and fairy fire. He spent his time studying drow history and the more mature magic of drow. Like hurling lesser fireballs at goblins only burning there skin and setting a small fire on their armor.
Six years had passed since he had first walked into the golden furnished hallway and the warm and brightly-lit candles glowing in his light sensitive eyes. He now mastered magic that most drow wizards had learnt at their final year of Sorcere. Of course the advantage was he was being trained by Menobezzar's archmagi Darkalar, but the archmagi had said it was not that, it was because Hysperea had a talent for advanced magic.
Now today was the day of testing the day where he would see if he could enter the advanced room. Where he might just find his death waiting for him if he was not prepared. If he failed he would not get another go. He would die if he failed the test but Darkalar knew he would not fail he was too strong for that.
He would pass it easily but Darkalar had fear burning inside him, a fear that had been born ever since the day when the younger drow had made all of House Banere cover in the Orb of Darkness. He feared that Hysperea Baenre would take his place as archmagi of the Drow City, but the old archmagi knew the young Baenre would not kill him, Hysperea was too forgiving to merciful to undrow like.
Hysperea walked to the training room he was ready for the test he thought. He would not fail he repeated to himself over and over. This usually reassured him but he knew the old man had prepared a harder test than he had prepared for his other students. It was all because of his damned 'skills'. Why can't anything be easy? Thought Hysperea.
A couple minutes later Darkalar smiled and said, "Are you ready?" asked his long time master. The younger drow nodded he readied his hands. He silently whispered the incantations for stone skin. His skin tightened making an aura around him preventing him from being hit by a mere slash of a sword.
The older drow twirled his hands and a goblin appeared it apparently confused of its surroundings was caught off guard. Darkalar Baenre blended into the shadows he moved his hands about and the doors closed shut and were magically sealed he readied himself to watch an quick battle between the goblin and the young drow.
The goblin apparently confused by its surroundings and frightened by the doors slamming shut he was caught off guard, Hysperea observed. The goblin looked at him and drew his spear and charged. Hysperea obviously read for the attack had prepared a surprise for the short being. While it screamed. "Kill's! Kill's!" Summoned an orb the orb appeared absorbing the little being and the young drow. He then casted fairy fire on the small rodent squealing obviously thinking it was on fire. Hysperea summoned a magical dagger and slashed the goblin's neck instantly killing it.
The orb disintegrated and the young drow not even whipping of the black goblin blood he prepared for the next attack. It was a drow not a real drow probaly just an illusion set upon an goblin. The drow charged, Hysperea casting yet another spell. Fire spewing out of the young wizard's hands melting the drow's face off. Howling in pain the illusion faded and the goblin lay there motionless.
Hysperea noticed magic swirling noticing it to be his master's black skinned hands. Then his master appeared hovering over the goblin's body. The drow lifted his hands and shot two red magical missiles at Hysperea. Dodging both of them, the younger drow hurled his knife at the archmagi's shoulder hitting the spot he was aiming for the master wizard stopped levitating and tumbled to the ground rolling to the wall. He put his hand out and the dagger appeared in his hand. Pointing it at his throat the drow holding his wound. "Why did you attack me? Are you expecting me to kill you when you haven't finished my training?" The archmagi evaporated. "You pasted the test." A familiar voice said behind him. He turned around and saw it was his master. "It was an illusion." Said Hysperea shocked that he would use such a trick. "Yes, the first test was to see if you made chances which I said to you never to do." It was true every time he was told never taking chances. "Second part was to see if you would kill an opponent that was the same race as you but was a threat to you." The archmagi smirked. "The third was to see if you would use your brain in a battle."
He had passed the test now he was an intermediate wizard, no longer novice he could learn more spells fight stronger creatures, and study in Darkalar's personal library.