Ch. 1: A Pupil of the Darkness
When I first became a shaman, I was a youth, about 14-18 or so. My father, Neill, had served Lord Vigarde before me…so I believed I was destined to follow his footsteps. Studying the dark arts is no simple task, since you must translate the ancient language inside a tome. This chapter begins one night when I was studying the book of Flux in my room. Under a lit candle, I was deciphering the book's contents while reading the words.
"Seiras Revdaes Kirtsdnad……..Nuorgred Nusediht….Aaht…… Erehpsk………..Radt Naiga, FLUX!" I chanted.
A minute black spark appeared in my palm, but it dispersed right after I showed my astonishment.
I gritted my teeth as I thought 'I must not be concentrating hard enough'. I chanted the spell again.
The same results…
'I must focus… I have devoted my life to becoming a royal sorcerer… I should master the tome of Flux.'
The same results happened the day after that. My master often rebuked me that I was extremely intelligent but not devoted enough to the dark arts… But…, I was his most intellectual disciple and the only one of his students who could even conjure even a small amount of the dark energies. Dark magic may be the most powerful form of magic, but it is difficult to conjure and control. My master probably had extremely high expectations toward me, which I believed was the reason for his harsh admonishments.
"The reason you are unable to cast magic is because you show astonishment!" my master often exclaimed, "You are quiet but extremely intelligent…you would make a great shaman… But you show astonishment at your own magic! When you are surprised, you lose focus on casting the spell!"
I secretly thought that my master was not a reliable mentor…, so at night, I studied ancient tomes by myself. I had practiced by myself for over two months and I was downhearted. Right as I was at the verge of giving up, I suddenly remembered my father's words.
"Knoll…you are my son…you will definitely surpass your father in terms of becoming a sorcerer… But never forget…., the reason I became a magician was not for power…but for Grado."
The recollection of those words greatly encouraged me…I swore to achieve my goal. But…there was one thing I despised about being a shaman… The mages and acolytes who were also studying magic seemed to be afraid of me and the other sorcerers. Was it because I used a magic known as "dark"? Most sorcerers and I would prefer calling it "Elder", since dark is such a vague and blunt term for our magic…., but I knew that few would agree with us. I wanted to stop people from thinking that dark magic was evil…I wanted them to know that dark magic had good uses and could help people. Like my father…, I would persevere.
One night, I concentrated my all to the darkness and attempted casting Flux again. A small spark appeared as usual, but I didn't give up focusing. The spark began growing larger and larger as dark energies began to flow between my hands. I concentrated past my limits toward the spark. The spark grew larger and larger until it became a giant orb of dark energy.
'I finally mastered the Flux!' I thought.
But suddenly, the dark orb made me feel like my strength was sapping away. I felt as if the darkness was trying to break free from my control. I began feeling weak…but I didn't give up. When I sent the orb underground, it completely missed its target as it rose.
'My master was right…,' I thought as I was panting, 'it was hard to control…'
I thought this was enough for today. The nest day my master was overjoyed and my classmates were astounded when I revealed my accomplishment.
"Well done…Well done indeed," said my master.
"Master, I have a question….," I told him after class, "I feel weaker and can't aim well when I cast Flux."
"Knoll…let me tell you something… When you become a shaman…you have to control the darkness, not the other way around… Practice makes perfect….more practice and soon the spell will not affect your strength at all."
He was right. After a few nights, I was able to perfectly cast the spell of Flux. A royal magician named Leodes saw me practice one day and told my master.
"This child has talent… I've also heard that he is the son of Neill. I would like to make him my apprentice so I could help him advance in his studies."
"Yes…Lord Leodes…your tutoring will help young Knoll. One day, he will eclipse his father… I know it," said my mentor.
Ever since that day, I became a pupil of Leodes and he began teaching me new spells like Nosferatu, which summons a dark-violet mist that absorbs life energy and Luna, which unleashes lunar flames of dark energy that can penetrate magical resilience.