Thomas gave voice to the one thought that was dominating his mind, "What is a Shaman?"
The Headmaster smiled, "A Shaman is an ancient class. Until about two centuries ago they were known as one of the more powerful hybrid classes. Shamans combine strong fighting skills with an almost instinctual grasp of elemental magic. Most Shamans were also adept at spirit magic as well. The most unique aspect of Shamans is their ability to create Totems. Totems are objects capable of storing spells, to be released later. That ability made Shamans extremely dangerous on the battlefield. Fighting a Shaman was like fighting two or three opponents at once." The Headmaster looked toward the war hammer hung above the fireplace and continued softly. "When I was young, my guild participated in a raid against a clan of renegade shamans who had seized control of a small town. We outnumbered them three to two, and they still nearly beat us. Our causalities were nearly eighty-five percent. And almost half the renegades were able to escape. They would have won if the guilds of Silverfall and the Water Power Tribe had not arrived." The Headmaster turned his attention back to Thomas with a firmer voice. "I am glad I am here to see the revival of the Shamans. From the time of merging until their fall, Shamans were a proud class that was instrumental in bringing the balance we now know. Their fall was a great loss to all the guilds, and to the world as a whole."
"I disagree, Headmaster," said Mrs. Honoka, "The Shamans got exactly what they deserved. And I'm not very keen about helping them return."
"Judith, I know what the Shamans did to your tribe. And I agree, the renegade shamans deserved their fate. But it was taken too far. The innocents were punished beside the guilty. Entire clans were wiped out, from the eldest to the babes still suckling at their mother's breast." The Headmaster shook his bearded head sadly. "It was a great injustice."
"What happened? Why were they destroyed?" asked Thomas. "What could they have done to deserve such a punishment?"
"The Shaman class has always been passed down by bloodlines. This led to the creation of the Shaman clans. After several centuries, the clans became arrogant. They saw themselves as the most important class in the guilds. Then the Shaman only guilds began to appear. They began to force other guilds out of their territory. Or the other guilds could remain, but only by complying with the Shamans rule. Over a period of several decades, the shamans acquired nominal control over a quarter of the continent. The other Guilds were at a loss about what to do. The Shaman guilds coordinated their efforts, but the other guilds were too independent to counter them."
"That was the situation when the Sun Strider incident occurred. The Shamans, angered by the Sun Strider tribe's resistance to their rule, accepted a contract from several bandit gangs to abandon the tribe when the bandits attacked. The Sun Striders had hired the Shamans to escort them through the bandits' area. When the bandits attacked, the Shamans left, and the Sun Striders own guild had to face the bandits alone. They won, but their losses were horrible. The tribe lost almost a third of its people. Many were taken as slaves. The tribe was decimated." The Headmaster shook his head sadly.
"After that the guilds formed a collation to remove the Shamans from their position of dominance. As the fighting progressed, many of the guilds stopped distinguishing between the renegade Shaman guilds and innocent Shamans. The wave of revenge forced almost all the Shamans to join the renegades. That pushed the revenge wave even farther forward. All Shamans were declared outlaw. Most of the surviving Shamans went into hiding, or were hunted down and killed. The last known Shaman was killed by an angry mob about 190 years ago. He had been hiding, but broke his cover to save the village from a bandit raid. As soon as he defeated the bandits, the town attacked, capturing him and burning him alive. Since then, there has not been a sighting of an active shaman until today."
The Headmaster looked Thomas in the eye, "You will likely see some resentment as well. Two hundred years may seem like a long time to a human, but many of the longer-lived races are still active in the guilds. I hope you are ready for it."
"I'll try my best, Headmaster" Thomas replied nervously.
"Now let's get to the business of training our new Shaman. Unfortunately, I believe all the teaching materials related to shamans were destroyed during the second half of the uprising. And, as I've said, there are none we can ask. So that leaves us in a predicament. Without any knowledge to work from, we're lost in big, dark, and dangerous woods. Does anyone have a thought about where to begin?"
"Yes Headmaster," said Mrs. Honoka. "We should move Mr. Walker to a separate dorm, just like the other classes. The Shaman dorm is still unused; sealed when the Shamans left the school. If Mr. Walker is a Shaman, he should be able to lift the seal. That will prove to the other classes that he is in fact a separate class."
"Well, that is a start," said the Headmaster. "I also think he should split his time between the Elemental Mages and the Warriors. I believe we will be able to balance his development. The more advanced elemental spells will likely be beyond him, but he should be able to handle the year one spells. Are you OK with that Aura?"
"I'm looking forward to it, Headmaster"
"OK. That will do for a plan for now. Mr. Walker, I'll come with you to open the Shaman dorm. Mr. Ericson and Ms. Nightfrost, please return to your classes. Mrs. Honoka, please set up a schedule for Mr. Walker. And Mr. Ericson, I do not recall many shamans wearing plate armor or using swords. We will allow him to wear any armor and use any weapons he chooses."
"Fine. He never seemed to be comfortable with either. And it will be a nice change to be able to train new weapons without having to overwrite old skills," Mr. Ericson responded.
"Well, there's a bit of a silver lining to this mess," Thomas commented to himself as he turned to leave, eliciting a round of chuckles from the assembled instructors.