“Awakened for sale!” Jevro and his Brutes threw off the tarps to reveal Davros and the others in all their pathetic splendor. I blinked from the sudden light and squinted. New smells were blown through the cages and they were a welcome relief from the unwashed bodies to which I had become accustomed. My stomach growled. In the time it had taken to reach this place, I had become used to receiving a hearty meal at this time of day.

  We had been on the road for weeks and I had spent much of the time sleeping and eating. I had made a small attempt to learn the names of some of the others in the cage, but most chose to keep to themselves. Amazingly, Jevro didn’t skimp on feeding them. In fact, it was the most food I had ever been allowed to have and it was actually quite good. Salty ham that melted in his mouth, a soup that had tiny little beans called lentils in it and even bread that was only a little bit stale!

  Up until that morning, Davros had always ridden in the last wagon, but today Jevro and the Brutes had shuffled everyone around into different wagons. I couldn’t tell how Jevro was organizing us, but I did notice that everyone in the lead wagon I had been moved to seemed more aware and less afraid than many of the others. As if they had more confidence in a positive outcome of whatever was about to happen.

  The cold had been the hardest part for the others. I had seen blue lips, chattering teeth and pale skin the entire journey. It wasn’t really Jevro’s fault, I reasoned. The Withered Lands were entering their Winter Cycle and they were moving North or so I had overheard another whisper. This was a time of famine and death. Unbearable cold brought on by an erupting volcano, so the story went, that scarred the sky with an endless blanket of black clouds.

  I remembered that once Madam Fevre had supplied us with an old coal stove for our dormitory after the cold became almost too much for even her to ignore. She had been cursing her ill fortune for being located too close to something called a Wrath Portal or some-such. I didn’t know what that was, but Madame Fevre had made the sign of the Eye after mentioning it, so I knew it was something serious.

  I wished for the dozenth time I could still access my windows, but despite being cut off from my Mana I could still feel nearby flames. I could therefore sense we were approaching someplace where there were several burning flames. A village perhaps? Without mana, as Jevro had warned me, there was no magic. I scratched at the area on my wrist where bracelet met flesh.

  Jevro must put these on us so we can’t use our mana to escape.

  Even if I could have used a spell, if I had any, on the lock and escaped where would I go? I had no idea where I was or where we were going. Jevro had all the food and his Brutes were silent and menacing. No, I knew that even if I could access my mana I would have remained where I was to see this journey to the end. A pile of rags stirred next to me.

  “Right-o. Time fer food?” I jerked away with a shout when a small, hairless man stuck his head out of the pile of rags and gave me a look not unlike an Owl gives to a Mouse just before the former eats the latter. I stared at the strange figure.

  “Who are you?” I recovered my voice quickly, but when the man shed his blankets of rags and stood up, I realized I wasn’t looking at a man at all. “Are you a Dwarf?” I sized the dwarf up. He only just came up to my hip! He was about the size of a small boy, if broader and heftier. Where had he come from? Logically, he must have been here in the lead wagon the entirety of our journey, for I had not laid eyes on him once these many weeks.

  “That I be, that I be, young lad.” The dwarf hocked and spat out of the wagon and stretched. Strange. Hearsay was that Dwarves were supposed to have beards? This one was as bare faced as a babe! The Dwarf stared out at the people lined up outside the wagon who stared back and he chuckled. “Welly, ‘ere we go agin.”

  “What’s happening?” I didn’t expect the strange, hairless dwarf to answer but the dwarf smiled a gap toothed grin and picked at his nose. It was a large nose and I tried and failed not to stare as he dug deeper and deeper for his treasure.

  “Jevro gonna see who in this lot be needin’ Awakened like us. Then clink clink clink!” The dwarf tapped one of the bars of the cage with a dirty fingernail and mimicked counting out coins before going back to examining his nasal passages. I pressed myself up against the bars and watched Jevro entreating his audience.

  “I have a good selection this day, including a special offering I’m sure many of you will want to take note of a bit later. For now, our first Awakened up today is a young man all the way from the Hordelands. Ahem, for the few in this town who are not as educated as the rest of us, that’s even further east of what was formerly Torscow. This is um…” Jevro looked down at a ledger he had set upon a small lectern attached to the back of the wagon and scanned the page. “…Nihatha. A Ranger Class specializing in Beast Taming!”

  Several hands went up and the bidding started. I watched open mouthed as the price for Nihatha, a dark haired boy with strange tattoos etched into his tan colored skin, began at 20 Coppers and quickly escalated to 3 Silver. I had never possessed a single coin of my own, but I knew what coins were worth. A small fortune was being spent on the Awakened Ranger!

  Jevro didn’t waste any time. He called out another name and the Brutes retrieved the next individual from one of the wagons. Davros saw it was often well armed groups of men and women who were doing the buying and he wondered if these were Awakened themselves? He must have voiced his question aloud, because the dwarf answered.

  “Nar, like as not. Mercs mostly, aye. Preevate armies to some Nob. Maybe a few o’ the Forged? Or could be some o’ these peasants could use an extra hand down on the farm.”

  The wagons were emptying quickly, but not all transactions were to Jevro’s liking. A girl, one of the few, had just been purchased. Her class was called Sensate and she had just sold for nearly an entire gold piece, but the boy who had come directly after with the more common Fighter class had just barely reached 8 Coppers. Davros saw how grumpy that made Jevro as the flesh merchant snatched the coins from the smiling farmer who then led the bewildered looking boy away.

  “That doesn’t even cover the cost of the food I gave that brat on the way here,” Jevro grumbled. I overheard him and the Dwarf must have too, because he started chuckling.

  “Welly should’ve known that Class wouldn’t bring im much, bein fairly common even amongst the Forged. It’s a hoe and a scythe that lad’ll be learning to wield from now on. Ha!” I looked from the dwarf to the still grumbling Jevro then back again to the dwarf.

  “My name is Davros. I have a Class called Pyromancer. Is that worth a lot?”

  “Hmm. Welly well. Don’t know. ‘Pee-row-man-sar’? Hmm.” The dwarf looked comical as he scrunched up his face. He had some of the chubbiest cheeks and the largest noses I have ever seen. I considered that maybe not all Dwarves liked beards or maybe it was just a tall tale about how they all had facial hair?

  “It is no matter, Master…?”

  “Igvild be my name. Just Igvild like yer just Davros. Two veins of ore from the same lode, we are.” Igvild laughed at whatever that joke meant and I smiled. This dwarf seemed like an alright fellow.

  Jevro held up his hands to quiet the murmuring crowd. Jevro’s eye had been drawn toward some men on horseback at the back of crowd. These solemn faced men were dressed in matching armor with a black tabard worn over suits of chainmail. A red bird with outstretched wings was sewn dead center of each tabard and painted upon each man’s shield. Two of the soldiers caught my eye as well.

  The first was a human man older than any lackey, but young enough to not yet have lines upon his face or grays in his hair. He kept his blond hair cut short and his groomed mustache was thin upon his upper lip. I felt he had a haughty look about him, like Corlo had used to wear whenever he was giving orders. Despite the arrogant expression, I also observed he looked impressive in his armor and seated atop an enormous white horse. Even more impressive was who was mounted behind him.

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  A behemoth of a half-blood mounted upon a night black stallion, this Brute wore a matching set of plate armor with a black iron helm covering his head and ears. The helm had bat-like wings upon either side of the helmet, which leant him a sinister look. This Brute had inherited a lot from his Orcish sire and not only the tusks. Yet, there was nothing wild or savage in the half-blood’s face. Unlike the haughty man he was next to, the half-blood’s expression was aloof and proud.

  “Ahem, my friends I promised you something special today and now it is time to deliver! I have one now who has a most rare and dangerous Class indeed!” The crowd quieted almost instantly. The only sound was from the soldiers’ horses nickering and stomping in the mud. “Next up is Davros the Pyromancer!”

  I swallowed the lump in my throat as one of the Brutes entered the wagon and yanked me outside to stand before the crowd. Several in the crowd bore expressions of revulsion when they fully beheld my face. It made me want to slink back into the cage. I settled for bowing my head and staring at the ground.

  “This rare class can summon and control fire! Don’t let that ugly mug of his fool you, this lad is already a killer! He burnt another lad to a crisp without mercy!” Jevro smacked his hand upon his lectern for effect and there was a sharp intake of breath and even a few in the crowd took an involuntary step back. Those who had been smirking a moment ago at the youth now looked at him as if he were a dragon. Well, maybe not a dragon, but certainly something to be wary of.

  “Now then, due to the fact that Davros has only recently Awakened we will start the bidding lower than what one would consider the standard. Shall we say…1 gold piece?” Jevro’s inner grin grew wider when the leaders of each of the assembled mercenary companies threw up a hand. Someone who could burn away swathes of opponents and didn’t require a big investment to be outfitted in expensive armor was worth bidding for.

  “I see a gold piece from the Falcon Rangers. Do I hear 1 gold, 10 silver? I see 1 gold, 10 silver from the Green Walkers…”

  I stood silent and tried unsuccessfully not to gawk as representatives from different groups of dangerous looking individuals took turns bidding more and more money. 1 gold became 2, became 3. For what, I wondered?

  What is it they expect me to do? Do they really want me to do to others what I did to Corlo? The thought of vomiting up more fire onto others wasn’t at all appealing, but I didn’t see anyway around it. I was surrounded by people, more than I had ever been around before in my life, but I never felt more alone. At least at the Orphanage there had been a sort of structure. I knew what was expected of me and I had always done what I was told despite the abuse and lack of enough food. Now I was surrounded by strangers, some of whom I wasn’t sure were even human!

  One of the Mercenary Captains, a big hairy fellow wearing a helmet shaped like a roaring bear, pointed a gauntleted finger at me.

  “If I’m gonna give you more than three shiny golds then I need to see if this little freak can actually do wot you say! Let’um make a fire!”

  “Aye, let’s see’im do sumfin!” Another voice chimed in and there was a chorus of similar shouts as everyone now needed proof Davros actually was a Pyromancer. Jevro winced and nodded.

  “Right then! Fine! Davros, make fire!” I didn’t miss the unspoken menace in Jevro’s voice or in his gaze as he stared daggers at me. If I didn’t deliver I was in for a world of hurt from either Jevro or more likely one of the Brutes. Some things never change.

  I licked very dry lips. One of the Brutes walked forward and removed my bracelet by tapping a strange stick atop it, which caused it to slide off my wrist and into his greasy palm. I felt a rush of energy as if cold water had just been dumped over my head, but it felt more pleasant than shocking. My Mana had returned.

  I massaged my wrist and nodded at Jevro. I would do as I was told. I always did. Except I had never actually cast a spell before or knew how. Corlo had been on the receiving end of my special ability and I had no idea how to activate that either!

  Shaking, but not from the cold of course, I willed open the window that gave the description of my Class.

  Pyromancer

  Imbolc’s flame burns within you. The Will and the Weft for the shaping of fire. From flames destruction are the threads of new life spun.

  Well, that wasn’t a lot to go on. Still, now that I could access my mana again I could feel it racing through my channels as if a dam had burst in my Mana Core. It was hot. It was eager. It was fire. Instinctively I reached out for it with my Will and I could feel the mana respond by converging into my open palm. I couldn’t see it happen, but my eyes began to glow red.

  A spell was taking form in the palm of my hand. The mana began to rotate faster and faster. Was this all magic was? I blinked. No, this was raw, untamed mana combined with Imbolc’s flame and it wanted an outlet…now.

  I looked around for an easy target for my spell. To my amazement, while I held the equipped spell and looked at any particular person even for a moment they would become outlined in a color. Everyone in the crowd including Jevro and the Brutes gave off a soft gray color, but then I noticed a large black bird perched upon a branch just opposite where I stood outlined in red. I knew instinctively this creature was hostile toward me.

  The bird was a Crow. I had seen them before and heard them cawing outside the Orphanage. They were always such noisy birds, but this one was dead silent and staring at me. What was going on in this Crow’s head? Did it want to attack me for some reason?

  Wonder why you’re hostile, Crow? It’s no matter, I suppose. Nothing personal bird.

  I shrugged my shoulders and pointed my index finger at the Crow. A glowing red marble no larger than a lentil quickly formed just at the end of my fingertip and it shot forth from my finger to blast the Crow to pieces in a fiery shower of blood and feathers. The bird didn’t even get a chance to caw as its burning remains fell from its tree branch directly in front of the hairy warrior who had called me out. The warrior eyed the Crow corpse and grunted in satisfaction as he nodded at Jevro.

  Congratulations! You have learned the Fire Bolt spell!

  Fire Bolt is a basic spell that fires a fiery projectile at an opponent to inflict fire damage. Its cost is low and its damage middling. It can be upgraded.

  I smiled in both satisfaction and relief. I had really done it! I had done magic and it had been far simpler than I could ever have imagined.

  “Well! Erm, if there are no further questions?” Jevro eyed the smoking corpse before he went back to taking bids, which were coming faster than ever after my demonstration. The Brute placed the bracelet back on my wrist, but I noticed he was gentler than before and seemed nervous. He wouldn’t look me in the eye and when he was done he backed away and I heard him let out a sigh of relief.

  “10 Gold Crowns,” a powerful voice called out, carrying over the sounds of everyone else in the crowd. There was a moment of silence as everyone, including Jevro, processed what they had just heard.

  “I..I heard a bid of 10 gold from the most noble gentleman atop the horse there!”

  I looked over and saw the blond haired soldier staring at me. He had lost his haughty expression, but his new expression was unreadable. Surprised? Excited? Hungry even? I looked away first and my eyes fell upon the large Brute next to him. His expression was clearly surprised and a little angry. He said something to the blond haired soldier, but the expression on the man’s face didn’t change and he didn’t reply to whatever the half-blood had said.

  “Going once! Going twice! This grand gentleman shall accept Davros the Pyromancer into his most esteemed service!” Jevro said something else, but I didn’t hear what it was. Overwhelmed over what had just happened, I didn’t resist as two Brutes each took hold of an arm and hustled me over to the blond haired soldier and his men. We were met by another one of the men dressed in the same armor and tabard as the rest of the soldiers.

  “I am Captain Yentz. I shall take custody.” The Captain held forth a sack that jingled with coins. One of the Brutes took it eagerly and held forth the wand that was used to remove our Manastop bracelets. The Captain took the wand in hand and the Brutes returned to the wagons, which I could see were already being packed up for departure. I felt my heart sink. Another unfamiliar place with unfamiliar people.

  Goodbye, Igvild. I hope things work out for you somehow.

  I turned back to the Captain who was eyeing me up and down. Based on his expression I could tell he wasn’t impressed with what he saw.

  “We’re heading back to our camp. There are no spare horses so you’ll have to walk.” The Captain spun on his heel and started walking away and I hurried to keep up. The Captain pushed his way through the crowd and if his path didn’t clear quickly enough he wasn’t shy about shoving and swearing at any who impeded him. Most moved quickly out of the man’s way, but I noticed more than a few angry looks directed his way. I kept my head down and my mouth shut.

  I was immediately surrounded on all sides by men in armor seated upon large horses. I was an ant surrounded by giants. There was no sign of the giant half-blood or the blond haired soldier who had bought me, but the soldiers were quickly forming up into rows and I got the sense we were about to depart. I felt nervous and my legs were weak. I had just spent the last several weeks sitting around in a wagon after all. Jevro hadn’t let us out of our cages for any more than a few minutes a day to relieve ourselves. We ate and slept in the wagons. I was out of shape and had very little energy. The only upside was that I still didn’t feel the cold at all, despite the fact that the men and their horses were blowing gouts of steamy breath into the chill air.

  “Welly, ‘ere we go then,” a voice said next to me.

  “Igvild!” I turned and looked at the dwarf in surprise. “What are you doing here? Did that soldier buy you as well?” The dwarf chuckled at my grinning face and patted me on the arm. I noticed he still had on his Manastop bracelet too.

  “Oh, I were what you’d call a ‘speeceal deleevry’ ye ken? That fancy pants Nob on the horse got sumthin’ he’s needin’ opened and I be the only one who can do it.”

  “It’s good to see you, Igvild.” I didn’t know what he was referring to about why the blond haired soldier needed him, but it felt good to not be completely abandoned. The soldiers started moving in neat columns side by side with Igvild and I in-between the groups. The road was dirt and after a while started to slope upwards. We never stopped, but the soldiers didn’t appear to be in any particular hurry so both Igvild and I were able to maintain a steady, if uneven, pace.

  My first glimpse of the camp came just as the Sun was beginning its descent behind the mountains in the distance. A new and beautiful sight to a boy who had spent the bulk of his life in the same place. Yet, even as I took in the rows of tents and sharp looking stakes that surrounded the well fortified camp I felt a sense of foreboding. Igvild must have seen my expression.

  “Don’t worry lad. Nobody lays down so much coin for a body they don’t mean to treat well. At least as long as ye do as they say, mind ye!”

  “Aye,” I answered. Doing what I was told? Well, I always had. Still, that feeling after I had blasted that Crow into bits stayed with me. Would I always have to do as I was told, I wondered?