Firebrand 3 the acolyte, p.1
Firebrand 3: The Acolyte, page 1
THE ACOLYTE
©2023 D.E. OLESEN
This book is protected under the copyright laws of the United States of America. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without the prior permission in writing of the publisher, nor be otherwise circulated in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition including this condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser. Any reproduction or unauthorized use of the material or artwork contained herein is prohibited without the express written permission of the authors.
Aethon Books supports the right to free expression and the value of copyright. The purpose of copyright is to encourage writers and artists to produce the creative works that enrich our culture.
The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book without permission is a theft of the author’s intellectual property. If you would like to use material from the book (other than for review purposes), please contact editor@aethonbooks.com. Thank you for your support of the author’s rights.
Aethon Books
www.aethonbooks.com
Interior print and eBook formatting by Steve Beaulieu. Artwork provided by Kaion Luong.
Published by Aethon Books LLC.
Aethon Books is not responsible for websites (or their content) that are not owned by the publisher.
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead is coincidental.
All rights reserved.
ALSO IN SERIES
The Novice
Fire-Touched
The Acolyte
Spellslinger
Check out the entire series here!
(tap or scan)
CONTENTS
Summary
1. Back to School
2. New Routines
3. First Day of Fire
4. Once More into the Breach
5. Idle Machinations
6. Public Enemy
7. Frank Exchange
8. Angry Fire
9. Ambitions of a Father
10. Heated Lessons
11. Mortar and Pestle
12. Dreaming of Potions
13. Getting Your Guild in a Twist
14. Cracks in the Walls
15. A Sindhian Beginning
16. Fast Talk
17. Idle Explanations
18. Chasing Pearls
19. Downstairs Reunion
20. Eye of the Homeowner
21. Distractions
22. Reward or Punishment
23. Homework
24. Staying Underneath
25. Cooler Heads
26. At Odds
27. Co-workers
28. Stirring
29. Standing Guard
30. Trouble in the Alley
31. Improvised Aid
32. Down the Hatch
33. The First Touch
34. Slow Means
35. Rolled Up
36. Late Lessons
37. Tactics of a Scarecrow
38. Spite
39. Liquid Magic
40. Small Glow
41. Arsenal
42. Carrying Water
43. Dazzling Pearls
44. Slipping Through Fingers
45. Gemstone
46. Silken Negotiations
47. Gracious as a Scarecrow
48. The Glow of an Idea
49. Unexpected Light
50. The Power of a Potion
51. Trampled
52. School Interview
53. Painful Observations
54. Raising Walls
55. His Own Choosing
56. A Fox in the Henhouse
57. Masquerade
58. Flaming Wagers
59. Failing Walls
60. A Lesson in Leadership
61. The Cunning of Perel
62. Dazzling Gems
63. Paths of Friendship
64. Teamwork
65. Camaraderie
66. A Teacher's Calling
67. Getting to a Nunnery
68. The Riddle of Three
69. A Ruby Among Yellow
70. Mending Fences
71. Cold Thoughts
72. Helping the Hunter
73. Warning Signs
74. Sharpening Knives
75. If the Prize is Right
76. A Dramatic Reveal
77. Theatre Below
78. Runes, Hedges, and Alchemy
79. Regnar's Reunion
80. A Spell to Help or Hinder
81. Blissful Sleep
82. The Friendship of a Mercenary
83. A Child's Innocence
84. Bad Moon Rising
85. The Second Touch
86. Smoked
87. Low Spirits
88. Unexpected Spectre
89. Faithless Gems
90. Theatrics in the Tavern
91. North, South, in Between
92. Enchanted Talk
93. Blind Fighting
94. Incendiary Knowledge
95. The Burdens of Gifts
96. Curb Your Reaction
97. Brotherly Business
98. Keeping Up Appearances
99. Need a Hand
100. Tricky Courage
101. Knowledge is Bliss
102. The Usual Suspect
103. Blind Windfall
104. Spells and Offers to Counter
105. Birds of a Feather
106. Practically Minded
107. The Archean Connection
108. Secrets of the Trade
109. A Trail of Webs
110. Blissful
111. Teaching the Bird
112. Tentative Thoughts on Tutoring
113. Familiar Weight
114. Fingers in the Ground
115. Sweet Knowledge
116. Snake Scratches
117. Silver-forked Tongue
118. The Illusion of Choice
119. A Nest of Snakes
120. Matter over Mind
121. Study Sessions
122. The Slow Machinations of Earth
123. Veiled Warnings
124. New Methods
125. Bridging a Gap
126. A Red Day at Market
127. Red Hunt
128. A Day in the Infirmary
129. Three Spells
130. On the Nature of Authority
131. Wisdom without Knowledge
132. Slow Fire
133. Burnout
134. Grey Brothers
135. Treasure Hunt
136. Wheeling and Dealing
Thank you for reading The Acolyte
Groups
LitRPG
SUMMARY
After months of studying magic, Martel prepares for his novice examination, hoping to become an acolyte in water magic. He also involves himself in matters in the city. He helps his orphan friends in the copper lanes and trains some of Kerra's henchmen, the criminal chief of the district, should the nefarious maleficar return to claim more victims. He looks out for his Khivan friend Shadi, whose people are discriminated against by the general populace, especially due to the ongoing war between the Asterian Empire and Khiva.
Helping Kerra in a dispute with another criminal chief, Tibert, Martel is used as bait to set a trap. He cuts ties with her altogether but makes new allies in the Night Knives, an Aquilan mercenary company setting up shop in Morcaster. He sells his services to them, making money to pay for his sick brother's medicine and Shadi's rent.
The latter proves an ongoing problem, as her landlord constantly raises the rent. This issue plagues the district in general, making many Khivans homeless. Trying to remedy the situation and investigate, Martel discovers that the powerful Duke Cheval is behind this to build more profitable housing for better-paying tenants, once the Khivans are driven out. Getting impatient, the duke decides to simply burn the quarter down.
Martel intercedes, taming the fire before it can spread too far. While saving lives, his intervention ultimately fails. Many of the Khivans leave the city, allowing the duke to continue with his building plans; Shadi and her father are among those leaving, rather than risk further persecution and danger.
Besides losing his friend, Martel also inadvertently reveals his secret that he is fire-touched, despite the efforts of his protectors among the Lyceum's faculty, Mistress Juliana and Master Alastair. This determines his fate at the Lyceum, regardless of his desires; he is made a fire acolyte to study that magic and become a battlemage, conscripted to the legions for the war against Khiva.
Besides distrust against firemages due to the destructive nature of their spells, Martel must contend with everyone knowing he is fire-touched; such mages are stigmatised and feared for their hot tempers and tendency to lose control of their powerful and dangerous magic.
His only solace is his two friends at the Lyceum, the viscount Maximilian and the patrician Eleanor, both studying as mageknights. At the behest of his father, Maximilian plans to become a protector to join the Praetorian Guard and eventually become its captain, an influential position at the Imperial court. Eleanor seeks to become an officer in the legions, rising in the ranks to emulate her father, the legate of the First Legion, which guards Morcaster. Martel is not allowed any choice in his
ONE
BACK TO SCHOOL
Graduating from novice to acolyte meant new classes and courses along with a different schedule. Martel would be trained extensively in fire magic throughout his remaining year; later on, he would also be taught skills like Tyrian runes and hopefully enchantment. For now, he would begin learning the Archean alphabet and language, as Archen was the basis of the magic being taught in Aster as well. So Martel dressed himself in his red robes denoting his new status and went to his first lesson as an acolyte.
Master Fenrick had several classrooms at his disposal, as Martel had learned. One for teaching astronomy, another for magical theory. It turned out that teaching Archean was done in a third. Entering, Martel saw one wall had been painted with the strange letters of the Archean alphabet, unknown to him. For now, anyway. In comparison, he recognised the other students present. Unlike when he had studied astronomy with them, he did not have to find a solitary seat in the back. One stood empty next to Maximilian, which Martel took.
"Nordmark, look at you. All dressed up in red," the mageknight remarked with a smirk. "A pleasant change from that dull brown."
Martel replied with a wry look, not sure what to say. Looking elsewhere, he saw Cheval staring at him with unvarnished hatred. He wondered if the young nobleman's father had told his son of how Martel had interfered with his plans; the mageknight had plenty of other reasons for disliking Martel, after all.
Master Fenrick entered. He adjusted his spectacles as he looked at the newest student in the class. "Martel, I see you have joined us. Good. Any further delay to your status as acolyte would have made it difficult for you to catch up. I am told you have a tutor for that purpose?"
Martel glanced at Eleanor, who gave a quick smile back at him, and quietly thanked Mistress Juliana for making the arrangement. "I do, master."
"Very well. Pay attention. Today we will look at irregular verbs. I suggest you take copious notes."
Grabbing the quill on his desk and dipping it in ink, Martel prepared to write.
Walking down the corridor later that day, Martel was lost in his own thoughts and did not notice someone walking on a collision course with him until it happened. They pushed against his shoulder with their own. Torn back to his surroundings, Martel turned to see it had not been an accident; Jasper glared at him.
"Your little secret's out. Now everyone knows what an unhinged bastard you are!" The gloating in his voice was nearly palpable, and if there had been any doubt, his face mirrored the emotion. "You'll get sent to the front, where some Khivan bullet will make short work of you!"
"If you know how volatile I am, why would you dare taunt me? Did our last encounter not put you in your place?" Martel stared at the earthmage's throat and let flames ignite around his hand, holding it up.
"You can't frighten me here," Jasper sneered, even as he took a step backwards. "Nobody will believe you are sparring, not this time!"
"I am a battlemage," Martel retorted. "Far more valuable than you. You think they would ever expel me? Especially not for fighting. That's the one thing they want me to do."
Various expressions crossed the earthmage's face, but they leaned towards fear. Jasper backed away a few more paces before he finally turned around and disappeared down the hallway.
"That's what I thought." Martel let the words echo even as others looked, exchanging whispers. He suddenly doubted himself; while he had no sympathy for Jasper, he reinforced what others believed about the fire-touched. That felt unwise; at the same time, Martel could not deny the satisfaction from sending Jasper into flight simply with his words. Others might not like him, but they would at least respect him from now on.
For his afternoon class, Martel stepped into the Hall of Elements. He had not expected to be back here; acolytes did not take lessons in this place or from Master Alastair. But with everything changing, he did not mind this small piece of familiarity.
"Punctual as ever. Come, join me." His teacher stood at the centre on the ring of earth, beckoning for him to join, which Martel did. "Did Mistress Juliana explain my reason for continuing to train you? You will be my only acolyte student, if you did not know."
"She mentioned something like helping me learn enough in my remaining year."
"Something like that. A little more complicated," Master Alastair admitted. "You'll learn everything any battlemage needs to know about fire magic, I'm sure. Between your talent and your teacher, that is assured. But in my experience, the weakness of a mage is rarely being sufficiently skilled with one element, but rather their shortcomings with the others. For that reason, knowing what you face, I have two aims."
Martel listened intently. He sometimes forgot, especially given the kind side of himself that Master Alastair usually showed, but the man had served twenty years as a battlemage, after all.
"First, I want to hone your skills with the other elements to ensure you can rely on them in combat. While you will never have the same offensive capabilities with them that fire provides, it will still be useful."
He trusted his teacher's aforementioned experience on this. "And the other aim?"
"Building on that, I wish to continue training you in advanced elemental magic. You will not receive this from Mistress Moira, whose domain is exclusively fire. But again, there is great power in mastering more than one element. You told me once that you called down a lightning bolt?"
Martel nodded. No need to mention that it had exhausted him to the point where he threw up.
"A powerful spell for those who can wield it properly. We will consider that our goal for this year."
Master Alastair's words rang true; Martel remembered the feeling of power coursing through him as he summoned lightning from the sky. He also recalled how his teacher had wielded that same power from his fingertip; probably no other piece of spellwork had impressed Martel as much. "That sounds great."
"Let's begin. Now, as fire-touched, drawing water straight from the air is difficult." Even as he said this, the teacher drew droplets from thin air into the palm of his hand. "It resists us. So that's the first thing we'll work on."
Martel stretched his neck. He felt ready for the challenge.
TWO
NEW ROUTINES
The next morning, after working an awkward shift in the apothecary, where Nora said little more than necessary, Martel made his way to the workshops. As he arrived, gathering with the few other students also reporting for work, he noticed that they all kept their distance. He also found that he did not care.
Master Jerome made his appearance soon after, quickly directing his new workers to various positions and tasks, with Martel the lone exception. "Finally an acolyte," he remarked with a look towards Martel's new robes. "Good thing I made your belt black. Since every colour goes well with black."
Martel quickly glanced down at his leather belt with the pin shaped as a lightning bolt in the buckle. It did suit his red garb well. "Always a step ahead, Master Jerome."
The artificer gave a quick laugh, and Martel was glad to see the big man's jovial behaviour had not changed; he did not care how random students at the Lyceum treated him, but Master Jerome was another matter.
"As an acolyte, you will be spared the more menial tasks. I got plenty of novices for that. For now, with all your experience from the apothecary, I imagine you'll do well preparing ingredients and making ink. And while fire acolytes don't need to learn enchantment, I'll talk with your teachers. If there's time in your schedule for it, maybe we can find something useful for you to learn."
Martel's ears pricked up at that. Using fire to create rather than destroy sounded enticing. "I look forward to it, master."
The artificer placed a heavy hand on his shoulder. "There's a good lad. Come along, your work is waiting."
Passing through the entrance hall in the afternoon, Martel stopped to check for messages. He had a feeling he could no longer expect Henry to track him down or get his attention if anything waited for him, so it seemed best to take a more active role.
He approached the air acolyte's desk. "Any letters?"
"I'll check." Avoiding eye contact, Henry got up and walked to the cabinets by the wall, quickly perusing them until he pulled out a small note. Wordlessly, he handed it over to Martel and sat down again.
