Euris had kept to herself for three days, mostly in her room and other familiar and favorite haunts which she knew she would soon have to leave. She frequently ate with her father, who surprised her by saying he was staying for the Council. She spent a few hours with Laria, who was so excited about her future that it was easy to keep Euris’ own out of the conversation. She did not go to the Tower, and had not seen Gath since she took leave of him after the ceremony, and that made her wonder if she was truly fulfilling her duty as a Protector or not. Should she not be doing more for him? Or, anything at all? But he was in the heart of the College of Sorcery, which was perhaps the most secure place a person could be. What could she do, other than carry his books? It worried her that all she could do was wait; yet she was fully aware that waiting had never been a strength of hers.

On the morning of the Council, she dressed in her simple and comfortable clothes, glad to be rid of the dress uniform, hopefully forever, and pulled on her worn and comfortable leather boots. She pulled her hair back, and tied it with the thong. She left her room and walked across the lawn in the early morning sunlight just cresting the rim of the world and peeking through the jumble of spires that was the College of Sorcery. She walked what was now the familiar way to the Gray Tower, and through the bright arcade to what was now a welcome and solidly comfortable old stone corridor. The huge wooden door with its iron hinges looked less forbidding and more solid. Maybe this soon would be her home.

Her knock went unanswered for a long time, but she heard a muffled “coming!” from the other side, then the door cracked open. The Master of the Gray Tower had opened the door, and looked surprised to see her until he remembered who she was and why she was there. With a smile and a wink to her, he said over his shoulder, “Gath, your Protector has arrived. Time for us to be going!” He drew her inside and said they would only be a moment.

Gath hurried down the stairs, looking more hale than he had on graduation day. Instead of the ornate regalia of the Gray Tower in which she had seen him the first time, Gath wore a simple gray robe and worn leather sandals. He looked as rumpled as his Master. Perhaps that was part of what an apprentice learned, just as Euris had learned how to wear her dress uniform. At least he did not look as pale, and had a spring in his step which he lacked during the graduation ceremony, which raised her hopes that they might indeed complete the Quest.

Gath gave her a smile. “Are you ready to find out about our Quest?” She told him she was, and the Master gathered up a document bag with who knew what in it. He stuffed a few more papers in for good measure, although Euris could not see what they were and couldn’t imagine what kind of paperwork he would need, and then ushered them out the door. The Master led them along a concourse to the center of the College, where stood the largest Tower, the White. Few people were up and about at the early hour, and Euris guessed most were having breakfast someplace. They gained entry into the White Tower with no problems, with the Gray Master along, and they proceeded up a long, winding stair to a plain conference room, which was already crowded. The room had unadorned walls of wooden paneling, which covered up the stone of the Tower and made the room look more inviting. The room seemed designed to keep meetings short, and not let the participants get too comfortable, since the wooden chairs had no padding, and the room had worn wooden floors with no carpeting.

The White Master sat at the head place of a large circular table in an ornate chair. Beside him, the Gray Master took his place, and beside him Gath sat down. Euris sat beside Gath, and her father Prince Eugellis came in and sat beside her. She exchanged a good morning with her father, who was still beaming with pride over his daughter’s new position. Along the other semicircle sat the Headmaster of the College of Swords, and the Training Master, Armsmaster Fallir. The Headmaster was a severe looking man, who was old but still in such good shape that he put shame to most of the new, young recruits who came under his command. He had white hair, and the deep stare of a man who has become accustomed to giving the sorts of orders which might lead his men to their death. Most at the school considered him hard and aloof, but the few upperclassmen with true potential to succeed, and Euris had found herself in that position, he was always available and a font of advice about life. Fallir was the drill master and head instructor at the College of Swords, and was a salty old campaign veteran who had taken what he called a “desk job”, despite the fact that he did all of the drills he put his recruits through, after retiring from active service. His practical experience simply could not be exhausted. He had risen to his position for one reason, only: he was able to separate the people with true potential and ability from the slackers and fakers, usually within a few minutes of meeting them. He had reduced many to tears and exhaustion, and had sent them back home as washouts. Anyone who stuck it out and earned Fallir’s respect had earned something rare and precious indeed. Euris had never quite known if she was one of those people or not. She thought so, but it was not the sort of thing one discussed with Fallir. Yet any student who had made it through “shock”, as he called it, was given a certain qualified respect. Or, perhaps, probation. Respect came later, if at all. Euris admired most that Fallir was completely indifferent to any recruit’s station in life: he would bring the best out of a scullion turned soldier if it took him ten years, and send the King’s own son packing if he discerned that the boy was a slacker. The Princess of South Port had not been given a single heartbeat’s worth of preferential treatment because of her lofty title.

The eyes of the White Master scanned the people at the table, and a hush followed his glance. “All here?” Good,” Aio said by way of beginning the Council. He rearranged some papers, and took a look at one as if to remind himself of the topic of the meeting. Euris realized that although this was the most important event in her life, to him it must be just one of the many different items on his full plate. “This Special Quest was proposed by the Gray Tower, and accepted by both myself and the Headmaster,” who nodded an affirmative. “The Special Quest is to go to the ruins of the ancient city of Morran and find the Book Of Ages, if it in fact still survives, as well as to learn as much as possible about the state of the ruins. By mutual consent, we have appointed Gath of the Gray Tower and Princess Euris to execute the Quest.”

Euris wondered what the Book of Ages was, since the name meant nothing to her. She vaguely knew about the Morranreach far in the north of the kingdom, although she had never been there herself, but had heard only the most vague whispers about the ancient city of Morran. The city had been the site of an ancient, despotic renegade Sorcerer. This was long before the College of Sorcery had been founded as a way for Sorcerers to police themselves and stop any renegades from using their sorcery to usurp power for themselves. Morran had been the site of one of the most fierce battles of sorcery ever known, and the city had been destroyed. So had the renegade. After the event, many rumors of ghosts, and other strange happenings, circulated. Euris had laughed most of this off as the accretion of legend and tall tales around the kernel of a true event, but now that she knew the Special Quest involved the site of this ancient ruin, she was suddenly not as sure. What were tall tales when she heard whispers of them from other apprentices seemed much more realistic when she was being asked to go there. She suppressed a shudder.

The Armsmaster stirred around in his chair, and then said, “I’m all for sending Eurie,” he said, “but the lad doesn’t look fit for such a Quest.” The weather-beaten old instructor had a knack for sizing up anyone with a glance, and Gath would not have passed muster even with less critical eyes than his. Euris frowned. She completely agreed, but found herself feeling quite defensive about someone else saying such things about her Journeyman, even if it was Fallir. She was spared having to say anything on Gath’s behalf, though, because Master Aeral quickly spoke up for him.

“Ah, Master Fallir,” Aeral the Gray Master said deliberately, as if explaining a concept patiently to a student, “but there are other mitigating factors. The most important is that Gath himself. He’s the only person from the Morranreach to ever attend the school. He’s a native, so to speak, and would be quite well equipped to go exploring in the area. He is also the only person in the school besides myself who speaks the Old Elvish language in which the book was written, and who would recognize the book. So it’s a most precise and logical choice.” Aeral folded his hands in front of him on the table, to show he had made his point and all that was left was for reasonable people to agree with him. Euris couldn’t tell if he was bluffing or not, but then he was a Master, and she would not underestimate any of them, even such a harmless looking one.

“I don’t disagree, Master Aeral,” the Headmaster said, “but it is obvious from looking at the boy he is not, and I do not mean any offense at all, but, our usual sort for a Quest.” The Headmaster managed to look apologetic while remaining firm in his position.

Gath only said, in his own defense, “I can complete the Quest.” His black eyes showed determination and he say up straight in his chair. If he thought that his Quest hung on whatever answer he gave the Headmaster, and the Council, as to his fitness, he did not betray any sort of nervousness. Euris admired his pluck, but she could not tell if he was bluffing, either. If Armsmaster Fallir had taught his students anything at all in their six years under his wing, it was how to tell if someone was cheating them with dice. He knew vulnerable young students set loose in the capital with spending money screamed to be taken advantage of by every street hustler within twenty miles of the city. She thought she could tell a bluff a mile off, but in this case, with the Sorcerer and the Journeyman, she could not be sure.

Euris wanted to speak up, but she was, after all, only a Protector and was not at the Council to make decisions. She champed at her bit, wanting to tell them that of course Gath could complete the Quest. She also wanted to ask a million questions. What was the Book of Ages? Was the Quest a trophy hunt for a new fundraising effort? What did the Book mean to the kingdom? Knowing her place as a Protector, Euris said nothing, but she was brimming with questions that would have to be asked sometime.

Aeral said, “Aio and myself both agree that the plusses Gath brings to the Quest far outweigh the drawbacks, and from our side he is the most qualified person to send.” The White Master nodded his assent, but it was difficult to tell if the assent came from enthusiasm and a conviction that Gath was indeed the right person, or simply from a resignation that came from knowing when to pick his own battles and this not being one of them. Maybe he was letting Aeral win this one in order to save some favors for a later date when he really needed the Gray Master’s help. As long as he assented, Euris figured, the reason did not matter.

“Very well, so be it,” the Headmaster conceded. Relief flushed through Euris. The Headmaster continued: “I have made arrangements for supplies to be requisitioned. As well as a stipend for travel expenses.” He then detailed the supplies from a procurement list he produced, and they got out a map of the area and began planning the details of the Quest. This went on for some time, as the Armsmaster told them what he knew of the roads north. The Council finally dismissed, with general agreement that Gath and Euris could begin tomorrow morning.

As they left the room, Euris wanted to speak to her father a moment, and hung back until the man had said his farewell to the Headmaster. When he exited the conference room, he saw her standing in an alcove and came over to her. “Go on, Protector, and stand by your Sorcerer,” Euris’ father told her with a smile. “You have your duties now, and so do I. If I don’t see you again before you leave, good luck. I know you’ll make me proud.” Euris’ father gave her a kiss on the forehead, and waked briskly away. Eugellis was all business, especially in front of his current audience on whom he got little chance to make an impression, but she knew how much her father loved her. Likely her father had twenty meetings planned before he left for South Port with various high officials in the kingdom whose political grease could smooth the trade between here and there. She wondered, as she watched him depart from the Tower, if she would indeed see him again before she left.

Gath was waiting for her, and they descended the steps of the White Tower together and returned to their own Tower. The Gray Tower was becoming comfortable and familiar to her now. Gath disappeared for a few minutes while the Gray Master bustled around, putting up his papers, and finally sat down. Gath returned with a tray on which he had placed a loaf of bread, a hunk of cheese, some gapes, and two tumblers. They sat side-by-side in the small love seat, once it had been cleared of a stack of books, munching on the bread and cheese. The Master dozed in the leather chair. Euris was grateful for the food, since she did not realize until he brought it to her how hungry she was. Sitting and planning all morning had taken a lot of energy, especially when she had been holding back questions.

Euris thanked Gath for the snack, trying to restrain the torrent of questions long enough for him to have a bite to eat himself. Euris couldn’t contain herself for long, and began to question Gath as he ate. The most obvious question first: “What is the Book of Ages?”

He finished his bite, and responded: “A book which has been missing from the Great Library for a long time. It is said to contain the history of Morran, and the Lost Tower, and to tell why Morran fell into ruins. We know almost nothing about that history, before the College was founded and back when the individual Towers were scattered all over the countryside, but it is said to have been built by a renegade Sorcerer. We know so little that finding the Book of Ages would be of great help in piecing together our history from that dim time.”

The second most obvious question next: “But you’ve not had this book for a long time. There must be more to this than completing the Library’s collection, right? What brought on this Quest now?”

Gath did not look at her for a moment, taking another bite of bread and chewing thoughtfully, but then smiled. “I suppose it’s nothing more than having a student who knows Old Elvish, and as a bonus comes from the area. After all, why not now?” Euris thought his easy reassurance was masking something he did not want to tell her. She did not push him, wishing she knew him better and knew when to press for more and when to back off. He was still a closed book to her, and she did not want to start off on the wrong foot, at least not this soon. Fleetingly, her mind wondered when they would first get mad at each other, and what it would be about, and how quickly they’d get over it, but she pushed that aside.

“True enough. How did you learn Old Elvish, anyway?” Euris didn’t actually know there was such a thing as “Old” Elvish, although she had heard rumors of the elves and their tongue over the years of living at the college. For her, elves hardly seemed real, living in the remote east somewhere beyond human knowledge. She knew very little about elves, other than the lived deep in the northern and eastern forests outside of the control of the kingdom, and had almost nothing to do with humans. A few Sorcerers had, at various times, been associated with them, but those stories were told only in the most vague terms. No one she knew in living memory had ever met an elf. They were an ancient people, the remnants of once mighty and proud empires which had crumbled long before the earliest humans had settled in the lands now within the kingdom’s borders. Now, they lived in isolation, cut off from all but themselves, and she supposed they were dealing with their own past and decisions. It was said, although no one knew for sure, that elves were immortal. At least, they lived a long time. Even in her short years of life, Euris had many regrets, words she wished she had not said and things she wished she had not done, and she could not imagine living with her past for centuries on end. She supposed the elves must be sad.

“From Master Aeral, mostly, and through immersion.” He said that so plainly that it didn’t seem the least bit unusual.

It took a second for what he said to register. Immersion in a language could only be accomplished by living with native speakers, and that meant he had spent time with elves. When it did sink in, she had a wholly different perspective on this young apprentice who had spent time with the elves no one in living memory had seen. “You’ve met elves?” She asked this with more surprise in her voice than she’d have thought. She simply had not recovered from that surprise, and almost wished she had not said anything.

“Yes, once. I spent some time in elvish country, learning all I could about the language and their ancient writings. I’ll never forget that time.” He had a far-off expression, and looked into the distance, as if he were there reliving the experience rather than here talking to her.

Euris suddenly had a thought: “Why was the human Book of Ages written in Old Elvish, anyway?” Perhaps all the exposure to Sorcery she had received was rubbing off of her, to have thought up such an interesting question.

Gath laughed, but he was not laughing at her. He laughed at the question itself. “That’s an insightful question, and one we’ve asked ourselves. One of the first things I’ll try to figure out once I have the Book! I will say, no one knows. No one at all.”

Euris and Gath talked a little more about the journey, and promised to meet at the river bridge at the College of Swords right before dawn the next morning.

“Normally, you’d be invited to move into the Tower, but since we’re leaving tomorrow, there’s really not time.” Gath suddenly grinned at her. “Besides, I’m sure you’d rather sleep in your own bed, rather than a strange Tower’s guest room! I know I would.”

As she left the Gray Tower, she turned and gave Gath a hug. As she did, she whispered in his ear, “I know you’ll be just fine on the Quest. We’ll be back with the Book in no time.”

She released him, and as she turned away, he said softly, “I hope you’re right.” She did not see the unreadable and haunted look in his dark eyes.

On to ... Chapter Three: Hospitality