Dammit, Mike thought to himself as Aric called his father. This is something I definitely did not want to happen.

  Mike knew the spell Aric was using right now. He had picked up Direct Communication from the man’s grimoire, but it cost more to cast than he could currently afford. He would have it in only one more mana, so it was grayed out. Farspeak was a spell Mike had sat down and planned out how to use it with Haliard once he could afford it.

  Farspeak Level 1

  Spell, 30 Mana initial, 1 Mana per Second

  Initial cast sets target of spell. Once activated, allow audible communication between the two parties.

  “Is this important?” The older Blurington’s voice emerged from the air, startling Mike.

  “Very. Please, as quickly as you can.”

  “Very well.” Eric’s voice contained a warning that his time was too important to be wasted. As he did, Aric sighed and pulled Mike’s grimoire over to him. He pulled out his own and started to copy the spell into it, painstakingly making sure he got every angle and line correct.

  “Master,” Mike said, not sure what to do. “Should I train while we wait for your father?”

  “Hmm? Oh, yes.” The man was distracted enough that he missed Mike’s social mistake. Mike had remembered he was only supposed to refer to the older wizard as Master Eric after he spoke. “Let me get you something…”

  Aric left the book sitting on the table and reached into the chest. He felt around for a few seconds before pulling out a spear and laying it on the table. Another followed, then more. Soon there were six full sized spears sitting on the table. Mike was impressed. There was no way for any of them to fit in the chest without the enchantment on it.

  “This is the weapon you specialize in, correct?” When Mike nodded, Aric gestured to the empty half of the room and continued. “Take some time and find the one you are most comfortable with. Then we will move on.”

  Haliard had explained how gear was distributed for actual combat instead of training purposes. The equipment was kept locked up in the centralized family armory and only brought out for combat. Both Julian and Haliard assured him that the equipment would be top notch and enchanted well.

  The Bluringtons invested in their property.

  Right away, Mike was able to rule out three of the spears. The style he had been training in was one where he could switch from one-handed to two-handed as he flowed through the fight, but those three were large enough that they would be unwieldy one handed. One of them had a shaft over seven feet long, which Mike thought made it more of a pike.

  Grabbing one of the remainders, Mike instantly rejected it. The shaft of that one was flexible and bent in his hand. It reminded him of spears he had seen in martial arts movies back on Earth. Not what he was looking for.

  The other two were both close to what Mike felt was right for him. He took a minute with each of them, spinning them through a variety of strikes and slashes. The warm-up exercises were a great way to get a feel for both of them while Aric finished up copying the spell to his grimoire.

  Ultimately it came down to a matter of taste. Mike picked the spear that had a slightly shorter shaft with a longer blade. He felt the increased length of the blade would give him more opportunities for slashing attacks, keeping with the movement heavy style of fighting he was working on. He placed the remaining weapon back on the table and stood.

  Aric had been watching him at the end as he moved through a series of attacks. There was a note of possessiveness in the young man’s eyes that Mike didn’t enjoy.

  “Master, this is my choice. Will it be enchanted?”

  “That is something I am currently negotiating.” Aric rolled his eyes. “My father says I must do everything myself, to build relationships to carry me into the future. That means I cannot go to the people who owe him favors and tribute without something of my own. Besides, I am not just negotiating for enchanting work, but a tutor. It will all come in time.”

  Mike nodded, glad that the wizard was trying to support his enchanting as well. He must also be looking for an alchemist tutor. I might have to delay the escape until I get more training in.

  “Thank you master, that is considerate,” Mike said out loud. The wizard waved away the compliment and stepped over to him.

  “Haliard has trained you well.” A small smile crept across his face. “I remember your fumbling strikes against the undead. It was pure luck that kept you alive then. I’m glad it did, though. You will be of a great benefit to our family.”

  “I am glad that I can be, master.” Mike stepped over to the empty side of the room again, carrying his spear. “Would you please summon a monster for me to fight?’

  “Right, my father is still several minutes away. We have time.” Aric picked up the scroll and reviewed it quickly. “I do not know what I summon, so be ready. I was told that each person who casts it conjures up something different, but it is always wildly aggressive.”

  “Yes, master. I am ready.”

  “Good. Try to kill it with your spell, only resort to the spear if necessary.” He raised his hands to cast but dropped them. “And do not worry about me. I can protect myself if I must”

  “Of course, master.” Mike assumed a fighting stance, loose and ready to move. He didn’t know what was coming, or where it was coming from, so he wanted to be ready. Raising his right hand, he prepared to cast Lesser Force Dart.

  I don’t want to give away too much. Not yet.

  If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

  Aric spoke a few words and the air in front of Mike twisted. He had time to take a step back, getting space, before the twisting stopped and a figure appeared. At first, Mike thought it was a furry coconut that appeared, but soon he saw arms and legs emerge from the hairy sphere.

  It straightened itself out in a second and was on its feet. Once it was, a mouth opened on the body, full of razor-sharp teeth. It gave a high-pitched hiss, making Mike think of a teakettle. The monster was the same height as his knee standing up.

  Mike was so surprised at its appearance that it managed to start running towards him before he cast the spell. A glowing dart emerged from his finger and slammed into it, throwing it off its feet. The damn thing had agility though and was able to leap back up and keep running. Mike stepped back, giving himself a foot of space as he fired again.

  The Lesser Force Dart spell had half a second of cool down, so he could not cycle it out too quickly. Still, it was cheap, and each hit managed to slow the monster down if not knock it off its feet. That kept him safely away from the rows of gnashing teeth.

  It took five shots to knock it down where it stopped getting back up, with a sixth making it still. Mike moved towards it and poked it with the tip of the spear. Seeing the body limp on the ground, he leaned over closer to examine it.

  Aside from the mouth and hair, there were no other features on the orb. The hands and feet appeared totally human, though proportional to the figure’s height. The nails were thicker than normal, looking strong enough to do damage even if they weren’t sharp like talons. The rows of teeth in the mouth were serrated, jagged. Up close, the whole thing smelled faintly of cinnamon.

  “Well,” Aric said after Mike stepped back from it. He waved his hand and the body vanished. “That certainly is… something.”

  “We have those in my world, master.” At Aric’s curious glance, he continued. “We called them critters.”

  “Critters.” Aric saying the English word almost made Mike laugh again. They weren’t exactly like the movie monsters of the same name, but close enough for Mike to give them the name. “Very well. I will conjure a critters, one at a time. We will see how well you move and cast.”

  As Aric started casting the spell again, Mike closed the screen that had opened when the creature had died. It was a quest, matching the one he had to kill the undead.

  Defeat Lesser Conjured Monsters (1/10)

  Continuing quest. Your enemies can summon them endlessly. Defeat them.

  Reward: A minor quality magic item

  The same creature appeared as the spell resolved. Mike didn’t wait, hitting it instantly with a Lesser Force Dart. It was enough that the spell grew to level two, increasing the damage it dealt. A small patch of hair was blown off by the force, and the orb fell backwards before the arms and legs could emerge.

  The half-second cool down was enough time for the thing to spring up and run towards Mike, but he hit it again with the dart. The first one had taken seven darts to die, this one ended up taking six. Mike hoped that there wasn’t anything suspicious about that; Aric hadn’t ever mentioned spells getting more powerful when you cast them.

  Well, I am going to get better before long. Hopefully I can keep the story up until we’re ready to flee.

  Three more critters were summoned and killed in short order. There were no other upgrades in that time, but Mike knew they were coming soon. He held up his hand after the third one.

  “Master, my mana needs to replenish.”

  “Hmph, I had forgotten that your reserves are very low. I will look into expanding them quickly.” Aric made a note in his grimoire and sat the pen down. “Did your master teach you any meditative techniques to help restore it?”

  “No master, he didn’t.”

  “Very well. Sit, and follow me.” Aric folded down onto the floor, knees flat, palms on his thighs. “Breathe in. Hold. Out.”

  He matched words to actions and started focusing his breathing. Mike sat the spear beside him, closed his eyes and followed along. After the adrenaline rush of fighting small monsters that were all hands and teeth, it was relaxing.

  “Close off the physical senses. Sight, sound, taste, smell, hearing. All that will be left is the spiritual.”

  Mike almost laughed again at the idea of turning off his hearing while being given instructions but swallowed it. This wasn’t unfamiliar to him; he had tried meditation in the past. He was able to clear his head.

  “Feel the energy around you. The ambient mana. Draw it in like a breath. Hold it. Release some. Draw in more. Hold it. Release some.”

  As Aric grew quiet, Mike realized that the young wizard was assuming Mike had to do what he was told because of the mystical brand on all the slaves. He wasn’t going to get any more instruction than he already had. Focusing, Mike tried to reach out.

  He was surprised that he felt… something. Whatever it was, he was able to touch it almost instantly. Focusing on that sensation helped Mike shut off his other senses, making it more palpable. Once he could sense it, Mike tried to pull it in towards him, willing it to travel to him.

  A trickle moved, flowing into Mike’s spirit. The sensation was so odd that Mike gasped, opening his eyes. As he did, he saw that he had a new window, and his mana was restored to half full.

  New Skill!

  Meditation

  Focusing on the ambient mana around you, draw it in. Stamina, Health, and Mana regeneration is increased while in a meditative state.

  “Very good, I felt you drawing it in.” Aric spoke, rising. “Are you ready for more? My father should be here any minute.”

  “Yes master.” Mike rose himself, closing the window. He gripped his spear and assumed his fighting position.

  Another critter appeared and Mike started casting. His bolt met the critter right as it formed, falling backwards again. Another followed, then another. The thing died in six shots without getting within a foot of Mike.

  The next appeared, and Mike cast again. There was a slight mistiming and this one managed to get its arms and legs out before the bolt hit it, so it managed to stay upright. Another bolt slowed it down. Mike was ready to cast again when he heard a new voice.

  “What is so urgent that you had to call me away from a council meeting?”

  Mike looked up to see Eric Blurington entering the room. His eyes flashed with anger, and his face behind the beard was a scowl. Mike watched him stride in, stiff and controlled.

  “I am sorry, father, this was—,” Aric started, but was interrupted by Mike’s scream.

  While he was distracted by the master of the family that owned him entering the room, the critter had launched itself forward. Its leap had brought it up to the point that its jagged teeth tore into Mike’s thigh.

  He fell to the floor, his spear clattering from his hand as he punched the monster. The health indicator flashed a deep red on his thigh, matching the blood flowing from the wound. The critter was grinding in, digging deeper into the muscles.

  Mike gathered his willpower and fired Forced Dart, the stronger version. The dart slammed into the critter, knocking it loose. His eyes couldn’t leave the ragged mess of flesh that was the outside of his leg. The blood was pulsing with his heartbeat.

  One more dart, then another slammed into the monster. It died, falling flat on its back. As it did, a new window appeared.

  Congratulations! You have earned enough Experience Points to level up! Primary Class Mage has reached Level 3! You have learned the spell Wind Blade!

  Mike ignored it, grabbing the flesh around the hole in his leg and trying to squeeze it closed. As he did, though, he felt the skin there moving, shifting. In less than a second, the wound closed, sealing itself perfectly. His health indicator turned pure green. His mana and stamina bars also filled in.

  Like the scratches at the zombie, but a more serious wound. Leveling up fixed everything. A manic grin split Mike’s face at the thought of total regeneration. He released his thigh, showing smooth, unbroken flesh through the torn and bloody fabric of his pants.

  “Tell me slave. How is it that you healed yourself?” Eric’s stern voice threw Mike into a panic. This was so large, so obvious, that they would have to find something out.

  Was he fully healed just to end up getting killed?