《Atlier (Tentative)》


 Chapter 1: A gift horse

    Jacob opened the door to his family¡¯s home. The first thing Jacob saw was a simple black envelope sealed with gold wax on the table. Over the fire there was a large pot steaming, Jacob¡¯s favorite chicken stew. Jacob¡¯s mother and father had their backs to the fire, like they were waiting for him to come home. He had been delivering a rocking chair his father had made for the mayor. His mother¡¯s bright blue eyes were beaming and his father was nodding to himself, eyes closed with a big smile.


    ¡°You two look happy,¡± Jacob said, the curiosity plain in his voice.


    ¡°It¡¯s a letter from your uncle, from the Capital, Jacob,¡± his mother¡¯s voice filled with wonder. With that amount of praise in her voice it must mean Uncle Jeryn, the first tier mage with the Lion¡¯s society.


    It must have to do with me starting at the mage school in a few weeks, at least if I can just earn a bit more for the entrance fees. Jacob picked up the envelope to get a better look. ¡°It¡¯s got my name on it!¡±


    ¡°If it¡¯s from my brother, I¡¯m sure it¡¯s good news. He must have heard of my boy¡¯s talent. I¡¯ll bet he¡¯s offering a small loan so you can start your studies right away.¡± While Jacob¡¯s father may be a skilled carpenter, his boundless optimism often gave people the wrong impression of him. ¡°Open it, Jacob. Your mother and I have been waiting for you.¡±


    Father could have been working while he waited, Jacob sighed to himself. The letter was light, but solid. Jacob broke the seal and a there was a small crack, like when some wood his father is working on breaks, and a bright flash of light. I could hear father click his tongue, just like when he breaks something.


    Blinking away the spots in his eyes, Jacob found 3 birds staring at him on the table, ¡°Crows?¡±


    ¡°Those are ravens, son, Jeryn has had a soft spot for them since we were kids,¡± Jacob¡¯s dad answered him. ¡°You can tell because a Raven has a more curved beak.¡±


    ¡°Jacob, and as I am sure, David and his lovely bride Camelia are with you.¡± With the voice, a tiny image blurred into view on the table. As the blurry image came into focus, a tiny replica of Jacob¡¯s uncle appeared standing on the table, complete with the broad-brimmed hat characteristic of his uncle and a simple high collared, black robe.


    ¡°My, magic sure can do some surprising things,¡± Jacob¡¯s mother had her hand over her mouth, her eyes wide.


    The small figure began to speak, ¡°I have sent these three here to you with some scrolled-ink cards to teleport you and three friends to the Capital. I heard¡­¡±


    ¡°Uncle wait a second,¡± why the Capital?


    ¡°It¡¯s just a recording, it¡¯s not actually my brother,¡± Jacob¡¯s father was leaning on the table, taking a close look at the image.


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    ¡°As I was saying,¡± the recording started up again.


    ¡°It¡¯s not hard for him to put in a few fancy tricks, he likes to show off sometimes,¡± Jacob¡¯s father was looking at him and the recording alternately. The little image of uncle standing on the table rolled its eyes.


    The tiny image cleared its throat with a loud cough, ¡°If I may now, I heard you were planning to attend a mage school out in Cresten. It¡¯s run by the Auger Group, a small time rival of the Lions,¡± mini-Jeryn made a sour face mentioning the Auger Group.


    ¡°Uncle Jeryn,¡± Jacob¡¯s mother complained, ¡°that¡¯s what we can afford, geez.¡± Jacob could see his father blushing at his mom¡¯s little complaint. I¡¯m glad they get along like this still, some things never change.


    Mini-Uncle Jeryn raised its hand up high, pointing to the ceiling, ¡°So I have prepared a novice¡¯s workshop for you, stocked with more than a novice can need.¡± The little figure crossed it¡¯s arm, nodding. ¡°I know this seems outrageously generous, but I happened to win the place in a recent royal competition, it¡¯s a bit of a wild card but will do. Conveniently it¡¯s in the Novice district as well.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve heard of the Novice district, Jacob,¡± Jacob¡¯s dad cut in again, he seemed to be looking for a reason to try and get reactions from the image, ¡°You can find all the basics there for most schools of magic.¡±


    ¡°Of course,¡± The image spoke up over Jacob¡¯s dad, ¡°I will have it stocked with enough basics, like a Replenishing pantry and a bookcase with all the basics. Even a few I wrote myself.¡± Wow, I should be all set, I might not even need to leave the workshop.


    ¡°Don¡¯t turn into a hermit now,¡± Jacob¡¯s mom was looking a little concerned for him.


    ¡°Mom, I¡¯ll be working hard, you don¡¯t need to be worried about me.¡±


    ¡°And there¡¯s the ravens I sent you. They¡¯ll turn into invitation cards when they arrive. Just tell them who to fly to and they¡¯ll be able to teleport straight to the workshop with you. So Flora, no need to worry about Jacob becoming a shut-in,¡± the image explained, bowing to Jacob¡¯s mom.


    Jacob¡¯s mom clasped her hands together, ¡°Isn¡¯t that wonderful, you can invite Lia and Reign. I¡¯m sure their parents also would appreciate an alternative to Periwinkle Academy.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sure anyone would,¡± the image agreed.


    ¡°It may not be the best, but it¡¯s still a magic school. We would have managed,¡± Jacob¡¯s dad added.


    ¡°This sounds fun, it¡¯ll be quite the adventure,¡± Jacob was getting excited.


    ¡°It will be an adventure, memories for a lifetime. When you¡¯re ready, whisper to the ravens who they should go to with resolve in your heart. The teleportation spell will activate in one minute.¡± The image faded quickly after those words.


    ¡°Mom, dad, I¡¯ll be off to do my best and learn everything I can,¡± Jacob¡¯s mind was racing. This was a bit sudden.


    ¡°Goodness! Be careful in the city, remember to wash and eat,¡± Jacob¡¯s mom rushed over to embrace him.


    ¡°You will do great, son,¡± Jacob¡¯s father patted his shoulder, ¡°I trust you will make me proud.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, mom, dad.¡± Jacob¡¯s eyes stung, his mother¡¯s warmth holding him, his father¡¯s large hand on his shoulder. ¡°Raven, please go to my best friend Reign,¡± Jacob said pointing at the first Raven on his right. ¡°And you,¡± he pointed to the middle one, ¡°goto Flora.¡± Both Ravens  hopped off the table, disappearing into the air in front of them. The third raven hopped towards Jacob, fluidly changing into a single feather and sliding into Jacob¡¯s inner coat pocket.


    A bright light began to fill Jacob¡¯s vision, framing the smiling faces of his parents. ¡°I¡¯m off to become a mage!¡±


    ¡°Take care,¡± his parents said before the light filled his vision.

 Chapter 2: New Surroundings

    As the light faded, Jacob was still sitting in a chair, but the room was completely different. Wow, I must be in the workshop already. The room was small, giving Jacob enough room to reach out a hand to the wall from next to the table. The room had one wooden door, braced with metal. On the left and right were two archways. On the simple wooden table in front of Jacob was a note:


    Dear Jacob,


    I have taken the liberty of expanding it out the workshop with a little kitchen on the side. The ambient magic should keep it stocked, so don¡¯t be afraid to eat and be healthy. I also made a small room for you to sleep in with a bed. I put a small shelf there with some introductory books, so read them and build up your knowledge. Start with Intro to Mana. Workshops operate on a dimensional magic based around a core. With mana control, you can expand the inside any way you want. Learning how to do that is a good first step in learning magic. I checked if the place was safe enough for my nephew, and it is. So don¡¯t be worried about anything like that. If you go outside the door and head to the left, you¡¯ll see the wide, main street of the novice district. You¡¯re on the outskirts, so it will be calm and quiet. Perfect for getting used to city life.


    Your Uncle Jeryn


    PS - I put a delay on the invitations for your friends until you can expand three extra rooms for them yourself. Don¡¯t keep them waiting.


    On reading the last line the note softy dissolved into a green mist, disappearing rapidly into the air. Jacob immediately went to the door and opened it. Squinting in the sunlight on his face, Jacob could see a long narrow paved path in front of him going to the left and right. Large stone walls fenced off everything else. This isn¡¯t home for sure. The air even feels different. More like how a city should feel, I guess. Closing the door and heading back in, Jacob looked through the first archway, seeing the small kitchen.


    On grabbing the pantry door, Jacob felt a chill run through him. He couldn¡¯t quite describe what it was. Opening the door, it was like a small closet inside, filled with shelves. Jacob could see all sorts of breads, cheases, dried meats, sausages, and dried fruits. Perfect, there¡¯s plenty of easy things I like that I don¡¯t have to cook! This will be great. Jacob grabbed some jerky to chew on and headed to the other archway.


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    Inside the bedroom was a bed, a dresser, and a bookshelf. On the side of the room was another archway covered by some curtains. Though that was a small washroom. All the basics are here. Time to get studying! Jacob walked to the bookshelf, and on the top shelf was Intro to Mana. Jacob grabbed the book and walked back into the room with the table and chairs.


    Jacob sat down at the table and set the book down. I guess this is the dining room, but it will also be my study until I can get mana control down well enough to really design this place. Jacob opened the book and began reading.


    ¡°So I just need to circulate my mana before I can do magic, good thing Uncle Jeryn helped me learn to sense it when I was little.¡± Jacob relaxed his shoulders and focused on his mana like his uncle had taught him. From there Jacob began to move the mana in his body. The mana felt thick and sluggish, but as Jacob continued to move the mana, the mana flow was easier to keep up. I just need to train to keep this going at all times now, Uncle Jeryn mentioned how mana is a part of the body. So I¡¯ll circulate mana like it¡¯s breathing, only noticing the circulation if I focus on it for some reason. The book says it¡¯s an advanced technique, but sounds like it should be easier to start early than later.


    Several days had passed. Jacob had finished the Intro book, practicing the things he learned and started another book on mana manipulation. My mana circulation feels very natural now. Jacob wanted to check his progress by making the entry room bigger. Standing near the back wall, Jacob put his hands up, placing his palms firmly on the wall while focusing on his mana circulation. Feeling the mana in his hands, Jacob pushed against the wall, straining with all his might. When his elbows started to hurt from the strain, Jacob started getting distracted, ¡°this isn¡¯t working,¡± but then the wall suddenly gave away forcing Jacob to barely catch his balance before slamming his face against the wall. ¡°Reign would have laughed at me so hard if he saw that¡­¡± Jacob sighed. But I won¡¯t see him again until I really figure this out. I felt something different when the wall moved, but I didn¡¯t understand it. Jacob struggled, pushing against the wall until it got dark before taking a break for bed.


    In the morning Jacob grabbed some bread and cheese for breakfast from the pantry. No good is going to come from me sitting here doing the same thing over and over. I haven¡¯t been outside yet. Some fresh air might help me get some perspective. Jacob finished up his breakfast and grabbed some jerky in case he was out a while.


    Opening the front door for the second time since his arrival, Jacob looked out. The pathway in front of his workshop was calm