The Initiate

     Shading his eyes, he stared straight ahead at the pylons leading into the temple. Carved into the towers on each side were more hieroglyphs, interspersed with images of a Lupe who could only be King Coltzan I – a more portly, jovial figure compared to his grandson, King Coltzan III. There were images of various Neopians in robes brandishing their decorated staves in different positions, and for a moment the Techo thought the images had begun to move, spinning and reeling before his sight.

     Then he felt sand between his fingers and on his knees, his empty pack and gnarled staff dropping from his hands in front of him. Panting, he crawled toward the pylons. He opened his mouth to speak, but though he had the words he wanted to say, they wouldn’t rise from his dry throat. At least being in the shade of the pylons eased the terrible glare of the sun on his back. The Techo tried to say something again, but only managed a rasp before he collapsed onto the sand-covered stones.

     Please, King Coltzan I, he thought, clasping his chapped hands together. You became the god of health and healing…I’m praying for health and healing right now…

     He could have sworn that he heard voices and the slap of sandals against stone and grit. A shadow fell over him that wasn’t the shadow of the pylons.

     I’m sorry I didn’t believe you before. I do now.

     And then, instead of spinning, his world went black.

     * * *

     When the Techo opened his eyes, he found himself lying not on the sand, but in a bed, sheets and all, at the end of a line of ten beds in what seemed to be a dormitory. Someone had changed him out of his weathered rags and into a clean white robe with a sash. He wondered if that someone was the White Grundo who sat next to him, offering him a bowl of water from a side table that also bore a loaf of Pyramibread and a selection of fruit. Not a single sand fruit, the Techo noted with relief as he slowly sat up.

     “Here. Drink up,” the Grundo said, supporting the bowl with one hand as the Techo lifted it to his lips with slightly shaky hands. “And eat. Just don’t eat too fast.”

     The water felt nice and cool, and after setting the empty bowl aside, the Techo took a deep breath and stared intently at his companion. The Grundo’s white robe, stark against his skin, was bordered with yellow and blue, and he wore a golden medallion that was emblazoned with a candle that seemed to be lit by a little sun.

     “Who’re you?” the Techo asked. “Am I…in the temple?”

     “I’m Yamanu, a cleric of the Order of King Coltzan I. And yes, you are in his temple. What’s your name?”

     “Velm.”

     “Hmm, an old-fashioned name, to give a youngling. Where are your parents?”

     Velm frowned as he took a bite out of a Tchea Fruit. “I don’t have any. I lost them when I was little. Been on my own, ever since.”

     “What about friends?”

     Yamanu received a shrug and a downcast expression in response.

     “Where are you going?”

     Another shrug as Velm answered, “Anywhere where I can live. I can read and write, fetch water, clean messes…any job you lot don’t like.”

     “In the Order of King Coltzan I, even the High Clerics have their turn with the chores like cleaning latrines,” said Yamanu.

     “They won’t have to do them if I’m around.”

     The white Grundo gaped at him, sighed, and shook his head. “I’m afraid you can’t stay long. We’ll help you recover, provide you with supplies and a map…but you can’t stay here.”

     “Huh?” Velm paused, a fistful of Pyramibread in one hand. “What do you mean?”

     “Only members of the Order of King Coltzan I may live in his temple,” said Yamanu, fingering his medallion. “We are open to devotees and travelers of all walks of life, but it is only those who learn his magic who may live here.”

     “So, if I want to become part of the Order, I can stay, right?”

     Yamanu nodded and replied, “Yes, that’s right.”

     “Then I want to be part of the Order,” said the Red Techo thickly, through a mouthful of Pyramibread and Ummagine.

     As he stood up to draw the curtains behind Velm’s bed shut, Yamanu stared at him in disbelief, a hand on his medallion.

     “It’s not as simple as you might think. All initiates must study the basics of our healing and protection magics, learn basic staff techniques, and most importantly, survive our induction rites.”

     “…Survive?”

     “Yes, survive,” Yamanu repeated curtly. “All who want to join the Order of King Coltzan I must undergo his final test. You will face your fears, your pain, the worst parts of yourself.” The Grundo silently poured more water into the bowl on the table. “Again, you may stay here while you recover, but…”

     “When can I start studying?” Velm interrupted, reaching for the bowl of water. “Oh, and does this mean you have a library? Can I read something while I’m recovering?”

     * * *

     “Yamanu?”

     “What is it?”

     “If the spell is called ‘Protection of Infinity’, why doesn’t it grant infinite protection?”

     Pursing his lips, Yamanu pulled a chair toward Velm’s bedside and hummed in thought. “Well, for a true infinite shield, it must continue to draw energy. It must take, to give protection, and take, and…when it runs out of power to take, and it isn’t controlled properly, a spell will begin to tap into its caster’s life force. It was merely called ‘Protection of Infinity’ because this is the strongest shield any of us can cast.”

     Velm turned a page of the large, leatherbound book sitting on his lap. “Like how there’s a limit to our healing magic.”

     “You speak of it as if you are already inducted into the Order,” said Yamanu, raising an eyebrow.

     “I have nowhere else to go. I just wish I came here sooner. Before my family, before our village…” The Red Techo scowled. “Then maybe I could have stopped it. Stopped the plague. If calling on King Coltzan I didn’t work…”

     “It was a very rare plague, one that had not been recorded for decades. No one could have known it would strike again in the mountains of the Lost Desert, so far from our temple, far from Sakhmet itself.” Yamanu answered quietly as he reached out toward the side table and picked up a clipboard. “If you’re so determined to join the Order of King Coltzan I, you should finish filling up this record sheet.”

     “I already filled it out.”

     “You left your birthday blank.”

     “I put my age, isn’t that enough?”

     “It’s for our records. When were you born?”

     “It doesn’t matter,” Velm said abruptly, focusing on the book. “My birthday was the same day my family all died.”

     Yamanu inhaled sharply.

     “I’m…I’m so sorry, Velm. But you do need to fill out the paperwork, on top of studying and preparing for your initiation.”

     Velm didn’t say anything at first, glowering as he turned another page.

     “Then, I’ll finish filling it out after my initiation.”

     “What?”

     “You told me I’m acting like I’m already part of the Order,” said the Techo formally as he continued to read the book. “So, I’ll give you the record form when everything else is done. That’s okay, right?”

     * * *

     “Put your backs into it! Just because we’re clerics and healers doesn’t mean we should also be sitting Mallards in battle!”

     A heavyset Desert Peophin paced in front of the initiates who were paired off with each other, going through patterns of striking and blocking. She gestured with her own ivory staff, which had a carved Reptillor’s head, at a Desert Gelert who had backed away from Velm to dodge his staff swing. “Merite, where’s your follow through? Answer his move with your own!”

     “Sorry.” The Gelert stepped forward again, bringing their staff down and up for Velm to parry it, and groaned. “Never been much of a fighter. But this is what my mother wanted, since she works at the infirmary here and wanted me to, I dunno, become a cleric too.” They shrugged before dodging, and then blocked Velm’s staff. “It’s her birthday tonight, the High Clerics are throwing her a banquet. You should come instead of running back to the archives after dinner.”

     Birthday.

     “It’ll be fun!” Merite added. “Aren’t birthdays lots of fun?”

     Stone-faced, the Red Techo crouched down for a low hit. Merite gracefully sidestepped it.

     Wind scattered sand and grit, and collapsed flimsy, empty tents. He stood in the center of the village, the air the only voice he could hear.

     He remembered the way his parents, weak as they lay in bed, wished him a happy birthday. It didn’t matter that he had no presents; there was one present he wished for with all his heart, begged every spirit he knew…

     “Thanks, I’ll think about it.”

     “Think about it real hard, okay? The last time you said you’d think about it, you spent the night in the archives instead!”

     “Merite!” the Peophin barked.

     “Sorry, I’m sorry! Right, follow through!”

     * * *

     Moonlight streamed through the open windows of the temple corridors as Yamanu, hands tucked into his sleeves, walked toward the archives with an exasperated sigh. The archives were contained in a large, circular hall with a carpet embroidered with scenes from King Coltzan I’s life and the text of his epithets, such as, “Magic cannot heal all, nor can magic save all, for death comes for us all.” The shelves, packed with scrolls, books, stone tablets and not a few exhibits that would not have been out of place in a museum, were carved into the rounded walls. The middle of the hall was tables, chairs, and even cushions and a drinking fountain.

     Sitting with his back to a post, parked on a ruby red cushion and reading a yellowed scroll by the light of a lone glass lantern, was Velm.

     “Velm!” Yamanu said, hurrying into the archives. “Merite and the others were looking for you! Why didn’t you join us?”

     The Red Techo looked up at him with a deadpan expression. “You said becoming a member of the Order wouldn’t be simple. So, I’m studying.”

     “Yes, I know what I said, but…” The White Grundo breathed in and out. “You know what they say about all work and no play. Apothecary Keeper Allalia would also have wanted to see you at her birthday party.”

     Velm glanced back down at his scroll and said, “I don’t really do birthdays, remember? Haven’t been able to look at them the same way after that day I lost everyone I cared about. Merite and the Apothecary Keeper don’t need me raining on their parade.”

     Stepping forward, Yamanu positioned himself next to Velm and slowly sat down next to him. “They would have been glad to see you, but if you really did not want to come, you should have let them know.”

     “Yeah, you’re right.” Velm shrugged, and finally rolled up the scroll, yawning.

     Yamanu glanced out of the archives, and at the windows revealing Kreludor in its full phase. “You should sleep, too.”

     “I know.” Standing up, the Techo stretched, and folded his arms afterward, looking at Yamanu. “You said you needed my records so I can join the Order. I’ll give you mine tomorrow.”

     “You’re leaving your birthday blank?”

     “Not for long,” said Velm. “The day I’m initiated into the Order? That will be my birthday from now on. I don’t know why no one came to rescue my village. All that reading, all that training, and I still haven’t figured it out. But…” He set his jaw resolutely. “But from now on, I’ll do everything I can to make sure it doesn’t happen again. I’ll bring King Coltzan I’s magic to the farthest reaches of the Lost Desert. I’ll become a new Velm, the day I become part of your Order.”

     Silence. Yamanu gently slid the scroll back into its hole in a nearby shelf. The Grundo seemed to ponder this for a while, even as he gestured for the young Techo to follow him out of the archives.

     “You may have to wait a while,” he said curtly, “before you receive your new birthday.”

     “I’ve waited long enough. I can continue waiting, and studying, and fighting.”

     “Just tell others beforehand if you’re not interested in their birthdays next time.”

     Velm breathed in and out, reaching up to finger the collar of his robe as he glanced at Yamanu’s medallion. He allowed himself the most fleeting of smiles. “Maybe I’ll be a little bit more interested after my initiation.”

     The End.