Meeting The Masters

I stare at the men in awe as I stand unnaturally still, unsure how exactly I am to act.

There are six men, sitting on ornately carved golden chairs, too large to be chairs but too small to be thrones. At the top of each chair, trapped by a circular frame are glowing white orbs.

The men themselves look less like men and more like gods. Each one is exceptionally handsome yet gives off the feeling of being ancient. They each wear purple robes with glowing white patterns, and their hands are covered in black tattoo-like designs. But the most eye-catching thing about them is their eyes. Their eyes are nothing more than glowing orbs, shining out a bright blue light. From the corners of their eyes blue wisps of energy leak out, only to be re-absorbed by the orbs above their chairs.

As my eyes move over each of them, I notice something strange. Right in the middle of them is a large throne made of white material. The throne is raised slightly above the rest of their chairs. It is a small difference but it is quite noticeable. The throne is conspicuously empty and I can't help but wonder who is meant to be there.

My eyes move back to the six Masters, most of whom wear slight frowns on their faces, except the one on the far right who has a slight smile on his face, as though he is privy to some secret we are all clueless about.

They nod to Drew, who is still bowing to them, and turn their gazes to me. Almost immediately I begin to feel a strange pressure pressing down on me from all sides. Instinctively I lower my head, feeling unworthy to look up at them.

"Ian Walker." the second one from the left spoke.

"Yes," I say. The sound comes out softer than I imagined, so soft that it seems I am only talking to myself.

No one speaks for some time, each second passing only serving to increase my nervousness. What I wouldn't give to know what they are thinking of right now.

I see Drew shoot a strange look at me.

Finally, the Master who had spoken before let out a small sigh."We are sorry for what you have been through. It is through our negligence that you were attacked that night and though we have done our best to make it up to you and make you forget, it seems our little disciple still has a lot to learn." The last part was directed to Drew, whose head is still down.

He turns back to me."We have discussed and made up our mind, your memories will be altered again."

My chest tightens as I a memory flashes through my mind. Me kneeling on the ground, an unknown pressure crushing my mind, unable to remember anything.

"I...." I begin to say before stopping. What was I going to say, that I didn't want my memories altered? Would that even matter?

Suddenly the thought of not being able to remember anything repulses me. When Drew had mentioned it before, I didn't think much of it. But now, when it is about to happen, the thought seems wrong.

The man seems to sense my unease."Do not worry, it will not be as unpleasant as you imagine." He shoots another glance at Drew, who still refuses to look up.

He was wrong, I think as I remember Tahku's words. He had told me they would accept me because of my potential, I hadn't thought much of it then, but some part of me had believed, even counted on what he said. But now I see how wrong he was.

I want to say no, but I don't dare to. Memories of the extraordinary things Drew and his friends had done on that night surface in my mind. The men in front of me will undoubtedly be able to do more, or else they wouldn't have such a high position in the Laen Order. I wonder if they can force choke someone, or worse, just smash a person with their mind. An image pops into my mind: I stand up straight and tell the Masters no, I don't want my mind wiped, the next moment I am crushed by an unseen force, leaving nothing but a bloody smear on the ground.

With all these thoughts running through my head, I do not realize when I nod acceding to their request.

The Masters finally smile. Except for the one who was smiling before, a frown now mars his expression.

"Good," the same Master speaks again. He seems to be their spokesperson."We will-"

"Zarel." the man who had been frowning suddenly speaks. His tone holding more meaning than the single word he said.

The spokesperson turns sharply to the man, eyes flashing light. "What Miran?" his tone is strange. Threatening.

The frowning man, Miran, speaks."This is wrong Zarel. Stop it. Or there will hell to answer to when he comes back."

His face cold and expressionless, Zarel says."Then I will answer." He turns back to me. "Let's not waste any time, we will begin the modifications immediately. Come forward and stand in the circle."

A circle appears on the floor in a flash of light. Within the circle is a strange-looking symbol.

Something feels wrong, I think as I hesitate to step into the circle. I look between the two men. Miran looking at Zarel with a strange expression, and Zarel staring pointedly at me, exuding a pressure that makes me want to follow all he says. There is something going on here that I am not aware of. I sneak a look at Drew, he looks almost as confused as I am.

Still, despite my misgivings, I slowly move forward. Soon, I'm just at the edge of the circle. I hesitate, then step fully into the circle.

Zarel nods at me then closes his eyes. The orb above his head pulses with light, then the circle beneath me begins to glow.

At first, nothing happens, then slowly I begin to feel drowsy. I try to fight the feeling and fail, my eyes begin to drift close and my thoughts become lethargic.

From the corner of my eyes, I see a man step out of nothing. Like the Masters he is wearing a purple robe, only his has gold patterns instead of white.

"Zarel," he says in a calm, comforting tone, "it's good to see you started without me."

Suddenly, the circle below me stops glowing and my drowsiness disappears.

"Eldest. Welcome." Zarel says reverently, with a hint of surprise in his tone. As one all the Masters stand from their seats and bow slightly to the man.

When they straighten, Miran is smiling again, but Zarel looks disappointed like he had been prevented from doing something he was looking forward to.

I turn to look at the Eldest. He is an old man, yet somehow his age fits his wise disposition. Underneath his robes, I can spot signs of muscles that men his age shouldn't have. From the Masters' reaction to his appearance, it is obvious that the Eldest is an important person.

Bizarrely, the Eldest looks like a perfectly normal person, unlike the Masters with their glowing eyes. If I had met him in the street, I would just have thought he was an unusually fit old man.

The Eldest smiles a wry smile. "Welcome eh," he says letting out a dry chuckle, "unfortunately, I don't feel very welcome."

He turns to look at me. His eyes seem to peer into my very soul. "Ian Walker," he says after a pause.

I glance at Drew, unsure what to do. Unfortunately, he isn't even looking at me. Instead, he is staring at the Eldest like he is a god.

He walks up to me, a curious look on his face.

"Eldest," Zarel begins to speak.

"Quiet, Zarel!" the Eldest says, his tone strangely sharp and a hard glint in his eyes. "We will speak about this later."

Zarel keeps quiet, though it is obvious from his expression that he is less than pleased with the Eldest's reply.

The Eldest turns his attention back to me. For a moment he says nothing. "Do you want to sit?" he asks suddenly.

"Sit?" I asked, confused.

He motions behind me and I turn around to see a chair has appeared behind me. Once again I turn to Drew to see if I can get a clue on what to do, that's when I notice the anomaly. He is not moving. In fact, no one is moving except for the Eldest and me.

"Do not worry," he says, "I just want us to be able to speak without interruptions."

Then he sits on a chair that appeared behind him only god knows when. Cautiously I follow his lead and sit down.

"Good," he says with a smile before his expression turns serious."Now, let's talk."