Reazon pulled his cloak more tightly around his shoulders to keep the spring chill out as he moved through the winding passages of the Tower. He had been summoned by the Tower Master and so he had climbed his way up the ever growing stairs to make his way to the Master's quarters. The Tower had been here since Gardeners began apparently, whenever that was. The Tower was made of a collection of ebony trees; grown, shaped, and strengthened by the Gardeners over generations. The black wood had been compressed to a similar density as stone. The Tower's height continued to rise with the passage of time and energy given by the Gardeners and apprentices like himself. Sitting at the peak of the Tower was the Master's quarters.
Tower Master Cypher had taken his position nearly thirty years ago after vanquishing the Witches' disciple, Shade Ream. Although at the time he had been gravely injured, he had managed to survive his wounds and was glorified as a hero. That was the official story anyway, however after meeting his teacher Jet, Reazon had begun to have his doubts. Jet Ream, son of the Witches' disciple, had taken him as an apprentice when the other teachers rejected his application as a matter of course. Reazon was used to the looks he received after all the years he had spent here, after all, his talent could only be called mediocre at best in the eyes of most. Reazon's energy reserves had always been significantly smaller than his peers, and thus he was incapable of the displays of power many adepts enjoyed. His acceptance into the Tower had been more of a formality due to his parentage than anything else, no one expecting him to rise past the rank of apprentice. Jet Ream, the feared harvester, had seen something in him though, and had taken him in as an apprentice. Jet never talked about his father when Reazon had worked up his courage to ask, only showing a sad smile before changing the topic. Tower Master Cypher had even begun to take an interest in him after Jet had helped him train to the adept level.
Reazon pondered on what this meeting would entail as he approached a set of large double doors grown into the hall, a soft white light coming from several small crystals spaced between vines that clung to the ceiling. The doors and walls were covered in carvings depicting many scenes and stories that were told by the masters. Approaching the door, Reazon knocked softly and an old yet gentle voice echoed from within.
"Come in, my boy," the voice sounded as the doors slowly swung open on their own. "Thank you for coming."
Stepping through the door, Reazon was greeted by the awe inspiring sight of the Tower Master's room. Crystal vines shone brightly on the ceiling of the large circular room like a sky of stars against the blackened wood ceiling. The walls were covered in bookshelves housing thousands of ancient tomes, all completely free of any sign of dust. Near the far wall a polished desk covered in parchment and quills was situated along with a perch where an old raven softly snored with its beak under its wing. Sitting at the desk, the old Tower Master had laid down his quill and was looking expectantly at Reazon as he approached, clasping his good hand against one that seemed to be formed of a series of branches that bent as if alive when he moved, a green leaf visible here and there. The old man gave off an air of elegance and control, despite his wooden arm and leg and a face full of wrinkles. He wore a red vest over his robes, a black tower emblazoned upon the left breast, his beard and hair both kept neatly trimmed. Cypher was known for his passion over maintaining his public appearance, along with his persuasive nature.
"Reazon," Cypher began with a gentle smile. "I am afraid I have called you here to deliver some heartbreaking news. Please, sit down."
"Sir?" Reazon asked in confusion.
With a simple wave of his hand, Cypher caused a chair to emerge from the floor and had it slide behind Reazon who slowly sat down. Reazon began to feel a strong sense of trepidation, as this was unlike his usual chats with the Tower Master. His active mind began to theorize and grasp at any possible shortcoming Reazon had that may have led to this conversation.
"Reazon, I need you to be calm here." Cypher said gently as he looked at the young man in front of him. "Take a deep breath."
Reazon took a breath in and prepared himself. Thinking back to his training with Jet, he calmed his emotions, emptying them out of his mind. Control is a power in and of itself according to his master.
"I have called you here to inform you of the death of your teacher, Jet Ream, who fell in the line of duty fending off a hoard of beasts. We had information that a resurgence of Salamanders had broken out near Arvensis and your teacher was dispatched along with your senior and a few others to quell the tide and prevent the flames from spreading. We were misinformed of the numbers and to our regret both your teacher and senior lost their lives before reinforcements could be sent."
Even with his mind empty of emotion, Reazon felt his heart drop, his calm vanishing like a wisp of smoke in a windstorm. Confusion and grief battled their way through the void as he tried to remain calm.
"B-but," Reazon sputtered "how could Master perish? He-"
"As you are aware," Cypher continued gently ignoring Reazon's interjection, "according to the laws, in case of the death of a master, his students are to inform his next of kin. This is to ensure that student and family have a chance to grieve together. In this case, it would be your duty to inform Dayja, unfortunately shortly before you arrived a messenger sent word that she just entered labor. As such, I will be accompanying you in informing Dayja as she will likely need what support we can offer."
Reazon just nodded numbly, still trying to process what had happened. Jet and Corin had died? How? Of all the masters in the tower, Jet had seemed nearly invincible. Although he was given dirty looks and viewed with suspicion due to his heritage, no one would deny his ridiculous level of skill and power. How could someone so strong die due to mere beasts? Reazon's mind just could not grasp this foolish notion. How was he supposed to tell Dayja, who had been like an aunt to him? After being sent to the Tower and being taken in by Jet, Dayja had made a point of meeting both himself and Corin. Where Jet was a strict teacher expecting the best of his pupils, Dayja was often the voice of optimism and support to these two misfit disciples. Reazon still remembered the day when Jet had made him overuse his abilities and been scolded for five full hours by his wife. They had been so happy when they found out Dayja was expecting. Reazon had never seen his master so excited and yet so lost as to how to respond. How was he supposed to tell Dayja that Jet was gone?
"I will give you an hour to collect your thoughts," Cypher slowly and firmly said as he arose from his seat behind the desk and picked up his staff where it was leaning against the wall nearby. "I hope that you can settle your feelings in order to best help Dayja. Please take your time to process; I will be in the other room when you feel ready to go."
Walking out from behind his desk with a slight limp, Cypher left the main office through a door off to the side that led to his personal quarters. Reazon continued to sit emptily in his chair before bringing up a hand to massage his temple. This made no sense!
"How could some fire-beast beat Master?" Reazon pondered. "Even if he was outnumbered, Master's bloodline and familiar should have at least allowed him to escape with Corin."
Reazon's mind began to calm down as he began to calculate what could possibly have happened. Jet had always praised Reazon for being quick on the uptake and good at analytics. This was one of the reasons he had taken Reazon in as a disciple in the first place. The world seemed to slow as Reazon began to delve into the problem at hand that his mind seemingly could not comprehend. Salamanders were a breed of large fire-beasts that normally dwelled in the various deep underground root tunnels of Garden's north-western edge. The deep roots brought up water, and thus little harm was done unless the Salamanders came to the surface and began to spread fire. Jet's familiar was a rare breed of spider known as an Ice Threader. The Ice Threader was a beast capable of imbuing its threads with energy through reinforcement, causing the liquid in the air to gather and freeze around the thread. By transference, his master had similarly gained this power through the contract, to a lesser extent. Add in his master's trump card which most of the Gardeners remained blissfully unaware of, and then it made even less sense. As Reazon continued his analysis, he couldn't help but pale at the conclusion on which he arrived. If Master really was dead, then it most likely it was not by the hands of beasts. It would have had to have been a Gardener.