The Keeper looked on as the Forcemage stirred. He had been in bed and unconscious for two days, which was fairly standard after such a procedure. After some minor groans, the Forcemage’s eyelids slowly cracked open.

“Why am I in bed?” he asked.

“You have been through a lot,” said the Keeper.

The Forcemage took the offered goblet of water, drank it down, and stared at his benefactor. He was very old, and it felt like he was full of random wisdom, like a library had come to life. “Do I know you?”

“You did,” said the Keeper. “Once. You will again. Do you remember your name?”

The Forcemage shook his head.

“It will come.”

“What happened to me?…I’m sorry, I don’t know your name…”

“I have no traditional name. I am known as the Keeper.”

“Keeper of what?”

The Keeper shrugged. “Practically everything. Lore. Knowledge. Exposition. Mostly secrets. This is a keep, and it needs a Keeper.”

“I see.”

“To answer your first question…I’m afraid the answer is not a good one. You are a student at the Forbidden Citadel. We study the magicks of Danabrae. Each student is locked to a single discipline, the Arcanists seek knowledge, the Ascendants study the aether, and the Forcemages study war. It is strictly against the rules to study more than one discipline.”

“Why are you telling me this?”

“Because you, my friend, could not contain your curiosity. Your talent is beyond measure, and it showed in your studies. Unfortunate. You were caught in the Library, and not for the first time.”

The realization hit the Forcemage like a brick. “You stripped my memories!”

“Your core memories will return. Most likely over the next day or so.”

“You had no right!”

The Keeper smiled gently, though this was hidden by his flowing beard. “That is a debate for another time. Though the Headmistress has decreed that you take no more part in training here.”

The Forcemage flopped back down on the bed. “What is to become of me?”

“The City of Covenant is a mere six hour walk from here. Your core memories should return during your journey there.”

The Forcemage remained silent from then on. Though used to uncomfortable silences, the Keeper opted to be elsewhere.

———-