Interviews Of Valen Donk

I found myself stuffed in a coach. I was taking a common carriage to a small town where there was yet to be a rail built. As the village was surrounded mostly by hills that made it not worth the effort. I was sent a message from the Chappe Towers from a witch who wanted to update me on the other two witches I had met a week ago and had put in the time. I was still worried about their wellbeing and an update about their current status would put me at ease. In the carriage was a tall built man of 6 '2. He wore a spiked hit with a flat brim encircling it and flowy robes that almost looked like a dress. I had stopped myself and made a second evaluation. This man was clearly a wizard, his robes and hat

But when I look at his face and stature they are not very reminiscent of a wizard cleanly shaven and no protruding gut. The robe was clean and there was no dribble of tobacco whatsoever and the man smelled clean. Before I had time to think more about this odd one out he opened his mouth

“You are Valen Donk of the Therac Times, yes?” He said not even looking at me.

“Yes” I said I was still a little baffled at being called out. He looked at my direction and gave me an inquisitive stare.

“Mr. Donk, I am the Headminster of the Therac University of Magic.” His voice was warm and filled with chest. “I have taken a liking to your article’s Mr. Donk. They add a delightful and thoughtful edition to my morning” He explained then reached out his hand. I gripped his hand, one of squeezing authority and firm shake of respect. “But what brings you here Mr. Donk?” He Questioned.

“I’m here to talk to a witch. She said she could give me news on the two witches I wrote about. I’m sure you remember.” I said

“Quite so an important piece of news that has become. Your articles have quite the effect on people.” He praised.

“I don’t know about that” I was standoffish at the thought of being a big voice in the city and how my word could affect others. I didn’t really believe people took much of my writing to heart.

“Mr. Donk, I think you don’t see the effect you have on people. Perhaps that's for the best.” All the words he spoke ended in a wisp, the type you end your cursive with. It gave him an air of educated authority that was different from the more elegant and mystic feeling the witches floated over you like a bucket full of water. The carriage came to a stop. I crawled to the other side to exit after the Headminster. An older woman on the edge of the road had a midnight black cloak and pointy hat.

“Headminster, Thank you for coming. I got the house all locked up like you asked.” She stated

“Thank you Mistress. What about the perpetrator?” He asked

“They’ll be at my cabin by the time you are done” She said. He nodded as the witch went off in the direction of the small village. The village had about 80 houses scattered across the spaces between two hills. It gave the idea of an isolated remote village yet somewhat in the middle a large church building on its highest points, like a shepmore tower peaking out just enough from the hill to send a message.

“Mr. Donk unfortunately your interview is not possible. This village due to some unauthorized source of magic has been visited by an unsavory demon” He says.

“What is it do plan on doing” I asked

“Well Mr. Donk if you must know I plan on hunting the demon and killing it. You are free to join me, it might be dangerous, “ He said. I was used to danger. I had reported on a lot of conflicts and more dangerously had been in bars in the middle of a classic Therac Brawl. The Headminster looked around and took a deep breath and expanded outward like a strong man. He sucked up as much air as he could and looked around like a bloodhound. He exhaled letting out a deflating sound like a train whistle without the whistle. He looked in a certain direction and started walking. It was an impressive feat of keen sense like a dog sniffing out a man from across the city.

“How did you do that” I was baffled

“Magic has a strong smell to those who have worked with it. The opposite of normal smells works. Any magician worth their salt can sniff magic out. The smell is hard to describe. It would be like explaining color to a blind man. “ He explained

“So how does one become a wizard?” I asked it was a question many asked and more knew but it was still shrouded in mystery the were of wizards where often unknown not through them being keep secret but through lack of study they average working man relied only on word of mouth and the paper for a tool of understanding and study which wasn’t awful lead to lacking in some aspects of knowledge. I thought of myself as a bridge to help gap the knowledge between the two very separate lives.

“Well Mr. Donk you are first born with the inherent ability of magic. Whether through a wizard parent or a streak of luck. Then you must find yourself a school unless you show some exceptional prowess then schools will offer you chances to study. It's often that you will have to pay for it on your own. What kind of wizard you become is up to you. There is no restriction on that if you have the magical chops you can study any form. Might I ask Mr. Donk if you have an education?”

“I learned everything I know from doing and talking” I said. this was mainly true I also read but that was a given. There was no school for reporting. It was a learn as you go type of job that you have to learn quickly or might be able to find another job working the press.

“For a man who has never seen a school you are quite articulate in your actions and words. I can tell you also have an innate sense for people.” He said we had made it to the house, a simple basic house built with the craftsmanship of those forced to learn. He opened the door and rotten eggs was the first thought in my head when the air hit me.

“Sulfur a rather pungent smell” He said as he walked inside I entered covering my nose with my collar which did very little. We entered the entrance hall. The headminster like a dog, followed the smell down to the bedroom in the back. As soon as he flung the door open like the backdraft of a sulfur shot out, the smell gripped onto my senses and spit right into my nose.

“Mr. Donk I’m sorry about not warning you. That's the smell of demon magic. Or it's more the smell of the underworld leaking into our world. I have become desensitized but Mr. Donk you might want to get a breath of fresh air.” And inciting offer I shook my head for fear of opening my mouth would invite some hellish miasma to torment my other senses. I walk into the room after him. The first thing I noticed not by observation but by being guided around it by the Headmaster was the circular runes on the floor that glew scarlet. I couldn't understand it was like a language I didn’t know. The circle was surrounded by salt and the candles were carefully placed in certain positions. On the wall I noticed words I couldn't understand written in my guess blood. The Headminster had touched on everything related to the circles making small comments along the way as if judging a craftsman in his own work.

“This circle is sloppy, The salt it's just table salt, these candles are not of the same length and are not made of the right tallow, and this book of magic is outdated and awful.” He had picked up a book from a night stand and examined it closely. “Demons are cunning ; they don’t fall for the same trick twice; you always have to tweak a spell.” He looked up at the words and examined them closely. “Tall, Probably strong too.” The words were at least 6 feet up and I had just noticed on the ground a bent fire poker.

I couldn’t stay quiet. I had so many questions. “Your detective skills are on par with a copper.” I noted

“Students are cunning and devious. They often make a mess and try to hide it. It helps to have a sense for investigation. That's not talking about what the faculty gets up to” He had gotten up off the ground from his investigative stance and had made his way out of the house sniffing the air like a dog.

“I have another question: you mention that students have to pay for their own school. But then you say it's dangerous to a mage out there with no professional training to me it seems like an issue.”

“Unfortunately Mr. Donk I have very little control of the price of the school; it's all dependent on how much I need to keep it afloat. There are cheaper schools and ways to get funded outside of them through sponsors who will pay for you to work for them after you finish school.” His face sank a little due to my words. It bothered him but he tried to keep a realistic answer. He seems to be walking in circles, double tasking managing the conversation with me while trying to find another source of this magical smell.

“I only bring it up because one point that was brought up to me was how only the wealthy

could become a wizard or control who can be a wizard which could set certain presidents.” Rich people would exploit every chance they get to gain power. It wasn’t human nature, it was simply the nature of those with much power already. There had been many times where I had been offered money that would make another man cry simply to change a few words in my stories. But as a reporter I refuse all bribes I make light when these situation occur in my interviews.;

“The world runs on money Mr. Donk and I and my entire school are powerless to change that. The rich as long as money exists will have their hands on everything they can grab. I try to take in as many free students as I can but I only do when the show is worthy of that treatment.” We were making it to a center of the town that took us about 5 minutes to walk he seemed to have grasped a sense of direction.

“A lot of people use that as an argument against the wizards. Have you heard of Lutvo Grorick?”

“The famous Political Philosopher? I have to say Mr. Donk. You are well read.”

“Yes I will quote him loosely ‘With in our world and the structure there within wizards have found a foothold where they have a special treatment. If you even take one year of magical school you may find yourself above the working class in the invisible hierarchy that rules our lives. I wish you to pay attention to how wizards amongst men are never held to the same responsibilities as the common man. A side effect of the unaffordable school provided to those magical gifted having being those blessed or being power the only one able to afford school. In examples the great wizard's battles of Cathroon Valley left the unique entire ecosystem of The Valley a scorched waste land almost killing the Grick tribe with famine forcing them to move onto other lands causing conflict. No wizard was punished nor paid any reparation for this action and this is one of many. I beg you not to change your mind but to consider the fact that wizards due to the nature in which on the wealthy can afford school allow for the powerful to assist these wizards in evading conquense’ “

“Well Mr. Donk, that point is a fair one. The Rich do pay for the school and usually only wealthy individuals can afford it. But consider did the wizards themselves regret the actions. Wizards are a thing you cannot mass produce but have a high value so the rich attempt to protect their important irreplaceable assets from threats like imprisonment and such. But wizards themselves are fascinated by knowledge and by that extension nature they might have regretted those actions and wanted to act but didn’t have the power. I assure my school that I can assist and punish events like these without shareholders in mind. “

We were slowly closing in on the town center where I saw the headminster wrinkle as it protected his nose subconsciously from a strong smell. “Mr. Donk get behind me” His voice went to a stern seriousness and with the snap of a finger a staff with a heavy polished nob at the end appeared in his hand. I tried to look over his shoulder but proving too tall I looked to the side of his back. A maron red bipedal shadow stood just far enough away so as to not be able to make out small details but from a glance it was big, not as big as the Headmaster but big. It was standing right in front of us like an animal inspecting prey.

“ DEMON!!” a yell made to forcefully turn the heads of everyone in a 5 meter radius. The demon perked up and without a word charged all four like some quadruped. Despite it looking inefficient, like if a human were to run on all fours, it ran with haste at an uncanny speed which sent chills down my spine. The look of a humanoid creature running on all four with the efficiency of a horse was a sight that one paper might sound weird but when it sight of it truly fills with a sense of uneasiness like the brain knows that is not how it's supposed to be.

The Headminster raised his staff preparing for a mounting of clashing, perhaps stopping the demon dead in its tracks with a spell. It got close enough so that I could get a closer look but before I even could I heard a Cracking sound, the type that makes you grab your head in empathy. What the Headminster had done was with the knob of his staff like a blunt weapon and with perfect timing he clobbered the head of the demon in with one swing causing it to fall on the ground bleeding while it convulsed on the floor. There was a dent on the side of the head that would have killed a normal person.

It convlosed for about 15 seconds before stopping the next 30 seconds consisted of it burning into ash with a flame the burned so bright it might well have blinded me. The scarlet light overpowered the light of the sun and its rays coloured anything around it with a wall of scarlet. When the light died down there was no evidence of the demon ever being there, not even a single speck of ash.

“Watching a demon die is a spectacle not many people get to see it” He stated

“Not many people survive?” I asked

“No Mr. Donk most people take proper precautions” He stated sternly and to the point. “Lets make our way Mr. Donk I must inform Mistress Poppy that the issue has been taken care of” He said we made our way through the town cutting through streets that were more trampled down lines of grass which died due to constant walking. We made our way up to a house that was on the edge of the town and much different. I followed a structure of the other houses but as if it had a rebellious streak it was covered in various places with different occult items. A horse shoe above the door various plants which are often used for herbology and. If you gave it a passing look either you get the idea the inhabitants are superstitious or a witch.

The Headminter opened the door and the witch was sitting in a rocking chair across the floor. The fire had been going for a while and sitting on the ground gave a face that said “I still don't see what I did wrong” a girl of about 14 with ginger hair and the dirt and grime that was often associated with village kids.

“Here is you girl Headminster Nebbis” She said

“Right” the word came out like a father who was ready to lay down a long winded monologue which after you will know so much about what you did wrong you could hold a lecture on it and answer questions afterwards. “Young women I don’t think I have to make it clear the dangers of using magic without training despite having gifts for it. You could have gotten someone killed or mamed not to mention what would've happened if the magic didn’t work as it was supposed to. You have put everyone in danger and made Mistress take time out of her day to protect everyone in the village. It's not just that you casted magic without popper training but demonology is dangerous. A proper demon could have cut your head clean off or destroyed your house in a rage of flame.”

The girl was quiet but she kept her head turned showing little respect for the wizard as he spoke. She turned her head and spat on the ground at his feet. The witch stood and almost knocked her on the side of the head when the headminster siad “ girl why have you shown no respect.”

“You wizards have no respect for women. You haven’t accepted a single one into your school. I will listen to you the day you decide to treat women as equals to wizards. You act as if I had a choice to be trained in magic. ” It was the train of thought a teen might make to avoid listening to a superior who was right in an even way. But there was a tinge of truth to the statement: never has there been a female wizard and the rather classical wizards had some very old school view about women as a whole. The room was silent for a second then he spoke.

“You nearly killed and hurt people. You could've hurt yourself. By all means you could have been dead right now I by means have every right as an authority of magic can arrest you. If Mistress had not been here you could have gotten your whole town killed.” The words came out slowly, slow enough to allow your mind to chew on what had been said. The Headminster clearly wanted her to think more deeply about what was being said. The girl stared at him with a slowly turning stern face as if guilty finally over shadowed anger and disrespect. The girl was quite and the whimpering started followed by tears and stifled moans. The Headminster nodded towards the witch and left the house.

“Mr. Donk I think that is time here we should both head back to Therac now. It might not be the best time for your interview.”

“Are events like these common?” I asked

“No, As people with gifts for wizardry are not common. And those who can't afford school or go unnoticed never get a chance to find out if they are gifted” He said

“There is no definitive way to know?”

“Not for the magically untrained”

“How many people live their lives not knowing they have a gift”

“That's the thing Mr. Donk we don’t know. The system needs reworking it broken and to be exclusive.” we both had made our way back to the carriage drive who was waiting to feed his horses. We entered the carriage and continued to talk.

“What about women perhaps. Other species that might be wizards”

“It's a possibility but wizards tend to be the most stern and conservative people tradition it's a huge thing. It took a lot of convincing to get them to think about adding a gym to the school”

“How did you become Headminster?” The carriage started to move and rock it would be about 3 hours before we reached the train.

“Through Coup a weird tradition but part of the culture. I have been trying to phase it out for something more democratic.”

“Yes seem very liberal in wanting to make changes to the University”

“Mr. Donk we out of the 3 major schools in Therac are the only ones who don’t accept women or other races into our school. The only one who doesn't have a solid means of leadership. We are so far behind it is like the Magical University is in a time bubble. Therac will leave us behind in the dust when people think of wizards, they think stuck up pompous old men who know nothing of the times.” He was almost yelling and very clearly disturbed. He went quiet and sat in through his head in his own world of thought. He looked burned out and distraught. I made my way back to Therac.

About a week later on the streets in front of TUM Therac university of magic a new student was the first girl to be allowed to attend. The protesting made up mostly of the type of wizard you would never see out of the chair unless there was food involved, caused many issues in the street and through personal messages the Headminster told me there were about 5 attempts at his chair and his head. Witches, Scholars, Coppers, Women of all creeds made sure that the girls made it to the university safe. Protest died down as wizards realized the food was inside and the streets of Therac and their malleable ways went back to the bustling city they are.