“What kind of education did you have growing up?” Kre asked, hoping that it wasn’t an insulting question.
Dain chuckled, “Nothing like what you might be thinking. My schooling was…” he cocked his slightly as if carefully choosing his next words, “… unorthodox.”
Kre blinked his eyes a few times and tried to consider his own next words. “You mean… like some sort of strange religious schooling?” He recalled the word ‘orthodox’ being used in combination with the main Tehynshin religion, but he couldn’t recall the exact context. Still, if that’s how orthodox was used, then unorthodox must be somewhat related but worse.
“Ha!” he cackled, throwing his head back in a hearty laugh. “No, not religious at all. Likely the farthest thing from it.” Dain took a few deep breaths to regain his composure after the heavy laugh left him red in the face. “My youth is of little concern here though. The part you are most likely interested in is when I began to learn the art of the arcane.”
“More commonly known as magic, right?” Kre asked, recalling what Dain had told him earlier.
“Exactly so,” Dain smiled. “But, we prefer to use the term arcane arts. It sounds far more sophisticated and awe-inspiring.
“More importantly though,” Dain added with a sly wink, “it means we can charge more for our services.”
“What else can you do with your arcane art? I mean… not that the fire thing wasn’t incredibly impressive by itself.”
Dain nodded, seemingly satisfied with the level of respect Kre was offering up to Dain’s abilities. “There are a great many things that can be done. Some are small and wondrous. Others are great and powerful. No matter the scale of the spell being worked, they can all be deadly and dangerous if not handled properly.
“Before we get too far into what is and is not possible when tapping into the arcane, we should start with the basics. Normally, this is where we would engage in discourse about the how of the arcane, but I believe that tactic will not work with you. You would be bored quickly, and my words would be wasted.”
Kre opened his mouth to protest but then reconsidered as he realized the truth in Dain’s words.
“Don’t fret too much on that,” Dain grinned, noting Kre’s almost-protest. “My own teacher said the same to me when I was first learning about magic. All it means is that, should you find this path to your liking, you won’t be one of the theoretical types that spend countless hours in research. Rather, you’d be like me, wanting to put your skills to use as you explore and discover the magic of the world already around you.”
Kre thought about that for a moment. Dain made it sound so easy, as if choosing a path for his life was as simple as picking an apple from a tree.
“You… disagree?” Dain asked, seeing the look of consternation on Kre’s face.
“Oh, no,” Kre stammered. “It’s not that.”
He took in a deep breath and let it out in one massive, lip-flapping sigh. “I just… I mean, since this whole thing started… I never had a chance to think about the path I wanted my life to take. To think that it’s as simple as finding something I like doing, well… that’s just a bit hard to process right now.”