"For the last ten years of his life, Aiden has been training rigorously to become a Sorcerer. He has mastered the art of commanding spirits, and is prepared to take the final step into the fold of his order. Something goes awry during his initiation rites however, and he is forced to make a choice: to lose his humanity, or his life. "
Back of the book
A fantasy novel written by Pedes Cardinalis. It follows the story of Aiden, a Sorcerer who is unable to forget the sins of his youth. Aiden catches the interest of a Mahoka, a member of an opposing school of magic, and becomes caught up in the remnants of a civil war between two halves of a noble house. Along the way, he learns more about his talent for magic and is forced to come to terms with his past.
This book provides examples of:
- Abusive Parents: Serah's mother neglects and verbally abuses her after Aiden is taken away.
- Achievements in Ignorance: Aiden accidentally places a death curse on every Sorcerer other than himself.
- Agony Beam: Aiden's masters use the spirits to place him and Claron in excruciating agony when he begins to free her.
- Anti-Magic: Lyr receives an enchanted sword from Vumi which makes him immune to magic.
- Attempted Rape: Aiden's decision to teach Claron how to fight is because a villager attempts to get a bit too friendly with her.
- Badass Family: The Yarikas all have tremendous martial skill.
- Badass Normal: Jaren is able to hold his own against Aiden, while Lyr hands him his posterior.
- Bad Powers, Bad People: The Sorcerers use blood magic and make deals with evil spirits.
- Bad Powers, Good People: Aiden and, to a lesser extent, Grent. Both rely on the same spirits as the Sorcerers, but do so for the sake of others as well as themselves.
- Badass Bookworm: Serah, after she meets up with Kaki.
- Being Evil Sucks: The Sorcerers all die off from a death curse. Also, the spirits they command don't exactly treat them nicely.
- Berserk Button: Aiden when he sees Serah lying unconscious after Lyr attacks her.
- BFS: Ayre's sword which he magically crafts out of stone.
- Bittersweet Ending:
- Lyr is successfully defeated, but only after he bisects Ankoku.
- Grent is able to save Claron from the evil spirits sent after them, but doing so reverses the healing of Aiden's curse on him and leaves him to live in crippling agony.
- Bilingual Bonus: Most Murasakian names are Japanese. In particular, Ankoku, Kaki, and Uchi's names each refer to one of the elements they can control. Ankoku = darkness, Kaki = fire, Uchi = earth.
- Blessed with Suck: Sorcerers are eventually driven mad by the spirits they command.
- Blood Magic: Sorcerers can only command their spirits if they have shed or consumed blood.
- Calling Your Attacks: Most Mahoka need to use incantations when using magic, and Sorcerers must make verbal commands to the spirits.
- Citadel City: The capital of Murasaki.
- Color-Coded for Your Convenience:
- Mahoka wear reversible robes colored for the elements they control: red for fire, brown for earth, green for air, blue for water, white for light, and black for dark. These colors also correspond with the aura which surrounds a Mahoka who is actively using magic of that element.
- Sorcerers all wear black.
- Combat Pragmatist: Oh, Aiden...
- Aiden stabs Vumi with a shard of a chamberpot while in prison, hoping to catch him off guard.
- Aiden and Jaren take their duel way too far, almost breaking each others' bones with their bare hands despite only meaning to have a friendly contest.
- Aiden repeatedly reprimands Claron for not being this.
- Crystal Dragon Jesus: The Aoblut faith appears to be extremely similar to Christianity, and even borrows the story of Jesus walking on water.
- Curb-Stomp Battle:
- Aiden is about to flat-out murder Vumi before Claron arrives and stops him.
- Jaren's combat ability is head and shoulders above anybody else in his village, and he proves it multiple times before finding a more formidable foe in Aiden.
- Lyr knocks out Serah and toys with Aiden before Vumi intervenes by having golems tackle them.
- Damsel in Distress: Claron begins the book in the Sorcerers' custody, meant to be a sacrifice in Aiden's initiation rites.
- Dark Is Evil: Sorcerers all wear black robes.
- Dark Is Not Evil: Vumi assures Aiden that the Dark magic used by Mahoka is dark in name only.
- Determinator: Aiden does a lot through sheer determination, from calming himself in the face of a woman to gaining mastery over illusions in a matter of months.
- Did Not Die That Way: Serah believes that her father was mauled to death by a bear, when in fact Aiden stabs him to death at a young age in a fit of demon-induced panic.
- Doing Research: Serah and Vumi use this tactic to deal with a swarm of insects plaguing Jaren's village. Their actions end up not mattering, as the swarm never shows.
- Emotional Powers: Serah's control over the element of fire is linked to her anger.
- Evil Sorcerer: The Sorcerers.
- Forging Scene: Aiden making his flail.
- Functional Magic:
- Mahoka use Elemental Powers.
- Claron, as well as certain other Aoblut, use White Magic.
- Sorcerers use Blood Magic to cast various curses.
- Gaining the Will to Kill: Serah undergoes this in the defense of Jaren's village.
- Good Is Not Nice: Ankoku and Kaki are a bit...rough on their students.
- Good Shepherd: Brother Paetrus.
- Guilt Complex: Aiden's acts of patricide and accidentally injuring Serah stay with him for quite a while.
- Had to Be Sharp: Sorcerers undergo training which often kills them, leaving only the best to survive.
- Harmful Healing: Bernheim's healing of Serah's childhood wound gives her leprosy when he dies.
- Heroic BSoD: Serah after she brutally kills a man with a whip of Air magic.
- Heterosexual Life-Partners: Aiden and Grent.
- His Own Worst Enemy: Lyr causes the civil war which removes him from his seat of power by sending Ayre away because he is afraid of being deposed.
- Human Weapon: This is basically all that the Sorcerers seem to be good for.
- Important Haircut: Serah's hair is burned off during her training with Kaki, after which she learns to control the element of fire.
- Instant Death Bullet: Claron can place people under oaths which will kill them on the spot if they are broken.
- Laser-Guided Amnesia: Serah forgets about Aiden tripping and cutting her.
- The Load: Claron has to carry Aiden across the wasteland surrounding the Tower after being drugged and tortured.
- Mind Rape: The spirits used by the Sorcerers love to torment their masters, and can even force them to relive their worst memories.
- Mirroring Factions: Grent makes the observation that the Mahoka operate in a fashion similar to the Sorcerers, only they are less honest about it.
- Oh, Crap!:
- Aiden has one when he realizes that he has betrayed his masters.
- Claron has one when Grent confronts her about Kent.
- Our Dwarves Are All the Same: Averted, as the only dwarves seen are clean-shaven, wield swords, and have taken up the noble profession of tailoring.
- Patricide: Aiden kills his father as a child.
- Please Put Some Clothes On: Ankoku actually uses Aiden's aversion to seeing her naked as a way to test his ability to focus on maintaining his illusions.
- Police Are Useless: The city guard in Sceadu does not impress Aiden at all.
- Power Levels: Ankoku openly refers to this when speaking to Aiden about his potential.
- Preemptive Apology: Aiden when he saves Claron from his masters by killing them all.
- Rain of Arrows: The bandits attacking Jaren's village use this tactic, which Serah's magic counters quite nicely.
- Randomly Gifted: Mahoka and Sorcerers are often sterilized by their power, thus most are born of Muggles.
- Reality Warper: Ankoku pulls this off during the invasion of Magika no Akadem, stripping a hallway full of possessed Mahoka of their powers.
- The Reveal: Claron is head of the Yarika branch houses in the civil war, because Lyr had arranged for her brother Ayre to be taken by the Mahoka so that he wouldn't pose a threat to Lyr's martial superiority.
- Supernatural Sensitivity: All users of Light magic can detect the use of magic through an echo in the caster's voice, as well as a glow around the caster which signifies which element is being used. They also gain enhanced senses.
- Theme Naming: Ankoku, Kaki, and Uchi are each named after one of the elements they can control.
- Think Nothing of It: Ankoku offering to help Claron stay in Magika no Akadem once it is revealed that the Sorcerers are dying off.
- Training from Hell: The Sorcerers deal with this, and Aiden receives it again after a fashion from Ankoku.
- Turned Against Their Masters: The spirits have a habit of mistreating the Sorcerers who command them.
- Walk on Water: Claron reads a story with a character who does this.
- What Happened to the Mouse?: The purpose of the mysterious room sharing the hallway with the party's bedrooms is never revealed.
- Wouldn't Hit a Girl: Aiden's aversion to the idea of killing a woman is what kicks off the entire book.
- Wound That Will Not Heal: The affliction caused by Aiden's curse on the Sorcerers, including Grent's recursion of the curse.
- Year Outside, Hour Inside: Aiden and Ankoku can both use their magic to create this effect.
