Having eaten, their next stop was to see the master who looked after the novices, a rather austere woman with long ash blond hair and bony features, her long fingers expressing much of her emotion. She regarded Freder with some dismay, her fingers fluttering as Catherine explained his situation.
“This is most uncommon.” Elena Brightwater muttered to herself. “Not even elected as a novice you say.”
“Freder can never be an ordinary novice Elena.” Catherine answered her with slight irritation at her attitude. “His talent cannot be wasted of long tedious years of noviate service. He’ll be a master within the year.”
“Eleven years old. He’s so young.” Elena flustered. “The youngest novice is fourteen.”
“Details Elena, just details. Until he is formally accepted he must have a place to sleep and some companions near his age to show him around.” Catherine brushed aside the others objections then took her to one side and spoke very quietly. “I do not relinquish him into your care lightly Elena. He is to be protected from the other novices stupid pranks, not because he is so young but because he is truly dangerous. You have felt several flares recently ?”
Elena nodded.
“Freder cannot control his powers but he can connect with the deep sources with ease.”
Elena looked truly alarmed at the prospect of having the boy in her charge.
“An outburst can be triggered by his emotions, woe betide any who rile or persecute him, they could die for their foolishness.”
“I…I.”
“There is one more thing you should be aware of, he was a prisoner in the Stone and the inmates persecuted him as a snark. He trusts few and fears many. You can be his friend Elena, I know you.”
Elena’s taut face softened at the revelation and Catherine’s gentle analysis.
“Look after him Elena like a treasure beyond worth, and remind the novices that anyone stupid enough to try their luck with him will answer to me, if they are still alive.” She concluded coldly.
Elena bowed her head accepting the responsibility, she also knew that this harmless looking woman could punish someone more thoroughly with her tongue than even the hardest master could with a stout withy.
“Freder.” Catherine called him over. “This is master Elena Brightwater.” She introduced him and the thin woman held out her bony left arm to him which he took apprehensively whilst catching hints of sight of her aura despite not wanting to.
“I will see you tomorrow Freder, go and rest now.” Catherine said touching his shoulder and then turning away.
“The novices are still working Freder.” Elena told him as she led the way into the dormitories. “But I will show you where you will sleep and the common-space where they have most of their meals.”
The dormitories were at the very top of the sprawling complex and the staircase split so that the boys went left and the girls to the right. His dormitory was off a central corridor; it had ten beds in a high ceilinged wood panelled room. The windows looked out over the high moors. Only four of the beds had blankets on them, this was the junior dorm and there were just the youngest boys in it. There was a large box chest at the foot of every bed for clothes and personnel possessions.
“Where are your clothes ?” She asked him.
“I only have these master.” Freder told her. “They didn’t give us anything else after we broke out of the Stone.”
Hearing the news from his own lips was quite different to hearing it from Catherine, Elena could hear the suppressed emotion in his voice.
“You poor soul.” She said softly stroking his head then crouched down so that she was at his height. “You may sleep easy in your bed here Freder, the Hand cannot reach you here.”
He gave her a shy smile, he certainly felt more at ease here than anywhere else he had been in this strange world.

Elena fussed around putting bedding together for him and then took him to the stores to get him proper clothing to replace the tired old threads he was wearing. Finally when she was satisfied that he was properly equipped with everything he needed and that it was neatly stowed in his box trunk she showed him to the bath house and left him to wash.
Freder luxuriated in his bath for a long time, he couldn’t recall when he last had a really fine soak, probably before this mad adventure started. Finally he got out and towelled himself dry with a huge soft towel, not some coarse piece of sacking that had to serve when he was locked in the Stone. The soft robe he put on and the soft leather slippers felt like absolute luxury and he jauntily strolled back to his dorm only vaguely aware of voices drifting out of other rooms that he passed on the way. But as he entered his own the buzz of excited conversation abruptly ceased and he found himself at the focus of four pairs of staring youths clustered on two adjoining beds. Suddenly he felt very small and insecure again, he didn’t know what to do. Fortunately the other boys did and the tallest of them stood up and walked over to him while the others looked on.
“I’m the dormitory senior, Lewis Stanshall.” He announced a bit self consciously, trying to stand tall but still only looking Freder directly in the eye.
“Freder, Freder Adams.” Freder responded and held out his left arm.
Seeing the familiar gesture of the brotherhood Lewis grinned and took it. He half turned his head to the other boys and gave it a jerk to bring them over.
“This is John Smith, Winston Myles and Harley Davidson.” He introduced them as Freder took each left arm in turn.
“Harley, like the motorbike ?” Freder asked the last with a grin but only got a look of blank incomprehension.
“Were you really locked up in the Stone ?” Winston cut in, dispelling the uncomfortable silence, Freder nodded.
“Wow. They only lock up the really powerful masters there.” Winston said goggle eyed. The fact that he was the smallest present with large green blue eyes under a mop of curly brown hair made him look as though his eyes would pop out on stalks at any moment anyway. Lewis on the other hand was heavily built, his blond hair cropped short and his all blue eyes rather small in his broad face; he looked just a little bit thuggish. But he shooed the others away.
“Let Freder get some clothes on, then we can talk. Don’t mind Win he’s just got a mouth on him that doesn’t shut.” He told Freder. “The masters are always trying to shut him up.”
“Thanks.” Freder grinned and rummaged in his chest for clean clothes. He settled on comfortable trousers and shirt and then pulled on a soft suede jerkin for a little extra warmth, all in beige and browns, not his preferred colours but they would fit in with everyone else.
Lewis waved him over to the little cluster and Freder took his place beside him on the bed.
“Master Elena told us to look after you.” Lewis said seriously. “Some of the older novices like to play tricks on us and give us unnecessary jobs.”
“They had me walk ten times round the House.” Harley announced gloomily, it seemed to fit with his rangy appearance, thin angular face framed by ginger hair and pronounced chin, but his green eyes twinkled with mirth as he continued. “They told me some guff about acquiring power but I knew it was just a rag. I passed their window ten times but doubled back inside to put my feet up for twenty minutes before making my next appearance.”
They all laughed at the ruse.

“We know all the shortcuts and some of the hidden corridors too.” John put in conspiratorially. “The seniors think they’re the only ones to be trusted with that knowledge, so superior. What a bunch of po faced shouters.”
“What’s a shouter ?” Freder asked him searching the freckled face and purple in blue eyes for clues. John ran a hand through his tangled blond hair.
“A shouter, you know, all puffed up with themselves. ‘I know this, I can open that secret door, out of my way serf’. You know.”
“Yeah, yeah I know the sort.” Freder answered darkly. It had been the captured novices that had given him the hardest time in the Stone, and it didn’t give him comfort to think that they would all come here eventually if they evaded the patrols of the Hand.
“You meet some in the Stone ?” Lewis guessed to which Freder nodded. “They beat up on you ?”
“They called me a snark and grassed me up to the warders. I got plenty of beatings because of them.”
“You ? A snark ?” Winston goggled. “How could they miss it ?”
“Huh ?” Freder stared back at him.
“Your aura Freder. It’s so dark but just alive with purple rays and mauve sheets.”
The others peered at him with half shut eyes but it was clear that they hadn’t Winston’s sensitivity.
“Was it as bad as they tell it ?” John asked him.
“It was as bad as it can get. The food was vile. They forced us to use our right hand all the time and the warders just loved beating us if we used our left hands. Safe in their gimp suits.” He finished bitterly.
“Gimp suits ?” John queried scratching his head, Freder did use odd words.
“What they wore, black rubber everything. Where I come from blokes like that are perverts, we call them gimps.”
“Gimps.” Lewis rolled the word around. “I like that. The Righteous Gimps.” He laughed, then looked more serious. “But they all said the Stone was escape proof, not so much as a peck of metal in the place for a master to draw on. The masters sent there never came back, well, until now. How did you escape ?”
“There was a tremendous thunderstorm.” Freder began. “It blew up out of nowhere just after the punishment parade had been dismissed.”
“I heard a master took the chief warder down despite their precautions.” Harley put in.
Freder looked down at the floor and shivered remembering the look of vicious delight on the warders face as he raised the stone hammer to smash Freders left hand to pulp.
“It was you.” Winston breathed in astonishment as he read the emotion flickering through Freders aura. “You blasted him.”
“Yes.” Freder admitted weakly, the painful episode preventing him from noticing the looks of admiration from the others.
“That’s amazing.” Winston gushed. “No wonder master Elena said you were da…oww !”
Lewis’ well placed foot stopped Winstons motormouth from saying too much, just.
“But if you felled him, why didn’t the other warders kill you ?” Harley interjected. “They all say that if you strike a warder in the Stone you’re dead.”
“I don’t really know.” Freder admitted, he hadn’t thought much about the aftermath of his action. “But one of the masters called out that the chief warder had had a heart attack, several others said something similar and that seemed to do the trick. The chief warder was rushed off for medical attention and I was herded off to see Stannous.”
“Master Sulfatto!” Harley gasped. “He’s so powerful, I never would have thought the Hand could have captured him.”
“Quiet Harley, let Freder speak.” Lewis stepped in, he wanted to hear what happened next.
“I got the feeling that Stannous was there to lead a breakout because when the storm blew up he used it to blast the dormitory door open and then everything just went crazy. The masters just trashed everything, releasing everybody else and swatting any warder who got in their way. Two masters stayed with me and Stannous and they used the lightning to blow a hole in the prison wall.”

“Awesome.” Winston whispered wide eyed.
“We all got out through the hole and then Stannous brought down five strikes simultaneously and completely demolished the wall. That’s pretty much it, we all broke up into small groups to escape back here.” Freder concluded with a shrug, there was more to tell but he didn’t feel like relating it.
The four exchanged glances, what they wouldn’t have given to have been present at such a time; such a victory over the hated Hand.
“So this is the hero of the Stone.” Said a sarcastic voice from the doorway and all five looked up to see the speaker, a tall senior, dark of aspect.
“It’s polite to ask permission to enter another dorm.” Lewis stated coldly as he stood to face the unwelcome newcomer.
“Not going to introduce us Lewis ?” The senior novice asked pointedly ignoring the barbed challenge and swaggering into the room.
“That’s Norbert, he’s a senior and the worst shouter of the lot.” Harley confided quietly to Freder. “The masters favourite because he sucks up to them so much.”
“A brown nose.” Freder replied sotto voce, much to Harleys puzzlement.
“What did you say ?” Norbert demanded irately.
“I said brown nose.” Freder stated boldly, he was not about to take any stick from a stuck up prig. Then he realised why the angry face that glared back at him was oddly familiar. “I know your brother.” He said venomously and jabbed an accusing finger up at his face. “He called me a snark and grassed me up to the warders in the Stone.”
Norbert was taken aback at this fiery response from a snotty junior and determined to put him in his place.
“So what ? You probably are a damned snark.” He retorted hotly.
“Now wait…” Lewis began to protest stepping between the two but found himself at the end of a stinging rebuke that flung him to the floor.
“I wasn’t talking to you Stanshall.” Norbert growled as he stalked up to Freder and stood menacingly above him.
“Not much are you. Snark ?” He asked rhetorically and poked a finger into Freder’s chest. “How a runt like you can even be considered fit to join the Brotherhood is an insult.” He sneered and jabbed Freder again.
Freder felt his gorge rising, this bully had hurt one of his new friends and was trying to belittle him, just like Jenks had. But this wasn’t like those bleak days. He had wielded great power briefly in the Stone and Stannous had shown him how to tap into those etheric streams of energy, he was not a helpless victim anymore.
“Nothing to say snark ?” Norbert menaced him and gave him a contemptuous shove with his hand.
“Where’s your power little boy ?” He leered and gave him a harder shove.

The chant slipped easily into Freder’s mind and the room turned hazy as he became aware of the other place where streams of energy sparkled so brightly in his minds eye and he reached for it.
“You’re just a damned snark !”
The hand that extended to roughly push him to the floor was gripped hard and the beautiful shimmering stream that only Freder could ‘see’ was unleashed into it in a searing jolt that picked Norbert up off his feet and cast him away across the room like a rag doll. As the stunned senior looked up groggily from the floor only dimly aware of the pain of his landing a face swam into focus.
“My name is Freder, Freder Adams. Not snark !”
The babble of the other seniors crowding the door of the dorm suddenly quietened.
“What is happening in there ?” Master Elena’s voice demanded shrilly. She had felt the flashes of energy and come to investigate.
Silently the seniors parted to admit her.
“Well ?” She demanded as her gaze swept the room, taking in the scene as Lewis was helped up onto the bed by John and Winston and Freder stood glowering down at Norbert.
“Novice Hardwick.” She gasped and swiftly crossed the room to silently demand an explanation from Freder, she could ‘see’ his dark aura still flaring blackly.
“He assaulted me.” Norbert said weakly and pointing at Freder.
“Is this true Freder ?” She asked him, it seemed entirely likely, but why ? Had Norbert attacked Lewis and Freder retaliated ?
“Yes.” Freder said. “I assaulted him master Elena.”
He made no attempt to explain his actions, he admitted to an assault and left Elena at a loss.
“But why Freder ?”
“He entered our dorm without permission, he attacked Lewis without reason, then he started on me. Calling me a snark.”
Elena now knew why Freder had reacted so violently, the trauma of the Stone.
“I’m sorry master Elena he just wound me up so much and I couldn’t control my talent, it just happened.” He continued.
“Very well Freder, it is clear that you were provoked.” She said, her face softening. “Novice Hardwick you will apologise to Novice Stanshall and Novice Adams for your unseemly behaviour.” She demanded as the senior got muzzily to his feet.
“Sorry.” He managed with little grace.
“You will present yourself to Master Catherine for punishment tomorrow.”
Norbert looked stunned by the pronouncement.
“You were all warned, there will be no repeat of this aggressive behaviour towards the junior novices.” Elena announced loudly for the other seniors to hear.
Freder stepped away from Norbert as he made his wobbly exit from the dorm and joined the others as master Elena went to Lewis who sat ashen faced on the bed and established that he was not badly hurt but was suffering the after effects of an electric shock.

“Let him recover for five minutes and then take him to the infirmary.” She told Winston who nodded obediently and then she left the dorm pulling the door shut behind her. But before the door fully closed Freder caught her first words to the cluster of senior novices just outside, low and furious.
“You were warned how dangerous….”
Freder smiled thinly, that little encounter would give him breathing space from the seniors and allow him to find his place in this community. He looked at his left hand and wondered just what else he could do here.
“You were amazing.” Winston enthused. “I’ve never seen anyone deliver a shock like that before. Is it really just by accident ?”
“Not entirely.” Freder admitted. “But being angry makes it easy for me to do such things. I can’t control what happens when I tap into that, that river or whatever, I suppose I could have killed him.”
“That would have been very bad.” Lewis told him earnestly, some colour returning to his face. “The Brotherhood would expel you for killing one of it’s own by using the good arm.”
“Thanks for the warning.” Freder replied and felt a bit scared of his power. At least here he had friends who would help him control it, he held out his left hand to Lewis to help him to his feet. “Which way to the infirmary   Win ?”
The corridor had emptied as they stepped out into it and the little party wove its way down three floors to the infirmary without incident. Every person they passed stared at Freder, word of the showdown had passed swiftly through the building but the wild pulse of energy summoned by the dark aura had penetrated every fibre of it and they were all aware of it.
“I feel like I’m a new exhibit at the zoo.” Freder muttered as a group of senior female novices pointed and stared curiously.
“I wouldn’t worry about that.” Harley said. “Just what Norbert and his cronies will try to get back at you.”
That did worry Freder, not because he was frightened of Norbert, but because of Lewis’ stark warning. He didn’t want to be thrown out of this place of wonders to the cruel attentions of the Hand. He fervently hoped that none of them would be so stupid as to provoke him a second time.
The infirmary was a separate wing off the main building on the first floor with large windows looking out on the high moors one way and down the valley to the town of Wellspring the other. Like all medical facilities it had a certain antiseptic taint to the air, this one smelt of ointment and a vague hint of recent vomit which made Freder sneeze upon smelling it. Their massed entry was noted by master Elias Healing Hand immediately, but then he was known to be able to spot an ailing or injured aura a mile off, but paradoxically he rushed up to Freder and laid his large brown hand on his forehead.

“Where is the pain ?” He enquired gently.
“Errr, nowhere. It’s Lewis who is hurt.” Freder replied in surprise.
Master Elias looked Lewis over with a bright blue eye and nodded.
“A bit of an imbalance, a tonic will take care of that. But you young man…no pain you say ?” He shook his in bewilderment at Freders head shake. “Your head injury is grave, ahh but not recent.” He concluded as he gently probed around Freders head and found the precise spot where the reconstructive surgery had left a little dent. “Yes, yes, the skull is healed, but the brain, oh my.” He straightened up and looked at Freder sympathetically.
“It’s an old injury master. It happened when I was about two years old.”
“But to have lived with such damage when we could have ameliorated it. Were your parents too afraid to come to us ?”
“I, ummm, don’t think they knew about your healing services.” Freder said not wishing to go into the business of how he had gotten here, clearly master Elias had not been at the meeting when he had told his tale. Still giving Freder concerned glances master Elias poured a measure of tonic for Lewis and made him sip it slowly, which was difficult because it tasted so nice.
“Seniors getting stroppy again ?” He asked of him.
“Yes master.” Lewis admitted.
“Sadly some of them are too cocksure by half and haven’t learnt that our talents are not for our personal aggrandisement.” Master Elias grumbled. “In days past we would have weeded them out and taken them down a peg or two the hard way.”
“Freder gave him what for.” Winston piped up and then cringed as Freder shook his head angrily, he didn’t want a reputation amongst the masters.
“Oh ho !” Master Elias turned his penetrating gaze back to Freder. “Yes I see it now, so dark and quiet. So you are the one Stannous has such hopes of. Freder Adams, only the fourth recorded dark aura we have encountered, and you have been very active amongst us already. Three times I’ve felt a new and powerful aura, it is yours then ?”
“Yes master.” Freder admitted.
“So strong for a novice.”
Lewis finished the tonic and put the glass down noisily, he could see master Elias would want a long time with Freder, if he could get it.
“Let us check young Lewis.” Master Elias beamed, recognising the little summons and placed his left hand on Lewis’ chest. “Yes, you’ll live to be a hundred, off you go.”
“Thank you master.” Lewis responded politely and herded the other juniors out of the infirmary.
“Three times.” Winston squeaked excitedly when they were in the corridor. “What happened the other two times Freder ?”
“More seniors ?” John probed.
Realising that he would have to satisfy their curiosity Freder reluctantly began telling them about the assembly and the Master Supremes questioning. He would have stopped at the point where he was taken away by master Catherine but the four boys encouraged him to tell them everything and he only ended with master Catherine’s assessment.
“Master elect by years end.” Winston said in a low tone. “That is incredible.”
It was difficult to sleep that night in the excited atmosphere of the dormitory but eventually the others drifted off and silence fell. Freder lay there for long quiet minutes absorbing the tranquillity of this place, felt a presence come along the corridor and open the door quietly. He shut his eyes but he knew from the others aura that it was master Elena who came to stand beside his bed and sweep her hand over him.
“Sleep well Freder.” She said softly and left him.
Here he felt that he had found a home in this strange world and in that comfortable security he fell asleep.
Much later another master quietly entered the dormitory and stood beside Freder’s bed in silent contemplation. Stannous Sulfatto was pondering the riddle of the dark aura and he had learnt much from his discussions with Catherine and Elias, was it a consequence of that old and horrific injury ? His left hand swept over the sleeping boy, there was something else here, a tension. He couldn’t put it better than that, Freder was being pulled by something, somewhere. But there was no answer here and he left Freder to sleep in the safety of the House.