Jonathan's mage licence

Jonathan's mage licence is the document from the Archon that lets Jonathan River go about as an independent mage in the campaign Zincirsiz ("Unchained"). In The Empire, mages must go to the Archon young and may not leave it until they have learned to use their powers without harming those around them; a mage caught without an Archon licence may be put to death without trial.¹²

Jonathan explains that at the Archon a novice may sit the mage's examination with a fighter at his side if he can afford one; deaths are rare and a candidate may give up. Whoever fails to win the document cannot leave the Archon. He hopes to sit further examinations one day.³⁴

Taken as a pledge

When Jonathan and Olaf were held captive in an orc camp, the shaman Gromak learned that Jonathan was an independent mage from the Archon. The orcs sent the pair to fetch back a relic in return for their belongings, keeping the licence and their money as a pledge; Jonathan took back half the money for the road.¹⁵⁶

Searching the chief's scattered tent after a battle, Jonathan could not find it. He feared that without it he might have to go back to the Archon for a new one, which he did not want. Gromak later said that the chief's saddlebag had been left in the camp and taken by the leader of the orcs' enemies, and guessed that the licence was in it.⁷⁸⁹

Spoiler: In the mountainGösterAçık ettiği: Zincirsiz #5 · Ne okuduğunuzu söyleyin

In the mountain of Azbo, Jonathan made the return of his licence and Olaf's money a pretext for bargaining with Kirka, and she brought the document floating through the air to her side. Bold's attempt to snatch it was not seen to succeed, and the licence did not come back to Jonathan when the companions were cast out of the mountain.¹⁰¹¹¹²

Without papers

Questioned by an imperial officer, Jonathan showed his Archon tattoo to prove who he was. He confided to the scroll-seller Ektelyon that he had lost his licence and feared the witch hunters, and asked the dwarf smith Fundin to let him help in his workshop and to speak for him if need be. He spoke of having false papers made, but none were made. Such fear was not idle: Garamain Hull was watched constantly by witch hunters and inquisitors because his magical work lacked the proper papers.^13141516

He also told Otto, master of the witch hunters, that his licence was lost, and agreed to Otto's terms for leaving the city. After Jonathan's service there, he asked Otto for a sealed letter in place of the missing document, attesting that he was known: his licence, he said, was registered at the Archon, and the copy he carried had been taken by pickpockets. It was agreed that word would be sent ahead for a letter signed by a hunters' captain, to be collected at Çekiçyurt on the road to Akşelale.¹⁷¹⁸¹⁹

Spoiler: On the roadGösterAçık ettiği: Zincirsiz #20 · Ne okuduğunuzu söyleyin

When Olaf asked why the fiends travelling with them obeyed his every word, a great horned, spiked silhouette of a devil flickered on the wall, seen by Jonathan alone. Needing to keep away from settlements, Jonathan chose a wild road far from the towns and put off collecting the letter at Çekiçyurt until the return journey.²⁰²¹