And Sharrah! Sharrah had gone on and on about her report. Aeron nearly had not been able to enjoy his dinner with her babbling on about those gods-cursed bison. Him! Not able to enjoy his food! She really needed to get away from her desk more. If she would only be brave enough to come and see the caverns. Then, she’d have something amazing to talk about instead of stupid overgrown cattle.
An idea suddenly occurred to Aeron, and he sat up. He glanced over to his desk and his primer upon it. He had actually gotten well along in his studying earlier. He deserved a break, yes? After all, he’d worked for several hours studying. Plus, he did have to plan his tour for Willem, didn’t he? A smile formed on his lips.
He jumped up and dashed over to his desk. He rummaged through the maps that were there, but did not find what he was looking for, so he grabbed a large notebook and a pencil. His belt knife was secure at his waist. What else? He grabbed a lantern from the wardrobe. It had a light-shield that could be used to cover or uncover the lightglobe inside and would be very useful on his explorations of the caverns. He looked around the room, but he couldn’t see or think of anything else he might need.
The caverns had been explored extensively for quite a way out from their surface entrance after Lord Baronel had chosen this area for his holding. And more so afterward, when many of the caverns had also been made foot-and-people-friendly with enchanted hallways and walkways. That had been the extent of any changes made to the caverns on the initial surveys. It wasn’t until the final plans for the Caer had been decided on that more extensive enchanting had been done to the near caverns, most of which were used for the Magic Craft Hall itself, while the rest were used for lightglobe production rooms. Because the main caverns and passageways were not in their completely wild and natural state, Aeron wouldn’t need anything special to do some casual exploring.
He did write a short note explaining his intentions that he then placed on his desk. He would put it away when he got back, but he thought it was prudent to leave a note just in case something happened to him. He smiled. That way Sharrah or anyone looking for him would know where to send a search party.
He headed out the door and to the right. He had only gone a few steps when it occurred to him that he would be gone for a while. He turned back to the toilets.
Afterward, he made his way out through the globe cleaning room, and once at the extraction room, he went down the hallway that lead to the other parts of the cavern system including the various moss caverns and the special ones he wanted to explore. He was pleased to see that there weren’t many people around. He liked the quiet solitude of the caverns.
As he walked along, he made a crude line-map in the notebook of the hallways and caverns. Doing so would then allow him to not only plan a tour for Willem, but also track his exploration progress. Even though he knew some of the hallways already, having gone back and forth along them several times on his moss duty chores, he didn’t want to get lost while exploring.
He followed the hallway, which eventually ended at a ramp. It marked the end of the Magic Craft Hall proper down this path. Beyond the ramp were the nearly raw original passages of the caverns. The walkway continued, but other than that, everything else was, for the most part, untouched.
The walkway itself was another marvel to Aeron. It was about five or six feet wide, maybe eight inches thick and generally stood about ten inches above the ground, leaving the floor of the passages and caverns mostly untouched. In some places, however, due to uneven ground, drops or gaps, the walkway was much higher above the passage floor. There were walkway supports about every ten feet, perhaps six inches wide at their base, that ran up from the ground, widening as they rose to meet the walkway. They seemed part of the walkway, as if the walkway and supports together were molded out of solid stone. Which, he supposed, they had been. He continued past the ramp and down the passage along the walkway.
It took some time. Making an accurate map was not as easy as he had assumed, but he finally made it to the first of the caverns he definitely wanted to show Willem.
The Live Caverns, which is what he called them, were all in the lower portions of the cavern system. The higher caverns, where the moss was being farmed, had all been dead. He figured it was more than likely because the underground river that provided the water for the caverns, and which probably formed them at some time in the distant past, now flowed at a somewhat lower level than before, leaving higher caverns too dry to support much life naturally.
Aeron walked several feet into the cavern and stopped. He placed the notebook on the walkway, shielded the lantern and waited. It seemed like it was taking forever for his eyes to adjust to the much dimmer light in the cavern, so he closed them, hoping that would help them adjust faster.
It was very quiet and still. The loudest sound was his own breathing. Ahead, he heard the faint drip of water every now and then, coming from various points in the cavern. He also heard the faintest sound of movement somewhere. A cave rat, probably. After several minutes, he opened his eyes. And smiled.
It was as beautiful as he remembered. He took a few moments to enjoy the view, then opened the lantern and made a note on his map. He then continued along the passage, expanding his map and making more notes on the way.
An hour or so later, he began to get tired and decided he had better head back to his room for the night. Luckily, it wouldn’t take him anywhere near as long to return. Because he wasn’t going to have to take time to map the way or make notes, he should be back to his room in under a quarter of an hour.
He was happy with how much he had been able to map the caverns so far. He should be able to finish mapping the main cavern system within a few of weeks, depending on how much time he had left over after his magic studies. Once done with the main caverns, he could do some exploring of the ‘wild’ caverns and paths, those without even a walkway. The prospect excited him immensely. But that would be later. For now, he had a great start on his cavern tour.
“Why can’t we just stay longer at Caer Iron and skip Caer Baronel entirely?” Dellia asked.
Methon looked up from the report he was reading as he lay on their bed. She had just walked into the front end of their large enclosed wagon after changing into her sleeping gown. The forward area of this wagon, their main wagon, was screened off and served as their bedroom. The middle area of the wagon was the storage area, where their clothing and other personal items were kept, and beyond a second screen, in the back area of the wagon, was their office and the sturdy door that lead outside.
He watched her as she moved over to him. The dark locks that he loved so much framed her oval face and cascaded over her shoulders. She still had the beautiful skin of a girl twenty years her junior. It was smooth and clear and had the silky appearance of tea with cream. In that green silk sleeping gown, his favorite, she looked like a dessert jewel. And she knew it.
He loved his wife dearly and would fight even a dragon to protect her, but at times like this, he longed for his bachelor days of many moons past. “Light of my life,” he replied, “we have talked about this before. In fact, we have had this discussion every other night for the last week.” He rose from the bed, walked over to her and took her hands in his.
“Nahual aggression is on the rise!” she said, once again bringing up her favorite point of attack. “And Caer Baronel is far into the northern wilds.”
“Yes, love. That is why I have petitioned Lord Balfor to allow me to hire additional guards. We must leave for Caer Baronel at the end of the week if we are to arrive in time and keep to our schedule. They are expecting us in four weeks, as you well know.”
He had not wanted to increase the caravan’s overhead costs by hiring more guards, but she was right about nahual. From all reports, their attacks had definitely increased lately, though they were far from being an every day occurrence. Still, it would be a good investment, and this had been a good year, so the caravan could easily afford it. It should be easy enough to find four reliable guards to
hire away from the Caer. There were plenty of men waiting for openings in the Caer’s guard ranks, so Lord Balfor should be amenable to the request. He’d check whether there was a response to his petition in the morning.
“I just have a feeling that the attacks will get worse,” she said, worry clouding her dark-brown eyes.
“Which, again, is why I am hiring the extra guards. And our son, Sorcerer Altheron I guess I should begin calling him, has proven himself very good with magic.” He paused a moment before conceding her point. “The attacks might very well get worse, yes. But,” and he placed a finger on her lips to forestall another argument point, “we are traders. That is what my family—and yours!—have been for generations beyond counting.”
He clasped her hands again with his and said, “All the traders in our caravan depend on me. We cannot forgo the trip to Caer Baronel and risk our caravan’s reputation. You know this.” The last he said gently, almost pleadingly.
She looked down at his hands, strong hands from good hard labor cradling her own, and sighed. “Yes. I do.”
She slid her arms under his, reached around, and hugged him tightly, pressing her cheek to his chest. “You are a good husband, a fine husband, to let me go on and on these past few days like a spoiled child and still not raise your voice in anger.” She felt him caressing her hair with one hand, felt his other arm around her. After a moment, she released him.
“And you are right,” she agreed, her voice becoming fierce. “We are traders. The best caravan on Lethera! And we will not miss a stop.”
He smiled, placed his hand on her cheek, and said, “That’s the girl I fell in love with.”
“Ha,” she said. “I haven’t been a girl for thirty years.” But she leaned into his hand and smiled.
He chuckled softly, gave her a kiss, and said, “Now my love, though we have just recently arrived, I must begin my lists for moving out. There are many things to check and people to meet with before the end of the week.” He grabbed the report from the bed and headed to his desk at the back of the wagon to begin working on his lists.
Dellia watched him leave, then sat before the mirror and started arranging her hair for sleep, brushing it gently as she reviewed their conversation. Methon was very fond of his lists, she thought and smiled softly. He made lists for everything. She used to chide him over them, but he had insisted that they helped him keep everything organized. And he was right, she had to admit. They did. She hoped he was right about the guards being enough. He was absolutely right about maintaining their schedule, however. A trade caravan lived and died by its reputation. And always being on time was a big part of theirs. She just wished there was something that could be done about nahual. She was definitely getting a strong feeling about them.
Where had they come from? They were practically unheard of in the time of her parents’ parents. But in the last sixty years or so, their attacks had slowly increased enough to become a serious problem. Now it seemed there were attacks every few weeks.
Although, to be fair, the better reporting and exchange of news these days might be why it appeared as if there were more attacks. How many attacks had happened in the past that no one even knew about because the news hadn’t spread beyond the local people? She pondered that thought as she finished tying up her hair.
When she was done, she had come to a conclusion. What had happened in the past was no matter. The past could be learned from, surely, but what was important was preparing for the future, facing it without fear.
She took one last look in the mirror before making her way to the back of the wagon to kiss her husband goodnight.
Chapter 7
Therday, Duody 10, 1873
Afternoon
Aeron was nervous. Tests made him anxious anyway, and this would be his first true sorcery test. Though to be honest, the spells seemed pretty easy and he would probably be fine. But what if he failed miserably? Would he be turfed out of magic craft?
Part of what made him nervous was the fact that he was pretty good at magic. Well, at least the little he’d been exposed to so far. The thing was, why? Everything he heard people say about magic hinted that it could be both difficult and dangerous. And this from people who’s opinions he trusted. But even never having cast a spell before, he had so far had no problems with it. Spells, magic, it all just made sense to him. He was a little worried that what seemed to make sense to him was actually all wrong, so he applied himself to his lessons dutifully.
He had been studying the four spells that Master Doronal gave him for the past few days, and he was fairly sure he had all of them memorized. So this morning, before heading off to chores, he had stopped by Master Doronal’s office and told him that he was ready. Master Doronal had been pleased and said his test would be this afternoon. The test, he had confirmed, would be to cast the spells. That had excited and terrified Aeron.
Why he hadn’t waited until after lunch to tell Master Doronal, he wasn’t sure. As it was, his morning chores and even lunch had not been enjoyable. Sharrah and Willem had even commented on his lack of enthusiasm for his food. But he couldn’t help it. His nerves were churning up his gut. He thought leaving lunch a little early to come to his room and relax would help, but it really hadn’t.
“Ugh,” Aeron said aloud to himself and sat up on the bed, his guts roiling noisily. He quickly made his way down the hall to the toilets.
Afterward, he felt a lot better. His guts had settled down, though he was still a little anxious. He glanced at the chronometer as he headed to his desk. He had just enough time for a quick review of the spells before he had to leave for the test, so he opened his primer and looked over the spells once more.
Master Doronal was at his desk, office door open wide, when Aeron knocked and walked in.
“Ah, Aeron. Come in, come in.” Master Doronal smiled briefly at Aeron then finished writing something on a large piece of parchment. “Please, sit,” he said afterward, gesturing to the leather chairs in front of his desk. “This must be a thrilling moment for you, officially casting your first spells?”
“I’m very excited, yes, but also very nervous,” Aeron admitted as he sat in the same chair he had sat in all those days ago when he first came to Master Doronal’s office. Was it only seven days? Just over a week? So much had happened in that short time.
“Well, I’m sure you’ll do fine.” Master Doronal put aside the parchment and opened a desk drawer. After a moment of digging around inside, he withdrew the training bracelets.
“We’ll be using these again for the tests,” he said and gestured for Aeron’s arm. After attaching the bracelets to both their wrists, he continued. “The spells I gave you are a selection from several that are used in the initial training stages. Kasia’s Nullification you’ve seen me cast before. Xing’s Levitation is related to the enchantments on your moving trunk. And Dagur’s Gleam and Meturato’s Gloom can be quite convenient under various circumstances. These four spells also give you some experience in the two types of spells, active and passive.”
Aeron nodded. “I saw the type notation under each spell, but I wasn’t sure what it meant.”
“Each time you cast a spell, it uses some of your animus.”
“Animus?” Aeron drew his brows together in confusion.
“Think of animus as magical stamina,” Master Doronal said. “Much like physical stamina, it is used when you exert yourself and replenishes with rest. Obviously it is not exactly the same, as physical stamina has to do with how much you’ve eaten, your energy stores, how efficient your body is at converting them for use, and how efficient your body is at dealing with lactic acid buildup in—” He abruptly stopped. “But I digress. Let’s see. Animus. Like physical stamina, you can increase how much animus you have by exercising, as it were. The more you practice casting frameworks, the more you cast spells, the more base animus you will gain.”
Master Doronal looked at Aeron and, seeing he was paying close attention, said, “Passive spells are spells
that require nothing of you once cast. You cast them, and your involvement is done. Active spells, on the other hand, will require you to maintain them both mentally and, in a sense, physically. As the spell remains, you will be connected to it, consciously, and you will be slowly drained of more animus.”
Aeron opened his primer and began flipping between the spells he was to be tested on. “Of the four spells you gave me, the only active one is Dagur’s Gleam.”
“That’s correct,” Master Doronal said. “A simple way to think about it is, if the spell is constantly creating something, doing work, it will be an active spell, otherwise it will be a passive spell. That’s a very simplistic view of it, but it is good enough for a start.”
Aeron still looked uncertain.
“It will be more clear when you cast the spells. Let’s start the test with Dagur’s Gleam.” Master Doronal stood, reached over, and shut Aeron’s primer. “Now, take each step carefully. Start with the framework. Build it slowly, then move on to each focus and transformation step. I’ll be watching as you do and will jump in if needed.”
Aeron placed his hands on the edge of the desk and nodded. He took a deep breath, let it out slowly, and began. The framework, it was the luminescent framework, was simple. He had been practicing all the frameworks each day, as he had been instructed, so this part he breezed through. He did create it slowly, however, as Master Doronal had asked.
“Good, good. Now, begin the spell steps.”
Aeron could see the gleaming framework floating, enclosing his right hand, where he had created it. He began adding in the next symbols, single and multiple vibrating bands of various colors. He adjusted them as needed based on the transformation symbols as he remembered them, taking each step slowly.
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