“Hey, Rue!” Sella’s excited exclamation brought that fact firmly to mind, and Ruethwyn winced, looking up from the summoning diagram she’d been examining.
“Keep it down, Sella. We’re in the library, and you know how the librarians can get,” Ruethwyn replied, giving an apologetic glance to the librarian, who was glaring at Sella in a way that suggested that the woman had murder on the mind.
“Oh, I’m sorry, I just… I wrote my father, and he just forwarded a letter to me. You have to read this,” Sella said, her voice calmer, but excitement still in her eyes. “Remember how I told you about Maldin?”
“Um, no?” Ruethwyn said, taken aback and wracking her memory for mention of the name. It hadn’t been brought up recently, and she frowned.
“The man whose family had that petrification curse,” Sella explained, some of her enthusiasm fading.
“Oh, that’s right!” Ruethwyn said, the additional clarification reminding her of Sella’s description a few months before. “Sorry, I just didn’t remember his name.”
“Good, I thought I’d overstepped a bit. Anyway, I wrote Father, asking him if he could get in contact with Maldin and ask him if going into the Frostglades could help you,” Sella explained, her smile widening again as she continued. “Father forwarded a letter from Maldin, and I think you’ll like the answer. Well, mostly like. It doesn’t sound easy, that’s for sure.”
“Oh?” Ruethwyn said, sitting up straight as hope rushed through her. “What do you mean?”
“Here, read it for yourself,” Sella urged, offering the letter.
Ruethwyn took it, her fingers trembling as she held the parchment, the simple wax seal which had held it shut broken. Taking a deep breath, she slowly opened it and began to read the uneven handwriting.
Hello Sella!
Your father tells me that you’re attending Tyrness Academy, and the idea that you’re there… well, it’s somewhat stunning. It seems like only last winter that I remember you toddling about Waterstone, but that’s how things go.
Hearing that you’ve made friends with someone who survived Mellesyn, though… my heart goes out to the girl. Her injuries and such make a bad situation even more horrifying. I’m pleased to say that I can help, though I’m afraid I have to be somewhat vague. I made an oath not to say too much, you see, but this shouldn’t do that.
Here’s what I can say, though. Yes, she can get help inside the Frostglades. It won’t be easy, mind you… what I did was the hardest thing I’ve done in my entire life, and I nearly failed. I can’t give directions. I can’t say how to do it. Just… no cold iron, and be polite. Oh, and I deeply recommend going after winter is over, as even in the heat of summer the Frostglades are frigid.
I hope what little I have to say helps, Sella. I also believe you’ll become an impressive mage and make all of us in Waterstone proud.
Maldin Stonehand
Ruethwyn paused on finishing the letter, exhilaration and shock running through her. She could hardly believe what she’d read, and even if she didn’t have confirmation… it was information that she hadn’t had before, and it was her first lead that didn’t require trekking halfway across the continent or trying to cross a branch of the Thorned Wood.
“Well? What do you think?” Sella asked, her voice slightly eager as she watched Ruethwyn intently.
“I’m just… I’m stunned, Sella. Thank you!” Ruethwyn replied after a moment, realizing her voice was trembling, and she could feel heat welling up in her eye. She blinked quickly, trying to force back the tears, speaking softly. “After all the research I’ve done, all the dead ends or choices that would take too long… I can hardly believe that all that was needed was sending a letter to the right person. It’s almost anticlimactic in some ways, but… gods above, I have a chance, now!”
Sella’s smile widened and she nodded, looking at the letter as she said, “I knew it was something of a risk of whether or not I’d get any useful information, but that’s why I didn’t tell you. I didn’t want to get your hopes up if Maldin had moved or couldn’t tell us anything.”
“Of course. That’s… oh, goddess, I’m crying,” Ruethwyn said, sniffling slightly as she slumped back in her chair, rubbing at her eye as she felt the tears track down her cheek. “I’m sorry, I’m just overwhelmed.”
“It’s fine, Rue. So, does this mean I’m going to get a Midwinter gift after all?” Sella asked, grinning as she did so. “I almost thought the dress might be it, but…”
Ruethwyn laughed at the question, grinning and closing the book she’d been looking through. She couldn’t concentrate on it anymore, not with the news she’d gotten. Instead, she looked at Sella in amusement as she asked, “Oh? What did you want for Midwinter? I can’t imagine you asked that if you didn’t have something in mind.”
Standing, she took the book over to the librarian while Sella collected the letter and hurried after her.
“I was actually thinking one of those bracelets for mana. I’ve noticed how it lets you use your wands a lot faster than most other people I’ve seen use them,” Sella admitted. “I’ve thought about trying to build one, but I just don’t have the expertise yet.”
“Oh, this? Sure, I can do that. I might just give you this one and build another for myself, actually… but thank you,” Ruethwyn said, taking a deep breath. “That’s just… a relief.”
“You’re welcome. I’m going to ask you to treat me to a nice meal, though,” Sella said, smiling widely as she followed Ruethwyn out of the room.
“Sure,” Ruethwyn agreed, feeling like a huge weight had come off her shoulders.
No matter how hard it might be, the challenge had to be easier than trying to face a dragon with only one arm.
Chapter 37
Yalline checked the room one last time, licking her lips nervously as she did so. The unused storeroom had been a bit dirty when she’d first found it, but she hadn’t dared do anything to clean it up until she was certain that none of the servants used the room or even checked it often.
Cleaning the room had taken several days, but she didn’t see any dirt or other debris that might interfere with her project. It was just in time, too, as it was Midwinter Night, and all Yalline’s research had indicated that the summoning would be far easier if she performed it today.
“Okay… I think it’s time,” Yalline murmured, her voice loud in the large room. With its vaulted ceiling, she had to wonder if it had been intended as another classroom. There were certainly more dormitory rooms than their class used, so it was possible. Shaking off the thought, she muttered, “No, I need to focus. Madeline will notice that I’m missing before too long, so I need to get this done. I can’t stay in her shadow forever.”
Picking up a bag she’d set in the corner, Yalline pulled out a bundle of papers and some chalk. Untying the bundle, Yalline looked at the notes, her hopes rising again.
Madeline may have sent Yalline into Ruethwyn’s room to copy the maimed woman’s notes, but her patron didn’t ever bother reading them. She also hadn’t asked Yalline not to make copies of her own, and what Ruethwyn could do was fascinating.
“She must not have wanted anyone else to have access to this. Why else would she not even have mentioned all the things that atavism could do?” Yalline murmured, studying the symbols carefully, then nodding. She’d studied them enough over the last few weeks that she was certain she could draw the circle accurately even from memory, but the lessons Master Mara and Vrenne had given had taught her not to count on that.
Taking a deep breath, Yalline set the notes aside and knelt down to begin drawing the complex circle on the smooth stone floor.
“Your dress is beautiful, Rue,” Korima said enviously, eying Ruethwyn and shaking her head. “The dress you made me was gorgeous, but that one’s stunning.”
“Your dress was significantly more complex than this one,” Ruethwyn countered, adjusting the right sleeve slightly.
The sleeve was more of a shoulder-pad, and she’d
made it a bit too short to properly fold over where her right arm had been, so pinning it in place wasn’t quite as easy as she’d hoped it would be. She also slightly regretted leaving a gap below the collar to show a bit of cleavage, since she could see a few hints of scar tissue through it. Ruethwyn hadn’t thought of that when she’d designed the dress, though. She loved the melding of purple and blue, though, so she wasn’t going to abandon it, especially with how cold it was outside. After all, she’d enchanted the dress to keep her warm in cold weather.
“Complex doesn’t mean it’s as beautiful. Mother always says that simplicity has its own elegance, and that each has its place,” Korima said, glancing at Sella. “Do you agree, Sella?”
“Why’re you trying to drag me into this?” Sella protested, taking a step back. “Look, it is a pretty dress, but I don’t know enough about fashion to give a good opinion.”
“It’s not a matter of fashion!” Korima retorted, letting out a sigh. “It’s definitely beautiful fabric, though. I wish I could’ve afforded it.”
“It was extravagant, I’ll admit, but I think it’s worth it,” Ruethwyn agreed, then grinned at Korima as she teased, “Even so, you’re the one who didn’t understand how much money was worth.”
“I’ve been learning! It’s why I’ve dragged Tadrick out shopping a bunch of times!” Korima said, shrugging as she frowned. “Even if I didn’t buy things, just going places and seeing how much they cost tells me a lot. I’m still getting used to it, but I think I’ve managed pretty well.”
“You have. I think you’ve adapted to life here more readily than I have,” Sella said, shaking her head as the young woman let out a deep sigh of annoyance. “No matter how much I try, I can’t help but feel that I’m out of place.”
“You’re not nearly as out of place as I am,” Ruethwyn said. “Still, we can only try our best not to let things get the better of us. I’d prefer not to go out today, but it’s Midwinter. We should honor the memory of those who’ve passed on.”
“Agreed. Even if Nature’s Court isn’t one of my clan’s patrons, their priesthood has always helped us.” Korima’s smile faded as she bowed her head. “And you’re right about remembering those who aren’t with us anymore.”
“Speaking of which, if we want to get decent seats in the chapel, we’d probably best get going,” Sella said, glancing at the door.
“True enough,” Ruethwyn agreed, going to the door and opening it with a sigh.
Stepping outside, she paused, blinking as she saw Madeline looking around, the noblewoman looking upset, and her hair not done up in the usual splendor that the other woman favored. It was a bit of a surprise, but even more startling was when the woman turned her attention to Ruethwyn.
“Ah, there’s someone! Ruethwyn, have you seen Yalline anywhere? She up and vanished, and I haven’t seen her this morning,” Madeline demanded, the anger in her eyes obvious.
“I’m afraid I haven’t, but I only went downstairs for breakfast,” Ruethwyn replied, her tone cooling slightly at Madeline’s demand. Even so, she turned to the others as they followed her out, asking, “Have either of you seen Yalline this morning?”
“Nope. Not so much as a hair,” Korima said, shaking her head as she adjusted her cloak, looking at Madeline curiously.
“Me neither. Sorry I can’t help, Madeline,” Sella said, her tone regretful. “Do you think something’s happened to her?”
“I’m not sure. She usually doesn’t vanish like this, but maybe she decided to visit the shrine to the Dowager and pray for her grandfather? It’s a bad day for that, though. Drat the girl,” Madeline said, scowling and taking a deep breath. “I guess I’ll just have to keep looking for a bit longer. Thanks for nothing.”
“Good luck,” Ruethwyn said politely, watching Madeline go down the stairs, then let out a breath of relief.
“What is her problem?” Sella asked, slightly incredulously. “We tried to help!”
“I think she just finds peasants to be annoying and unworthy of her time… unless they’re servants, and then they give her what she views as her just due,” Ruethwyn said, shaking her head. “Let’s go find the others and get to the chapel, shall we?”
The other two nodded, and Ruethwyn headed downstairs as well. Glancing out the window at the snowbanks that now covered much of the grounds, she was grateful that the dress would protect her from the cold.
She wasn’t looking forward to the services, but it was what it was.
Yalline picked up the fire opal nervously, looking over the summoning circle one last time. There didn’t seem to be any flaws, so she took a deep breath and began the summoning incantation, focusing on the warm gem and the mana she’d imbued into it, and as her mana reached the circle, it lit up with a dull orange light. She wanted fire, to complement her talent with water magic. Once she had that, no one would dare say she’d gotten into the academy solely because of Madeline’s patronage. She wouldn’t have to worry about whether or not she’d overshadow the noblewoman all the time. She practically burned for the talent, and for the ability to learn it.
Her distraction nearly caused Yalline to make a mistake, but she corrected herself in time, her attention snapping back to the ritual rather than her hopes and dreams. It was a complex ritual, Yalline admitted, but she was doing it. Ruethwyn wasn’t that far ahead of them, no matter what Master Mara might say. Why they doted on Ruethwyn so much was beyond her.
Walking around the circle was boring, but Yalline suppressed the urge to hurry. The time she’d seen Barthel hurry and his summoning circle explode in his face had cured her of that impulse. She’d seen, and made, so many mistakes… but she’d learned from them.
Yalline’s confidence grew as she brought her incantation to an end, the mana flowing into the circle intensifying its glow. Stopping where she was, Yalline stared at the circle, murmuring, “Come on… please work…”
The first hint of her success was the faint scent of sulfur. Darkness pooled in the middle of the circle, slowly bubbling like a liquid as it coalesced and swirled into an upright shape, flowing smoothly into the figure of a woman… and the upper body of the figure suddenly erupted in flames.
Yalline flinched backward in shock, but the fire vanished only moments later, at least for the most part. Standing in the middle of the circle was a woman, immaterial wings of fire extending from her back. She wore a black corset with red embroidery, and leather pants that almost seemed painted on. The woman’s skin was crimson-red, and swirling traces of fire ran up her forearms in intricate patterns. Her lips were black as pitch, while her eyes were swirling orbs of fire, a deep orange forming the irises, though they lacked any pupils. Protruding from her crimson hair were a pair of horns that branched forward and back, looking almost like a crown or halo just over her head. The woman looked around curiously, then smiled, a strange sight since it almost looked like a fire raged behind her teeth.
“What’s this, I’ve been summoned by a mortal? How strange, yet interesting,” the woman said, glancing around, then at Yalline. “Who might you be, girl?”
“I’m not a girl,” Yalline replied, glaring at the elemental in annoyance. “I’m called Yalline. What about you?”
“Ah, of course… my apologies, but all mortals are so young that I forget how they react. It’s been a long time since I was summoned,” the woman replied, smiling and slowly examining the circle around her, her eyebrows rising. “Though this is an interesting circle, I must say. You may call me Hekara, Yalline. Now, why have you called me forth? The midst of winter is hardly ideal for one aligned with fire, as I am.”
“Thank you, Hekara. I do not have a specific task for you, so much as an offer,” Yalline said, slowly relaxing as she realized the woman wasn’t hostile. With intelligent elementals, that was always a possibility.
“Oh? Please, elaborate,” Hekara said, tilting her head and a thin smile flickering across her lips.
“Have you heard of the art of atavism?” Yalline asked, expecti
ng that the elemental likely hadn’t.
“Hmm… I can’t say that I have. It must be either rare or a recent development,” Hekara mused, tapping her chin idly.
“Of course, I believe it was relatively recent, within the last millennium, and only used by one or two casters,” Yalline said, smiling as she added, “It’s the art of summoning an elemental in mental form into the mind of the wielder of the art. It would allow me to glean insight into the sphere of fire from you, and while active would also allow me to cast fire spells, which you have knowledge of. It requires a willing elemental, though, which makes developing it difficult, and has other possible benefits as well.”
“Ahh, I see… an interesting art indeed,” Hekara replied, her eyes glowing slightly brighter. “I do not see what I would get out of such, though. Summoning gives elementals like myself some benefits, but not enough to be constantly available to your whims.”
“Yes, I’m aware of that. That’s why I was going to offer you mana in exchange,” Yalline said quickly, leaning down to pull a jar of mana she’d borrowed from Madeline’s things out. It wasn’t as large as the one Ruethwyn had offered, but Master Mara had said that she’d been overly generous. “I have approximately four hundred drops of mana between what’s in this jar and in my summoning focus that I’m willing to offer you for a contract.”
“Ahh, well, that is an entirely different matter. That’s a fair amount of mana indeed,” Hekara said, smiling broadly as she nodded. “I believe that I can accept that.”
“Excellent,” Yalline replied in relief, smiling and approaching the circle. She was confident that her circle was the same as Ruethwyn’s, so she took a deep breath and murmured the spell to allow her to pass before she stepped across, holding up the gem and jar as she spoke. “Here you are.”
“Thank you, Yalline,” Hekara said, smiling and taking the two items. Her presence was like an intense fire, but not quite so bad that Yalline felt she had to retreat. The light slowly faded from the fire opal in the elemental’s hand, then she handed it back and unlatched the jar to drain the rainbow-hued mana. Lowering the jar once it was empty, the elemental swallowed and smiled, sighing happily. “Yes… that was wonderful.”
The Avatar's Flames (Through the Fire Book 1) Page 29