by Andur
“No way! Do you intend to become a complete sloth Celestial?” Idala has a shocked voice.
“Unfortunately her inner mana manipulation makes her a monster.” I say that while remembering a certain someone running over the water with physics alone on her side. Most magicians can't even dream of accomplishing something like that.
“We will start our training again. There is no getting out of this!” Arduin threatens his daughter with a finger.
I will have to watch him while he casts spells at her. It would be interesting to know if he manages to force her to evade.
25 - Our house.
Norfolk, Sarn-Valley
“We are here!”
We lead my parents towards the entrance of Ascathon's property. Four burly and big guards step aside as they recognize us. It's a clear night in Sarn and the stars sparkle above us.
A small walk takes us to the entrance of the mansion and we enter the reception room. Sarah is at her desk like always.
“Sarah! Look. I found my parents. Could you get everyone and ready a room for them?” I walk over to Sarah who stores a few documents away.
“Liandra will be overjoyed.” Sarah walks off to get the kids.
Then I turn back to my parents. It only just occurred to me, but they were awfully quiet since leaving the ball. “Mom, Dad? Is something wrong? You were so quiet.” I try to smile to them to soften the mood.
“Ah. It's nothing dear. It's just that this mansion seems awfully big and there seem to be no servants?” Idala voices her thoughts while looking around.
Ah. I guess in another mansion from a noble family you would be greeted by an army of servants. That's not the case in the house of Asceron..... for certain ~reasons~. I guess that this will become another problem!
I realize now that Ascathon is smirking at me while standing behind my parents. They can't see his expression because they are looking at me. Damn. I was so happy about finding my parents that I didn't think this through. And Ascathon didn't bother to mention anything.
He is looking at me like asking how I intend to explain his house to them!
“Yes. Ascathon doesn't like servants. So there are just us, the kids, their tutor Stefan, Sarah who is our secretary and the guards who live in a separate part of the mansion.” Covering it up could work for the time being but my parents will surely have thoughts of their own.
Both of them take a look back at Ascathon who immediately changes his expression to indifference. “I am simply not comfortable with too many people around. And I don't like having someone do something for me which I can do on my own. There are just some cleaners who show up once a week.”
“This still looks like it costs a lot of money. How much did you spent on the small army around the mansion and this principality.” Arduin asks Ascathon a bold question.
But the hermit just shrugs his shoulders. “A little more than two thousand platinum coins. I didn't bother to count.”
“He didn't bother to count.” Idala turns towards me and smiles.
“Well. Let's go to the living room. Sarah will need some time to prepare a room.” I lead them into our private area of the mansion.
Inside the living room we find Den, Stefan and the kids. Stefan is teaching them magic while using Den as the target.
They are trying to enchant Den which is bound to fail. As someone with the werewolf-curse on him, he has unbelievable high resistances. I found out about Den and his people only just recently.
He mentioned it like talking about the weather at one point. Until then I had trouble trying to understand the strange abilities of the guards. They were faster than their size suggested. Their senses seemed to be better than those of a normal humans. It all made sense in that moment.
“Mom! Dad!” Liandra sees Idala and runs into her arms. Arduin starts to pat her head. I wait for the moment of reunion to pass and then I introduce our employees.
“May I introduce you? That's Stefan. We hired him as a teacher for the kids. And that's Den. He is the captain of the guards. Stefan, Den. These are my parents Idala and Arduin.” Just as I speak those words Sarah enters the room.
She bows respectfully towards us. “As I see you already found the others by yourself. I prepared one of the bigger private rooms. It's the one right next to the study.”
I nod while smiling. “This is Sarah by the way. She is our secretary. Please feel free to ask her if you wish for anything.”
While I introduced everyone Violetta sneaked up to Ascathon and looked with interest at Idala and Arduin.
“And this is my little sister. Violetta.” Ascathon smiles while patting Violetta's head.
“We will excuse ourselves then.” Den leaves the room and Stefan follows with Sarah. I guess they thought about giving our reunion some space.
“It was a long day. Why don't we sleep over everything? I have to admit that I am a little tired.” Ascathon excuses himself while my parents follow him with their eyes.
Idala is still hugging Liandra and I decide to follow Ascathon's example. “I will show you your rooms. We will talk about everything tomorrow.”
So I lead my parents to their room. “This house is more like a dream out of a wonderland than a real house.” Arduin gives me a questioning look.
I turn towards my father. “Why do you think so?”
“The whole house has lights at this hour. How much concentration does it take to maintain this?” Arduin looks towards the light at the ceiling.
“Ahaahaha. My husband is a collector of magical items. I will explain everything to you in the morning. I guess this really feels like wonderland to you. For the time being you just have to know that you can control the lights by waving your hand over these controls at the walls.” I demonstrate it to them.
“Ah. And the baths have running water and the bathtubs are enchanted to keep the water warm. So don't fret over it. I will see you in the morning.” I leave the room in a hurry to avoid further questions.
Then I head for Ascathon's room. He is already in the bed and looks like sleeping. So I use the bath and get changed. When I get back I find Ascathon with that stupid smirk again.
“Tomorrow I will be entertained quite a bit. I am looking forward to how you will explain my house to them. They will go through the roof when they find the kitchen. Or when they take a closer look at some of the clocks and realize that they don't have just a decorative purpose. Or when they realize that the whole house is fitted with lights. Will they run towards the Academy or is their love for their daughter greater?” He rolls onto his back and takes a look at the ceiling.
“I trust my parents. They are good and loving people.” I enter the bed too.
“If you say so.” He is still looking at the ceiling.
I wait for another five minutes but I get no further reaction from him. Our relationship is still too cold in my opinion. Nothing has changed about us. Just because I found my parents it doesn't mean that.... haaah.
“I am frustrated!”
“Why.”
“A beautiful woman is lying right next to you. And you don't even try to do something! ….. again....”
“I am not in the mood....”
“I may ~lose~ my mood to cook chocolate.”
“....”
…..
….
…
..
The next morning I awake with Ascathon lying on top of me. I roll the snoring hermit to the side and sit up. I wish I could get him to go on the offensive for once.
That's when I realize that he has a certain reaction which is bound to happen sometimes in the morning. He is still snoring while deep in his sleep. ~Hmm.....~
….
…
..
“I feel raped!”
I leave the bath and the hermit looks at me with a mourning expression while complaining. “Don't mope about it. Be happy to be awakened in such a nice manner.”
When I wink at him he shakes his head and I leave the
room.
A few steps take me into the kitchen where I find my parents with disturbed faces. Liandra has a bottle with water on the cooker and Violetta is sitting on Idala's lap like she belongs there.
Aw... crap.
“Good morning daughter. Don't you think that there is much explaining to do?” Arduin looks at me with a forced smile.
“Yes. Why are these artefacts violating more laws than I could have ever imagined being violated in a single lifetime?” Idala takes a piece of bread with marmalade from the table.
“Well. Cool stuff. Isn't it?” I take a seat myself and Liandra places a few cups with tea on the table. “Ascathon built them. He is good with stuff like that.”
“I am led to believe that he isn't a good influence for you.” Arduin winces while looking into his cup of tea.
“Do you have any idea what will happen when the Academy finds out. These kids don't deserve such a risk. They seem to be completely unaware of the dangers.” Idala takes a bite from the bread.
I think long and hard before I answer. “I am aware of it. I am also aware of the coming war. And between all the options which are available to me, this is the best one. Besides.... ”
“~We will rule the world soon enough anyway.~”
My father spurts his tea all over his food while my mother starts to choke on her bread.
26 - Loyalties.
Norfolk, Sarn-Valley
I am in my basement with a bowl of chocolate pieces in my hand. A spinning globe of glass hovers in front of me and it's one of my newest creations. It has the size of a football which makes it about adequate for my purposes.
The globe is a spying tool which enables me to have my eyes and ears anywhere I want within a certain radius. For the time being it has a very limited range. But it's enough to follow the people in my mansion.
I was watching since this morning when Celestial dropped the bomb of world domination on her unsuspecting parents. They took it as bad as I had suspected. The kitchen turned into a living hell and I noted to myself to be careful around Idala. She has some pretty scary techniques. In the end though, to my amazement they didn't run directly towards the academy.
Not yet at least. Though they insisted to stay in this mansion to have a close eye on Celestial and to protect Liandra.
Watching through the globe is similar to a real life tv-show. So I lean back while enjoying the view.
Celestial is on the training ground in our garden. She is driven by her wish to utilize her new technique to the fullest. A big chunk of rock is her target and she is thrusting her flat palm towards the rock which actually creates small shock-waves.
Is she trying to create a fake Palm of Buddha? You were watching too many movies dear. On the other hand... those shock-waves are pretty impressive on their own. I don't want to stand in front of her while she is doing that.
Oooh! Daddy is incoming from behind! Watch out witch!
“Celestial. We will restart your training today. What are you even trying to accomplish by casting those shock-waves?” Arduin folds his hands and stares at Celestial.
Fool! She wasn't casting anything! She just executed a purely physical movement while slowly moving and thrusting her hand towards the rock and explosively releasing all her power at the last instant. That was simple brutish strength!
“Sorry daddy. But I guess casting spells doesn't fit into my training schedule.” She smirks at her father.
“Then prove it! If you defeat me I will acknowledge that you are right to concentrate on that new technique of yours.” He enters a fighting stance.
“Whenever you are ready daddy. I wanted a training partner anyway. Ascathon isn't an interesting opponent.” Celestial raises a hand to signal her readiness.
“Why not?” Arduin arches an eyebrow.
“He always makes excessive use of barriers and other tricks to avoid head to head combat when I drag him out to train with me. It's a little annoying.” Celestial shakes her head.
I would be flattened like an insect if I wouldn't do that brutish witch! And who in his right mind would step in front of a train to stop it if he could simply sabotage the rails!
Daddy just shrugs his shoulders and attacks with a fireball. It's smoothly executed and followed directly by a swiftness spell. His body blurs and he reappears behind Celestial who is casually wiping the fireball out of the air with her bare hand.
Then Celestial turns and charges towards Arduin. At that moment though he has his next spell ready and a small tornado lifts Celestial into the air.
Whooo! Nice thinking. I underestimated my father in law! Up there, her brutish strength is useless and by using wind-magic he avoided the problem of her magical defence.
I guess he is aware of the passive resistance which is offered to someone who practices his battle-aura.
But Celestial isn't defeated and starts to execute her technique from earlier in fast succession which blows her out of the little tornado.
She makes a perfect landing and charges for her father again.
Arduin doesn't bother with mind magic and after a few words a dense wall of earth is raised between them. I admire his resourcefulness.
Mind magic is a very restricted and dangerous art. If you don't execute it properly, it fails and you have to face a magical backlash. The same goes if you try it on someone who is powerful enough to block it.
So you are very foolish if you use mind-magic in combat without being one hundred percent sure that you can overpower the mental defence of your opponent.
Celestial is unconcerned by the wall and blows right through, stopping her foot just an inch in front of Arduin's face.
“So what do you think father.” Celestial smirks at Arduin.
“I will rethink my opinion of this technique. Though you still have a little work before you if you want to use it in actual combat.” Arduin's image wavers and disappears while Arduin's real self appears about five meters to the left.
Hooh! My father in law created a fake image of himself during the fight. I didn't realize when he did it. On the other hand my globe doesn't give me an accurate and realistic view. Seeing something purely as an image with sound is quite a loss compared to the real thing.
“You were just hiding! That's the same as Ascathon! Don't you....”
Celestial continues to complain but I switch the channel. Watching the bickering scene is no fun. I hope she never develops a way to see through tricks like that. She will be the ultimate enemy of a mage.
Maybe I should start to develop a technique to stand up to her. Being bashed up because you are physically too weak is no fun at all.
I find another interesting channel. Stefan is correcting the homework of Violetta and Liandra while Idala is watching him intensely. The old scholar obviously isn't comfortable with it.
After a few seconds he looks up. “You have a question Mrs. Jasmine?”
“I just asked myself why someone like you isn't on his way to the academy right now? I heard about the reasons for your leave.” Idala leans back in her chair.
Stefan shrugs his shoulders. “I am a curious guy. But I am no stupid guy.”
Idala shows surprise. “If you would explain that further?”
Stefan places his pencil on the desk. “I was ruined by the Academy. Then I looked for a new job. But with a bad reputation by the Academy you are doomed. I had given myself up when I came here. But Ascathon gave me a new purpose. How could I bite the hand that pulled me to my feet again?”
“But couldn't you redeem yourself if you mentioned this house to the Academy? The Inquisition is fearsome, you know?” Idala arches an eyebrow while trying to make sense out of the old scholar.
Stefan begins to chuckle. “I don't fear the Academy or the Inquisition any more. They are barbarians without any knowledge. What I fear is the owner of this house!”
He stands up and walks over to the big grandfather clock at the wall and opens it. “Did you realize what these things are?” He looks at Idala.
Now she shrugs her shoulders. “They are artefacts which show the time?”
Stefan chuckles once again and points at the magic circuits inside the clock. “Those are magic circuits. And they are more sophisticated than everything I have ever seen. Do you know the biggest secret of the Academy? The holy grail of artifice?”
“The Gates?” Idala looks interested now.
“Yes! The Gates! The creation which is said to be the biggest blessing and the greatest threat of magic. The reason why the academy abolishes almost all artefacts. But the Gates are children's toys compared to this!” Stefan stabs his finger wildly at my magic circuit without touching it.
“But it's just a thing that shows the time?” Idala looks confused.
Stefan closes the clock again with great care. “All spells can be reduced to their most basic elements. You know that? Even the greatest military-spells can be cast by an appropriate magic artefact. Even a commoner could use these artefacts if they were made with that purpose in mind.”
Idala nods, so Stefan continues. “The gates are thought to be the epitome of magic devices. They are stuffed with magic circuitry to the brim! And even then it requires a highly skilled magician to control them. But they are just child's play compared to this ….technology.”
Ooops. I guess I should have held back a little more. Combining logical circuitry and magic circles is a little too obvious.
Stefan points at the clock. “That's not knowledge from our world. The one who created this clock could probably build a Gate that fits into my fist! And that leads us back to your first question.” He corrects his glasses.
“Would you piss someone off to whom the Academy's Gates are nothing more but mere sticks? If he would go out into the world and publish this knowledge our world would topple upside down and burn.”
Idala looks concerned now. “Not from this world?”
Haah. I guess I will have to talk with all of them. If I let this go they could get some stupid ideas.
I switch the channel again and find Liandra and Violetta. They seem to be up for some mischief. One of them is freezing the ground with a thin layer of ice while the other is calling for Sarah to come and take a look at something.