Ithia: Book One of the Magian Series

by Jen Valena

  Nolan intercepted Ithia on her way to the garden to meet Anise. “I am sorry that we have not progressed beyond introductions.”

  “Uh. Me too.” Ithia tried to make the reply sound polite. She knew he didn’t trust her and had been spying on her for days.

  “I have been meaning to get acquainted with you, but Tyrsten, Huldo or Feron have dominated your time.” Nolan leaned against the tree to seem casual. “Tyrsten has been gone for a few days now. If you like, I can teach you how to parry an attack or tracking skills while he is gone. I could work in some recreation time for you too.”

  “That’s a kind offer, but I have to go help in the garden. If Tyrsten doesn’t come back soon, we can talk again about training.”

  “Until next time.” Nolan bowed. “May the Great Source bless your path.”

  “Yeah,” she mumbled and rolled her eyes as soon as she had turned her back to him.

  ✹ ✹ ✹

  The Vihar temple sat to the north of the common building. Its shape was circular, made up entirely of vertical logs, thirty feet in diameter with a large glass dome for a roof. There were no other windows so as not to distract the inhabitants.

  Ithia was drawn to it, but hadn’t yet gathered the courage to enter.

  She cracked open the carved, wooden double doors and peeked inside.

  Churches made Ithia uncomfortable, and she made it her unofficial policy not to enter them. Somehow this temple was approachable. Even so, she hesitated at the threshold.

  As Ithia suspected, the temple was empty.

  Meditation cushions were stacked neatly along the wall to her right. The plastered, interior walls, painted black, were freckled with tiny stars. At varying heights, candle sconces hung around the entire circumference.

  Star-shaped lanterns sat along the base of the wall from left to right, ending three quarters around. Ithia counted over one hundred. She knelt down at the last one to see the light glow through a thin transparent shell fitted into wrought iron casings.

  “The lights are for the previous Sauvants that taught here.”

  Ithia backpedaled from the lantern as if she were doing something wrong.

  Huldo draped a reassuring arm on Ithia’s shoulder and indicated to the last lantern. “That one represents the last Sauvant at this Vihar.”

  “What do you think happened to your teacher?”

  “We had hoped Tancreed might have had a new vision about our teacher, but…”

  “But we got there too late.” Ithia remembered the ransacked home. Its owner might be imprisoned or worse.

  Ithia touched the cushions and noticed a layer of dust.

  Huldo sighed. “It has been two solar-turns since this space has been used properly.”

  “That is when things got really bad for you?”

  “Yes. This Vihar, long since removed from public consciousness, was protected by the maze, so our education went unnoticed by Garrick’s regime. Our teacher was in the habit of leaving for moon-cycles at a time. However, he became more reclusive, even with us, in the last two solar-turns, before he disappeared altogether.”

  “And the few people here now were the last to be taught by him?”

  Huldo nodded to the space next to the last lantern. “Perhaps one day, your lantern will burn there with the other Sauvants.”

  Ithia asked herself if that was what she wanted.

  ✹ ✹ ✹

  The next day, Huldo met up with Ithia in the far corner of the grounds where the grass grew high and wild. Instead of acknowledging him, her attention drifted to a raven soaring above.

  He followed her gaze into the sky. “Think he is spying on you?” Perched on one of the boulders, Huldo patted for her to sit next to him.

  “I’m getting worried. Tyrsten could be in danger.”

  Huldo nodded. “He is always in danger.”

  “He shouldn’t make us worry about him like this.”

  “You are right. This is the most irresponsible thing he has ever done.” Huldo laughed. “Good for him.”

  “What?” Ithia gave him dubious glare.

  “Well, he never does anything reckless. It is about time.”

  “Why does he act like that now?”

  “Tyrsten does not like being out of control. What you uncovered the other night during the meditation disrupted his composure.” He placed his hand on her shoulder and spoke softly so it would sink in, “He is acting like this because you showed up.”

  ✹ ✹ ✹

  Ithia helped Anise pick weeds in the garden to take her mind off Tyrsten and to contribute to the Vihar. Anise showed Ithia the many plants she grew and explained their medicinal uses. Ithia never cared much for gardening, but she was caught up in Anise’s enthusiasm.

  Ithia respected Anise’s gentle yet strong presence. She also appreciated the loving relationship that Huldo and Anise had. Ithia even perceived an auric binding like a piece of taffy that stretched between them, pulled thin when they walked away from each other, but never breaking. Ithia had admired the way they laughed, played and talked. She desired this for herself.

  “I understand that women are very rarely Magians. And the world was led by Magians. But you and Samara seem like empowered women to me. Tyrsten said his teacher told him there needed to be a feminine force to bring balance. And maybe I am expected to help with that.” Ithia tended to the fragrant rosemary and tried to sound casual about her role. “But what are other women on Ma’thea like?”

  “There are strong women, weak women and all the variations in between, which I guess is much like Earth. People are people regardless of gender. We have a variety of callings to pursue.”

  “Like careers?”

  “Yes, but more than that. It is what we are meant to do and become. It is how we develop and grow in our life.”

  “But not as women leaders. Women don’t usually become Magians.”

  “Well, yes, it is very rare, but there have been a few. However, the Women Sages were our leaders too.”

  “Have you known any female Magian Innocenti?”

  “I never met one. So few Actuations have been performed in the last twenty solar-turns, except for those of us here at the Vihar. If Garrick had his way, you would be the last to experience an Actuation. Even if that were not the case, I would not expect anyone but the most defiant among us would desire to be a Magian, given the current state of things.”

  “I never realized what a rebel I am.” Ithia let out a quick breath in a scoff.

  “It is surely in your contract,” Anise added.

  “My contract? I didn’t sign up for this.”

  Anise giggled. “You would not remember. Before you were born you decided to travel this path. Everyone has their mission in life, some are here to learn a lesson, some to teach that lesson to others.”

  Ithia remembered Gramps said something similar about lessons. “Where did you hear that?”

  “In our teachings.”

  Ithia surmised that it probably was a teaching in many cultures, possibly on many worlds. “What is your calling?”

  “I work with plants. I develop my ability to encourage growth and health. I believe Huldo and I will work well together as we progress on our paths.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Huldo’s talent is hearing the plants’ gifts and healing properties.”

  “He hears the plants?”

  “So to speak.” Anise laughed at her own pun. “The plant communicates its uses to him.”

  “Do the colors mean something?” Ithia pointed to one of the herbs in the garden. “Like how this plant twinkles blue?”

  “Blue?”

  “You can’t see the plants sparkling?” Ithia was surprised.

  “It must be your Magian eyes. Tyrsten never told me that they did that.” Anise frowned for a moment, wondering what else the world may hold that she hadn’t seen. “Tell me how the other plants appear.” Anise face lit up as she bounced with excitement.

  Ithia was happy to
have something to share with Anise. She described the auras of each plant in the vegetable garden, pointing out their various aura colors. They strolled around to the rest of the grounds and trees. Trees had a subdued shimmer of whites and golds to their leaves. Quick growing plants, such as the herbs, vibrated fast and bright.

  Anise relished the new information, and just for a brief moment, she saw a twinkle from a mint plant. At least, she thought she had. They chuckled at Anise’s uncertainty. Ithia had a vision of a hummingbird hovering over Anise’s shoulder.

  ✹ ✹ ✹

  Ithia stumbled down a long, eerie corridor. Thick stone walls towered on either side of her. A man pulled her along. She resisted. Her nails dragged along the rough grit of the wall.

  In front of her, an intimidating door stood obstinately locked. And yet she had to move past this obstacle somehow. Inside, there was someone that had answers. Someone she needed to meet, but had no idea who that was.

  He tugged on her arm. She struggled to see the man’s face. If she knew his face in this dream, perhaps then she could prepare herself. He was the threat.

  Ithia grabbed his cloak. The man pulled away from her. But his eyes shone from his hood—eyes full of stars. He lunged at her. She was swallowed up in a mouth of confusion. Her light snuffed out.

  ✹ ✹ ✹

  The longer Tyrsten was away, the more Ithia’s curiosity mounted about their meditation. She thought about the faces she had seen. There was more to his reaction.

  Ithia entered the meditation room, placed a cushion in front of a full length wall mirror and tossed another one behind that, estimating where her head might land if she was to pass out again. “With my luck, I’ll be the first person to crack my head open during a meditation,” she mused.

  She set a candle on both sides of her and lit them. Relaxing her eyes, she felt as if a thumb pushed on her forehead at the position of her third eye. She focused her attention on that spot.

  Her heart pounded, nervous to try this alone.

  Before, the images had moved too fast for her to fathom the lives she was shown. She had not been expecting any of what she had seen—faces superimposed over Tyrsten’s. She was determined not to be overwhelmed again. She had to slow the process down to understand what was being shown.

  Ithia had the sensation of a bubble popping. Her eyes unfocused. The face of Jaguar, with golden hunting eyes, hypnotized her into a deeper meditation. She was expanding and contracting at the same time.

  Another face appeared. An old man smiling. She knew his face. Ithia had led a long and happy life as this man. His only sorrow was losing his loved ones.

  More faces flashed. She knew their burdens, their missions, and how they reflected her own. With nothing more than the expression on their faces, she identified what lessons they had learned. Warriors learning the art of self-mastery. Men learning to end suffering. Women learning the power of holding space. As these faces flashed, Ithia grasped the karma that connected her to Tyrsten. In many of these lives, their lessons had been intertwined.

  Then there were no more faces. There was only the wall behind her in the mirror. There was no more for her to see now. Nothing left. Not even her. She was not afraid. She was content.

  ✹ ✹ ✹

  That night she dreamt of Tyrsten. They were both other people, living in another time, another place. He was a musician traveling from village to village until he had come to hers. Again, they had an instant connection as their eyes met. They had fallen in love. He left to earn money for their life together. As the weeks and months passed, she worried that he would never return. One day, news arrived he was killed in another village for a simple misunderstanding. She cried out in her dream.

  “No!” she yelled, believing she had woken herself up. However, she must have been still dreaming, because Tyrsten came running into the room.

  He sat on the edge of the bed. “You are safe.” He placed his hand on hers. He smiled in an effort to comfort her.

  “You didn’t come back.”

  “I am here now.”

  “You died.”

  “You brought me back. You saved me—remember?” Tyrsten sighed low. “It was not my intention to upset you.”

  Ithia squeezed his arm and concluded by his solidity that she was, in fact, actually awake now, and Tyrsten was truly in front of her. Anger filled her face. Her emotions had been compounding exponentially for the last few days. With this new memory of losing him, she was even more furious with him taking off.

  “How dare you run off like that?” She pushed herself away from him. “What is wrong with you? You reveal to me something so powerful, so life-changing, and then you just… disappear.”

  The disgust on her face stated that a simple apology wasn’t going to make up for his cowardly stunt, but he said it anyway. “I am sorry.”

  “Yes, you are,” She agreed in a cool, calculating voice. “Now get out of my room.”

  ✹ ✹ ✹

  Over the next two days, Ithia kept her distance from Tyrsten. He respected that space. She sensed she had shaken him to his very core by her mere presence. Ithia wanted to forgive him for his abrupt retreat, but she was stinging with rejection. The silence swelled like an ocean between them, and she couldn’t tread it much longer.

  The second night, Ithia kept busy as she had done most nights since arriving at the Vihar. She hungrily deciphered the massive leather-bound Magian texts in the great room. She picked a book on dreaming from the shelf, hoping she might discover a clue about her nightmares.

  She read:

  “An Individual that interprets their dreams and understands the symbology behind them is the master of metaphor. To unfold your own metaphors is a wisdom that cannot be learned from others.”

  The door at the end of the corridor in her dreams meant something. That man dragged her to that door every night. When she reached it, a shadow grabbed at her. She read that doors are often symbols for communication with another realm, potential change, or an indication that one must pass through a challenge to achieve advancement in one’s life. She guessed the hallway could suggest a transition in life. However, the dream felt like it was more than a metaphor, as if somewhere this place existed. There were no other doors but one—one path. And perhaps this man and this shadow truly fought over her.

  After countless hours, her mind overloaded with interpreting the new language. She fell asleep on the main hall floor next to the bookcases.

  Tyrsten came in late that night from the grounds. Ithia was crumpled into a sleeping ball in the corner. He thought it safe to approach her now as she was under quite deeply. Tyrsten blew out the oil reading lamp. He shivered with the chill in the room. He grabbed a quilted blanket draped on a nearby chair and placed it over her. He carefully pulled the leather-bound, dream book away from her grip and smiled at the fitting reading material.

  Tyrsten’s movements stirred her. He started to stand up to leave her be. With her eyes half open and still working in sleep, she pulled at his sleeve to bring him back down to her.

  “Stay,” she pleaded softly.

  Tyrsten didn’t know what possessed him to obey, but he did. He hoped her forgiveness would last long after she discovered him next to her in the morning. He slipped one of the room’s meditation pillows under her head and lay down at her side and fell asleep.

  A short while later, Ithia awoke to see him there—blissfully peaceful. She was about to get upset, then remembered her half-conscious request.

  Tyrsten’s golden glow was comforting. Ithia pulled herself closer and noticed a tear that had formed in the corner of his eye. She tenderly dabbed the drop with her index finger and brought it to her lips. Her heart swelled, pressing against her insides. She forgave his need to run. She understood. It wasn’t much different from her own usual ways.

  Ithia covered them both with the blanket and closed her eyes.

  ✹ ✹ ✹

  “Well, you are just too adorable!”

  Ithia and Tyrst
en opened their eyes to the upside-down smiling face of Huldo—very pleased at what he was seeing. Ithia and Tyrsten both returned an embarrassed smile at Huldo, then at each other.

  “So am I to assume the two of you are speaking again? Or did you both happen to get knocked out in the same spot and a blanket flew off the chair to cover you?”

  Ithia gave Huldo a glare. “Give us a moment?”

  “Sure.” Huldo dazzled a grin, but stayed gazing down on them.

  “Alone.” Ithia grumbled.

  Tyrsten and Ithia sat up.

  Once Huldo was in the kitchen, she turned to Tyrsten. “Can we talk?”

  “I was not the one that stopped.”

  “Well, not technically, but you took off. I couldn’t talk to you when you did that.”

  “You are right.”

  “I don’t want to be right. I just want this weirdness between us to stop.”

  Tyrsten frowned and glanced toward the kitchen. They both sensed prying ears.

  They ventured outside into the forest surrounding the compound to continue their conversation in private.

  Ithia wanted to clarify her position. “It seems that we have had many other lives with each other.”

  Tyrsten nodded to himself, but kept silent. He was captivated by her movement, just a step ahead of him.

  “So…” Ithia stared at the salmon-colored morning sky, instead of him, in order to avoid the risk of exposing her emotions. “Are you uncomfortable with me because you have a special someone in your life?”

  “No.”

  “Then someone you had and lost?”

  “No,” he answered succinctly. “Never.”

  “Never?”

  Tyrsten shook his head.