Adept

by J. P. Larson

  “Kia, are you able to cast the containment dome?”

  “Yes, Senior Magus.”

  “I’m sure this isn’t necessary,” said the queen. “We don’t need to watch her laboriously produce that. We can take her word.”

  “Perhaps you could indulge us for just a moment or three,” Quartain said. “Kia, by your most efficient method, please.”

  “Of course, Senior Magus.” I concentrated and then let power pour from my hand, a lot of power. The spell formed, and once it was done, I threw it at the circle. Around Eva, the dorm formed, racing around the circle then arching up and over her head. The entire process took two or three seconds. From inside, Eva grinned out at me, her image distorted by the glowing magic dome.

  “She ready-spelled that!” Hallamarie burst. “Kia, when did you do that?”

  “Shortly after settling down in Haltorda,” I stated.

  “Why?”

  “Sentimental reasons,” I said. “Is it pertinent?”

  She studied me then shook her head. “Perhaps another time. Carry on, Quartain.”

  “Eva, do you think you can break through Kia’s containment dome?”

  “It depends upon how I try,” Eva said.

  “Perhaps you could emulate the attempts of a novice.”

  “Of course.” Eva turned and grinned again. And then she easily made a spell. I recognized it. We all did. It was my signature, in a way.

  She made a light spell.

  She threw it at me, but it splattered into the containment dome with a flash of light. The spell made a little “pop” as it dispelled.

  “Oh, please,” Marie said. “You can do better than that, Magus Eva.”

  And so she did, making minor spell after minor spell, all the spells either of us learned as novices, throwing them after me, one at a time. Of course, not one escaped.

  “Eva, seriously?” Quartain prompted.

  Eva looked over her shoulder. “I’m sure Kia wouldn’t mind dispelling this copy and making another with several of us inside.”

  “No, thank you,” Quartain replied. “Perhaps you could emulate an apprentice.”

  Eva upgraded the quality of the spells she was using. None escaped, of course. But then she looked over her shoulder and grinned at Quartain. “I remember when Kia was an apprentice,” she said. “Should I emulate her trick?”

  “No,” I said. “You should not.”

  “Perhaps journeywomen spells, Magus Eva,” Marie suggested.

  “Very well,” Eva said. “But I really would rather graduate to what you really want to see.”

  “Build to it, Eva,” Quartain said. “One at a time.”

  I folded my arms and watched as Eva built a spell. Filtered through my own magic, I couldn’t see what it was; I thought it might be a flavor of magic I didn’t have. She threw it at the dome. And for the first time, I actually felt one of her spells hit. It was as if she had reached out and pushed me with one little finger, just for a moment. But the spell burst, making a big splat of light against the inside of the dome.

  But the dome held.

  “You felt that,” Eva said. I inclined my head. “Well then. Let’s try a better version of that spell.” I watched as she took a minute to make her spell, and I knew this one wasn’t a journeywoman spell. I stared for a moment, Eva grinning at me. And then she threw it.

  That I definitely felt, and I even felt a drain of my magic. Oh, it wasn’t a big drain, just a blip, but I definitely felt it. I gave a little gasp, but then smiled.

  “Well, well,” she said. “One more.”

  This one took several minutes to build. I braced myself, and then she threw it. I grunted when it hit, and if it had been physical, it would have pushed me back. The entire inner surface of the dome lit up and crackled, and I felt another drain of magic, this one significantly larger than the last one.

  For a moment I was sure the dome was going to collapse, but then it steadied, and the flashing and crackling dispersed. Inside, Eva was frowning.

  “Was that spell what I thought it was, Eva?” Marie asked.

  “It should be; you taught it to me, Your Majesty,” Eva replied.

  “Well,” Marie said. “I am impressed, Adept Kia.” She looked to Quartain. “I’d rather not give anyone a headache this morning.”

  Quartain nodded. “Will you please dispel that, Kia?”

  “You’re not going to make her break it?”

  “No,” Quartain said.

  “All right.” I stepped forward, held out my hand, and pushed it through the dome. The little hairs on my arm stood up, but then the energy from the dome collapsed into my hand.

  And everyone stared at me.

  “What was that?” Larpeen asked. “Don’t you know how to dispel it?”

  “Haven’t you ever done it that way before?” I replied.

  “I have not,” she said. “Didn’t that hurt?”

  “No. Would you like to see me dispel one the other way?”

  “No,” Quartain said. “Eva, you are welcome to sit.” She waited until Eva was seated before asking, “What spells do you have at ready?”

  “That one and my best tangle,” I explained. “I’m waiting for magus level healing spells.” Then I looked at Iladarta. “I don’t know if you’re going to recommend any other botany spells.”

  Quartain glanced over at the botany instructor. “Why don’t you sit?” I took my place again. Quartain looked around for another minute. “Kia, I want to ask you something. I want you to consider your answer carefully. You have three basic ways you can help Ordeen. Can you identify them?”

  “Healer, botanist, and investigator. I don’t have Eva’s spells for subterfuge, and my training in knowledge spells has been weak, but I have several flavors.”

  Quartain nodded. “So there are three branches of magic you could use. And there are three basic settings you could use them. Can you identify them for us?”

  I thought for a moment, not getting what she meant, then I felt my expression clear, and I returned her nod. “I can ride a circuit like we did with Byseen. I could settle in one place, somewhat like I did with Hallow.”

  “And perhaps like you spent your two years away,” said the queen. “Continue.”

  “I could teach,” I said, finishing the list.

  “You could,” Quartain agreed. “In botany or healing. What do you feel is our best use of you?”

  “I don’t know, Senior Magus Quartain. I can guess what other people might say.”

  “All right. I’d like to hear that.”

  “Senior Magus Sytara would like me to be fully focused on investigations. I do not have the training for it, and Eva is better at it than I would be. But that is still what she would prefer.”

  “I believe you are correct,” Marie said. “She is not here. Please continue.”

  “Senior Magus Flutarine once wanted me in the military,” I said, “Probably as a healer, but possible for my knowledge magic. She may no longer want me on her hands.”

  “She is also not here,” Marie pointed out. “She’d be delighted if I gave you to her. You, however, would not enjoy the experience.”

  I thought about the sign outside the door and studied Magus Erin for a moment. “I would not wish to place words in your mouth, Magus Erin.”

  “I am curious what you might predict, Adept Kia,” Eric replied.

  “I do not know if you enjoy teaching,” I said. “It is possible you would like me to take over for you here, freeing you to pursue other needs. I am convinced you would be a better fit for the military than I would be, but I do not know what else you would prefer to do.”

  “My ability to perform healing of diseases is deeply limited,” she said. “I have a taste of those flavors, but only a taste. What are the implications of that?”

  “Magus Erin...”

  “Please be honest, Kia.”

  “Do I have to?” I whined.

  The queen snorted. “Yes.”

  “You cou
ld not work a circuit, Magus Erin. Too much of what I’ve done involves disease healing. If someone has a trauma, you wouldn’t be there when they most need you.”

  “You’re right,” she said. “And as you’ll recall, you learned more spells from Hallow and Larpeen than you have from me.”

  “You taught me technique. I imagine most healing required by the military is trauma.”

  “Not all, but you’re right about that as well.”

  “It would be years before I could replace you here, although I could supplement you...” I trailed off. “Immediately,” I finally added.

  “You could,” she said, offering a rare smile.

  “The sign...” I trailed off again.

  “I do not believe you are done answering,” Marie said. “Do you have more answers?”

  “All right,” I said. “People far from the capital need my healing.”

  “They do,” Marie said. “And?”

  “But if I were to ask a farmer, I bet he is more interested in my botany.”

  “I imagine you are correct,” Marie agreed. “Is the farmer the only one who might care about that?”

  “No. Everyone eats.”

  “Even Flutarine recognizes the value of a botanist, as soldiers also eat,” Marie added. “Would you care to guess what Senior Magus Quartain would prefer?”

  “She wants me to get experience and then help teach.”

  “She would be perfectly happy if you never left the school, or if you left only to perform duties Erin and Malla once performed,” Marie countered. “But you’re right. She’s asked me to keep you here. Have you and Eva talked?”

  “Of course,” I said. “Eva and I want to be together.” I looked at my lover. She was watching me. “And I think she feels what she is doing is important.”

  “If you weren’t lovers and had remained friends, do you know what she’d want for you?”

  “She’d want me to be happy,” I said, “and for us both to do something so we’d see each other as often as we could.”

  “I believe you are right, Kia. Do you care to guess what I want?”

  “No, Your Majesty.”

  “I want you to be happy, Kia,” she said. “Oh, have no doubts, I want you to be happy doing the things I need.”

  “Ah.” I inclined my head. “Thank you, Your Majesty.”

  “Yes, yes,” she said. “Kia, do you know what you want?”

  “I want to be with Eva. I can be many things, and frankly, I’m needed everywhere, aren’t I?”

  “Yes, I agree. You are needed everywhere. We have talked about what people may want. Do you know what I need, Kia?”

  “No, Your Majesty.”

  “I need you to be flexible.”

  “Are you about to deliver bad news? Are you sending Eva somewhere I wouldn’t want to go?”

  “Not at all. My point is that you are able to do many things, and I need you to remain flexible in those regards.”

  “I don’t understand.”

  “I need you to become the best healer you can. I need you to become the best botanist you can become. It would seem that healing is more important than botany, but some day, you could prevent mass starvation.”

  “I hadn’t considered that,” I said slowly.

  “When you strengthen a farmer’s field, you help everyone get through the winter a little more easily. You take a little pressure off the entire country. Those extra potatoes could mean someone is stronger when a winter chill comes along, and so they shrug off a disease that may otherwise have laid them low. Do you see?”

  I nodded. “Yes. Grandmama used to say things like that to me.”

  “Your grandmother is a very wise woman,” Marie said. “Will she attend the wedding this spring?”

  “If she can,” I said.

  “Good. I look forward to it. Finally, I also need you to begin to learn the knowledge spells no one else has been able to teach you. Do you see?”

  “You need me to be flexible, to fill in as necessary.”

  “Yes. Do you understand the implications, the effect this might have on how easy it will be for you to be declared magus?”

  I sighed. “Yes, especially if I’m also traveling.”

  “Quite so,” Marie said. “Quite so.”

  “How do you feel about this, Kia?” Quartain asked.

  “I don’t understand the question.”

  “You are an Adept Sorceress of Ordeen,” Quartain said. “No one else dictates what you learn. It is now your choice. We are here to help you and guide you, but it is your choice whether you will accept that help and guidance.”

  “Oh,” I replied simply. “I still don’t understand the question.”

  “Some women would be frustrated with any delays in their path to magus,” Larpeen said. “Some women have chosen single-minded attention to a single area of magic, forsaking others. I am one such example.”

  “Oh,” I said again. “You’re wondering if I would prefer to focus strictly on botany or healing.”

  “Indeed,” said Quartain.

  “I still don’t understand, Senior Magus Quartain. You told me you needed me to become magus as quickly as I could. But now you’re telling me it’s going to happen more slowly than that.” I glanced at Eva. “Longer than it took Eva.” Then I looked over my shoulder. “And that sign on the door is saying something to me, too.”

  “It is,” she said.

  I thought about it, then I sat up straighter. “I want to help people. And I want to be with Eva. I bet I can do both at the same time. I’ll agree to whatever you want, as long as I can help people, be with Eva, and you don’t make us soldiers. Well, and Eva has to agree, too.”

  “That is rather what we thought you would say,” Quartain replied. “Iladarta, are there further botany classes Kia would take on her path to magus?”

  “No,” said Iladarta. “I have spells to teach her, but if she were going to focus strictly on botany, I would want her to spend time with the other magi. There are things they could teach her.”

  “How long?”

  “Perhaps a year, if that is all she did.”

  “Erin?”

  “She needs to learn a few more techniques, and I would give her to Hallow or Larpeen, although I am probably better equipped to teach her how to teach.”

  “Your Majesty, what of knowledge?”

  “She knows the easy spells,” Marie said. “She needs the techniques Erin mentioned, plus a few others you can teach.”

  “And after that?”

  “A few years. With me, probably. She and Eva are mismatched in their Knowledge magic.”

  I thought about it and slumped. “I’ll never finish,” I said in a small voice.

  “That is inaccurate,” Quartain said. “How hard are you willing to work?”

  “I’ve always worked hard.”

  “Yes, you have,” she said. “Kia, I want you to begin teaching. I want you to teach one class in botany and two in healing. You will work with Iladarta, Erin, and Larpeen to determine the content. Do you accept this request?”

  “Does the queen have to approve?”

  “She does,” said Marie. “And she already has.”

  “Eva?”

  “I’m going to be teaching, too.”

  “Then I’d love to teach,” I said. “But won’t that slow me down even more?”

  “You have already noticed that teaching the material gives you fresh insights,” Erin said. “This is quite common.”

  “All right.”

  “In addition,” Quartain said, “I wish you to continue to learn what you can from Iladarta.”

  “Good.”

  “In the meantime, Eva, Erin, and I will teach you the advanced techniques necessary to master the most complex of spells.”

  I nodded.

  “You will spend one morning a week with me,” Marie said. “And the afternoon with Larpeen.”

  “I look forward to it,” I declared.

  “You will work as h
ard as you are able,” Quartain said, “but not to the point you make yourself stupid.” That happened when I overused my magic. And so I nodded.

  “All right then,” Quartain said. She nodded to Jeanine, who passed a sheet of paper around the circle until it arrived with me. I glanced at it. It was a schedule. I was going to be busy sunup until late, seven and a half days a week. I stared. “I won’t have time to-“

  “Fremara will see to our needs,” Eva said. “You’ll let her do anything she can if it gives you more time to study.”

  I thought and nodded. “Yes, Magus Eva.”

  I looked over the schedule. They’d left an hour here and there for me to relax, including Threeday afternoons, if I wished, and I had half of Eightday. I studied it for a minute then passed it to Eva, seated across the gap to my left. She read through it and said, “Mine is similar.”

  “Until when?”

  “That’s your winter schedule,” Quartain said. “In the spring, you go back out.”

  “After the wedding.”

  Quartain turned to the queen, who nodded. “After the wedding,” Marie agreed. “Sytara isn’t going to be pleased, but leave her to me.”

  “Thank you,” I said. “Does time spent here count against my service years?”

  “Yes,” Marie said. “Time spent in Haltorda, however, does not. Eva is ahead of you. But let me ask this. Do you really believe you’ll stop serving Ordeen when you’re done?”

  “Probably not,” I admitted after a glance at Eva. “But at that point, it’s our choice, isn’t it?”

  “It is,” Marie confirmed. She smiled. “But it’s mine to decide if I’m going to pay you.” That statement was met with smiles.

  “All right then.” I turned to Eva. “It looks like we’re going to be busy.”

  “It certainly does,” she agreed.

  “Good,” Quartain said. “Your schedule begins Oneday.”

  “And until then?”

  “Don’t worry,” Quartain said. “You’re going to be busy.”

  * * * *

  Nearly everyone filed out. Larpeen remained. I turned to her, and she smiled briefly. “I’ve already talked to Hallow and Erin about you, Kia,” she said. “Tell me about your two years away. Take your time. I want to hear about the cases you treated. I also want to know about any shortcomings you feel you have.”