by Ian Isaro
"Well, if I have to be here, I may as well learn something. I plan to take a lot of Propitiation classes, since they'll lead to research that might earn me money for graduate school. The Homuncomancy is for self-defense and it should make the Light Essence worth more when I sell it back."
"I hope that works for you. Who are you taking Homun-whatever with?"
"Direct training with Tierdrial. She's not so bad if you know how to work with her."
"Do you know any of the other professors in the Fey Arts department? After seeing you I was thinking of taking one of those classes next semester, but I'm not sure who to pick."
"Leora Livni, definitely."
"Really?" Aki had seen the woman a few times before realizing she was a professor. "I was afraid she'll teach us how to knit oven mitts or something. That, or she's really nasty underneath all the smiles."
That got a slight grin from Keisha. "Trust me: your other option is Gastion Johnson. He's bought into this prophecy thing hook, line, and sinker. From what I've seen, he doesn't have students so much as soldiers."
They kept talking, and Aki was glad they hadn't tried to meet in between classes so they didn't have to stop. Keisha was much less uptight than she seemed from a distance. Just an overachiever, and Aki didn't have a problem with that. Most likely they would have gotten along even without sharing knowledge of a conspiracy.
Remembering that made it harder to enjoy the conversation.
~ ~ ~
"Imagine meeting you here."
Trill looked up quickly. Though she glared at him, she released the energy she had been building. Blake now knew enough to realize it was enough to disintegrate him a dozen times over. Her clothes were the same kind of slacks and dress shirt as before, but the shirt's cut was different, meaning her wardrobe was mostly the same. She folded her arms. "I assume you're just passing through."
"I like taking walks." He stepped off the ledge and slid down the psychedelic grass. The sky overhead continued to retract and expand, shifting colors as it did so. There were purple trees dancing in the distance, but they did not seem cheerful. Part of him was still afraid the entire realm would rip apart, but he assumed the builders knew better than he did.
"There aren't any explicit rules saying students shouldn't be in the university shell, but there would be some who would find this rather suspicious."
"I'm hurt. This is the first time we see each other since you recruited me and all you have is suspicion?"
The slight smile vanished. "Seriously, Blake, how are you here?"
"To be honest, I saw you investigating and decided to follow."
"And you just copied the portal here?" She raised an eyebrow. "Funny how you never work and yet you seem to keep getting more powerful."
"I am forced to conclude I am the main character in some kind of derivative fantasy."
"You have the arrogance of one, anyway."
"Have I mentioned I'm a master swordsman? Picked it up in my spare time."
After staring at him for a long moment, Trill let a smile slip across her face. She started walking and gestured for him to follow. "While it's impressive you made it here, you could get yourself killed if you're not paying attention. Now tell me why you're stalking me."
He hoped he read her tone right and she was kidding, so Blake stuck his hands in his pockets and walked alongside her. "Just a few days ago someone broke into the university and attacked people in Ax Hall. They won't tell me anything and I'm terribly curious. It occurs to me that since you're in the university's defensive shell, you're probably investigating something related."
"Not bad. They used some kind of time distortion to get inside and I need to find out why."
"Wait, does that mean time travel is possible?"
"It's not, thankfully. You can change many things about how time flows, but it only flows one way." She stopped and examined some kind of crack in the ground that climbed into the air, leaking pale blue light, but apparently it was fine since she ignored it. "Most likely the defenses are too advanced for you, but regardless I'm not supposed to explain them. So I'll just say that kind of thing shouldn't have worked."
"I hope you figure out the problem, then. I'm going to keep bugging you, if that's alright."
"I suspect my only choices are to put up with it or remove you forcibly. I'm leaning toward the latter."
"Why so hostile?"
She stopped and met his gaze. "While I'm glad you haven't joined Gastion, that doesn't mean I trust you. At best you lack all conviction, and at worst... we've let in a passionately intense snake. And while I don't particularly dislike you, I also don't have any hatred for snakes, but that doesn't mean I want them nearby."
"Well, Yeats references are a little too high brow for me. I'd rather go back to pop culture."
"Dodging the issue does a lot to reassure me."
"What if I'm reluctant to commit to anything because I don't trust the people I've seen so far?" He removed all trace of joking from his face. "I keep hearing about how the faculty are in some kind of cold war and I don't particularly like the sound of the sides. Light and Darkness seem... rather mundane."
"That's just the beginning." Trill sighed and turned to face him. "You have a few idealists like Emile, and Gastion always convinces a few lowlifes. But neither of those sides really matter and it gets more complicated from there. You sure you really want to get into this?"
"Yeah, sure, whatever."
She shot him an irritable glance, but continued explaining. "I'm part of the group that thinks we should study this prophecy and find a way for both sides to cooperate. It's not going away, so we should deal with it. I wish there were more of us."
"Oh? Who else do you have?"
"That, I'm not telling you. Other than us, there are a lot of fey on the board of directors who hate the whole idea of the prophecy and war. They're on top after ten thousand years of development and they'd be happy to stick with the status quo. I'd like to think we can work with them, but that's already a messy alliance."
He wasn't surprised to hear that position. His parents had told him a lot of non-humans viewed the entire thing as a barbaric relic. What worried him was that the status quo was powerful, and he doubted it would just sit and complain. But since he didn't want to share that thought, he waited for her to continue.
"There are some other sides, but they can never form a coalition so Axis continues on like usual. To be honest, I'm not sure about a lot of the administration. For example, the Academic Dean has never committed to any position and security staff are supposed to stay completely neutral."
"But you're not neutral."
"I think cooperation is in everyone's best interest, so it's part of my job."
"Nice justification."
She was moving forward again but he thought the usual smile had returned to her face. Blake tried to examine things as well, though he didn't get very far. What worried him was that he didn't think Trill specialized in this kind of magic. He had a long way to go.
Just as he had his next question formulated, Trill froze. In one swift movement she was next to what seemed to be a blue whirlwind. She stuck her hand inside and frowned at whatever she observed.
"Do you see this? No, probably not. Someone built a back door into our security system, obscure enough only someone who expected it could get in. It was definitely done from this side."
"I thought you didn't trust me. Sure you should be telling me about a traitor?"
"Maybe I'm lying to you to see what you'll do with the information." Her eyes flickered over at him for a moment. "Traitor isn't really the right word. Not many are loyal to Axis University; it just has the most resources. Whoever did this didn't want anything to happen to Axis - it's a ploy to hurt their opposition, disgrace the administration, something relatively harmless."
She raised her hands and began forming a tunnel beneath them, one that would split off to send him back to the university grounds. Blake wanted to say something, but c
onsidering that she had called him a snake... best not to push his luck. Besides, his mind was shifting to consider if Gastion might have been responsible. He had definitely planned to benefit.
"Whatever you do, stay out of this infighting." Trill met his gaze briefly before opened the portal. "It's going to get us all killed."
Probably so. Blake put his hands in his pockets and fell into the aether.
Chapter 10
From the architecture of Ax Hall, she knew there had to be upper levels, but she had never visited them. It seemed that the university was happy keeping students out. There were only basement and first floors according to the list of offices, but on the other side of the administration offices Keisha discovered the old staircase.
She knew that Doyle would be found on the upper levels and could only hope he was on this side. The main hall probably went to the roof and she didn't want to go all the way back down to explore the other side. As usual, it was impossible to sense anyone within the building. It might have been some kind of magical effect or merely the thick stone.
The staircase gave the apprehension time to build. From what she had learned, Doyle Kelly had been an exceptional student and carried a Light Essence like hers. Except not only was he as smart as she was, he had years of experience. How well this meeting went could earn her a significant advantage or close a door permanently.
Finally she reached a floor where she could sense a presence like hers. Keisha left the staircase and walked toward his room. She realized midway that she was trying to walk silently, which was ridiculous since he could have sensed her on the staircase.
This was all on the assumption that she was right and it was really him. There were plenty of other graduate students doing research and she could easily have gotten them confused. It was most likely a mistake and her apprehension was all for nothing.
It was Doyle. He sat in the center of an empty room with his legs crossed. There was no light in the room yet it was brightly lit. She knew the light was linked to him, but it was a complex structure that made it seem to pour from every surface instead of his body.
"Good day." His eyes opened, for a moment burning white before fading to a natural green. "Do you need something?"
"I wanted to thank you for the other day."
"I only regret I wasn't able to prevent the threat in the first place."
"And I also wanted to ask some questions."
His expression shifted to a wry smile. "I thought as much. Ask, but I doubt I will be able to answer. There are many agreements that prevent me from sharing information freely."
Keisha took a moment to catch her breath. Her second reason for being apprehensive was proving correct. She was an adamant disbeliever in love at first sight, but the second sight was another issue altogether. Before his shirt had been tight, like some men who thought far too much of their own muscles, but now he wore a white t-shirt that only hinted at the powerful body underneath. Perhaps it was a side effect of advanced Homuncomancy, but she pushed the thought aside along with other distractions.
"Is there anything you are allowed to tell me?" She had never experienced being unable to think around someone, and didn't particularly want to. But too many of her thoughts were absorbed in irrelevant speculation now. Even if he respected her, she was a rank amateur compared to him.
"The official line is that it was only a minor disruption. I can assure you that we've learned how they entered, and the increased security is not just a comforting phrase."
"But you wouldn't be able to say anything about who attacked or why."
Doyle chuckled. "No. Besides, asking who would be the wrong question."
Her eyes narrowed. If the identity of the attackers didn't matter, either he meant "why" was more important or the issue was complicated. Perhaps more importantly, he hadn't dropped the hint idly, which might mean he was an ally. "I'm guessing that for most people, any questions I asked would be the wrong questions."
"That's probably true." He stood in a graceful motion. "If you would not be offended by a word of advice, I recommend you take Charged Magic courses. Don't let them distract you, but as a supporting skill they will substantially improve your Homuncomancy."
"Thank you for the suggestion. Am I wrong, or have you done something similar with the two disciplines flipped?"
"It's what I wish I would have done. In my time they dictated more of the education of anyone with a Light Essence, and my attention was split between studies to the detriment of both."
He didn't seem offended by the personal question. Keisha decided it wouldn't hurt to push onward. "And now you're doing research for Axis. What exactly does that mean? Making weapons for the theoretical war?"
"Some would be happier if I was." Doyle scratched at the stubble on his jaw. "But what they want is publishable research, and it's rare that anyone can develop something new related to warfare. At the moment I am experimenting to see if there is any way Homuncomancy can be used to reverse degenerative diseases."
That was a noble goal, but it would have been uncomfortable saying that and asking if he had a reason for that research would have been too personal. No, she needed to treat the idea academically. "Wouldn't there be more direct methods via other disciplines?" She sounded more critical than she'd wanted, but he only smiled.
"Certainly, healing is the specialty of Manifest Arts, and even where that fails there are several ways to write diseases out of existence. But few can use those methods and they are beyond the reach of the vast majority of those who actually have the diseases. I am looking for easily replicable solutions."
"I hope you succeed."
"Thank you." He had moved closer and she realized that he was subtly trying to show her out.
It would have seemed horribly selfish to ask for any of his time after talking about his research, so she resolved herself to leave. Disappointing, but the conversation had not gone poorly. While she was near the doorway, trying to think of something appropriate to say, the light suddenly brightened and he stepped closer to her.
"Don't become indebted to anyone. They want your use of the Light Essence to be dependent on them, so they won't teach you some of the critical skills until much later." His gaze was so intense she was barely distracted while looking into his eyes. "Using Light isn't like draining a pool. As you use it, it becomes contaminated, and those contaminants will interfere when you try to act. What they won't tell you is that these can be cleared on your own."
He touched her hand and there was fire running through her body, far too intense for her to think it was an emotion. All at once she felt lighter than she had in weeks and power was at her fingertips.
"You've felt it once, so you can probably figure it out on your own." He stepped away and the light returned to normal.
"Are you... here because of a debt?"
"I am here because I believe in my work. But I don't believe in all the work that is done in Axis University." He was moving away now, yet another question was forming in her mind.
"What about people with Dark Essences? Are they contaminated by bits of light?"
"From what I've heard, the principle is similar but the methods different. Darkness becomes faded or diluted. But you'd be better off asking someone with personal experience." As he sat back down he glanced at her one last time. "And by the way, that's asking the right question."
Keisha floated down the stairs, sorting through everything from the conversation. There had been good advice, hints for how to move forward, and feelings that complicated everything else. But she felt as though she had another person she could trust. There were too few of those at Axis University.
Apparently they were on the right track. She was more worried that they would ask all the right questions and then not want the answers.
~ ~ ~
The most irritating thing about magic was still there to haunt Aki: while she was using Maleficium it still didn't feel like she was doing anything. Her education let her see the energy cle
arly and feel that she was using up her energy, but that was all. There should have been lightning, or a burning feeling, or feedback of some kind.
Suddenly there were three separate attacks coming at her. Distracted by her thoughts, she'd failed to sense them. There was no way she could fend off three at once, so Aki let one of them stab into her. While she stumbled, Blake pressed the attack.
But she had taken the hit in order to gather the rest of her energy and throw it all at once. She sent it spear-like through the remaining two waves of Maleficium and saw Blake fall backward. His offensive vanished and she realized that she'd actually won.
Her body was aching, but she managed to raise her fists into the air. "Hah! The circle is now complete. Now I am the master!" She walked closer to Blake and saw he was staring upward with a strange look on his face. "What? Don't tell me you're upset just because I beat you."
"Nah, I was just thinking how interesting that line was before the prequel trilogy."
"Yeah, it kind of ruined everything. Except for the line about sand - that entire scene was brilliant."
Blake jolted, then saw her expression and shook his head. "Don't scare me like that."
Laughing, Aki sat down nearby and wrapped her arms around her knees. They had started training between the dorms and the forest since there wasn't a better location. Emile had hinted that students would compete with each other in later classes, but nothing had started yet and they both wanted to try their abilities for real.
Trees mostly hid them from the nearest buildings, and there was enough interference from all the nearby classes that no one should sense them. Better to keep it a secret, both to avoid awkward assumptions and so no one knew the extent of their abilities. They'd quickly found the place with the softest grass, since they spent a lot of time falling down.
"That was really concentrated at the end there." Blake pulled himself to a sitting position but remained staring at the sky. "I think my heart stopped for a moment."
"Only if you were terrified of my almighty power." The nice thing about training with Maleficium was that they couldn't really hurt each other. She had no desire to harm Blake and thus the best she could muster was some pain. "You've seemed kind of distracted lately."