– Era of the Wastes, Cycle 209, Season of the Setting Moon, Day 86 –

“Potatoes?” Bjorln offered the bowl to Samuel.

“Thanks.”

“So how was training today?” asked Brynn.

Before Terry or the twins could respond, Bjorln already replied. “A bit whiny, but they’ll get used to it.”

“My sympathies to you three,” said Samuel to the children.

Brynn gave him a questioning glance.

“I still remember Olgorn after his exercise sessions. Never heard so much cursing in my life,” explained Samuel before addressing Isille. “I also remember that you used to call him a lazy bum and me a slacker.”

Instructor Samuel a slacker? Terry got the gnawing feeling that future training sessions might have some bad surprises waiting for him.

Samuel turned to Bjorln. “Your future sweetheart was quite concerned that we would have a bad influence on your training, Whaka Bjorln. I always wondered where she got that idea.”

Bjorln coughed and looked intently at the food on his plate. Nevertheless, he still felt Isille’s gaze burning a hole into his temple.

“How many of your excuses involving those two were actually true?” questioned Isille.

Bjorln raised his eyebrows and started biting on his lips.

“A rough estimation is fine, my life. Half? Quarter?”

Bjorln sighed. “Quarter for Samuel, half for Olgorn. But look, I grew up fine, didn’t I?” He turned around to bat his eyelashes at Isille.

“Despite your best efforts, surprisingly yes.” Isille leaned a bit closer and rubbed the tip of her nose against Bjorln’s.

“Uncle Samuel, which spell are you going to test with Terry today?” asked Lori. While the girl was still practicing the Liquify Earth spell with Brynn, she occasionally observed Terry’s relentless pursuit of a spell to cast.

Terry looked up from his plate as well.

“We have decided to test a broader range and spot-check the non-core systems. Once Terry improves a bit more in his mana control, we may even try some intermediate-level spells. Today we will try Light Healing from the upper system.”

“I really hope that one works out,” exclaimed Jorgen.

“Even if Terry manages to learn the spell, we still expect you to learn one variant of the three foundational healing spells yourself,” stressed Samuel.

Jorgen made a face, gave a few exaggerated sniffles, and then sighed in resignation.

“Any questions regarding the training?” asked Isille.

“Yes.” replied Jorg excitedly. “When can we meet Aunt Sigille?”

“Uhm, as always that would be tricky. She is still working in Tiv, so dimensional gates are not an option.”

“Why not?” inquired Terry.

“Because the two empires hate each other,” responded Samuel. “Or at least the governments do.”

“Are we at war?” asked Lori.

“No dear,” replied Isille.

“Arcana isn’t at war with anyone. The Tiv Empire has a long-standing truce with the Lich Kingdoms and it is only at war with the Thanatos Empire.”

“Nevertheless, the Tiv Empire hates Arcana most of all,” added Brynn.

“That sounds weird,” remarked Terry.

“Don’t they teach that stuff at the Academy?” asked Bjorln in exasperation. “Raising the future leaders in government and all that?”

“Not really,” replied Samuel. ”They probably do not consider diplomacy all that important, because they are raising the future leaders of the Arcana Empire in particular. First of all, there is the barrier and most importantly, there is literally no one who wants to become enemies with the Arcana Empire. Not even Thanatos dares to poke the sleeping dragon. The Lich Kingdoms might still harbor some ideas, but they have not yet forgotten the harsh lessons from their last attempt.”

“Then what about the Tiv Empire?” asked Terry.

“They do not want to be enemies either. They… It is more that they resent us for not wanting to get involved with them.”

“Or for refusing to provide much needed assistance,” interjected Bjorln.

“More like they demand support while spitting in the face of their benefactor,” retorted Brynn.

Samuel smiled wryly and sighed. “Both empires share a lot of history. In fact, originally both were part of the same ancient empire. To this day they still share the same national motto: Magic Obliges. However, their interpretations of that motto are diametrically opposed.

“In Arcana, it is understood in the way that the most capable mages carry the burden to rule for the benefit of the people. By contrast, in Tiv, it is understood in the way that magic ability carries the burden to serve for the benefit of the people. Important difference.”

Terry frowned. “‘Serve’ like in the Veilbinder’s time?”

“No—”

“Same principle though,” interrupted Brynn. “If you want to learn or make a living with magic, you have to follow the government’s orders. If your preferences do not align with their quotas, then tough luck.”

“Nevertheless, while people are not entirely free to choose their work as mages, they still get to experience more of a normal life than in the Veilbinder’s time.” Samuel pointed out. “They do not lock up people in towers anymore for displaying signs of magic.”

“Except for the cultists!” piped up Jorg. “The cultists still lock people up!”

“And who told you about cultists?” demanded Isille with narrowed eyes.

“Uhh…” Jorg blinked twice, then turned to Lori. “Who?”

“Uhh…” Lori blinked twice, then turned to Terry. “Who?”

“…uhh, what?”

“Not what. Who?” Lori blinked twice before turning to Jorg again. “What?”

“Not what. Who?”

“Nevermind,” grumbled Isille. She already knew their strategies for evading questions and gave up. Instead, Isille pleaded with Terry. “Please avoid having them rub off on you too much, dear. It may be more than I can stomach.”

Lori and Jorg made noiseless gasps and tried their best to look offended. Afterwards, they sneakily glanced at Terry and winked.

“There still are cultists?” asked Terry.

“Not so much in Arcana,” replied Samuel.

“At least they usually stay in hiding here,” added Bjorln.

“Outside the barrier it can be very different,” elaborated Samuel. “The Thanatos Empire is perpetually at war and always trying to expand its borders. They do not take kindly to cultists. I guess it is similar for the Lich Kingdoms. Their lich rulers are very particular about being the only target of worship and do not tolerate the competition. By contrast, in the Tiv Empire and in the Free Factions Union, things are much more chaotic. Especially in the Union.”

“So they do not allow dimensional travel from Tiv to Arcana?” Lori returned to the main question.

“Yes and no. They do allow you to cross through dimensional gates,” responded Isille. “In theory, that is.”

“Arcana is always happy to accept refugee mages from Tiv,” said Brynn and winked at Lori.

“Just like Tiv is always happy to accept people as well,” added Bjorln.

“I am sure they would be, but that is mostly a hypothetical scenario, isn’t it?” challenged Brynn. ”Normal people aren’t exactly lining up to leave the barrier.”

“Anyway,” interjected Samuel. “It is possible to travel from Arcana to Tiv, but the other direction is much more troublesome.”

“I’ll say,” exclaimed Brynn. “If you are capable of magic and you want to cross over, they will first give you the ‘tour’ and try their best pitch in order to enthrall you to whatever cause is their favorite at the time. If that does not dissuade you, they will ask how much you can pay for the crossing. Afterwards, they double the amount and demand that you pay that.

“If it turns out that you can still afford that price, they will pocket that money. Afterwards, they’ll posit that you are obviously able to pay even more. Therefore, they will double the amount again and you will still be short of one half. They repeat that procedure as often as necessary to prevent you from crossing. Of course, any deposit you have already made will never be returned.

“The only people that can avoid that nonsense are those involved with Tiv’s government, the noble families, or their relatives and close friends.” The longer Brynn talked about the topic, the angrier she looked.

“Would be interesting if they were to try that routine on a magic sovereign from Arcana,” remarked Samuel.

“Yeah no,” scoffed Brynn. “They would not dare. With members of the Council, maybe, but not with the sovereigns. Not that the sovereigns travel much. Even if they do, they probably don’t need to rely on foreign dimensional gates.”

“Of course,” said Brynn. “You could also try your luck with one of the back alley dimensional mages or the dark market dimensional portals. However, I would very much advise against that. With unanchored dimensional travel you cannot see where you would go before it happens. You might end up in the Wastes or in the middle of the Lich Kingdoms.”

“Or one half of you in each place,” interjected Bjorln. “Lots of trust needed to rely on a dimensional mage for unanchored travel.”

“Or desperation,” stated Brynn. Then she spoke to the children. “Never antagonize a dimensional mage and if you are ever forced to rely on them, then don’t haggle.”

“Bottom line,” started Isille. “You won’t be able to cross directly from Tiv to Arcana. Tiv reaches from west of the barrier to the southwest. All of the north is Wastes. So the only way is to travel southeast through one of the other empires. Sigille used to visit by going through the Union, but since Thanatos is expanding its borders towards the direction of the barrier, this route is becoming more and more difficult.”

“Why is Aunt Sigille in Tiv?” asked Lori.

Isille’s reminisced and smiled. “Sigille would answer that that is where the fight is. The real fight is outside the barrier. Her husband was a protector for a small mage academy in the Union. After he had died, she went to the Tiv Empire – together with a child she took in.”

“Aunt Sigille has kids?”

“Sigille and her husband had a daughter, Emaldine. She is a bit of a problem child. The boy from the Union is accepted family. He seems to be best people, but… Well, suffice it to say the kid has issues of his own.”

“No kidding,“ exclaimed Bjorln. “Being possessed by elementals is something of an issue. Seriously, it’s a miracle the kid hasn’t turned into a demon by now.”

“According to Sigille, it is under control. Matteo has become her accepted family and my sister thinks of him as a son. For three seasons of the cycle, he joins Sigille on missions.”

There was a pause before Bjorln shrugged. “Anyway, even the Divine Hammer will have to retire eventually. Your aunt already did missions for the Guardians when all of us were still learning to count our toes.”

“No bets on that.” Isille seemed skeptical. “I have a hard time imagining my elder sister taking long peaceful walks through the woods. Maybe if the woods were mana corrupted? Then she could smash in the occasional head of a terror grizzly with her walking stick.”

***

The season of the Setting Moon was coming to an end. One morning, Terry heard a knock at his door.

Behind the door, Terry discovered Brynn and Samuel. Brynn had two letters in her hand.

“You have mail.”

“Isn’t that what the letterbox is for?”

“Your former mentor asked us the same question, but we thought that some letters are different. May we come in?”

Oh, right. That letter.

It was somewhat cruel that the world marched forward no matter how strongly you avoided thinking about it.

“Please.” Terry stood aside and motioned them in.

“Take your time to read them. I would start with the one bearing the Academy’s insignia,” stated Samuel.

No surprise there. Terry sighed and smiled bitterly.

“Apparently, I am a failure at spellwork and I am getting expelled. Who would have thought, right?”

“No matter what the letter says, you are not a failure,” denied Brynn sternly.

“It is the Academy that has failed you. Not the other way around,” said Samuel. “If it had not failed you because of your aspect impairment, then it would have failed you because of your natural talent in mana foundation.”

Terry found it hard to agree with the sentiment, but still. He never knew instructor Samuel to sugarcoat or twist his words out of consideration for the feelings of others. If the Instructor said this, then the Instructor truly believed it. That made one of them, at least.

“So what is the bad news?” asked Terry. He reached out his hand for the second letter.

Brynn shrugged. “It’s just news.” She smiled and handed him the letter.

Antelius… Rescindment of name… Irrevocable disavowment of relations… What?

“I don’t get it. What do they want from me? What is this supposed to mean?”

“Meh. Don’t worry,” replied Brynn. “First of all, it means that you will not go back to the Greenhouse.”

Wait… Terry suddenly realized that the Academy was more than his place of study. It was also his residence for living.

“Second of all, it means that you do not have to go by that stuffy Antelius family name.”

“Nor are you allowed to use it ever again at the threat of punishment,” added Samuel.

“However,” started Brynn. “In exchange, you have no obligation to associate with the Antelius family, either. So no need to go live with strangers just because they happen to carry the same name. Come on, we have an appointment to keep.”

***

In the northern quarters Terry heard the familiar rumbling and tumbling noises before the door was flying open.

“Terry!” “Come come!”

Jorg and Lori seemed as energetic as ever.

“Pa made pancakes!”

“Morning Auntie, morning Unca.” “Oh right, morning!”

“Ma has to go to the training grounds today. We will get a break for mana soccer. Today, I will not lose!” declared Jorg.

“Give us a second you two, will you?” said Brynn. She, Samuel, and Terry stepped inside.

Samuel made eye contact with Isille. “Whaka Isille, the letters came today.”

“What about the house letter?” inquired Isille.

“As expected. Rescindment and disavowment.”

“These waste-damned svipa,” Isille’s eyes grew distant and cold. “Unforgivable.” She looked as if she was considering poking some additional holes into the sender’s body.

Bjorln harrumphed to catch Isille’s attention. Then his eyes pointed towards the twins. There was a slight moment of embarrassment on Isille’s face before she looked at the twins sternly.

“You have not heard anything. Nor will I ever hear you repeat what you have not heard. Clear?”

“Yes, Ma.” “Clear.”

Then Isille looked at Terry. “Same for you. Clear?”

“Yes?”

Bjorln was still busy in the kitchen. He looked at his wife warmly and told her, “You go ahead.”

Isille smiled and then turned back to Terry.

“They rescinded your last name?”

“Yeah, but… I am not sure what that means.”

“It means that you deserve better than these pest beetles. Terry, I hereby invite you into our accepted family. You are best people in my book and we would be honored for you to become part of our whanau. As a member of the older generation, I can extend this invitation to you and once you have seen your eighteenth cycle, you can make your own judgement. I would hope that you, Florine, and Jorgen can become whaka for each other, but that is up to you to decide.”

Terry was stunned and did not know what to say. The twins on the other hand…

“Yeah! I always wanted a little brother!” “Huh? Yeah! Me too!”

Then Lori and Jorg turned to each other.

“HEY!” “Wait a minute!”

“That,” interrupted Isille, “is not a commitment to be taken lightly. By none of you. There is a reason that you are supposed to be of age before you can accept your own family. Accepting someone as a whaka is a promise that you will always have their back in times of danger. No matter if you have to brave the hellish Wastes or worse. No matter what. As long as they remain your whaka, you will be there when they are faced with danger and require your aid. You three are still too young to grasp the true weight of such a vow.”

“Consider carefully,” sounded the cheery voice from Bjorln, who had just left the kitchen. “Take your time. Especially you, Terry. Our two chipmunks have quite the knack for getting themselves into trouble. If they keep up that habit, then you would be in for it, too.”

The twins wanted to say something in response, but then reconsidered and remained quiet.

“In any case,” continued Isille. “You can stay here as a welcome guest and friend, Terry. We’ll always have a room ready for you.”

“Come on, let us eat,” suggested Bjorln.

“See? Better than living with strangers, right?” said Brynn.

Terry did not manage to find words yet, but was still able to smile and nod.

Lori and Jorg went to Terry’s side.

“So?” “The little lord sovereign had a secret last name, did he?”

Both of them pulled down their chins while keeping their mouths closed. They nodded slowly and then spoke with intentionally nasal voices.

“Why dear me, my good sir.” “We have not been properly introduced.”

Lori performed a mock bow. Jorg did a curtsy and lifted an imaginary skirt. Afterwards, they stood up straight again and grinned.

“So what was it?” questioned Jorg. “Was it Lord Farts-A-Lot?”

“I thought that was supposed to become your last name?” exclaimed Lori.

“Yes, indeed and I demand exclusive usage rights. That is why I cannot tolerate any imitators. Even if it’s you Terry.” Jorg shook his head before giving a heavy sigh. “If you infringe upon my destined name, then there is no choice. We will have to set a duel at noon on the day of the second moon.“

Lori clicked her tongue. “Choice of weapons?”

“Traditional, of course.”

Lori turned to Terry. “That means mudballs.”

***

Samuel was assisting Terry with packing up his stuff in the Academy. Moving was a lot easier if you had access to a properly sized dimensional bag with weight elimination.

“So uhm,” started Terry.

“Yes?”

“I know I have not heard it, but what is a svipa?”

Samuel exhaled some air from his nose. “Essentially someone that abandons family. Are you already familiar with the term nama?”

“Yeah, I think so. ‘Thank you’ or ‘sorry.’”

“Mostly, yes. It emphasizes the acknowledgement of a debt. However, you must never spit after using that term.”

“Spit? Why would I spit?”

“Does not matter, just don’t. Spitting on the ground after using nama changes the meaning from acknowledging a debt to holding a grudge. Essentially, it breaks off all ties with the family. Svipa literally means spit bucket – either someone that spits or that causes their whaka to spit. It is about the worst insult a traditionalist dwarf can throw at you. Now, let's hurry it up a bit.”

After everything had been packed, the two left. In the halls, Terry saw Instructor Pelliana showing around an awed student whom he had never seen before – a girl with curly blond hair.

“The kid had the best entrance examination results this cycle,” remarked Samuel. ”Not as much of an outlier as yours, but enough to have her spoiled at the Academy. I hope she’ll do alright.”

***