S01E03a - Magic and Misdirection

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I followed Mirna out of the King’s court and into a large hallway where Indred was waiting for us. Although I hadn’t seen him in court, he was dressed for the occasion complete with a jewelled staff and a black and silver robe which reached his ankles and allowed the scuffed toes of his boots to peek out. I might be dressed like a pirate, but my boots are polished. Appearances are important.

“I have business with this one.” Indred said to Mirna, tilting his staff in my direction.

I gestured towards the girls. “What of my wards?”

“They are perfectly safe on the palace grounds.” Mirna said, emphasising ‘perfectly’. “Guards have been assigned to them and they are safe, I assure you.”

“We’ll be fine, Dad.” Tracy said, her voice carrying a hint of exasperation. “Stop being such a helicopter.”

“Fine.” I said. “I’ll be with Indred if you need me.”

“Magus Indred.” He corrected.

“Doctor Carter, if we are going to insist on titles.” I snapped back.

“Follow me.” He said, and walked away leaving me to catch up. Good psychological trick, that. I’ll remember it.

We walked in silence through the palace and across the grounds to a squat four storey tower set in the eastern quarter. Built of enormous granite blocks, it sat like a turd among the gardens and hedges. Although the mossy walls were crenellated, no windows or doors were visible on the exterior. The gravel path we walked along parted around it and continued into what appeared to be a hedge maze.

“By my command: Open!” Magus Indred intoned, placing his staff against the wall.

My ears chimed as I watched a archway appear in the wall. One moment it was a solid wall, the next, a weathered doorway.

Retrieving a set of keys from somewhere in his robes he stepped into the newly created void and unlocked a heavy wooden door. Pushing it open, he motioned for me to enter.

Dragon’s lairs and Wizard’s dens. You never know what to expect when you step into them. With the dragon, a pile of gold is assumed. Probably some skeletons in various states of dismemberment, bits of rusty armour, broken swords, and fire damaged shields. Most certainly a dragon who wishes to debate the finer points of home intrusion. I was expecting the personal domain of Magus Indred to be filled with bubbling potions and stacks of books and scrolls, half eaten plates of food and possibly the smell of stale tobacco, to be honest. It was tidy as an English tearoom.

Open stairs ran along the wall to my right leading to the upper floors, and another set on the left lead down below. The room itself was maybe 10 metres across, filled with cozy chairs and other heavy furniture. Neatly arranged bookshelves lined the walls and interesting trinkets and baubles occupied nooks. Colourful carpets were thrown on the floor with no apparent thought to their placement, but managed to create a pleasing pattern to the eye. A small fireplace was sank into the far wall and more trinkets were arrayed on the mantlepiece. A thin sword hung above it.

Scuffing the bottom of his boots on a doormat, he walked to an overstuffed chair and plopped down, releasing his staff. It ignored gravity and remained rooted in place like a tree. Motioning for me to sit on the sofa across from him he said “Tell me everything you know about magic.”

I shuffled around the thick table between up and sat. “Everything?” I said. “That would take years. I’ve written a book on the subject. Remind me to send you a copy when I get back home.”

“Then give me the highlights, like I was a student.” He said patiently, lifting a bell from the table and ringing it.

“Easy enough. What I’ve learned may not reflect magic in this world exactly because it’s been collected from thousands of worlds, but I’ll give you an overview.”

A young man dressed in a white robe came up the stairs and stood before the magus. “Would you like tea?” Magus Indred offered.

“Please and thank you.” I replied.

The young man vanished up the stairs and Magus Indred motioned for me to carry on.

“Magic falls into to broad categories: Lawful and Chaotic.

Chaotic magic tends to have spells that are based on the imagination of the mage and is usually powered by some form of internal energy like mana, chi, life force, will power, etc.

Lawful magic is based on strict laws and rules, usually with an external power source, like Gods, Spirits, Ley lines, etc. Much like a pulley or a lever, the spells tend to perform either one or a limited number of functions very well.

The classifications great down even further, but focusing on this world alone I know that it uses Lawful Ritualistic magic powered by living Gods or Spirits. Based on Mirna’s use of short form when she cast Mystic Lantern, and my own actions, I know that a mage in this world has access to Long and Short form verbal rituals, and probably at least one form of ceremonial magic. Your staff is outfitted with enough jewellery to choke a prince, so you’re either inscribing the gemstones or using them to channel from a locus. Or both.”

The unnamed youth, probably an apprentice, reappeared with a tea service and vanished down the stairs after depositing it on the table. The Magus poured for us. I refused the offer of milk and honey and was met with a raised eyebrow. I guess I’m considered an uncouth foreigner in two worlds now.

I took a sip of the dark tea and remarked on its sweetish, malty flavour. “Judging by your outburst earlier, invoking two aspects in this world is usually not done and I’m sure you’ll explain why shortly. The information gathered in my world has led us to believe that the more aspects of a Spirt that are invoked, the stronger the resulting spell. The drawback is that the action becomes narrower with each aspect until the spell can only perform one action—but it is very powerful. Allen’s Personal Teleportation Ritual comes to mind, invoking seven aspects of Mircarus, messenger of Zios, to teleport the caster to a predefined locus.”

Magus Indred shifted slightly forward in his chair. I could tell that I had caught his interest. “How does one teleport in this world?”

“One doesn’t” he grumbled. “Teleportation doesn’t work on living things. They must be summoned. The angels of Lady Avelan deliver her messages, so one may Name an angel and invoke its Aspect to deliver a scroll or small parcel nearly instantly, but not people. Ciaren guides the dead to the afterlife, but he only deals in souls. Invoking his Aspects is advisable only for the experienced or foolish.”

I shook my head mournfully. “That’s a shame. I was really hoping to teleport behind enemy lines, stick a sword in the Demon King and be back home in time for Christmas. I assume we can at least scry on his movements and go around him.”

Magus Indred cleared his throat. “Scrying is difficult too. You need a pool of mercury, which is consumed each time the spell is cast. It’s an expensive and complicated spell which makes astral travel nearly worth the risk.”

I considered the scrying spells I had memorised. There were about a dozen from as many worlds which were invoked in different fashions, most of them used mirrors or pools, but didn’t consume them.

“I know two spells that don’t use a medium for scrying. Would you mind if I gave them a try?” I asked, hoping he would consent and remove this leash from my wrist.

He considered it. “How would you Invoke the spell?”

“The two I know are from what appear to be closely related worlds and Invoke spirits known for their sharp eyes using the Aspect of their reflective shield. Do you have any gods or spirits that meet those qualifications?”

Pursing his lips, he mulled it over and finally said “Guidon is known for his ability to spot hidden things, but has no shield. Lestar is known for her silvery shield Israis that reflects the light of Truth.”

“Better than perfect. Remove this” I said, pointing at the whirling golden disk around my wrist. “And let’s see if we can craft a cheap scrying spell.”

I left my hand raised as temptation. I knew I had him hooked—what mage can resist a new spell?

“You’re going to do it long form? Explain.”

I explained that I envisioned a two tier spell using Guidon, and Israis, combining their Aspects to create an image of the desired location. He questioned and probed me sharply, demanding the runes that I would use, the stroke pattern of each one, their placement, the sheath of each tier.

Then we delved into actual locus design and I learned that while spell books are useful, they are not nearly as useful as a large flat chunk of gneiss and a crystal. Spell books tended to deteriorate over time as spell use consumed the material components. They were exceptionally vulnerable to Heroics, with fire, immersion, and sharp steel causing a poor return on investment.

“And you believe you can do it right here?” Magus Indred finally asked, a touch of sarcasm in his voice.

I pointed to the leash around my wrist. “Try me.”

It took an hour and seven tries in the basement standing in a containment circle. The glyphs kept burning out before I could Invoke the Aspects and I was forced to work fast and loose. We both agreed that paper was too weak to hold the magic and the bastard wouldn’t let me use charcoal on his nice stone wall. Complained that he didn’t want me leaving holes in his house.

Ellipse. Add glyphs for the Aspect of Guidon’s eyes and where they would be. Circle. Fill with glyphs defining the Aspect of Israis and how it would reflect.

The air was filled with glowing glyphs as my fingers finished Inscribing them in nothing and I spoke the Invocation:

“O Guidon, I beseech thee to look upon this land with thine cunning eye and seek that which mine heart desires. I command thee Israis, reflect the eye of Guidon in thine holy surface and reveal to me that which is hidden from this mortal eye. Appear before me: Celestial Window!”

It was crude, it was ugly, but it worked.

With a deep gong, a metre wide hole appeared in the air, rippling with a shimmering silvery light. Four young girls could be seen reflected in the surface, rippling as if seen through water. They were walking through one of the many gardens that surrounded the palace and having an animated discussion. One pulled up a large red flower and began plucking it to death before ripping it apart and tossing the petals in the air. Silvery ripples turned to waves and the image collapsed in a shower of argent motes that winked out of existence.

As if a dam had burst, Magus Indred opened up and began talking shop. Over the next several hours, and many cups of tea, we discussed the use of magic in Avelan and the various spirits, guardians, heralds, and their Aspects. We even dropped the pompous titles and began calling one another by our given names.

The sun was threatening to dip below the horizon when a knock came at the door. Excusing himself, Indred shooed his apprentice back down the stairs and answered it. I caught a glimpse of Mirna in the doorway. She smiled as our eyes met. Indred invited her in, but she demurred and he stepped outside to speak with her. A few minutes later he returned and the conversation changed direction.

“I have no doubt that with your knowledge you will become a powerful magus in a very short time. A few weeks of study and you would probably pass the exams at the Royal Academy and be properly titled with Magus, possibly even Sage if you can produce another spell like you crafted here. For someone who has never practised, you have an innate talent and grasp of the Aspects and the discipline required to properly craft the guiding runes.” He said.

I preened under his laudations. I spent hours pouring over each spell revealed by the children who returned, envisioning each Aspect, pulling apart how they functioned, interviewing them when possible. I was a Doctor of Other World studies with a focus on Practical Magic.

“But,” He said, pointing a finger at me. “Doiasi (Dough-EYE-ass-ee) , or long form as you call it, is useless for a Hero. You need Repodi (Ree-POE-dee), short form if you’re going to stay alive in a skirmish. I think the best thing for you and the kingdom is to have you travel to Kaliana and perform your Inscriptions there. I’ll pen a letter and select a number of my personal spells for you to borrow for copying.”

“Whoa, hold up, Indred,” I said. “I’m all about the magus bit, but I’m not so sure about the travelling part. What are we talking about here?”

Indred shrugged. “Kaliana is the island of mages, about a thousand kilometres from here. Many ley lines converge there, so every Sanctioned Magus uses it as a locus for their spells. Because of your status, you’ll be given a chamber and materials for crafting. Our conversation this afternoon has left me with no doubt of your capability, so I see no reason not to endorse you. I cannot go with you because of my duties here, but I’ll send Simon, my apprentice, to accompany you.”

“A thousand kilometres is a long way, Indred. How long is this going to take?” I asked, envisioning weeks on horseback and forests filled with all manner of things with sharp teeth. The girls would probably love it… for the first two days. Then it would be weeks of “Are we there yet?”

“No more than a day, I should think.” Indred said, the matter already decided in his mind. “You’ll use the Alefin ways.”