Two days later, Gandash’s parents hosted a feast at their manor in Garden Terrace. It was a small banquet, but a banquet nonetheless. Other than Xerxes’ family, the only guest present was Purattu.

“I wish there was more time for you to say your goodbyes,” Purattu said as they sat down to eat. “But there’s much work to be done. I’ve been to Kartos, Erishti-Aya, and Nos, which means my work gathering Seers isn’t even half done. Of course, you know that.”

“The off-planet Seers were instrumental in purging the capital of monsters and cultists alike,” Xerxes’ father explained for the benefit of the mothers, neither of whom were Sighted or did work related to the government or military.

Purattu reached out to accept a goblet of wine from Xerxes’ mother. “Thank you, ma’am.” After taking a sip, he continued, “We’ll be visiting Hannemid next. After that Jehannemid and Gehannemid. Well… you get the picture. I need to keep moving. No time for rest and relaxation.”

“We completely understand,” Dumamu said. Looking fondly at his son, he said, “We’re all very proud that Gandash and Xerxes are getting this opportunity. Sin-Amuhhu, it’s… it’s just incredible.”

“It is,” Gandash’s mother said. “Although… having spoken to many of the family members, I can tell you people are worried. What if the cultists wait until you’re gone to make a move? Also… what if more Abhorrent attack?”

“Valid concerns, ma’am,” Purattu replied. “But I wouldn’t worry if I were you. We were thorough in tracking down the cultists. Though High Seer Ninsunu was one of them, we have no reason to suspect any of the other mages.”

“Except for Gad,” Gandash said.

“Gad?” his mother asked.

“Ninsunu’s apprentice,” Dumamu said. He reached out to clasp his wife’s hand. “He’s traveling in Fal right now. We’ll find him.”

“Besides,” Purattu continued, “a Seer cultist isn’t anything to stay awake at night worrying about. As for any leftover Abhorrent, you can rest assured. From what I can tell, all the spawn and juveniles were sent down to make way for the big one. Now that it’s dead, the only ones left behind are runts the local mages and military can handle.”

Xerxes’ and Gandash’s parents had many questions, and Purattu answered them all patiently.

“What’s ‘Military Magic?’” Xerxes mother asked.

Purattu rubbed his chin. “Good question. It’s not like it’s a special type of magic. Having the term Military Magic in the name of the school is just a way to convey that the teaching is focused on military applications of magic. Not all mages fight on the battlefield, after all. In fact, most don’t.”

It wasn’t until the meal reached its conclusion that the family members started to get emotional.

“Don’t go, Zokie,” Ahassunu said, tears welling up in her eyes.

Xerxes pulled his sister into a hug. “I’ll be back soon. With some great dolphin jewelry from Sin-Amuhhu.”

His mother hugged him harder than he remembered her ever hugging him. “You come back to me,” she said. “Promise?”

He returned her hug. “Promise.”

The next day at the keep, after the morning prayer, there was a final bit of business that Purattu had to take care of. With Aban Saddi gone, there was a need for a new Head Mage. No one dared to nominate Shemesh, and all the other High Seers were away from the capital.

“By the power vested in me by Archon Belu-Bani of Ku-Aya, I hereby appoint Dumamu son of Nidintulugal as the new Head Mage of Mannemid.”

Just like that, Gandash’s father became the most powerful figure on the planet. He still had years to go before he reached the High Seer level, much less the Mystic level, but that didn’t matter. Purattu gave him a small gift of some jewels and medicinal pills, as well as a schematic for a spell formation he said would ‘aid in meditation.’

After that, there were some general formalities, and then Purattu led his group of conscripted Seers to the Gateway complex. In the past, Xerxes would have been excited about the journey out of the capital, especially the small box of shekels his parents had given to him for spending money. But he felt like a different person now.

Given they weren’t being held back by Unsighted, Purattu had them make the trip on foot. What would have been a two-day trip on horseback only took a matter of hours for a group of Seers and a High Mystic.

Just before entering the Gateway to Humusi, Purattu said, “Gandash, Xerxes, this is your first time, so be ready for some strange sensations. You might vomit on the other end. If so, don’t feel embarrassed. It happened to me the first time.”

Traveling through the Gateway was the strangest feeling Xerxes had ever experienced in his life. He felt surrounded by icy coldness, while at the same time, his insides seemed weightless. Visually, he knew that he was moving. He was in a tunnel with bright lights that flowed past him like multicolored river water. However, when he closed his eyes, he didn’t feel like he was moving at all.

Purattu had been the first to step in, then a mage named Kashtiliash and a few others. By the time Xerxes entered, followed by Gandash, there were only one or two people ahead of him in the ‘tunnel.’ Gandash was behind him, seemingly a huge distance away.

The entire process only lasted for about a minute. Then everything turned white, and he was ejected onto a wide platform that looked very similar to the platform he’d strode across to enter the Gateway. The sensation was disorienting. He felt dizzy and slightly nauseous, to the point where it took some effort to prevent himself from vomiting.

Gandash came out a moment later, and he made a gagging sound, but also kept the contents of his stomach where they belonged.

“Bellies of steel, eh?” Purattu said. “Impressive.”

After all the mages had exited the Gateway tunnel, Purattu organized them into ranks, with one line behind Xerxes and the other behind Kashtiliash.

Is he putting me in charge or something? Xerxes thought.

During the days of activity on Mannemid, he had been introduced to all the other Seers in Purattu’s group. But even still, he hadn’t memorized all their names, much less any detailed information about them.

Kashtiliash was obviously favored by Purattu, so Xerxes had made an effort to pay attention to him. He knew that the young man was an Asgagu mage who had been born in Ira but grew up in the starisles of Kartos. That was unusual. Normally speaking, mages sought to go up in the world, not the other way around, and Kartos, like Mannemid, was subsidiary to Humusi, which made it much lower than Ira.

Perhaps that was why Kashtiliash was so aloof. He rarely talked, and always seemed to be looking away from everyone else. That said, he had a beard that made Xerxes extremely envious; he kept it well-oiled and curled tightly. Combined with his skin, which was as dark as the shadows in the Yellow Wood, it made him seem imposing in a way that Xerxes couldn’t even hope to imitate. Most mysterious of all was that he carried an unusually long traveling pack, as opposed to the smaller backpack-style bags that most of the other mages favored.

After their ranks were in order, they proceeded through Humusi’s Gateway complex to another area where they went through the tunnel to Hannemid.