Summoning

I recovered my senses in a bed, in Verenice’s room. The petite Healer Maestra was drinking a cup of tea, and reading some papers.

She turned to face me, when I left some grunt escape.

“Oh, nice! Good afternoon, dear pupil. That nasty altercation you got yourself in really advanced your development, my boy. Your body is less receptive to healing spells. Fortunately, your blood seems to suck magical energy like some sort of sponge and use it to heal itself. I would think your mother must be some sort of Troll if I had not healed you many times before. Perhaps this experience activated some deeper heritage inside you”

Or perhaps that was some collateral effect of that blood my hydra fiancée told me she used to speed up my healing. I could not mention that possibility though.

I was dizzy, and beaten, but otherwise fine.

“What happened?”

“They came on me from nowhere. To kill me. I don’t know why” I told her in broad lines what I could remember. Six attackers, one Arcane-Knight, four Battle-Mage, one dwarf spellcaster specialist in Lightning Spells, who I could not classify properly.

She didn’t manifested surprise.

“The City Guard was satisfied in blame you for the fight. I had to ask nicely in order to get some divination spells used, and a little investigation. Our mutual friend connected the missing links.

There was nine people in that assault, actually. One was an Earth Mage of some kind, responsible for open the escape route to underground tunnels and close it. The other two were just keeping vigilance, and one of them activated the illusion spell to cover their escape when the City Guard came.

Low level thugs. Either Sheva or your father would have dispatched them all without much effort. Still, considering your level or practice and lack of experience your survival this morning was more than just a little surprising. Not only you endured long enough to be rescued by the City Guard, you even managed to kill three of them!!

We must celebrate!”

“I don’t feel like celebrating. I had never killed, anyone, you know!”

“My point, exactly! There you have the reason for celebration!! Every warrior must lose his virginity, eventually. What did you imagined all that training your are doing with Sheva is for? You are learning how to kill people in combat, hopefully how to not be killed in the process also”.

“Do you, know why they ambushed me?”

“Some of the other dwarven houses in the Honey Comb District wanted to keep the Precious Veins without a half-breed advocate in the city. They must have noticed you and decided that killing you was their best move to see than you didn’t caused Gwanda’s pregnancy in the near future.

By the way, let me repeat the question: what happened?? I was not referring to the fight, I meant, last night.

Your father’s sword is up there. You must have impressed positively the lassie, to earn such a prize!”

“Oh? We talked, lot. About many things. Including that demon with a horse head who was your lover for some weeks. Very pleasant night”

“Just talked…?” the healed Maestra made an expression of pain.

“…and our mutual friend send gave me a message to give to you”

“A message?”

“She said ‘tell Verenice that I am capable to use mathematics’, that was her message.”

“What you think she meant by that?”

“She didn’t said. If I had to venture a speculative hypothesis, I would say she means that she knows when my father left your merry band of adventurers. Therefore, she knows my approximate age, and that I cannot be much older than 11 or 12. Ergo, the transmutation spell to make me look 26 was a complete waste of time and energy.

As I said, I am just speculating.”

“Does not seems likely. She is a dwarf! Human ages are meaningless to her, she would just notice your size and look, and realize she was in the company of an adult male”

“She is a MERCHANT Caste! A business woman, and a very competent one as far as I can tell. This sort of people do keep scrupulous records of the passage of time, Maestra!!” time is money, after all. “Besides, she has been living in a human city for a long time! She had more than enough opportunities to get acquainted with the specifics about human aging and lifespan.”

“I don’t think so. I am a human myself, as you see, and I still cannot keep track of those pesky details despite that.”

“You will need to ask the dwarven Madam, then. I suppose.”

“I understand that means you are not up to give her the baby she needs, then?”

“Not in the nearest future. What means your debt is not paid and you still own her whatever is that you own her. On the bright side, if serves of any consolation, my debt with you is still valid as well. I will gladly do my best to get you pregnant, if you like! How does that sound?”

“I don’t believe that would be convenient to me at the moment. Don’t worry, I will find some other way for you to pay for my magic lessons!

Meanwhile, you must eat and sleep, to fully recover your strength. We don’t want to give Sheva the impression that I have damaged her pupil! She can be mean when she thinks people violated her territory in some way.

There is food and bear to you on the table. After your meal I will teach you something about those spells your foes used against you, and the magic disciplines they evolved from.”

Before I could finish the meal, a message came about the troubles in our nation’s capital. There was a fight inside royal family. The king was death. His heir was fighting for his life after being hit by the same magic curse that killed his father. The responsible for all that was the First Archemage of Royal Cabal Inner Circle. One of the most prestigious positions for a mage in this country, along with High Commander of Military Arcane Academy and Headmaster of Orris Academy.

Is arguable which one deserves the highest honour. Orris Academy is the citadel where the highest magic educational institutions, and magic research, are concentrated. Except for those related with magic combat and with focus in military application.

The Military Arcane is another citadel, perhaps ten times smaller, but that is because they rely heavily one the research made in Orris. All the certified martial training of spellcasters happen here. The High Commander has authority over less people, but people under his authority are implicitly under martial discipline. His commands are obeyed without hesitation, generally speaking. This place train people to war, as specialists in magic combat of all kinds.

While the Royal Cabal is the core hearth of all magic strength of our nation. The spies, the troops, the magic users in every administrative branch under the Throne. In theory almost all certified mage in this nation is under the authority of this Inner Circle. Except for the Red Guard that protects the Royal Family itself, and for Priest Mages working for churches with special permission to have their own military. In practice, they have access to all information about magic circulating in the nation. Hardly anything could be done without their approval.

In theory the 3 Pillars cannot involve themselves with matters of politic. They must support the king in all matters and stay neutral otherwise.

Now the First Archemage of Royal Cabal Inner Circle, Archemage Ephesus, most powerful mage still in the country apparently. He had, seemingly, murdered the king. Was in the process of murder the king’s heir.

All because the next name in line was the favourite nephew of his lover, sister of the now former king.

Being one of the authorities in Healing Magic available at the moment, Maestra Verenice was being emphatically invited to gather their most important tools and accompany the Red Guard Soldiers who came to accompany her to the Royal Palace.

Unceremoniously she declared that I was accompanying her as personal assistant, and started giving me instructions about what to take from her shelfs and place on the table to be packed and carried with us. She has ACTUAL, actual, proper, healer assistants! Mind you. Two of them where still away, with the Ellizabeth and her family. However, another bunch of them had to be somewhere in the house or not far away.

However, there was a member of this Red Guard in the room, waiting. Something about him suggested to me that open a debate right now was not the most advisable curse of action.

Twelve Knights in red full-plate armour accompanied us directly to the heart of the city. And through gates fortified by magic so intense that was painful to just look at the inscription of the enchantment silently glowing around us. We moved down through long spiral stairs, and suddenly stopped in a circular room, with a large circle in the centre.

The magic was far beyond my understanding, but 20 layers of it were protective spells of all kind. Only the very centre was something else. That something else, hidden carefully by mind and illusion spells, was the teleportation circle that took us directly to the Royal Palace in Capital City.

One of the last strongholds in the city still firmly under control of the Queen and her legalist militants.

The dying prince, heir to the throne, was somewhere in that fortress.

I was probably the only person in this castle with absolutely no idea about what I was doing here.

“Sister! I am happy to see they found you!! Wish was under best circumstances, though.”