Powers and Promises

“It sounds like my chances are poor indeed, then.” Seph gave Vel a sympathetic look. “I can see why it might look that way, my liege. But you are not alone in this. The order is mobilizing, and our resources are still significant.” He raised his hand to point at Vel. “And DO NOT underestimate yourself. Your powers will be our greatest asset, you have not yet even scratched their surface.” Vel appreciated the old man’s effort to make him feel better but wasn’t entirely convinced. “I know only three techniques and have barely used them though. And it sounds like those singing elves can negate my powers anyway.” Seph let out a short, sardonic cackle. “Hah! Barely three techniques he says! My liege, even the most promising new mindmages take weeks to learn and master feeling. When I gave you the knowledge of the three techniques, I was hopeful, but by no means sure that you would be able to make use of them all before we met. Probe is considered a challenging skill to master, and most mindmages will not even attempt to break off pieces of their mind until their second or third year of training! You are not just a mindmage, my liege. And the divine nature of your powers should hopefully limit the effectiveness of that elven wailing.”

Seph had gotten a bit worked up and needed to catch his breath, which gave Vel a moment to let what he had just heard sink in. The old mage went on in a more subdued manner. “And besides, mindmagic will likely not be your only gift. Most contemporary sources about heirs mentioned that they possessed other gifts as well, though mind powers always manifest first and are the only ones that always manifest.” That was exciting news. “What kind of powers? Other schools of magic?” Seph snorted. “Schools? Don’t tell me you’ve been reading Gragheim. But yes, you will likely be able to wield other kinds of magic. It has varied from heir to heir, and some only ever had the gift of mindmagic. The most common second one is what Gragheim might have termed tempestuous magic. The ability to manipulate, control and even create lightning and storms. The first heir, according to our oldest writings, conjured up tempests capable of wiping away cities.” That was certainly promising, especially if these other powers weren’t **** to elvish singing. “Can the singers block other magic?” Seph shook his head. “No, according to all reports, they only interfere with mindmagic.” That was good news, those other powers just needed to manifest before any singing elves came for him.

The subject then moved onto learning or being taught new powers. “It is unlikely you will need a great amount of instruction, my liege, which should hopefully save you from needing to come here often. Especially as our connection will be far stronger now, and a lot should be achievable in the dreamscape. I can instruct you there, and gift you further techniques as needed, depending on how quickly your power grows. Further, if you are anything like previous heirs, you will likely find yourself simply using techniques you did not even know in the heat of the moment.” That rang a bell. “I think I might have done that this morning. I commanded my eldest sister, who would never obey me in anything, to halt and she simply did. I felt like I imbued the order with power or something.” Seph’s entirely white eyebrows actually shot up under the brim of his hood, he looked both surprised and pleased. “To wield a power like command so early, my liege, is impressive. This is considered, if not an advanced technique, then certainly an intermediate one. And one that demands a lot of raw power. This is excellent news.”

The conversation continued for a bit longer, but Vel’s energy was dwindling. Getting here had been taxing, and he was in constant pain thanks to his leg, which further drained him. Seph clearly picked up on it and decided this was enough for today. “We will see each other again soon enough, my liege. It was important that we meet face to face, but from now on the dreamscape should serve most purposes. Go home now and rest, you will need your strength.” Vel didn’t protest and called Adi over to help him. Getting out of the cave and back down the hill nearly proved too much for them. He was pale and sweating, and Adeline was visibly concerned. He called the horses up from the orchard with his mind, saving them a trip down there. They barely managed to get him into the saddle.

The ride again began in silence, with Vel trying to digest everything he had learned. He also mulled over what to do about Adi. She had kept her word; no questions had been asked. He could tell by looking at her, though, that she had lots of them. She hadn’t truly been out of earshot in the cave, and while he trusted that she hadn’t tried to listen in, she had definitely heard something. Was it fair to try to keep her in the dark on this? She had been an invaluable help and had proven to be beyond loyal. He would let her in, he had to. “Adi, I know you must have a ton of questions. I appreciate that you’ve kept your word and not asked any, but after what you no doubt heard today, I think some things will have to change.” Adeline said nothing, just looked at him expectantly. “Come to my quarters after dinner this evening, and I promise I will tell you everything.”