We made it to the purification ceremony on time, but it started late. I was surprised. The previous purification ceremony might have moved entirely a few times, but all the religious ceremonies prior to that had run on time and to time, starting and ending as advertised. I wasn’t the only person to be taken aback. The general tone of the whispers was both shocked and – unsurprisingly, considering the relationships – gleeful. Too many late-night meetings for Minister Greenfield, perhaps. Maybe I should feel guilty for my part in his lack of sleep.

It was the same three-part ceremony as before. I’m sure there were differences between this and the original, but they weren’t at a level that I could spot. Except one. The symbols in the circle did not snap into perfect balance when Minister Greenfield filled in the last. Minister Greenfield recovered and added a partial chant and partial symbol. It was enough to make the ceremony successful, but it was clear it was an improvisation. The gossip as we left the chapel wasn’t verging on the mean-spirited, it had taken a dragon-flight over the edge. Minister Greenfield left as soon and as quickly as he could without appearing to actually run. I only felt half-sympathetic to him. On one hand, the whole ceremony was extra and last-minute work for him. He was performing almost as a favour, and it was a poor show of gratitude to criticise him for it. On the other hand, Minister Greenfield should have considered the workload before he sent his assistant away. That particular powerplay had left him open to this retaliation.

I didn’t have any free time I had expected after the ceremony was over. I couldn’t even blame anyone other than myself. They had organised the introduction to magic I had personally requested when we first arrived.

In the long run, learning how magic worked would be a valuable insight into life in this world. I might even come to be glad to have attended it. In the short run, it was an interruption when I was already short on time. Deep breaths. I didn’t have time to panic, either. I couldn’t indulge myself by being distracted. I would take as much value from this as I could. Maybe they would teach me something useful.

The teacher, Instructor Beckton, came to us. He arrived with a backpack of drawing slates, chalk, and paper. He was a nervous looking man. He didn’t wear glasses – no one in this world did, from what I’d seen – but he looked like he would have appreciated having them to polish. He tried to spread everything out on our little breakfast table, before eventually resorting to using the floor. I got the impression we had been squeezed in between his regular lessons, and he had no intention of changing out his classroom arrangements for us. I took no offence. I was happy not have to cross the bridge again, and I imagined Lilianna even more so.

The basics of magic were much what I had deduced. Everything was done on the foundation of a ritual. The basis was the circle of symbols, powered by personal magical power, and optionally assisted by chanting. The circle could make up for lack of power and skill, and power and skill could make up for the lack of a circle. Commonly used rituals, with limited scope, were coded into magical tools with the circles etched into them. In the best case, that reduced the skill needed to almost nothing. The lanterns, for example, required so little personal ability that I hadn’t even noticed I had been powering them, rather than them being self-powered.

One-off rituals were performed with chalk. The more someone practiced a particular ritual, the more likely they were to keep the intent and the magical power correct without the circle. The first step in mastery was knowing what symbols worked well together and created the best effect. The second step was knowing how to direct the power even without the symbols. Needless to say, we were very far away from mastery.

I compared the descriptions to Minister Greenfield’s treatment of my shoulder the day before. His embarrassing showing during the purification ceremony aside, it was clear that he was, indeed, a master at his craft. He hadn’t needed any assistance at all while diagnosing. Even the treatment had been done on the fly. A few questions revealed that even most experts took the time to research and plan out their symbols in advance. It was really a pity that he was uninterested in becoming an ally.

After that high-level summary, we were given the slates, chalk, and a few beginner rituals to try for ourselves. A ritual to condense water out of the air. A ritual to create light. A ritual to sterilise something. I had the impulse to perform badly, but there was no longer any point. These were things that could help my trip if I could get them working. My wisest course of action was to do everything I could to learn them. Sadly for my ego, I wasn’t a natural at it. Instead, Branneth was the star of the show. For everything we tried, he was the one to achieve it first, more consistently, and better. He was so proud of himself that it made me want to make comments about his extensive prior experience with magic. Not the same magic, fair enough. But I refused to believe that no principals carried over from world to world. After all, the physical laws did. Gravity worked the same from what I could tell. Inertia and momentum. The light spectrum, including ultraviolet being blocked by glass. And magic was simply a technology I did not yet understand.

> Magical and technological worlds tend to diverge in predictable ways, but how different the concepts are is a matter of debate. As the old joke goes, ask four experts about this, and you’ll walk away with five opinions.

I restrained myself. There was absolutely no point in being a poor loser. Branneth was good at magic. Good for him. May it serve him well in all the noble heroics he would be doing in my stead. I congratulated Branneth with as much sincerity as I could manage and swallowed his smug condescension as Branneth’s due reward.

If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

Lilianna had a neat hand with the symbols but battled to stir the magic. My problem was the opposite. In my opinion, that was the more embarrassing flaw. When Lilianna failed, nothing happened. When I failed, I accidentally drenched myself. Which turned out to be a good thing. The next ritual I attempted might have set my robes on fire if they had been completely dry. The instructor was somewhat wide-eyed at all of us, so I assumed none of us were within the framework of a normal student. That, or we were exactly like total beginners, and he had foolishly expected us to be more talented.

After a reassurance that the circle Lilianna had drawn on her slate was correct, she tried again to another failure.

“Why don’t I show you how it’s done,” said Branneth, pulling her slate to him.

He then repeated the exact same actions we’d seen the first time from Instructor Beckton, with no further explanation.

“Just repeat what I just did,” he encouraged.

Lilianna’s mouth had tightened, but she politely tried again. And failed again.

Branneth said, “Let me show you—”

“Thank you,” Lilianna interrupted, guarding her slate against his reach. “That won’t be necessary. I don’t want to negatively impact your own learning. I am sure that Instructor Beckton has more things he wishes to teach you.”

Branneth involuntarily looked towards the instructor, and Lilianna took the opportunity to move to sit on the opposite side of me. I surreptitiously dried the area before it could get her damp as well. I pulled the wet fabric away from my skin, but within seconds, it was plastered against me again. I considered Lilianna’s difficulty instead. It wasn’t that she was trying different alternatives and failing, really. It was that she didn’t seem to have any other possibilities to attempt.

“Are there any common ways of imagining the magic moving?” I asked the instructor. “Is it better to think of it as the wind, or more like flowing water?”

“Oh!” said Instructor Beckton, “Yes. Most children pick up their personal visualisations from their families. We teach children young to prevent any accidents.”

Which we didn’t experience, yes. Thank you for finally noticing.

> His Devotion, Saint Percival the Investigator, has a skill and patience with teaching that not even his most extreme detractors would deny. It’s fascinating to see that he can apply this talent even to fields he himself is unfamiliar with.

Instructor Beckton recovered from his embarrassment and walked us through the common techniques. The most popular was imagining the sparks of magic being pulled together in a neat channel, like a very organised spire, but there was everything from a waterfall to a dragon shaped wildfire. I figured out I had been ‘pushing’ too much, when I should have been ‘holding’. Metaphorically speaking, of course. I don’t know what Lilianna finally settled on, but she tried three or four in a row, before succeeding in producing a soft glow. She closed her eyes and breathed out in relief. Neither Lilianna nor I got it right every time, or nearly as often as Branneth, but we were seeing genuine progress at last.

We kept the cheat sheets with us when Instructor Beckton made his apologies and left. I returned to my room to change into dry clothes and hide them away. This might not have been how I would have chosen to spend my limited time, but it had turned out to be very valuable. Even my mistakes. The ability to set things on fire or drench them with water was something that could keep me alive one day.

Memo to Self

Stuff to avoid

· Becoming a dragon rider Joining the official dragon rider forces

· Participating in bonding

Information gathering

· Find out about alternative occupations and opportunities

· - Speak to Minister Greenfield in private [not useful]

· - - Find out when he is due to leave before he leaves in four three days tonight, to fix injury

· Investigate other countries and cultures to see if they’re a better fit

· - Determine just how far heroic independence goes

· - - Legally, very far: complete diplomatic immunity

· - - Practically: assistance can be withdrawn

· Track down itinerary [no point]

· Check safety / security of funicular [useless]

Opportunities

· Sneak out when harvesting night flowers [7 6 5 days]

· - Walk out down dry river bed towards Cammions

· Deliberately failed bonding [not an option]

Preparations

· Beg, borrow or steal clothes of a different colour

· - Use investigating embroidery as excuse? [Meeting planned with artisan] [done]

· - Use grey waterproof cloak

· Delay the bonding ceremony as much as possible

· - Extend investigation

· - Imply maximum psychic pollution

· Acquire or fake travel documentation?

· Find way to transport food and water

· - Talk to House Holder Fairbanks about food [done]

· - Book a packed lunch for Monday [done]

· Acquire backpack