Young Justice: Poseidonis

August 24th, 2010

Zatanna and I swam into the hall to find Mera already waiting for us. The queen was floating near the ground and was focused on a small platform in front of her piled high with two-dozen or so thin tablets covered in writing.

We paused by the door and a guard––one of Mera’s probably––closed the door behind us and retook his position beside it, his hands folded on his odd-looking bident. Mera looked up at us and smiled. “Just a moment,” she called out softly, turning back to her work. She nodded silently, then used a tiny droplet of hydromantically controlled water to etch her name at the bottom of the document, the invisible tattoos on her cheeks and arms momentarily lighting up as she did so.

Tapping her desk with a finger, it sprang to life. The tablets on it floated up several inches and it rapidly transformed, pieces pulling apart and then coming back together as a box around what had previously been on the floating platform. Another tap and the box flew off towards the waiting guard, who caught it and tucked it under his arm.

Mera sighed and turned back to where we’d been waiting silently. “My apologies, I’m afraid that the affairs of state never have the decency to wait for a better time. Each night I think I’ve taken care of everything that needs my attention, and each morning I wake to another full day’s work waiting for me at my bedside.”

She shook her head. “Look at me, complaining to my guests. My apologies. I had meant to meet with you earlier in the week, but I’m afraid that my time is often more limited than I would prefer.”

Zatanna waved her off. “It's no big deal! Thank you for making time for us today, it sounds like you’re really swamped with work. I can’t imagine that being the Queen and the Headmistress of the Conservatory leaves you with a lot of free time.”

That did sound like a rather overloaded workload. It would be like if Headmaster Dippet was also the Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot. Or well, she was the Queen of the entire Kingdom, not just one city state, so it was probably more analogous to the role of the Supreme Mugwump. That was a lot of responsibilities for just one set of shoulders, even if her husband was the High King and she was just helping him with his duties like she’d implied before.

Mera laughed ruefully. “It certainly does not. Still, it is important to be a good hostess. I hope that Tula and Garth have generally made up for my absence?”

Zatanna nodded enthusiastically. “They’ve been great!”

“Indeed,” I confirmed. “Their aid and expertise have been invaluable.”

Mera smiled. “I’m glad. They have been exemplary students so far in the time I’ve known them and it's good for them to broaden their horizons. I understand you’ve both attended a number of classes and are certainly more diligent with your time in the library than most of my students. How are you finding everything? It's so rare to hear an outsider’s opinion about my Conservatory.”

Zatanna and I looked at each other and by unspoken agreement it was my turn to speak. After all, unlike her I had actual experience studying at a different school of magic––something she was extremely jealous of despite not being the right sort of witch to study there.

“It’s been an excellent experience so far, Headmistress. Thank you for allowing Zatanna and I to study here. The instructors and staff have been extremely helpful and accommodating, the accommodations themselves are excellent, and the opportunity to study Atlantean style magic under the eye of experts has been invaluable. You have a very skilled cadre of teachers and I think we’ve both learned so much more than we ever could have from just the handful of texts available on the surface.”

Mera looked very pleased. “I’m glad to hear it. With how few mages live on the surface, I am not surprised that few of our arts have disseminated above the waves. There have always been the rare few who wished to venture into the air above, but it is only in the past few decades that our two peoples have truly begun to make an effort to reconnect after so many millenia apart. Even still, many have doubts and fears about the world you come from. It is good for them to see you both here, studying peacefully among us.”

“And we’re definitely glad to be here too,” Zatanna added. “This has been such a great opportunity. I wish there were schools like this in America. I’m really not looking forward to going back to fu–freaking Cathedral High after seeing what school could be like.”

“Yes, it is certainly a crying shame that our kin above the waves have all but forgotten the gifts of magic. There are of course standouts like Kent, or your own family Zatanna, but by and large few remain who truly study the mystic arts. I was appalled to learn from Kent how limited the options are when it comes to studying such things; if you can not find a master or are born into the wrong family, it is all but impossible to learn anything at all.”

“Indeed,” I shook my head sadly, “it really is a tragedy. I was really glad to learn that the Conservatory existed, and about the other schools of magic you have in the other city-states.”

“Ah yes, Kent mentioned that you had studied at a school of magic yourself. ‘Hogwarts’ I believe was its name?”

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“Yes, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. One of the oldest and most respected institutions in my world. I spent about six-and-a-half years there before I came here.”

“Fascinating! I would love to hear your thoughts on how the two compare?”

We spoke for about ten minutes as I shared my thoughts on the differences between how Hogwarts did things and how they were done here. I mentioned how the two started at different ages, the way Hogwarts’ curriculum was more rigidly structured compared to how they did things here, and a number of other differences. I also spoke briefly about why some of the differences existed, such as the OWL and NEWT exams, international teaching guidelines, the houses, and how accidental magic could grow to be hazardous if you didn’t learn to control it past the age of eleven.

Mera seemed to find it all endlessly fascinating, asking a number of probing questions that I was happy to answer. It was…nice to talk about Hogwarts. Sure Kent and Zatanna had both had their questions, but Kent had mostly wanted facts and Zatanna stories and anecdotes. With them I’d also had to carefully avoid mentioning the exact circumstances of how I’d gotten here. No matter how close we got, I didn’t think Zatanna or the elderly wizard would look kindly on my actions just before my Spark ignited.

Meanwhile Mera was more interested in my own thoughts about the teaching and how her own school could potentially be improved. She didn’t care about specifics, but rather about lesson structures, curriculums, testing, and some of the classes and electives that Hogwarts offered that her school did not. Mentions of Herbology and Care of Magical Creatures in particular left her humming thoughtfully. As far as I understood, such things were considered the domain of the Science Center and a few other lesser academic institutions, though it seemed like perhaps the Conservatory would soon have a few such experts on staff as well.

Eventually, Mera had to cut herself off. “As much as I’m enjoying this, I’m afraid we’re getting somewhat short on time and I was hoping to assess your progress for myself and perhaps provide some advice. Perhaps we can continue this conversation at another time, Hydrys?”

“Of course, I’d be happy too.” Even if I hadn’t been enjoying the conversation myself, a close personal connection to the Queen of an entire major nation was nothing to scoff at. Perhaps in the future, when I was done working on the Pub (and I really did need to come up with a better name for my new home) it might be a good idea to look into some property here in the city.

I’d been theorizing about some enchantments that would allow someone inside a building to swim through air as though it was water, and that would be a perfect fit for the swim in and out design of buildings here. A barrier over the ‘windows’ to stop water from getting in but not people, plus that enchantment, and I would fit right in and still be able to use Portkeys and other wards, spells, and enchantments that being constantly surrounded by seawater might interfere with.

Still, that was something to consider later. For now, I had a Queen to impress and a highly skilled witch to learn from.

Under Mera’s guidance, we went through a number of increasingly complex hydromantic exercises. I could control up to about a hundred gallons of water at a time right now, though past eighty or so I was mostly reduced to just moving it around in vague blobs. Below that, I could form complex shapes, make the water move very quickly, and control several independent bubbles at the same time.

I’d also learned a handful of specific spells as opposed to the more typical free-form hydromancy that most of the classes had focused on. There was the shield the Batu Sha'ark had taught us, a spell that fired volleys of drill-like water projectiles designed to punch through shields and physical obstacles, a crude propulsion spell that was slow but very useful for getting around in places where my broom couldn’t fit, and the most basic hydromantic healing spell that was mostly good for small cuts and scrapes but could also deal with more serious injuries given enough time and magic.

Zatanna had also made a lot of progress, but she’d very much begun to lag behind me, something I ascribed to my planeswalker status. Just as my own wand magic had become easier to learn and refine, I had a feeling I would have been struggling with Atlantean magic just as much as she was without my Spark’s assistance. Her fine control was worse, she couldn’t empower as much water, and though we knew all the same spells, her proficiency with them was visibly lower than my own.

Mera complemented us both regardless, praising us for learning what typically took a new mage months in a single week. Then she spent a few minutes demonstrating each of the skills we’d shown her herself, keeping up a running commentary of what we could improve on even as she casually manipulated what must have been tens-of-thousands of gallons of brightly shining water.

It was a humbling display. The training hall we’d met in was as big as a modest home and she was moving around a solid third of the water in the entire room while leaving the rest of it completely undisturbed. This clearly was not her limit either given her relaxed posture, she looked like she was barely even paying attention!

Sure there were wizards who I was certain could crush the Queen in a duel, but I wasn’t sure if there were any in my old world who could match her for sheer elemental might. That was enough magically-charged water to shatter wards, crush buildings, and likely smother fiendfyre.

…I would need to check the efficacy of fighting fiendfyre with hydromancy. It would be very convenient to have someone I could reach who could put out an out-of-control blaze without simply depriving the cursed fire of fuel. If so, hopefully I’d be able to pick up a blueprint of her in the future as well. Just like Kent she’d make for an invaluable teacher and combatant.

After she was done, we ran through it all again, this time putting into practice some of the tips she’d given us. They were very effective, and she actively called out adjustments for us to make as we went. Some of what she said would take time to implement, but she was a true treasure trove of tips, suggestions, and ways to improve.

Unfortunately, that was all the time she had for us. She apologized, wished us an educational rest of the week, and mentioned hopefully meeting with us again before we left the city. I hoped she’d be able to find the time. That had been an incredibly good lesson, pushing me forward by potentially weeks of progress in a single hour-and-a-half long session. No wonder Garth and Tula were so good compared to many of their peers if they were learning from her directly.

Unfortunately, I really wasn’t counting on it. She seemed very busy. Still, it wasn’t like the teachers here were bad or anything. She was just better and there was a big difference between a one-on-two lesson and a class with thirty or more students.