The carriage rocked as its wheels dipped into a ditch in the dirt road, and Kaleb rocked with it. The company was on the march. And while they marched on foot, Kaleb was seated in the comfort of the carriage. His eyes were closed and Master Beris’s hand was on his head. A stream of knowledge was bombarding his mind, having still not coalesced into the form of a rune.
The noise of dozens of boots hitting the ground faded along with the rocking of the carriage when the stream finally broke the barrier of his mind and began registering in his thoughts.
It took a while for his mind to decipher the brightness flooding it. The Directed Condensation rune eventually formed in his internal perception. Once it became more clear, Kaleb didn’t wait, as he didn’t plan to suffer last time’s pain again. He summoned his book and let go of the rune, which was captured by a page momentarily.
He opened his eyes to his book showing the rune and Master Beris giving him a look. “So swift?” the mage asked.
“I thought it worth the attempt,” Kaleb said. “And it was.” He glanced at his book, sporting a new rune. “It’s there.”
The Clayton mage nodded. “Do you need to rest?”
Kaleb shook his head. “Let us do the next one.”
Master Beris extended his hand again and Kaleb shut his eyes. Another round of bombardment struck his mind, and this time it was a bit painful even early on.
He persevered, and about half an hour in, he captured the Voluntary Attachment rune into the book.
Kaleb opened his eyes to an open book, three of its pages hosting a representation of power, the power he’d been hoping for when he’d gone on Diego’s overambitious expedition. “How do I cast the spell?”
Master Beris snorted. “You must show some patience. You will get your training when we stop for camp.”
Kaleb nodded. His attention returned to the book, where the runes clung to the pages with incomprehensible appendages, threading themselves out of reality and into the Ovurch then back. He remembered how he’d found it more difficult to try to memorize the first rune from the book than from Master Beris’s imprinting. He focused on another rune this time and found himself facing the same issue. “Master Beris, why can’t I comprehend the runes in the book as well as I comprehended them when you imprinted them on my mind?”
The Clayton mage had opened his book and begun reading it. He paused and raised his eyes as he heard Kaleb’s question. “You can’t?” he said then he chuckled. “I suppose there is some fairness in the Risen’s will after all.”
Kaleb stared at him with as unamused a look as he could possibly muster.
Master Beris ignored him and continued, “there is some sense to it, however. After all, when I imprint a rune on your mind, I’m deliberately passing on a perfected comprehension of its form. Whenever you get lost, you can rely on my knowledge to find your way back. I suppose the book was not meant to assume a similar role. Nevertheless, since only you can perceive this book, it is most likely that your mind is what is perceiving it and not your eyes as you would prefer to imagine. If I were to presume, I would say you can still learn the runes from the book, but at a much slower pace than imprinting.”
“I see,” Kaleb said politely. “Thank you.” He didn’t want to antagonize the mage more than he had already, even if the Clayton was being a snark. He glanced at Miryodel who had buried his nose in his own book and stayed silent since Master Beris had arrived. The apprentice seemed as intimidated as a chick in front of the older mage.
Kaleb sighed and focused back on his runes. If he had to wait until they stopped to camp, he would at least attempt to gain something out of the free time. Even if it was difficult to comprehend the runes, Master Beris hadn’t said that it would be impossible.
After about an hour of scrutinizing the Moderate Force rune, he realized that this would be a long-term undertaking. Very long term. It was a shame, but he hadn’t expected much, to begin with. As he gave himself a break, Master Beris suddenly perked up from his reading and fixed his eyes on him.
“Can you erase the runes from the book?” he asked, the intense heat of curiosity radiating from his face.
Kaleb frowned. He hadn’t thought of that. Since he’d gotten his first rune, he’d been pretty excited about learning magic. No wonder he hadn’t thought of erasing the very source of that magic.
He turned a page and focused on the Directed Condensation rune, attempting to remove it, push it out, or even pull it out of place, the latter nearly causing him to cast it as he felt something being pulled out of him. He looked up at Master Beris who was waiting in anticipation and shook his head. “I can’t.”
The Clayton lost his enthusiasm as soon as he heard the answer and sighed. “I suppose that is to be expected as well.” He then ignored Kaleb and returned to his reading.
Kaleb mirrored him and returned to focusing on his own book, attempting to decipher the intricacies of Moderate Force.
…
The march stopped before sunset. The captain had chosen a well-worn hill where caravans often camped and the grass had been trodden clear. Kaleb descended out of the carriage after Master Beris, stretching his twisted muscles and sighing in satisfaction. He saw the regulars beginning to set up camp and getting to their chores. Then Master Beris gestured for him to follow and Kaleb complied.
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“Where are we going?” he asked.
“To the quartermaster,” the mage said. “We can’t have you crippling yourself or one of the regulars on your first casting.”
Kaleb raised a brow. What would the quartermaster have to do with his training?
He didn’t have to wait long to find out. Once they’d reached the quartermaster, Master Beris had asked him to provide one of the cattle for training after explaining something Kaleb didn’t clearly understand. The heavyset Quill had been reluctant at first, but under Master Beris’s persistent glare, he’d acquiesced, leading them to a pen that was still being constructed for the shai, cattle that resembled pigs in the fact that they ate almost anything; however, they looked more like a cow’s calf than a pig and were bigger, and their heads resembled a moose’s but without the antlers.
The quartermaster led one of the shai to Kaleb and Master Beris. “Are you certain this will work, Master Beris?” he asked.
“It has been done before,” the mage said. “Wait until Kaleb here is prepared.”
The quartermaster nodded, resting a hand on the shai’s neck while holding a hitch-knotted rope in the other hand.
Master Beris turned to Kaleb. “To cast a Push-Haste, you must begin with Voluntary Attachment. You are to cast the rune first on this shai. Then you will prime your two other runes in turn and cast them together on the shai right afterwards. You must start with Moderate Force but not let the pull of magic leave you before you cast the Condensation rune. You must also tell the quartermaster when you’re ready to cast the Attachment rune.”
Kaleb nodded. This would be his first try, and it came with its own anticipation and anxiety. “How do I…” he paused, “aim it?”
“Your intent should be clear through your will,” Master Beris said. “However, using a physical aid like your hand always helps.”
Kaleb nodded again and summoned the book, starting with the Voluntary Attachment page. He focused on the rune, pulling on its meaning and feeling a pullback from within him. He raised his hand towards the shai, which became restless before the quartermaster rubbed its head softly. The Quill then moved the knot to its face, and the docile creature dipped its head to allow the rope onto its neck. At the same moment, Kaleb let the power being siphoned out of him follow the physical conduit which was his hand, and he released it towards the shai which stepped back and produced a goat-like bleat as soon as the magic took hold of it.
There was nothing visible on the shai, but Kaleb assumed that the animal felt his cantrip. Kaleb himself could feel a subtle connection between himself and the shai. He closed his eyes to confirm something, and he could indeed subtly feel the direction of the shai in relation to himself.
He opened his eyes and turned the page to Moderate Force, pulling on its power and feeling the opposite pull from within him. He held onto that feeling and quickly turned the page to Directed Condensation, casting it as fast as he could. He felt a second pull within himself as the first one began to slip away, and he aimed them both through his hand and toward the calf. The power of the runes easily traveled through him toward the Attachment as if guided by some instinct, which Kaleb assumed was the effect of the first rune.
As the magic reached it, the shai bleated again and then hopped restlessly in place but didn’t seem to suffer from improved agility. Kaleb looked askance at Master Beris.
The Clayton sighed and said, “If I were to ponder a source for this impotence, it would be that you let the first rune’s power fade before you cast the second. You must do it faster.”
Kaleb pressed his lips and focused on the book again. He turned the page to Moderate Force and pulled on it. Not hesitating as he felt the pull within himself, he turned the page immediately and pulled on the Condensation rune, pairing its power with Moderate Force and letting them both go with nearly no guidance except a focus on the Attachment on the shai. The two currents of power smoothly slid through him and stuck to the shai, which began violently kicking and jumping, forcing the quartermaster to retreat.
Kaleb noted that the animal seemed to be overcompensating in every step and hop. He assumed that that was the power of the spell which pushed its limbs. It sure looked hastened as it shook from side to side and bucked. Then it spun around in an instant and tried to gallop back towards its pen, but instead, it tripped and fell, releasing a miserable bleat and the echo of the painful crack of a bone. Kaleb and the quartermaster both cringed at the sound.
“I suppose that one will have to be slaughtered first,” the quartermaster said, eying the shai wrestling with the ground in a pained dance.
“You must keep training,” Master Beris said, catching Kaleb’s attention again. “Until you are certain of your mastery of the casting order and speed. You might also wish to try casting the Condensation rune before the Force one on one of these animals, so you can see the cost of failure.” The Clayton paused for a moment. “You might as well cast it on this one, since its fate is already sealed.”
The quartermaster nodded with a wry look on his face.
“How can I remove the spell already on it?” Kaleb said.
“Just pull it, like you pull on a rune.”
Kaleb did as instructed, reaching with his will towards the shai and pulling back once his will caught something. He felt a stream of energy pour into him, floating inside him in a manner that had nothing to do with the physical. “I can feel it inside me.”
“Good,” Master Beris said. “This way, you waste no power. But hurry, it will fade with time.”
Kaleb had a question in mind, but he listened to the advice and began casting, beginning with the Attachment, which he released towards the shai as the quartermaster approached it with the rope again. The animal obediently reached with its head towards the rope as if by instinct. Poor thing. He felt the cantrip latch onto it again. Even though he felt for the animal, he couldn’t take the risk of hurting someone because of his incompetence. He had to practice.
He pulled the Condensation rune and preserved its power within him. He noted that while casting these two runes, the pull from within him had been siphoned from the recycled energy that he’d retrieved from the previous spell, but it ran out before he could cast the third rune.
Kaleb followed the Condensation rune with the Force rune and unleashed them on the animal. The results were as grim as Master Beris had implied. The shai’s head was slammed into the ground as a wall of force struck it from above.
“By the Risen,” the quartermaster swore.
Kaleb winced at the sight and realized the animal had passed out from the strike.
“The attachment helped the Repel spell precisely hone in on the animal,” Master Beris explained, giving Kaleb a severe look. “Be certain that you’re adept at your casting before you decide you’re ready.” He looked at the quartermaster next. “Bring him another animal.”
Kaleb felt grim as he watched Master Beris leave him with only this much guidance. He’d just told him that he could accidentally stab an ally in the back during combat. He looked at the passed-out animal and wondered how many shai he would have to victimize before he felt ready enough to cast dangerous magic on his allies.