This Cypher knew was his first real exposure to magick. The small spell he had managed to learn was impressive for someone his age and with no formal training, but compared to what he was witnessing now it was mere child's play. Even the examination of Gelath’s pendant Galex had shown him paled in comparison.
"Get down from there you!" Agnad said as he pulled Cypher back down into the cabin of the carriage by the hem of his tunic with a rough tug.
"I'll not have the young lord rippin' into my hide because you aren’t mindin' your own business!" Agnad scratched his beard again, and he brushed a small avalanche of white flakes to the floor of the carriage.
"Where does that portal lead? I thought we were going to stop in Ralgeff on the way to the academy?" Cypher asked, annoyed he had been yanked down so roughly.
"We..." Agnad began, stopping to drink from a wineskin he had produced from somewhere, the wine dripping down the sides of his mouth and wetting his beard as he gulped it down.
"…aren’t going to Ralgeff. You’ll be goin' with the young lord. You'd do well to keep yourself focused on matters that concern you like wipin' the young master's arse after a shart eh? Heh heh," he let out a chuckle and burped a bit. Cypher sighed as he realized that Agnad was drunk off his ass.
Still, he wondered if he could get any information at all and pressed Agnad for answers. "Can't you tell me anything? I'd like to know since I'll be the one spending the next few years in a strange place I've never been to before. It's not like I asked to tag along now is it?" Cypher responded, struggling to keep his annoyance and disgust in check.
"Ugh, ya curious bugger... FINE. If you must know, and if it'll shut you up, the drivers and I will be visiting for matters that be our own. The Galvan's got enough coin to send their boy through the scar on the way there, but we common folk gotta take the long way back. That means we'll be needing some supplies for the return trip. Best place to get those will be in Ralgeff."
Agnad sighed and stoppered his wineskin once again, "Eh, besides, we'll make damn good time with all this luggage gone. No sense in hurryin' back when we can stop and have ourselves a spot of fun with deep flagons and loose women now is there?"
"Scar? Is that what it's called?" asked Cypher, confusion evident in his tone.
"They really don't teach you anything in that lofty manor besides cleaning and followin' orders do they? Bah! Nevermind. Properly, it's called a Slingate, and they can take you anywhere in the world assumin' there be another one at your destination. Don't go askin' me how it works or nuffin' I don't rightly know 'sides to say it's wizards work. Between us though, I don't trust them fancy Conductor types. Always castin' strange spells about the place. It's unnatural I say! Gives me the chills every time I hear 'em chantin' that mess!"
"Slingates eh? Interesting..." Cypher said as he sat back in his seat and stroked his chin. "That's certainly something I'll need to look into someday."
"YOU!?! HAH! As if some brat like you could ever learn to use magick. Don't go getting a big head thinkin' about learnin' some fancy words and slingin' some spells like that fancy bollock out there. Magick casters are rare, and there ain't a spot of doubt in my mind that you ain't part of the lucky few who can use the stuff. You’re better off using a sword. Now THAT you’re good at! Eiden on the other hand though... Never mind, just shut up will ya? I got some sleep to catch up on."
With that, Agnad closed his eyes and leaned his head back as the carriages started moving again. Cypher smiled then and pressed his cheek against the glass of the window to watch as they got closer to the rippling surface of the Slingate. He wasn’t getting more out of the drunken guard anyways.
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.
If Conductors were rare and Cypher had learned how to use even his minuscule amount of magick, then that meant that he was capable of much more than he originally thought. Finding a teacher, however, would be a more daunting task. That of course would be a matter for another time.
His thoughts were interrupted as a thick white mist began to spread around the bulky man in front of him. Their carriage had begun to pass through and Cypher held his breath as the mist drew closer. He reached out and let the white envelop him. The rippling mist felt cold and was much thicker than it had looked from a distance.
His hand passed through easily enough, but he was unable to pull it back as it continued to spread up his arm. Panic took him for a moment, but he relaxed as the mist rolled over his chest, and then his face passed through. Unable to move, he watched as a white sprawling void filled his eyes. He saw a flash of something though. A castle perhaps? It was massive as far as he could tell and shimmered with a blue hue but that was all he could make of it in that brief instant.
Before he could really process what he had seen, the world seemed to lurch forward at incredible speeds. He was about to cry out but as he opened his mouth the moment passed. Everything returned to normal and the air felt calm as the carriages rattled their way forward.
He turned to look out his back window, wiping a thin layer of condensation from the glass, and saw the Slingate from the other side. It was identical to the one he had just passed through and rippled for a moment longer before the portal snapped shut with a loud click and a bright flash of light.
As his vision returned, his eyes widened and his heart filled with despair as the sight before him was nothing like he expected at all. Gone were the dark green shades of the misty forest he was familiar with. Neither were there rolling hills of some countryside he had yet seen sprawled before him. Those he thought, could with some measure of planning and care be traversed.
Instead, before him stood the inescapable reach of a wide-spanning mountain range. The large grey slabs of stone stood firm in the distance as far as the eye could see and clouds swirled around their snow-capped peaks. A light dusting of snow fell from the sky and animals skittered about in the far distance.
The sun had just reached the peak of the day and shone brightly down upon the expanse of white-covered trees in every direction. The air grew suddenly cold and bitter, and Cypher had to draw his hands into his armpits in an attempt to keep warm from the unexpected chill.
It was not, however, the cold that bothered him. No, instead it was the cruel unwavering fact that try as he might, do what he could, he would not be able to traverse such a dangerous and unwelcoming environment such as this on his own. To try would be absolute madness.
He had planned to sneak away in the dead of night when men and the most troublesome of the dangerous beasts relinquished themselves to their sleep. On a prairie or forested area, he felt certain that he could hide among the hills or trees and find some way toward a nearby village or city.
But up here trapped by the frozen peaks and shadowed crevices of the numerous mountain caves he would surely die. Indeed, be it from hunger or cold, or some fell creature that should desire to feast upon his flesh he would meet his end. He was after all just a boy of twelve, and despite his skill with a blade, he could only do so much.
He pulled the coat Molly had given him from his pack and fit his arms through the sleeves, a feeling of numbness extending throughout his body. The numbness though was not from the cold. Buttoning it with shaking hands, he steeled himself and calmed his racing heart.
His thoughts rapidly flitted from one idea to another but there were just too many variables to consider and too many problems that could arise. Another wave of despair gripped him and his vision blurred for an instant as tears tried to force their way out. Then, slapping his cheeks, he willed the thoughts to cease and took a deep breath.
As he exhaled, he could see the thick white cloud of his breath. If Agnad noticed the sudden change in temperature or Cypher's strange display he did not seem to care. The carriages continued forward for a few more moments before coming to a stop. The driver banged upon the top of the cabin three times, and with a feeling of dread, Cypher knew it was time to depart.
Agnad opened one eye and watched him curiously as he grabbed his pack and opened the door. A cold gust of wind quickly swept into the cabin and it was at this that Agnad shivered and grunted as if to hurry Cypher along.
Squinting into the cold light of the midday sun, Cypher raised a hand to shield his eyes from the brightness. With a deep breath, Cypher gathered what remained of his shattered resolve and stepped out slowly into the unknown white world that awaited him.