Ultimate Mage

by Simon Archer

  Bernsten, clearly a highly skilled swordsman, was unphased. He repositioned himself without losing a step and came at me again. Foreseeing his next move would be to go at my legs, I switched to the appropriate variation of the A-minor scale, and the golden light shifted to create a shield at that angle.

  I had to admit that Bernsten really was good. He caught my shift in defense just before he swung, shifting his stance abruptly so that his slash would carry just above my shield into my midsection. There was just enough time to shift my spell song once, so I picked the C major scale affiliated with the spell that had broken Nadeine’s sword.

  As neatly as you could please, the shield shifted upwards, right into the path of the elf’s blade. Bernsten must have heard about this particular spell from his sister because he pulled back his swing with wide eyes. Still, momentum kept the rest of his body going forward, so he struck the shield hard. The recoil propelled him back across the circle in a tumble.

  I was glad to see that he had moved his sword at the last minute, so it didn’t meet the same fate as his sister’s as I walked over to help my friend up.

  “Well done, Leo Hayden,” Bernsten said as he grasped my outstretched hand, allowing me to pull him to his feet. “I am impressed.” He beamed at me, and I was happy to find that my friend reverted back to his normal self just as quickly as he had assumed the role of the stoic soldier.

  “Yes, well done, Leo, well done,” Siara said.

  “Oh yes, oh yes,” Anil squeaked. “Now, it is time for you to learn offensive spells.”

  “Offensive spells?” I asked, curious and hopeful that I would be able to do some more exciting stuff with my newfound powers.

  “Yes.” Siara nodded slowly. “Up until now, you have been working solely on defensive combat spells. That is to say, you have been anticipating your opponents’ moves and responding accordingly, but in battle, you must also act offensively if you wish to be victorious. You must learn how to strike your opponent before he has the time to strike against you.”

  “We did not think you would progress to this point so quickly,” Anil said, hopping a little bit in his excitement. “But the tales are true! You are a true mage and a very gifted one. I have no doubt you will master offensive spells just as quickly.”

  I nodded as this all made sense to me. I was glad I wouldn't have to rely on Nadeine, Bernsten, and Marinka to defeat our opponents for me while I stood there, shielding myself from harm.

  “Good,” I said, nodding curtly. “I want to be able to do more to help my team.”

  Anil pulled out a scroll and handed it to me. As usual, I sat down in the middle of the circle and memorized the spell, a harmonic minor scale, the first one of its kind I’d seen used in a spell in Eviorah. This meant that the scale skipped some notes, and had a cooler, eerier sound. It was simple with only one variation, though the scale itself was complex. But given that I’d played such scales many times before, it didn’t take long to memorize it.

  When I was ready, I hopped back up and positioned myself on the edge of the circle, and Bernsten followed my lead, slipping easily back into his warrior self. He drew his sword, but stayed back this time, letting me attack him first.

  I began to hum the scale, and the haunting melody filled the room. Bernsten broke from his stoic expression momentarily at the unique tune and raised an eyebrow, and both Siara and Anil gasped in awe. As I made my way through the scale, particles of the same golden light emerged in the air and coalesced together to make a golden sword.

  I grinned at the sight of this. I had gotten my own sword after all, and I didn’t even have to lug it around with me like Nadeine and Bernsten did. I could conjure it whenever I wanted to.

  Once the particles of golden light had consolidated, and the sword was fully formed, it swung backward and then forward again, kind of like a pendulum moving in time with the rhythm of my song. Though Bernsten tried to jump out of the way of the sudden swing, the sword nicked him, clanking into his armor and producing a harsh ringing sound.

  After that, Bernsten managed to jump clear of the glowing blade’s arc and moved to one side, but on instinct, I continued humming the harmonic scale. As I did, the golden sword seemed to read my intentions as it turned and followed Bernsten around the circle, swinging the whole time. With a grin, I walked around the circle with the sword, following the battle.

  After a few dodges, Bernsten was cut off and perilously close to the edge of the circle. As a last-ditch defense, he brought his own sword to try to parry my mystical blade and made contact with it for the first time. Another ringing sound blared out, but the golden light held up, shoving Bernsten’s parry back. As he stumbled off-balance, the golden sword swung back again, the glittering arc catching Bernsten right in the side of his breastplate. This time, it was a clean blow that sliced through the metal armor, and Bernsten cried out in pain. I stopped humming right away and rushed over to my friend, the magical blade breaking up into golden motes as I bent down next to him.

  “Oh man, I’m sorry,” I said in a bit of a panic. “Are you okay?” I reached out in an attempt to help.

  “Oh, yes, Leo Hayden,” Bernsten said through a wince of pain. “It is just a scratch.” He took my outstretched hand and rose. Sure enough, the cut I could see through his armor looked shallow, with only a small trickle of blood in sight.

  “Well done, Leo,” Siara praised, clearly still in awe as she and Anil walked over to us.

  “Indeed,” Bernsten said. “I am very impressed that you were able to pierce my armor. Very impressed. This armor is made from metal from the depths of Eviorah, second in strength only to metal found in the mountain regions, and is proof against all but our best blades.”

  “And, of course, to our magic,” Anil said, smiling brightly at both Bernsten and myself.

  “Of course!” Bernsten echoed before he turned to me, his wound momentarily forgotten. “What was that beautiful sound that you made, my friend? It was different in sound from the other spells I have heard you produce, but I am unable to place in what way.”

  “It was a harmonic scale,” I said. “That means it sort of skips some of the notes, to make it sound cooler.”

  “And it sounded ‘cool’ indeed,” Bernsten said, stopping awkwardly on the slang word.

  “Thanks,” I said, chuckling under my breath as I hummed a quick healing spell to clear up Bernsten’s cut.

  “Well done, Leo,” Siara repeated when Anil was finished. “Are you ready to attempt another offensive spell?”

  “Sure,” I said, a bit hesitantly. “But, what if I hurt Bernsten worse this time? I don’t want to do that.”

  “Ah, a good question,” Anil said, furrowing his pale, aged eyebrows as he looked to his companion. “Siara, did mages not used to have a means of avoiding such a predicament?”

  “Ah, yes, Anil, I believe you are correct,” Siara said, scrunching up her face as if trying to remember something from the distant past. We stood there in silence for a few moments, looking at her expectantly.

  “The bubbles!” Anil cried out suddenly, causing the rest of us to jump.

  “Bubbles?” Siara asked.

  “Like in the library,” I said, understanding.

  “Yes,” Anil said. “The bubbles encasing the shelves holding our scrolls. Was there not once something like that for practicing?” I thought back to the bubbles in the library and how they prevented my magic from harming the scrolls. Something like that could help Bernsten.

  “Yes,” Siara said slowly. “I believe I remember such a thing. However, it was used sparingly since we had no warriors of our own to spar against before we lost our magic.”

  “So, how do you make the bubbles?” I asked.

  “Also an excellent question, Leo,” Siara said, and her face scrunched up again. “We have had no need to make any new ones since we lost our magic…” Her voice trailed off, and I got the sense that she didn’t know the answer to my question.

  “Can we take one off of
one of the shelves?” I asked.

  “That may be the best course of action,” Siara said. “Sir Bernsten, come with me. We will attempt to get this issue sorted out. I apologize that we did not think of it before. Anil, stay here and help Leo learn a new spell.” She and Bernsten then exited the training room in the direction of the library.

  While we waited for them to return, Anil handed me another scroll, and I sat back down to memorize it. It was another harmonic scale, this time with a variation.

  “What does this one do?” I asked Anil once I thought that I had gotten the hang of the scale.

  “It is another offensive combat spell,” Anil said matter-of-factly. “Designed to decapitate your opponent.” My eyes grew wide.

  “Good thing they’re getting Bernsten some protection then, huh?” I said, raising my eyebrows in alarm.

  “Oh, yes, Leo Hayden. That was a good observation on your part,” Anil said, still looking unconcerned at the prospect of Bernsten losing his head.

  Siara and Bernsten returned sometime later, carrying a pile of a clear gel-like substance that I assumed was one of the bubbles that protected the shelves of scrolls.

  “How did you get it off?” I asked them when they were closer to us.

  “It was simple enough,” Bernsten shrugged.

  “Indeed, the bubbles are met to be penetrable by elven hands so that we may select from and read the scrolls. We merely pulled it off the shelf,” Siara said.

  “How does it protect against magic, then?” I asked.

  “Your magic is done from a distance,” Siara explained. “These bubbles are impenetrable by magic.”

  “Then how did you defeat the mountain elves?” I asked. “Didn’t they just wear these?”

  “Another good question,” Anil said, piping into the discussion. “These bubbles are made using magic itself, paired with the fresh water from our kingdom’s underground springs. The mountain elves had access to neither.”

  “I mean, the magic part makes sense, but they had to have their own water, right?” I asked.

  “All water is not created equal in Eviorah, Leo,” Siara said. “The mountain water has slightly different properties than our water, which itself differs from the water found in the forests. Does that make sense?”

  “I guess,” I said, and I supposed it made about as much sense as anything else I’d come across in this world. “How do we get it on Bernsten?”

  “We will see if it will form to him as it did the shelf,” Siara said, and she handed her half of the bubble to Bernsten. He held it out in front of him and moved to put it on like he would a pair of pants. Sure enough, the bubble molded to his form, and he was able to walk around in it. Siara pulled out a dagger and swung it at the bubble. It didn’t break.

  “Excellent,” she said. Then, turning to me, “I believe we are ready.” I repositioned myself in the circle, and Bernsten lumbered over to do the same.

  “Wait,” I said. “If the dagger can’t penetrate the bubble, how will Bernsten’s sword get out of it to attack me?”

  “It will not,” Siara said. “The purpose is not for Bernsten to attack you, Leo, any more than it is for you to cause him harm. Rather, the purpose is for him to act as if he is attacking you, and for you to respond and practice your magic in response.”

  I nodded and began to hum the spell I had learned while Bernsten and Siara were in the library. The tune was just as, if not even more, haunting than the previous one. As I made my way through the scale, particles of golden light appeared just as they had before and formed a sword. This time, instead of swinging backward and forwards, the sword swung sideways and aimed itself at Bernsten’s neck.

  I winced slightly as I watched, eyeing the sword’s movements carefully. I didn’t want to kill my new friend accidentally before we even made it into the forest. But true to Siara’s words, the bubble prevented the sword from doing any real damage. Bernsten hopped out of the way and swung his own weapon in return just as he had before, but when he failed to respond to my spell adequately, instead of getting hurt, the magical sword just crashed into the bubble and evaporated, small puffs of golden light falling to the ground.

  “Cool,” I said, watching as the bubble was pushed into the crook of Bernsten’s neck and then popped back out again.

  “Indeed,” Bernsten said. When the sword had come at him that last time, he had scrunched his eyes shut and pulled his shoulders up, bracing for the fatal blow. He looked a lot more relaxed now that he knew the bubble worked properly against my magic.

  “Yes, it is good that you brought up that potential issue, Leo,” Siara said, eyeing the spot where the magical sword had swung itself at Bernsten’s neck warily. “And you are progressing very well. Let us try some more spells.”

  We did so, and I learned spells that created a mace, a dagger, and a club, as well as other spells to use each of these weapons. I even learned a spell that created a giant golden set of fists intent on punching Bernsten into oblivion. My elf friend took it all in stride, more comfortable now that he was protected from my magic by the giant bubble. I mastered each of these spells quickly, even more quickly than I’d mastered the others I’d learned.

  “You are progressing very quickly,” Anil remarked a few hours later.

  “Yes, Leo Hayden,” Bernsten said, rubbing his head after he’d fallen flat trying to get away from the pair of golden fists. “You are learning these spells much more quickly than Nadeine led me to believe.”

  “These are actually a bit easier than the other ones,” I said honestly.

  Siara looked shocked. “Why do you say this? These are highly advanced spells that were known to take even the most accomplished magi weeks to master.”

  “Well,” I said, thinking back to my musical training. “At face value, I guess they’re more complicated since the scales are harmonic and melodic, and those are different from the usual major and minor scales I’ve been learning for the other spells. It took me a long time to master harmonic and melodic scales for my cello, and I had to master the regular ones first. But that’s the thing: I already know them. The other spells took a while to learn because they were made from scales with lots of variations. But these scales are just a couple variations on scales that I already know, so they’re easier.”

  “This is fascinating,” Anil said, and I could tell from their expressions that he and Siara had been listening intently.

  “Indeed it is,” Siara said. “You had already completed the groundwork for your magical training long before you came to us. This is, I suppose, why the council chose to bring you here. We knew this already. But this pace… this is nothing we could have ever dreamed of before. Well done, Leo. Well done. I have little doubt now that your quest will be successful, and our magic will return to us.”

  “I think that is enough for today,” Anil said. “Whether you find these spells difficult or not, you will need your rest and nourishment. Shall we proceed to the dining hall?”

  I nodded and then helped Bernsten drag himself out of the giant bubble. I had to admit that it was kind of funny. Bernsten looked relieved to be free of the bubble, stretching his arms out from his sides and sighing deeply.

  “It was quite claustrophobic in there, Leo Hayden,” he said. “The air was heavy, as well. I am glad to be out here with you now.” He patted me on the back and yawned. It was contagious, and I yawned myself.

  “Let us eat,” Siara said, and we walked to the dining hall, leaving the bubble lying in the center of the training room for us to resume our practice tomorrow.

  11

  I didn’t realize how hungry or how tired I was until I was at the buffet. It may have been easy enough to memorize all those spells, but I’d still done more magic today than I ever had before.

  I started eating before I even had a chance to sit down, shoveling as much meat and starch into my mouth as I could. Just like the previous evening, I knew the food objectively wasn’t as good as what I’d been served at the royal castle,
but it tasted better than anything else I’d eaten in my life. It probably had something to do with the fact that I’d burned thousands upon thousands of calories today doing magic.

  I sat down at one of the dining hall’s round tables with Bernsten, Siara, and Anil, and we were joined shortly by Nadeine and Marinka.

  “How was your practice today, Leo?” Marinka asked, smiling at me kindly.

  “Good,” I said, but I still had gobs of mashed potatoes in my mouth, and I had to grab my golden cloth napkin and cover my face so Marinka wouldn’t see me spit it out. I kicked myself internally. How embarrassing. But Marinka seemed to find it amusing and laughed along with me. When I’d recovered, she asked the question again.

  “So it went well?” she asked.

  “Yes,” I said, nodding. “I did a ton of magic today, more than I ever have before. It was fun. And I got to beat up on Bernsten.” I laughed at that last bit and gestured at my friend.

  “Is this so, Brother?” Nadeine said. “This novice got the best of you?”

  “Novice?” I scoffed, but Nadeine shot me a wink, indicating she was making fun of her brother, not me.

  “It is true, Sister,” Bernsten said, his voice booming as usual, drawing the attention of some nearby elves who were likely just trying to enjoy their meals in peace. “Leo Hayden would have killed me if I were not protected by one of the bubbles that encase the shelves in the library.”

  “That sounds… entertaining,” Nadeine said, arching an eyebrow at Bernsten.

  “Indeed it was,” Anil piped in, so excited that he nearly toppled over his glass of juice.

  “You should have witnessed it, Nadeine. It was a sight to behold,” Siara said, nodding solemnly. And then, seeing Bernsten’s expression, “I do not mean Sir Bernsten’s battle skills were lacking. After all, he is a skilled warrior. I am referring to Leo’s skills with magic. It was indescribable how quickly he learned and adapted to the new offensive combat spells.”