It must be the tears affecting my vision, Aeron thought, because it looked like Master Doronal was embarrassed. He wiped his eyes with the back of his hand.
“Also, I need to apologize for putting you in that situation. You see, I intentionally changed the spell slightly to test whether or not you would catch it. And though I did expect you to notice, I did not expect you to be able to correct it so easily. Nor did I expect you to be able to make the spell better. How did you do it?”
Aeron sniffled, swallowed, and said, “I’m not sure. I . . . I saw it was wrong. That colored band wasn’t supposed to be there, so I just removed it. And then it seemed like the section of the box on the top left should have been adjusted the way I did it, and that other band should’ve been shifted to where I placed it . . .” Aeron’s words slowed to a stop as he listened to what he was saying. It sounded so presumptuous! He continued quickly, “I mean, I-I can see how the spell works the way you had been building it, but just then I saw how it could be done . . . better.” Aeron shrugged apologetically.
“Extraordinary,” Master Doronal said shaking his head. “That’s a standard affinity amplification spell. It’s been used for centuries as it is.”
“I’m sorry,” Aeron said and bowed his head.
“No, you misunderstand me. I’m not criticizing you. I’m just amazed that you have discovered an improved version of a spell no one else has been able to. There is a weaker version of the spell, but no stronger version existed, until now. You’ve created a new spell.”
Aeron’s eyes widened and his heart jumped. He made a spell? He was shocked, delighted, and scared.
“Now, true, it is not a completely new spell from scratch,” Master Doronal said. “But still, it is a new spell. Well done.” He slid open a drawer on his desk and removed a piece of paper.
Aeron’s eyes widened in surprise. Master Doronal wasn’t going to—?
“Now,” Master Doronal said, “I am going to jot down that spell, if you don’t mind.” He paused, fountain pen in hand, and looked at Aeron. “Hmm. Let’s see. ‘Aeron’s Amplification’ I think has a nice ring to it, don’t you?”
Aeron, still in shock, could only nod.
Master Doronal began writing, a faint smile on his face. After a few moments, he was done. He carefully turned the sheet of paper over onto the desk blotter and gently pressed down on the back. He then flipped it over and blew on it, drying the ink a bit more, and satisfied, he set it aside and continued. “This I will file away later, but for now . . .” Master Doronal stood and turned around, looking at the bookshelves behind his desk. “Let me see.”
He searched along the bottom row of books, scanning the titles. “Ah-ha! Here we are.” He removed a slim volume from among several and sat back down. He placed the leather-bound book on his desk and opened it. He flipped past several pages and, when he found what he was looking for, spun the book around and slid it over to Aeron.
“There.” Master Doronal pressed his finger to the book, indicating a section of text. “That is the spell we have been using on the dragon’s eye, ‘Maxeem’s Amplification.’ That book is now yours, by the way. It is the sorcery primer given to all of our accepted.” He eyed Aeron and lifted an eyebrow, “Of course, should you eventually decide not to continue with Magic Craft, you will return it, yes?”
“Of course! I mean, no, I won’t.” Aeron’s face twisted as he realized he wasn’t quite saying what he meant. “That is, there won’t be a need. Magic Craft is all I’ve ever wanted to do, so I won’t need to—”
Master Doronal’s laughter cut him off. “Yes, of course, of course. Now, Maxeem’s Amplification.” He gestured to the primer.
Aeron took a breath to calm himself and looked at the text the magic master had indicated.
“As you can see, spells are recorded using several notations and symbols. At your leisure you will begin studying the primer from the beginning, but for now we can examine Maxeem’s Amplification to get you started.
“The first thing to note there is that every spell has a starting structure, a framework upon which the spell will be constructed. Although it is entirely possible to begin with nothing, it makes construction of a spell simpler if you start with one of the basic frameworks in mind. The first notation on any spell indicates what framework the spell is built on. There are several you will read about, but the focal framework is the one we will begin with now because it is the one used by Maxeem’s.”
He tapped the page. “As you can see, on the spell itself the only notation given for the spell framework is its name. How to create each framework is described in the framework section.” He flipped back toward the front of the book and tapped a page where the focal framework was laid out. Aeron stared at the primer, scanning the frameworks.
Master Doronal leaned back in his chair. “A spell’s structure cannot be described or sketched. Again, because everyone sees magic in their own way, a sketch would have no meaning to most people. Think of it this way.” He leaned forward, eying Aeron intently. “How would you, exactly and in every detail, explain the taste of a dewberry to someone who had never tasted one or to someone who could not taste at all? Or the smell of a rose? How would you describe that scent to one who had never experienced it or to one who could not smell?” Master Doronal raised his hands, palms up, and shrugged his shoulders. “It would be very, very difficult. And it is even worse with spells because everyone sees them in their own way so there is no common ground. Although, to be honest, we don’t really have a way to test whether a dewberry actually tastes exactly the same to everyone. I mean, everyone knows what a dewberry tastes like—to them. Because they were told, this is a dewberry, and then they tasted one.” Master Doronal tapped his chin. “Hmm. I suppose if there were a way to link minds so that experiences were shared, similarly to how these spell training bracelets work—”
Master Doronal shook his head abruptly. “I apologize, I’m wandering off point. Where were we?” He thought a moment. “Ah, yes. We all see magic differently. And that being the case, we had to come up with a standard way to talk about magic. So, like various crafts and disciplines such as mathematics, we use symbols. But we have it a little simpler than some, in that we can literally see, each in our own way, what the symbols relate to. In your case, which symbols mean which colors, which bands. For now, all the symbols you will need are used in the frameworks we will be studying from the primer, so you will be able to experience them and learn them as you learn the frameworks.
“Look at the symbols for the focal framework listed there in the primer. I am going to slowly construct the framework, and I want you to follow along with the symbols as I do so.” Master Doronal moved his chair close to the desk again and began creating the focal framework.
Aeron also moved closer. He ‘watched’ the framework as Master Doronal created it. He could see the individual bands of color as they were brought into being and tried to match them with the symbols in the book. Yes, he thought, that color there must match that symbol in the book. And that one, yes, he found its symbol too. “I think I am getting it. I see how they go together.”
“Excellent. Now, I have completed the focal framework. Study it.”
Aeron could see the structure of the spell, the framework, enclosing the dragon’s eye. He could feel the spell’s power flowing gently over him. Master Doronal had been right. What he had felt from the girl enchanting the water tanks or what he had felt in the cleaning room was a mere whisper of what he could now feel of magic while they were wearing the training bracelets.
“Can you feel the magic, its rhythm?”
Aeron nodded and closed his eyes. He watched the structure before him, felt the pulse of the magic. He studied the bands of color in the open framework. The bands were of varying thickness, and their power flowed through the framework in a slow pulsing rhythm and gave it purpose. He could see how this framework could be built into Maxeem’s Amplification, and he felt how this structure was right for the spells tha
t amplified an object’s affinities.
“Good. As you can see there are only a few bits to this framework, a few, bands of color, as you say.”
Aeron nodded again. The structure, magic, was captivating to watch.
“Those bands of color correspond to types of magical focus.”
“Like affinities?” Aeron asked.
When Master Doronal didn’t answer immediately, Aeron opened his eyes and looked at him. He was staring at Aeron, another unreadable look on his face.
Master Doronal chuckled and said, “Amazing. In answer to your question, yes, in a way. You see, affinities are linked to the kinds of magical focus an item was imbued with, and therefore, the focal framework is used for spells that modify an object’s affinities. But back to the point. Each spell symbol we use represents a type of magic focus and thus, at least in your case, a particular color band.
“Watch how I break the incomplete spell down, the framework. If a spell is not complete, you may break it down as I will be doing with the frameworks. Once a spell is completely cast, assuming it is an active spell, you must use a spell to undo it.” Master Doronal paused and looked at Aeron. “You instinctively changed the spell before, but I want you to carefully study how I am breaking this framework down. I want you to get proper magical processes completely straight in your head before you even think about using just instinct again.”
Aeron, slightly embarrassed, nodded and closed his eyes. Master Doronal slowly began removing various magic foci, slowly breaking down the framework.
Aeron watched intently, and he noticed that there was a method to the order in which Master Doronal broke the framework down. “I see,” Aeron said. “You aren’t removing them in exactly the reverse order of how you added them. You are removing them in a way that makes more sense.”
Master Doronal removed the last magical focus and said, “Yes, that’s correct.”
Aeron looked up at Master Doronal, eager for the next step.
“Alright Aeron, now it is your turn. Try to create the focal framework. Take it slowly, carefully. And only create the framework. Concentrate on your actions. Study the symbols again, if need be.”
Aeron stared at Master Doronal a moment longer and looked back at the dragon’s eye. He took a deep breath and released it, rubbed his hands together, and placed one hand on the edge of the desk and the other on the book. He glanced at the symbols on the page once more and quickly back at the dragon’s eye, all the while thinking about the framework. Remembering the feel of the magic, its pulsing rhythm, he concentrated on that first.
Slowly, he began to feel the tingly sensation of magic. It flowed around him, through him. He thought about the structure of the framework and the symbols used to create it. It felt . . . right for its job, right for its purpose. He remembered how it was built, the bands of color that comprised it. He began adding in the bands as laid out in the primer, began bending the magic to his will. It was somewhat like trying to guide a strong flow of water down a particular path. It resisted at first, but once you got it going, it flowed steadily. More and more bands of color, magical foci, were added just so. And when he added the last band, he saw the framework floating before him around the dragon’s eye.
“Well done, well done indeed! But do you feel how something is just a little bit off?”
Aeron knit his brows. Yes. He could feel that there was something not quite right. There. That band was just off a bit. He adjusted it and the framework was complete.
“Excellent!” Master Doronal broke the framework down and nodded once at Aeron. “Again.”
This time the framework was perfect from the start. Aeron beamed up at Master Doronal. “I did it!”
“Yes, you did.” Master Doronal smiled and broke down the framework. “You need to get proficient with the frameworks, so that creating them becomes second nature. You want to get so practiced at them that you no longer really have to think much about the symbols, their order or anything else. The framework should almost pop into existence complete and whole.”
He flipped through the primer, indicated another framework, and began casting it. “Now, here is the framework for Kasia’s Nullification, the spell I used to remove Maxeem’s Amplification. It is the binding framework because it involves unbinding, or breaking down the spell.”
Aeron was very excited. He was doing magic! Wait until he told Willem and Sharrah!
After working on the binding framework, Master Doronal moved on to the exothermic framework and then on to the rest that were listed in the primer in the framework chapter. They spent several hours working on the frameworks, Aeron learning each with ease. Once Aeron had a good grasp of them, they moved on to framework drills, which entailed Master Doronal quickly calling out the name of a framework at random and Aeron creating it.
“Aggregate,” snapped Master Doronal and Aeron quickly created the framework.
Master Doronal nodded and Aeron broke it down.
“Endothermic.”
And again Aeron created it properly.
“Dispersion, Reduction, Hydrologic, . . .”
The drills went on for several minutes until Master Doronal was satisfied with Aeron’s work.
“Very good. You appear to have them all memorized at this point. However, you will practice them for the next two weeks, whenever you have free time. Create each framework five times, counting to twenty between breaking one down and creating the next. Understand?”
“Yes, sir!” Aeron said, quite willing to do anything that involved magic.
“Good.” Master Doronal flipped back to Maxeem’s Amplification, tapped the spell listing in the primer with his finger once again, and said, “As you can see, there are several symbols shown in rows underneath the framework notation. They are focus and transformation symbols. They indicate the types of magic used in the spell beyond its framework and, in the case of the transformation symbols, how some of those magic types are to be transformed while creating the spell. Each magic focus is added to the spell’s framework in the order dictated by the symbols. As each focus is added, it falls into place naturally and automatically; adds a color band in a specific order and placement, in your case. Just as you saw in the frameworks we practiced. The transformation symbols, on the other hand, indicate how one or more bands are to be adjusted once they have been added.”
Aeron’s stomach let out a rumble, and he blushed.
Master Doronal raised a brow and said, laughing, “Alright, I think that’s enough for now. It seems your stomach is protesting its lack of food.”
“I don’t mind continuing,” Aeron said, abashed.
“Nonsense. It is nearly midday. There will be time for more after you have eaten.”
Master Doronal removed his training bracelet, and then Aeron’s. “Go on then, grab some lunch and we will meet back here in say, an hour and a half?”
“Yes, Master Doronal,” Aeron said, smiling. He grabbed his primer and stood up, standing by the chair for a moment. His smile faded as he twisted his mouth, thinking about Sharrah’s suggestion.
“Was there something else?” Master Doronal asked as he returned the bracelets to the drawer.
“I was, well,” Aeron mumbled, looking at his feet. He wasn’t exactly sure how to word the question. After a moment, he shook himself and just asked it. “Was it something I did that made you wait until today to decide to start training me in magic?” Aeron looked up at Master Doronal warily.
“What? No. Oh no, not at all. You see, there are only so many of us, adepts and myself, here in the Magic Craft Hall to train new sorcerers. Caer Baronel has somewhere around forty children or so of apprentice age, each working in the craft hall or halls of their choice. If you think about how many craft halls there are in the Caer, that means about three or four per hall, more or less. Now, whereas many crafts can be taught one teacher to many students, I prefer to teach Magic Craft in a one-to-one teaching environment. Simply put, I had to wait until one of us was free to start your
training. And that turned out to be me. My former student made adept a few days ago and has decided to continue her studies at the Magic Craft Guildhall in Caer Delcimaar.”
Aeron breathed a sigh of relief. For a long time he had thought that maybe he had been doing something wrong, and that was why his training was being put off. He was very happy to know that he had been wrong on that account. “I see. Thank you Master Doronal.” Aeron smiled again and left the office, shutting the door behind him.
After Doronal watched the door close, he lifted the now dry sheet of paper and stared at the transcribed spell. Astonishing, he thought. Simply incredible. The skill, the innate understanding the boy has is remarkable. He himself would never have thought to make those adjustments. Yet Aeron seemed to have made them instinctively.
“Amazing,” he murmured, shaking his head.
He took out a scrap of parchment and scratched out a quick note to Lord Baronel.
Chapter 4
Hemday, Duody 3, 1873
Midday
Aeron was practically flying as he made his way quickly down the quirky hallways of the Magic Craft Hall. He was doing magic! He could barely contain himself, he was so excited. His dream was going to come true! And he had invented a new spell. That was really something—even Master Doronal had said so. He looked down at the sorcery primer in his hand, felt the texture of the leather. He couldn’t believe his good fortune. And now he thought about it, what Master Doronal had said about apprentices made sense.
There were only three people, himself, Jemma, and Jemma’s girlfriend, Kristina, working at the Magic Craft Hall toward becoming accepted. The two girls had applied a month after he had, but there had been no new applicants since then. The danger of magic seemed to keep the number of sorcerer hopefuls low. And due to that same danger, he could see why Master Doronal preferred that his trainers focus on one potential apprentice at a time. Aeron was sure he would need to stop by Master Doronal’s office many times with questions about his studies. He wasn’t sure he’d feel as comfortable doing so if there were a lot of other pupils waiting to talk with the magic master all the time. Which might lead to accidents if he did things wrong because he didn’t ask questions he should have.
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