White Mage

by Jolie Jaquinta

  Chapter 9

  History

  Fretful winds blew bursts of showers against the towers of the Scioni Academy of Magic. It dripped from the eaves and dribbled down the stone walls. The stone of those walls had been summoned from the elemental plane of Earth as one piece and then sealed, giving no surface for the water to seep into. Windows dotted the surface with more frequency than wise in a military edifice, if its defenses had been merely structural. But even the windows offered no entrance, having magical seals that could be turned up during inclement weather. So the rain ran over their surface leaving little rivulets suspended in the air. Although not unusual to anyone resident in the towers, they proved a tempting distraction to the bored students being lectured within.

  Penelope's voice rose and fell animatedly as she discussed the evolution and history of the letter forms used by the troglodytes. She moved back and forth from the mounted slate behind her lectern to illustrate her points and show the forms and each change that time wrought in them. Occasionally she would fire out a question to the most distracted student in the class. She would let them sputter a while, then either supply the answer or allow a more attentive student do so.

  Today she wore a short tunic over leggings. Although they appeared to be of a pale grey, close examination showed them to be intricately woven in patterns of a slightly different color. She wore a grey scarf loosely around her neck and had her hair tied back in a multitude of small braids.

  “We have now traced this alphabet back forty centuries to a record of brick engravings from the Juhász Dominion. The diatricals we saw first tracing back the, now defunct, letter eth appear on many letters now, belying the antiquity of this display form. Most curious, do you not think?” She looked up and around the classroom. Eyes snapped back to hers as a dozen or so minds attempted to pick up the track, or at least appear to do so. “Does this, perhaps, bring to mind topics covered in other lessons? Anyone?” She looked up and down the rows. She smiled slightly as her eyes saw possible interest in someone sitting in the back row.

  “I know I should cease asking myself why it is our honored guests that seem to get more from these lessons than the students to which they are directed.” She sighed. “Nevertheless, General Alessa, have you, perhaps, perceived something my esteemed my regular scholars have not?”

  The class turned and looked in surprise. They had noted that someone had joined them, but as she was just wearing her fatigue duty clothes they had just assumed it was a curious soldier. The class was open to all, and the odd and unusual showed up.

  “Your pardon, ma'am,” said Alessa. “I was thinking that it looked a bit like some of the carvings I saw on the Ancient sites when I was in the Underground.”

  “That's a pretty broad category,” she said, a little reproachfully. “But you are essentially right.” She drew a very abstract and intertwined design on the board above the letters. Then she circled bits and connected them to the simpler letters. “There are fewer and fewer examples of troglodyte writing as we go earlier than this period. And the frantic pace in which we have to cover material in this course prevents me doing the full derivation justice. However this is sufficiently far back that we can start to see a direct influence.”

  She took out a parchment with more of the intertwined designs on it. “Hakan, would you be so good as to copy this onto the board?” He looked at it and blanched. “You may use magic if you wish. The rest of you please copy this down. Your prep work is to identify within this as many letterforms as you can.” A much relieved Hakan used a simple pattern spell to transfer the design, as did many in the class into their notebooks. Penelope met their annoyed glares impassively as they collected their things and filed out.

  “And which 'Ancient' site did you visit?” Penelope asked conversationally to Alessa when they had the room to themselves.

  “It wasn't that deep past Frontgate,” said Alessa. “Your grandmother was with us, and didn't even deign to take rubbings. So I'm sure it wasn't that important.”

  “Ah. Probably Redstones,” she said.

  “Sounds right. It was near a mining village.” She hefted up a tied bundle of books. “I thought I'd pass these on to you.”

  Penelope took them and looked along the spines. “Human works?”

  “Yes. Histories. Mostly pretty fanciful. They are duplicates from Ainia's library. There are actually three editions of the same work, there. I know it isn't your period, but I thought you might find it interesting to compare the evolution of the work.”

  “True, true,” said Penelope. “Then I might pass them on to Cornelius, if you don't mind them being sent into the Underground.”

  “Not at all. They are generally thought to be outrageous lies and traveler’s tales. Although Ainia would swear otherwise.” Alessa grinned. “No military secrets there.”

  Penelope stowed them away. “So have you developed a sudden interest in the evolution of the troglodyte alphabet? Or do I owe this visit to another reason?”

  Alessa smiled and sat back down. “I do like your lectures. And the next time I'm stationed here I certainly hope to attend more. But, you are as observant as I would expect. There are some other things I would like to discuss.”

  Penelope pulled out a wax tablet and stylus, sat opposite her, and gave Alessa her full attention.

  “I'm told that you've taken a few class trips to visit Winter,” said Alessa. “Were you planning more?”

  “Ah, the Underwater,” said Penelope. “Not really my area of interest, but there so little known of its history that it seemed short sighted not to collect what I could of it. They seem to barely know their own history, so even better to collect knowledge untainted by modern interpretations.”

  “Is there much there?” asked Alessa.

  “Their written records are non-existent. Their oral traditions are woefully modern and appear to be largely to serve the current political situation. But the Triton culture left quite a material record. I'm still trying to come up with a dating structure, but it appears they were a dominant force until quite recently. Archaeologically speaking, that is.”

  Alessa nodded. “I've heard you have been excavating some ruins nearby.”

  “Indeed,” said Penelope. “Only the topmost layers. But they were quite rich in artefacts and even seem to spur local interest in the history of the region. As appears to be my fate, they were far more interested than my students. Winter foremost amongst them.”

  “I'm glad to hear he's doing well,” said Alessa.

  “His stature at court appears to have improved since our visits,” said Penelope. “It appears that they now think that surface dwellers are good for something.”

  “Your class made a good impression, then?” asked Alessa.

  Penelope snorted. “Mostly it unnerved them. They were not used, at all, to being considered an oddity. This makes me quite determined to go back as soon as the Academy can arrange it. Nothing focuses the mind more than being unnerved. So hard to do that in the classroom, though I try my best.”

  “As it turns out,” said Alessa. “I agree completely. I have quite a few new recruits that I'd like to unnerve myself.”

  “Oh?” asked Penelope, raising her eyebrows.

  “Would the work you would like to do on these ruins require heavy labor? Ditches to be dug, mud to be shifted? That sort of thing?” Alessa grinned.

  “Why, yes,” said Penelope. “It would. Magic can only do so much and it misses the finer details.”

  “The army considers heavy labor, especially on civic works, to be character forming,” said Alessa. “And throwing them into an exotic environment where strict maintenance of their magical equipment is paramount to their survival will build attention to detail.”

  “I suppose that would answer any question about security the Academy might ask,” said Penelope, eagerly.

  “Well, that's one of my concerns,” said Alessa. “Atlantica, surge of the Ocean, might, well, take it the wrong way if a troop of soldie
rs landed on his doorstep.”

  “Hmm,” said Penelope. “True. He, also, has been somewhat dismissive of Triton history. I suspect the rise of his polity has something to do with the downfall of theirs.”

  “Well, I've talked to some of my friends in the government,” said Alessa. “A section of the civic works funds is released for work beyond the borders of Romitu. You know, raising the opinion of Romitu amongst those we haven't yet conquered. Only given as most of the known world is already under our dominion, it doesn't get used that much. If you wanted to not merely excavate the ruins but to restore them, I'm quite certain I could swing the funding.”

  Penelope stroked her chin. “That is, indeed, a very interesting idea. It would be informative, indeed, to replicate their building techniques and see what we are uncovering more in context.”

  “And, if we make it clear that, once we've finished turning the ruin into a fort, palace, or what have you, that it will be a gift to Atlantica, it might also make them more receptive,” finished Alessa with a smile.

  “A very good point,” said Penelope. “Although, not being a Romitu citizen, I'm not sure I'm the right person to broach the subject.”

  “Should you wish to become a citizen that would be no problem. You have plenty who would vouch for you,” said Alessa, “But I think as a non-citizen, you are actually the perfect person to broach the subject. There aren't exactly warm relations between the two of us. No matter what we do, they will suspect the motives. However, as a neutral third party with a clear non-political personal interest, you probably stand the best chance of anyone to broker an agreement.”

  “I cannot argue with your logic,” said Penelope. “I shall draft a letter tonight to the chair of academic outreach.”

  “Do you think it will take long to get approval?” asked Alessa.

  “The current chair is Magister Devonshire,” said Penelope. They both smiled.