Peridot Rymes--Chapter 6

The sparring golem towered over her as she prepared to fire off the war spell. She had progressed enough to take them out in 2 blasts with the limited magic she had learned to control. The training master nodded her way in approval and motioned for her to carry on.

He had yet to tell her his name and frankly she didn’t think he was going to. There were many questions he wouldn’t answer. Peridot had observed his likeness to Samuel. They were about the same age and sported the same shade of reddish brown hair, but when she mentioned any resemblance, he simply changed the subject. She suspected that he did not like to bond with the newcomers since they all moved on eventually.

His training had enlightened her to many necessary skills that a mage must have. This put her at ease and helped her relinquish the desire to sharpen her dagger to use instead. It was the closest thing to a sword she had and she still had a melee’s attitude. She could hear her teacher reminding her,

“You are a 4 school mage. There is no need to stand so close. Distance is your friend. Back away from the target.”

Remembering to keep her distance in a fight was proving to be quite the challenge for her. She had a tendency to just run up into the middle of a fight rather than using her focus and concentrating on the smart way to deal with a foe.

The care and maintenance of foci was not as difficult as she had anticipated. Her trainer taught her to cleanse it with either water, or salt and light, or fine soil. This versatility insured that she would always know how to keep them in perfect condition with the material at hand. He showed her where to look for the dull spots to know when they needed cleansing. A person never wanted to over clean them, but they could not be allowed to grow dull and void of the components that made them powerful. The components could be refilled if necessary, but the worse the wear on the foci, the longer it would take for a professional to recharge it. This could leave even a strong mage vulnerable to attack during the interim.

“Besides,” he told her more than once, “Professionals are businessmen. They also sell foci. There is much more profit in sales than service so you are apt to run across one that will not worry with your coin bag and refuse to recharge or repair. I can’t say that I blame them. It is a person’s right to make a living.”

She learned to mix the components for her spells as she learned them. It took much study and concentration to learn a spell from the scrolls they were written on, but the foci packs had really simplified the amount of components needed to cast them. She remembered when the magi of Dereth had to carry several packs of every kind of herb, potion, taper, talisman, and scarab. It was one of the reasons that she did not want to be a mage when this was her gaming world. The only way to learn a spell was to happen on the right combination of components and cast it. There were very few scrolls to study at that time so the process was pure tedium.

Now, the foci had combined all of the herbs, potions, and talismans into one pack of magical energy. One need only have a ready foci pack and enough skill in that school of magic to understand the scroll. Sometimes it took a bit of study to absorb the magic from the scroll into ones mind and spirit, but once it was learned, it could be cast with the all purpose prismatic tapers. The various scarabs of lead, iron, bronze, silver, gold, pyreal and platinum were the only factors that determined the strength and endurance of any spell.

Throughout the morning she practiced all her magic. There was Creature Magic that gave abilities a boost. She could also boost some of those things she was not so good at. She could enhance the abilities of her fellows as well. The Master allowed her to practice casting all her beneficial spells on him so that she could be prepared to be of service to others in need. First she had to cover him in a magic vulnerability spell because he was so strong and well trained that he even had resistance against her beneficial magic.

Life magic had the power to give or take life. It could restore or drain the vital life essences like health, stamina, and mana. It also could be used to make an enemy weak to an element or attack or to make the recipient strong against something otherwise devastating.

Item magic enhanced or damaged pieces of armor, weapons, and magical devices. It would also be the school of magic that would teach her portal spells later. It was very handy for fortifying oneself against attack or escaping quickly into portal space.

War magic was where her real power lay. This was powerful magic that, when used properly, could obliterate a foe. Unfortunately, used improperly, it could blow your face off. Fortunately, Peridot was a good student and learned quickly how to safeguard herself against such catastrophes. She singed her hair once, but overall her experience was without casualty to herself or anyone else.

So, face intact, she fired another shock wave at yet another training golem and watched him crumble into dust.

“Well done! You are progressing much faster than many of my previous students.”

She noticed that her teacher had brought lunch to a cloth spread under the apple tree. It was a relief to her since she was starving. As they sat down to eat, she noticed the underlying seriousness in his tone. He was always a bit on the serious side, but this was something more.

“So, Nameless Training Master,” she said with a smile. “What’s on your mind?”

The sparkle came back into his deep green eyes. She could tell that he was choosing his words wisely. He was a man who was very careful of the speech he uttered. He preferred saying nothing to speaking out of turn or sharing the wrong information.

“Your first three weeks of training have been very productive.” He looked away for a brief moment before continuing.

“It is time for you move on to the remainder of your training.”

“But I am not sure I am ready to move forward.”

“Of course you are. You can carry your backpack now.”

Peridot realized that he must have been observing this morning when she rejoiced in being able to sling the pack up onto her shoulder and jog around the room. A little embarrassed at the prospect of another viewing her “happy dance”, she felt her cheeks warm to a blush.

“And,” he continued, “It will hasten your reunion with your beloved Kyle.”

He always seemed to play the Kyle card at an opportune moment. He seemed to know when that single factor would motivate her past some stopping point. Peridot could respect his tactic, but she would still miss her teacher. Reality dictated that she might never see him again.

Relationships were fleeting in the training hall since her arrival. She could understand why with all the new recruits coming through. She hadn’t actually seen any of the other new people yet. It seemed that the first half of training was quite solitary. She had formed quite an attachment with her new mentor, but she knew that it was to prove long lasting only in memory.

How she missed the friendship she had always enjoyed with Kyle.

As if reading her mind, her teacher spoke again, “When you pass through the next portal you will be with other new arrivals at various stages of training. It will make your stay here a bit more enjoyable. There are still things to learn and work to be done, but I have given you all that I can. You are too advanced to benefit from staying here longer.”

With a sigh, Peridot had to concede that he was probably right. She had to continue onward if she was ever to progress beyond a capacity to protect herself from anything other than training golems.

“When do I leave?”

“The portal is waiting for you.”

With that the training master waived his hand and that familiar purple swirl appeared to his side. Peridot crossed the room to retrieve her backpack filled with supplies and returned to stand ready for the trip. She certainly hoped it would not be as disorienting as her first flight.

She bid her good byes to her teacher, turned toward the portal and stepped into the tunnel of swirling light.