Multiverse of Magic & Mistakes (Completed)

1.3.22 Chapter 22

The Mages College of Verdyn, Verdyn, October 2019.

Vi and Rho spent a day recovering from their trip to the cave on Azuhelm in the Healers Clinic. In a quiet moment, where the Healers were all busy with other patients, Vi informed Rho of her conversation with Lily, the weird shit that was going down on Earth and their suspicions. When they were finally discharged, Rho, with his recently healed arm still in a sling, headed off to the library to check for any mentions of shapeshifters and magically induced natural disasters on Earth, whilst Vi had a Stryder's class that she was not looking forward to.

When she pushed open the door to the long, thin classroom, Taylor, the only other school-aged Stryder was sat upon his usual desk. He leaned over as Vi took her seat and muttered "Congrats Vi. Glad I'm not the only one of us who has managed it!"

Vi frowned at him, taken aback. The last thing she was expecting was a kind-of compliment from her scornful classmate.

"Thanks, Taylor. Takes more out of you than you'd think doesn't it." She replied referring to the huge magical drain that creating an inter-world portal required.

"Get used to it. Reynold will keep you busy with Missions now," stated Taylor.

At that moment, Reynold himself swept into the classroom and started the lesson by asking Vi to give a detailed account of her portalling. Vi felt the blood rush to her cheeks as Taylor of all people, leaned in, eager to hear what she had to say. She was not used to being the centre of attention like this, to have others eager to hear her words.

"I'm not sure how much you know," she began, "but I figured out how to use my abilities, how to create inter-world portals and went home to visit my friends and family on Earth. Then, Rho and I went out on a Mission."

Vi was unsure how much about the nature of the Mission she was permitted to reveal to Taylor. She decided to play it safe and not speak about the Lurker, or the Gemstones, or even the location, but instead spoke about the technical aspects, describing how she had managed to create the portal to a location in a photograph. It was different to explain her portal casting process to her peer, and the Governor of the College. But she ploughed through, even going as far as to sketch out the Runes she used on the chalkboard.

"Excellent detail Violet, thank you for sharing" stated Reynold, examining the Rune Vi had drawn. "Now, can you see from the asymmetry, and this area" – he pointed to the relevant parts of the drawing- "that using such a Rune to open a portal is energy-intensive, but stable. Now, today we move back into the land of theory and speculation. Could any modifications be made to enable portals to remain open for longer? Or even for a Stryder to open two portals at once? That is what we shall now move to work upon. Please open your books to the advanced portal Runes section to which I shall refer in today's discussion."

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Vi stayed up extremely late that night, the Stryder lesson reverberating around her mind. She could not get Reynold's questions out of her head. Theoretically, a Stryder should be able to open multiple portals at once and keep them open,

if the world was rich enough in magic to sustain it. The problem was not about the Runes or the theory, but something about the way the portals were cast. Something that Reynold, a non-Stryder who could not create inter-world portals, would never be able to determine. She reached for a fresh piece of parchment and began sketching.

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"It worked!" Vi exclaimed in Verdynian in greeting as she entered Allen's tiny corner office.

The Master Imburers room was even more of a mess than usual, the haphazard shelves lining the room were all full with defunct items awaiting repair- Dryfter boards, necklaces, bracelets, grey stones of the sort used to construct Conveyors, and other items Vi vaguely recognised from the greenhouses, clear circular crystals that formed part of the Colleges lighting system, medical equipment, bandages and timers, that Vi recognised from the Healers Clinic. An inexplicable number of plates and bowls from the Dining Hall were piled up on one side of Allen's crowded desk. The rest of the space was crammed with various books, loose pieces of parchment.