Runecarver Volume One

Chapter Twelve

Over the next few weeks, there was a steady change at the Duke's household. I began learning yet more advanced magic and received my new wand, a beautiful foot-and-a-half length of wood which hummed magnificently in my grip. Simon immersed himself in magical studies, preparing himself for the Rite of Ascension. And Eleanor seethed, glaring at me at every meal but otherwise making no attempt to confront me.

My engagement was broken quite easily. The King was very understanding of our situation, and he expressed his congratulations on my becoming Exalted and everything that entailed. He was certain the future of the Kingdom would be bright with House Pendragon at his side.

But as I continued my studies, I felt there was something missing. The spells uncle taught me were magnificent, of course, and not all were grand scale magic such as The Great Conflagration. Everything from that to more practical matters such as a spell of flight was elucidated. Even so, there was not much focus on runes, which had always been my greatest strength. Even now that I could cast all these fantastic spells with speechcraft and wandcraft, I wanted to further my studies of runecraft as well.

When I expressed this to uncle, he seemed uncomfortable. "In all honesty, Bella, I believe your runecraft has surpassed my own by now. You've memorized them all thanks to that skill of yours, and you are much more creative in their use. I never devoted much time to them because of my preference for wandcraft." When he saw my crestfallen look, he considered something. "Well, there is perhaps one way. You'll need your father's permission, but the most advanced of all the rune formulas are those recorded in your namesake Annabelle's Practical Runecraft for the Human Body."

I was shocked by his suggestion. "I thought only the Duke himself and the successor were allowed to read that book, since the ideas are so dangerous." It was a book that detailed the practice of carving runes into a living person's bones. Ever since the birth of runecraft, wizards had attempted to carve runes into humans. Tattoos were the first attempt, but flesh proved to be too pliable. Runes needed to be carved on a rigid surface, for any deformity would render them useless. Annabelle, the Duchess of Westmark from several centuries ago whom I had been named for, had realized that by peeling back a living person's flesh and carving the runes onto their bones, permanent runes which enhanced a human body directly could be created.

The effects of such runes were numerous and astounding. The most famous formula was the Runes of Strength, which father used to enhance his physical prowess. It increased his already formidable strength tenfold, and gave him great endurance as well. He could easily surpass the swordsmanship of Cayde, even now that Cayde had become Exalted. With great power would come great risk, however. The runes had to be inscribed perfectly, or else they could cause significant harm.

"Exceptions to that have been made in the past," uncle replied. "You have nothing to lose from asking your father. It is the final step in your study of runecraft, and with the bountiful mana you've gained from being Exalted, I expect you'll be able to take your pick of any of the formulas in the book."

And so it was decided that I would ask my father to see the book. The meeting was scheduled later for that day, and once we were seated, I broached the topic with gusto. "Father, I wish for permission to see my ancestor Annabelle's Practical Runecraft for the Human Body."

"First you wanted to break off your engagement, and now this?" father asked with a tired smile. "You've certainly changed a great deal since becoming Exalted. What brought this one, then?"

I explained the conversation I'd had with uncle, and he listened intently. I finished by saying, "I have always been passionate about runes. They were the only way I could do anything worthwhile with my mana, and now that I have such vast reserves, I want to take runecraft to its very limit."