The Other Apprentice

11-1 | Barriers

"Magic permeates the world. Both ours and yours." Seeress Acadi led Quinn and Tenet away from the path they had arrived on a into a large orchard of fruit trees. "It is both the source and the result of every biological and chemical process you can imagine. Where magic is plentiful, life flourishes. Where life is plentiful, magic flourishes. It's a constantly renewing cycle until a practitioner interferes with that cycle."

Quinn couldn't stop looking at everything around her. She remembered how Uldrin had looked. Lifeless and grey. She expected a world influenced by magic to be a similar garish affront to nature, but much the opposite was true. Everything she saw was far more vibrant than anything she'd ever seen before. It was beautiful.

Acadi continued. "Our kind can see the threads of magic, the strands that tie everything together. Those with the strongest vision, and the most precise ability to manipulate those threads are seers and seeresses. Humans naturally lack the ability to see the threads of magic, but through a pact, a limited amount of sight may be given, so that you may use it to guard the veil between worlds for the safety of both of our homes."

Quinn felt the woman was pretentious. She did not enjoy being spoken down to. Staring defiantly at the seeress' back, Quinn stuck her tongue out.

Acadi seemed unaware as she gave Widdershanks a scratch under his chin and set him down in the shade of a large, blue-leafed tree. The ferret went clumsily crashing into a bush, scattering more of the flowerlike windflitters, which he chased after awkwardly.

The seeress reached out to a large pale fruit resembling a nectarine hanging from the tree. The fruit seemed to swell and ripen before Quinn's eyes and dropped effortlessly into the Seeress' outstretched hand. "To touch magic as our kind do means you will no longer be wholly human. You will not be as you were. The word 'wizard' was part of our language before it was part of yours. It translates as 'one who walks between worlds.'"

Tenet appeared full of questions. Quinn watched with fascination as Acadi cut him off before he could even say a word. "I am not your instructor, child. Save your questions for the one you call Madrigal. I am not to be interrupted."

Tenet clamped his mouth shut. Quinn continued to just take in the beauty and the grandeur of the environment. As they exited the orchard, she saw a vast city upon a hill with delicate ivory spires spiraling toward the sky. Flocks of unfamiliar animals grazed on the hillside along with their tenders. Rather than leading them toward the city, Acadi led Quinn and Tenet into what looked like a shrine. A dozen carved figures looked inward at a semicircle at a table covered with bowls, some full of crushed herbs, and others empty. More of the windflitters circled overhead.

Suddenly, Quinn felt as if the wind had stopped blowing and the world had grown a shade darker. Looking around, she saw the windflitters were now frozen in place. Panicked, she looked to Tenet, but he seemed just as frozen as the windflitters. Quinn wiggled her fingers to make sure she was unaffected.

Acadi was apparently unaffected as well. She set the fruit down on the table and glanced at Quinn. "It's just the two of us now, child. Fear not for your companion. He is unharmed. From his perception, you seem frozen in time right now. The effect will end when I will it to."

Quinn backed away from Acadi, but felt resistance. Her instincts told her she could not leave the shrine while this effect continued. "What is it you want?"

"Merely to talk, child." Acadi arranged the bowls on the table and placed crushed herbs from some into others. "The veil between worlds is only one barrier to the source. If you are to wield power, you must conquer your own barriers. Fear is your barrier."

Quinn bit her lip before replying. "I am not afraid of you." She reached for the comforting grip of her sword.

"Unhand your weapon. You are in no physical danger. I know you are not afraid of me, child. But you are afraid. You fear the source. You fear what your kind calls magic."

Quinn steeled herself. "I'm not— "

"Attempt no deception at me, human! You will speak no lie in my presence." Acadi spoke sharply but did not appear to be truly angry. "Do you think Seeress is nothing more than a title? I can see your fear. You fear the power for its danger. You trust none to wield it, not even yourself."

Quinn scrambled for something to say, but the words escaped her.

The seeress continued. "You are not unwise to fear the power when your kind wields it. Our kind has always used the source to create, to nourish. We did not know that it could also destroy until it was in the hands of a human. But the power is like fire. Properly tamed and used knowledgeably, it is a great tool. Untamed, it is a danger. Confront that danger, child."

Quinn shook her head. "It's unnatural. Why would you want me to use something so evil?"

"Unnatural? Evil?" Acadi reached a hand to one of the windflitters. The delicate creature again moved, alighting gently on her palm. "The source is perfectly natural. Life cannot exist without it. The source is the foundation of life and nature. Nature is neither good nor evil. It can be beautiful." She glanced down at the delicate windflitter and caressed its petals. "It can also be savage." She then closed her hand into a fist, crushing the creature. Quinn gasped. "It is the way of life. The source knows no morality. Morality is born from the intent of the one who wields it. I am calling on you, child, to guard against those who would wield it with malicious intent."

"But what if I'm a danger? How can you trust me? I want to oppose those who misuse magic. But can't I do it without magic?"

"Dear child. You have suffered much. I see no desire in you to misuse magic. I know you can and will use it wisely. But you must trust in yourself to do so." She opened her palm and whispered a word at the crushed windflitter. Instantly restored, it flew off to join the others, which remained frozen in time. "Draw your weapon." A sword made of shimmering crystal appeared in the seeress' hand.

Quinn drew the sword without hesitation. "You said I was in no danger."

"And you are not. I only seek to illustrate a point." Acadi raised her sword and swung down at Quinn. "Halt my movement!"

Quinn raised her own sword and parried, driving the seeress' weapon away from her.

"Good." Acadi nodded in approval without a trace of a smile. "The weapon you wield is dangerous. Yet you do not fear it. You trust yourself to wield it. And you use it effectively to drive my blade away. How well would you be able to do so while unarmed?"

Quinn sensed where this was going. "Not easily. Not effectively."

"You have no more reason to fear the source than you do to fear your weapon. Both can harm, both can protect, and you can guide both with your hand. But you must not fear it. To show something fear is to give it control. Do not let it control you. Be in control. Do you understand me, child?"

Quinn took a deep breath. "I do."

Acadi pressed her face close to Quinn, looking her deeply in the eyes. Quinn tried not to flinch as Acadi asked, "Are you in control?"

Quinn nodded, "I am."

"Good. Then we will continue."