Arbiter (The Arbiter Chronicles Book 1) (6 page)

“He can’t. That was my first thought too. So it means that there’s a third party involved here somewhere.”

“…Fan-fucking-tastic,” muttered Rae under her breath, staring up at the Tower.

“Took the words right out of my mouth.”

Cathel turned his head away from the Tower and scanned the forest in front of them. It seemed to stretch on as far as she could see, even from the top of this hill. A thought struck Rae, and she turned back towards him.

“It couldn’t have been that master of yours, could it?” 

“Alyan? I thought about it, but no. It isn’t his style. Besides, he wants to teach me a lesson. He doesn’t want to kill me…at least not deliberately. I don’t think he particularly cares one way or another.”

“A lesson?” asked Rae.

Cathel shrugged. “He and I have never seen eye to eye. It’s nothing to worry about. At any rate, the map…” He trailed off, waving his hand in the air vaguely. Rae nodded, understanding.

“…We don’t have any idea what areas to avoid,” she said. “So we have no idea whether this guy marked the ruins down because they were dangerous or because they were a good spot to camp.”

“Exactly,” said Cathel, getting to his feet. Rae stood up, following him.

“And we’re still going to go?”

“I’d rather be sheltered in the ruins than spend the night out in the forest. But we’ll keep our eyes open, and I’ll give you that magic lesson tonight. And maybe a sword lesson too. There’s no reason why you shouldn’t learn. Don’t step on the little guy, by the way.”

Rae blinked in surprise, looking down at her feet. What looked like a small man stood next to her boot, just high enough to reach her ankle. He was shaking his fist at her, muttering something intelligible under his breath. She took a deep breath, and made sure to set her foot down well away from him as he scampered off into the grass.

“A grassman,” said Cathel in explanation as she turned towards him. “They don’t speak Common. I don’t think anyone knows what they speak, even the other Ivali. Let’s keep going. We’ll stop again in a couple of hours, and take a quick break.”

“Ah…sure,” said Rae with a quick nod, her eyes drifting over to the grassman as he disappeared from sight.

She stared at Cathel as he walked ahead of her, quietly following along behind him. Her eyes fixed on the mage's back, her mind quietly working.

She hadn't seen the grassman.

They took a break again about two hours later, just when she was starting to lag behind. Cathel took the time to explain to her the difference between smaller Ivali like the grassman, the winged pixies that would give them the information they needed, and the sylphs, spirits in the air that Cathel explained weren’t exactly always friendly. Once again, he surprised her with his knowledge. She wouldn’t have expected Cathel to know so much about a world that was supposed to be forbidden. When she asked him about it, he shrugged, saying that he liked to read. As they walked, he pointed the large oak tree out to her that marked the farthest he had ever been into the Borderlands, explaining that now that they passed this point, they were now firmly in Ivali territory. The path began to grow narrower and less traveled, and it was grown over in places, forcing Cathel to walk ahead of her and cut away some of the growth with his sword so that they could pass.

“They have cities,” he explained as he carefully cut away a thorny bush that had grown out over the road. “Some of them settle in towns just like we do. They say some of the larger ones act almost human-like. They have towns, and weddings and forms of government. Others settle in the wilds. It really just depends…” He scowled, pulling his sword out from the bush and shaking the stray thorns off of it. “Oh,
firithain,
this isn’t working,” he said, wiping the sweat from his brow and sheathing his sword. “I’m just going to end up cutting up some spirit's home at this rate. Alright, stand back.”

Rae took a step back, watching her feet to make sure she wouldn’t incidentally step on anything alive. She watched curiously as Cathel crouched down onto the cleared part of the path, placing his hand on the dirt. He closed his eyes, and Rae saw a faint glow beginning to surround him, the glow spreading to the part of the earth he had touched. He muttered something under his breath that she couldn’t hear, then opened his eyes.

“Clear a path,” he ordered.

At first, nothing happened. The glow seemed to settle beneath his fingers, held in abeyance. Then, it shot forward, rippling through the dirt underfoot and rushing ahead. As Rae watched, the path seemed to form and widen of its own accord, the soil beneath them seeming to rise up and push aside the plants and rocks in its way. The path went on into the distance, occasionally struggling with larger roots and stones. The heaviest things, it left behind, the path simply flowing before and after them.

Cathel surveyed his handiwork, slowly getting to his feet. Rae turned towards him, surprised.

“What did you just do?”

“Made a path,” said Cathel, resting his hand on his sheathed sword’s hilt.

“I noticed,” said Rae dryly, rolling her eyes. “How?”

“Magic,” he replied, this time sounding amused. Rae rolled her eyes.

“No,” she said. “Really?”

He glanced at her, flashing her a small smile before walking down the newly-created path. Cathel wiped his fingers on the fabric of his pants, testing the ground beneath him before motioning for her to follow him. “My magic is the Edictal Series,” he said. “It’s basically the magic of commanding. I can form a link with an object and give it an order, as long as that order is not against its nature. I can’t tell a rock to fly or a leaf to sink, for example.”

“So why didn’t you just do that earlier?” asked Rae, following him down the path.

“Because I have no idea where we are. And I didn’t exactly want to announce to anything that might be waiting out here that we’re here. But at the rate we were going, this started looking like the lesser of two evils. Besides, I wasn’t entirely sure it would work.”

Rae had to admit, Cathel’s path was easier than walking through the forest's tangled growth. The two of them were covering twice as much ground now as they had been before, which was good, because Rae didn’t want to be stuck in any one place for too long. The forest had closed in around them, and though the heat wasn’t unpleasant, the insects were out in force.

“Can’t you do something about those?” she asked Cathel. “With your magic, I mean?”

“The bugs?” asked Cathel, glancing back at her. “I probably could. But it’s better that I don’t.”

“Why?”

“It would require making a link with the air,” said Cathel. “Which takes up a lot of energy. I need some of it to fight, if we ever come across something hostile.”

“Oh,” said Rae. His explanation made sense, and it was one she hadn’t thought about before. She nodded, and didn’t ask him again.

This walk was longer than the last, but they finally took a break for lunch, sitting on a fallen tree near the path. Cathel pointed out a stream that ran near where they were seated, then pointed out the same stream on his map, explaining that they were on track for reaching the ruins on time. He walked off for a bit, breaking a branch from the tree they were sitting on as she rested and laying his sword over it. Rae watched idly as he cast another spell, returning back to her with a wooden sword that looked identical to his own.

“Now’s as good a time as any to get some practice in,” he explained, handing the sword to her by the hilt.

She nodded once as she sat up, unfastening her cloak and letting it slip from her shoulders. She draped the cloak over the log, taking the sword from him and holding it up as he taught her how to hold the sword and corrected her stance. He taught her a few basic strikes and blocks, all the while correcting her stance and grip as he made her go over a set of drills again and again. He was a strict teacher—not harsh, but not willing to turn a blind eye to her mistakes either. By the end of it, she was tired and sweaty and her muscles were burning, but the sword felt a little less awkward in her hands and she felt a little better about the progress she was making.

He told her to keep the sword when they began moving again, so she tucked it into her backpack. It stuck out of her backpack slightly, but not in any way that caused her too much trouble.

It was almost sunset by the time they found the ruins, rising up from the forest floor. They were made entirely of a dark, black stone that reflected no sunlight, several designs carved into the sides of the bigger pillars. A platform of broken stone lay on the ground, suggesting that it had once been a floor. The woods looked well on their way to reclaiming the stones, vines and moss growing over them and clumps of grass growing in the spaces between each set of stones.

Cathel entered the ruins ahead of her, stretching out a hand to tell her to wait. She did, lingering at the end of the path Cathel had created. The clear path faded away as he stepped off of it, leaving just enough space for Rae to stand as the forest reclaimed what it had given up. The mage crossed over the threshold of the ruins, his eyes narrowed in concentration as he looked around and studied the stones. After a while, he turned back towards her.

“Alright,” he said. “You can come down.”

She nodded once, climbing down through the underbrush to meet him. Cathel stood in the center of the ruins, in the middle of the broken stone floor. She came to stand next to him, looking around.

“Is it safe?”

“I can’t detect anything harmful,” said Cathel. “…It’s probably safe, for now. Do you think you can manage finding some firewood?”

“If you tell me what to look for,” she replied, setting her pack down on the ground beside his.

“Dead branches,” said Cathel, pointing at the forest floor. “Just from around here. Don’t take anything that’s alive, but try to find some dry twigs and such for tinder. I’ll get to work making some shelter.”

She nodded, going off to find the things he had asked for. When she returned a while later with an armful of firewood, Cathel was sitting in front of one of the large stone fragments.

It had been transformed into a dome, with a small opening on the side of it that made her think of an igloo. Cathel leaned against the outer wall of it, looking tired, but pleased with himself. She studied it, crouching down and peered inside. Their bedrolls were spread out on the inside of the dome, their packs set off on one side and their cloaks rolled up as pillows. She withdrew, giving Cathel a look.

“We’ll it’s not the roomiest accommodations, but I only had so much stone to work with,” he said. “I can close the dome for a short time as well, if it decides to storm, but I’d rather have it ventilated.”

“I am not getting in there with you,” said Rae.

“Claustrophobic?”

She shot him a look. “It’s not the enclosed space that worries me.”

Cathel shrugged. “Suit yourself. If it helps, we’ll be taking watches for most of the night, so there should be only one person in the dome at any given time.” He got up, walking over to the firewood she had brought. “…So,” he said. “Let’s see about that fire.”

It was about two hours by the time they finished setting up camp and having something to eat. By then, the sun had fully set, and the only light in the ruins came from the fire Cathel had built. Cathel watched the ruins cautiously as the sun sank beneath the western horizon, but when nothing jumped out at them he began to relax, although he still kept his sword close at hand. They rested a bit after eating, then Cathel got up, motioning for her to come with him a little away from their campsite.

It was time for her first magic lesson.

Cathel led her a few feet away from their camp, making sure to keep it in sight. He sat down cross-legged on the stone of the ruins, motioning for her to sit in front of him. She did so, tugging her cloak out of the way and lowering herself into a sitting position. The moon had risen over the ruins, its silver light reflecting against the smooth black stones and giving them a slightly eerie glow.

“Magic is…” he began, facing her. “…Well, it’s difficult to give it a definition. The best definitions are already in books, like the one you were reading back in the library—the use of a Source to manipulate the universe into doing something it would not otherwise do. There are three stages of magical training. In the first stage, the new mage is taught the First Teachings, a set of basic spells that every mage should be allowed to do, like the spell for light, the spell for fire, the spells that detect other spells, and the spells that read the magical properties of an object.”

She nodded to show that she understood. She had read that far into the book.

“The first stage can be taught by anyone that’s also completed the first stage of training,” said Cathel. “So basically anyone who is no longer an apprentice. The second stage involves learning a Series.” He paused, considering his next words. “…This is a little different. Each Source is different, so each person’s magic is suited to different things. But we’ve been able to narrow down the possibilities to about fifty spell Series. A Series is exactly what it sounds like, it’s a series of spells that all revolve around a central concept.”

“Like your magic,” said Rae.

Cathel nodded. “Mine is the Edictal Series,” he said. “So they revolve around commands. Forming bonds and breaking them. A mage can show aptitude for more than one Series, but once you choose a Series, you’re bound to only learn spells within that Series.”

“Why can’t you master more than one?” asked Rae.

“Because each one uses your Source differently. Each time you cast a Series spell, you are training and modifying your Source to conform to that particular use. Let’s say, for example, that you have a block of iron. You take this iron, and you melt it, you refine it, and you forge it into a sword. From that moment on, you have a sword. What do you think is going to happen to your sword if you decide to use it to crush rocks and dig holes in the ground?”

“You’ll break it,” said Rae quickly. “You’re using the wrong tool.”

“Exactly,” said Cathel. “Once you use a Series spell, you’ve started molding your Source into something. Using it in a way it wasn’t meant to be used puts a strain on it. Too much strain, and you could very well end up breaking your Source.”

“What happens then?” asked Rae. 

“Well, mages that have done it tend to go mad. Those that don’t die, at any rate. But I doubt you’ll get as far as a Series spell. Those need to be taught, and there aren’t any masters out here.”

Rae frowned at him. “Can’t I learn yours?”

“You could,” said Cathel. “But you’d only learn it in part. I’m not a Master. Do you have any questions?” 

She shook her head. “I think I’ve got it.”

“Good,” said Cathel. “So for your first lesson, I think we’ll start with the basics. Let’s go back to that light spell you tried to cast yesterday.”

Rae gave Cathel a nod, wincing inwardly at the memory of her less than stellar performance. He gave her a small grin, noticing her expression. “Don’t worry about it. We know you can get power out. That’s usually the hardest part. But because your Source is so strong, it looks like the hard part for you will be control.”

“Alright,” said Rae, nodding. “How do you do that?”

“Let’s start from the beginning. Drawing power out. Close your eyes and try to locate your Source.”

Rae took a deep breath, nodding hesitantly. She let her eyes drift closed, her hands resting in her lap as she tried to locate that large reservoir of power that she had felt yesterday. She could feel it there, just under her skin, but as she reached for it, she felt it shy away again, hiding deep in the recesses of her mind. She bit her lip, and dove in after it again. Rae tried to grab it. It felt like she was trying to grab water. Each time she reached for it, it slipped right through her fingers, leaving her frustrated and empty-handed. She squeezed her eyes shut in concentration, reaching down for it again and grabbing hold of a chunk of it. She saw light appear from behind closed eyes, a bright light beginning to shine around the area.

“No,” said Cathel quickly, as she drew the power to the surface. “No, let go. You’re going too far.”

Rae exhaled, releasing the power and letting it flow away from her. She scowled, shifting away from him as she prepared to open her eyes and get up, but Cathel stopped her, reaching forward and grabbing her hands to keep her in place. Her eyes snapped open at the contact, and she tried to pull away, but he held her firmly in front of him.

“Don’t give up yet,” he said, tone stern. His eyes met hers, giving her a look that told her he wouldn’t allow any argument. “You were almost there. Now close your eyes and listen to me.”

She hesitated, but nodded once, closing her eyes again. He kept his hands firmly on hers, keeping her in place. “Are you listening?” he asked. At her nod, he went on, his grip on her hands easing up somewhat. He didn’t let go completely.

“Your Source is a lot like you,” he said. “Do you remember how you reacted yesterday, when I tried to drag you to see the masters?”

“…I tried to get away,” she said.

“And why’s that?” asked Cathel. “Why did you react so strongly when I grabbed your hands now?”

Understanding dawned on her. “…I don’t like to be manhandled.”

“Your Source is a part of your soul,” he said. “It is you. If you run away when someone grabs at you, what do you think it’s going to do when you come charging in trying to grab at it?”

She waited for him to continue talking, but when he said nothing, she realized that he actually expected her to answer. “…Run away.”

“So…how do you approach it?” he asked. “How do you get it to work for you? How do you touch it without scaring it off and making it run away?”

For emphasis, he tightened his grip on her hands, reminding her that he was still touching her. She swallowed hard, but she didn’t pull her hands out of his grip. How could she reach out and touch it in a way that wouldn’t make it run from her…? How had Cathel managed to touch her without her pulling away?

“Try that now.”

Cathel’s voice broke through her thoughts, and she nodded once, taking a deep breath and slowly letting herself sink into her mind. This time, she didn’t reach for her Source. Instead, she hovered there above it, studying it, measuring its ebb and flow as it pulsed slowly, hesitantly, within her. She waited, watching as it regarded her.

And then she cautiously held out a hand towards it, extending an invitation. She didn’t reach for it, she didn’t rush in after it. She simply waited there, feeling it pulse and coil inside of her.

And slowly, it responded, a tiny tendril of power reaching out towards her. She felt herself grasp it slowly, felt her heart soar as the power rushed through her, filling her. Again, she saw light from behind her eyelids. It wasn’t as strong this time, but she felt the wind around her begin to pick up. She heard Cathel’s intake of breath. It sounded so close to her then.

“Good…” he said. “Good, you’ve got it. Now slowly direct it to your hand. Slow,” he repeated as the flow got away from her. She nodded, furrowing her brow in concentration as she allowed just the tiniest sliver of it to slip through to her hands.

“...Now let it go,” said Cathel, his voice soft.

She felt the power leave her. It felt like a breath, a whisper. Cathel’s grip tightened on her hands only briefly, and she heard him exhale. “…Okay,” he said. “Open your eyes.”

She did, opening her eyes slowly. Rae stared down at her hands, her eyes widening. Cathel was seated in front of her, his hands cupping hers gently. She held her hands together in the space between them, and resting in the center of her palms was a small orb of light. It hovered gently there, brushing lightly against her skin. She flexed her fingers, and the light moved gently, rising up to hover in the space between her and him.

“…I did it,” she said breathlessly, watching the light.

“You did,” said Cathel. “You’re…fairly talented. I didn’t think you could get it right on the first time.” His eyes met hers, as if he was seeing her for the first time. She quickly looked away.

“Second,” she corrected.

“Second,” he said with a nod. “But still…” His hands lingered on hers for a moment, before he slowly pulled away. “Good job. Now…practice that a few more times, and then we’ll call it a night. I should go tend to the fire.”

Rae watched as he stood up, slowly walking back to camp. She rubbed her hands as she watched his retreating back, the orb of light hovering just at eye level. She flexed her fingers, watching as the orb of light followed the motions, adjusting itself according to her thoughts.

She stared down at the hands in her lap, slowly curling them into fists.

They felt cold, somehow, now that he had pulled away.

She heard the fire crackle as Cathel placed another branch onto it. Rae bit her lip, extinguishing the orb with a wave of her hand and closing her eyes as she tried it again.

#

Rae sat outside the stone dome, resting her arm across her knee as she listened to the soft sound of Cathel breathing quietly in the makeshift shelter behind her. She held her hand out in front of her, her slender fingers moving and twisting in different directions. Light moved between her fingers, a small orb of light twisting and turning around the digits. After Cathel had showed her the trick earlier, it seemed to come easy to her, like she had been doing it her whole life. 

She considered her traveling companion, her eyes fixed on the light as it elongated, coiling gracefully around her hand. She had seen a completely different side of him back then, when he had been teaching her. She wondered how many sides Cathel had. As observant as she was, she had never taken the time to get to know anyone before. Not since she was very young…

It seemed like learning about people and getting closer to them always led to pain.

She sighed, letting her hand fall to her side. The light went out, the only light in their surroundings coming from the fire and the multitude of stars that spanned the heavens overhead. She leaned back against the dome and looked up, staring at them. They were beautiful out here. She had lived in cities all her life, and had never really had the opportunity to just stare at a starry sky.

She understood now why poets wrote about those things, and how people could get lost in this.

A flicker of movement out of the corner of her eye made her look up, glancing to the side. A small orb of light hung in the air beside their shelter. It hovered, as if considering her, wisps of light coiling like smoke around it. Then, it seemed to fold into itself, blinking out of existence.

She quickly got to her feet, her eyes wide as she reached for the wooden sword Cathel had carved for her. As a weapon, it wasn’t much, but at the very least, it could be a decent bludgeon. There was a flash, and then another orb appeared, this time closer to camp. She heard it this time as it appeared, a rush of wind that carried with it the whispers of a forgotten language.

Rae took a deep breath and backed up towards the dome. She reached inside, poking Cathel with the end of the wooden sword as she kept her eyes on the wisp of light. It hovered there calmly, regarding her, before vanishing again.

“Cathel,” she said under her breath, her tone urgent. “Cathel, wake up!”

She heard Cathel’s breathing shift immediately, the mage rising from his sleep. He threw their blankets off of himself and crawled out of the dome, carrying his sword in his hand. His hair was sleep tousled and his appearance was disheveled, but his green eyes were alert.

“What?” he asked. “What is it?”

She saw the light flash out of the corner of her eye and grabbed his arm, turning him so that he was facing it. “There,” he said. “Over there.”

Cathel stared at the orb of the light. “…A wisp,” he said.

“A what?” asked Rae.

“It’s a wisp,” said Cathel, his expression darkening. His hand tightened on the hilt of his sword. His expression grew grave, and he glanced at the ruins around him, taking a step towards her.

“Well, what does that mean?” asked Rae.

“Nothing on its own,” said Cathel. “But I don’t like what it implies. Shush. Quiet.”

She immediately fell silent, repressing a shudder. Cathel stopped talking as well, and she focused on listening to the world around her. The wisp disappeared again, reappearing a few feet away, at the entrance of the ruins. She took slow breaths, trying to calm her heartbeat. It was thudding so fast in her chest that she was sure the whole world could hear it. The wisp regarded them quietly, then faded away again.

As it reappeared over the grass, Rae heard the sound of faint music.

It was voices, she realized, as the sound came closer. Voices singing. There were many of them, and they were not singing in any language she understood, but their tone was haunting, and the words evoked feelings of both joy and sadness in her. She clenched her fist, turning her eyes towards the sound at the same time as Cathel did.