The Young Magician

Magicians.

It was nearly dark when they returned, haggard and weary, through the school gates. They passed the curious eyes of the newly arrived students, who were all tripping over themselves and adjusting their uncomfortable new clothes of black. Samuel remembered his first day and smiled. It was an impressionable time, those early days in the school, and Master Glim reminded them all to act as examples, to teach the new apprentices the fine calibre of performance and behaviour that was expected at the School of Magic.

Despite his exhaustion, Samuel was excited by what he had learned that day. After he had changed and eaten, he left the groans and moaning of the bunkhouse and hurried through the frosty, night air, his breath forming clouds. He came to his teacher’s door and rapped on it with his knuckles.

‘Enter,’ came a voice from within and so Samuel turned the handle and quickly entered the warmth of the room.

Master Glim had his feet up on his table and was reading from some notes. His spectacles were hanging idly on the tip of his nose, threatening to teeter off the end. Samuel was surprised, for he had never seen his teacher wearing them before.

‘Ah, Samuel,’ he said, dropping his feet to the floor and setting down his notes. ‘I should have known it was you.’

‘Master Glim,’ Samuel returned in greeting and rubbed his hands together for warmth.

‘Is it that cold out tonight?’ Master Glim asked. ‘I’m glad then that I have much to prepare in here.’ He seemed to suddenly realise that Samuel was staring at him and his hand moved to his face. ‘Oh, my spectacles? I sometimes need them when I am tired. I seem to need them more often these days. It’s one of the unfortunate facets of life that not even magic has been able to resolve.’

‘They make you look very distinguished,’ Samuel assured him.

Master Glim laughed. ‘I’m sure they do.’ He removed them and set them down beside his notes. ‘Sit down. What can I do for you?’

Samuel sat opposite his teacher. ‘I wanted to ask you more about the stances you taught us today.’

‘I assumed as much. When will you ever rest, Samuel? Your mind seems ever at work. I suppose I should be grateful to have such an eager student. In the upcoming months we shall examine each stance individually and discuss the details and uses of each variation.’

‘These new stances don’t seem as powerful as the summoning stances we have already learned? Is that correct or am I just imagining things?’ Samuel asked.

‘You are correct. The basic summoning stances are as perfect as our bodies will allow. They result in the greatest harnessing of power as they most closely follow the natural flows around us. The variations are less powerful, magically speaking, but allow us to direct our power better for different spells. If I wanted to search a mountain for ore, I certainly would not use the Ploughman’s Stance, for the Two Moons Stance is far more efficient at such divination. Energy must be applied correctly and in the appropriate circumstance to be of any use. The summoning stances are fundamental for summoning magic, but to cast a spell you should decide which focussing stance is the best choice. ’

Samuel nodded in understanding.

‘Remember, Samuel, that shapes hold power by the very fact of their existence. Energy fills the ether. Variations in the concentration of energy form the weaves. The movement and interweaving of the weaves create the flows. Meshing of the flows forms matter. All these things together-one yet many-form the pattern that is existence.’

‘And the stances help us draw from the ether?’

Master Glim nodded. ‘That’s correct. Our mere existence-the presence of our bones and muscles, the swirls in our brains, even the blood in our veins-allows us to collect energy, ethereal energy, via resonance and store it in our ethereal selves-the portion of ourselves that exists only in ethereal terms. It cannot be seen or felt, but it exists. It is our aura, which surrounds and enfolds our physical bodies.’

‘Is that then what we truly are?’ Samuel asked.

‘Yes and no,’ Master Glim replied. Then he raised one eyebrow and looked up at the ceiling. ‘There should be a word that means both yes and no. I think Master Sanctus tackled that one a few years ago. There’s a buzzing noise that he makes when he’s too confused to say either. Sorry, where was I?’

‘Yes and no,’ Samuel prompted.

‘Ah,’ Master Glim said, regaining his train of thought. He seemed tired and confused tonight. He was still a young and fit man compared to most Masters. Tonight, though, he did seem much older. ‘Yes and no. Does our body exist as an instrument of our spirit, or does our body create our spirit for some purpose of its own? Who can say? When we die, our body disintegrates, but what happens to the energy within us? Is it a soul or just a symptom? Does it fade and become nothing or does it change and become something else? None of us can say. These are questions for the priests and philosophers. I think if we were to try to answer all these questions, we would not have the time to enjoy our lives. In the end, each of us will inevitably discover the answer, but until then we can only whistle into the wind.’

Samuel nodded slowly. These were things he had never considered. He could see the flows. He could see the energy around people and the spells they created. Was this what he could do: see people’s souls? He looked at Master Glim, who was looking back at him thoughtfully. Focussing his sight, Samuel could see that a myriad of tiny stars now moved around the man, performing an endless, twirling, graceful dance. They were tranquil now, ever following each other in constant flow. There was never a first point or a last. Every bright spot seemed to follow and be followed. If Master Glim were to summon his strength, Samuel knew that the points would grow in number and join to form strings. Energy would burst from the ether and manifest in our realm as pure magic. Or perhaps the magic was always there, but even his sight was too poor to see it. At present, perhaps only the brightest sparks of power were visible, like glistening dew on a spider’s web and if one were to look closer, the web itself could also be seen.

‘Then why are some stances stronger when stationary and others require movements, such as Willow Step?’ Samuel asked, shaking the previous line of thought from his mind for the time being. It was all too difficult for him to fully comprehend.

‘Think, Samuel. To gather power into yourself, match the flows. Use Prophet Stance or Harmony Stance or any of the holding stances, for these are the strongest and let you match the flows. To further excite this energy, break from one flow and change to another. This is why most stances follow circles and curves. This best allows you to release what you have stored, like striking a flint upon stone. But this is all basic! Master Sanctus should have gone over it all long ago. Perhaps I will quickly review such fundamentals tomorrow.’

‘That would be good,’ Samuel said. ‘I think it’s good not only to know how to do something, but why it is so and how it works. Then we can form some new ideas for ourselves.’

‘Very good, Samuel,’ Master Glim said. ‘I hope I have answered your questions for now. Come again some time. I shall see you tomorrow afternoon after your lesson with Master Celios.’

Samuel sighed. Master Celios was stern and short-tempered, only teaching when another Master was unavailable. Samuel hoped the man had more patience now they were all a little older and higher in standing. As the young magician left the room, Master Glim placed his glasses back onto the tip of his nose and returned to his notes, turning over the yellowed pages in his hands.

‘Good afternoon, students,’ Master Celios’ voice echoed across the cold, cavernous hall. ‘I am glad to see that so many former apprentices here have finally graduated to Adept. I hope you continue to do as well in the future.’ Samuel and Eric Pot looked at each other hesitantly. Not a whisper was permitted during Master Celios’ lectures and the man’s ramblings were most often pointless, convoluted and overly long. ‘Speaking of the future, Master Glim has asked that I explain the most intriguing facet of magic, in my opinion, known as divination. Divination, or divining, is the ability to know something or detect something through the use of magic. You can detect the weather, locations of people or things, or perhaps even detect whether or not people are paying attention, Mr Shewlun.’

At the last statement, Flynn sat bolt upright. He had been nodding off already and Master Celios would not tolerate such a thing. He also had an uncanny ability to remember everyone’s names. No one knew how he did it, but after just one mention, you were damned to be known by him forever.

Master Celios continued: ‘A magician who can perceive something of the future is called a seer, and they can