Into The Abyss (Demons of Astlan) (63 page)

Animage Schools

Learning Animagic

Animagic, actually a very old term predating modern wizardry, is what a few animages still like to call their craft. It is an extremely demanding craft, much more fundamental than 'prepackaged' wizardry, more scientific than the grunts, wails, and drug-induced hallucinations of the druids, and much more immediate than the ritualized clerical rigmarole.

How does the aspiring student of this day learn Animagic in this time when animages are in disrepute? This is a difficult question. Like wizardry and religion, Animagic can't be picked up simply on the side, at least not easily. Someone must teach it to the novice. Now, fortunately, almost anyone with the required knowledge, cleverness, strength of will, and fortitude can pick up some Animagic from a willing tutor. However, true mastery requires intense discipline and long study (and talent).

If the novice wishes to specialize in one of the standard sub professions, such as Healing, Seeing, Summoning, Elementalism or Mentalism, then he or she need only seek out the infrequent, but certainly present, schools in such and pass the entrance requirements to learn. If one prefers a more liberal approach and a broader background, then one must seek out a local master or a wandering
animage who would be willing to pass on knowledge. In fact, for true liberality, one would probably need to seek out several such masters.

Can Animagic be picked up on one's own? Not from scratch, no. The basics, at least, must be taught by someone. Eventually, however, many animages may teach themselves in disciplines they already know.

Schools

The most common of all animage schools are the Healer's Guilds. Anyone with the aptitude and the proper attitude can generally gain admittance, although this may vary from school to school.
However, it is critical to note that it is extremely seldom that any individual that is less than completely ethical accepted, and most schools have rigorous testing methodologies to assure this. The reason is simple, those who can heal with their mind, can also harm.  Further, the discipline of Cell Mastery is generally a closely guarded secret of the Healer's Guilds. Thus, the only practical way to learn this discipline is by studying at a Healer's School, which limits knowledge of this discipline to screened individuals.

Perhaps the next most commonly found animage is the Seer. While there are some seer schools, often times a local seer can teach as much as a big school. Whether a student will be accepted by the school or an individual seer depends completely on what the seer or school '
Sees' in the student and his or her own personal attitudes.

Elementalist schools are sometimes hard to locate, as Elementalists are often overshadowed in their community by the elemental wizards. However, animage Elementalists have the advantage of working with all the elements and not just one.

Summoners are also a difficult lot to track down. This is largely because the wizardly engineering discipline of Conjury is much safer at high level than animage summoning, even if a bit less versatile. Often times,
Summoners work on small-scale efforts, due to the very real danger in powerful summonings. Of course, if you want someone to break a binding or a link, Summoners are generally your only recourse.

Mentalists and their schools go by many different names and will either stick out like a sore thumb in any community or will be
noticeably absent. Common names are School of Mental Science, Temple of the Mind, School of Psychology, Psychiatric Clinic, etc., etc. The novice entering these schools had best be prepared to have his or her soul examined down to the core. If the school decides to accept a student, it will only be after thorough mental examination of all motives. Unfortunately, one cannot report that all schools only accept the purist of motives.

“This is disturbing.”  Sir Talarius stated standing over a recently used fire pit.

“What is?”  Barabus asked the knight.

“This was not a normal fire.”

Barabus crouched down near the ring of stones, swiped one of the charred logs in the
pit with his index finger and sniffed the char residue. “It seems rather mundane to me.”

“Looks, but is not.”
Talarius stated in his typically emphatic manner.  “There is another stench in the air, barely detectable, that of sulfur and brimstone.  Talarius wiped his own ungloved right hand on a small towel at his belt.  “There is also a strong mana residue in the vicinity.”

Barabus shook his head.  Talarius was riding point, scouting the way forward for the Rod. Barabus and the Rod had found him halted and dismounted exam
ining what appeared to be the campsite of other travelers.

“And what do you infer?”  Barabus asked
.  He could detect nothing himself, but the Knight was generally infallible in such declarations.

“A gateway.”  Talarius surveyed the former campsite.  “Note there are no pentacles, no
pentagrams, no runes.” He swept his hand around the small clearing.  “Simply a fire pit.  Something, some fiend, opened a portal to the Abyss here.”  Talarius moved about the clearing, peering intently for more clues.

“An exit? But why?”  Barabus asked.  “Did they detect us following them and try to escape back to the Abyss?  That doesn’t make sense.”

“It doesn’t.  For several reasons.” Talarius stated without even looking up.  “First, why would demons make a camp? Suddenly realize we were following them and then flee back to the Abyss after all the trouble and commotion they made getting here.”  He shook his head.

“As to the camp, they had
humans with them: wizards and or sacrifices, perhaps the humans needed to rest and the demons took time to survey the area and discovered us.”  Barabus reasoned.

“A fair point on the wizards with the demons; however I doubt they’d flee after getting here.  No, I am thinking they brought in reinforcements.”

“Reinforcements?”  Barabus echoed.

“Yes…” Talarius had stopped near the far edge of the clearing with his back to Barabus
, slowly moving his head around, perhaps sniffing?  Barabus couldn’t tell.  “Hmm…”  He paused and turned with a troubled look upon his face.

“Yes, they had to of course know that Verigas would alert us.  What they most likely did not count on was the speed with which th
e Rod was able to respond.  Early this morning they realized that we would be upon them sooner than expected, and so called for reinforcements.”   Talarius was twisting his head around.

“Is there something else?”  Barabus was puzzled by the knight’s current behavior.

“Yes, there has been deception here.”

“Deception?”  Barabus asked puzzled.

“Yes, I can sense that some form of truth hiding, cloaking or deceptive magic of a fairly high order in this area.  It’s very faint, but for me to still be able to sense it, it couldn’t be more than a few hours old.”

“But it’s over there, not near the firepit?”  Barabus asked.

“Correct.”

“Do you think it’s tied to the demons?”  Barabus asked the knight.

Talarius shook his head in puzzlement, “Demons are masters of lies and deceptive truths, as well as illusions, but they generally don’t use cloaking spells.  They revel in the fright they cause others.”  He walked back over to Barabus. 

“True,” Talarius continued, “Ther
e are wizards that will employ cloaked sprites and imps to spy for them; however that doesn’t make much sense here.”  Talarius put his gloves back on.  “In the forest, at night, all alone, why would a wizard waste magic cloaking a lower level demon in their own camp?”

Barabus thought for a bit as the two remained silent.  “Could they have cloaked the sprites at this location, which is what you are detecting and then sent them back to spy on us?”

The knight looked startled for a moment and then gave Barabus a tight-lipped grin of approval.  “You are good, Arch-Vicar; you have a talent for ferretting out the wiles of darkness, as I’ve long believed.  It’s why I always enjoy serving with you.  We think alike!”

Barabus simply nodded at the compliment.  Despite the fact that
it was not a comparison he could agree with.    “I will have the chaplains scry the entire Rod and the trail before, after and alongside. If there are invisible demons spying on us, we shall find them.”

“And I shall eliminate them.”  Talarius nodded in agreement.

"Are you sure that," Exador looked pointedly at Ramses' clothing, "is such a good idea?"  The two were walking down the hall from Exador's quarters, to
wards those he had prepared for his ally.

Ramses looked at him.  "As I recall, it was your idea that I should get more actively involved.  Should actually be present in Freehold in the event someone else tries to get the book?"

"Yes," Exador said patiently, "but do you have to wear that attire?"  Ramses had changed from his previous pharaoh-ware to a completely different uniform.  He'd also readjusted his height to just under seven feet, and shifted his pigmentation to a more Caucasian golden tan.  His current uniform was composed of black leather straps wrapped tightly around his legs, arms, chest and midsection. 

The straps were finely spaced as to appear to be a single unified garment.  A gold belt held a short dark purple sash over the groin area
, which was encased in black leather briefs that melded into the straps.  Protruding black shoulder pads or guards that, remarkably, did not interfere with movement jutted from his shoulders. 

The pads also stretched down to provide black metal
armor to the chest region.  Gold belts, crossing over his heart with a large purple gem buckle with straps going under ribcage and up the back, appeared to hold the pads in place.  From experience, Exador knew they were strapped on much more securely in other locations.  A black leather bandanna wrapped Ramses forehead, pulling his hair out of the way.  Slung across his back were two large katanas, crossed at opposing angles for quick overhead draws by either hand.

"I always wear this attire when I am in Astlan."  Ramses stated succinctly.

"But what if someone recognizes it?"  Exador asked, exasperated.

"No one has worn the uniform of
a Time Warrior on this plane for a thousand years.  I doubt very seriously if you'll find any fashion consultants who’ll recognize it."

"Well, if some curious old scholar happens to recognize it from a
painting or worse yet, recognize you.  There will be a rather loud outcry."

"Well then," Ramses stated, smiling viciously, "I will just have to deal with those who object."

~

Dinner with Lenamare was about as pleasant as Edwyrd had expected.  Lenamare had led them into a small dining room upon their arrival.  The room had been furnished relatively well, and the food was
certainly on par with which had been served at lunch.  The conversation, however, left something to be desired.  For the first part of the meal, neither Lenamare nor Jehenna said anything more than the perfunctory words necessary to conduct a dinner.  Halfway through the main course, Lenamare changed that and Edwyrd wished the man had not bothered.

"So, Jenn, I trust you had a relatively uneventful trip after parting ways with Jehenna."  Lenamare  stated rather than asked.

"Well, I'm not sure I'd call it uneventful, but we made it."

"Yes, and since you had the book, we
are glad you did."  Jehenna told her.  "One question that remains, however, is: what exactly did you do with the demon?"  The other party members looked directly at Jenn, wondering what the official line would be with the two wizards.

"Well, it slew the ambushers, then it escorted us part way.  After we acquired such company as to be able to ensure safe travel on our own, we had no need of it, so it left."

"It left?" Lenamare asked.  He didn't sound incredibly convinced.

"So you are saying that you used the ring to coerce it into helping you,
and then you dismissed it?"  Jehenna prompted.

"Not exactly."  Jenn said, looking back and forth between the two.

"Not exactly?  What exactly is not exactly?  Do you have my ring or not?"  Jehenna asked.  "If so, I'd like it back."  Lenamare simply nodded.

"Well, no, I don't have the ring.  The demon destroyed it."  Jenn admitted softly.

"The demon what!"  Lenamare asked raising his voice. 

Jehenna reached across the table, lightly touching Jenn's hand. "What do you mean
: destroyed it?"

"Well, when I tried to use the ring to command it, the demon
pried the ring from my finger and crushed it between its own fingers."   Jenn demonstrated with her thumb and index finger.  Jehenna and Lenamare both looked stunned, simultaneously leaning back in their chairs.

"Well, I told you it didn't feel right." Jehenna reminded Lenamare, looking at him.  Lenamare was sitting at the head of the table, Jehenna to his left and Jenn to his right.

"Even so," Lenamare stated, "how could it do that?  That would only be possible if we got the binding on the ring completely wrong, or the demon was really a lot more powerful than we thought.  I can't believe either."  Jehenna was shaking her head in agreement.

"I don't understand it either, I am sure I spelled the name correctly on the ring.  Tomasedwardperkinje just like it sounds."  Edwyrd wasn't sure how she was spelling it, but her pronunciation wasn't quite right, she said it strangely as if it were one word, and his first name wasn't spelled just like it sounded.  Jehenna looked at Jenn, "So why didn't it crush you next?"

"I...I'm not really sure, I've been trying to figure that one out."  Jenn stammered.  Obviously, the girl was a bit intimidated by these two.  If Edwyrd didn’t already consider the two wizards to be a couple of egomaniac assholes, he might have been tempted to feel the same way.

"Do you expect us to believe that?  Demons don't just
NOT destroy things for no reason.  It must have had an ulterior motive."  Jehenna said.  Gastropé looked Edwyrd in the eye, reminding him of the conversation with Damien this afternoon.

"So then you say
--it guarded you part-way on your trip?" Lenamare asked.  "Why did it do that, and then why did it leave you?"

"Because we asked it to."  Rupert spoke up.  Edwyrd decided the kid had to be brave to be willing to enter this battle.

"You what?" Jehenna glared at Rupert in annoyance.

"We spoke to him and asked him to come with us.  Since it was a reasonable request, he did so."  Lenamare and Jehenna both were looking at Rupert as if he were a dog who had suddenly started to speak English.

"Child, you have no clue as to what you're babbling about.  Demons do not work that way, and someday you'll learn that.  At least if you ever want to be a live wizard, you'll learn that."  Jehenna told Rupert, turning her attention back to Jenn.

"You said it left you after a point?"  Lenamare asked.  "Why did it do that?"

"Again, I'm not sure..."

"You're not sure? How can you not be sure?  You were running around with it.  Didn't it say something?  Give you any clues as to its plans."  Jehenna demanded.

At this point Maelen spoke up.  He hadn't said a word all through dinner.  "May I ask," the two wizards turned their cold stares on him, "how you expect a young wizard of Jenn's years and experience, to determine the motives of a greater demon, when you yourselves are unable to do so?  These creatures are not exactly the most openhanded beings in the planes of existence.  Surely if individuals of such obvious learning and knowledge, as yourselves, have difficulties, a young girl such as Jenn would have even more.  I think asking her such questions is rather pointless.  Don't you?"

If possible, the stares of the two wizards got even chillier.  Maelen didn't so much as blink, he simply stared Lenamare in the eyes until he got a response.  Lenamare coughed.  "You are, probably, correct.  Jehenna and I have spent many a night trying to understand the machinations of this fourth order demon.  While we have had many insights, I must admit they have not been easily achieved, or for that matter, terribly useful."  Jehenna frowned at this point.  "This nightmare of the Abyss is obviously up to something more than it first appeared.  What that is, is unclear.  Almost
certainly, however, it revolves around the book.  Of that there can be no question."

"Why no question?"  Edwyrd asked, meeting Lenamare's stare head on.  "What exactly is in that book that a greater demon 'obviously' wants and that an archdemon would march on Freehold for? And for that matter, that Exador would waste the majority of his army on to have?"

"That," Jehenna said with a trace more than her usual coldness, "is none of your business.  Leave that to your betters." 

Edwyrd was mad now.  Not that it particularly took much from either of these two beings to make him mad, but if their grilling Jenn hadn't, this had. 
Thus, he was a little more forceful and blunt than he would have been under calmer circumstance.  "I have yet," he said equally coldly, "to see proof that you are my betters.  Until such is shown, I would suggest you keep such derogatory comments to yourself.  Where I come from, a certain amount of respect is given to people whom you've only recently met.  Not to mention one's assistants and employees.  I treat others that way, and I expect you to as well."

Everyone at the table was staring at Edwyrd as if he'd just stood up and pissed in the wine bottle.  Gastrop
é and Jenn were looking on in open-mouthed shock.  Maelen was startled but not upset.  Rupert was grinning.  Lenamare and Jehenna looked incredibly affronted by his nerve.

"Young man.  Do you have any idea to whom you are speaking?"  Lenamare asked.

"I'm speaking to a couple of wizards who lost the battle for this stupid book on their home territory.  Who are, once again, going to have to fight the same battle with the same opponent on a different field, with the Rod of Tiernon and an archdemon's horde on the battlefield as well.

“
Not to mention the Council of Wizards, who I am sure would be interested in the book. All trying to grab what these two wizards have already lost once."  He exaggerated about the Rod, he knew they weren't after the book, but Lenamare and Jehenna didn't have to know that.  "Two wizards who are going to need all the help they can get, and who had best realize it soon, before they are deserted by every possible ally."

Rupert was squirming madly in his seat, trying bravely not to start cheering.  Jenn was staring completely aghast, and Gastrop
é was shaking his head.  Maelen was simply grinning a small tight grin.  Jehenna looked as if he'd slapped her.  Lenamare was blinking.  "You have, a hell of a lot of nerve, young man.  More so than is obvious by your appearance.  Since you think," Lenamare smiled condescendingly, "you know who you are dealing with, may I ask who we are dealing with?"

Edwyrd smiled a grim smile.  "I would have thought you'd
ask that sooner.  However, better late than never I suppose.  I am Edwyrd.  I am" Edwyrd paused recalling the term Maelen had used for him, "a pyromaster as well as the practitioner of several other disciplines."  He was making this up by the seat of his pants.  One thing Tom had learned growing up in New York was, if you're going to bluff, don't do it halfway and make the bluff worth doing.  Actually it wasn't all bluff, he'd faced Lenamare before, taken the man's measure.  He was almost ready for a rematch.

"You mean pyromancer
, don't you, boy?" Lenamare corrected, Jehenna covered her mouth with one hand, apparently thinking hard about something.  It seemed she knew what he was talking about.

"No," Edwyrd said gently, but forcefully, "I mean
pyromaster.  As in, I am an animage.  I am not a wizard.  There is a difference.  I do by force of will and by my knowledge of that which I command, what you must do through carefully contrived spells."  He was looking out the corner of his eye at Maelen on this one.  It was a leap of faith that this was correct, but that was what it seemed animages did.  Maelen simply nodded his head slightly in approval.  “Unlike you, I don’t need props.”  The wizards at the table all looked horribly shocked.  Maelen just chuckled softly.

"I think," Jehenna broke in, "that for now we should simply accept Edwyrd's word.  He will have ample opportunity to prove himself in the weeks ahead.  In the meantime, as we are allies, as our young animage here is wont to point out, we should be civil to each other.  I am willing to do that."  That seemed about the closest thing to an
apology, as he'd get from her. 

"Allow me to rephrase my earlier statement," Jehenna continued smoothly, Lenamare looking on grumpily.  "What I should have said was
: it would be best that the number of individuals knowing the contents of the book be kept to a minimum.  The more people that know, the more likely the information is to escape and the more players on the field we will have."  Edwyrd refrained from saying that keeping the book a secret hadn't exactly kept the field empty.  "Now, let's have dessert."

The remainder of the meal continued in the same manner as the start of the meal, in silence.  That was fine
with Edwyrd.  Less chance of himself blowing up and trying to incinerate Lenamare and Jehenna on the spot.  Not that he felt he had an overwhelming chance of success, but it would certainly be fun to try; after all, he didn’t see any pentacles in the dining room.

As they walked back to their rooms that evening, Jenn finally spoke up.  "You do enjoy a good argument
, don't you, Edwyrd?"  Edwyrd just smiled and shrugged.  "First me last night, and now those two.  Obviously, I can't agree with your weird attitude about demons, but I do have to admire you for bearding those dragons in their layer."