Alcingeria Chapter Forty One: Passing The Time

Lawrence and Redmond visit Tabatha to see her sparing with another witch in the garden. Afterwards they see a patrol of guards who have brought in five new magic users. Can one of them use dark magic?

Chapter Forty One Passing The Time:

            “Sir, do you want to take a walk in the garden?” Lawrence asked.

I nodded. I wanted to be somewhere else when those mafia members were killed. I followed Lawrence out the door of the castle and we emerged in the garden. I inhaled the fresh, cool afternoon air. The scent of roses was always noticeable in the castle, but out here it was very present on the air. It was a nice day, the sun was shining brightly and it further enhanced the brilliant colors that the flowers gave the garden. I then heard the sound of a frustrated cry.

            “That’s not fair, Antoinette!” I heard Tabatha yell.

            “All is fair when sparing with magic.” I heard a girl’s voice respond.

The voices came from around the corner. I walked around the bend in the garden and saw Tabatha and another girl, presumably Antoinette, standing in the clearing that Lawrence and I spared in the other day.

Antoinette was dressed in witch clothes. She also wore a witch hat. Her clothes and hat were brown with gold trim. She looked about sixteen, maybe fifteen. Her eyes were emerald green like Lawrence’s and her hair was black like Erin’s or Estaire’s. Instead of a staff, she held a wand that was just over a foot long. The wand’s shaft was royal blue and a small citrine crystal was mounted at the end of the wand.

Tabatha was doubled over, her hands resting on her knees, her staff was on the ground next to her. When she saw Lawrence and I approaching she scooped up her staff and stood up straight.

            “Redmond!” She said in surprise.

            “Hi.” I replied.

            “Hello, Redmond.” Antoinette said.

I waved at her in response.

            “We’re just sparing, but Antoinette holds an unfair advantage.” Tabatha complained.

            “What’s that?” I asked.

            “Illusion magic.” Tabatha said while casting a competitive glare at Antoinette.    

I raised an eyebrow.

            “Can she use any other magic types?” I asked.

Tabatha shook her head.

            “No. I’m a pure illusion magic witch.” Antoinette said with a grin.

My eyes widened. Tabatha had described pure witches to be very powerful. Having one messing with my mind and altering my thoughts didn’t appeal to me.

            “Observe.” Antoinette said with a mischievous smile.

She turned to face Tabatha, expertly spinning her wand in her hand. She pointed it at Tabatha.

            “Ghosts of the past.” She muttered.

Right after she finished saying the name of the spell, the citrine crystal at the end of Antoinette’s wand began to glow. Tabatha’s eyes widened and she looked around in a panic.

            “No! No! Stop!” She begged.

Her head snapped left and right, looking at things that only she could see.

            “Okay, okay.” Antoinette said, lowering her wand from Tabatha.

The citrine crystal stopped glowing and Tabatha’s fearful look eased. She no longer looked around in panic. She just glared at Antoinette.

            “Antoinette…! I hate you!” she yelled.

Tabatha sounded like she was angry, but not fully. It sound like she was having fun, but got angry at Antoinette.

            “Hey, I have my magic and you have yours.” Antoinette replied with a shrug.

            “Well, your magic is annoying!” Tabatha complained.

            “Hey, if you want to become a better witch, you need to learn to resist the different magic types.” Antoinette said.

Tabatha closed her eyes and took a breath. She calmed herself.

            “You’re right, I’m sorry. Let’s get on with this.” Tabatha said once she opened her eyes.

Antoinette flashed a small grin and raised her wand to Tabatha.

            “Insanity!” Antoinette cried out.

Instantly the citrine started to glow. Tabatha clenched her teeth, glaring intently at Antoinette. She gripped her staff so hard that her knuckles were white. I then saw her gaze shift to her left, then her right. Panic became present on her face. Antoinette lowered her wand and the citrine stopped glowing.

            “Okay Tabatha, it’s only an illusion. It’s okay. I ended the spell. Try to keep your head clear when I cast my spells. It’ll help you resist the hallucinations.” Antoinette said in a calm voice.

Tabatha’s face was filled with tension, but she nodded.

            “I’m impressed, Tabatha. Most witches wouldn’t have the guts to make it this far. Nice work.” Antoinette congratulated.

            “Thanks.” Tabatha replied.

I decided to leave the two witches to their… Witchiness. I turned around and Lawrence followed me.

            “Where to now, sir?” He asked.

            “I don’t know. I want to kill some time.” I replied.

As we rounded the bend in the path, I heard footsteps coming from the main gate. There were quite a few of them. Instinctively I ducked and pulled Lawrence into a rose bush. The thorns pricked me, but I didn’t notice much.

            “Sir…!” Lawrence said in surprise.

I raised a finger to my lips to silence him. The people who I heard seconds ago were now coming through the gate. I saw that there were about five men dressed in the Vulrock Law Enforcement uniform. Each of them were carrying a prisoner. There were three male prisoners and two female. The law enforcement officers were chuckling.

            “These witches and warlocks will make a fine addition to Queen Yuka’s court.” Said one of the law enforcement officers.

            “Hail the queen!” One of the other officers shouted.

Queen Yuka was getting a new shipment of witches and warlocks! Was it possible that one of them could use dark magic? My stomach dropped as I imagined the possibilities. The prisoners were silent as they were dragged into the castle and out of our sight. When it was safe, I stood up, hauling Lawrence to his feet.

            “Sorry about that.” I apologized.

            “No problem, sir.” Lawrence said.

            “Queen Yuka just got five new magic users.” I said, mostly to myself.

            “Indeed.” Lawrence said as he gazed off into the sky.

I suppose I should go tell Robert about it. I went inside with Lawrence in tow.

            “Where are you going, sir?” Lawrence asked.

            “The lounge.” I replied.

I walked the familiar route to the guest lounge and opened the door. I scanned the room and found Robert, Don and Macalister all sitting at the bar, drinking from glass mugs. They were laughing and shouting and having a good time. Robert saw me and beckoned me over.

            “Redmond! How are you?” He asked cheerily.

I looked over my shoulder to see if anyone was watching, or listening. Lawrence had stayed outside the lounge.

            “Robert, Queen Yuka just got a fresh shipment of five new magic users.” I said grimly.

Robert’s eyes widened.

            “One of them could be a dark magic user!” Robert said in shock, but quiet enough so as not to be overheard.

            “This isn’t good…” Macalister trailed off.

            “Queen Yuka just got a few more fairies a while ago. When you were talking to the princess some guards brought a burlap sack full of fairies through a back door to the castle.” Robert said in dismay.

I didn’t notice a back door. Then again, there may have been a secret passage leading to it. As absurd as it was, nothing was impossible anymore.

            “Queen Yuka is gaining supernatural creatures alarmingly fast. Things have been quiet for a few days, but now…” Don trailed off.

            “We need to keep our eyes out for anything strange. As long as Queen Yuka doesn’t have a dark magic user, everything’s fine, right?” Macalister asked.

            “Right.” Robert confirmed.

            “Okay, but how do we know if she has one or not? We can’t exactly ask her straight up.” Don said.

            “We can’t do much at this point, we can only keep our eyes and ears open. I’ll tell Ceberus to tell The Vipers to stay on the alert.” Robert said.

I nodded.

            “Okay, good.” I said.

            “Robert, Queen Yuka isn’t going to hurt us is she?” Macalister asked.

            “Not if I have anything to say about it.” Robert said gravely.

I turned and left the room. Lawrence was behind me in an instant. I looked outside and saw that the sun was beginning to sink in the sky. I spent the rest of the evening talking to the others. Stella mentioned that she overheard a conversation between two guards about some blacksmiths not meeting their quota. Besides that, everything was fine… Except that the possibility that Queen Yuka had a dark magic user was still present. When I was done catching up and talking with the others, the sky had turned black, dotted with sparkling white stars. I walked back to my room. Lawrence was already there. He had left me to talk with my friends while he tended to something.

            “Sir, I just received word that Princess Estaire’s birthday ball will start first thing tomorrow morning.” Lawrence told me.

            “What time does it end?” I asked.

Lawrence shrugged.

            “Balls hosted by the queen usually end when everyone leaves.” He replied.

I nodded, walking to my bed and slipping beneath the blankets.

            “Good night, sir.” Lawrence said as he walked out of my room, shutting the door behind him.

I closed my eyes and went to sleep.

 

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Author's Note

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