Magic Astray (The Llandra Saga) by Mahan Gregory

Author:Mahan, Gregory [Mahan, Gregory]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Publisher: CDG Publishing
Published: 2013-08-26T18:30:00+00:00

Chapter 13

Soon enough, lunch was over, and the officers each began taking their leave.

“Stay a moment, Randall. I would have a word with you,” the Field Mage called as Randall pushed back from the table. “You can stay too,” she said in answer to Nia’s questioning glance.

After everyone else had left, Randall looked expectantly at Kirsti.

“I’ve already brought this up with Nia, but she isn’t a Mage so she didn’t have any answers,” Kirsti started. The Field Mage fidgeted nervously, fingering the collar of her jerkin. “I wanted to ask you about the battle. Something happened, and it has me puzzled.” She left the statement hanging in the air between them, looking at Randall expectantly.

I wonder what’s bothering her? Randall thought. It’s doesn’t seem like her to beat around the bush, and she seems so nervous. He looked back blankly, waiting for her to get to the point.

Kirsti sighed, and stood up from the table to fetch a large candle from a holder on the wall. Taking her seat, she placed the fat cylinder between them. “Can you light the candle for me?” she asked.

Randall shrugged, and opened himself to Llandra. It felt weird to be using his gift so openly, after hiding his ability for so long. He breathed the word of power, and a tiny lance of flame burst into existence, streaking forth to bathe the candle wick in fire. An instant later, the magical flame disappeared, leaving the candle burning steadily.

“How do you do that?” Kirsti asked breathlessly.

“The Arkala spell?” he asked, growing more confused by the moment. Kirsti was a fully-trained Mage; why would she be so mystified by what he had just done? “It’s a demonic spell. I don’t really know how hard it would be to learn, but I could teach...”

“I know the damn spell!” Kirsti interrupted, slamming her fist on the table. “How did you make it so small? How did you get it to stop where you wanted?”

“Well,” Randall stalled, surprised at her anger. He’d never had to explain exactly how the magic came to him before, and he found himself struggling for words. “You know that instant you cast a spell, when you can feel the power drawing out of you?”

Kirsti just looked at him blankly.

“You know,” he said desperately. “That exact moment the magic is mingling with the words of the spell, and you can push it one way or the other to do what you want, right?”

“That’s not how magic works, Randall,” the Field Mage said flatly.

“What?” he asked, dumbfounded. “Do they do it differently where you’re from?”

“They do it differently everywhere,” she said. “This is how I would light a candle.”

Kirsti leaned over and blew out the flame. Then there was a brief pulse of power and she intoned the spell. It was ‘Arkala’, but it wasn’t the way Randall had said it at all. There was a clipped sort of undercurrent to the word, along with a high-pitched whine near the end. In his mind, the spell

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