[Original Novel] Mistress of Magic: Morgan's Apprentice - Chapter 4

  A story of magic, love and loyalty.

Previously: Lilith meets the Mistress Morgan and sees how power is drawn.

Previous Chapters: 

Prologue 

Chapter One - A Girls' College

Chapter Two - The Mistresses' Palace

Chapter Three - Morgan's First Lesson

(Image via Pixabay)

Lunch with Morgan was great. It was nothing the like quiet chewing in the dining hall of the college, the simple food and watered-down fruit juice. Morgan's lunch included fresh fruit, fish, fruit wine, cheeses and pies. I had to stop myself from eating too much, but I tried a bit from almost everything, even the stinky cheese and the bread with herbs baked in.

Morgan and I chatted about my favorite topics in school like magic philosophy and the balance of will and self. Can the magic be used to alter the will of the lady casting is? Can it be used to allow men to recover faster from the giving of power, and is it worth it in terms of power spent versus power received? We got into a discussion about the accepted measurement unit for power held and spent. Normally, magic was calculated as the load of weight a lady could lift with her magic before she was drained and unable to continue. The depth of one's potential reserves varied from lady to lady, and through training, this depth could be increased. Of course, focus and force of will were factors in magic casting, so I thought it was almost casual and random to select lifting of weight as such an arbitrary standard of measurement. Surely, a well-trained mistress could use less power to lift more weight, but this didn't mean her reserves were deeper than those of a particularly well-bred initiate. Morgan argued that the world is a place of compromise, at times, and with no better scale of measurement, the accepted power-per-block-per-minute seemed better than no standard at all.

"It is the nature of people to try and quantify things. We like to put a number on things so we can measure and compare them," Morgan explained, taking sips from her fruit wine cup as we lounged in the salon in opposing couches. "For example, if I were to quantify the amount of power I took from Draken earlier as the power it would take me to light the whole citadel with magic for a whole night, how much information would that give you? Not much. And my reserves are deeper than that. I could feed off another dozen knights and still have room for more," Morgan said and placed her cup on one of the food trays on the low table between the couches. A dozen more? Was she boasting? Has she ever tried?

I suddenly realized it's been quite a while since we left Draken in the bedroom and came downstairs to a table full of food and drink. I don't know if the trays appeared there by magic or if Morgan had summoned another knight using her thoughts to bring the lunch in, but Draken was nowhere to be seen. I didn't hear him leave either. I glanced up the stairs and Morgan chuckled.

"Oh don't worry about Draken," she said waving her hand in the air. "He's probably sleeping it off in his room. Your room is the only one in my home without an additional door leading to my knights' quarters." I glanced around somewhat uncomfortably. Could they be watching us? Listening in? Would they dare?

"So how would my measurement be of any comparison to what another lady mage can do or how much power she can take? A set scale allows me to put a number on my capacity, though it only measures my capability in a simple application of will and focus – floating a block off the floor," Morgan returned to the topic at hand. Perhaps it was the fruit wine, but I felt daring.

"So how deep are your reserves, in standard terms of measurement?" I asked.

Morgan laughed. A deep and melodic laugh that made me smile even though I felt awkward. Did I ask something wrong?

"There are two things you never ask a mistress, Lilith," she said, still smiling widely. "Her age, and her capacity."

"I'm sorry, I did not know," I answered and looked down.

"You’ll learn which questions to ask. All in good time. You are still very young and so much is ahead of you. What you've witnessed today was only your first lesson," Morgan said and kept smiling at me, holding my gaze a moment longer. Perhaps she was remembering her days as a young innocent initiate, visiting the palace of mistresses and wondering if she would pass the tests, and how the experience would change her from girl to woman.

"We've been cooped in here all morning, and the weather does seem nice," Morgan said, glancing out the windows. "How about we dress properly and go for a walk in the gardens?"

"Should I pick myself something from the closet or do you have an outfit in mind?" I inquired.

"Oh I have just the dress in mind. Get up."

I got up from the couch, just in time to notice Morgan's magic swirl around me, tickling a little as my green velvet dress transformed, grew a collar and gems and golden decorations. My shoes changed, my hair was suddenly up in an intricate bun decorated with golden leaves. I looked down at myself, and when I looked back at Morgan her blue robe had turned into something as marvelous, with high cuts that revealed her legs and a corset to emphasize her shape.

"You'll be able to do this yourself quite soon," she said and flung the doors open with a wave of her hand. Outside were two knights, both with dark hair and sharp features. One of them had a well-trimmed beard while the other was shorter and somewhat slimmer. They wore the same armor as Draken did when he picked me up from the college, and only now did I notice Morgan's initials carved onto the front of their chest-piece. They belonged to her, in a sense, but unlike slaves, they did so happily and with endless devotion. Judging from the living conditions and their faces when they looked at their mistress, they were more than happy with the hand life has dealt them.

"These are Gerad and Leam, two more of my knights," Morgan introduced us. I nodded politely and the silent couple followed us two steps behind as we paced down the corridors and halls of the vast palace.

"Am I allowed to ask how many knights you have?" I inquired, breaking the silence of our walk.

"Of course, dear. The number of personal knights depends of one's desire, number of apprentices and position in the sisterhood. I have five personal knights. You've met lovely Draken, Gerad and Leam. There are also Mason and Neal whom you will meet soon," Morgan explained patiently, like she probably has numerous times before. "Some we choose, and some are given to us, but no one can force you to accept a knight you do not desire. And if what you have is not enough, there are always the un-owned knights of the sisterhood. With enough influence in the order, you can adopt from there, if you wish."

The halls weren't as empty as they were when I arrived. Mistresses, initiates and knights stood speaking and walked around casually. I heard music in the distance as we neared the garden, but I couldn't quite see where the melody was coming from.

"Do you have any apprentices?" I asked as we entered the sun-filled garden in the center of the castle. The air was cool, but the golden color of the tree leaves gave a warm feeling to the place.

"No, I do not," Morgan answered as we paced down one of the paths of the garden. "I have recommended initiates for the role of Mistress, if that's what you're wondering, but I have yet to come across one I would want as my own. I am picky like that."

I swallowed hard and focused on trying not to step on the edges of my dress.

"Being a mistress should be the goal of any initiate. We are what mage ladies are meant to be. We do not spend our days raising little girls, scribbling in books, or doing practical magic like building roads or mending wounds," Morgan lectured, sounding almost disgusted with the roles of other ladies in the sisterhood. "We are not forced to wed a remotely related stranger. Ours is a life of freedom. As much freedom as a sister can have from her family."

Morgan sat down on a bench facing a patch of grass, and I sat down beside her. Gerad and Leam took their posts just out of earshot.

"Do you want to be a mistress?" Morgan asked the question I dreaded.

"I am not sure," I answered honestly. "I've always wanted to study magic. To practice it in effort to advance our knowledge of it and our understanding of its potential."

"A noble cause," Morgan noted. "But how can one study without testing one's limits? Without facing challenges and pushing the capabilities of power in ways that are simply not possible in an isolated tower of scholars? And without the protection of the mistresses of the sisterhood."

Was this a recruitment speech?

"We are the quiet army of the sisterhood," she continued. "We are the fiercest magical warriors, the most effective spies and a force feared by every mortal man and woman. The mistresses alone could conquer the kingdom overnight if we so wished. We are the keepers of the balance of the land. Without us, there would be chaos. Our very presence and existence are strength."

"I don't think I'd make a very good warrior," I mused aloud.

"You don't know yet. Your journey is only beginning."

I nodded.

"Do you ever miss your birth home?" Morgan asked.

"Sometimes. I miss the warm springs and even the hot summers. I miss my baby brother Jon and my mother. It seems I forget more about them every day," I confessed.

"As a mistress, you could visit them whenever you wish. Help them out with your magic. No one would judge you or reprimand you for doing so," Morgan said.

"Do you visit your birth family?" I inquired. Was I being nosey?

"I used to," Morgan said and her eyes darkened. "But I have changed. They have changed. Circumstances caused us to drift apart over the years. Two of my sisters are mistresses too. One of my brothers is a knight of a mistress in the west. I forget her name."

"Do you think they miss you?" I asked, but I think it was quite obvious I was musing more about my birth family than about that of Morgan.

"The same way they miss sunny days of the beach building sand-castles. We are no more than childhood memories to one another," she said and I think I heard a pang of sadness in her voice. She paused. "Would you like to see your birth family?"

I blinked and my lips parted in surprise. "See my birth family?" I echoed.

"Yes. If you let me, I can glance into your memory, find the place, and open a magical mirror window to it so you can see your birth family," Morgan described as though it was the most casual thing in the world.

"You can do that?" I asked. This was a combination of mind reading and remote viewing magic combined and would surely be a lot of BPM (blocks per minute) to perform.

"It's not a miracle. And Draken had enough to give so I could do this for you," Morgan was smiling at me softly.

"Should I thank him later?" I joked. Morgan laughed.

"Oh, you'll have plenty of opportunity!" she replied with a hint of mischief in her voice.

She paused and looked into my eyes, searching for my approval of what she was about to do.

"Are you ready?" she asked, just in case. I nodded. Morgan took my hand in hers and I instantly felt the flow of magic through me. I could feel her mind reach out to mine, listening. I thought of my birth home. The barns, the horses we rode as kids, my mother's face when she was pleased with something I did. From the corner of my eye I noticed a spark, a growing light. Morgan looked away and focused her eyes on it, as did I.

Something resembling a window formed above the grassy patch. As I looked through it, I could notice details, shapes, movement.

"Mother!" I exclaimed when I recognized my mother's aged face. She was holding a baby in her arms, and my eldest sister was standing beside her. They were talking but I couldn't hear them, only the gushes of wind in the trees and a soft buzzing from the magical window. They looked so much alike but I could see the years on my mother's face. She was an old woman now. I felt old myself.

"She cannot hear you, Lilith," Morgan's voice sounded in my head. Was she speaking? Or did the connection she established allow her to speak to me in my thoughts? Could she read my thoughts too? Would I notice? Should I care?

The image in the window changed, and I could see the fields around the farm, piles of hay placed neatly on the freshly cropped land. I could see my father and brothers working in the field, gathering crops in the autumn mid-day sun. I couldn't help but smile. I did miss them. I worried about how they would get through the winter, and how my sister's arranged marriage to a trader's son would work out. I cared. This almost surprised me.

"Oh! Look at the pretty vision!" a voice yelled from the bushes. Instantly, the window was gone, the focus was broken and Morgan released my hand from hers. Gerad hurried in the direction just as a red-haired, bright-eyed initiate ran out looking wildly excited.

"Can I do that?" she asked, staring at Morgan. I could tell from her eyes that she has fed and was far too new and unskilled to hide it. I recognized her as Daria, one of the initiates in my age group at the college. She studied small magic with me and was never particularly good. Morgan rose from the bench quickly, looking worried and slightly annoyed.

A figure hurried down the path leading to us. As she approached, I could see it was a mistress dressed in black and red. She looked older than Morgan, but resembled her somewhat. Gerad and Leam had their hands on their sword hilts.

"By the Gods, Daria!" the figure exclaimed. "Oh Morgan I am so sorry," she apologized in a gasping voice as she stopped between Daria, the over-excited young initiate and us. "She just got away from me. I only looked away for a moment!"

"Don't fret, Merida," Morgan dismissed the older mistresses concern.

"I brought her to the garden to walk off her power high," Merida explained.

"Ah, your first feed?" Morgan turned to the bright-eyed young initiate.

"Oh yes! It was marvelous! I can't wait to be a mistress!" Daria yelled.

The glances exchanged between Morgan and Merida were obvious even to me. Such embarrassment significantly lowered the chances of her becoming a mistress.

"Why don't we go practice some practical magic? Pick up some rocks?" Merida said as she put her arm around Daria and led her away, down the path.

Morgan and I looked at each other.

"Well, that was awkward," Morgan said grimacing.

"Is it always like that?" I asked.

"You do feel the high. Always. But there's no reason to make a fool of yourself," she criticized. "But yes, it is as fun as it looks." Her smile widened and she sat back down on the bench. I barely noticed that her dress was gradually transforming back to the blue velvet robe she wore earlier. Mine was transforming too.

"And you learn to contain it. Enjoy it without giving in to it too much. Control is always key," she added.

"Like in sustained magic," I added, quoting the schoolbooks.

"All magic is sustained magic," Morgan argued one of the accepted theories in the field of magic study. "Magic can be used to create, but all magic must be sustained. Its results, however, do not."

I didn't really have an answer to this ancient argument in the sisterhood, source of many a discussion. Is healing creating, even if it is a temporary spell to close a wound or hold a broken bone, and the magic relies on the process around it, the healing of the body itself?

Morgan seemed to be pondering something. Weighing options in her head as she sat on the bench and faced me. I could see the sun beginning to set over the trees and towers of the castle of mistresses.

"Are you tired?" Morgan asked.

"Not in particular," I replied. Back at the college, the initiates are still in classes and will be until sunset.

"Normally, you should not get a taste of power until tomorrow," she mused aloud. "But you arrived early and the day is still young. How would you feel about me inviting one of my knights for a bath with us?"

The blushing and heart pounding. There they were again.

"Not just watching this time," Morgan added gingerly. I tried to form an appropriate answer. "We don't have to. It can wait until tomorrow and you can explore the halls and gardens of the castle, if you prefer."

"Is this a test?" I asked honestly.

"Not more than anything you say or do while you're here with me," Morgan said simply. Not surprising.

"I am curious. And I do believe I am ready, with your guidance," I managed to say. Morgan smiled as though that was the answer she was expecting.

"Good," she said. "Now the real fun starts. And I have just the knight in mind."

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