Guild Mage: Apprentice

40. The Endless Horizon

Over the next three days, Castle Whitehill descended into barely controlled chaos. Liv could barely remember the last time Baron Henry had gone to the capital, nearly twenty years before. She’d been only a scullery maid, at the time, left behind when he went to negotiate his marriage to Lady Julianne. Her mother and Gretta had stayed, as well, though Archibald and the other footmen had gone.

"There must have been other councils called since the eruption," Liv said, while the seamstress fussed around her with a mouthful of pins.

"The small council meets regularly," Lady Julianne pointed out, taking a sip of her tea. They were in her sitting room, and Mistress Ethel had been summoned from her shop on The Hill to come and take measurements. "The great council, on the other hand, is called only to approve new taxes, war, or to deliberate some other truly monumental matter. There have been two, since my husband’s injury, and Henry has delegated his vote to Duke Thomas on both occasions."

"But this is more important," Liv guessed, holding her arms up and out of Mistress Ethel’s way.

"Precisely," Julianne confirmed. "A debate on taxation is one thing; it would be too much trouble to go for that, in his condition. But if these attacks truly have spread across the kingdom, we need to attend ourselves, to learn everything we can. Even if I would prefer to avoid it. How is she looking, Ethel?"

"She needs a whole set of new dresses, in all honesty," the seamstress said. "You’ve grown out in the hips and bust since last we measured you, Livy. I’m surprised you fit into the old ones at all."

"They’re only a little tight," Liv protested.

"How many can you make before we leave?" Julianne asked.

Ethel walked over to the desk, where she made notes with chalk on a slate. "Two for her, one for you," she said, after chewing the problem over for a moment. Just travelling clothes, nothing fancy."

"I have plenty of court gowns," Lady Julianne said. "Though none will be in this season’s style. We’ll get the fancier things in Freeport; it will be one of our first stops when we arrive."

"I thought the city was named Lucania, too?" Liv said, stepping down from the stool where the seamstress had placed her. Julianne shook her head.

"The old Barony was Lucania," she said. "And even that was only a few generations after the city was founded. Lucan himself just called the place Freeport. From what I’ve read of him, he would have been a bit embarrassed to have an entire kingdom carry his name. Be that as it may, I know a seamstress once we get there. Or at least I did, twenty years ago," she admitted. "The three dresses, then. I’ll pay you double the normal price to get them done before we leave."

"I’ll have them here the night before you leave," Ethel said, curtsying. She gathered up her things and departed.

"Other than the dresses," Lady Julianne asked, "are you packed?"

Liv shrugged. "I don’t have much to bring, m’lady," she said. "Clean shifts and stockings, my staff and books. A quill and ink bottle, and I thought I might bring some of the jerky that Emma and I have smoked."

"That’s a good thought; bring as much of it as you can," Julianne said. "You won’t be able to hunt at the capital: everything we want to eat will have to be paid for in coin. Bring your winter cloak; it’s a cold wind that comes in off the ocean, once the harvest is in. And have yourself a good bath below the castle. There aren’t any hot springs there."

"As you say, m’lady." Liv curtsied, then headed out into the hall. It was a special treat to bathe in the waters under the castle, and she still felt a bit self conscious about using the space unless she was given explicit permission. No servant would ever be allowed to, and though she wasn’t a servant anymore, she also didn’t feel quite a member of the court.

?

On the morning of the third day, Liv found both her new dresses laid out in her sitting room when she rose. She’d been given a large leather trunk to store her things in, though she hadn’t been able to fill it completely. She simply didn’t own very much. She was just trying to choose which of her new dresses to pack, and which to wear, when a knock came on her door.

"Who is it?" Liv called, padding across the room in her stockings.

"I wanted to come see you off," her mother’s voice came from the other side of the door. Liv opened the door, and immediately found herself wrapped up in her mother’s arms. "Let me help you dress," Mama said.

"I was just trying to choose." Liv led her mother over to where the new dresses had been set out. Both were dark gray, different only in the choice of color in the lining. One was a floral pattern in burgundy and yellow, while the other was green with white blossoms.

"This one," her mother said, picking up the skirt lined in green and white. "Summerset colors. Will show everyone who you’re with right when you arrive." Liv nodded, and quickly stowed the other dress in her trunk.

"I wish you were coming," Liv admitted, while her mother worked the laces at her back.

"Five or ten years ago, I might have," Mama admitted. "But you’re old enough to look after yourself now, and my back isn’t what it used to be. They’ll hire a cook - I’d be amazed if Lady Julianne hasn’t already arranged it. She’s a sharp one."

"You’re not that old yet, Mama," Liv teased.

"I’m fifty-four years old, my dove," her mother said, coming around in front of her to look the dress over. "I’m not young, either."

Liv paused, really looking at her mother for the first time in ages. They spent so much of their days apart, now: Mama in the kitchens, and Liv in the practice yard, or the forest, or in Master Grenfell’s study. There was gray in her mother’s hair, and not a little of it. Though she smiled, her face was lined.

"Oh, don’t worry about me, Livy," her mother said. "I’ll still be here when you get back. You look after yourself in the capital, you hear?"

"I can’t imagine we’ll be gone that long," she said. "We’ll want to come back before the snows fall, won’t we?"

"Once they get a council going, I wouldn’t be surprised if it goes all winter," her mother said. "I remember when the old baron used to go. Now, you do exactly as Lady Julianne says, understand? I want a good report of you when you come back. And watch yourself around those boys at court."

"I will, Mama," Liv promised, taking up her staff from where she’d leaned it in the corner.

"Come on then," her mother said. "Let’s get you downstairs."

"I have to call someone to come get my trunk," Liv said.

"No need for that." Her mother opened the door, to reveal the first footman and Gretta waiting outside in the hall. No one had gone around to snuff the oil lamps yet, and the light of early morning was streaming in through the window panes.

"I’ll take your trunk down, Miss Brodbeck," Archibald said, with a smile. "Your mother wasn’t the only one who wanted to see you off." He nodded his head to the woman who’d been waiting at his side.

"Give me a hug before you go," Gretta said. When Liv wrapped her arms around the old woman, she was surprised by how fragile her body felt.

"I want you all to still be here when I come home," Liv said, and then, on impulse, gave her mother another hug.

"You don’t need to worry about that," her mother said. "Come along. Let’s get you down to the courtyard. You don’t want to be the one they’re all waiting for, do you?"

Three carriages waited in the courtyard, each with a team of horses hitched, and half a dozen horses were saddled besides, each with one of the castle guards already in the saddle. "The first is for the family," Archibald explained, as he lugged Liv’s trunk over to the second carriage. "This is you, Master Grenfell, and the chirurgeon. I’ll be with Edward, Thomas and Sophia in the third."

"Thank you," she said. The door to the carriage was open, and she saw that her teacher and Mistress Trafford were already seated inside, on opposite benches. Liv climbed in, took a seat next to Master Grenfell, then leaned out to wave once more at her mother and Gretta. One of the guards came over to close the carriage door, so she sat back on the padded bench.

"The cooks packed us all a meal to eat on the way," Amelia Trafford said. "Apple tarts. Have one."

"Thank you." Liv regarded the chirurgeon warily; now that a few days had passed, she regretted yelling at the woman, but it didn’t seem like Mistress Trafford was angry with her. She picked out one apple tart, hesitated, and then grabbed a second."

"There’s a bottle of tea, as well," Master Grenfell said, lifting it from where he’d tucked it between his leg and the carriage. "Still hot, but it won’t be for long." Liv set the tarts on her lap, accepted a drink of the tea, and then handed the bottle back. By the time she’d started in on her first tart, they were off.

Surrounded by Baron Henry’s soldiers on horseback, and with no less than five people capable of using magic split between two carriages, Liv found that she didn’t feel any worry that a stray blood monster might ambush them. With little else to do once she’d finished eating, she pulled the hood of her cloak up and snuggled into it, doing her best to get comfortable for the rest of the ride.

As she dozed, she wondered what they would find at the capitol. Lady Julianne would clearly know people there, even if she’d been gone for a long time. She was the king’s daughter, after all. Baron Henry would be a part of this grand council, however that worked, and Matthew would probably go along to learn from his father. Archibald and the other two footmen would make certain they were settled in and that the household functioned. She wondered, for a moment, whether Baron Henry or Lady Julianne owned a house in Freeport, or if they would be guests of the king.

The thought of staying at the palace was enough to make her shudder. Liv really wasn’t certain why they’d decided to bring her. Was she just to be one more person to throw magic at the problem, if those monstrosities attacked? She certainly wouldn’t be welcome at the council or at the king’s court, would she? Finally, she couldn’t take the wondering any more, and pulled her hood back.

"What are we going to be doing?" Liv asked Master Grenfell. He was leaning against the window, and now he opened one eye to regard her.

"We will serve at the pleasure of the baron, as he requires," her teacher told her. "And when we are not occupied doing that, there may well be a chance for us to meet up with some old colleagues of mine."

"Other mages?" Liv asked.

Grenfell smiled. "If most of the aristocracy will be present for the great council, they will bring their court mages along with them. I can’t very well leave a promising young apprentice to her own devices when I might need her assistance, can I? Pay attention and you may learn a few things. Anyway, there are a few specific people I want to introduce you to."

Liv turned away from him and looked out the window. "What are people in the capital going to think of me?" she asked.

"You mean, are they going to curse at you and want to trim your ears?" Mistress Trafford asked her. "If you went to the wrong part of town, certainly. I’d recommend you travel by carriage, Apprentice. And keep your hood up."

"Court will be different," Master Grenfell said. "Words are sharper than knives, in that crowd."

If any of that was meant to make her feel better, Liv decided, they had failed. Nonetheless, when the carriages rolled up to the waystone on the bluff overlooking the Aspen River, there was at least one thing to be excited about. She followed Master Grenfell out of the carriage and onto the stone, where they were joined by Matthew and Lady Julianne.

"Come and look over here, children," Grenfell said, striding across the waystone to a particular set of sigils. "Before it was the capital of Lucania, and before Lucan named it Freeport, where we are going was called Gre’Dua. Which means...?" He looked back and forth between Liv and Matthew.

"...something green?" the baron’s son guessed.

"Grassy dunes," Liv corrected him.

"Yes, Liv," Grenfell said. "It hosted one of the pleasure palaces of the Vædim. The beaches south and north of the city are still beautiful - or at least they were, when last I was there." He looked to Lady Julianne for confirmation.

"They are," she agreed. "Too far to walk, now. The city has grown large. You need a carriage to get there. A bit cold for bathing in the ocean, this time of year."

"So this is the sigil for the capital, then," Liv said, putting her hand on the one Master Grenfell had pointed out. "And last we were here, you said it took twenty rings of mana to activate the waystone." Assuming everyone did their part, five rings wasn’t a bother for her at this point.

Master Grenfell put his hand on the sigil. "Remember, once it begins to glow blue, a slow count of two hundred. That should be enough for everyone to get back into their carriages."

"And for anyone near the other end to get out of the way," Liv recalled.

"Just so." Grenfell looked over to Matthew. "Go ahead, put your hand down with ours."

Lady Julianne knelt opposite Master Grenfell, and placed her palm on the stone. Finally, across from Liv, Matthew reached out. For a moment, Liv wasn’t certain how to begin. Next to her, Master Grenfell began to pour mana into the waystone, and it opened up like thin ice breaking. Liv’s mana fell out of her before she could think to stop it, even more easily than when she used her staff to cast a spell. In fact, she wasn’t certain if she would have been able to stop the process once it had begun.

A moment later, a soft blue light began to rise from the waystone, beginning at the sigil they were touching and then spreading like flames over dry leaves. It shone brighter and brighter, and then Liv felt the pull on her mana ease.

"There. Back to the carriages," Lady Julianne said, rising and leading the way herself. Liv scrambled after Master Grenfell, but they’d both managed to sit and close the door of the carriage by the time her count reached one hundred and sixty. She was settled, face practically pressed against the window, well before she reached two hundred.

There was a moment of hesitation, and Liv was just about to ask Master Grenfell whether something might be wrong, when the blue radiance coming off the stone flared into brilliant white. The light burned through everything, even Liv’s eyelids when she closed them, and the world seemed to drop far away and grow very distant.

Liv abruptly realized she was floating in a dark place, though what ’she’ was precisely was unclear. Did she breathe? Did her heart beat? Was there anything to her at all?

Suddenly, Liv drew in a deep breath, and sat up from where she’d fallen against the carriage seat. She patted her legs and body, to make sure everything was still there. The fabric of her new skirt felt rough, as if her tender fingertips had never touched anything before in her life. "That is very strange," she said, and even her voice was wrong.

"My own Master used to say that you don’t come back quite the same," Grenfell said. "Or rather, that the you that returns isn’t quite the same as the one that left. The feeling will fade in a few moments, Liv."

"What does it actually do, though," Liv asked. "I thought it would move us fast, maybe, or open a doorway, but that almost felt like-"

"It feels like dying," Amelia Trafford said, looking out the window.

Before Liv could ask the chirurgeon what she had meant, the carriage jerked and then rolled forward. Outside, the clomp of horse’s hooves signalled that Baron Henry’s guards were moving along with them. Liv sat up and looked out again.

They were atop a hill or a rise, for to the west Liv could see the city falling away from them, down to the largest expanse of water she’d ever seen. It went on and on, dark and specked with the white breakers of waves, to an endless horizon that was terrifyingly flat. There were no comforting mountains to cradle her world, and even the air here was different. Heavier and wetter, somehow, instead of clean and clear.

They rolled off the waystone through a walled gate, and then out into a cobblestone street that led down the hill. Instantly, the carriage was bracketed on either side by crowds of people walking, talking, selling all manner of things.

Between the people, and the endless expanse of the ocean, Liv shrunk back from the window into her bench.

"Welcome to the lowlands, Apprentice," Master Grenfell said, then sighed. "I already want to be back in the mountains."