Mage/5
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[edit] Beyond the Portal
[edit] Old Randy reveals his picture portal
After everyone had finished eating, the plates floated, hovering slowly in the air, magically back into the cabinet, seemingly even without a command being given. Old Randy turned to the others. "Now, you don't suppose that I do my magic in this little cottage?" He smiled, as the others obviously hadn't thought about this before. "Well then, I guess it is time that I show you into my demesne. Follow----"
Old Randy stood up, and produced a scroll from his robes. Starlight watched, in suspended animation, as Old Randy showed the youngsters the intricate crafting that this scroll had. Then he threw it upward toward the ceiling, rather absent-mindedly. Just as it reached the apex of the throw, the light scroll came to stop--it had attached onto a hook in the ceiling.
Then the rest of the scroll fell down, revealing more and more of a magnificent piece of art hidden within as it did so, draping toward the ground, as the wooden cylinder came to within a few inches of Starlight's feet, then abruptly stopped. The jolt caused a shimmer to appear in the face of the scroll, and suddenly the image seemed three-dimensional, and light streaked from within it into the little cottage. The paperwork swayed softly to and fro, seeming to beckon a light whispering music from the static air.
Starlight blinked. Not once, but a few times, as Old Randy put his hand through it, seemingly into another world, one that continued where this one left off. Could it be...?
[edit] The group enter Old Randy's demesne
Old Randy looked at the others, with an understanding look. "This is a picture portal," he introduced. "So... Welcome to my demesne." Then the next moment, he walked right into the three-dimensional image, and was inside.
Starlight jumped out of her seat and inspected the back of the picture portal. From behind, it seemed to be a window leading to the other half of the beautiful room that Old Randy called his "demesne". So it was indeed a channel between two different worlds. She stepped through it, from behind.
She felt a slight breeze come past her as she took her first step to the other side, and heard the faint murmurs of music. In front of her, what she was seeing seemed to open up: she was in an immense chamber, paved with marble tiles and mahogany wood on all sides; over and above her was an enormous rotunda, letting the brilliant noon light streak in with all its glory, reflecting, scattering all around, throughout the giant gothic building. High above were several colossal archs, reaching upward to the sky; under each dome hung great colored windows, scintillating in the sunlight; great stone buttresses supported curtain-like folds high up on the wall, and beautiful decorations hung suspended from a hundred feet above. One side had rows upon rows of chairs, enough to fit nearly a hundred. It was an almost rectangular room, and Starlight's senses told her that it was a hundred feet wide by four hundred long--how much it was actually, she could not have guessed.
She slowly turned around, examining the intricate stonework; her slippers gave resounding echoes from the shining, reflective marble tiles below. Behind her was the picture portal through which she had passed; now it was a window back to the cottage. Then suddenly it seemed to close up; and the next moment she was looking straight at Old Randy, who was rolling up the scroll in his hands. Right beside him were An, Andrew, and Starlight, all gazing around, speechless.
It didn't take the light breezes flowing through the gigantic hall, nor the softly singing music, for her to sense a beautiful, living presence floating, flickering all about her.
[edit] A welcome to the mage clan
"So, what happens now?" Starlight asked, fully enchanted by the wonder of this great spectacle, and not really looking at Old Randy as she asked.
"Welcome to the mage clan," declared Old Randy, in a formidable yet soothing voice, his voice echoing through the colossal hall.
And suddenly, Starlight realized that this was the introduction to magic that had been promised. Yet she was at a loss for words, as were the other children.
An broke the astonished silence. "It's just us five. The other students had graduated years ago. We won't need all this space to practice our arts, but it's quite a luxury, isn't it?" he asked.
Starlight nodded, though her mind was elsewhere, pondering what this place must have been like when Old Randy had taught hundreds of students simultaneously. There would have been quite a lot of activity, with children milling about, casting and perfecting their spells, learning from each other, each given a personal place to practice, and all under the supervision of this master. Sighing, she wished for those others to be with her, to have more company. Her home-sickness was catching up with her. "But then, I have to live with that," she thought; with experience and independence comes an overwhelming loneliness. There would not be anyone else to confide in, to ask for help with; her four friends were her only companions now, except for her buildings and a little voice that called out to her from within, "go on! This is the day you have been waiting for all these past years; it's here at last!"
[edit] At ease in the arcane demesne
So engrossed in her own thoughts, and looking down to her feet in mild depression, that Starlight did not notice when Andrew and Grace had gone over to a wall, not even when he had told them about where they were. When she finally snapped to attention, the others had already walked down to the side of the hall where the rows of mahogany chairs stood beckoning. Starlight realized that she was all alone, and was not comfortable being away from company, so she chased after them. When she had halfway caught up, An noticed her coming, and with a grin on his face, rushed off away from her, inviting her to chase after him. She wouldn't, and so as soon as she got back with Andrew and Grace, she halted, and listened eagerly as Old Randy explained:
"...yes, and so this division is why we are able to make objects appear, move, change, and disappear, among other effects..."
However, Starlight wasn't paying attention to him anymore; she was only faking it, while focusing attention on An, who was mischeivously trying to get her to play chase. She watched him wave and do his best to gain her attention, from the corner of her eye, while still retaining her posture and remaining still.
[edit] Starlight is caught not paying attention
"...Cool! Star, did you know that?" Andrew exclaimed, turning around to ask Starlight, and Old Randy broke off his explanation to watch her response intently.
"Huh? Uh, I didn't quite get that part--"
Andrew's expression of explanation quickly dissipated, and it was replaced by one of disgust. "Starlight! This is some very cool stuff that Old Randy is explaining to us! How can you find that annoying An to be more interesting?"
Starlight blushed at this accusation. "Oh well, I'll listen, but An over there sure is planning to play a prank."
Andrew brushed the matter aside, saying, "You ought to know better than to think that guy's up to anything. He just knows all this stuff that Old Randy is saying, so he can afford not to pay attention." Then in a whisper, he said to Starlight, "Just watch. Someday I'm going to whup him in magic, and then he will start to pay attention."
[edit] A confrontation between An and Andrew
Andrew had barely finished speaking than An suddenly appeared right beside them, and with his appearance sucking the children nearly off their balance for a split second, as if a hand of wind were pulling them all toward him, just as a whooshing sound of wind blowing past reached their ears. "What did you say?" he interrogated, with such a forceful expression that the other children quickly decided that he was not at all the typical prankster.
Andrew gulped. "I didn't say anything," he replied, doing his best to appear innocent, though they all knew that An would not believe such a reply.
"I'll be watching out for you," he declared, then turned to Old Randy. "Maybe it's about time we give these youngsters a break. Otherwise they'll get too many ideas."
Grace turned around to face him, wearing a not-so-happy expression on his face. "Why, An? I find this stuff so interesting," she asked tranquilly yet meaningfully.
"Er..."
"That's what I thought," declared Andrew, while taking an aggressive step forward, having regained his composure. Just as An fixed his glare back on him, possibly even getting ready to strike his friend out of sheer rage, a white piece of cloth materialized out of thin air and crashed into the older boy's mouth, knocking him onto the ground.
[edit] The Great Experiment
[edit] Purity of unity
Old Randy becan his explanation. "For quite a few years, I had taught students, some of them as parts of some very large classes, and for which I created this demesne. I had by then been taught by my own master that there are a multitude of other spellcasters extant in this world who also teach their students. I was likewise aware that all too often, their pupils fought among themselves, often leading to deadly battles that occasionally disrupted society and definitely prevented their masters from achieving their dreams of having pupils acting in unison. So in the end, at the end of every generation there were scarcely more spellcasters than in the previous.
"Therefore, I was determined to break this vicious cycle. I endeavored to create large classes, and to teach my students of the necessity of cooperation in order to accomplish the great feats that I had hoped since my youth. My teachings were thus focused on educating them about the benefits of working together, the ability to specialize in certain aspects of magic. I gave my first classes of students a purity of unity. At first, things went well. I watched joyfully as these students--who I considered my own children--became knowledgeable about the ways of magic. In time, I pronounced them graduated, and they left to go their own ways to become master of their own turf beyond these woods. But that alone did not satisfy me, as I had for them a greater goal. I had grown used to seeing large groups of people--spellcasters, my pupils all--to construct in unison, and I had taught them so, and I knew that this seed, a sense of belonging to a greater group, existed in them all. I was mistaken. Although they cooperated, they each expected the others to do more than they did themselves. When the apprentice spellcasters of other masters challenged them in battle, my pupils either waited for others to take action, or fled from the scene. They were soon defeated, and vanished from sight.
[edit] Purity of ability
"I surmised that the problem here was that each worked too little, and that the spirit of the collective had driven them to each become particularly lazy and expectant of others to do their work for them, and that this was why they had failed. In my next few classes, therefore, I expounded to my pupils the need to work hard, and to be able to sustain themselves in various situations, and thus avoid the disastrous result that had befallen my first experiment. I thus gave the students of my second experiment a purity of ability. At first, things went well. I watched happily as this new batch of students became expert in the ways of magic. In time, I pronounced them too as graduated, and they thus left to go their own ways. I had grown used to seeing them perform independently while still respect each other's abilities. I was mistaken. I had not recognized the effect of the environments on their capabilities, and while some became strong very quickly, others became weaker, and before long splits had emerged between them. Despite my efforts to intervene, the bond that had held them together while under my tutelage soon evaporated. The apprentices of other masters then worked together to eliminate their power, and forced them too into hiding.
[edit] Purity of essence
"And hence I arrived, years later, to where we are now. I have realized that the problem was quite possibly with my mode of teaching, which had ingrained into them a certain inflexibility and incapability which the other apprentices lacked. After abandoning my teaching for a decade, I have now returned, fueled by this newfound revelation, which I hope will cure this problem once and for all: I shall teach you four children as little as possible, to have you find things out for yourself. You will discover most of magic on your own, and respond in the ingenuitive ways that nature has bestowed on you--for she has, and I have searched for a little while before finding such an optimal group as you. You shall be my third and greatest experiment, holders of a purity of essence."
Starlight sighed. She had not known that Old Randy - seemingly a normal villager back in Bahasa - could actually have been through so much interesting, elite experiences in his very long life.
"And now," continued Old Randy, "I plan to start teaching you the basics of magic come tomorrow morning. Until then, you should enjoy yourselves, because things are going to get quite a bit different in a very little while."
