Summoner: Origins The Prequel (6 page)

Arcturus stood, earning himself a grumbling growl from Sacharissa as her head flopped to the floor.

‘That's great. I haven't even had time to wash yet!' he said, trying to remember the way to the baths.

‘I wasn't going to say anything,' Elizabeth laughed, holding her nose jokingly. ‘Go wash up and then relax in your rooms, I will make sure someone bring you lunch and dinner. The others will be at training with Lady Faversham all day anyway.'

‘When's our next lesson?' Arcturus asked as he hurried to the door, suddenly aware of how close Elizabeth and Elaine were standing to him.

‘I'll see you tomorrow morning. I'm assisting in the summoning lesson with Lord Scipio.'

10

Arcturus spent most of the day attempting to improve his living conditions, taking spare sheets and broken furniture from the storerooms, creating a makeshift blockade for the window and adding another few layers of cloth to his threadbare blanket. He was exhausted and hungry by lunchtime, but fortunately food was brought up by a waspish Ulfr, who dumped the tray unceremoniously in the room and left without a word.

The food was plain lamb and potatoes, obviously prepared for the servants rather than the nobles, but it was far better fare than Arcturus was used to at the inn and ambrosia compared to the slops he had eaten at the workhouse. There was even a bowl of mincemeat for Sacharissa, which she gulped down with relish and then nosed the bowl for more.

As instructed, he went searching for Obadiah in the afternoon, but was swiftly herded back to his room by one of the dwarven servants. It turned out that the Provost had been called away earlier than expected, and was no longer at Vocans. This was fine by Arcturus. He wasn't sure if he liked the man.

They spent the rest of the night practising with wyrdlights, delighting in the way they floated aimlessly around the room, as if they had lives of their own. Sacharissa would snap at them in the air, leaping and diving to catch them, while Arcturus tried to nudge them out of the way. Whenever she managed to touch one, her look of complete bafflement at its disappearance and the fresh darkness entertained Arcturus no end.

When night fell, his room was considerably warmer than the previous night, with no cutting draft to chill his bones. He was lulled to sleep by the gentle rise and fall of Sacharissa's chest, pressed against him among a tangle of blankets.

‘Wake up, you're late!'

The banging on the door jerked Arcturus from his slumber. The room was still dark, a consequence of his improvised window shade. He had no idea what time it was.

‘Wassat?' he mumbled as Sacharissa whined at the noise.

‘Summoning lessons started five minutes ago. Rouse yourself, or stay and face the consequences!' Ulfr's voice came from outside the door. His footsteps echoed down the corridor as Arcturus's sleep-addled mind processed the words.

‘Oh no!'

Arcturus was glad that he had slept in his uniform, for he was pelting past Ulfr and down the stairs ten seconds later. Sacharissa ran ahead, punctuating each leap forward with a low pant.

He found her nosing at the summoning room doors, but he paused and composed himself before they entered.

‘Not a great first impression for Lord Scipio. Plus we've missed breakfast.' Arcturus groaned, preparing himself for the worst. He turned the handle and stepped inside.

The other students stood in a circle, but they ignored him as he tiptoed into the room. The group were surrounding a low, round table, but Arcturus could not see what was on it. The nobles did not attempt to make room for him, so he looked over Elaine's shoulder, as she was the smallest of the group.

The table was made of pure white marble, polished to be smooth and round as a river pebble, but it was the object embedded in the centre that took Arcturus's breath away: an enormous gem, the size of a large carriage wheel and as black as ink, shone up at him like volcanic glass.

‘Nice of you to join us, Arcturus,' a voice said from behind him. Arcturus turned, an apology already forming on his lips.

A man stood in the centre of the room. He was powerfully built, with lambchop sideburns and curly hair the colour of chocolate. He stood with his arms crossed, but the smile on his face showed Arcturus he did not mind his tardiness, so he cut his apology short. His gold edged officer's uniform left no doubt as to who he was: Lord Scipio.

‘I was just going to go and collect you, when you ran right past me,' Scipio said, before turning back to the open door he had come through. He gave a brief, sharp whistle. The hairs on the back of Arcturus's neck stood up as he heard a yowl from outside, then a demon bounded through the door, its tail lashing the air.

Sacharissa growled, her hackles raised at the sight of the new demon. It looked like a snow leopard, with a dusting of black spots on a thick white pelt. It had two long canines that poked out on either side of its mouth like twin sabres, below a set of four fierce green eyes, not unlike Sacharissa's. Strangest of all, it seemed to walk like a jungle chimp, crouching on two legs and resting on its front paws, almost bipedal, but not quite. It was agile, for it slunk swiftly around the room, its eyes never leaving Sacharissa.

‘Calm down, Kali, you'd think you've never seen a Canid before,' Scipio laughed, as the Felid arched its back, snarling at Sacharissa. ‘You'll have to forgive her, Arcturus. She's a bit afraid of them.'

Scipio winked conspiratorially at Arcturus. As if she understood him, the Kali froze, then sat back on her haunches. She proceeded to lick her paw, completely ignoring Sacharissa.

Scipio walked over and held his hand out for Sacharissa to smell. She gave it a cursory sniff, then licked it once with her pink tongue to show her approval.

‘Canids and Felids, there's always been a bit of a rivalry there. Must be something to do with competing for food sources in the ether.'

‘The ether?' Arcturus asked, his curiosity piqued.

‘You'll find out soon enough,' Scipio said, looking behind Arcturus at the others. They had been watching their exchange with interest.

‘Make room for Arcturus, ladies and gentlemen. He shouldn't have to crane over young Elaine's head. Charles, Damian, there seems to be some room in between you. Budge up,' Scipio ordered, shooing them with his hands.

The two boys stared daggers at Arcturus, who shuffled forward and wedged himself between them. They leaned in, digging their shoulders uncomfortably into his own.

‘For the benefit of Elaine and Arcturus, I shall give a basic run-through of what we are going to learn here over the course of this year. It will act as a good refresher for those of you who have neglected your studies since last we met.'

There was an audible groan from the others and Arcturus frowned apologetically. Edmund mouthed, ‘It's fine,' at Artcurus and gave him a smile.

‘Now, this stone in the centre is the largest scrying stone ever discovered, otherwise known as the Oculus. Are you aware of what a scrying stone does?' Scipio said, pushing between the Queensouth twins and pointing at the stone.

‘Yes sir, when a demon touches it, the stone will show everything that a demon sees,' Arcturus said, remembering his brief lesson with Obadiah Forsyth. Elaine nodded in agreement.

‘Very good. It will keep showing it for several hours, or until the scrying stone is touched once again. Now, Kali here will demonst—'

Before he could finish speaking, a draft ruffled the hair on Arcturus's nape as the Felid soared over him. It landed with its paws around the stone, before nudging it gently with its nose.

‘Ahem . . . yes . . . well done, Kali,' Scipio said, as the stone flickered with colour. A moment later Arcturus was staring at a close-up of Charles's face, for that was where Kali was looking. The detail was incredible—

Arcturus could even see the pores in the boy's nose. It was not a pretty sight.

‘Felid's have better eyesight than others. Most summoners prefer to use a Mite to scout the ether first, but Kali is quick enough to jump back through if there's any trouble.'

Arcturus's curiosity quickened as the ether was mentioned again. Jump back through what?

‘And, do you know what infusion is?' Scipio asked.

‘Yes, sir,' Arcturus said, still mesmerised by the image as Kali switched her gaze from one face to another.

‘Good. I shall teach you how to infuse a demon next week perhaps, your demon seems well behaved enough to not distract you in lessons.'

‘Thank you, sir,' Arcturus said. He felt far safer with Sacharissa by his side, and knew that if he were taught to infuse her, she would not be allowed out for most of the day. Still, he was curious about what it felt like to have the demon within him. He almost didn't believe it was possible.

‘Now, I shall use one of the keyed pentacles on the floor beside us. Who can tell me what a keyed pentacle is?'

‘A keyed pentacles has a symbol on each corner of the star. They act as coordinates that will open a portal to the ether,' Baybars Saladin replied.

‘Good. I shall now do so. Pay attention everyone,' Scipio said, kneeling on the ground. He laid his hands on the floorboards, then grunted as his fingertips began to glow blue. There was a low hum in the room, and slowly but surely the lines of the pentacle Scipio was facing shone with the same electric light. The symbols on each corner pulsed. A pinprick appeared in the air, expanding slowly into a spinning orb the size of a man's head. Still, it grew, doubling in size over and over, until it was larger than the table they stood around.

Scipio's face was red with effort, the veins on his neck bulging. He lifted one hand, causing the pentacle to crackle, before removing a wooden spike, attached to a roll of leather from his back pocket. He rammed it into the floorboards, then stood, panting, the leather strap gripped firmly in his hand. The fingertips remained blue, and Arcturus could tell he was powering the pentacle through the connection.

‘There's got to be a better way of doing this,' Scipio muttered, stepping back into his place at the table. ‘Kali! You know what to do.'

The Felid yowled with excitement, before leaping over their heads once again. Kali landed in a crouch, then leaped into the orb, disappearing as swiftly as a disturbed wyrdlight. But Arcturus's attention did not remain on the orb for long. The image on the stone had changed. Scipio smiled at him as his mouth dropped open.

‘Welcome . . . to the ether.'

11

Arcturus had never seen so much green. The ground was coated in thick, sage coloured grass, with mossy tree trunks all around them. Hundreds of feet above, viridescent foliage filtered light from the sky, dappling the shadows with green tinged radiance.

‘All demons originate from the ether. Their world is shaped like a giant disc, with a desert known as the deadlands around the edges, and jungle and forests in the outer ring. The centre is more mountainous and dangerous, filled with the most powerful demons, volcanoes, great expanses of water and who knows what else. Nobody has ever been more than a few miles from the area we hunt in, but if you were to fly high enough, that is what you would see,' Scipio was speaking for Arcturus's benefit, for even Elaine seemed unsurprised by the moving images on the stone.

‘Using my mind and what I see in the Oculus, or another scrying stone as the case may be, I am able to control Kali's movements.'

Kali's eyes twitched to the nearest tree trunk, then her claws flashed into view as they began to climb. A tiny Mite, almost as small as a normal beetle, crawled from beneath the bark. Elaine gasped as Kali impaled it with one long talon, before spooning it into her mouth. The image juddered as the Felid chomped down.

‘Yes, the ether is a brutal place. It's eat or be eaten, and lesser Mites are at the bottom of the food chain. A Scarab Mite, like yours, is not though. I feed her well, but Kali does like a taste of her old diet,' Scipio joked, though Elaine's expression remained grim and defiant.

‘Stay away from Valens,' she hissed at the stone.

Kali continued her climb, occasionally glancing around to make sure the coast was clear. It seemed strange to Arcturus that such a large, powerful creature was so wary of her surroundings, and he wondered what manner of creatures could be a threat to a Felid.

He didn't have to wait long. Kali broke through the canopy, the Oculus's image flashing briefly as the Felid's eyes adjusted to the new light.

The treeline seemed to stretch endlessly ahead, broken only by jagged mountains and the occasional clearing, like reefs and trenches in a sea of green. Each mountain top smouldered, sending slow moving pillars of smoke reaching into the sky before dissipating into a pall of ash that filled the cloudless sky. Arcturus could see no sun, or moon to speak of, just an orange glow that reminded him of dusk on a summer's day.

As Kali's eyes adjusted further, Arcturus could see swarms of creatures, too far away to make out, forming and reforming in the sky, while larger dots hovered above them, waiting for an opportunity to strike. A Scarab Mite, its carapace cerulean blue, flitted across Kali's vision.

In the distance, Arcturus saw a herd of creatures making their way through the trees. They had the same long necks and large bodies as giraffes but with thicker limbs and a head that reminded Arcturus of a horse's or camel's. Their short fur was grey, mottled with black patches.

‘Looks like the Indrik herds are on the move,' Scipio said, pointing at them on the stone. ‘Far too big to be practical as a summoner's demon, but I always love to see them.'

They watched for a moment longer, as the Indriks made short work of the tree line around them. Judging by the size of the trees, they must have been as tall as ten men, standing on each other's shoulders.

‘We cannot stay too long. Can anyone tell me why?' Scipio asked.

‘You can never stay too long in the ether,' Edmund said confidently. ‘There are other demons out there that might eat your own. No matter how powerful it is, there is always something higher up on the food chain. Then there's the fact that your mana levels are dropping every second you keep the portal open. If they run out or you lose concentration, the portal will close and you will lose your demon for ever.'

Arcturus saw Zacharias roll his eyes, then whisper into Josephine Queensouth's ear. She giggled and Edmund's face reddened.

‘Very good, Edmund. You're absolutely right, but that is not what I am getting at. Anybody else?' Scipio asked, looking around the table. There was silence, then Prince Harold put up his hand.

‘Is it the Shrikes?' he suggested, unsure of himself.

‘Correct!' Scipio beamed, flashing the prince a congratulatory grin. He turned to Arcturus and Elaine. ‘Shrikes travel in flocks, led by their matriarch, the dominant female. During the first few weeks of the academic year, they migrate across our hunting grounds. They are dangerous birds, twice as large as an eagle and many times as vicious. That's them, flying over the Lesser Mite swarms in the distance. They hunt alone for smaller prey, but for Kali, they would attack in a group of ten or more. After they make their kill, they impale their victims on tree branches, to hold them in place while they feast. Luckily for us, we seem to have missed the worst of it.'

Arcturus shuddered. He wouldn't want to send Sacharissa into the ether, but he would dearly have loved to capture a Mite for himself. She had spent most of her life there . . . surely it couldn't be that bad.

‘Right, I think that's enough for one day. The first and second years will practice demonic control and infusion for the remainder of the day. As for the rest of you, I suggest you practice opening and closing portals, making sure to keep your distance. As you know, the air in the ether is highly toxic to humans. No demons are to enter under any circumstan—'

Scipio froze, his eyes searching the stone, though all Arcturus could see was the tree trunks.

‘Something's coming. Kali can hear it. Smell it,' Scipio uttered. The pentacle behind him crackled as his concentration slipped, but he grunted and it returned to a steady glow once more. The acrid stench of burned wood permeated the room, and Arcturus could see the planks at the edges of the pentacle singeing black.

‘Another. Two of them. But not the same. Better stay in the trees,' he was muttering to himself, the lesson momentarily forgotten.

Kali's eyes turned to the ground for the first time. Another orb, identical to the one floating in the centre of the summoning room, hung in the air, spinning gently. It must have been what Kali had come out of, and would need to return to if she wanted to leave the ether.

They were above a large clearing of sorts, for the surrounding area was uneven, scattered with tangled branches and lichenous rocks. Yet within the vegetation, there was a disturbance, shaking the leaves as something made its way towards them. Though Arcturus could only see what was happening, he could imagine the sound of snapping twigs as a beast tore through the foliage.

To the other side, something even larger had almost reached the clearing, for Arcturus could see horns tearing at the undergrowth. Whatever it was, it was enormous, perhaps as tall as seven feet.

‘There's going to be a fight,' Fergus whispered, wrapping his arm around his little sister. Elaine ignored him, instead removing Valens from her pocket, so he could watch.

A hairless, gangly creature emerged into the clearing. It was longlimbed and skeletal, with elongated claws and splayed feet. It walked much like Kali did, though it was more hunched and bowlegged, with lengthy arms that knuckled the ground with every step.

Gnarled antlers branched from a heavy-browed forehead, above a snout somewhere between a horse's and a wolf's. Its black eyes scanned the ground ahead and it snorted gulps of air as it sought the scent of its opponent.

‘A Wendigo,' Scipio whispered, his voice tinged with something between awe and horror. ‘I've never seen one in the wild. They're rare in our hunting grounds, in fact, it's virtually unheard of. Only the most powerful of orc shamans use them, and rarely. It has a fulfilment level of thirteen.'

Arcturus felt his stomach turn over, watching as the grey-skinned aberration edged around the orb. With just one leap, it could enter through the portal and into the summoning room.

‘Sir, shouldn't we get help. It . . . it might come through,' Arcturus stammered.

Scipio was sweating profusely now, his face gone from the red of exertion to the pale white of exhaustion. He responded to Arcturus without lifting his eyes from the Oculus.

‘Don't worry boy. Wild demons don't like to go near portals. It's strange enough that the Wendigo would get that close at all. Must be starving, that's why it's wandered into our hunting grounds. Still, if it's that desperate, we can't risk sending Kali through until its gone. It might jump in after her.'

‘Can you keep the portal open for long enough? How are your mana levels?' Prince Harold asked.

‘If I can keep the flow of mana steady, maybe another ten minutes or so,' Scipio replied, watching as the second creature neared the clearing. ‘I exhausted most of my mana yesterday on the battlefield. If the worst happens, I may send in Kali when the Wendigo is distracted. Let's see what the other demon is first.'

As Scipio finished speaking, the second creature erupted from the bushes with a throaty bellow. Yet when it saw the Wendigo, it began to back away, as if surprised to see it.

‘Looks like it didn't know what it was tracking,' Prince Harold said, leaning over the table to get a better view.

‘Minotaur. Fulfilment level of eleven,' Rook breathed from beside Arcturus, his voice tinged with awe and longing. ‘My father has one of those.'

Arcturus examined the creature as the two demons circled each other. The Minotaur was an enormous beast, slightly taller than the Wendigo, but only because it walked upright instead of hunched over. It had a bull's head, with red baleful eyes and a pair of long, curved horns that it lowered at its opponent.

A shaggy carpet of black fur covered its frame, over thick slabs of hard muscle. It scored the ground with its hooves, preparing to charge, the hooked claws on its hands outstretched.

‘That's two demons that rarely show up in our hunting grounds,' Scipio said, thinking aloud. ‘It must be the Shrikes, they're following them to eat their leftovers. But there's not enough food for both of them.'

‘They had better stop this showboating, if Kali's going to get out in time,' Edmund muttered, as the creatures continued to stare at each other, making mock charges. Then, as if spurred on by Edmund's words, they met in a tangle of claws and teeth.

The Wendigo's antlers locked with the Minotaur's horns as they spun and circled, spitting and slashing at each other. It was immediately obvious that the Wendigo had the upper hand. The length of its arms allowed it to hack away at the Minotaur's chest and shoulders, leaving deep, bloody scores in the flesh. Meanwhile, the Minotaur's reach was too short; the antlers its horns were caught in kept it at a distance. Instead, the Minotaur grabbed at the Wendigo's wrists, until it finally managed to grasp them. They struggled on, straining against each other, as the Minotaur's blood trickled into the tall grass.

‘I'm going to make a break for it,' Scipio gasped, as the pentacle began to crackle. The wooden boards were smoking now, as the unstable connection generated too much heat.

‘Now!' he yelled.

Kali somersaulted from the tree, plunging towards the spinning portal. There was a brief image of the two predators, their eyes turning at the sudden arrival of the Felid. Then she was through, slamming into the floor below the summoning room portal. Scipio released the leather cable and collapsed. The orb shrunk into nothingness and the pentacle faded, leaving a smoking outline of charred wood. The room was cast in darkness as the wyrdlights winked out, one by one.

There was silence, then Scipio spoke, a ragged voice in the shadows.

‘Let that be a lesson to you. The ether is a dangerous, unpredictable place. Class dismissed.'