Chapter 3: The Mage Family
And Iblis looked upon the people, and told them, “Do not fear the mage or his power, for despite his strength the mage is still merely a man.”
Iblis was having some difficulty readjusting to living under someone else’s roof. He had forgotten the multitude of nonsensical rules his stepfather had and wasn’t entirely sure how to deal with all of them. But he got through, doing his best not to step on any toes. Today, fortunately, he was able to get out of the house and go over to Cerina’s. He had always found her family to be interesting, even more so after Swift had become the King of the South Sea. By that point, though, it was too late to ask them any questions.
He wasn’t sure who Cerina’s parents really were. He knew that she, like himself, had been adopted, but it was at a much later time than he was. She seemed to know who and where her birth parents were, but never talked much about them. It actually wasn’t until decades into their relationship that Iblis even learned that the magi she lived with weren’t even her actual parents. The most he knew about her biological parents was that her family had gotten into some kind of disagreement with a powerful mage (likely from Nobe, because what happened to them seemed like the kind of thing an Imperial sentinel would do), and they hadn’t been seen since then.
Of course, she loved her mage parents just as much as her actual parents. Her father was trained as a frost mage and her mother had a little informal geomancy training. Cerina herself hadn’t quite chosen a path yet, although her latency scores indicated that she would do well as a Floraemancer. She was always excited when anything having to do with her magic came up and could use her latency scores to get into college.
“My parents are worried because the only reputable college that offers Floraemancy training within the country is closer to the border mountains with Ancenia than it is to Capital City, but they’re willing to send me to an international school.” The two of them were laying in the grass outside of her house. Iblis was laying on his back, his legs up and leaning against her house. Cerina was sitting beside him, practicing her magic on some flower seeds.
“Well, they would have to do that anyway.” Iblis was tracing cloud shapes in the sky. “None of the mage colleges in the country are really worth it, but I guess that’s to be expected since we were founded by a combination of paladins and magic-deniers.” He sighed quietly. “If you have to go outside of the country, the best college for Floraemancy will be in the jungles to the south. Your only other options will be across the ocean, but all of those colleges have some connection to Nobe.”
“What’s wrong with an Imperial college?”
“You’ll never come back.” He slammed his fist on the ground. “Unless they decide to go to war with us.” Iblis sighed again. “That’s something nobody is prepared for.”
“Didn’t the Consulate sign some kind of treaty with them?”
“The Non-Combat Treaty is almost entirely ceremonial. The Imperials are using it as a means to lower our defenses so they can try an invasion from the sea. They’re forgetting our defense pact with the Avianni though, and the last thing they want is to fight a battle out at sea.”
She chuckled. “I hadn’t realized you were so well-versed in international politics.”
“I’ll have to be soon enough,” he replied humorlessly.
“What, you’re going to run to be a Consul? I think you’ll have to wait about twenty or thirty years, first.”
I won’t even be around in twenty years. Hell, we’ve barely got a decade before the Fifth Order becomes a problem. “Well, we’ll see. Anyway, your best bet is to head to Uwaye. Just be sure to get all your shots before you go.”
She stopped playing with the seeds. “You want me to go all the way down south? What will you do?”
He shrugged. “I dunno. Find some way to save the world, I guess.”
“Yeah, right, like your parents will let you stay at home and do nothing all day.”
“I won’t be doing nothing. I’ll be saving the world.”
“By doing nothing.”
“To the casual observer, it will look like nothing. To an enlightened mind, it shall be saving the world.”
“Okay, I’d love to see you explain that one to your father.” The two of them laughed as a car pulled into the driveway. An older man got out of it, looked at them, and waved. Cerina’s father adjusted his glasses and pulled his briefcase out before closing the car door.
“Hello Cerina, Sam. How are you two doing today?” He asked, walking up to them.
“I’m fine, just practicing my magic.” Cerina showed him a small pink flower.
“Ah, very impressive.” He picked up the flower and looked at it. “Did your mother teach you this?”
“Kind of. She had one of her scrolls translated, I guess?” Cerina shrugged. “She gave me a few notes after my last latency test.”
His eyebrows perked up, “Really? Did she take you to have it translated?”
“No, but she did pull them out of a book.” Cerina focused back on the seeds, “I think it’s in your room.”
“Ah.” Her father adjusted his glasses again. “Excellent. Well, can I assume that you’ll be staying with us for dinner then, Sam?”
“If you’ll have me, Mr. Burmen.”
“I’ll be sure to have Helen set a place on the table for you, then.” He walked inside and set down his briefcase. After he hung up his jacket, he walked into the kitchen and found his wife there. Helen’s dark, almost black hair, was pulled up into a bun, as she usually wore it. She was busy preparing their dinner.
“Hello, dear.” She didn’t even look up from the counter. “How was work today?”
“It was fine. One of my interns messed up balancing the accounts so I had to step in to fix them. It’s fortunate for them that all of their entries have to go through a senior staff member and that they’re all assigned to me.” He looked through their mail. “So, Sam is staying with us for dinner.”
“I know. I figured he would. He always does.” She smirked, “You know that.”
“I don’t like to assume.” He walked through a doorway and looked at his bookshelf. He pulled out a frayed, green book with golden trim and yellowing pages. “Speaking of assuming, Cerina was practicing her magic outside, Helen.” Mr. Burmen walked back in, his glasses in one hand and book in the other.
Helen now looked up from the counter and pointed her knife at him, “Don’t you dare take that tone of voice with me.”
“Helen, did you even think about the risks involved with getting those scrolls translated?”
“I did think about those risks, Joseph.” She stabbed the knife into the counter. “I had those scrolls translated years ago.”
“Years? Years, Helen? How long ago was it, Helen?”
“Five years, Joseph.” She started to glower, “I have prepared for the coming days a long, long time ago.”
“Where did you even find someone to translate them?”
“Capital City is full of interesting places and people.”
“Helen!”
“Joseph!” The two of them stared at each other for a while. “I have known Cerina’s potential for a long time.”
“Well, so have I, but—”
“But nothing, Joseph. She’s going to find out one day. We just have to let her know these things slowly.” The two of them quieted down and Helen tried pulling out her knife. She struggled with it for a few tugs, but then Joseph came over.
“Let me get it, dear.” He opened up a drawer and frowned. “Where is the chalk?”
“Third drawer down, next to the markers.” She watched over his shoulder, “Use the green one.”
He chuckled, “Green doesn’t show up well on the wood, you know that.” He pulled out a yellow piece and drew a quick spell circle around the knife. He activated the circle and pulled the knife out easily. He put the knife down and reactivated the circle, fixing the warped wood. “There. It’s all better now.”
Helen shook her head, “I don’t know why you bother with spell circles.” He picked his book back up and started walking back into the other room.
“You never know who’s watching, dear.”
Outside, the two kids were laying in the grass, staring at the sky. “Sam, what do you think things will be like when we’re older?”
“Generally hellish, I imagine. Interspaced with only the most minor of breaks and the most fleeting of rests.” He shrugged. “It’s not all bad I guess. We’ll have a family, and a nice big house, and we’ll be pretty well-liked and well-off. Although, I guess that’s less of a choice for some people.”
“Why would some people not choose to like us or not?”
“We’re very important and powerful people.”
“You have very big dreams for the future.”
“You don’t think any of that could happen?”
“Well, I just think you could be a little more realistic.”
“Oh, really? And what do you think the future will be like?”
“Well, I dunno. I think I’d like to live in a place like this. You know, kind of secluded. Quaint. It’s got a nice big yard and a fancy old fence. We could have a big family, and maybe a couple of pets. You would come home after work every day and I would stay at home and tend to the garden.”
“Well, you can have all of that in my future too. Things would just have to change after a while.”
“But I wouldn’t want things to change.”
“They would have to.” He sighed. “Things always have to change.” The two of them stayed kind of quiet for a while. They made idle chitchat about clouds and what they looked like. Eventually, Mrs. Burmen called them in for dinner and the four of them sat around the table. Iblis smiled as he enjoyed the meal; he had forgotten how well Mrs. Burmen could cook.
“So, Sam, how are things at home?” Mr. Burmen asked quietly.
“The same way they usually are. I think he’s getting crazier though. He keeps wanting me to go with him to the initiation meetings.” Iblis started picking at his rice. “It’s getting pretty bad. I don’t know what my plan is now.”
“Not that we condone this, but,” Mrs. Burmen took a drink, “if you do run, we’ll provide you with sanctuary here.”
“Helen!”
“I can’t do that.” He shook his head, “He’ll find me here. Besides,” Iblis looked at his reflection in his glass, “I won’t be the only one running.”
“What do you mean?”
“I’m getting my mother out. She won’t be subjected to his insanity any longer.” Everyone stared at him, looking confused and afraid. Except for Joseph Burmen. He managed to find a new respect for this young man and thought about it as he smoked his pipe looking out his front window, watching this same young man leave his home. He continued looking out his window long after young Sam had left. It was getting later and later, and he hadn’t yet put out the fire in his fireplace. His wife came down from their room.
“Joseph? Joseph, what’s wrong?” She put her hands on his shoulders. “Don’t you have to be up early tomorrow?”
“Is Sam coming tomorrow?”
She smiled confusedly, “Of course he is. He always comes every day on the weekends.”
“Then I’m not going in tomorrow.” He smoked his pipe a little while longer. “How many of our contacts still live downtown?”