Andrew Rowe - Sufficiently Advanced Magic

“Students. Do not be concerned. The creatures in the skies above us are all specialized in observation — that is, they’re not here for battle. They are simply looking for something. At this time, we do not believe that ‘something’ is a student. Once they find what they are searching for, they will most likely leave. That said, rest assured that the Valian military has been contacted and will be arriving here in full force within the hour.”

With that, his duplicates faded, and Teft simply turned his back and returned to the group of teachers. Student murmurs resumed a few moments later.

“An hour? You really think they can get an army here that fast?” Patrick looked about as nervous as I felt. His hands were clenched into fists.

I shrugged. “It’s not going to be the entire army. I think he was being hyperbolic when he said ‘full force’. A few thousand troops, though? Possible if they’ve got some sort of teleportation system set up, which they almost definitely do.”

Prior to the invention of trains, I knew some individual attuned used to serve as couriers via teleportation, but there were no teleportation-based mass transit systems. That probably implied that the enchantments were too costly to use regularly. Or perhaps that the military simply didn’t want teleportation to be easily accessible to the public, due to the potential dangers. If Valia was one of the only nations with access to teleportation, for example, it would be unwise to let it fall into the hands of other countries.

I really needed to study foreign attunements soon. I didn’t even know if other countries had anything equivalent to an Enchanter.

“Would the army really be able to stop those things, Corin? There were a lot of them up there. And Lord Teft, what he said about them scouting? That’s true for the little ones, but what about Mizuchi?”

I didn’t know what to say to that. Patrick seemed better versed in the monsters than I was. I’d focused on studying the Judgment specifically, and these kinds of monsters were from other parts of the tower. “I think we’re going to have to trust Teft on this.” It felt awkward to say that, considering how deceptive he’d been in class, but that extreme behavior was probably for our own benefit and amusement. Probably.

“Al… All right.” He stood up for a minute, looking around, and then sat back down. “I still don’t see the others.”

I’d sort of given up on that. “They’re probably in another shelter. We just need to—”

There was a flash of light, and then a feeling of pressure. It was similar to what I’d sensed when Conway had faced off against the karvensi outside, but stronger. I could feel the source before I saw it — a floating figure in the center of the room.

A cloaked and hooded figure, the hood seemingly empty. I knew immediately what it reminded me of, but it wasn’t quite the same as the form the Voice had taken.

The robes were tattered and worn, but stitched with golden runes. It was huge; it would probably have reached fifteen feet in height if it had been standing straight. Instead, it hunched over, as if bearing an invisible burden.

I activated my attunement. My eyes burned from what I saw.

The floating creature radiated with malevolence. The aura was a sickly green, pulsating, extending several feet out in every direction from the monster’s body. I’d never seen an aura that felt so powerful.

Teft flickered and appeared below the creature with his cane raised a moment later, but he didn’t attack. His own aura was brilliant gold. The hooded figure continued to hover in the air, a good twenty feet above Teft’s position.

I saw Conway hop onto a table, too, but he didn’t seem to have teleportation magic; he made his way closer at a running pace. He glowed with a field of yellow-orange.

I deactivated my attunement. The sheer number of auras in the room was making my head swim.

The cloaked figure turned its head, scanning the room. I saw no face within the cowl, consistent with the experience I’d had with the Voice.

Nearby students had risen from their tables and were beginning to scatter, and I heard a scream or two. One student even fired a bolt from a dueling cane at the thing, but the attack glanced harmlessly off the creature’s robes.

The hooded figure turned, glancing at the source of the attack. I saw the student wither at its gaze, taking a step backward… and then his dueling cane snapped in half. No action was visible from the cloaked figure or the student — it just broke apart.

The student retreated into the crowd and the hooded figure turned away. No other students risked an assault.

Conway finally reached the center of the room, hopping onto a table next to Teft. I could see another professor nearer to the back of the room standing on another table — was that Meltlake? I couldn’t tell, she was too far away.

I hoped it was. If a battle broke out, I didn’t think any one of the other professors had the kind of firepower that Meltlake did.

And, just like it had appeared, the creature unceremoniously vanished.

I felt little comfort at that.

Clearly, if some of these monsters could teleport, our little hiding spot was not secure. The teachers must have sensed that, too. I saw Teft clench his fists as the creature vanished, then begin to draw on the table below him with his cane.

Making runes? Something to block enemy teleportation, maybe?

I watched with interest, but Teft was too far away for me to see any details.

The next several minutes were tense, until Chancellor Wallace appeared on a table near Teft, flanked by a pair of soldiers. Teft walked over to the chancellor and exchanged words.

Chancellor Wallace moved to the center of the room, waving a hand and creating a glowing golden symbol in the air. I’d never seen anything quite like it. It bathed the chamber in a warm, comforting light.

“My students.” Her voice sounded like it was coming from right next to me. That was an even better trick than Teft’s. “We have determined the cause of the monster incursion and addressed the issue. They will be returning to the tower shortly. We will keep you down here for another couple hours, just to be certain that the school is completely cleared of any potential threats, but the problem appears to be resolved.”

Most students seemed relieved. Even I was, in spite of my concerns…

…Which made me suspect that the symbol in the middle of the room was more than just a pretty glowy thing.

Mind magic. Something to soothe us.

It made sense; she’d want us to be calm and prevent any further problems.

But there was clearly something wrong. The problem appears to be resolved? What is this ‘problem’ she’s being so vague about?

I had a few ideas.

Keras Selyrian was at the top of the list.

If he’d escaped the tower, I’d bet anything that Katashi would be sending monsters to figure out where he’d gone.

I didn’t know how to feel about that.

I’d more or less sided with Keras in that conflict, but I still knew virtually nothing about him. He was a foreigner, obviously. He might work for the Tyrant in Gold, but I couldn’t be sure about that. It was only a rumor.

It had been my instinct to protect Vera and the child — who I also knew virtually nothing about — that had made my decision. Katashi seemed like he was perfectly happy to leave me alone.

But why was Katashi even in this tower in the first place?

The Serpent Spire was Tenjin’s territory, not his. Were they working together on something?

I needed answers and, even more than those, ways to protect my friends.

I was done with being idle.

I seethed in silence for the remaining hours before they sent us back to our rooms. Classes were cancelled for the day, and for the following day.