"Please. Have a seat." I heard the voice again. It was coming from the Buddha!
I moved closer and stared into the statue's eyes.
"You don't need to stand at ceremony in front of me," the Buddha statue smiled in what he must have thought was a gentle, reassuring manner. "Sit and relax awhile."
It was not reassuring in the least. His smile was creepy as heck.
"Sorry." I plopped on the floor in front of him. "I wasn't expecting to hear a voice coming from you."
"Most people don't. All they do is pray at me. Nobody listens to me much."
"What would you say to them if they did listen?"
"I'd tell them to stop praying to me and go live a happy balanced life."
"But that just doesn't sound reverent or important enough for somebody like you. You should say something like, 'do good deeds, tithe, be humble and unassuming, feed the hungry, pray more', you know. Something like that."
Buddha laughed. "I hear and obey. From now on, I will say that to the people who come and pray at me."
"Oh no! I didn't mean it like that. Of course, you should say what you really feel. I was just giving examples of what I would expect someone in your exhaled, important position to be saying."
"I am no more exhaled and important than you are."
I rolled my eyes. "I beg to differ. You're the one on the dais being revered and venerated. I'm just a defective mage who can barely do any magik."
"You are far more than what you think you are." Buddha's stony gaze fixed on me. "But I am curious. What would YOU say if you are the one on the dais in front of a multitude of adoring fans and supporters who are eagerly awaiting your every word of advice?"
I scratched my head. "I guess I'd tell them…" I paused.
I had so little experience with the world and with life in general. What would I tell a crowd of followers that wouldn't sound preachy and self-important? What could I possibly say that would most benefit them?
I looked up into his eyes. "I'd tell them to go and live a happy life."
Buddha laughed. "I see we think alike on the most important points."
"Ah. You've met Nana." A voice called out from behind me.
Magus Asada was back.
She had changed out of her black robe and was now wearing a bright blue floor-length robe. I recognized the ancient ceremonial mage yiphu that the elders sometimes wore on special occasions. It looked elegant and beautiful on Magus Asada.
Her long white hair had been twisted into an elegant coif which complemented her thin pale face. The robe was a deep cobalt blue, embroidered with pink and white orchids and broad greenish-grey leaves. The yiphu had large sleeves counterbalanced with a wide magenta sash tied around her waist.
My eyes widened and my jaw dropped.
Magus Asada had turned into an exquisite living doll.
"I didn't know you had such an interesting student," Buddha chuckled.
"Don't let her give you a hard time."
The Buddha laughed again and then grew silent. His form had solidified back into carved stone.
"Wow, you look stunning!" I could barely keep my eyes off Magus Asada.
"Thank you. I do what I must when I must."
"Where are you going?"
"I am going nowhere; however, I need to borrow your legs. Will you assist me?"
"Of course. What can I do for you?"
Magus Asada held out both her hands in front of her face and blew a smoke ring. The ring solidified as it grew and turned into a sphere. The bubble grew larger and larger until it was roughly two-feet in diameter.
She removed her hands. The bubble floated in the air between them unassisted.
"Take hold of the bubble." Magus Asada advised.
I reached out and touched it. It retreated slightly, as if it was a balloon, suspended in mid-air by some invisible string.
Using both hands, I captured the transparent bubble between my palms. It weighed almost nothing, but it felt tough and durable, almost like a very thin plastic ball.
"Now, come with me." She led me out of the temple.
"Were you able to figure out how to change the koi fish back to normal?"
"Yes. I had to do a bit of experimentation to figure out how that boy caused all my koi to be luminescent. Remind me to compliment Professor Quimby for taking on such a bright student."
"I think he was severely reprimanded for that stunt."
"That's a shame. Mental acuity and brilliance should be rewarded, not punished. Does he prefer to teach slow, unmotivated students?"
I grinned. "You sound as if you would love to teach. Why don't you?"
"What makes you think I am not teaching?" She touched my head. "Come."
Back out in the golden sunlight of the early evening, we meandered back to the koi pond.
The fish were milling around without purpose, but when they saw us, they clustered together as if of one mind and swam toward the side of the pond where we were standing.
"They are no longer bioluminescent, yes?"
I looked at the fish.
Then I looked at the sunlight dappling through the bamboo leaves. "I don't know. It's such a bright day. I can't really tell."
Magus Asada laughed.
"I can come back at night and check on them for you."
"There is no need for that. The fish will tell me if it does not work. They will also be able to carry messages for me if you ever need to relay any information. Scry the waters and find the koi."
I stared at her in amazement. I could not believe that she was actually using a bunch of fish as a message relay service.
That was ingenious as far as high magik was concerned but I had to question its efficacy and its efficiency as opposed to just leaving a simple voicemail message on a low-tech mobile phone.
She pointed me towards the exit. "Now, it is time for us to be off on our next adventure."
"Where are we going?"
"We will join the group of mages at their meeting."
"We've lost more than half-an-hour already. Is it worth it?"
"The first hour is nothing but pomp and circumstance. They parade around and introduce all the House Leaders and Discipline Heads. Then comes the various awards and accolades as they pat each other on the backs and jockey for social status and positions of dubious importance."
Magus Asada gave a smile that did not reach her sightless eyes. "It is quite wearisome and we will have missed nothing of importance."
"What would you like for me to do?"
She pointed to the bubble in my hand. "I want you to take this bubble and go to the meeting in my place."
I chuckled. "I am nothing and nobody. They will not let me in."
"Nonsense. You are Inanna Imara, Chosen Representative of the Augury Discipline. They must allow you access. Besides," she sniffed. "I will be there as well."
"You will come?" I asked, my eyes shining with excitement.
"Of a sort. I will be in scry-visual mode. This is why you must carry the bubble there. I need to hear the proceedings, and you need to keep me informed of what I am unable to hear and see."
I stared at the bubble, somewhat disturbed. It looked as if I was going to be carrying a disembodied scri-visual head of Magus Asada to the meeting.
"Alright, I'll do it. When do you want me to--"
"Now. Go child." She pushed me back to the bamboo path which led out of the bamboo clearing.
Stumbling and meandering, I found myself walking back with the large bubble in between my hands.
It was large, but not uncomfortably so, and I found that if I kept my elbows extended down far enough, I could see over the top of the bubble.
Not that I couldn't see through it since it was 'see-through', but the distortion of the bubble's sphere would have given me a headache after awhile so I was glad that I did not have to worry about that.
Once again, I was dumbfounded by how the older mages often used the most complex methods for dealing with situations rather than the simplest way to handle something. I had always thought the elders eschewed high tech because they thought it was classier and less plebeian to use high magik; however, Magus Asada was not a magik snob.
She was just more of an oblivious and unaware mage when it came to high tech.
I sighed.
And people wonder why I was not a huge fan of high magik for every single purpose and activity. It was more than a little embarrassing to carry this huge round bubble with a scry-visual of her face.
I really needed to sell Magus Asada on the idea of using a tablet or a laptop with 3D video conferencing so she could communicate with others as opposed to utilizing this ancient, outdated method. I made a mental note to talk to her about it the following Monday at our next scheduled meeting.
It was almost 1 pm by the time I returned to the Esplanade.
The early afternoon glowed warm and golden on the empty stretch of baked cobblestones. Other than the warbling of several stray red-winged blackbirds, the Esplanade was empty of the usual sounds of idle chatter and that distinct yodeling that the air riders tended to adopt.
This late in the afternoon, all of the primate workers had finished their work for the morning and were on their mid-day breaks. Since the students had all been dismissed due to the unexpected meeting, the campus had that strange deserted feel.
It was almost like the calm before the storm.
The magnolias and fan palms swayed in the afternoon breeze.
It whispered and chuffed to the oleanders and the bougainvilleas about their collective indifference of the momentous decisions that were being made by the prominent group of mages behind the huge double doors of the Amphitheater. The trees and flowers had no idea of the importance of the meeting.
It was very important.
It was important enough for Magus Asada to venture forth from her bamboo grove, even if only via scry-visuals.
It was also important enough that the mages had placed two door attendants to restrict access to those who had no business being there. They were dressed in the basic mage black bodysuits with their arms were crossed behind their backs and their legs spread apart in the guardian fight stance.
As I came closer to the Amphitheater entrance, I ran a few dialogue scenarios through my mind, planning ahead what I would say to the door guards so that I could gain admittance.
I was about five feet away from them when they caught sight of me. Three more steps took me close enough so that I could see the green dots and stripes on their arms.
These were the famed Osiris House guards.
They went into immediate attention, straightened their legs and bowing at the waist with their palms pressed to their midsections.
I fumbled with the ball, not sure how to respond to their deferential treatment when I heard Magus Asada speak from the bubble.
"Please let us in. I have been summarily invited to this meeting."
I stifled a giggle. They were standing on ceremony for the Magus, not for me.