~Doerna, Planet Carass, Sigma Universe~
The winds howled and blew snow through the pass. Magus pulled his cowl tighter around his face. He made his way back into the village towards the High Priests shelter. Snow drifts formed over the invisible shield covering the village. Passing the altar, he ran his hands over the stone powering it. As was tradition, he sent a small amount of his own magic into the stone as tribute to the Gods for giving their protection.
As he entered the Priests shelter, the old elf turned his way. A weary smile, "ah, my apprentice! What brings you this long night?"
Straight to the heart of the matter then, "I wish to cross the ice seas to the west."
"To the lands of wolfmen and our woodland kin?"
Magus nodded, "yes Holy One. I think it is time for me to seek out new knowledge. I… I feel restrained."
The High Priest sighed, "Is this because Sher'tam is to take my place when my time is up? He will likely need your help as you would need his…."
Magus began to pace. He held his hands firmly behind his back. Slowly he began to recite what he had been repeating over and over on his way here, "He will take your place and I will be his helper. I can do more than he will need. There are a dozen apprentices, low mages, and others to aid him in any way I could. Exploring a new land, I can do my experiments without endangering others within the village. I have spoken with a priest of the Hierlands and he assured me that I would be welcome and given a home within the mountains."
"Do you plan to make this trip alone? The seas are rough and you would not be the first to perish. Magic or not, there are beings out there who would gladly suck the essence from you."
Magus nodded, "of course I could not safely make the trip alone. I am also aware of the issues with the portals. That is why I want to go somewhere solitary to continue working on the portals."
"So, you will travel with the merchants then?"
"Yes," Magus began to let the excitement slide through, "I have booked passage for this night if you will grant me your approval! Passage is paid, shelter planned ahead, everything taken into consideration."
The High Priests ears twitched. He looked over Magus. It was understandable his desire to travel and explore. He himself had spent years traveling before returning to assume his position. With his successor already decided, his second apprentice was restricted in what he could achieve. Still, he was concerned with whispers of war brewing in the west and south.
Magus could see the conflict in his master's eyes. It was a long journey and then there were the dangers of the unknown. Few snow elves traveled from their home solo. Especially to lands belonging to wild humans.
He stepped towards the High Priest, "I will be in lands far away from the humans. I may even seek an apprentice or partner of my own to work with! I assure you that I will keep you apprised of anything going on. Sher'Tam has even helped me with an emergency portal to return in dire circumstance."
"So Sher'Tam, is aware of your intentions and has offered his aid as well?
Magus nodded in earnest.
"Ok Magus. I will not have you travel as a High Mage though. You shall be Arch Magus, on equal footing with Arch Sher'Tam."
Magus fell to his knees and clasped the High Priest's hand, "thank you master! I will not disappoint you! I will bring honor to the Doerna and behave with manners becoming of our people and position."
The High Priest smiled and placed his other hand on the side of Magus' head. He cupped the young elf's ear. Lifting Magus to his feet, the priest clasped in a tight embrace. Such affection was reserved for family among their people. A tear of joy and honor slid from Magus' eye. The embrace meant more than the Priest's blessing. The Priest released him and waved him away. Magus backed away and out through the creaking door. Of course, his master could have fixed the creak ages ago but seemed to enjoy the small noise. Many apprentices and initiates had offered to fix it. None had succeeded in convincing the old man that it was worth repairing.
Magus rushed to his hut and began to gather his things. Next stop was the docks where the merchant was waiting for him to board. He had until the moon was directly overhead to arrive. Rushing up the gangplank with his bags on his shoulders, a sailor directed him to the passenger cabins. He sat the bags down on the small cabinet next to his bed. Taking a deep breath, he laid down on the rickety bed and waited for his journey to truly start.
* * * * *
~Hierlan, Planet Carass, Sigma Universe~
Dock workers shouted from the docks. Magus picked up his bags and steeled himself to go and meet the Hierland Mages representative. He climbed the stairs and saw sailors tossing mooring ropes to those waiting below. Once the ship was secured, he lined up with others preparing to disembark. The gangplank was set out and everyone began to leave their temporary home. At the bottom of the ramp, a stocky woman awaited him with a smile. Her smile did little to hide her curiosity. Snow elves were a rare sight these days.
Magus stuck his hand out to greet her the human way. With a firm grip, she gestured for him to follow her to a carriage. Kept only to greet foreign visitors, it had to be dusted off in anticipation of his arrival. An armed warrior stood next to the open door. He stepped up into the carriage and sat next to the window. The woman attempted friendly discussion, telling him about the area and the location they had sat aside for him to do his research. Magus listened half-heartedly, taking in the scenery. He thought to himself that a large portion of the Hierlans accepting him here was due to curiosity about his race.
They entered a dense pine forest. The trees were similar to those back home, but the forest seemed much larger than the ones he was used to. The sturdy horses didn't seem to bat an eye as a massive bear lumbered by. The bears he was used to would immediately attack anyone even remotely close just for entering their territory. There was no shortage of deer to be seen. Perhaps that was the source of the bear's docility. A topic he could study later no doubt. He happened to turn back to his escort as she was asking him about his cap.
"Is it customary for your people to wear that cap? Mages amongst your people that is?"
He gave her a grin, "yes and no. It is just one style of adornment my people choose to wear when venturing amongst non-elfkin. It tends to draw less stares."
She nodded in understanding, "I have seen a few elfkin as the King's emissary. Typically, we deal with the wood elves to the south but occasionally others come. Have you ever seen a Somner High Elf? They have a golden glow to their skin"
He just smiled and listened to her rattle on about various races she had met in her performance as a glorified tour-guide. She had met dwarves from several clans, a few different Merfolk, and even a pair of traveling Jacobin Naga performers. Magus was sure she was attempting to impress him as an effort to build up to another question. The sun hung directly overhead and yet their path was coated in darkness. The trail wound up along a mountain pass high enough for snow to start falling lightly around them. After rounding a final steep bend, the cabin was finally in sight. A much larger cabin than he had expected. When the carriage pulled up to the cabin, Magus nearly hit the guard with the door. His guide hurried to exit the carriage and catch up to him. She pulled out a set of keys to access the door. He waited impatiently for her to unlock it.
"We tried getting everything on your list and anything else we could think of," she said nervously.
Magus smiled, "I'm sure everything is perfectly fine. I will know more once I do an inventory of course."
"Of course Arch. And if there is anything we can supply you with, let us know."
He nodded and entered the cabin as she opened the door. Lavish furnishings were spread around the room. His guide stepped towards a side door.
"This is where your bedroom is and across the main room are two more in case you have visitors. At the back there is a lavatory on the left. We also have an office for you right next to your room."
"I appreciate the effort your people have put into this. May I see the laboratory?"
"Of course of course. Right this way."
Through the back door at the center of the room they descended a spiraling stairwell. They descended far deeper than he expected. It wasn't disappointing though. The rocks seemed sturdy enough and his work could be risky to say the least. The occasional small explosion was to be expected. The energy coming from the rocks would strengthen his wards. The Hierlan mages seemed to understand his needs quite well. It was known portal magic had gone awry. Was it for his safety or their own that they had chosen this location?
They approached the doorway. His guide stopped just outside, "the mages instructed me to give this bottle to you. Said you would know what to do with the concoction."
He looked into the bottle. A blue glowing liquid swished around. It felt drawn to the doorway. Magus cast a spell of detection. The doorway shimmered. Ah! Smart, smart, smart Hierlan mages. They had used this liquid to ward the doorway from unwanted visitors. That would keep out any riffraff and prevent theft while they awaited his arrival. Slowly he poured a bit into his palm. He rubbed his palms together and placed one on either side of the doorway. His handprint flashed and faded. A tingling feeling coursed through him as he passed the threshold. Inside was a small room with three doors. He immediately went to the left one. Magus pushed it open, the guide silently following him. He looked around the spacious room. There had to be hundreds of books lining the walls.
"The mages assured me that there are books on a vast number of topics that may relate to your research. I know it will take some time to sort through everything, but we have many scribes at the temples who can get you a copy of anything we have in the royal libraries."
Magus had little to say as he took in the annals of researchers and librarians of ages past. The collection of tomes back home was miniscule in comparison and made his few personal hand copied books seem very inferior. He simply nodded to her. He knew there were perhaps millions of works in the world, more maybe. He hadn't dreamt that he would have this many available without traveling to one of the larger cities. His master would possibly not be surprised but he would undoubtedly still appreciate this assortment.
"Your laboratory is across the way."
He took a breath in, inhaling the scent of various stock. He would be spending a lot of time here. Magus turned and headed across the room to what would be his workspace. All manner of things littered the tables. He recognized some of the devices, but many were foreign to him.
"The mages were not sure if the things you listed were all that you would require. They made sure to include manuals for those that you listed as well as those you did not."
Sure enough, books sat beside each of the apparatus. He picked one up and flipped through it. Pictures and paragraphs littered the pages. The mages had been quite thorough. He pulled out a chair and sat down. His guide shuffled her feet anxiously.
"Erm… if there is nothing else…. The mages installed a scrying pool in the office for your privacy."
He didn't hear her leave as he delved into his new life. The device seemed to be for brewing more dangerous potions. Magus glanced around. It would take him days to sort through just the manuals for the equipment in this room. It would take months to even graze the surface of the library. He smiled broadly. So much knowledge ready so easily. The knowledge from just a few of the tomes would more than make this trip worth it for his people. He had thought them advanced, but this small display made him start questioning that fact.