"Waerlogus, how did you find this gem? Master C.K, the study of Essence is the entire reason the Queen is here! Prove your loyalty, and grow in my service, and I prophesy you may grow into the Realms’ foremost expert. Now, if you are willing, go to one knee and place your open palm on mine. Do you…what is your full name?"
"Carmen Kensington McGuire, ma'am." He answered somewhat embarrassed.
"Carmen Kensington McGuire, do you willingly and freely petition for the office of Attendant, beholden to me, the Duchess of Fire, until released, pledging your loyalty and very life to my prosperity?"
"I do."
With that simple phrase, C.K. felt power flow through their pressed palms, a terrible power willing to do his bidding but also watching and ready to devour his soul should he break his oath. He also gained a higher level of vision and awareness, able to see Magic as a new color that lightly swirled through the air and concentrated in glowing balls on the fruit of the plants. The Duchess seemed bathed in a bonfire of Magic, and Waerlogus was simply too bright to look on directly. Out of the corner of his eyes, he could see an erratic swirling of disjointed Magic centered on the attendants of the former Duke of Fire, who stood desolate to the side.
“Arise, Master McGuire, and welcome to my service. Now, we have others to fetch. Show me to your ripest Burgundy."
"If I may, what will happen to them?"
C.K. pointed to the two former attendants.
"With all the excitement, I almost forgot; poor things. What are your choices, loyal attendants? Will you follow your former master, or do you wish to be released from service?"
The former attendants, one who squatted with his head buried in his arms in heavy grief while the other stood but vacantly wept, looked up in hope.
"I am pledged to my master and willingly follow him wherever he goes!"
"So be it. Join your master!"
He stood up, joy on his face as he sparkled into non-existence. The other, although also grieved, struggled with the question.
"I am forever thankful, but I am young and was younger still when I pledged to service. I find myself now desiring a family. I pray you forgive me."
"There is nothing to forgive! You have been loyal and eased the latter years of a very old man. Go and prosper, you are released!"
With his new sight, C.K. saw the young man’s oath brighten to a brilliant yellow and fade away. The former attendant stood thoughtfully for a moment, then with a smile said a Word and was gone.
"Now, where is that Burgundy?"
C.K. led the Duchess to the oldest planting of Burgundies and stopped in front of the healthiest looking of the older plants. She examined it a moment and nodded in approval. C.K. stepped back in anticipation.
"Mature!"
The fruit enlarged, gained firmness, and blackened to dark velvet.
"Ripen!"
The fruit overgrew the stalk and lay on the ground where they could see movement that stretched the skin from within.
"Jesse, Peter, Come!"
The skin split open to reveal twin Wizards. In form, they were identical, but polar opposites in every secondary characteristic. Jesse emerged wearing a buttercup-yellow thigh length dress perfectly matched to her flowing curls while Peter complemented his shiny-black flattop hair with a deep-purple fitted caballero jacket over a lavender long-sleeve flouncy blouse and matching skintight breaches.
C.K. should have been more impressed, but compared to the Queen, their arrival seemed almost commonplace. The Duchess, her insight enhanced by their bond, correctly read his disappointment.
"Jaded already? Waerlogus always did have a certain flair, but that was mostly just show."
Jesse smiled and raised her wrist and wiggled her fingers at C.K. in greeting. Her attention warmed his heart. Peter, on the other hand, had dismissed the boy from his notice, as he typically did with all those beneath his station.
"All right, you two; highborn you may be, but a Queen still requires her attendants. Follow me."
~o0o~
C.K. was surprised to find himself Transported without a connecting touch or a Word of power from the Duchess. There seemed to be whole other levels to Magic than he had assumed during his sheltered life. He was as curious as he was now determined to learn as much as possible.
They Arrived three thousand feet above the valley on a marble bluff overlooked the entire Western District. C.K. nearly failed to recognize the splash of color that was his family's thousand-acre farm far beneath them. They were at the base of an impressive three-story marble arch and C.K. could see through the entryway to the empty ground behind. A Guardian stood beneath the arch with bulging muscles seemingly carved from the same marble as the Cliff and the arch. The intimidating figure maintained a menacing scowl throughout the security proceedings.
"Welcome, and good afternoon, my Lord and Ladies. Her Majesty is expecting you in the feast room. Those on the residency list may proceed as soon as I Register you ."
The Duchess stood before the Guardian and lifted her chin slightly. His massive hands encircled her throat without quite touching skin. He concentrated a moment, and a circle of light formed between his thumbs and forefingers and constricted to settle lightly but firmly.
"My attendant will also require a suite of rooms, and a duplicate of my passkey."
The guardian’s frown deepened as he gazed down at C.K. with frightening intensity.
"Including your familial level pass, my Lady?"
"Oops! That could get someone hurt, and I doubt that someone would be my sister. Enable access everywhere but the Queen’s private chambers. And he will require a Paige, at least temporarily. Master McGuire, I won't need you at the feast, so you are free until I call."
She took a step through the arch and disappeared in a brief topaz-blue glow from where the necklace of light touched the plane of the arch,. When everyone else had passed through, C.K. stood in submission and waited for an invitation. The guard waited aggressively back at him. Realizing he would never win this or any other contest with the daunting Guardian, C.K. overcame his trepidation and presented his neck. He more than half expected the colossal hand to pop off his head. He felt the circle form and lightly settle, then nearly wet himself when he felt massive fingers close around his throat.
"I suggest you use this great authority…circumspectly. I will be watching!"
C.K. felt the meaty fingers temporarily squeeze, and then loosen, followed briefly by the only smile he ever saw on the Guardian’s face. The Guardian gave him a gentle shove through the archway.
After picking himself off the floor, C.K. saw he was in a grand rotunda. The copula was at least 50 feet high and twice that across. Dozens of identical doors were set equidistantly along the gently curving wall. The architecture was simple but elegant, designed along a “form equals function” format. A random door suddenly opened and a young man not much older than C.K. sauntered towards him, while the door closed behind of its own accord. The newcomer’s bored continence turned to wide-eyed respect as he got close enough to notice the nearly unlimited-access passkey around C.K.'s neck. From that point on, his gaze never went higher than the floor.
"Sire, I have the honor to be your Paige. I am yours to command for as long as I may be of use. Will you be preparing your own suite?"
"To tell the truth, I’ve never seen anything like this place, so let’s pretend I am completely ignorant and give me the full tour."
"As you wish. As I'm sure you know, the vestibule doors come and go as needed. Project your intent to enter your antechamber and the proper door will glow, ah, there it is. After you, Sire."
One of the doors, seemingly at random, suffused a thin Magic glow. Close up, C.K. noticed there were no handles, but within two strides, the door opened on its own. As soon as they had entered a moderately lit room, the door swung closed with a hermetic sound. The room was a miniature version of the main hall, but only ten feet across but only contained the door they had entered.
; "Again, project your intended destination, and the proper door will form. For instance, the highball court is rather in vogue at the moment."
A second door wavered into existence and opened. Stepping through, they found a space even larger than the main entryway, with perhaps half as many doors around the perimeter. The center of the space was converted into a highball court. A waist-high wall was perforated with various colored goals while small knots of players fought over similarly colored balls. They attempted to pass a ball through matching goals while hampered by hands tightly secured behind their backs. Their efforts brought either appreciative kudos upon the rare goal or derisive hoots and laughter at particularly painful face-plants. While the two newcomers watched, dozens of people entered and left the room. As they turned to exit, C.K. noticed their door had moved three spaces to the left. They reentered the small antechamber and left the noise of the auditorium behind. The Paige continue with his instructions.
"You may create as many rooms as you wish, but each will only be connected to this antechamber. That way, only those with the proper passkey may enter, and then only to that particular room or this antechamber. Also, you can Call a door into any resident’s antechamber for which you have a passkey by projecting your intention. In your case, that is anyone’s. Excepting the Queen's of course. You also, as attendant to the Duchess, have direct access to the high Chamberlain's antechamber should you have a need to request an audience with Her Majesty. There is one other feature your eminence may find pleasing. If I may…"
On the other side of a new door stood an open-air balcony laid out in a semi-circle two hundred feet above the ground. The shape provided privacy for and from other residents while it allowed an amazing unimpeded view out over the cliffs.
"You may relocate this to any height or face any direction you wish. Above a certain height, though, you will need to remember and provide oxygen and warmth."
A soft, pleasant chime issued from the door, along with a clearly heard voice.
"Sire, the Duchess of Fire requests your presence."
The Paige’s eyes widened as the reality of the importance of his primary hit home.
"May I offer any other assistance until your return?"
"I suppose I'll need an appropriate suite of rooms; bedchamber, receiving room, toilet, et cetera. Can you put that together for me?"
"Yes, I do have that authority as your Paige. I would be honored, Sire!"
"Very well. Oh, what if the Duchess isn't in her rooms? And what should I call you?"
"Paige will suffice, Sire. The door will Transport you to whatever antechamber she last entered."
Within his own antechamber, C.K. projected his intention to visit the Duchess, and a door Appeared as promised. He walked through the open door into an identical antechamber except for the two guards that leaned lightly on ceremonial spears. Both were trained Battle Wizards, but that was a discipline to which C.K. had yet to be introduced. The spears, however, were intimidating enough even though ceremonial pieces. The guard on the right addressed him in a neutral tone, neither condescending nor fawning.
"Through this door, Attendant, the Duchess is expecting you.”
~o0o~
Wizards take no notice of birthdays, so C.K.'s twenty-fifth came and went without his notice. He had more important, and exciting, things on his mind during the long journey to his laboratory. Due to the patronage of his liege, the Duchess of Fire, and the full support of the Queen, C.K. advanced the science of Essence incredibly far. He became the world's foremost expert as predicted.
He always dreaded the long journey between his lab and the Queen’s court, but frequent updates were essential to maintain a personal relationship with those in power. He also developed an insatiable crush on the Queen, who either maintained or feigned ignorance of his affections. In his heart, he vowed one day to rise to her notice despite the uncrossable gap in their circumstances.
He could Transport himself to the edge of Sparks Lake, but enough Essence was in use throughout the nearest city that Magic became spotty at best within its borders. He Arrived near the shed where he stored his Essence carriage, and two servants immediately snapped to attention. He directed them to retrieve it then proceeded to inspect his creation, as well as admire his own ingenuity.
In place of a draft animal, he constructed an enclosed water wheel with metal-lined buckets. A hose ran from a tank of Essence from under the seat of the carriage to the top of the wheel, which allowed Essence to flow towards a grounding rod that trailed from the back if the carriage. A modified Magic-gas valve controlled the flow and thus speed while a simple steering rod controlled direction.
He noticed the connection was a little loose but for safety’s sake never exceeded walking speed while he passed through the crowded city anyway. His conveyance was much more about status than practicality. He decided to wait and fix the connection at his laboratory.
C.K. could not help but scowl at the common mobs in the narrow, dirty streets. The educated elite of the city embraced the inventions and conveniences his research provided, but they made up less than one percent of the population. The other million or so residents remained entrenched in their superstitious fears of electrocution.
C.K. wasn't entirely certain that the leadership was innocent in keeping them ignorant. Growing up, C.K. had always looked down on Magic users and assumed that Essence users were inherently more intelligent. He quickly learned that most people, whether due to nature or nurture, were simplistic idiots.
Once through the city, he turned onto a dedicated road and opened the Essence valve until he was traveling easily twice that of a horse-drawn carriage. The steering shimmied a little, but the road ran straight to his compound and there was no other traffic. The lake, for which the town was named, threw sparks and lightning arcs towards small metal deposits in the surrounding hills. For convenience, he built his compound just yards from the liquid Essence but had carefully cleared the surrounding land of metal, which he often required for his experiments.
C.K. employed over one-hundred of the world's top Essence engineers to work on various practical applications. His passion, though, lay in the isolated central chamber where he explored the theoretical interactions between Magic and Essence. As a general rule, Magic simply did not work in the presence of an Essence field, except to drain the Magic charge from the liquid matrix. He recently began work with magnetic fields, a phenomenon for which no one could find practical use until he discovered it acted as an insulator between Magic and Essence.
When surrounded by a strong Essence field, he could create a magnetic bubble within which he could Call magic. He did, however, need to rely on the gas from Magic fruit brought into the bubble. In turn, the gas was contained in a magnetized metallic bag. It was complex and hard to maintain, but it was a start.
He had learned over the years that, outside of Essence’s influence, a certain amount of magic floated freely in the air. Magic seemed almost to want to cooperate, but the lower the concentration, the greater that will and detailed imagination came into play. C.K. knew he could never compete with Wizards, who were born within and had an affinity with Magic. Yet he was fairly certain his powers far exceeded that of any other non-wizard. It had been years since he had needed Magic gas to perform common Commands, except when near the countering effects of Essence.
If this latest experiment worked, C.K. would be the first non-wizard to enter their native Realm, as well as further his understanding of Essence and Magic. Over the years, he had compiled everything that was human-known about Magic (which wasn't much), and greatly expanded the previous body of knowledge concerning Essence (which had been near non-existent.)
He knew that Wizards spontaneously came into being in the Realm of pure Magic, and that they had only accidentally found a way to move into the Human Realm. Essence, since it canceled out magic, was a mystery that wizards found highly disturbing. C.K.'s theory stated that Essence came from a third Realm, and all three intersect
ed each other in the human realm while Magic and Essence both leaked through those intersections.
The electrified Essence seemed to seep up from underground reservoirs while magic filtered down on air currents. C.K. believed he could use his magnetic machinery to push a bubble of magic into the Essence realm while he balanced an equal bubble of Essence within the magic realm. He had been successful in small-scale tests and was ready to confirm his findings.
C.K. entered and sealed the six-foot square laboratory safe-room, enabled the magnetic bubble, and removed a large Brown fruit from its insulator bag. He shredded the skin to allow the magic to fill up the room and tried to calm his nerves while he waited for the gas to expand. At the edge of his vision, he could see that the Magic air had equalized throughout the room.
In his mind, he pictured Peter's drawing room at the Queen’s Palace and silently Willed himself there. Nothing happened. He went over his preparations again in his mind. Frustrated, he verbally Called a small glass of alcohol. It appeared in his hand, slightly chilled the way he preferred it, and he tossed it back in one swallow then dropped the glass. It was a minimal Calling, so the glass which dissipated before it hit the ground. He sighed, and then called himself an idiot. He inhaled as much air as possible and this time remembered to pronounce, "Go to Peter!"
~o0o~
Peter jumped up from his white leather recliner and shouted, "How in the name of the Queen did you get in here?”
The Queen’s wing of the palace, designed for security purposes, allowed walk-in access only. Even with his top-level passkey, C.K. should not have even been able to Appear beyond Peter's antechamber without explicit permission.
"It's as I told you. I found a way to work beneath Magic rather than through it. So, are you ready for the greatest adventure of your life?"
"Assuming the Queen's permission, I'm ready when you are!"
As the Queen’s attendant, Peter had official direct access to the High Chamberlain and gatekeeper to her Majesty’s presence just as C.K. had unofficial access by his station as attendant to the Duchess of Fire, the Queen’s sister. The Queen proved otherwise engaged, but sent her other attendant, Peter's twin sister Jessie, to convey her blessing on the previously discussed experiment.