Free The Dreaming Hunt by Cindy Dees Page B

of magic and doing nothing with them.
    â€œToday we shall consider the source of magic,” Aurelius intoned.
    Will sat up a little straighter. He’d long wondered where it came from, even since before he knew he possessed a talent for it.
    â€œThe Decirum teaches us that magic is inherent to every living thing.”
    â€œMeaning what?” Will asked blankly.
    â€œMeaning that magic exists naturally within in every living object. It is all around us. In us. Infusing the entire world we live in and everything in it.”
    â€œAnd this Decirum is … what?”
    â€œIt is ancient knowledge, passed down through the ages. Think of it as the fundamental theory of magic. All we know of magic and its use comes from this body of information.”
    â€œIs it written down? Can I read it?”
    â€œIt is written in our flesh and bones. In instinct. Our purpose in the Mage’s Guild is to teach acolytes how to access this deep understanding.”
    It all sounded like smoke and mirrors to him. But if pretending to understand it meant that Aurelius would teach him how to channel magic through his staff, he would nod and smile like this Decirum thing made perfect sense.
    Aurelius lectured, “Because magic is imbued with life energy, it does not act like, say, a rock. When you throw a rock, it travels straight, without thought or intent, in whatever direction you toss it. But when you cast magic, you must take into account that it moves with intent of its own.”
    Will had experienced this. Casting magic was like tossing water from a spinning bucket. The magic writhed and wobbled and refused to travel straight. Only the will and mental power of the caster marshaled its chaotic movement into orderly flight toward a target. Of course, shapes, colors, and signs helped pull in magic, and physical objects like wands, rods, and staffs helped channel the outward flow of it.
    Aurelius continued, “Even the air that magic moves through influences it with its own innate magical energy—”
    The office door opened without warning, and Will and Aurelius looked up together, startled. Drake Bruin, who had served under Will’s father in the Celestial Order of the Sun, stood in the doorway. “My apology for the interruption, but Selea Rouge sends word that you are needed at Landsgrave Hyland’s house.”
    â€œWhat is the reason?” Aurelius asked quickly.
    â€œHis message did not say.”
    â€œWhen do Leland and Selea need me?”
    â€œNow.”
    Aurelius stood with an alacrity that conveyed the depth of his alarm at this summons from Selea personally. “Are you coming?” the solinari asked Will a shade sharply.
    â€œUhh, yes. Of course.” Will leaped up from his chair as his grandfather swept from the room. Bruin followed them down the stairs and held out Aurelius’s cloak in silence. Unspoken was the offer of the drake’s sword, as well, should his guildmaster have need of it.
    â€œYou are a good man, Bruin,” Aurelius murmured as he took the garment and swung it around his shoulders. “But you are needed here. Guard the guild in my absence.”
    Bruin executed a short bow of obedience.
    Will grabbed his own cloak from a hook by the door. An unseasonably cold, wet spell had descended upon Dupree overnight. He hurried after Aurelius, who had not waited for him and now strode across the broad Mage’s Guild Square. Luckily, he’d attained his father’s height and more in the past few months, and his long stride carried him to his grandfather’s heels quickly.
    Something bad had happened. He could feel it in his bones. And obviously, Aurelius felt it, too.

 
    CHAPTER
    7
    Anton batted away the hand creeping up his arm seductively. He’d been forced to use a precious love potion on his prisoner as the most expeditious means of transporting her in secrecy to their final destination. The jann girl, Marikeen, was far too