“Is that a trick that is unique to Darkmores?” Seren asked as she scanned the room.
There were rows and rows of tables as far as her eyes could see with items of varying purpose from something as simple as a comb to a glass orb as big as her face. Even the stone walls were laced with shelves that had artifacts. Dust coated the ceiling and some of the artifacts as if no one had been here in some time.
“It is not a skill that is singular to my ancestors, but we do seem to have the talent more than not,” Icarus answered almost reverently.
Having never heard such a shift in his tone before, Seren turned and found his gray-blue eyes scanning the room.
“Ic—professor?” she said as she wrapped her arms around herself to ward off the cold that seemed to seep into her bones.
Icarus startled at her words and as he took her in his eyes narrowed before settling back into his unamused countenance. One hand lifted his pocket watch from where it rested in his pocket and with the other he snapped his fingers and flames lit all above the shelves that lined the walls. Light illuminated the room and she could see now that the room stretched much further than she had originally thought. Warmth cradled her from the flames and she let her arms fall to her sides.
“What is this place?” She whispered.
“A place more sacred and ancient than Calami or Mistral Hall. A place revered by both witches and wizards.” He stepped forward and gently ran his hands over the comb she had first noticed. “It is the one place that witches and wizards do not contest. The one place we have eternal unity.”
“A storage room?” Seren realized her mistake the moment his shoulders tensed and his grip tightened on his augere.
“Witches and wizards alike have died to create and protect this place. It would behoove you to show respect.”
Seren huffed out a sigh. “I wish you would just tell me what I need to know without all the preamble.”
That won her a sigh of his own. “Do you know how a witch or wizard gains their augere?”
Seren bit back another sigh. Apparently, her request was going to be denied, but then he wouldn’t be him without the lesson. Icarus thrived on knowledge and disseminating it. Something in him came alive when he spoke of the past. Even frustrated with her, he seemed to stand taller and a flush of energy coated his cheeks even through the brown stubble.
“Just that everyone gets something different and usually by the end of their first year,” Seren answered without any lingering irritation.
“It’s a good place to start. You can’t be successful in claiming an augere without a basic understanding and practice of magic, but if your magic is weak, or a match isn’t made you also cannot claim one.”
“A match?”
“The witch or wizard claims an augere just as much as the augere claims them. Some are heirlooms.” He held out his own pocket watch. “My family has passed two down for generations. This one and the twin to it which you may have noticed Calder uses. There is always the possibility that an augere passed down may not resonate with the new magic user though that is rare. It’s hypothesized that once an augere is claimed it recognizes the familiarity of magic in the blood of its owner’s descendants.”
Questions flickered across Seren’s mind. She wanted to know more about how he and Calder became estranged and how they both ended up with an heirloom if there was family strife. Yet even as questions flowed, she knew him well enough that she needed to stay focused.
“And the rest of us?”
“If you are lucky enough to be trained by a recognized school of witchcraft or wizardry, then you come here, the Akashic Hall, where you are given the chance to see if your magic is recognized by any of the thousands of objects with magical potential.” He gestured to the room.
Seren frowned. “You said before that witches and wizards died for this place. Why?”
“An excellent question, Miss Marudas, glad to see you are beginning to pay attention.” The accusing words were offset only slightly by the small uptilt of his mouth. She wished she didn’t feel so pleased with herself for having earned it.
“It was during the burning times that witches and wizards first discovered that objects with magical potential were easier and more powerful to channel than their wands. Humans quickly caught on and sabotaged every safe house that attempted to collect the objects. Not to mention that finding an object with magical potential is difficult. The objects you see here were found over the course of thousands of years. After the burning times ended, witches and wizards agreed to protect the Akashic Hall together. Then the Magnus War happened and witches and wizards fought for control of it. If it weren’t for a set of brave witches and wizards who saw past the feud and protected Akashic Hall, it might have been lost to one faction. The same occurred in the Trinity wars.”
Seren noticed how he didn’t elaborate on the end which for him was more than odd. She doubted anyone loved history and passing it along more than the man before her.
“You stand where countless wizards and witches have stood before you, where men and women have died to make it possible for you to be here. Begin, Miss Marudas.”
Seren’s stomach thrilled and soured all at once. She must have misunderstood, but gods she hoped she hadn’t.
“I haven’t completed my first year,” She said quietly.
Icarus folded his hands behind his back and met her eager gaze. “And yet you have demonstrated magic that fourth years would be ecstatic to produce.” He took a step towards her, the remaining distance between them beginning to feel insignificant and yet insurmountable. “Do not for a moment think that you are an average witch, Miss Marudas.”
Words wouldn’t come despite how many piled up in her mind. The way he was looking at her shouldn’t be allowed. The way it made her feel certainly wasn’t permitted.
Whatever spell had been cast evaporated as Icarus turned his back and ran a hand through his hair, an insult to his normally perfectly combed chestnut hair.
