Tales of the Apprentice 01 Ch. 04

The meld between them grew even more intimate and, which a strange sense of detachment, Serana realized that her entire mind now lay open to him, as much as his lay open to her. For a brief moment he knew what she knew, and she knew that he did. He shared with her the vastness of her experience. He relived with her the long, long centuries, knew her victories and her defeats, her hopes, her fears, the joys and the horrors that she had known since the world was young. Never before had anyone known her as he knew her right now, and it was only through the strength of her mental discipline, one of the skills that makes an experienced sex mage who she is, that she managed to limit that sharing without revealing to him those things she really needed to keep to herself.

And through the meld he also clearly saw the spell within him, and she felt his embarrassment when he realized what it was.

Eventually the tidal wave of their shared climax ran its course and the bright light of released orgasmic energy dimmed, but not before Serana had stored every last bit of it within her. Gradually they returned to the mundane world around them, until their breathing slowed and they sat there, holding each other, the wetness of their mutual ecstasy slowly spreading between them.

Galen looked at her, opening his mouth as if to say something, but then he looked away; the expression on his face a strange blend of awe and shock.

"Great Mother..." he muttered at last.

Serana suppressed a smile. Was that the first time she'd heard him say that? She said it to herself all the time, so maybe it had just rubbed off on him. Maybe.

"Yes," she said calmly. "What you saw is true. I didn't really mean for you to see all that, and I'm not entirely sure yet what happened there, or why..."

"...But you'll find out," he said.

He spoke matter-of-factly, having seen that truth in her mind along with everything else.

"Yes. You also saw the spell."

He nodded and sighed.

"Yes. Another one. Serana... I didn't even realize..."

"I know, Galen. Relax. It's easily fixed."

With that, she mustered a tiny amount of the Energy that she held inside her and applied it to her Intent. Her awareness gently reached into him and with a small mental gesture the spell vanished.

"There. It's gone. You don't really need it, you know," she told him gently. "You will be a great lover. You're pretty good already, and you will still get a lot better as time goes by. You have the right mind for it, and you're eager to learn. Most importantly, though, you know how to listen to a woman's body, and that's a rare skill. You'll be fine, Galen. You don't need any magic to get it right."

"I never even... I didn't know that I..."

"I know you didn't, Galen. We both saw that you didn't. Speaking of that, you saw how I set up the pathways to channel the Energies."

He nodded.

"Whatever you do, don't experiment with any of that yet," she cautioned him. "It's far too early for you, and there's a million things that could go wrong. So be patient."

She sat back and let go of his shoulders, then she slowly lifted herself off him until his now flaccid cock slid out of her sopping pussy. She closed her eyes, applied her Intent, and quietly absorbed his cum within her body, as much as she could. From the feeling of it there was a lot of their combined juices inside her, and this was a good way to limit the mess to a minimum. It was one of those small tricks of the trade she had learned millennia ago. Still, she tried to do it as discreetly as possible. The male ego could be a strange and sometimes fragile thing, and he had enough on his mind to wrestle with as it was.

She stood, then gently kissed his forehead. He looked up to her and gave her a tired smile.

"I'll remember that," he promised.

"Good. The Energies are to be respected, Galen. And yours are quite low right now. So get some rest. You'll need your strength soon enough."

After he had dressed and closed the kitchen door behind him, she sat down on the chair and thought. This had not quite gone as planned, and she had to admit that it worried her. The more she tried to get a hold on what was happening, the less in control she felt. She had simply intended to help him overcome what reluctance toward her he might have felt after this morning, and she'd needed some of his Energy as well. It should all have been a fairly straightforward sexual exercise culminating in an Energy transfer.

Instead she had found another involuntary spell, one that he had cast upon himself this time, again without being aware of it. On top of that, the meld she had set up had far exceeded her Intent somehow, until she had been laid open to him to a degree that she had only barely managed to reign in by employing her mental skills to their utmost limit.

This was slipping away from her. She needed help. She had known that already, of course, but tonight drove home to her how seriously her need was.

Fortunately she did have all the Energy that she needed to work with. All she had to do was to use it.

Leaning against the back of the chair, she reached up and cupped her breasts. She caressed them, her fingertips tracing intricate patterns across the smooth skin, following the full curves. Something deep inside her danced with joy when she felt the firmness of those magnificent orbs under her hands. She had not lied to Galen when she said how important it was to her to look and feel young and beautiful. But while it was primarily a tool to her, albeit one essential to her trade, she also simply enjoyed it. She was quite comfortable with her ancient body, to be sure, and the ravages that time had inflicted on it were nothing new to her; she had lived with them for countless centuries. But there was something special about feeling and looking young, knowing how sexy she looked, so full of life...

But these thoughts were getting her nowhere. Right now the level of the Energy that filled her was higher than it had been literally for ages, and it had to rise only a little more before she could apply it to her Purpose. Her fingertips found her nipples, already hardening again with her renewed arousal, and gently rubbed them to stimulate them further. The Energies within her continued to rise, and she formulated her Intent. Then she set up the proper channels within her.

When all was ready, she carefully pinched her nipples at just the right moment, and little jolts of pleasure shot out from them, through her breasts and into her body. The Energies responded, flowed into their respective pathways, and energized her Purpose.

Suddenly her body vanished and she hung there, her mind floating in the darkness high above the cottage, alone in the wintry night.

Alone? No. Not quite.

She felt the presence she was looking for, many leagues to the south. Without moving she traveled, until she was there and her awareness gazed down on a medium-sized house, larger than her cottage and surrounded by neatly kept grounds, flanked by a few small outbuildings and a pasture. A plume of smoke rose from the chimney, going almost straight up in the still night air.

She slowly lowered herself, sinking her awareness through the neat, rectangular roof tiles, until she found herself within the house. Inside a man was sitting by the fireplace, reading a book by the light of a single candle. She positioned her presence before him and waited.

She felt him become aware of her even before he looked up. He lowered the book and glanced around the room.

"Yes?" he asked. "Yes? Who is it?"

"It's me, Ayden. How've you been?"

"Serana? Yes, it is you! It has been... quite a while! But... I sense that this is not a social visit. Is it?"

"No, old friend. I'm here because I need your help."

"Anything, Serana. Always. You know that. Help with what?"

"An apprentice."

Ayden raised his eyebrows.

"An apprentice? Since when do you need help with apprentices? Besides... I didn't think you were still interested in teaching. It was my understanding that you had, well, retired. Or do you mean..."

She felt his unspoken thought.

"No, Ayden, I'm not looking for someone to take him off my hands. He's a good lad, and this is something I have to do. It's a task that the Great Mother has laid upon me, so I must see it through. But the problem is that I'm not sure I can do it. He is... challenging."

"How so?"

"His latent power is stronger than I've ever seen before. He's applied his Intent involuntarily at least once that I know of, and he's casting, involuntarily, even without realizing he's doing it. I've had to remove two spells already. One of them was on me."

Ayden whistled tunelessly.

"Casting? How long have you been teaching him, Serana?"

"Barely half a year."

"Hm. Yes... I see your point. That is rather unusual, to put it mildly."

He thought for a few moments.

"What else?" he asked. "Because I sense there's more."

"Well... He's a potential Channeler, Ayden. He's got the power; he's got the ability. And if my Vision is anything to go by, it's his destiny."

Ayden sat there for a moment, gazing at the wall in thought.

"You are sure of this?" he said at long last, but she could sense it wasn't really a question.

"Yes. He's going to be a Channeler. Or at least, he definitely has the potential. It's what my Vision showed me, and I am convinced that it's the reason the Great Mother sent him to me. And from the looks of it, his power will eventually be... well, unimaginable, I think. He's so powerful already that I'm barely able to control him. And he himself has no control at all. We're barely into his initial training, and he's already about to slip away from me. He's Channeled once already that I know of, and it was more luck than anything else that nothing got out of hand too badly. I need your help, Ayden. Yours and Irya's."

"You've got it," Ayden said without thinking. "But if things are that serious, I'm not sure what we can do from here. Do you want us to come to you?"

"I'd rather have us to come to you, if that's alright with you. Because I think there's more going on. There have been... unusual occurrences here and there. And both Galen and I have had some rather disturbing Visions."

"Galen? Your apprentice? Interesting. He does indeed seem to be developing a little ahead of schedule. Hmm. We've hard some disturbing rumors as well. Something dark is brewing. Are you sure it will be safe for you to travel, Serana, what with these Shadow Walkers and all?"

"Shadow Walkers?"

"You may know them as the Soulless Ones. Some call them that, at least. You mean you don't know of them?"

"Apparently not. But then, my place is somewhat isolated."

"Too isolated, perhaps."

"Look, Ayden, all I wanted is some peace and quiet. I am getting too old for this sort of thing."

"I didn't mean to criticize, Serana," Ayden said mildly. "At any rate, it appears that some disturbing things have started to happen everywhere. Disease, crop failure, famine, unrest, that sort of thing. Perhaps even a few wars brewing here and there. And the northern lights in the skies have been more frequent and bright this year, far more than normal in fact, and there is this evil, green cast to them. You must have noticed some of it, at least."

"Well..." Serana began, then paused to gather her thoughts.

"There was a plague in the village where Galen used to live," she said then. "It was a while ago, but..."

"...But this could have started long before we became aware of it."

"Yes. And as I said, both Galen and I have had Visions," she continued. "A dark citadel, far up in the north, surrounded with a green glow. It had the feeling of death about it. People walking there, as if they were being drawn to it, apparently under some form of enchantment..."

Ayden nodded.

"As if they are soulless. Yes, That does have a hauntingly familiar ring to it. Could it be one of the Dark Ones from before the Fall?"

"I don't think any of the Dark Ones would have survived the Fall this long, and certainly not unnoticed. No, this looks more recent, although not much more mundane. From what Galen saw in his Vision I gather we're dealing with necromancers at the very least, possibly even with full-blown death mages, and of the very powerful variety at that."

Ayden thought for a moment.

"Death mages..." he mused. "Well, I suppose that's better than a demon from the Elder Days. I'd hate to go head-to-head with Gar the Desecrator again."

"So would I. Once was more than enough. So what about those Shadow Walkers?"

"I haven't seen any myself," Ayden admitted. "But the rumors are disturbingly consistent: tales of soulless creatures, roaming the lands looking for prey. They will eat the dead if they have to, but they prefer the living. And they can't be killed easily, perhaps because they are not really alive. Wounds from swords or knives do not seem to bother them; they don't even bleed. Only decapitation will destroy them."

Serana thought for a moment.

"Well," she said slowly. "In my Vision of that place I saw people converging on it. But they were like sleepwalkers, and there was something dead in their eyes..."

Ayden nodded.

"Probably an enchantment, and from the looks of it it's a dark one. They do appear soulless, and that's never a good thing. Which brings me back to my earlier question: will it be safe to travel for you and... Galen, you said his name is?"

"Yes. Galen. I think it will be safe enough. And of course I will take my precautions. In any case, the roads are not fit for traveling just yet. I expect it will take a few more weeks before the snows are gone and the roads have dried up sufficiently."

"We'll use that time for some preparations, then," Ayden decided. "Will you be able to deal with your apprentice for the time being?"

"I suppose I'll have to. Any advice?"

"Concentrate on the physical. Transfer as much of his Energies from him to you as possible, and dissipate them safely."

"That's exactly what I've been trying to do. And even that hasn't been easy."

"I don't know what else to suggest right now, Serana. I'll speak with Irya about it. She's gone to bed already. Maybe she can come up with something that can help you to keep him in hand."

"She's managed to keep you in hand, at least."

Ayden chuckled.

"Yes, and that's no mean feat. So let me ask her. If you don't hear from us, you'll know that we have nothing else to offer right now. In any case we'll be ready by the time you arrive."

"Thanks, Ayden. I appreciate that."

"Any time, Serana. You know that."

"I do. But thank you anyway, old friend."

"No problem. Do the best you can for now, and we'll see you as soon as possible. I expect that between the three of us we should be able to handle him."

"Don't be too sure. You don't know yet what you're dealing with."

"I suppose we'll see. Does he like it with men?"

"It hasn't come up yet, but judging by how I know him, I'd say probably not."

"A pity. But you and Irya should be more than equal to the task. At the very least the lad should be in for quite an experience."

"I expect so. Well, we'll see you soon. Good night, Ayden."

"Good night, Serana."

She lifted herself, her awareness leaving the room and floating up, until she had cleared the house and the still darkness of the winter night surrounded her once more. At that point it was merely a matter of giving in to the call of her flesh. It took only a few moments of that strange traveling without moving before she found herself back in her body. The fire in the kitchen hearth had burned low. She banked it, then lit a candle and sought her bed. The next few weeks would be challenging.