Pantheon Book 2: The Way of the Tao

The Strongest Magic

        "Let's start simple - what type of magic are you best with?" Emelia says, hopping onto a box to sit down. Melody blinks at her curiously.

"You know about the different types already? I thought you've only been Isis's apprentice for a few weeks," she replies. Emelia chuckles, holding her hands out. Light pours off her fingers, forming threads between her palms.

"Yes, but Nephthys uses magic too. Plus, ever since you left, we haven't been following the original legends, so my teacher decided to focus on more complex spells." Her eyes jump to Melody, and she waves her hands to disperse the light. "My specialty is conjuration, by the way."

"I guess enchanting," Melody says, running through the different types in her mind. Most of her training was focused on finding the source of magic in everything around her and manipulating it to get various effects. "Oh, and enhancing. But I don't know how much that will help when the only one I can boost is Oliver."

"It's good to know, but I doubt it will help in a pinch," Emelia agrees. "Plus, I'm assuming you can only do it through physical contact?" Melody nods, rubbing her arm. Her mother had spent weeks trying to teach her how to push her power out through the air, but she could never get the hang of it. "Have you tried enhancing yourself?" Emelia says, making Melody pause.

"No - I didn't think that was possible. How would I boost my own magic with-"

"Not your magic, your body," Emelia explains. She hops off the box, her eyes flashing lime green. Her hands start to glow with the same light, and she easily heaves the box over her head. "The same way you push your power into someone else, you can make it flow through your own body." She drops the box, leaning against it with a proud smirk. "I'm guessing your teacher never told you that?"

"No, that's amazing!" Melody replies, looking down at her hands. She channels her magic, trying to funnel it into her muscles. Her eyes glow, but she doesn't feel any different.

"It's going to take some time to get used to - enhancing yourself with magic is really important for the Ennead, since that's how we fight Apophis. It should feel the same as when your boosting Oliver - I guess all you can do is practice until you get the hang of it. So, let's focus on your enchanting for now." Emelia says with a wave. Melody huffs, letting her hands fall to her sides. "How confident are you with it?"

"Well, I used to think I was really good at it," she replies bitterly. "But recently it feels like nothing I try does anything," she adds, remembering her recent battles. "Li Jing barely noticed my attacks, and they just bounced off Orochi."

"That's probably just because you couldn't focus," Emelia says with a patient smile. "I mean, I would be freaking out if a giant nine-headed snake was snapping at my heels too. Not to mention, you were worried about Oliver when Li Jing was there." Melody hums, wrapping her arms around herself.

"I guess that's true. But normally I'm really good under pressure."

"Being under pressure and in danger are two completely different things. You need to be able to keep a level head when things start to go bad," Emelia says. Melody sighs, hanging her head.

"I know. But that's why I want your help - I've never been in a real fight before. My training was basically stand here and do this. No pressure if it doesn't work, you can always try again."

"Well, from what I've seen, your magic is pretty strong," Emelia says, pushing off the box. She paces back and forth, knitting her eyebrows together. "You just can't keep hold of it long enough to do anything. So, I think what we should do is put you in stressful situations to help you keep your cool," she says, pinching her chin. "We can have Marcus and Oliver put illusions on you to make you think we're under attack. Then you just need to-"

"That won't work," Melody groans, her shoulders dropping. "I can see through Marcus's illusions." Emelia stops, raising an eyebrow.

"Okay, I love the confidence, but his illusions are really lifelike. Oliver told me about when he was trapped in one, and he only got out because Marcus slipped up," Emelia explains, returning to her pacing. "Besides, with Oliver helping, you'll be against two full-on gods."

"Maybe Oliver could help, but Marcus wouldn't," Melody says with a shrug. "When we were younger, Marcus and I would practice our powers on each other. He would cast an illusion on me, and I would put him in The Pit. Whoever got out first was the winner and got to dare the other to do anything they wanted." The images from Marcus's illusion flash in her mind, watching the two of them play. She can't help but smile to herself, despite all the bugs Marcus had made her eat whenever she lost.

"Do I even want to know what The Pit is?" Emelia says with a chuckle.

"Oh, just something my mom made up to keep me out of trouble," Melody explains dismissively. "Basically, just a sealing spell she would put me in whenever I misbehaved. I had to unravel the layers of magic to get out." She lifts her head with a smirk. "Once I figured out how to reinforce it with enchantments and dummy spells, Marcus never got out again." Emelia stops dead, her eyes widening.

"Wait, do you mean disenchanting?" She wheels around on Melody, grabbing her hands. "You can disenchant!?" Melody stumbles over her words a few times, backing away instinctively. Emelia follows, eyes wide and sparkling, until Melody bumps into the wall.

"I-I guess so? My mom said it was the most important magic she could teach me, and that's what I spent all my free time learning-"

"Do you have any idea how huge that is?" Emelia interrupts, taking a quick step back. "Mel, according to Isis, nobody learns disenchanting anymore. We haven't had to since the first treaty was made when the Pantheons were cut off from each other." Melody tilts her head to the side, opening her mouth to speak but not sure what to say.

"Oh...kay?" She hums.

"Mel, don't you get it? If you can disenchant, that means you can basically negate a person's divinity," Emelia says carefully. "You can stop them from using their powers."

"I'm sorry, what?" Melody says dumbly, trying to process her words.

"Have you tried it on anyone else? Beyond the Olympians and the Aesir? Can you do it from a distance, or do you have to be touching them? How long can you hold it for?" Emelia says quickly, spinning around to pace the room again. "If this works, it may be exactly what we need."

"Emelia, I'm going to need you to slow down," Melody says, touching her head to slow her thoughts. "I don't get it, what are you planning?" Emelia whirls around on her again, resting her hands on her hips.

"Mel, disenchanting doesn't just work on gods. It works on any divine or magical power," she says, grinning. "If you can disenchant Sun Wukong, then we might actually have a chance of getting that collar on him. Which means it's time for some practical training."