The meal was a silent affair. The food was delicious, consisting of bread, stew, and an interesting pink tea, but the company was definitely lacking.
"So..." I began, spinning my spoon in the bowl of stew. "You said training. What exactly does that mean?"
Merlin placed down his utensils. Steepling his fingers, he rested his elbows on the table and leaned forward.
"The first thing you need to know is that Fae society can be vicious. Tear-out-your-throat kind of vicious. So if you are to have any hope of surviving as the young, unknown, heir to the Solar Court, you will need to be the best in the games the Fae play. Or, at least, on par with the other Kings. Swordplay and use of glamour are two areas that the Fae excel at, but we also use words and knowledge as weapons, and they can be just as potent. Almost everything a Fae does is a move in a game of chess that our society has been playing for many centuries. Hence, your days will be split in four. Weapons training, Magic, History and Tactics. We have to get you up to standard in two years, and that is not a lot of time to learn what the children of the Fae nobility do in a decade." He snapped his fingers. "Gwynerch."
A scroll appeared on the left of my bowl of stew. I eyed it with apprehension and made no move to pick it up.
"Go on," Merlin said. "Take a look."
Gingerly, I unrolled it. A list with activities and timings was neatly penned on the rough parchment.
"There are certain things that we can leave out of your rushed education, as we can explain it away by claiming that you were found, not among the ranks of the nobility, but from the population of commoners. It is a loose enough statement that I can say that without lying, because it is true that I did not find you from within the Fae upper class. These things, such as delicate negotiations and treaties with the other Courts, I can advise you on if and when you experience them. However, there will be times during Fae social events where a bid for more political power may occur among the nobles or Kings from other Courts. It will be times like these, as well as in duels, that I, as your Merlin, would either not be with you, or be able to help you."
Upon noticing my wide-eyed look, Merlin gave me a small smile that was somehow condescending, as if I was a child that had not known what she was getting herself into. I don't know, it just gave me those vibes, and it kind of pissed me off a little.
"Don't worry," he tried to reassure me. "These two years will ensure that you are competent enough to maintain your throne. You won't die or suffer much harm if you pay attention to what I will be teaching you."
He picked up his spoon. "Finish your meal. We start on glamour and combat this afternoon."
~
If I were to elaborate on the amount of information that Merlin crammed into my head in those two years, I could write several books and still not be finished. That being said, I still want you, my dear readers, to be able to begin to understand what was expected of a Fae King, I will share an account of the first of each of the four 'classes'.
~
After lunch, Merlin ushered me into what looked like a study. Shelves of scrolls lined the walls, and a sturdy oaken desk stood in front of a tapestried wall with open windows. A second chair was summoned, and he directed me to sit on it as he sunk into his own seat.
"Glyphs and the Words of Power can manipulate the world around us according to our ability to connect and channel glamour. The better our connection to the glamour of this world, the more complex and powerful the spells we can cast," Merlin explained. "The weaker our connection, the more energy we take from our own bodies to cast the spell. Essentially, that is akin to what you did when you summoned your room. Part Fae, like humans, produce their own glamour. This gives them an edge in the human world where pure Fae find it harder to cast magic due to the thinner glamour blanket, but it limits them because their own connection to the glamour blanket is very much weaker than the weakest pure Fae."
Great. Wonderful. More problems.
"You, however, might not have that issue. The blood of the Kings of the Solar Court runs in your veins, and hence the amount of glamour you naturally produce is excessively strong. To be honest, I had thought that you would not be able to use glamour so effectively for the first time. Nonetheless, if you ever find yourself in need to cast a spell greater than your capabilities, the written form of Geiriau Grym, the Words of Power, can store some energy for you to use at a later time. For example, gwynerch."
He took out a scroll and quill, dashing a glyph onto the parchment.
"This means 'create'. When we write the glyph, we channel some of the energy and glamour needed to cast the spell, but not the full amount. When we read it out from the scroll, we channel the rest of the energy and glamour needed, and the spell is cast. The language of Geiriau Grym, along with our intention behind it, direct the glamour to do your will. However, before we get started on this more delicate aspect of magic, you will need to learn how to connect properly to the flow of glamour that permeates Avalon, and resist the compelling power of raw glamour that can be thrown at you by other Fae. Prepare yourself."
Merlin slapped down the quill on the table and stared at me intently. A sudden dizziness assailed me, reminding me of when Merlin presented me with that deal. I shot to my feet. "You glamoured me into accepting your bargain!"
The bastard Fae had the nerve to smile at my outraged accusation. "Good. You can recognise when others are trying to manipulate you through glamour."
"But..." I sputtered. "But you, you forced me –"
Merlin arched his left eyebrow in disapproval. "Calm. Down," he ordered. "I did indeed try. But the operative word here is 'try'. It did not succeed. No amount of glamour could force you to accept the terms of bargain; you were much too stubborn. The amount of glamour I was directing at you then would have made many other Fae – and humans – willing slaves to all my demands, but it merely caused you to be slightly more plaint and less aggressive. Slightly."
I decided to take that as a compliment. "Thank you."
Merlin narrowed his eyes at me. "That was not meant to be flattering."
I shrugged in a 'I couldn't care less' way.
The Fae male shook his head. "In any case, to expound, no amount of glamour could push you in the direction I wanted you to go. Instead, you changed the topic and asked for my name. Now, I am not sure if I have explained this to you properly, but giving your name to another Fae gives them a dangerous power over you. And the way you phrased your offer could have another Fae to couche it as a bargain and offer you a pseudonym in place of their true names, while you would offer up your own true name. Hence, never ask that of another Fae, or give your own name to them. In fact, since you are taking the place of Arthur, please use his name as a placeholder."
I nodded. "So you really couldn't manipulate me?"
Merlin's mouth twitched. I could not tell if he was grimacing or trying to smile. "No. Agreeing to the bargain was purely your decision. Now, you are still not fully blocking the glamour. Let us try again."
~
"Catch!"
"Oof," I grunted, as two thick rods smacked me in the chest. Fumbling, I managed to catch them before they tumbled to the ground. I swear, I was going to get a bruise with how hard Merlin threw the sticks.
He spun around to face me. "Now, attack me!"
He had his own stick in his hand, and he lunged at me. Backpedalling quickly, I barely dodged under his the first swing he made at me. Good gracious goodness (sorry, this weird...phrase...is what Merlin allows me to use in place of my usual swears), this guy was fast.
"Can we...slow down...and you...teach me? I've...never done this...before...ya know?" I yelped as I weaved and ducked, and generally tried to avoid getting walloped by the lightning fast jabs and darts of his 'sword'.
"You learn by doing," Merlin said, his voice steady despite the whirlwind of blows he sent my way. "Let me determine your natural skill level before we start on the exercises. So now, attack me!" He poked me in the stomach with enough force for me to feel as if the air was knocked from my lungs. Well, if he wanted to be hit so badly, might as well give him what he asked for, right?
I swung the stick in my right hand at his shoulder and aimed the one in my left for his knees, lashing outwards. Merlin barely managed to evade the upper blow and parry the lower one. He straightened and raised his eyebrows at me, pausing for a while. Ha! Score one for the ambidextrous girl.
"Good!" He exclaimed. "I chose the right weapons for you. When you fully know how to use these, you'll be a terror with the shortswords. Now, when we start the next bout, I want you to try something else. Get close, and stab me. The shortest line of attack is not a swing. It's a stab. We'll work on your finesse later, but you need to realise that shortswords are good for both types of attacks, being more versatile than a longsword or a dagger. Now hit me!" He launched another attack, sending me scrabbling to defend myself. With the ferocity of his attacks, how could I even get close to him? He was just way too fast!
After a while, frustration started to simmer within me. Oh, it was a fantasy to get behind Merlin and backstab him (sounds cool, right?) but it was definitely a pipe dream at this point. Darting to the side to dodge a blow, I blinked to get sweat out of my eyes and somehow miraculously found myself standing behind the Fae.
What the heck? Okay, I was not going to complain, since Merlin was still completing his last swing at where I was last standing. When he whirled to try and find me, I jabbed my stick into his ribs.
The stupid Fae did not even have the decency to cry out in pain even when the force of my blow sent him stumbling backwards. "How did you..."
"Uh..." I began. "I'm not sure. I stepped right, and suddenly I was behind you? I don't think I've got super speed because then wouldn't I be able to remember I moved there?"
Merlin pursed his lips. "What were you thinking of when it happened?"
"Why?" I asked.
"Humour me."
"Attacking you from behind?"
He gave me a grin that oozed satisfaction. "I think I know what happened. Every Fae has an innate gift that they can use at any time, and yours may just have made itself known. However, we do need a focus to use that...put down your weapons, please."
I complied.
"Now, step backwards into your own shadow, and think of getting behind me again."
I did so, but nothing happened. "Is this some kind of a joke?" I demanded as we stared at each other.
Merlin rolled his eyes. "We're not done. Pick your weapons up again and repeat the experiment."
I stooped to retrieve them, and as I straightened, I stepped backwards. Lo and behold! Merlin was right! To my surprise, I found myself behind him again. I know what I did next was petty, but I just could not resist the opportunity.
I whacked him in the same spot I did earlier.
Merlin turned around with a grimace. Ha! I hoped it bruised. I knew I would be covered in bruises tomorrow. "That was extremely unnecessary," he growled.
"Sorry," I shrugged unrepentantly. "But have you figured out what's going on?"
"Yes. It seems like your innate gift is Shadow Walking, which can be a rather useful tool. And since you seemed to do it without any effort at all, I believe that weapons might be able to act as your strongest focus."
"Okay..." Sounds crazy and all. But hey, I had already dived off the deep end, so why not continue? I mean Shadow Walking can be pretty useful if I think about it...
"You need to get used to controlling it," Merlin declared. "Back to practice. Now, I want you to combine all you have learnt so far..."
~
"Strategy is key," Merlin instructed, "in the Fae society. Always think two steps ahead. Combined with the more things you know about the Fae, this kind of thinking will prevent backstabbing, drawn-out wars, and coups. It might even save your life. Unfortunately, this skill is something I cannot teach you. You will have to learn on your own. So, to do so, we will be playing a game. Gwynerch."
A chess board with pieces carved in marble and decorated with precious stones appeared on the table between us. "Do you need me to explain the game to you?" Merlin asked.
I rubbed my hands eagerly. "No way. Let's go."
Merlin didn't know what he was in for. Back in high school, I used to be in the competition team for chess and I even rose to the ranks of chess champion in my school. Ha! Let the game begin.
The game took us close to an hour. I had to employ all of my skill, but in the end it was worth it.
"Checkmate," I called, sliding my bishop into position. Merlin blinked at the board as if he could not believe what had just happened. "Gwared," he muttered, and the chess board disappeared. "You don't need this."
I bounced in my seat. "Right. Can I have this time off then?"
Merlin frowned. "I suppose. Do be present for the class on Court history, however."
I smiled and strode out of the room. Time to explore.
~
"You're late," Merlin grumbled as he scowled at me.
"Sorry, got kind of lost," I mumbled in reply.
"No matter. Let us begin." Merlin was going into lecture mode, so I slumped on my chair and prepared for a long monologue. Wheee.
"There are five Fae Courts. One for each of the seasons, and the Solar Court. You and I belong to the last. The rulers of each Court have an ancestry that harkens back to certain noble creatures – do not ask me how, the details of that have been lost to time – and thus we all have different looks and natural giftings. For example, it is easier for me to cast a spell bending light or darkness than to cause the earth to move, while the opposite is true for a Spring Fae. I say easier, because it just costs less energy and glamour. But, to go back to those noble creatures, the Solar Court have dragon blood in our veins, and hence the name of Pendragon given to our ruler. We can be identified by our eyes and hair. Our eyes –"
"I'm sorry," I interrupted. "Do you have a pen and paper on which I can write this down? I'm going to get lost."
Merlin gave me a flat look. "Summon it yourself."
I sighed. "Okay...gwynerch." I felt the now familiar drain of energy as a pen and a pad of foolscap paper appeared on my lap. "Go on," I muttered, and waved a hand at Merlin.
"So, like I was saying, our eyes have a distinct gold ring around the irises. That is the sure way to tell that one is a Solar Fae. Our hair can be like yours – purplish black – or like mine – silver. The more strands of silver hair you have, the better your connection to the flow of glamour and the more potent your spells. As a half Fae, you might defy this general rule, the full blooded Fae do not. In addition to our affinity for spells that manipulate darkness and light, our dragon blood confers upon us some other abilities. We have greater speed, greater stamina, a greater ability to wield magic, an increase in sex drive –"
I covered my ears. "TMI, TMI!" I yelled.
Merlin stared at me incredulously. "You swear with some of the filthiest language I have ever heard, but you cannot handle hearing about our greater need for sex?"
I winced. "When you put it that way...nope. Still can't hear about it. Swearing is different from having the 'birds and the bees' talk, which I've been through with my Mum. It's awkward as hell, by the way."
Merlin blinked once. "You can't tell me that you've never felt the urge to satisfy that need?"
"Nope...both my Mum and I agree that...sex...is for after marriage only. I mean Mum told me all about Grandmum, and I've seen it with my own eyes. According to Mum, the man Grandmum loved ditched her after knocking her up. Now she's a shell of a woman, walking around with a dead look in her eyes. No way in hell that's going to happen to me." I was ranting, but who cared? A girl can feel strongly about such things, you know?
Merlin held up a placating hand. "Right. It is your own opinion and I do not think I can change your mind since you are so stubborn. But now that we have briefly covered the Solar Court, let us move on. The Spring Court..."
~
Okay. You get the idea. Two years was simultaneously a short and long time. Short, if I didn't think about it. Long, if I let homesickness plague me. Merlin kept me busy enough that I could ignore it when I wanted to. I would not elaborate anymore because I think I am boring you. But hey, if you want me to continue because for some reason you find the lore of Avalon oh so interesting, feel free to drop me an email or something and maybe I will write it all out for you in a guide.