Luther's Pride Part 34

Luther focused his mind and journeyed once more to the pool of power between him and his wives. He closed his eyes to aid his visualization and sensed his spirit journeying along the familiar path. This time, he traveled along the stream of power to Jowangshin’s source, where her spirit connected to the magic. 

He sensed her spirit and embraced it, wrapping himself around it. She was lighter than Helena’s spirit, more airy, which seemed counterintuitive. He expected her spirit to be as strong as stone, as dense and firm as the earth beneath him. Instead, he found he had to lighten his spirit to match hers, which proved more difficult. 

Jo’s eyelids fluttered as the others watched the pair. She grasped for something beside her but found only air. Still, she clenched her hands into fists and bent forward slightly. She shivered and inhaled.

“What’s it feel like?” Rhosyn asked. 

“Like he’s… Intimately touching me.” Jo answered. “Not just my groin but… everywhere. He’s caressing every nerve at once, and it…” 

Helena chuckled. “It felt fantastic when he did it to me.” 

“It’s distracting.” Jo said, gritting her teeth as Luther continued his meditation. 

Luther focused on spreading himself out, taking up as much space as possible and lightening his thoughts. Flashes of jokes and happy times flickered through his mind, of small moments of laughter with friends and traveling companions. Holy music flitted through his mind, carrying the joy of song and the feeling of heavenly devotion to the gods above. 

Slowly, his spirit grew lighter, and matched Jo’s spirit as the two began to resonate, hitting the same note in its crescendo. He pushed into her, drawing his breath as Jo gasped in the real world. 

Luther opened his eyes and jumped to his feet, performing the same spell Jo had moments ago. He started with the note, speaking in a low baritone as he moved his hands in slow, steady circles over the broken stone. “Shift… and… come… together… restore… that… which… was… broken… be… whole… again.”

The dust drew in on itself, and the splintered fragments of stone rumbled together, tumbling into place until the small crater Jo made disappeared. The stone was unmarred once more.

Rhosyn and Eira applauded. 

Luther released the spell and drew himself out of Jo’s spirit. Jo staggered, reaching for Helena and finding her there to catch her. 

“That’s a problem.” Jo said, catching her breath. 

“What is?” Luther asked, checking the pool of magic between them and finding it drained by the same amount Jo had drained it in casting the same spell. He checked himself and her, verifying that nothing had hurt them. 

“The feeling when you did whatever you did. When you performed your arcanum, it felt like you were inside me. Not like sex. At least, not just like sex, but on a transcendent level. Better than sex. I…” Jo blushed. 

“You came?” Helena asked. 

“Almost.” Jo answered.

“Why wasn’t Helena so affected?” Luther asked, looking at Helena. 

“Oh, I felt it, too. I’m just less sensitive than Jo.” Helena said, helping Jo to her feet. “I imagine in the heat of battle it’ll be less intense.” 

“It also needs to be faster.” Rhosyn said. “You can’t sit and meditate like that to do this every time. You need to practice and get this done within seconds, not minutes.” 

“I know that.” Luther said, not angry, but not as patient as he might have been. “It’s complicated, but now that I know how to match my spirit to theirs, it should be faster next time.” 

“We can drill these later.” Helena said. “First, we have to establish the baseline, then we can work at improving the time.” 

Jo nodded. “Who’s next?” 

“I’ll go next.” Eira said, raising her hand. “My arcana is probably going to be one of the more useful for you to master.” 

Luther nodded. “Okay. What’s your spell like?” 

“One I use the most often in combat training is what I call Foreshadow.” Eira said. “If you perform it, you’ll see why. Just know that the darkest shadows are the most probable, but the lighter shadows can happen as well.” 

“Okay…” Luther said, his tone wary. Eira’s arcanum of divination was rare enough, but storied. He hadn’t met anyone with the gift before, but the people who did have it were often famous in the history books and bardic tales. 

Eira pressed her fingers with both hands to her forehead and lowered them over her eyes, tracing her face to her chin. She cast the spell silently, opening her eyes, which glowed as they had the night before. The luminescent whites of her eyes and the shine deep in the dark pit of her pupil made her icy blue-gray eyes shine like sunlit snow. 

Luther felt the slow but steady trickle of magic pouring from the pool of magic between them, drawing toward Eira as she cast the spell to create a more constant effect that she’d trained herself to use. It felt like the spell she’d cast last night, but different, using less power. 

“Take a swing at me.” Eira said, gesturing to Helena. “Don’t look at her.” She said as Helena looked at Rhosyn as if to ask if Eira were serious. The words came just as Helena began the action, and Luther realized what was happening. 

“You’re looking a few seconds into the future.” Luther said, impressed. 

“Yes.” Eira answered. “This particular spell doesn’t show me the future, exactly. I can’t hear sounds or even see solid forms; the only sense affected is my vision. I see what is, I see shadows of things that might be as they move, overlaying what currently is.”  

“It’s annoying as fuck to deal with in combat.” Rhosyn said. 

“It’s not infallible.” Eira said as she ended the spell. 

“The only workaround I’ve found is going with whatever maneuver is most unlikely to succeed.” Rhosyn said. “So you’re either fighting Eira, who is always a step ahead, or luck itself.” 

“Like sparring against your power is so easy.” Eira said, teasing her sister. “But I think this spell will complement your melee style nicely.” 

Luther nodded. She was right, of course. He fought with his sword more frequently than he did with his magic, but he’d gotten so caught up in the idea of using his arcana that he’d nearly forgotten where his strengths lay. Eira hadn’t, either through observation, deduction, or some glimpse into the future. 

Eira’s counsel confused Luther because he never knew if it was coming from a place of objective foreknowledge or subjective personal opinion. 

“What word do you use to cast your spell?” Luther asked. “How do you visualize it?” 

“I use the word ‘Foreshadow’ though I’ve learned to speak it in my mind.” Eira said. “I suppose you may use whatever word helps you, but the visualization is peering seconds ahead. The trick is to control the flow of the magic. The faster magic pours into the spell, the further away you’ll see, and the less helpful the shadows become. You’ll end up reacting to things that are minutes away, rather than seconds, which won’t help you.”

Luther nodded. He closed his eyes and focused again, traveling from his font, through the stream, to the pool, and Eira’s stream. He found her waiting for him at the end of it. Unlike the dense liquid of Helena’s spirit or the lighter airy spirit of Jo, he found her spirit to be one that shifted, as though she were in turmoil. 

“What’s wrong?” Luther asked, looking at Eira. 

“What do you mean?” Eira asked, confused. 

“Your spirit is… turbulent.” Luther responded. 

Helena and Jo looked at each other, then at Eira and Rhosyn. 

Rhosyn slipped her hand into Eira’s, and the turbulent shifting settled into a slower pace, as though she were breathing to shift between states of solid earth, watery liquid, or misty vapor and back again. 

“Well, that makes sense.” Jo said, placing her hand on Luther’s lower back. “As happy as we are to be married to you, husband, it does come with a certain sense of doom.” 

“Not to mention the loss of their parents is still fresh.” Helena said.

Luther nodded. He reached for her spirit again and found its pace slow, but still steadily shifting between states as though she couldn’t help it. 

“Would meditation help?” Luther asked, worried that this complication might prevent him from utilizing his ability. Wouldn’t it be nice if his arcana were straightforward and magic didn’t have to be so complicated? He supposed that was why so many people dedicated their lives to studying it and its effects, because there was a constant supply of mysteries within the study. 

If only there were someone to consult on his arcana, and how to develop it. Unfortunately, they were leaping into the abyss together without a guide. He held his hand out for Eira, and she took it. Rhosyn followed with her as she stepped into Luther’s arms, and he hugged them close. 

Eira softened, closing her eyes and resting her head on Luther’s shoulder. Rhosyn took the other shoulder, facing her sister. The two of them had their arms around his back, and one arm around each other, completing the three-person hug. 

“Close your eyes.” Luther whispered. “Breathe in.” He instructed, and the girls followed his example. “Breathe out.” He ordered. “Focus on your breath, let it connect you to the air around you. You are floating in the void. There is nothing; your body is free, and your spirit is unburdened. Let it explore the magic around you, the connection between you, me, and the others. The union. Let its warmth wash over you, and breathe.” 

Eira’s breathing slowed and became more relaxed as her tight embrace around Luther loosened. He still hugged her to him, and his firm, secure embrace let her relax. Their focus on the present washed away the worries of what might happen in the future. 

Luther drew himself into the present, focusing on the here and now. The battle to come with Branan and his clan loomed ahead, but he had to forget it and abandon his anxieties, in favor of centering himself. The calming effect washed through the circle, as Luther, Rhosyn, and Eira slowed their heartbeats, their chests inflating and deflating in slow, rhythmic cycles together. 

Luther reached for her spirit again and found it much calmer than before. Rather than the rapidly shifting and constantly fluctuating form, a mist hung before him. He reached for it, trying to imagine himself becoming that steady vapor of tear-like droplets hanging in the air. Emotion choked his throat as tears pressed against the corner of his eyes. 

His spirit mingled with Eira’s, and he heard her gulp as the sensation the others experienced seized her. It took him some time to adjust to the form and maintain it. When he suspected he had it, he cast her spell. He used the word “Foreshadow” in the ancient language, speaking it aloud, and opened his eyes. He felt the magic push against his spirit as though it wanted to flood in entirely, but he pinched the stream, slowing it to the steady trickle he’d felt Eira draw before.  

Over the women standing around him, and over the world around him in general, was a lighter, misty, shadowy version of the world. The shadows were thick and dark in the center, growing lighter at the edges until they disappeared entirely. The lighter edges sometimes had flickers of different appendages, shifting and changing like the flames of an ebony candle. 

A shadow version of Rhosyn tilted her head toward him and parted her lips. Three seconds later, a gasp came from her as the real version beneath the shadows repeated the gesture. 

“Oh.” Luther said, understanding. 

Shadow Helena moved, the various versions of her moving with her as though trying to catch up, but each taking a slightly different path, even though they only took two steps forward. Most of them placed a hand on Eira’s shoulder. Some didn’t. Then the solid Helena followed the shadows and put her hand on Eira’s shoulder. 

“Is he okay?” Helena asked. “Luther? Are you okay?” 

“I’m… fine.” Luther said. “This is… disorienting.” He released the girls from his hug, but Eira’s shadows clung to his arm and then vanished. “Don’t!” He started to say, but it was too late. Eira clung to his arm as he pulled away, and her spirit resumed its turbulence at his rebuke. The pain that erupted through them both forced Luther to drop his spell, and he pulled his spirit from Eira’s as the chill of guilt and the heat of shame battled within her. 

Both of them gasped and staggered on their feet, clinging to those around them who caught them and held them up. 

“Are you okay?” Jo asked Luther. 

Luther drew in a deep breath and checked Eira’s face. She was disappointed, but still in good health. 

“It’s okay.” Luther said. “We’re still experimenting with new techniques and breaking new ground here. We’ll get there.” 

Eira tried to smile. 

“Do you want to try again?” Jo asked. 

“Not right now.” Luther said. “And I expect it’ll be a similar difficulty with you, Rhosyn.” He reached for her spirit to verify his deduction, and found it steadier than Eira’s, but still shifting as though unsteady and troubled. 

“Okay.” Helena said. “Eira and Rhosyn, go with Jo. You three are going to work on your meditation.” 

“What about you two?” Rhosyn asked. 

“Oh, Luther and I are going to practice something else.” Helena winked. 

“Sex?” Jo asked. “Without us?” 

Helena laughed and slapped Jo on the back so hard the smaller woman staggered. “Sorry. No.” She cracked her knuckles. “I’m going to fulfill my promise and beat the shit out of him until he learns to use his arcana properly.” 

“Yay.” Luther said, monotone. 

Rhosyn smiled softly. “Don’t hurt him too badly. We’ll want him in one piece later.” 

“I won’t break him.” Helena said confidently. “So long as he learns to reinforce his body like I taught him.” 

Jo shook her head. “Come on.” She gestured to the other girls. “We’ll practice our meditation inside, somewhere calm and quiet.” 

“Good idea.” Luther said. “On second thought, I should probably join you–” 

Helena’s hand clamped over his shoulder as he tried to walk past her, stopping him mid-stride. “Nice try, handsome.” 

“Worth a shot.” Luther winked. “You three go ahead. I’m sure the servants can carry me inside once Helena’s done with me.” 

Jo nodded, and the Eira and Rhosyn blew their spouses a kiss as they followed Jo out of the garden. 

“Alright.” Helena said, walking away from Luther to the center of the ring. “Let’s do this—a proper spar. You try to use your arcana as much as possible. See if you can switch faster with someone trying to punch you in the face.” 

“You just called me handsome.” Luther protested. “Can’t you aim for something else?” 

“Balls it is.” Helena nodded. 

Luther didn’t know whether he should laugh or not, but he was thankful he’d worn his armor this morning after all. At least his balls would have some protection.