Moonless Nights

"We, the priests and priestesses of the Temple of Isaana, are pleased to accept Miss Hana and Master Silvio Sabatka as Sorcerers' apprentices. Should you choose to accept this invitation, the induction ceremony will take place in two months' time…"

"Silvio, for the love of the Goddess, will you shut that thing off already?"

A woman approaching her forties rubbed her temples and sighed, admonishing her son. He was the splitting image of her, with a mop-top of shiny raven hair and bright grey eyes that shimmered intelligently on his foxlike but childish face. Sulking a bit, he turned the crystal blasting the audio in his hands and tapped on it, immediately cutting the sound off.

"Thank you." Eliza Sabatka leaned back and took the Message Crystal from him, placing it in her pocket. "We know you're excited to start your training, but you don't have to replay the acceptance message over and over again! And look! Your sister's tired! Let her rest."

Silvio looked over at his sister, sitting across from him. As Silvio looked like his mother, Hana looked just like her brother. They were twins, fraternal, although Silvio was thirty seconds older. Twin siblings shared many things with each other, and even when things words stayed unspoken, they understood the other anyway. And although their mother wasn't so privileged as to be offered a peephole into Hana's mind, Silvio knew just how she was feeling.

Truth be told, young Hana Sabatka wasn't tired at all. Although her cheeks were pressed against the window of the train staring blankly outward to the rapidly moving landscape, she was worrying, not trying to sleep. She was just as excited as her twin brother to begin studying magic, but at the same time her mind was filled with anxieties about the future. What if the teachers were mean? What would it be like staying away from her parents so long for the first time in her twelve years of life? And what if she was no good at magic?

Silvio made eye-contact with her, and getting the message, lifted up his right hand and turned it so the back faced her. On his pale skin was a red imprint. It was of a half moon surrounded by a semicircle of stars, but it wasn't a tattoo. It was the Mark those who were eligible to become Sorcerers received when they hit puberty. Eliza, Hana, and their father also had Marks of their own--and although Hana received hers two years earlier, their parents thought it best to send them off to the Temple together.

"Don't worry, Sis!" he comforted her. "Everyone in our family's good at magic! I'm sure we'll learn fast!"

Eliza nodded. "You two are descendants of the houses of Crowe and Sabatka. You'll make me and your father proud, I'm sure of it! Besides, my brother is the greatest Sorcerer in all of Gesmaura. He'll whip you into shape."

The train let out a bellow of steam and slowly ground to a halt in Komouruska Station.

"Komouruska!" called the conductor, strolling through the train cars. "This stop for Komouruska!"

Eliza nodded to her children and Silvio jumped up, running out of the car. Hana followed behind her mother, who made a "tsk-tsk" noise with her tongue when she saw her son attempting to grab their luggage.

Pulling out a baton from her pocket, she extended it to almost half a meter. It was covered in a myriad of beautiful gemstones. "O Gods of the Land and Sky, hear my prayer and bestow your blessings upon me: Levitatia!" she commanded, and the stones glowed, enveloping the luggage in a violet aura. With a flick of her baton, the luggage floated through the air around her. Eliza was by no means a large woman; many people were surprised when they learned someone so little was a mother of twins, but she had no trouble carrying the bags, as if they were stuffed with feather down. With the kids trailing her heels, she meandered her way through the crowded station and out to the pickup lane, where rickshaws, carriages, and riders on reindeer were parked haphazardly around, clamoring for a good spot. Eliza bobbed and weaved once more through the fray of hooves and wheels and released the magic spell, dropping the bags with an unceremonious thud into the back of a wooden cart.

"Beautiful form!" remarked a deep voice. "As expected of the Great Eliza!"

A black-haired man clad in purple robes stood before them, leaning against his cart. He was thin and of average height, but had a commanding presence about him. Although he was in his mid-forties, he still looked handsome except for a few wrinkles in the creases of his heavy eyelids, holding onto the last vestiges of virile youth he had left. Two psychedelic giant land slugs oozed in their harnesses behind him, wiggling their eyestalks at the newcomers.

"Uncle Ignatius!" cried the children, running up to him.

He pulled them into a hug. "Hej!" he greeted them. "Oh, how many times have I told you children I don't like being called 'Ignatius?' I'm Uncle Crowe. Not Ignatius! My first name doesn't exist! But anyway, how are my favorite niblings doing--have you had a growth spurt, Hana? You must be tired after coming all the way from Caershira!"

One of the land slugs licked Hana's hand, coating it in purple slime.

"We've brought you a present, Uncle Crowe!" said Silvio. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a blown-glass land slug, almost as colorful as the real ones, but far less disgusting.

"Oh! How thoughtful! It'll look great amongst the rest of my collection. But don't think I'm going to go easy on you two because of this. From tomorrow forth, we're going to be teacher and students, so I can't show you any favoritism." He shook his head. "No, not even that! More importantly, your education isn't free! You'll be serving as acolytes to the Goddess Isaana herself, so you need to work your hardest."

"How is Isaana-sa?" asked Eliza.

Crowe strapped his slugs into the cart yolks and clambered into the driver's seat, urging them to join him. "There's never any changing her, you know that. But I don't suppose a Goddess could ever be anything other than well."

"I see. Well, if she's not at the entrance ceremony tomorrow, then send her my regards."

"Isaana is a fickle woman," replied Crowe. "She might be there, she might not. But she's been to hundreds of years of entrance ceremonies already, so I imagine she's tired of them by now."

"What's the Goddess like?" asked Hana as the slugs oozed out of the station onto the bumpy cobbled streets of the quaint town of Komouruska, the brilliant colors of their slime trails swirling in the sunlight.

"Impossibly kind, and impossibly eccentric," answered Crowe drily. "You'll run into her at some point. You can judge her for yourself, then."

"Have you met any of the other Gods?"

"No, I haven't. I've dedicated my life entirely to Isaana-sa."

Hana nodded and looked out to the shingled roofs lining the horizon. Even though it was the second biggest city in Gesmaura, Komouruska felt like a little town where everyone knew each other. Komouruska was bustling with activity, with people rushing through the streets to and from **** red brick houses advertising restaurants, boutiques, and other services. On every corner there seemed to be a korvkiosk, the sausages' mouthwatering scent filling the air. A line for the well reached all the way around the block, and customers packed an open-air market where people haggled down the prices of goods with merchants. It was a prosperous place, no doubt because Isaana-sa protected the town.

The siblings' hometown, Caershira, didn't have a patron deity, but as long as they were around, their family had worshiped Isaana, although they gave the other Gods their due. It was only logical, though. Amongst all the Gods of Gesmaura, Isaana was the most adored by magic users. Her Temple also served as a school where young Sorcerers went to study magic, and it was where the twins' parents and uncle and grandparents and great grandparents graduated. Their lives were hopelessly intertwined with her influence.

And now, Hana and Silvio would continue the family tradition and learn from and serve Isaana-sa, too.

The city tour was interrupted as the cart lurched to a halt and Crowe launched a series of curses. Silvio was stunned at his sudden foul language. He peeked over his shoulder. In the middle of the street was a young girl, lying in the dirt. In her hand was a wet rag, and on the ground a spilled bucket. Silvio didn't understand. She was about as old as he was, very thin, but... but... what was wrong with her body? He gasped in horror. Her skin was covered in scar-like markings, twisting and turning over almost every bit of flesh save her face. She looked like a burn victim, but somehow he could tell they didn't come from any fire.

"Out of the way!" Crowe barked.

She trembled.

Grumbling to himself, he rose in his seat and opened his robe, pulling out a short staff somewhat like Eliza's. It was also encrusted in jewels. "You have three seconds to get back to the slums! Three, two…"

The girl scrambled to her feet.

"… O Gods of the Land and Sky, hear my prayer and bestow upon me your blessings: Claras ardeat!"

She narrowly escaped the harsh magic blast from his staff, running away as fast as she could, pushing through the crowd.

Silvio looked at him, slack-jawed, but Crowe paid her no mind, putting his staff back and returning to the reins.

"Uncle Ignatius, what was that for?" he gasped.

"Don't you know, Silvio?" Hana placed her hand on his shoulder and shook her head. "Did you see those marks on her? That girl was an Unforgivable."

"But!" he protested. "But you're not allowed to use magic to hurt people, Uncle Crowe!"

"Damned drains on society, they are," grumbled Crowe. "I wasn't going to actually harm her, you know," he continued, voice sounding somewhat hurt.

"You'll have to forgive him, Ignatius," said Eliza. "Silvio's never met an Unforgivable before."

"Ah, that's right. The police force in Caershira keeps 'em out." Crowe put his staff back in its proper place and scowled. "Silvio, there's a reason Unforgivables are the ones struck down by the Gods. Unforgivables are beggars and thieves, every last one of them! If you give them a centimeter, they'll take a kilometer, and they're generally nuisances who like to make everyone else's lives miserable. See, just now... They have this thing, where they like to throw themselves in front of carts and attempt to wash them when you stop. They'll try to use it as an excuse to wring a buck out of you, so you have to be forceful with them to get them to leave you alone."

"Never pay mind to anyone from the slums," lectured Eliza. "They'll try anything to bleed you dry, and if they can't extort you, they'll mug you. "

"But she's just a kid..."

"Unforgivable families aren't like Sorcerer families. They teach the children to be as rotten as they are from the age they can walk. Do you get it?"

Silvio didn't protest. He knew he couldn't win against them, and maybe they were right, so he decided to drop it, although he was still a bit shaken up.

"By the way, Eliza," said Crowe, continuing down the road as if nothing happened, "isn't Teo coming to see the children off?"

"He had urgent matters to attend to at work. But both of us will come up to see the kids during the Illunis Festival, though."

"That's in just three months, isn't it?"

"Just three?"

"Time is relative, Eliza."

Finally the cart pulled into the lot of the inn they would be staying in for the night. Eliza went to check her family in while Crowe attended to the land slugs, attaching feeder bags full of detritus to their radula.

Silvio pulled on Crowe's sleeve.

"What is it, boy?"

"Hey, Uncle Igna—Crowe, will teach me a spell?"

Crowe's face brightened up and he chuckled. "Sure I can. But you need a staff."

"I have one!" Silvio jumped onto the back of the cart and pulled out a case, opening it. Inside were two staffs.

Crowe smiled when he saw them. "Aha! These were mine and your mother's first staffs! Take good care of them. But Silvio, you can't perform magic without enchanted stones."

"I-I knew that!" He blushed.

"I'll let you two borrow my staff for now." He handed his to Silvio. "All right, I'm going to teach you Levitatia. It's the first one you'll learn at the Temple anyway. Okay!" Crowe took out the tiny glass land slug and stepped back a few feet, outstretching his hands. "Proper posture, Silvio! Stand up straight, feet shoulder-width apart, don't lock your knees! Focus on the glass figurine and try your best to feel a connection with both the object you want to move and the enchanted stones. Imagine the staff is an extension of your body. When you're ready, point the staff at the slug and offer your prayers to the Gods. It has to be heartfelt and said with a clear mind, or they won't let you borrow their power. When you've prayed, say 'O Gods of the Land and Sky, bestow upon me your blessings and grant me your power: Levitatia!' The mantra is very important. Put some feeling into it. Use the staff to direct the figure into my hands. Got it?"

"Got it!"

Silvio stared hard at the figure and clutched the staff in both hands. Clearing his throat, he pointed it at the object and shouted, "O Gods of the Land and Sky, bestow upon me your blessings and grant me your power: Levitatia!"

The slug didn't budge.

He grit his teeth. "O Gods of the Land and Sky: Levitatia!"

But again, it didn't move.

"Levitatia!"

"Silvio…"

"Levitatia!"

Still, no matter how he tried, the magic didn't activate.

"Silvio!" snapped Crowe. "You're getting frustrated. Remember, you can't do magic without a clear headspace! For now, take a break and let Hana have a try."

Silvio grumbled but did as he was told, handing the staff to his sister. "It's ridiculously hard," he whispered to her.

Hana copied Silvio's stance, but instead of acting confident like him, she trembled. What sort of training was in store for them if even Levitatia was so hard?

Taking a deep breath, she scrunched up her face in concentration. "O Gods of the Land and Sky, bestow upon me your power and grant me your blessings: Levitatia!" The gems glowed and the glass slug became surrounded in silver aura. Silvio's jaw dropped. Copying what she saw her mother do, Hana tilted the staff up, taking the figurine with it.

"Good, Hana!" complimented Crowe. "Now bring it over!"

Hana tried her best. Although she could make it move, her motions were jerky and the object took a bumpy ride through the air. Beads of sweat rolled down her face as she upped her concentration. It took two minutes to bring it over to Crowe, but she succeeded, immediately letting the spell go and releasing her breath.

"Whoa!" Silvio whistled in admiration. "That was crazy good, Hana!"

"Well…" Crowe scratched his chin. "It's a start. Not bad, though. We can work on refining your technique later."

"Okay, I want to try again!" announced Silvio, but as he reached for the staff, Eliza returned to them.

"You love teaching, don't you, Ignatius?" she said with a smile.

"I do! Are you all settled in now?"

Eliza nodded, removing their luggage.

"I suppose I ought to be getting back to the Temple, then. I have to join the rest of the clergy to prepare for tomorrow."

"But…" Silvio protested.

Crowe took his staff back from him. "Don't get discouraged, Silvio. Lots of students don't get their spells down on the first try. With some more practice and in-class exercises, you and your sister will be equally good at magic. Do you understand?"

Silvio brightened up a bit and nodded. "I'll work my hardest! But I'm going to be the best Sorcerer at the Temple!"

"That's the spirit! Anyway, I bid you all adieu until tomorrow. From here on out, I'm not your uncle anymore. And let me tell you, I'm a strict teacher."

"I'm prepared for that. Bye, Uncle Crowe!"

"Bye, Ignatius!"

Crowe climbed back inside his cart, and with a crack of the reins, he was off, waving them goodbye.

"Well, you heard it straight from the slug's mouth," remarked Silvio. "Hana! From here on out we're rivals, got it?"

"… Uh-huh."

"Leave your sister be, Silvio." Eliza levitated the luggage and nodded for them to follow her inside. "For now, let's freshen up and get some supper. Tomorrow's going to be a big day for you two."