No Class Found

It had been about two weeks since Doc returned to Glasshold with Princess Cassira, and the city was still tense.

Commander Varro’s Imperial soldiers had taken up permanent quarters near the southern wall. The Academy had increased security around its grounds, and the people living along the outer approach had grown more wary of unfamiliar faces.

Doc stood in the front trade room of the depot and let himself look.

The shelving ran floor to ceiling along the east wall, each unit fitted so tightly that no packing had been needed. The counter was new timber, its surface smooth enough to slide a coin across without catching. The mortar between the stone base walls had been stripped out and replaced in a single pass, every line clean and uniform.

Brenn's crew had finished the structural repairs in four days.

Four days.

The load distribution across the rear storage room has been corrected as well, Lux noted. Previous scan identified multiple compromised sections. Current count: zero. All ceiling beams reinforced, and the loft flooring has been entirely replaced. Structural integrity now exceeds the original construction by an estimated twenty percent.

Doc ran his hand along the doorframe leading to the storage room. The wood had been planed smooth, and the frame sat square against the door. He pressed against it. Nothing shifted.

That was Brenn's work.

The rest belonged to Dulric and Carl.

Doc turned toward the front wall and extended his senses. The mana field was faint but he could feel it, threading through the stone in deliberate patterns that Lux rendered as a pale blue overlay across his vision. Protective runes had been etched into the exterior walls at regular intervals. Doc recognized the basic ward structure from the textbook he'd been studying, but the layering here was something else entirely. Dulric had carved the primary glyphs while Carl handled the mana routing, bridging the gaps between each rune with thin crystal conduits embedded in the mortar itself.

The result was a continuous defensive lattice wrapped around the entire building.

The central heating system is also active, Lux continued. Dual-core battery installed beneath the ground floor, channeled through pipes embedded in the foundation walls. Ambient temperature in the storage room holds at a consistent fifty-seven degrees Fahrenheit against an external twenty-seven.

Doc shook his head.

"I see you're still gawking." A feminine voice said from behind Doc.

Doc turned. Ironha stood in the doorway between the trade room and the yard, arms folded, one brow raised.

"I am not gawking." He straightened. "I'm just…okay yeah I may have been gawking a little."

Ironha laughed and tilted her head toward the yard. "Are you ready to eat?"

Doc nodded. They walked together through the rear door and into the open air.

The eating area was simple. A long trestle table had been set up in the packed-earth yard between the depot and the low stone wall bordering the adjacent lot. Plates and cups were already laid out. The smell of Bran's cooking drifted from somewhere nearby.

Mazoga sat at the far end of the table, one elbow resting on the tabletop. Marron occupied the seat beside her, a leather-bound ledger open in front of him. Brenn sat across from them, a cup of something steaming between his hands.

Mazoga spotted Doc and raised a hand. He and Ironha walked over.

At the second table near the yard wall, Kipp and Maris sat with Calen. Fish lay beneath the bench with her head on her paws, eyes half-closed. Two of Brenn's construction crew occupied the opposite side, eating and listening while Kipp gestured at something with a bread crust. Maris watched the conversation, a smile on her face.

They were finding their place here. That much was clear.

Doc settled onto the bench beside Brenn. Ironha took the spot across from him.

"What's going on?" Ironha asked.

Marron tapped a column of figures in his ledger. "I've sold most of what we brought. After purchasing the full resupply list for Foroughfore and Threeburrow, we still have significant reserves." He turned the ledger so Doc could see the balance. The number was better than expected. "I've been looking at the lot next to us." He gestured past the stone wall toward the open ground to the east.

Brenn followed the gesture and set down his cup. "The loft quarters work for now." He glanced toward the second table where Kipp and the others ate. "But if we're keeping a permanent crew here, and running trade through the depot on a regular schedule, we'll need proper housing. Separate from the workspace."

Doc looked at the open lot.

"What does Edda and the Threeburrow council think?"

Mazoga leaned forward. "Spoke to both this morning. Edda approved the expansion. Kraggir, Ygrana and Rurran seconded it."

Marron closed the ledger and tucked it under his arm as he stood. "I'm heading to the Merchant's Guild now. Kess can arrange the purchase." He adjusted his coat. "If the price holds where I expect, we'll have the deed by tomorrow."

Doc watched him go, then turned toward Mazoga.

"Now that the depot's up and running, what are the plans moving forward?"

Mazoga rested one scarred hand on the table. "I'm taking a few jobs from the Adventurer's Guild. Monster clearing. Maybe a dungeon run if something decent comes up."

Doc nodded. "Keeping busy?"

"And getting paid." Mazoga shrugged. "The board's changed, too. Half the postings are draugr clearing on roads that were clear last month."

"Moving south?"

"Something is. Kesh is still looking into it. Nothing useful yet."

She glanced toward the depot. "So we keep helping refugees, build up Foroughfore and Threeburrow, and make some coin in the meantime."

Doc then turned to Brenn.

"I'll get the other property built," Brenn said. "But after that, I'd like to head back to Foroughfore."

Doc raised a brow. "You're not staying?"

Brenn shook his head. "I'll leave some of the crew here. Especially Rald." He gestured toward one of the workers at the second table—a broad-shouldered man with graying hair and a steady grip on his spoon. "Rald can handle whatever comes up. Future construction. Repairs. He's more than capable. But Foroughfore's got a lot more to build. With the refugees coming in, the housing rows we built will fill up quick, and Edda's already marking new zones for expansion. Tor's going to need help keeping up with it. I'd rather be there for that."

Doc nodded.

 "What about you two? What are your plans?" Mazoga asked.

Ironha smiled. "I'm planning to visit the Mage's Guild. And I want to see if Doc's access can get me into the Academy library. I'd like to see what they have on healing magic. Recipes. Techniques. Anything that might help me refine my craft."

She paused, glancing toward the depot's front entrance. "And if we do expand the living quarters here, I think opening a small healing clinic would go a long way toward making the people in the outer district trust us more. Right now, we're outsiders with coin and connections. If I can help them when they're hurt or sick, that changes things."

Mazoga's attention settled on Doc, waiting.

He thought about it.

Everyone else knew where they were going.

Doc had mana now. He could activate runes with it. He could produce ice and fire, though neither came easily and both took more out of him than they should.

He needed to learn what he was doing.

“I’ll probably spend most of my time at the Academy.”

Mazoga looked at him. “Studying?”

“Mana. Runes. Whatever I can get access to.”

Before anyone could speak further, Bran came through the rear door carrying another tray of food.

“Eat first,” he said. “Figure out the rest afterward.”

Doc had no argument for that.

Lunch lasted a little longer after that.

Marron was already gone by the time Doc finished eating, and Brenn had Rald leaning over the table with him, the two discussing something about the neighboring lot. Mazoga had disappeared inside at some point.

Doc left them to it.

Ironha collected her satchel. Fish lifted her head from beneath the second table when Doc stood, then stretched and padded over to join them.

The three headed out together.

“So where are you starting?” she asked as they made their way through the outer district.

“The library.”

Ironha gave him a sideways look. “I gathered that much.”

Doc shrugged. “Beyond that? No idea.”

“I suppose that’s what the library is for,” Ironha said.

“That’s the hope.”

They continued toward the center of the city. The streets were busy despite the increased Imperial presence. Wagons squeezed past one another between buildings, merchants called from open stalls, and patrols moved through the crowds often enough that Doc had stopped paying much attention to them.

The Mage’s Guild appeared ahead before long.

Ironha slowed.

“I may be here awhile.”

Doc looked toward the Guild entrance. “Good luck.”

“You too.”

She stepped away toward the building, leaving Doc to continue on alone.

The Academy was still farther ahead.

This time, he was heading there without someone waiting to question him.

Fish padded beside Doc as he continued up the street.

By the time they reached the Academy, the entrance gate was busy with students coming and going.

Doc headed for the main entrance.

One of the guards stepped forward as they approached, his attention settling on Fish.

“Is that creature with you?”

Doc looked down at her.

Fish looked back.

“Yes.”

The guard hesitated. “You’re bringing her inside?”

“She was with me the last time I was here.”

The second guard studied Doc for a moment before recognition crossed his face.

“You’re Mr. Duckworth.”

“I am.”

That seemed to change things.

The guard exchanged a look with his companion, then stepped aside.

“Archmagister Kaine left instructions that you were to be given access to the Academy grounds and library.”

Doc had expected that much. Kaine had been clear about the offer.

The guard looked at Fish again, then back at the instructions in his hand, as though the answer might have appeared there since the last time he checked.

“It doesn't mention a wolf.”

“She won't cause any trouble.”

The guard weighed that against whatever he thought arguing would cost him.

“Keep her close.”

Doc entered the Academy.

This time, classes were in session.

Near one side of the courtyard, a magister stood before a group of students with several stone targets arranged behind him. He raised one hand, and a narrow stream of fire crossed the open space and struck the nearest target, leaving a blackened mark across the stone.

Then the students began trying it themselves.

Most did considerably worse.

One student's spell sputtered out halfway to the target. Another produced a flame that went sideways and nearly caught the sleeve of the person standing beside him.

The magister said something Doc couldn't hear and immediately started correcting their stances.

Doc watched for another few seconds.

He could probably learn something just standing there.

But he had one objective.

The library.

He stopped the first person who looked like they might know where they were going.

“Excuse me.”

The young man turned toward him, then checked his step when he noticed Fish standing beside Doc. His eyes lingered on her for a moment before returning to Doc.

“Yes?”

“Library.”

The student waited.

Doc waited.

A second passed.

Then Doc added, “Where is it?”

“Oh!” The student shook his head and then pointed toward a wide corridor on the left. “Western hall. Follow that until you reach the central stairwell. You can't miss it.”

“Thank you.”

Doc started away.

“Were you with the group that brought Princess Cassira back?”

Doc stopped.

The student glanced at Fish, then back at him.

“I heard there was a man with a phase wolf.”

Doc looked down at Fish.

“I was there.”

The student nodded, apparently satisfied. “Thought so.”

Doc continued down the hall.

You are being observed, Lux noted.

I noticed.

Several individuals have altered their movement to maintain visual contact with us.

Doc glanced down at Fish.

“Probably you.”

Fish's ears twitched.

Unlikely.

“Let me pretend.”

The western hall opened into a larger chamber filled with students moving between several adjoining corridors. Signs had been mounted beside each entrance, thankfully with writing Lux could translate.

Rune Studies.

Practical Applications.

Elemental Theory.

Enchanting.

Doc slowed.

That alone was enough to remind him how little he knew.

He had spent weeks learning basic runes from whatever books he could purchase or borrow. Here, an entire section of the Academy was devoted to them.

Fish bumped the back of his leg.

“Right.”

He found the sign for the library and followed it.

The room beyond was larger than he expected.

Shelves filled most of the ground floor, with another level visible above through an open center. Long tables occupied the space between them. Students sat scattered across the room, some reading while others copied passages onto loose sheets of parchment.

Doc stopped just inside.

Lux remained silent for several seconds.

This is substantial.

“That it is.”

A woman behind the nearest desk looked up.

Her eyes moved to Fish first.

Of course they did.

“Animals aren't normally permitted in the library.”

“She'll stay with me.”

“That is not usually an exception.”

Doc considered that.

Before he could answer, an older man working at the far end of the desk looked over.

“Is that her?”

The woman glanced toward him. “Is that who?”

The man approached, though he was not looking at Doc.

“That's the phase wolf.”

Doc raised a brow. “You know her?”

“I know of her. Half the western hall knows of her.” He finally glanced up. “Which makes you Mr. Duckworth. Archmagister's instructions — general library, full access.”

“And the animal?” the woman asked.

The older man looked at Fish again.

“The instructions were not specific.”

The librarian looked between them before giving up.

“If she damages anything, you pay for it.”

“Fair.”

“And she stays beside you.”

“She usually does.”

That settled, the man moved around the desk.

“What are you looking for?”

Doc glanced past him toward the shelves.

That question was harder.

“Mana control.”

The librarian waited.

“Rune theory. Magic fundamentals.” Doc thought for another moment. “Probably whatever someone would read before they're trusted not to hurt themselves.”

The man's expression changed slightly.

“You've never been formally trained?”

“No.”

“But you can use mana.”

“Yes.”

“Spells?”

Doc thought about the frozen cup.

“Not exactly.”

The librarian studied him for a moment.

“All right. Come with me.”

Doc followed him between the shelves, Fish keeping close behind.

They passed several sections before the librarian stopped at a row that looked considerably less impressive than the others.

The books were thinner here. Several had brightly illustrated covers, and one featured a cheerful little flame hovering over an open hand.

Doc looked at the shelf.

Then at the librarian.

“These look like children’s books.”

“Introductory primers.”

Doc pointed at the nearest cover. “There is a smiling flame on that one.”

“It is a very good introduction to elemental shaping.”

Doc picked it up.

The flame was, in fact, smiling.

Lux?

The instructional value has not yet been determined.

You're enjoying this.

I do not experience enjoyment.

Doc opened the book.

The first page contained a diagram showing a person seated cross-legged with arrows indicating how mana should be drawn inward, circulated, and released.

He stopped.

The humor faded quickly.

He understood maybe half of what the diagram was trying to show.

The librarian must have seen something in his expression.

“Start there,” he said. “If that makes sense, move to the next shelf. Don't skip ahead because the material looks simple.”

Doc turned another page.

A second diagram showed the difference between drawing ambient mana and using mana already held within the body.

That one caught his attention immediately.

“Can I take these to a table?”

“As many as you can reasonably use.”

Doc looked down the shelf.

Then back at the librarian.

“How many is reasonable?”

The man sighed.

“Start with three.”

Doc selected three.

Fish followed him to an empty table near the end of the room and settled beneath it while Doc placed the books in front of him.

He opened the first one again.

Lux began recording.

Doc started reading.

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