Chapter 6 The Search for an Anchor - Selena's Quest in a World of Shadows

Selena sighed in resignation. "If you want to make a scene of it, just throw the drink in their face. Plus, it might look strange if I'm following you around in a place like this." Bo frowned and declined Selena's offer of free booze. "If you're having a problem, come back here, Asme." Selena acquiesced and walked away. Wendy, confused by the exchange, asked Grey what was going on. He explained that Selena was a shadow mage who couldn't risk consuming mind-altering substances, but didn't want to reveal her identity to everyone.

When people offered her drinks, Bo or Grey would usually drink them instead. Wendy remained puzzled, but Grey urged her to watch as Selena sat down next to a middle-aged man and smoothly delivered a flirtatious line. Wendy was shocked, but Grey and Bo seemed unperturbed. Selena repeated the same tactic with another man, and Wendy couldn't understand what was happening. "What is she doing?" she demanded of Grey and Bo. Grey simply shrugged. Wendy observed Selena as she made her way through the tavern, approaching one man after another. Selena was looking for an anchor, someone to provide her with stability and support. Wendy was initially confused and even annoyed by Selena's behavior, thinking that she was too young to behave like that. But as she watched Selena interact with her targets, she realized that the intensity and sincerity of Selena's search were palpable. Most of the men succumbed to her request, perhaps because they sensed her genuine need for an anchor. As the night drew to a close, Wendy saw Selena leave with a man whom she thought was quite unattractive. Grey speculated that Selena was simply trying to work her way through every man in the world. Wendy was incensed and demanded to know why Selena had chosen such an ugly man. Grey smirked and suggested that maybe he was very nice. Wendy protested, saying that Selena could only be judging him on appearance, but Grey pointed out that as a shadow mage, Selena might not be overly concerned with material things. Bo weighed in with his opinion, saying that Selena was looking for someone who could anchor her to this world, and physical appearance might not be the only criteria for her. Wendy pondered this and realized that Selena's search for an anchor was not so different from Emerré Albier's quest, the most famous shadow mage in Mance-Jolune, who had found an anchor and was still alive today. Maybe finding an anchor through shadow magic was simpler, but for Selena, it seemed that talking to men in taverns was the way to go. With a serious expression, he shrugged and replied, "Maybe she simply doesn't notice," before continuing in a lighter tone, "but don't let it bother you, Wendy. As an adult, she can do as she pleases and she behaves herself with our clients." Wendy protested, "I'm an adult too!" Grey teased, "Do you want to join her then?" Indignantly, she retorted, "That's not what I meant! Excuse me, I'm going to bed alone!" The next day, Bo and Selena found a job, and the group left Halle with a smaller caravan bound for Sontmor. Wendy spent the morning inscribing protection spells on the wagons while noticing her companions becoming more alert. Selena ranged ahead of the wagons and returned to carefully plan the route with Bo. Wendy observed that although Selena did most of the work, she and Grey deferred to Bo's decisions without argument. With no other guards, they set watches every night, but Wendy found it tiring and boring, though she had mentally prepared for it. On her first watch with Bo, she trembled with excitement, but the novelty quickly wore off. On the first night out of Halle, Wendy observed as Grey refreshed the inscriptions on Bo's armor and weapon. Despite her teasing, Selena and Grey worked together efficiently. After completing Bo's armor, Grey meticulously inspected the spells on Selena's sword and armor, which needed to be redone every night. On the second night, Wendy approached Bo and Grey as they worked on his armor, noticing Grey using charcoal to inscribe symbols on Bo's shoulder pad. Wendy offered to enhance the inscriptions with tools from her bag and teach Grey more powerful symbols with practice. Grey, however, refused and walked away. Wendy saw this as an opportunity to prove herself and believed that once Grey saw the potency of her inscriptions, he would come around and want to learn from her. Wendy asked Bo if he minded her redoing his inscriptions, to which he agreed. She took out a silver bar and wiped away the old markings on his shoulder pad with a cloth. Bo was surprised at how clean it looked afterward. Wendy explained that it was best to start with a clean slate and proceeded to use the silver bar to make a straight, unbroken line on his armor while whispering under her breath. She focused on the symbol that occupied her thoughts, watching as it illuminated the dark night air. But she wasn't finished yet. Continuing to whisper, she extended both hands, one still clutching the bar, and reached out to touch the symbol before pulling back and circling around the body. With each completed circle, she paused and added a small mark to his armor. By the time she finished, there was a large symbol on his shoulder and the rest of his armor was dotted with small silver spots. Bo looked down at himself, raising his eyebrows in surprise. "That will last a few months, or a few years if the protection isn't used. Now, about your sword..." Later that night, as Wendy curled up in her blankets, she watched as Grey inspected her handiwork. Bo spoke with him in hushed tones, and from the expression on Grey's face, he was not pleased. Wendy, however, was secretly pleased with herself. She had clearly proven her skill and drifted off to sleep feeling happy. It wasn't until the morning of the eighteenth day that they left Mercôt and entered Sontmor. The border was marked by the low-lying Upper Scheldt River, and Wendy spent most of the day looking around for any sign that they had entered the unknown land of Sontmor. They crossed the river via the sturdy wooden Merciac bridge, which rose high over the water to withstand the spring floods. Despite feeling a flutter of excitement, Wendy's enthusiasm soon faded as the world on the Sontmor side was much the same as on the Mercôt side. Although they were in the midst of summer, it was grey and chilly due to their location in the south. If Wendy hadn't known the geography and significance of the Merciac bridge, she would never have realized they had left Mercôt. As they journeyed on, the cleared land stretched out around them, with farmsteads visible in the distance. The terrain became rougher and dotted with trees as they continued, the remnants of an ancient forest. Although it was not particularly interesting to Wendy, they kept watch throughout the night as usual. "I thought you said it would be difficult to have a fire," Wendy demanded of Grey as Bo cooked their dinner. They rotated between Selena and Bo for cooking duties, and Grey had not yet cooked. "Wendy," he said, "we're not quite there yet." "What exactly is happening?" "Just wait and see," he replied. After dinner, he and Selena re-inscribed her equipment. Selena would test the inscription every so often, causing the night to flare with magic that quickly died down. Wendy watched for a few moments before pulling a rectangular wooden box from her bag. Inside were seven glass lenses, rimmed in gold and cushioned in silk. It was all magically protected, and if you looked carefully, you could see the signs woven into the silk and marked upon the wood. She selected a lens of middling size and held it in front of her eye as she watched Selena. Frowning in concentration, she rotated it in her hand before pulling out a second lens. She then connected the two lenses together using a clasp, leaving a gap of perhaps three fingers width between them. She silently watched Grey and Selena, occasionally changing the lenses around. An hour or so later, they both looked up and saw her watching. Wendy suggested, "I believe that we can gain valuable insights into shadow magic by studying your use of conventional magic. When we're in Manus, we should visit the Collegium's Imservorium, which has a superior lens, to do so." Selena smiled uncertainly. Wendy put her lenses away and took out a leather-bound notebook. She quickly began jotting down her observations, feeling as though she had made new insights into the nature of shadow magic. It seemed as if Selena's regular magic was being strangled by her shadow magic, as if the two did not like to coexist within one person. Wendy realized that Selena's regular magic was very weak, and she needed a regular mage to do her inscribing for her, and the best she could do was activate the pre-formed magic. It explained why shadow mages had never been seen using regular magic before. It was remarkable that Selena had persevered and even discovered that she could use the little amount she possessed. A normal person who struggled so much with magic would not have even been taught. When Wendy finished jotting down her observations, she spoke to Selena again, "Perhaps I could do some inscribing for you." "Not yet," Selena replied with a smile, "Grey and I work well together. He knows how to do the inscribing so I can use it without much trouble." "I see that could be a problem," Wendy said, still thinking she could do a better job than Grey if given the chance. However, she decided not to press the matter. She had already taken over his inscribing of Bo's armor, so it was best to leave him something to do. "Get some rest," Selena told her, "the track will become more dangerous tomorrow, and you want to be ready."