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Kestrel pulled the door to the Brikshire Tavern and instantly the stench of the overabundant brandy, ale and other beverages of ill repute attacked her nose with the force of an invading barbarian army. Scrunching up her face in disgust, she took her first step in determination. Several faces, scruff and wary, turned to face her, some staring at her in a way that made her feel more than a little uncomfortable. Something in their expressions seemed too much like the descriptions and pictures of thugs and ruffians that she had seen in her Father's library. Scanning the tavern, she saw a few tawdry barmaids serving their clientèle, of which there were an abundance, but few who really stood out from the rest. One sat with their back to her, alone in a corner, however, and Kestrel started moving towards the stranger. A light blue hooded cloak covered the person, and a plate of food was slowly being eaten on the table. As Kestrel crossed the room, a young man moved to intercept her with a wide grin and a posture far too relaxed for one who was sober.
“Hey, missy... You wanna see a m-magic trick?” Kestrel paused and examined him a little more carefully. His jaw was unshaven and ungroomed, and his eyes were practically glazed over. His clothes, tattered and wrinkled certainly didn't seem to fit the descriptions she had read of mages. Still, she looked him in the eye and asked,
“Are you a mage?” His mouth was slack and he stumbled a little before answering, his drunken breath wafting into her face.
“Yeah, yeah, fer sure. I'ma... a mage-thingy. I can show you some stuff upstairs...” He trailed off, and she turned away. Regardless of whatever else he was, he was most certainly a liar. As she stepped away, he grabbed her arm and spun her around, pulling her close to him. “Hey, hey, where're yew goin?”
“I believe she wishes to be left alone.” The stranger says grasping his arm and looking him in the eyes. Her deep cerulean eyes locked with his hazel, and he looked away. He mumbled something to himself and pulled his arm away from hers, rubbing it as he walked away. The woman stood in front of Kestrel now, looking her over. Her fair skin was accentuated by her light pink hair, and a small pack was hanging from her side. Her face scrutinized Kestrel's as she asked, “Are you alright?”
“I... I am fine, thank you... Miss?”
“Yist, Palu Yist.” She smiled and extended a hand.
“Kestrel Alras.” Kestrel responded, shaking her hand firmly. Perhaps too firmly.
“Quite a handshake you have there, Kestrel. Wait, did you say Alras? As in Jerith Alras, the roboticist?” Palu shook her hand a little bit, flexing her fingers to make sure they still worked fine.
“Yes. He was the one I called Father.”
“You called-? You're one of his robots, aren't you?” Palu asked, and started to circle around Kestrel, looking over her carefully.
“Android, actually. I am looking for a mage. Are you one?”
“What would an android need a mage for? Is your Master sick?”
“I have no Master, but if you mean my Father, he has already passed away.” Kestrel responded and Palu stopped suddenly. The rest of the tavern continued in its ignorance, blithely downing their liquor and food, as Palu motioned for Kestrel to follow her.

Soon they ascended the stairs to the inn above the tavern, and Palu unlocked her room. Once inside, she shut the door and locked it behind her.
“I'm sorry for your loss.” She said, looking tentatively at her.
“For what? You had no part in his death, did you?”
“No, but... What I meant was that I feel sympathy for you. My fiancé, Gregor, died a few years back in battle. I just recently found his grave and was paying my respects today. You were lucky to have come across me when you did. I was returning to Magus Ludus tomorrow.”
“Then I will follow you.” Kestrel said, sitting down on the ground.
“You... Want to go to Magus Ludus? Do you even know what it is? It is a school for those studying magic, it-”
“Yes, I know what it is. My Father told me of it before he passed on. He told me it would help in my pursuit.” Kestrel interrupted and closed her eyes, preparing to rest for the night, leaning against Palu's bed.
“Look, there is another bed that pulls down from the closet if you really need to get some sleep, or recharge, or whatever it is you do, but why do you want to go to Magus Ludus?” Palu said as she ran a hand through her hair. Sarcastically, she asked, “Do you want to be a mage?”
“Yes. Father told me that it would be the best way to fulfill my goals.” Palu's jaw dropped, and as she regained her composure, she pinched her thumb and index finger to the bridge of her nose.
“And what, pray tell, are they?”
“To change this world. Father told me that I would outlast those I came to come to care for. I declared that it was unacceptable, and he eventually suggested meeting the headmaster of Magus Ludus. Father said he might be able to introduce me to an Immortal, so I might have my questions answered.” Palu frowned for a moment and then began to laugh. “What do you find so humorous?”
“You! Become a mage? A robot? Never?” She says, wiping tears from her eyes.
“I have told you already, I am an android, not a robot. And why not?”
“Why... why not? Because it just hasn’t been done before, that’s why! And no one has found a way to immortality in centuries. The few immortals that do still live guard their secrets jealously. And no robot, er... Android has ever cast magic either.”
“Then I shall become the first to do so.” Kestrel replied and walked over to the closet, pulling down the bed. In wonder, she moves it up and down a few times, watching how it was lowered from the wall. Palu watched and shook her head.
“Ambitious little…” Kestrel turned her head and smiled.
“I am an odd bot, yes? That was what the stranger said to me back in the graveyard.”
“Stranger?” Palu narrowed her eyes and Kestrel nodded.
“Yes, he said that he saw a mage in this tavern earlier today.”
“Odd... Few can recognize a mage on first glance, and none of my charms went off when I entered the town. What did he look like?” Kestrel searched her memory banks and pulled a sketchpad and pen out of her pack. Moving slowly at first, she began to draw a portrait, speeding up as she added more details. It wasn't in color, and her drawing wasn't as vivid as the stranger had been, but she handed it over when she had finished. Palu took it and looked down at it.
“Now, let's see who-” She dropped the pad and made a triangle on her chest. “This-This was the stranger? You are certain?”
“Positive. Your speech is faltering. Is something the matter?”
Why would he choose to get involved in an android's future? Palu thought as she shook her head. The arbiter was many things, and could appear to be many things, but the drawing Kestrel had made was most definitely him. Of that, there could be no doubt. Why he decided to invest time and interest in Kestrel's future was beyond Palu's comprehension, but she could clearly see that if he was involved, the android would have a severely interesting life, to say the least. Pranks and jests were his forte, but not all of them were as obvious immediately, nor so simple as they first appeared. “You're coming with me to Magus Ludus after all it seems.” She said, deciding to take her to see the headmaster at the least. If anyone could make any sense of the android's destiny or capabilities, he most certainly would.
“Does that mean I am a Mage?” Kestrel asked in anticipation. Palu winced, not wanting to disappoint her.
“Unfortunately, no. One can only become a mage by graduating from Magus Ludus or the other arcane academies. I suppose I can attempt to apprentice you, to teach you some of the basics of magic. When we arrive at Magus Ludus, they will review your application. If they accept you in, you will be on your way to being a mage. If they don't, you'll have to try enrolling again at a later date.”
“How do we start this apprenticeship?” Kestrel asked instantaneously, standing eagerly.
“By shaking hands. As friends.” Palu said extending her hand. Kestrel clasped it more gently than before and shook it.
“I have never had any ‘friends’ before.” Kestrel speaks reverently. Palu looked her over once more and says,
“Yeah, I can kind of see why. Well, get some rest, we've got a long journey ahead of us. It will take several days, and we want to walk while it's light out tomorrow.”

Palu yawned and moved towards the bed, taking off her cloak and starting to change her clothes.
“Could you teach me a little before you sleep?” Kestrel asked, pulling her dress over her head as she took it off. Palu groaned but nodded. Making a few hand motions in the air, she uttered a single phrase,
“Tasdu Kir Andu. 'Fire-light in Darkness'.” A small flame of light hovered and flickered in the air above Palu's hand, illuminating the room brighter than the lamps hanging from the ceiling. Kestrel moved closer to her and put a hand up to touch the fire. It felt hot, and Kestrel pulled back her hand before it was singed, looking at Palu in confusion. The mage smirked and blew out the flame. “You try it.” Kestrel nodded and tried to reproduce the motions, finally repeating the words, but nothing happened. Palu bit her lip and pulled a book out of her pack. “This might help you. It-It was how I first learned how to weave magic. It was a gift to me when I was young, and I don't really need it anymore. You can have it.” Kestrel's jaw dropped and she took it gingerly.
“Does it not hold sentimental value? You have carried it around for quite some time, yes?” Palu nodded, but pushed it closer to her new apprentice and friend.
“You need it more than I. I'm going to bed, but you can read it as long as you're not too noisy. I'm too tired for the lights to bother me, but you should get some rest too. Oh, and... Take it easy with the book. It's really old, so the pages are a little weak.” Palu yawned, then crawled into bed without another word. Kestrel whispered a thank you to which Palu mumbled a reply, then she dozed off. Kestrel opened the book with great reverence and began to read it from the beginning.

A few short hours later Kestrel had shut off the lamps and finally went to bed. She had tried a few spells without success and decided she would have to wait to speak with Palu later to find out why nothing was working. Moments later, she heard a noise coming from the hall. Footsteps creeping towards them, and hushed voices too soft for her to discern. Perhaps a few drunken visitors returning to their rooms. Kestrel thought and was about to roll over, when the light coming from underneath the door was partially blocked. They were standing just outside their room, and they didn't seem to be leaving. Whoever they were, they tried to open the door silently, but found it locked. Undeterred, the mysterious visitors continued to mess with the door, and Kestrel realized what they must be doing. She had read about it in her Father's library, in one of the few fiction stories in his selection. They were trying to pick the lock. Kestrel got up and moved quickly over to Palu's bed and shook her.
“Palu Yist.” She hissed. The mage stirred in her sleep, but did not awaken. “There are strangers trying to enter the room.” Palu's eyes sprung open as she sat up. Just then the door opened and one of the windows shattered. Palu began to weave a spell as the intruders made their approach. She cast it with a word uttered too quickly for Kestrel to understand, and the man who came through the window found himself tied up by the bedsheets. One of the two coming through the door pulled out a dagger and rushed in towards Palu, intending to strike her down before she could cast another spell. Kestrel moved in his way, and he struck down at her arm. The dagger's cheap metal shattered as it struck the metal underneath her artificial skin and he cursed as he saw what lay beneath the skin he had cut. Before he could react, Kestrel reeled back and punched him square in the nose, breaking it. He coughed up blood and hit the ground, groaning. The last man, armed with a pistol, lifted it up and took aim at Palu's head. Quickly moving to intercept the bullet, Kestrel started moving her hands absentmindedly, directing them out of an instinct that she couldn't understand but didn't question. As the gun fired off she said a single phrase which said caused Palu's eyes to widen even more than they were before, “Tepnus sen kis adunel ast dur gorath men kamen.”

The strange words that the Arbiter had muttered came to her recollection in an instant without knowing what it would do, but their effect was the same. Everything turned gray as Kestrel braced for the bullet's impact, but it never came. The room felt stale and cold, and everything was stationary, immobile. Time had ceased to function, at least from Kestrel's perspective. She had stepped in between the moments, and came to this illogical realization as she saw the bullet suspended in midair. Cautiously, she moved towards it and touched it. The bullet rotated ever so slightly, and it felt far heavier than it should have. Grabbing it tightly with her hands, Kestrel slowly forced it to turn and move, shifting it a foot over, and pointing it at the outer wall of the room, away from her new mentor. Releasing it, her hands torn up and bleeding synthetic fluids, she moved on, every step as though through quicksand. She made her way across the room towards the remaining thug, and her movements became easier as color began to return to the world. Taking his gun out of his hand forcefully, she broke his trigger finger in the process and bent the chamber enough that it would have to be replaced. The man began to move slowly just as she backhanded the side of his head. Time resumed and he flew a short distance across the room into a wall, falling to the ground unconscious before his body even realized it was in pain.

Inhaling and exhaling quickly, Kestrel huffed and turned around to see that Palu was shaking, but fine. The bullet had passed by her, far enough off that it would be nearly impossible for a man to miss entirely at such a short distance. Kestrel walked back towards her mentor and smiled tentatively.
“I... I did it. I cast a spell.” Palu's head turned slowly and she gulped as she nodded. Indeed, Kestrel had cast a spell, but not any that was to be found within the book Palu had given to her. It was a temporal spell which she had seen performed only once in her life, before she started at Magus Ludus, when she was still reading that book. A dragon had gone mad with old age and attacked the town she lived in. A lot of structural damage was done, but hardly anyone died because of a group of mages who were passing through the region. Together they were able to restrain it, but it lashed out it's tail once before succumbing to their spells. The tip of the tail slashed across the house of a friend that Palu was visiting, and the roof started to collapse on her and the six people inside. She caught a glimpse outside of the mage performing the spell, and the next moment she and the others found themselves outside, safe and away from the crumbling building. To see an unskilled, untrained individual perform such a difficult spell in such a short time was unthinkable, especially an android, something that shouldn't have a soul, which shouldn't have access to magic. Palu realized that Kestrel was waving a hand in front of her face and she regained her senses.
“We should leave. I believe we've overstayed our welcome, and that these brutes were probably here to rob what they thought were easy targets. Two women resting here alone. Let's make haste before they awaken, or others arrive.” Kestrel nodded, and the two quickly dressed and packed their few belongings back into their bags. Rushing out of their room, Palu paid for their room and they began their journey towards Magus Ludus.

Hours later, when Palu's legs practically gave out beneath her and her stomach grumbled furiously, they stopped to catch their breath. They had traveled a great distance, and now the sun was just passing its apex in the sky. Kestrel too needed to regain her strength, since her fuel cells were lower than they had ever been. Her body was not running at complete efficiency due to their struggle earlier, as well as the haste of their departure. As they stopped, Palu cast a simple spell to repair the flesh around the knife and bullet wounds that Kestrel's metallic skeleton still shone through. After prodding and poking it to her satisfaction, Kestrel rotated her arm, hand and wrist, marveling at how the simple spell had repaired her skin in such a short amount of time. Finally, she pulled a large loaf of bread out of her sack and broke it in half, offering some of it to Palu.
“You eat?” Palu asked questioningly as she took it gratefully, rummaging in her bag as she spoke. Kestrel nodded and replied before taking a big bite.
“I am run on a dual-core power cell, here.” She put a hand to her chest as she finished eating, placing it directly over where a heart would be, if she were human. “My systems chemically extract glucose and other sugars to be used to generate ethanol, which is used to generate the electricity needed for my body to function. It was one of my Father's designs that he seemed to be very proud of, judging by the notes he kept on it.”
“Amazing.” Palu said as she pulled two cold bottles out the sack. “And water?” She asked as she saw a slight amount of sweat beading off of Kestrel's forehead. She handed over a bottle and Kestrel took it graciously, wiping the sweat off.
“It used for many things. Merged with a few simple compounds it works to lubricate my internal machinations and joints. It also is used in regulating my internal temperature, and extracting excess chemical compounds from my systems.” She opened the bottle and took a swig quite unladylike as Palu sipped hers. “I might not be human, but most of the internal mechanisms I have mimic the internal organs of one. You are, after all, fairly efficient for how complex your form is.”
“Your Father truly was a genius. Although you don't really act like one, you certainly look human enough. The fact that you can eat, drink and sweat is far more human than any other android or robot I have ever seen.” Kestrel smiled tersely at that and they continued to eat in silence as they rested their weary feet.

Eventually they regained enough strength to continue, and Kestrel started to put her bag back over her shoulder.
“We're not going just yet, Kestrel. You wanted to learn magic, so let's go over some of the basics. Tell me what you understood from the book I gave you.”
“Magic is an extraordinary power or influence seemingly from a supernatural source that can overcome the physics and nature of the world. Magic is an energy that is within the environment and within almost all things, though it is rare that one pulls Magic from oneself for the casting of spells. The act of using said energy to manipulate the possibilities and interactions a substance, being or concept may hold within itself or in reference to its environment is what is known as a spell. For example, the possibility that a small flame might appear above a caster's hand is small, unless he or she changes the matter in that space into something far more likely to combust. All magical spells require three things that the caster should be aware of: Firstly, that magic always has a cost. Typically this can be exhaustion of the caster after the spell is complete, as well as transmutation of a substance into the desired outcome. Sometimes the cost is more subtle or more extreme, and the more complex or difficult to perform a spell is, the more costly it becomes. Although many tests have been done to see what the costs of certain spells might be, outside of a test environment, the outcome and costs may vary. For this reason, no magic should be cast unless the caster is aware of this, and willing to pay a price. True magic is not for parlor tricks or gaining fame. Secondly, certain magics are forbidden for a reason, and should never be performed unless absolutely necessary and if all other options are exhausted. Casting such magic brings about extreme changes typically and can be very dangerous even if cast properly. The cost of such magic is high, and the casting of such magic without authorization by the Magi Council is punishable by fines, imprisonment or even execution. Thirdly, magic should always be used for the benefit of others. Using it for personal gain will sometimes incur greater costs than usual. Such is the way that the Pantheon has set it when they gifted it to our world's inhabitants. Attempting to damage our world and our societies may bring about even greater costs, intervention by the Magi council, or even from the Pantheon itself. History has several drastic examples of these instances.” Kestrel said and looked towards her mentor for confirmation. Palu nodded and waited for her to continue. “To cast magic, typically one needs to focus on what the desired result would be. One may accentuate this focus and their training by learning the common magic language of Yerath, one of the other languages, by creating one of their own, by hand gestures, through foci such as a staff or wand, or other artifacts. Rarely, some mages have been know to cast magic without making any discernible movements or speaking, casting magic purely through their disciplined focus and concentration on the spell they are casting.” Kestrel felt confident that Palu would be pleased in her memorization of the definition of magic that was written in the book she gave her, but her new mentor just frowned.

Sitting down on a fallen log, Palu set her staff across her knees and looked up at her pupil.
“Kestrel, you're never going to cast magic the way you're looking at it now.” The android's eyes focused into a sharp glare at her teacher and she opened her mouth to speak, but closed it. “Well, say what's on your mind. You disagree with my statement?”
“What is wrong with my learning processes? I cast a spell back in the room at the tavern, didn't I?” Kestrel asked and surprisingly pouted. Palu sighed and shook her head.
“That spell wasn't in the book I gave you, and you can feel free to verify that if you need to. Yes, you cast it, and I'm both pleased with the results and curious about how you did it. When you're reading the book I gave you, when you tried to cast the fire-light spell, you tried to copy them exactly, and they didn't work, did they?” Kestrel looked away. “Did they?” Palu repeated, a little more forcefully, and Kestrel shook her head.
“No, they didn't.” She started to pace. “I did everything exactly as it described in the book, but nothing happened.” Clenching her fists together, she shook as she paced. Her Father's dictionary had a word for this sensation she was having. Anger, but more specifically irritation, or annoyance. It was like a bad line of code that needed debugging, but every correction threw out a new error. She didn't like the sensation at all. “I said the words ' Tasdu Kir Andu', even tried different pronunciations and nothing happened at all.” She started waving her arms around as she spoke and Palu's eyes gleamed as she gave a slight chuckle. Kestrel heard it and turned to face her, confused and annoyed. “What do you find amusing?”
“Kestrel, I've said it before, but I'll say it again: Your father was a genius. You're a bit rough, but you've already exhibited a wide variety of emotions I never would have excepted from a robot-”
“Android.” Kestrel said, frowning with her hands at her sides.
“Yes, yes, android. You've shown confusion, which, well, was to be expected. But you've shown concern and irritation, even satisfaction, or joy of some sort. Quite a range of emotion. And you picked out a really unusual apprenticeship as well. One that can be hugely affected by concentration. Look at your hands for example. Go ahead, I won't go anywhere.” Palu said and laughed a little as Kestrel's frown softened. Slowly tilting her head down, she extended her arms and looked at her hands. There, cupped in the palm of her left hand, was a little flame of light that grew brighter as she tried to conceal it. Her mouth gaping, she looked back and forth between the ember and her grinning mentor.
“How did...” Kestrel started to speak and then stopped, confusion spreading both in her mind and on her face.
“Concentration. Or in your case, the serendipitous lack thereof. Some wizards spend years mastering really powerful spells, but by the time that they learn them they end up forgetting the reason why they were after them in the first place. Some people find that they can't perform magic unless they really concentrate on it, taking it clinically as you tried. Others like me end up not having to concentrate too hard simply because it comes more easily to us, but we still have to memorize quite a lot to make them more useful. Mages like me typically end up studying under a particular field and putting all their effort into that niche. And then, there's a student that comes along every now and again that never ceases to surprise. Doubly so with your, um, unusual situation.” Kestrel listened in growing suspense, and the sudden silence from Palu made her try to make sense of what her teacher had said. Extrapolating and throwing out extreme variants, she still couldn't make any sense of it.
“What do you mean about students like me?” Palu put the butt of her staff on the ground and started to scribble in the dirt. Without looking up, she said,
“Students gifted with natural talent. You're extraordinarily unusual because I've never heard of an... android having such realistic emotions, let alone becoming a mage. I actually don't think I've ever met a human or other race student who has been able to learn spells quite as rapidly as you have. I know you're trying hard to learn, and you seem to be frustrated by how slow your progress is going, but it takes most magicians close to a year or two just to learn how to cast more than just simple spells like you just cast. It generally takes a lot of practice to learn how to channel, to guide the flow of magic. To not grasp it too loosely and have the spell unravel, or too firmly and have it either not cast, or worse, have severe complications. Kestrel, you cast a temporal spell as your first working spell! I can cast the fire-light a thousand times and that won't be anywhere as difficult as that was. When I first met you I was considering that you'd come to your senses after learning how hard it was to study magic, but I not only was pleasantly shocked that you saved my life in such an amazing way, but that I was wrong about you. It'll take practice, but you're not a technical type of mage. You're an artist.”

“I am... an artist?” The fire-light faded and Kestrel frowned. “I should be... feeling happy that you think I can become a Mage now, but I don't understand. How can I learn magic if it will cast so sporadically for me?” Again, Palu sighed and shook her head.
“If you over-think things too much you're likely to blow a gasket. Don't respond to that. Figure of speech. My point is, it's actually simpler than you're making it. At least it will be for you.” She stood up and started to walk, moving deeper into the forest as she motioned for her pupil to follow. “Last night when you saved me, you were able to cast the spell because you cared enough about your future training, about me, that you wanted to do everything in your power to preserve that link. Earlier you tried to make the fire-light, but you wanted to make it just to, I'm not even sure, to check it off on a list of things you had to do in order to reach your goal of becoming a mage. It didn't hold any special meaning or interest for you. Today, you were frustrated at your difficulty with casting it, which linked you to the act. It became more than just a simple fancy into a determined, focused pursuit which resulted in the casting. You wanted to cast it not just to see it cast, but because it irritated you that it wasn't working. Am I making sense?” Palu stepped over a fallen tree along her path, and Kestrel followed, leaping over it. Pondering the new information, the android kept walking behind, piecing it into her recorded data. She looked at her hands for a few moments, then started making the motions for the fire-light spell, finally whispering the spell itself. Instantly, the surrounding area was illuminated by the flickering light of the magical fire floating above her hands. She grinned and looked at her mentor.
“I... I just remembered seeing you perform this spell for the first time last night, and how I-I don't know to describe the sensation. Despite knowing how it was initiated and seeing it for myself, I felt as if it were impossible, as if I needed to recalibrate my sensors. I...”
“I believe the word you're looking for is 'awe'. To see something that is so out of the normal bounds of your previous experiences so drastically that it is hard to believe. Magic does inspire awe in quite a few of the onlookers, and even the casters sometimes. A healthy curiosity and a drive to understand can help you out a lot in this world, especially if you're going to try to become a mage. Well then, let's see what other basics we should go over now...” Palu smiled as they continued on talking until they came to a small spring. She looked around and saw that there was a decently large clearing beyond the spring, and in the distance, the spire of a tower. Kestrel too looked at the beauty surrounding her, but something was amiss. When she saw what it was, she grasped her teacher's shoulder and pointed at something in the distance. A brownish shape that stood out from the rest of the grass and flowers. They walked up to it and Palu gasped. There, a corpse lay, face looking up at the sky.

A writhing scream was still frozen on its face as its arms tried to claw something off of it, the poor soul that had perished there. It was a man, that much was certain from his bearded chin, but beyond that it was impossible to tell his age or race. He was shriveled up beyond recognition, and his although his clothing was still intact, it was just a simple garment, nothing showy enough to be a bureaucrat, not so ragged as to be a tramp. One thing did stand out, however, and that was a necklace, or rather an amulet, that was made of solid gold, and had not been stolen. Clearly whoever this person was, they weren't killed in a simple highway robbery. Despite the many years of seeing various deaths in her line of work, Palu could not compare any of them to this. Kestrel too, with all of the books that her Father had on human anatomy, had never read anything that described such a scene. It was a withered husk, a shell of whatever once lay there. Whatever had killed him had done it fast, but it clearly had still been quite painful. No conventional murder weapon appeared to be used, and obviously it was not strangulation or anything that could be done with bare hands. It was as if his life had been sucked out of him. Palu made a triangle in front of her chest in the air, a superstitious sign meant to drive away evil spirits. Kestrel had read about it, but didn't understand how it could hold any power. Then again, perhaps it was a crude form of magic. She walked up to the corpse and crouched down, examining it. The amulet seemed to have a lot of intrinsic designs carved into it with master craftsmanship, but most of it seemed to have been chipped or broken, with small cracks in the symbols and curves. It looked familiar somehow, but she couldn't recognize it despite her android brain's photographic memory and quick recall. She also noticed something wrong with the man's arms, how the sleeves seemed to sink in a few places. Palu cringed as Kestrel rolled up one of the corpse's sleeve and she heard the brittle surface of the arm start to crack. Approaching slowly, she saw the same thing that her pupil did: Several curved areas where the arm seemed to have shrunk, as if something was wrapped around it so tight; Like a fish being unable to grow larger due to how small the tank was. Palu gasped and Kestrel turned to see what she was looking at, the amulet.
“That... That amulet has more protective spells interlaced on it than most people learn in their lifetime! What could possibly have shattered all of them so quickly? I've never seen anything like this before, but it clearly must have been a magic-related death... Nothing else could have done that. Nothing. A spell of that magnitude... I'll have to notify the headmaster about it as soon as we arrive at Magus Ludus. I could do so earlier, but I left my whisper-stone back at the academy.” Whisper-stones allowed mages to communicate over great distances by magically communicating with another whisper-stone owner without having to speak aloud. While she had never seen one, Kestrel had seen it in a book of communication techniques and technology that her Father kept in his library. To operate one, a person had to know who they were trying to communicate with, and both had to keep the stone on their person when communication was desired. No distance had yet been discovered where they did not function, with the exception of inter-dimensional interference or magical dampening fields. Both were rare, but the ownership of such stones was rarer still. It could not be given out to the general public since a great deal of magic and concentration was needed to operate it, nor could it be sold due to the Guild's strict restrictions on them. Only Guild members and a few select others were given one. To have received one meant that Palu was a much more important magical figure than Kestrel had first assumed. She had been extraordinarily lucky that the two of them had met.

“Palu... Teacher... Would it not be most prudent for us to investigate the matter before continuing on towards the academy?” Palu looked at her in utter shock. She fumbled for words then took a deep breath before speaking to her pupil,
“Kestrel, the victim was wearing more protective spells than I have ever seen outside of the academy, and they were still overcome by whatever killed them. What makes you think that it would be a good idea for us to stick around the murder scene?” Kestrel tilted her head, obviously confused by something.
“If whomever killed this person was still within earshot, they certainly could have killed us by now, and if they were in the shadows of the forest watching us, they would see us come across the corpse. Again, the person in question could kill us in the same manner or however they see fit. Since we have not yet died, I can only conclude that the murderer did not remain near here. Being as the warding amulet failed, it obviously would no longer work magically, but it is still made of gold, a precious commodity. Since it was not taken, I can only conclude that the motive for the murder was either to acquire a specific item on the victim's person, or the murderer was did not kill for monetary gain. Either way, we are not in danger of being attacked due to our possessions, and none in town could possibly be lying in wait for us unless they were a mage capable of traversing the distance with more ease than we had on foot. Due to the lack of information I have on spells, it may be possible, but our attackers last night, if they were mages, could have certainly killed and robbed us a lot faster if they were capable of casting spells. Therefore, it seems to me that we have no outwardly reason to be attacked, and no recent enemies from town capable of causing that form of death. Since I have not met any mages before you, I cannot have met one and become an enemy of theirs. While it is possible you might have, I find it far more likely that the spell cast was used specifically because of the familiarity of the two individuals, and the level of betrayal the murderer felt, leading to said spell being cast. Without further information, it seems most likely to me that we would be safe to investigate the matter freely. However, I do not see any reason to stay here in this clearing. It seems most likely that this victim came from the tower we saw in the distance, which seems to also be in the direction we are already traveling.” Palu was silent through all of this and though she hated to admit it, the android had a point. Logically, her reasoning made sense, but murders weren't always so cut and dried, and the human psyche was never simple to understand. Unfortunately, the tower was in the direction they were heading, even if it meant up to a few hours of leaving the path to travel to it and investigate. She wanted nothing more than to rush on towards the station they would take to the Academy, but if she reported the incident and the investigators learned that she had ignored the area, they might hold her responsible for having an incomplete report. Kestrel stood waiting like a child, like a doll waiting to be played with. Sighing, Palu nodded and they resumed their walking.

Description
Kestrel pulled the door to the Brikshire Tavern and instantly the stench of the overabundant brandy, ale and other beverages of ill repute attacked her nose with the force of an invading barbarian army. Scrunching up her face in disgust, she took her first step in determination. Several faces, scruff and wary, turned to face her, some staring at her in a way that made her feel more than a little uncomfortable. Something in their expressions seemed too much like the descriptions and pictures of thugs and ruffians that she had seen in her Father's library. Scanning the tavern, she saw a few tawdry barmaids serving their clientèle, of which there were an abundance, but few who really stood out from the rest. One sat with their back to her, alone in a corner, however, and Kestrel started moving towards the stranger. A light blue hooded cloak covered the person, and a plate of food was slowly being eaten on the table. As Kestrel crossed the room, a young man moved to intercept her with a wide grin and a posture far too relaxed for one who was sober.
“Hey, missy... You wanna see a m-magic trick?” Kestrel paused and examined him a little more carefully. His jaw was unshaven and ungroomed, and his eyes were practically glazed over. His clothes, tattered and wrinkled certainly didn't seem to fit the descriptions she had read of mages. Still, she looked him in the eye and asked,
“Are you a mage?” His mouth was slack and he stumbled a little before answering, his drunken breath wafting into her face.
“Yeah, yeah, fer sure. I'ma... a mage-thingy. I can show you some stuff upstairs...” He trailed off, and she turned away. Regardless of whatever else he was, he was most certainly a liar. As she stepped away, he grabbed her arm and spun her around, pulling her close to him. “Hey, hey, where're yew goin?”
“I believe she wishes to be left alone.” The stranger says grasping his arm and looking him in the eyes. Her deep cerulean eyes locked with his hazel, and he looked away. He mumbled something to himself and pulled his arm away from hers, rubbing it as he walked away. The woman stood in front of Kestrel now, looking her over. Her fair skin was accentuated by her light pink hair, and a small pack was hanging from her side. Her face scrutinized Kestrel's as she asked, “Are you alright?”
“I... I am fine, thank you... Miss?”
“Yist, Palu Yist.” She smiled and extended a hand.
“Kestrel Alras.” Kestrel responded, shaking her hand firmly. Perhaps too firmly.
“Quite a handshake you have there, Kestrel. Wait, did you say Alras? As in Jerith Alras, the roboticist?” Palu shook her hand a little bit, flexing her fingers to make sure they still worked fine.
“Yes. He was the one I called Father.”
“You called-? You're one of his robots, aren't you?” Palu asked, and started to circle around Kestrel, looking over her carefully.
“Android, actually. I am looking for a mage. Are you one?”
“What would an android need a mage for? Is your Master sick?”
“I have no Master, but if you mean my Father, he has already passed away.” Kestrel responded and Palu stopped suddenly. The rest of the tavern continued in its ignorance, blithely downing their liquor and food, as Palu motioned for Kestrel to follow her.

Soon they ascended the stairs to the inn above the tavern, and Palu unlocked her room. Once inside, she shut the door and locked it behind her.
“I'm sorry for your loss.” She said, looking tentatively at her.
“For what? You had no part in his death, did you?”
“No, but... What I meant was that I feel sympathy for you. My fiancé, Gregor, died a few years back in battle. I just recently found his grave and was paying my respects today. You were lucky to have come across me when you did. I was returning to Magus Ludus tomorrow.”
“Then I will follow you.” Kestrel said, sitting down on the ground.
“You... Want to go to Magus Ludus? Do you even know what it is? It is a school for those studying magic, it-”
“Yes, I know what it is. My Father told me of it before he passed on. He told me it would help in my pursuit.” Kestrel interrupted and closed her eyes, preparing to rest for the night, leaning against Palu's bed.
“Look, there is another bed that pulls down from the closet if you really need to get some sleep, or recharge, or whatever it is you do, but why do you want to go to Magus Ludus?” Palu said as she ran a hand through her hair. Sarcastically, she asked, “Do you want to be a mage?”
“Yes. Father told me that it would be the best way to fulfill my goals.” Palu's jaw dropped, and as she regained her composure, she pinched her thumb and index finger to the bridge of her nose.
“And what, pray tell, are they?”
“To change this world. Father told me that I would outlast those I came to come to care for. I declared that it was unacceptable, and he eventually suggested meeting the headmaster of Magus Ludus. Father said he might be able to introduce me to an Immortal, so I might have my questions answered.” Palu frowned for a moment and then began to laugh. “What do you find so humorous?”
“You! Become a mage? A robot? Never?” She says, wiping tears from her eyes.
“I have told you already, I am an android, not a robot. And why not?”
“Why... why not? Because it just hasn’t been done before, that’s why! And no one has found a way to immortality in centuries. The few immortals that do still live guard their secrets jealously. And no robot, er... Android has ever cast magic either.”
“Then I shall become the first to do so.” Kestrel replied and walked over to the closet, pulling down the bed. In wonder, she moves it up and down a few times, watching how it was lowered from the wall. Palu watched and shook her head.
“Ambitious little…” Kestrel turned her head and smiled.
“I am an odd bot, yes? That was what the stranger said to me back in the graveyard.”
“Stranger?” Palu narrowed her eyes and Kestrel nodded.
“Yes, he said that he saw a mage in this tavern earlier today.”
“Odd... Few can recognize a mage on first glance, and none of my charms went off when I entered the town. What did he look like?” Kestrel searched her memory banks and pulled a sketchpad and pen out of her pack. Moving slowly at first, she began to draw a portrait, speeding up as she added more details. It wasn't in color, and her drawing wasn't as vivid as the stranger had been, but she handed it over when she had finished. Palu took it and looked down at it.
“Now, let's see who-” She dropped the pad and made a triangle on her chest. “This-This was the stranger? You are certain?”
“Positive. Your speech is faltering. Is something the matter?”
Why would he choose to get involved in an android's future? Palu thought as she shook her head. The arbiter was many things, and could appear to be many things, but the drawing Kestrel had made was most definitely him. Of that, there could be no doubt. Why he decided to invest time and interest in Kestrel's future was beyond Palu's comprehension, but she could clearly see that if he was involved, the android would have a severely interesting life, to say the least. Pranks and jests were his forte, but not all of them were as obvious immediately, nor so simple as they first appeared. “You're coming with me to Magus Ludus after all it seems.” She said, deciding to take her to see the headmaster at the least. If anyone could make any sense of the android's destiny or capabilities, he most certainly would.
“Does that mean I am a Mage?” Kestrel asked in anticipation. Palu winced, not wanting to disappoint her.
“Unfortunately, no. One can only become a mage by graduating from Magus Ludus or the other arcane academies. I suppose I can attempt to apprentice you, to teach you some of the basics of magic. When we arrive at Magus Ludus, they will review your application. If they accept you in, you will be on your way to being a mage. If they don't, you'll have to try enrolling again at a later date.”
“How do we start this apprenticeship?” Kestrel asked instantaneously, standing eagerly.
“By shaking hands. As friends.” Palu said extending her hand. Kestrel clasped it more gently than before and shook it.
“I have never had any ‘friends’ before.” Kestrel speaks reverently. Palu looked her over once more and says,
“Yeah, I can kind of see why. Well, get some rest, we've got a long journey ahead of us. It will take several days, and we want to walk while it's light out tomorrow.”

Palu yawned and moved towards the bed, taking off her cloak and starting to change her clothes.
“Could you teach me a little before you sleep?” Kestrel asked, pulling her dress over her head as she took it off. Palu groaned but nodded. Making a few hand motions in the air, she uttered a single phrase,
“Tasdu Kir Andu. 'Fire-light in Darkness'.” A small flame of light hovered and flickered in the air above Palu's hand, illuminating the room brighter than the lamps hanging from the ceiling. Kestrel moved closer to her and put a hand up to touch the fire. It felt hot, and Kestrel pulled back her hand before it was singed, looking at Palu in confusion. The mage smirked and blew out the flame. “You try it.” Kestrel nodded and tried to reproduce the motions, finally repeating the words, but nothing happened. Palu bit her lip and pulled a book out of her pack. “This might help you. It-It was how I first learned how to weave magic. It was a gift to me when I was young, and I don't really need it anymore. You can have it.” Kestrel's jaw dropped and she took it gingerly.
“Does it not hold sentimental value? You have carried it around for quite some time, yes?” Palu nodded, but pushed it closer to her new apprentice and friend.
“You need it more than I. I'm going to bed, but you can read it as long as you're not too noisy. I'm too tired for the lights to bother me, but you should get some rest too. Oh, and... Take it easy with the book. It's really old, so the pages are a little weak.” Palu yawned, then crawled into bed without another word. Kestrel whispered a thank you to which Palu mumbled a reply, then she dozed off. Kestrel opened the book with great reverence and began to read it from the beginning.

A few short hours later Kestrel had shut off the lamps and finally went to bed. She had tried a few spells without success and decided she would have to wait to speak with Palu later to find out why nothing was working. Moments later, she heard a noise coming from the hall. Footsteps creeping towards them, and hushed voices too soft for her to discern. Perhaps a few drunken visitors returning to their rooms. Kestrel thought and was about to roll over, when the light coming from underneath the door was partially blocked. They were standing just outside their room, and they didn't seem to be leaving. Whoever they were, they tried to open the door silently, but found it locked. Undeterred, the mysterious visitors continued to mess with the door, and Kestrel realized what they must be doing. She had read about it in her Father's library, in one of the few fiction stories in his selection. They were trying to pick the lock. Kestrel got up and moved quickly over to Palu's bed and shook her.
“Palu Yist.” She hissed. The mage stirred in her sleep, but did not awaken. “There are strangers trying to enter the room.” Palu's eyes sprung open as she sat up. Just then the door opened and one of the windows shattered. Palu began to weave a spell as the intruders made their approach. She cast it with a word uttered too quickly for Kestrel to understand, and the man who came through the window found himself tied up by the bedsheets. One of the two coming through the door pulled out a dagger and rushed in towards Palu, intending to strike her down before she could cast another spell. Kestrel moved in his way, and he struck down at her arm. The dagger's cheap metal shattered as it struck the metal underneath her artificial skin and he cursed as he saw what lay beneath the skin he had cut. Before he could react, Kestrel reeled back and punched him square in the nose, breaking it. He coughed up blood and hit the ground, groaning. The last man, armed with a pistol, lifted it up and took aim at Palu's head. Quickly moving to intercept the bullet, Kestrel started moving her hands absentmindedly, directing them out of an instinct that she couldn't understand but didn't question. As the gun fired off she said a single phrase which said caused Palu's eyes to widen even more than they were before, “Tepnus sen kis adunel ast dur gorath men kamen.”

The strange words that the Arbiter had muttered came to her recollection in an instant without knowing what it would do, but their effect was the same. Everything turned gray as Kestrel braced for the bullet's impact, but it never came. The room felt stale and cold, and everything was stationary, immobile. Time had ceased to function, at least from Kestrel's perspective. She had stepped in between the moments, and came to this illogical realization as she saw the bullet suspended in midair. Cautiously, she moved towards it and touched it. The bullet rotated ever so slightly, and it felt far heavier than it should have. Grabbing it tightly with her hands, Kestrel slowly forced it to turn and move, shifting it a foot over, and pointing it at the outer wall of the room, away from her new mentor. Releasing it, her hands torn up and bleeding synthetic fluids, she moved on, every step as though through quicksand. She made her way across the room towards the remaining thug, and her movements became easier as color began to return to the world. Taking his gun out of his hand forcefully, she broke his trigger finger in the process and bent the chamber enough that it would have to be replaced. The man began to move slowly just as she backhanded the side of his head. Time resumed and he flew a short distance across the room into a wall, falling to the ground unconscious before his body even realized it was in pain.

Inhaling and exhaling quickly, Kestrel huffed and turned around to see that Palu was shaking, but fine. The bullet had passed by her, far enough off that it would be nearly impossible for a man to miss entirely at such a short distance. Kestrel walked back towards her mentor and smiled tentatively.
“I... I did it. I cast a spell.” Palu's head turned slowly and she gulped as she nodded. Indeed, Kestrel had cast a spell, but not any that was to be found within the book Palu had given to her. It was a temporal spell which she had seen performed only once in her life, before she started at Magus Ludus, when she was still reading that book. A dragon had gone mad with old age and attacked the town she lived in. A lot of structural damage was done, but hardly anyone died because of a group of mages who were passing through the region. Together they were able to restrain it, but it lashed out it's tail once before succumbing to their spells. The tip of the tail slashed across the house of a friend that Palu was visiting, and the roof started to collapse on her and the six people inside. She caught a glimpse outside of the mage performing the spell, and the next moment she and the others found themselves outside, safe and away from the crumbling building. To see an unskilled, untrained individual perform such a difficult spell in such a short time was unthinkable, especially an android, something that shouldn't have a soul, which shouldn't have access to magic. Palu realized that Kestrel was waving a hand in front of her face and she regained her senses.
“We should leave. I believe we've overstayed our welcome, and that these brutes were probably here to rob what they thought were easy targets. Two women resting here alone. Let's make haste before they awaken, or others arrive.” Kestrel nodded, and the two quickly dressed and packed their few belongings back into their bags. Rushing out of their room, Palu paid for their room and they began their journey towards Magus Ludus.

Hours later, when Palu's legs practically gave out beneath her and her stomach grumbled furiously, they stopped to catch their breath. They had traveled a great distance, and now the sun was just passing its apex in the sky. Kestrel too needed to regain her strength, since her fuel cells were lower than they had ever been. Her body was not running at complete efficiency due to their struggle earlier, as well as the haste of their departure. As they stopped, Palu cast a simple spell to repair the flesh around the knife and bullet wounds that Kestrel's metallic skeleton still shone through. After prodding and poking it to her satisfaction, Kestrel rotated her arm, hand and wrist, marveling at how the simple spell had repaired her skin in such a short amount of time. Finally, she pulled a large loaf of bread out of her sack and broke it in half, offering some of it to Palu.
“You eat?” Palu asked questioningly as she took it gratefully, rummaging in her bag as she spoke. Kestrel nodded and replied before taking a big bite.
“I am run on a dual-core power cell, here.” She put a hand to her chest as she finished eating, placing it directly over where a heart would be, if she were human. “My systems chemically extract glucose and other sugars to be used to generate ethanol, which is used to generate the electricity needed for my body to function. It was one of my Father's designs that he seemed to be very proud of, judging by the notes he kept on it.”
“Amazing.” Palu said as she pulled two cold bottles out the sack. “And water?” She asked as she saw a slight amount of sweat beading off of Kestrel's forehead. She handed over a bottle and Kestrel took it graciously, wiping the sweat off.
“It used for many things. Merged with a few simple compounds it works to lubricate my internal machinations and joints. It also is used in regulating my internal temperature, and extracting excess chemical compounds from my systems.” She opened the bottle and took a swig quite unladylike as Palu sipped hers. “I might not be human, but most of the internal mechanisms I have mimic the internal organs of one. You are, after all, fairly efficient for how complex your form is.”
“Your Father truly was a genius. Although you don't really act like one, you certainly look human enough. The fact that you can eat, drink and sweat is far more human than any other android or robot I have ever seen.” Kestrel smiled tersely at that and they continued to eat in silence as they rested their weary feet.

Eventually they regained enough strength to continue, and Kestrel started to put her bag back over her shoulder.
“We're not going just yet, Kestrel. You wanted to learn magic, so let's go over some of the basics. Tell me what you understood from the book I gave you.”
“Magic is an extraordinary power or influence seemingly from a supernatural source that can overcome the physics and nature of the world. Magic is an energy that is within the environment and within almost all things, though it is rare that one pulls Magic from oneself for the casting of spells. The act of using said energy to manipulate the possibilities and interactions a substance, being or concept may hold within itself or in reference to its environment is what is known as a spell. For example, the possibility that a small flame might appear above a caster's hand is small, unless he or she changes the matter in that space into something far more likely to combust. All magical spells require three things that the caster should be aware of: Firstly, that magic always has a cost. Typically this can be exhaustion of the caster after the spell is complete, as well as transmutation of a substance into the desired outcome. Sometimes the cost is more subtle or more extreme, and the more complex or difficult to perform a spell is, the more costly it becomes. Although many tests have been done to see what the costs of certain spells might be, outside of a test environment, the outcome and costs may vary. For this reason, no magic should be cast unless the caster is aware of this, and willing to pay a price. True magic is not for parlor tricks or gaining fame. Secondly, certain magics are forbidden for a reason, and should never be performed unless absolutely necessary and if all other options are exhausted. Casting such magic brings about extreme changes typically and can be very dangerous even if cast properly. The cost of such magic is high, and the casting of such magic without authorization by the Magi Council is punishable by fines, imprisonment or even execution. Thirdly, magic should always be used for the benefit of others. Using it for personal gain will sometimes incur greater costs than usual. Such is the way that the Pantheon has set it when they gifted it to our world's inhabitants. Attempting to damage our world and our societies may bring about even greater costs, intervention by the Magi council, or even from the Pantheon itself. History has several drastic examples of these instances.” Kestrel said and looked towards her mentor for confirmation. Palu nodded and waited for her to continue. “To cast magic, typically one needs to focus on what the desired result would be. One may accentuate this focus and their training by learning the common magic language of Yerath, one of the other languages, by creating one of their own, by hand gestures, through foci such as a staff or wand, or other artifacts. Rarely, some mages have been know to cast magic without making any discernible movements or speaking, casting magic purely through their disciplined focus and concentration on the spell they are casting.” Kestrel felt confident that Palu would be pleased in her memorization of the definition of magic that was written in the book she gave her, but her new mentor just frowned.

Sitting down on a fallen log, Palu set her staff across her knees and looked up at her pupil.
“Kestrel, you're never going to cast magic the way you're looking at it now.” The android's eyes focused into a sharp glare at her teacher and she opened her mouth to speak, but closed it. “Well, say what's on your mind. You disagree with my statement?”
“What is wrong with my learning processes? I cast a spell back in the room at the tavern, didn't I?” Kestrel asked and surprisingly pouted. Palu sighed and shook her head.
“That spell wasn't in the book I gave you, and you can feel free to verify that if you need to. Yes, you cast it, and I'm both pleased with the results and curious about how you did it. When you're reading the book I gave you, when you tried to cast the fire-light spell, you tried to copy them exactly, and they didn't work, did they?” Kestrel looked away. “Did they?” Palu repeated, a little more forcefully, and Kestrel shook her head.
“No, they didn't.” She started to pace. “I did everything exactly as it described in the book, but nothing happened.” Clenching her fists together, she shook as she paced. Her Father's dictionary had a word for this sensation she was having. Anger, but more specifically irritation, or annoyance. It was like a bad line of code that needed debugging, but every correction threw out a new error. She didn't like the sensation at all. “I said the words ' Tasdu Kir Andu', even tried different pronunciations and nothing happened at all.” She started waving her arms around as she spoke and Palu's eyes gleamed as she gave a slight chuckle. Kestrel heard it and turned to face her, confused and annoyed. “What do you find amusing?”
“Kestrel, I've said it before, but I'll say it again: Your father was a genius. You're a bit rough, but you've already exhibited a wide variety of emotions I never would have excepted from a robot-”
“Android.” Kestrel said, frowning with her hands at her sides.
“Yes, yes, android. You've shown confusion, which, well, was to be expected. But you've shown concern and irritation, even satisfaction, or joy of some sort. Quite a range of emotion. And you picked out a really unusual apprenticeship as well. One that can be hugely affected by concentration. Look at your hands for example. Go ahead, I won't go anywhere.” Palu said and laughed a little as Kestrel's frown softened. Slowly tilting her head down, she extended her arms and looked at her hands. There, cupped in the palm of her left hand, was a little flame of light that grew brighter as she tried to conceal it. Her mouth gaping, she looked back and forth between the ember and her grinning mentor.
“How did...” Kestrel started to speak and then stopped, confusion spreading both in her mind and on her face.
“Concentration. Or in your case, the serendipitous lack thereof. Some wizards spend years mastering really powerful spells, but by the time that they learn them they end up forgetting the reason why they were after them in the first place. Some people find that they can't perform magic unless they really concentrate on it, taking it clinically as you tried. Others like me end up not having to concentrate too hard simply because it comes more easily to us, but we still have to memorize quite a lot to make them more useful. Mages like me typically end up studying under a particular field and putting all their effort into that niche. And then, there's a student that comes along every now and again that never ceases to surprise. Doubly so with your, um, unusual situation.” Kestrel listened in growing suspense, and the sudden silence from Palu made her try to make sense of what her teacher had said. Extrapolating and throwing out extreme variants, she still couldn't make any sense of it.
“What do you mean about students like me?” Palu put the butt of her staff on the ground and started to scribble in the dirt. Without looking up, she said,
“Students gifted with natural talent. You're extraordinarily unusual because I've never heard of an... android having such realistic emotions, let alone becoming a mage. I actually don't think I've ever met a human or other race student who has been able to learn spells quite as rapidly as you have. I know you're trying hard to learn, and you seem to be frustrated by how slow your progress is going, but it takes most magicians close to a year or two just to learn how to cast more than just simple spells like you just cast. It generally takes a lot of practice to learn how to channel, to guide the flow of magic. To not grasp it too loosely and have the spell unravel, or too firmly and have it either not cast, or worse, have severe complications. Kestrel, you cast a temporal spell as your first working spell! I can cast the fire-light a thousand times and that won't be anywhere as difficult as that was. When I first met you I was considering that you'd come to your senses after learning how hard it was to study magic, but I not only was pleasantly shocked that you saved my life in such an amazing way, but that I was wrong about you. It'll take practice, but you're not a technical type of mage. You're an artist.”

“I am... an artist?” The fire-light faded and Kestrel frowned. “I should be... feeling happy that you think I can become a Mage now, but I don't understand. How can I learn magic if it will cast so sporadically for me?” Again, Palu sighed and shook her head.
“If you over-think things too much you're likely to blow a gasket. Don't respond to that. Figure of speech. My point is, it's actually simpler than you're making it. At least it will be for you.” She stood up and started to walk, moving deeper into the forest as she motioned for her pupil to follow. “Last night when you saved me, you were able to cast the spell because you cared enough about your future training, about me, that you wanted to do everything in your power to preserve that link. Earlier you tried to make the fire-light, but you wanted to make it just to, I'm not even sure, to check it off on a list of things you had to do in order to reach your goal of becoming a mage. It didn't hold any special meaning or interest for you. Today, you were frustrated at your difficulty with casting it, which linked you to the act. It became more than just a simple fancy into a determined, focused pursuit which resulted in the casting. You wanted to cast it not just to see it cast, but because it irritated you that it wasn't working. Am I making sense?” Palu stepped over a fallen tree along her path, and Kestrel followed, leaping over it. Pondering the new information, the android kept walking behind, piecing it into her recorded data. She looked at her hands for a few moments, then started making the motions for the fire-light spell, finally whispering the spell itself. Instantly, the surrounding area was illuminated by the flickering light of the magical fire floating above her hands. She grinned and looked at her mentor.
“I... I just remembered seeing you perform this spell for the first time last night, and how I-I don't know to describe the sensation. Despite knowing how it was initiated and seeing it for myself, I felt as if it were impossible, as if I needed to recalibrate my sensors. I...”
“I believe the word you're looking for is 'awe'. To see something that is so out of the normal bounds of your previous experiences so drastically that it is hard to believe. Magic does inspire awe in quite a few of the onlookers, and even the casters sometimes. A healthy curiosity and a drive to understand can help you out a lot in this world, especially if you're going to try to become a mage. Well then, let's see what other basics we should go over now...” Palu smiled as they continued on talking until they came to a small spring. She looked around and saw that there was a decently large clearing beyond the spring, and in the distance, the spire of a tower. Kestrel too looked at the beauty surrounding her, but something was amiss. When she saw what it was, she grasped her teacher's shoulder and pointed at something in the distance. A brownish shape that stood out from the rest of the grass and flowers. They walked up to it and Palu gasped. There, a corpse lay, face looking up at the sky.

A writhing scream was still frozen on its face as its arms tried to claw something off of it, the poor soul that had perished there. It was a man, that much was certain from his bearded chin, but beyond that it was impossible to tell his age or race. He was shriveled up beyond recognition, and his although his clothing was still intact, it was just a simple garment, nothing showy enough to be a bureaucrat, not so ragged as to be a tramp. One thing did stand out, however, and that was a necklace, or rather an amulet, that was made of solid gold, and had not been stolen. Clearly whoever this person was, they weren't killed in a simple highway robbery. Despite the many years of seeing various deaths in her line of work, Palu could not compare any of them to this. Kestrel too, with all of the books that her Father had on human anatomy, had never read anything that described such a scene. It was a withered husk, a shell of whatever once lay there. Whatever had killed him had done it fast, but it clearly had still been quite painful. No conventional murder weapon appeared to be used, and obviously it was not strangulation or anything that could be done with bare hands. It was as if his life had been sucked out of him. Palu made a triangle in front of her chest in the air, a superstitious sign meant to drive away evil spirits. Kestrel had read about it, but didn't understand how it could hold any power. Then again, perhaps it was a crude form of magic. She walked up to the corpse and crouched down, examining it. The amulet seemed to have a lot of intrinsic designs carved into it with master craftsmanship, but most of it seemed to have been chipped or broken, with small cracks in the symbols and curves. It looked familiar somehow, but she couldn't recognize it despite her android brain's photographic memory and quick recall. She also noticed something wrong with the man's arms, how the sleeves seemed to sink in a few places. Palu cringed as Kestrel rolled up one of the corpse's sleeve and she heard the brittle surface of the arm start to crack. Approaching slowly, she saw the same thing that her pupil did: Several curved areas where the arm seemed to have shrunk, as if something was wrapped around it so tight; Like a fish being unable to grow larger due to how small the tank was. Palu gasped and Kestrel turned to see what she was looking at, the amulet.
“That... That amulet has more protective spells interlaced on it than most people learn in their lifetime! What could possibly have shattered all of them so quickly? I've never seen anything like this before, but it clearly must have been a magic-related death... Nothing else could have done that. Nothing. A spell of that magnitude... I'll have to notify the headmaster about it as soon as we arrive at Magus Ludus. I could do so earlier, but I left my whisper-stone back at the academy.” Whisper-stones allowed mages to communicate over great distances by magically communicating with another whisper-stone owner without having to speak aloud. While she had never seen one, Kestrel had seen it in a book of communication techniques and technology that her Father kept in his library. To operate one, a person had to know who they were trying to communicate with, and both had to keep the stone on their person when communication was desired. No distance had yet been discovered where they did not function, with the exception of inter-dimensional interference or magical dampening fields. Both were rare, but the ownership of such stones was rarer still. It could not be given out to the general public since a great deal of magic and concentration was needed to operate it, nor could it be sold due to the Guild's strict restrictions on them. Only Guild members and a few select others were given one. To have received one meant that Palu was a much more important magical figure than Kestrel had first assumed. She had been extraordinarily lucky that the two of them had met.

“Palu... Teacher... Would it not be most prudent for us to investigate the matter before continuing on towards the academy?” Palu looked at her in utter shock. She fumbled for words then took a deep breath before speaking to her pupil,
“Kestrel, the victim was wearing more protective spells than I have ever seen outside of the academy, and they were still overcome by whatever killed them. What makes you think that it would be a good idea for us to stick around the murder scene?” Kestrel tilted her head, obviously confused by something.
“If whomever killed this person was still within earshot, they certainly could have killed us by now, and if they were in the shadows of the forest watching us, they would see us come across the corpse. Again, the person in question could kill us in the same manner or however they see fit. Since we have not yet died, I can only conclude that the murderer did not remain near here. Being as the warding amulet failed, it obviously would no longer work magically, but it is still made of gold, a precious commodity. Since it was not taken, I can only conclude that the motive for the murder was either to acquire a specific item on the victim's person, or the murderer was did not kill for monetary gain. Either way, we are not in danger of being attacked due to our possessions, and none in town could possibly be lying in wait for us unless they were a mage capable of traversing the distance with more ease than we had on foot. Due to the lack of information I have on spells, it may be possible, but our attackers last night, if they were mages, could have certainly killed and robbed us a lot faster if they were capable of casting spells. Therefore, it seems to me that we have no outwardly reason to be attacked, and no recent enemies from town capable of causing that form of death. Since I have not met any mages before you, I cannot have met one and become an enemy of theirs. While it is possible you might have, I find it far more likely that the spell cast was used specifically because of the familiarity of the two individuals, and the level of betrayal the murderer felt, leading to said spell being cast. Without further information, it seems most likely to me that we would be safe to investigate the matter freely. However, I do not see any reason to stay here in this clearing. It seems most likely that this victim came from the tower we saw in the distance, which seems to also be in the direction we are already traveling.” Palu was silent through all of this and though she hated to admit it, the android had a point. Logically, her reasoning made sense, but murders weren't always so cut and dried, and the human psyche was never simple to understand. Unfortunately, the tower was in the direction they were heading, even if it meant up to a few hours of leaving the path to travel to it and investigate. She wanted nothing more than to rush on towards the station they would take to the Academy, but if she reported the incident and the investigators learned that she had ignored the area, they might hold her responsible for having an incomplete report. Kestrel stood waiting like a child, like a doll waiting to be played with. Sighing, Palu nodded and they resumed their walking.