The Cunning Man, page 18
Adam sat on the other side, keeping his distance. Girls didn’t like to be crowded - his mother had drummed that into his head when he’d been a child - even when they weren’t feeling weak and helpless. He’d give Lilith that consideration, even if she didn’t give him any in return. It was the right thing to do.
“You challenged me to impress you,” he said. “Have I impressed you?”
Lilith said nothing for a moment, lost in her thoughts. Adam waited, wondering why she hadn’t simply left the room. She was very far from stupid. The longer she breathed in the gas, the longer it would take to regain her powers. Probably. She could take a purgative, he supposed, but it would be a thoroughly unpleasant experience with no guarantee it would speed things up. He tried not to think about it. He’d taken one once, when he’d swallowed something he really shouldn’t have, and it had been enough to convince him he didn’t want to do it again. She should go ... did she think he’d stop her? Or was she reluctant to leave the room without her powers? She was hardly the most popular person in the university.
“Yeah,” Lilith conceded, finally. “I guess you have.”
Adam grinned. “And you think I can do more?”
Lilith grinned back. Adam thought it was the first time he’d seen a genuine smile from her. It made her ... beautiful. “I suppose you can.”
Adam stood and started to clear up the mess, pouring the remains of the potion into the vat for disposal and putting the caldrons, tubes and kettles in the sink. They’d have to be cleaned carefully, just to make sure there was nothing left to contaminate the next batch of potion. He’d never met an alchemist who wasn’t a real stickler for cleaning, even the ones who liked pushing the limits as far as they’d go. Lilith watched, unmoving, as the air started to clear. Adam wondered just how long it would be until they could breathe freely again. The spells Master Landis used to clear the air wouldn’t be any use if they didn’t have magic ...
Lilith picked up his calculations and frowned. “You’re good at this.”
“Thanks.” Adam hoped it was a peace offering, of a sort. Lilith would regain her powers and then ... she might set out to take revenge. “So are you.”
“I don’t have a talent for theoretical magic,” Lilith said. “I can cast spells. I can brew potions. But I can’t improve on them.”
“We can, if we work together,” Adam pointed out. If she had an incentive to work with him ... “I’ll devise the spells, you cast them.”
Lilith shot him an unreadable look. He had no idea what was going through her head. The idea of working with him wasn’t that bad, was it? It wasn’t as if she had anyone else who might work with her. She was isolated, alone in a crowd. Adam opened his mouth to ask why, then thought better of it. Lilith would tell him if she wanted.
“Father won’t be too pleased,” Lilith said. “He wants me to follow in his footsteps.”
Something clicked in his mind. “Master Landis is your father?”
“No.” Lilith snorted. “Whatever gave you that idea?”
Adam kicked himself, mentally. It was rare for a male magician to have a female apprentice. People would talk. Rumours would start to spread. The only reason someone hadn’t asked questioned about Lady Emily’s apprenticeship with Void was because they were closely related. Father and daughter ... no one could question them being alone together. And yet, if Master Landis wasn’t Lilith’s father, who was? And why did she have an apprenticeship with him?
The door opened. Master Landis stepped into the room. His eyes widened, then he waved a hand in the air, casting a spell to remove the remnants of the potion. Good thinking on his part, Adam noted as he stood. And quick, too. A few more seconds and he might have breathed in enough of the gas to lose his own powers.
“Adam.” Master Landis’s gaze swept the room. “Lilith. What are you doing?”
Adam swallowed, glanced at Lilith, and started to explain.
Chapter Eighteen
Adam hadn’t been sure what he’d expected from Master Landis, when he’d finished explaining the concept he’d turned into something practical. Master Pittwater would have either rewarded him for his innovations or kicked him out of the shop, with orders never to darken his door again. Master Landis had listened quietly, then informed Adam - and Lilith - that the university council would have to consider the matter. He’d told them both to shower, then marched them both to the council chamber and ordered them to wait in the antechamber while he spoke to the councillors. Adam was in no mood to protest. It was slowly starting to sink in just how many risks he’d taken over the last few hours.
Lilith said nothing as she sat and waited, looking oddly small in her chair. Adam felt another twinge of guilt. He’d shocked her to the core and, even though he knew she deserved some punishment, he couldn’t help feeling he’d gone too far. It would have been easier to deal with the guilt, he supposed, if he’d done it to Matt instead. He could have taken the powerless magician behind the shop and thumped him - or been thumped himself - and it would all have been fair and completely above board. Lilith was a girl. He felt like an asshole for what he’d done, despite everything. And yet ...
The door opened. “Adam, Lilith,” Master Landis said. “Come in.”
Adam braced himself, unsure what to expect as he stepped through the door. The council chamber looked surprisingly makeshift, five people sitting behind a simple wooden desk, staring at him. An older woman who was clearly a magician, a young man who couldn’t be more than a year or two older than Adam himself, a middle-aged man who shot a sharp look at them and Senior Craftswoman Yvonne, who seemed oddly amused by the whole affair. The Gorgon stood by the far wall, a notebook resting in her hands. She winked at Adam when he caught her eye.
Master Landis cleared his throat. “Adam, son of Alexis, please allow me to introduce Mistress Irene of Heart’s Eye, Caleb of House Waterfall, Master Dagon of House Ashfall and Senior Craftswoman Yvonne, four of the five inner councillors.”
Adam bowed, thinking fast. Mistress Irene - the older woman - was cold and hard, but he thought he saw a twinkle of amusement in her eye. Caleb - the young man - seemed excited; Master Dagon, the older man, looked grim and forbidding and ... in a way Adam couldn’t quite place, a little desperate. He felt another flicker of guilt as he met Yvonne’s eyes, just for a second. It was quite possible he’d landed her in hot water, councillor or not. Perhaps it would have been wiser to forge the runes outside the university.
Mistress Irene tapped the table. “Adam,” she said. “Explain to us precisely what you did, from start to finish.”
“Yes, My Lady,” Adam said.
He took a breath and ran through the whole tale once again, all too aware that both Master Landis and Lilith were listening carefully for any discrepancies. The councillors listened in silence, although it was clear they were listing questions to ask when he finished the story. He ended with a brief explanation of how the gas actually worked, and how the technique could be adapted for other potions. He hoped they’d listen. If they told him to leave ... he told himself it wouldn’t be so bad, not now. He could go back to the shop and impress Master Pittwater instead.
Master Dagon speared him with his gaze. “Are you aware, young man, of just how many rules you broke?”
“I was under the impression that such matters were better handled by his master,” Caleb said, before Adam could answer. “The council has no authority in such matters.”
“He experimented with blood,” Master Dagon snapped. “He should not have done anything with blood without consulting with his master first!”
“It was his blood,” Caleb pointed out. “If there were risks, he took them on himself.”
“That is beside the point,” Master Dagon said. He kept his gaze on Adam. “Do you understand how many rules you broke?”
Adam hesitated. “I was aware of the risks,” he said. “I was also aware that the only person who might be hurt, during the first experiments, was me.”
“You could have destroyed the entire lab, setting off a chain reaction that would have done immense damage to the entire building,” Master Dagon said. “It could have been disastrous.”
Master Landis cleared his throat. “With all due respect, sir, the wards would have contained the explosion.”
“You could not be sure,” Master Dagon said. “The experiment should never have taken place.”
“This place exists to carry out experiments,” Caleb said. “Adam’s experiment was dangerous, and he should be reprimanded for it, but he cannot be faulted for his results. He thought outside the box and created a whole new magical technique. I believe Emily would approve of him.”
“Lady Emily is not present,” Master Dagon snarled. “She left running the university in our hands.”
He looked at Yvonne. “And you should not have forged the tiles.”
Yvonne looked back at him, evenly. “The designs, and then the tiles themselves, were inspected by a master enchanter,” she said. There was an odd note in her voice, one Adam couldn’t quite place. “His conclusion was that they were largely harmless. They were not designed to influence unwary minds or anchor subtle curses. As such, there was no need to seek permission from the council before we forged them.”
“It should have been discussed,” Dagon said. He switched his glare back to Adam. “Why did you test the gaseous potion on Lilith?”
Adam hesitated. Dagon’s voice ... he stared at the older man, remembering what Arnold had said about Lilith’s father being on the council. It was hard to see any relationship between the two, but ... it struck him, suddenly, that they had the same eyes. Besides, who else could it be? Caleb was the only other man on the council and he was too young to have a daughter like Lilith. She couldn’t be more than a couple of years younger than him. Master Dagon, on the other hand, was definitely old enough to be her father ...
“I needed to prove the concept worked beyond all doubt,” he said. He had the feeling that calling Lilith out on her earlier behaviour would be counterproductive. “And the gas was the simplest way to do it.”
“You could have poisoned her,” Master Dagon snapped. Adam heard Lilith take a sharp breath behind him. “You could have poisoned yourself, boy.”
Adam gritted his teeth. “The potion was exactly the same as the standard potion. I followed the same recipe. The only difference was that it existed in a gaseous form, instead of a liquid. It could no more poison someone than the regular liquid.”
“And you had no way of testing it,” Master Dagon added. “You could not be sure.”
“I was breathing it myself,” Adam pointed out. “I didn’t drop dead.”
Mistress Irene tapped the table. “It is clear that you took risks, and bent the rules as far as they would go,” she said. “At the same time, it is also clear that you came up with an innovative concept and proved it could be made practical. Your concept is precisely the sort of multidisciplinary approach to research and development that we seek to foster. The idea of permitting you to attempt an apprenticeship, here in the university, has clearly paid off.”
“Emily would approve,” Caleb said. Adam remembered, suddenly, a rumour that Caleb and Emily had been lovers. “I think she’d agree it was worth the risk.”
“Putting himself at risk is one thing,” Master Dagon snapped. “Putting a fellow apprentice at risk is quite another.”
“I will handle such matters,” Master Landis said, coolly. “Do you intend to dismiss my apprentice from the university?”
Adam swallowed, hard, as his blood ran cold.
“No,” Mistress Irene said. Adam had the feeling the councillors had discussed the matter beforehand. “However, we do expect you to make it clear that such experiments on unwitting subjects are not to be repeated.”
“Quite,” Master Dagon agreed. “That said, we do not have a quorum.”
“We have enough,” Caleb said. “And I see no reason to bother Emily - or the outer council - with the matter.”
Master Dagon said nothing, but his glower promised trouble. Adam felt a twinge of sympathy for Lilith, if indeed Master Dagon was her father. He’d grown up without a father and he regretted it, but he’d seen fathers urging their sons to follow in their footsteps or marrying their daughters off for best advantage. Who knew what Master Dagon wanted from his daughter? The rules might be different for her ... what were the rules? Adam didn’t know.
“Very well,” Mistress Irene said. “Adam, by order of the council, you are confirmed in your role as an apprentice and a student of the university. You will have all the rights and responsibilities of your position, including both the right to sleep in the dorms and the responsibility to share your innovations with the rest of the university. I suggest you take the time to write up what you’ve done, so it can be presented in a formal lecture. You will be granted the standard bonus for discovering something new, which will be paid to you as soon as I can do the paperwork.”
Adam breathed a sigh of relief. “Thank you, My Lady.”
“That said” - Mistress Irene’s tone could have frozen water - “we expect you to understand that what you did was dangerous, it could easily have gotten you or someone else killed, and that carrying out further experiments without your master’s permission, at least within the university, will result in your immediate expulsion. We understand the urge to push the limits as far as they will go. We cannot, however, condone such behaviour. It is not to be repeated. Do I make myself clear?”
“Yes, My Lady,” Adam said.
“Good.” Mistress Irene glanced at the Gorgon. “My assistant will arrange for your transfer to the dorms later this afternoon. If you have any rooming preferences, inform her before the end of classes and she’ll do her best to accommodate you. We cannot guarantee you’ll get the bed you want, but we’ll certainly try.”
Adam nodded, wordlessly. He wanted to share a dorm with Arnold ... he’d have to check to see if there was a bed free in Arnold’s dorms. Arnold himself would be down in the workshop ... Adam hoped. Arnold had said he moved back and forth between the workshop below the university and the factories in the town fairly regularly. Adam wasn’t entirely clear on what he did, but it clearly kept him busy.
“We look forward to seeing what else you come up with, in the fullness of time,” Mistress Irene concluded. “You may go.”
Adam bowed, then allowed Master Landis to lead him and Lilith out of the room and back to the lab. The air was clear now, he noted with some relief. The vents had done their job. He wondered, suddenly, what would happen if the gas had spread through the entire building. It might not have been as effective - the potion needed a minimum dose to take effect, if his calculations were accurate - but it would have given everyone a nasty shock. The council might have been much less forgiving if his gas had affected every magician in the university.
“Adam, sit,” Master Landis ordered. “Lilith, go get some lunch and don’t come back until 1300.”
Lilith nodded, brushing down her dress as she left the room. Adam braced himself. Master Landis had every reason to be furious. Adam was probably due a thrashing ... he deserved it, too. He told himself he’d take whatever came like a man.
Master Landis stared down at him. “Why didn’t you ask me?”
Adam tried not to squirm under his gaze. “I wanted to prove the concept actually worked before I took it to you,” he said, slowly. “It was just an idea until I made it work.”
“Quite,” Master Landis agreed, with suspicious mildness. “And using the process to create durian gas? To depower Lilith?”
“I wanted to show her what I could do,” Adam said. He was surprised Lilith had been ordered to leave the room. Whatever was coming, it was clearly not for her eyes. “She insisted I didn’t have a right to be here. I thought I could show her different ...”
“I dare say you succeeded,” Master Landis said, dryly. “You are aware, of course, of the dangers of blood magic?”
“I believed there was minimal risk,” Adam said, carefully. “And if there had been risks, they would have fallen on me. It was my blood.”
“Blood magic is often unpredictable,” Master Landis said. “Magical blood resonates amongst those who share it. Mundane blood has different properties, as you have discovered, but the risk is still there. You could have accidentally killed yourself - or, worse, killed someone related to you. If Lilith had done the experiment with her blood, she would be in deep trouble. There would be no way to guarantee the safety of her relatives without a great deal of work.”
Adam swallowed. “My family ...”
“I don’t believe the magic spread through the blood-link,” Master Landis said. “But you should be aware of the risks.”
“I ...” Adam shook his head. “I thought it would work.”
“It did work,” Master Landis said. “And you are now a permanent apprentice. Congratulations. Except ... you took a serious risk and it could have gotten someone hurt or killed. The magic might have spread to your relatives and done something to them and they wouldn’t have the slightest idea what had happened. Whatever it was, it might even prove impossible to reverse. Blood curses can be very nasty indeed.”
He tapped his belt. “I should give you a strapping, right here, for what you did. Perhaps I should. But I’m not going to. Do you know why?”
Adam shook his head. It wasn’t as if Master Landis was incapable. He had every right to discipline his apprentices however he saw fit. If Adam refused to cooperate, he could use magic to make him cooperate or simply terminate the apprenticeship on the spot. And ... Adam swallowed, hard. He hadn’t considered the possibility of the magic spreading to everyone who shared his blood. His mother, his siblings, his relatives ...
“We tell ourselves that punishment is a way of paying for what we’ve done, that our punishment wipes the slate clean,” Master Landis told him. “You, I’m afraid, will have to live with what you’ve done.”
He stepped back. “That said, I want you to go to the library, study a handful of textbooks on blood magic and write a full essay for me on precisely why what you did was so dangerous, then a list of proposals for mitigating the risk as much as possible. There’s no way to keep you, or others, from experimenting with the technique, so we’ll do our level best to make it safe. Or as safe as alchemy ever gets.”
