The Silver Guardian Bk. 02 Ch. 09

Author's Note: It has been a long time since I posted and updated this story and for that I apologize. I have been back to writing and have 3 new chapters that I am posting (8-10) but I need to give a STRONG warning right now. I have waited so long to post again as I have been trying to get an editor to work with me. After 3 months and still no success I am just saying F it and posting what I have now and when the opportunity comes I will update and post any changes that have been made. This may be simple editing or it may be major changes to the chapters, at this point I simply can't say. So, as you read this realized that I was the only one to edit it and I am not a good editor, and only a so-so author. So please keep comments and criticism to minimum when it comes to errors and things like that. In an effort to make sure my readers get new content I am posting it AS IS SO PLEASE BE WARNED.

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Dante and Lily along with Astrid and Bryn and the children followed Lobelia down a hallway and into the Queen's Audience Room and over to a lounge area where everyone could sit down and relax as they conversed.

"Dante and Lily, let me start by saying that I already have a fairly complete understanding about your goals here but just to make sure we are all on the same page, why don't you tell me what you are seeking here."

Dante and Lily were holding their children and leaning against each other. Dante smiled at Lily and Alunra and then looked down at Fenrir and stroked his cheek as little Fenrir giggled and wrapped his hands around Dante's finger. Dante smiled wider and looked up at Lobelia before his face became a little more serious.

"Where to begin? Maybe a brief overview of the beginning to explain how we wound up here and what we are hoping to accomplish with your and the Gods help. I grew up an orphan in the human world. I never knew my parents and having been raised among humans had no idea of my legacy or heritage and that I was actually some mythical creature of legend as I thought at the time. It was hard and it was very lonely and filled with pain and hardship. But it was also when I began to find my strength and determination and began shaping myself into the man I wanted to be."

Servers had come in earlier and Dante was sipping on some unknown alcoholic drink that was quite unique and interesting but also quite good. He paused as he took another drink before continuing.

"I became a man and joined the US Military and for a time found part of something that I had been looking for. I found a temporary home even if it was a violent and transient one. Eventually war caught up with me and I was discharged after being severely injured in an explosion. I had lost my home and what little I knew and was once again alone and broken and lost. I just started traveling. Eventually I stumbled across my love and mate Lily when I saved her life in a car accident and this entire journey began. I find out about myself and accept my other half, get a mate, learn prophecy, fulfill said prophecy and it's been a constant whirlwind for us all to be honest. And as it seems it's only going to get more intense. It's been a lot for me and for Lily and those around us to take in. Now I'm a Champion to a Goddess whom I've met and spoken at length to and shared great love and respect and intimacy with. She loves me, loves my mate my Great Love, and loves and blesses and protects our children. Now She commands us to rise up, to grow and evolve and take our rightful place among the people of the world and realms. A direction not just from Her but a collective wish and demand from all of the Gods to find a balance and a peace on this world, for the realms and all of the races and people upon them and to protect it from a Great and Terrible evil. To Lily and I that became a vision of a new future. One of peace and acceptance of all of us. A new beginning that will change many things and allow us all to prosper and grow ourselves."

Lobelia was smiling broadly at hearing all of this already knowing and agreeing with this vision, but she wanted to hear him say it with his own words. To see what the man himself said about his vision. "And how to you intend to accomplish this?"

Lily grinned at that and responded. "By following Luna's mandate. We will grow ourselves and learn and evolve as quickly as we can to become to spear point that leads this change. To become powerful enough to challenge the humans directly and force them to the negotiating table. Force them to accept reality and the truth and by holding equal or even greater power than they do force them to talk instead of fight. We will all create a new world order but not through war and difference, but through acceptance and equal growth for all involved."

Dante's smile shined with pride listening to his mate. "She's right. And to do this we are working with the other races of the supernatural to become a single United force. Humans currently rule Earth and the realms that deal with it through their sheer weight of numbers and population. But it's also fair to say that economically and industry wise as well as some of their technology they are just as powerful as any other magic or race or people out there. Divided as we were no people or race could survive outright against them. But together as a whole we will become more through our sharing of knowledge and resources and our sheer determination and ferocity will demand and ensure that we are all treated fairly and equally under a respected and accepted whole. Basically that we all have the same right to exist and thrive and they better damn learn that because we will enforce it with prejudice if anyone doesn't."

"For our community we will first build a system where we are all treated equally and held accountable to the same standards. One set of rules so to speak, though I know building it will be far more complex than that, but the spirit will remain. Not one at the top but a council representative of us all. With the humans it will be to all of the humans and not individual countries. We won't deal in their own internal politics and have no time for that defect. We will force acceptance by becoming something they can't survive without. We're already building through their own global economy a power great enough that without its presence and support the global economy would collapse. They can't afford that so when it's time to present ourselves to them and force them to the negotiation table we'll see the position they're in as well as the dire consequences of trying force with us. There will certainly be some initial clashes for those who can't learn and won't listen but they will be dealt with swiftly and with finality to show in no uncertain way that they can't afford as a species to have us as enemies. To do that and accomplish that grand vision we, Lily and I, have to become more than we are now."

Dante paused before adding, "Don't forget I've also been tasked with killing this evil, killing a God and his denizens during this time as well."

Lobelia smiled at Dante and patted his hand reassuringly. "But you will have help and support every step of the way, and your first hands of support come from us. With that in mind let's start at least a little of the help."

Lobelia rang a small bell at her desk and a few aides came in carrying a variety of objects and set them next to their Queen. Lobelia reached down and pulled a small bag made of silk out.

"Your first business is going to be talking to the other races and eventually making treaties and alliances. These will help you." She reached into the bag and pulled out a small mythril ear cuff and handed it to Dante before taking out a few more items, pairs of mythril earrings that she handed to Lily and also to Astrid and Bryn.

"These are highly useful and will be necessary in many cases. They are imbued with translation magic and are universal translators. They will allow you to hear any spoken language and have it translated into your own base language. They also allow you to respond in the reverse. Dante and Lily yours have an extra enchantment on them to even allow you to read written documents in other languages as well, though you would have to learn to write back in them yourselves. These will be essential to you immediately as many of our teachers and instructors do not speak English, what we refer to as common, well and would need to teach and lecture in Elvish. It will also be useful when you leave here, especially with other races such as the dwarves who even though most speak common it is so heavily accented as to be near impossible to understand."

Everyone attached the earrings or in Dante's case the cuff, to their ears before turning their attention back to Lobelia.

"Well I can see they are working well and as I explained it's seamless. I'm speaking in Elvish and it's clear you understand me perfectly. Handy piece of jewelry that serves quite the useful purpose. I hope that you all enjoy them. Now, onto to the next item. Lobelia reached down into a larger bag and pulled out a series of small bags. The first two were handed to Dante and Lily again and these were highly stylized and quite exquisite in a silver and emerald color respectively. She then handed out slightly less detailed but still very nice little bags to Astrid and Bryn with another bag holding more for the rest of their entourage.

"These are what you call bags of holding. They function in much the same way as the chest you received from Luna, Dante. Yours and Lily's are large bags of holding and can hold up to roughly 1000 pounds of material in them. Bryn and Astrid have medium bags of holding as your General and primary protector for the children and can hold 500 pounds of material, while the rest are small bags of holding that can hold 200 pounds each roughly. As with anyone who has one you will all find them exceedingly useful and will begin to rely on them for everyday use and many other things. Bryn, no more diaper bag will be necessary."

Bryn groaned in relief, "Oh thank Luna, I'm honored to care for the children and have them be my charges but myself and the other Hellhounds hated that darned bag! Thank you Queen Lobelia for this, it is greatly appreciated!"

Dante and Lily all laughed but Astrid was laughing the hardest at her longtime friend having watched her drag the damn thing around nearly everywhere. Astrid snickered before adding, "Poor Bryn, she is so put upon." Everyone started laughing again as Bryn grinned at Astrid for the snark.

Lobelia smiled at the warm and loving group before picking up again. "You all have such a love and warmth for each other and you share that with those around you, it's a wonderful and precious gift and I want to thank you for it."

Lily got up and gave Lobelia a one armed hug holding Alunra. "You are very welcome Lobelia and one we count as a dear friend now. You will always be treated as one of us."

Lobelia smiled broadly at that. "Thank you and I look forward to it. Now for a bit more discussion on what originally brought you here, learning magic. Magic is not learned overnight, though I suspect Lily and Dante that with your high affinity for magic and your vast reserves that it will come quicker than most. But you will be here for some time learning the basics and then advancing towards much more grand and complicated magic. You will be learning initially under several of our Masters at the Academy and also under me later on as you advance. In a few days we will start you and Lily with the Head of the Academy, Eldar Yesleth, who has been practicing magic for millennia. With his help you will build a starting point and go from there."

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A few days later

Dante and Lily were alone in a large lecture hall with Master Eldar sitting on a desk in front of them. Master Eldar was very old but as with Elves he didn't show his age and was still a very strong and handsome elf. He was talking to them about the very understanding and working of magic at its core.

"Magic is a powerful and wondrous thing that seems to do the impossible. But magic is also rooted deep in the core of the rules and laws of this world as well. It coexists alongside everything much like what the humans refer to as Dark Matter. Whether you know it's there or you can sense it doesn't stop it from still being there and unnoticed all along. Some of us are beings of magic and some of us are users of magic but we are simply the ones that can perceive and use it. Humans have little to no ability to perceive magic save for a select few. Many of the legends and myths of humans are no more than stories based in reality but with humans able to perceive and interact with magic. Much like with science and technology it wouldn't be fair to say that nothing is impossible, it would be more accurate to say we know what we can do with magic and what we have found out but there are many ideas and questions that have just never been asked so we don't know if magic has an answer. Technology and science is much the same and as time goes on it grows and evolves and can do more and perform what would have been thought impossible before. Magic is the same."

Master Eldar set a rock on the table and looked at Dante and Lily.

"What if I asked you to lift the rock? What would you do and how would you do it. There are as many answers to that question as there are possibilities. You could simply pick up the rock with your hand. Or you could change the air pressure under the rock and lift it that way, or you could have nuance and create magnetic fields that lift the rock, or you could teleport the rock to a different plane or dimension, you could even vaporize the rock or transmute it into something lighter than air. All of these can be done with magic. Some magic are performed as spells, and they are basically a short cut to a known and common task and result for magic to be used. But magic that you tease out yourself, magic you adapt and create and refine yourselves is the most powerful and also personal of magic. What you learn, how you learn it and what you want to do change how the magic responds. Magic is basically not only an energy source but a vessel for data to be used and executed."

"Let's consider a simple 'ice' spell. Well that could be anything from simply creating light snow, all the way to completely and utterly freezing any and all entropy in a certain area. What changes and differentiates the strength and effects of your spell is the amount of power you put in, how you apply and fuel it, and how much data and detail and will can you apply to it. For example, should you actually understand the math and the theory and laws you are using to accomplish what you want you are adding that much more precise and detailed data along with a stronger and more refined will, and the greater and more powerful the overall effects are. It's the difference between creating a small cloud of snow falling in ten feet around you, compared to an Ice Age worldwide blizzard that can cause mass extinction on worlds. If you have enough data, energy and will to accomplish what you want then you can... eventually. Not everything works on the first try, you have to practice and refine it. Your magic that you have inside of you is your own and also a connection to the magic of the world and creation. It is a muscle and you must accept it and use it and build and stretch it so it can do more and different things. This is where you start and what you must learn."

Lily spoke up at that point. "How do we feel the magic? How do we see it and start to accept and use it?"

Eldar smiled at her then Dante. "My dear you have been doing it in some ways already for some time. Your ability to shapeshift is a form of transformation magic. Your ability to speak telepathically. Your healing and your powers you've already shown. You're doing this already you just didn't think about it as you were doing it. But instinctively you were already using magic in this process. So now that you know you can slow it down and learn from it and examine it and grow it. Then you can branch into new ideas and new schools of magic and thought. Dante you are already adept at lightning so you will use that, and Lily you are already adept at healing so you will use that. Now close your eyes."

Dante leaned back and the chair as did Lily as they closed their eyes and laid their hands and their thighs.

"Now just begin to call on your power as if you were about to use them, but stop there."

Dante felt the power deep inside of him start to stir and respond. It was familiar at this point but he was noticing more details.

"Now feel the flow of the energy through your body and mind, track it and follow it. At one end it leads to the idea point in your mind when you execute it, but the other end leads to your own personal reservoirs of magic deep inside. I want you to follow and feel that path each way. This will become a type of meditation as you better learn yourselves, your magic, and your mind. To master this is to master the technique to learn any other magic. You connect to your pool and guide and lead it through you to the idea point and then bring it to life. Now begin."

Dante drifted deep inside of himself. He heard a beating in his ears, but he delved deeper and found it was in his mind and his very essence and was the pulsing and beating of his magic. He followed that path and reached the pool deep inside of him. But to call it a pool was a mistake. To Dante he stood upon the banks of a vast ocean that spread out further than the eye could see. But he could feel it's vastness, he could feel it's depths and it's energy radiating throughout his being and mind. While it seemed limitless it wasn't, though it also wasn't that far off either. His unique make up and gifts and blessings had all combined to form a formidable and terrifyingly vast ocean of power to be used to accomplish his Goddess' goals.

Lily had also found her way like her mate to her reservoir of energy and magic. Like Dante the size was astonishing, not quite at the level of her love, but amazingly vast all the same. She felt and knew her magic and her potential. But there at the deepest level was a connection leading off. As she followed it she brushed upon her mates ocean and he welcomed her in.

Welcome my love, even here we are connected Lily. You are my mate, I am yours and we are one. It does not surprise me that even our essences are connected. You are so beautiful and so powerful my love, I'm so proud of you and proud to have you as my mate. Now let us return to the task. Time to follow this to the other end.

Once again Dante was back outside of his reservoir and following the flow of the magic through his mind. As it flowed through the recesses of his mind it passed innumerable matrixes and nodes of energy. It was flowing through his mind and all he had learned and all he knew to pull together the packet of information to make what he wanted. It had seemed like time had stood still but it was nearly instantaneous. He could feel it all gather together at one point and begin to breach through to reality.

Dante heard aloud, "Now open your eyes Dante and read the flows through me. Learn it and use it like you do when you are being a living lie detector."

Dante opened his eyes as it came into reality and he looked at Master Eldar seeing the flows of energy through him and the electricity as it raced around his synapsis and through his body. He could see and interpret the possibilities he read. He began to understand it all and saw a world open up in front of him like a lightbulb in an instant.

"Lily your turn"

Lily experienced the same as her mate and when Eldar saw that understanding bloom in their eyes he spoke.