Court of Sorcerers — Part 2

Renout found a seat at the back of the Council meeting, in the area designated for the court magicians. They were expected to attend the meetings, in case their work was needed, but not to give input unless asked. He had arrived early and quickly poured himself a goblet of wine before emptying a vial of Elyscia’s magic into the pitcher.

He smiled to himself, as he returned to his seat and waited for the chaos to ensue.

Throughout the beginning of the meeting, Renout found himself fidgeting. He watched as the men began to drain their glasses. The council was discussing where to allocate some funds, and two men disagreed.

“You are a fool!” Earl Bricot, a cousin to the King, shouted.

“I’m a fool? You only have a seat on the council because of your relation to the King. No one here can stand the sight of you!” the other man replied.

“Well your wife sure likes the sight of me,” the King’s cousin retorted before clapping a hand over his mouth.

“You bastard!” the other council member shoved back his chair and stood.

A man to his left gripped his shoulder to keep him from swinging at the Earl. “You can hardly be surprised. He’s bedded half the women at court. I saw him with Bennington’s wife last week.”

Lord Bennington was on his feet next. “You bloody scoundrel. I knew there was a reason I never liked you, you pathetic freeloader.”

“You’re one to talk,” yet another man joined in the fight, “you only married your wife because you needed her dowry to pay off your gambling debts. No wonder she’s taken a lover.”

It was long until half the council was nearly coming to blows. Renout just sat back chuckling, as he made a mental note of all the secrets spilled and rivalries being formed.

...

“You should’ve seen it. It was marvelous,” Renout told Elyscia a couple of hours later. “The truth potion worked perfectly, and no one suspected a thing while wearing their amulets.”

Elyscia grinned in triumph. “From what you’ve told me, I think Earl Bricot would make an excellent target. It appears the entire council now hates him if they didn’t already.” She tapped a finger on her mouth. “I’ve successfully made a love potion and truth potion, but I think this scheme will require something else.”

Renout stepped forward, his attention drawn to her lips. “I’d be glad to assist you in your lab. I think with our two minds set to a task, we could accomplish anything.”

Elyscia’s breath caught. “An intelligent man is exactly what I need,” she whispered.

Renout made to reach for her, but she turned and walked to the secret door before he could pull her close.

Her eyes twinkled, as she looked back at him from the doorway. “Well, are you ready to get to work? This potion won’t brew itself.”

Renout warred with two desires, but the pursuit of magic won out, as it apparently had for Elyscia. He followed her into her workroom. She was already pulling down vials from a shelf.

“A susceptibility potion?” he asked.

She smiled and nodded. “We just have to figure out how to combine it with the amulet-resistant magic without damaging the integrity of the spell. I had to make some substitutions to get the truth spell right, so I imagine we’ll need to do the same here.”

Renout liked the way she said “we”, more than he cared to admit. They were a team now, for better or worse.

After hours of experimenting, Renout pulled down a bottle from her shelf. Elyscia’s eyes widened and she snatched it from his hand.

He chuckled. “I take it you agree that it’s a good idea.”

She measured some of the powder, in lieu of an answer. When she poured it into their concoction, the surface shimmered, a signal that magic had taken hold. But would it do what they intended?

“Time to test it, “ she said to Renout with a mischievous grin.

...

The next day, Elyscia met Renout in his workshop. After discussing their plan, he escorted her to the court astrologist’s room. The head astrologist, Alvius, was rotating his planetary model mindlessly, as if in thought. His eyes sharpened, as they entered.

“I see the court alchemists keep frequent company with women. It is no wonder they haven’t produced anything of value in years,” the man said with a sneer. “I believe I can say with confidence that the astrologist’s superior position is at no risk, as long as you are the head alchemist.”

Renout showed no sign of the words bothering him. “The soon-to-be Duchess of Devonshire,” he added pointedly, “would like her stars read before her wedding. She asked me to make her introduction to you.”

“Ah, well, I suppose the lady is worthy of my talents now. The court alchemist doesn’t normally share our knowledge of the future with commoners. Such power is only meant to advise royalty, but you shall be among their ranks soon enough. I suppose you will share with the Duke that I have done you this favor, out of respect for him?”

Elyscia was disgusted with how the man went from contempt to flattery at the mention of her title. All the more reason to use him as their test subject. “I certainly plan on telling the Duke what the stars say will be the best day for our wedding,” she said with a saccharine smile.

“Of course,” the astrologist bobbed his head, clearly pleased. He asked her and the Duke’s signs and began to examine his star charts.

“Allow me to make us some tea, while you work,” Elyscia said.

Renout made sure Alvius was distracted while she fixed the tea, slipping her potion into the astrologist’s cup. She served them each a cup and sat daintily sipping her own. Renout had to bite his lip to keep from laughing at her newfound manners.

Alvius sipped the tea, as he told Elyscia the best dates for her wedding and how to best make a relationship between their astrological signs work. She nodded along, feigning pleasure when he predicted good things for them.

“I am so amazed that you can glean so much from simply looking at the stars,” Elyscia said, batting her eyelashes. “Would you entertain me with another example? Tell me, what have you discerned for the King?”

Alvius was so caught up in the admiration that he agreed to give her a short preview of his revelations. It was then that she took advantage of the susceptibility potion, suggesting that he give the King different advice instead. Alvius nodded intensely and scribbled the new predictions in his notebook.

Renout looked toward her, and she smiled a secret smile for him.

...

They had accomplished two goals with one potion: they had confirmed the effectiveness of said potion, but also sowed distrust between the King and his court astrologists. Everything was going according to plan. But now, Elyscia had an invitation to answer.

“My love,” her fiance greeted her with a kiss. “How are you, lately? I feel as if I haven’t seen enough of you.”

She smiled lightly. “I have been busy with wedding preparations, but I am glad of your invite today.”

“Tell me, how can I help then?”

“Well, I went to see Alvius, the court astrologist, and he has given me the best dates for the wedding. Perhaps you can ask the Priest which of the dates would work for him? And find musicians who are also available?”

“Certainly,” the Duke answered, as he took her hands in his. “I’ve also thought of something else to free up some of your time.”

“Oh?” she raised an eyebrow and grinned.

“Come, let me show you.”

The Duke pulled her through his home, which was a good walk considering it was practically a palace. Her hand ran along the gold-trimmed banisters, as they went up the stairs. Portraits of former Dukes of Devonshire lined one of the hallways. Finally, they stopped in front of a set of mahogany double doors.

Nicolaus opened the doors with a flourish. Inside was a beautiful workshop: tables with cauldrons, crucibles, vials of various ingredients, and the finest tools. Everything was brand new and of the highest quality. Elyscia gasped. She could’ve never imagined having such a workshop in her wildest dreams. But what Nicolaus said next shattered those dreams.

“I can help you collect anything you might wish to keep from your shop, and you can close it down and continue your work here.”

Elyscia laughed nervously. “But Darling, surely you don’t want my customers showing up at our home when they are in need of my services? I will still need to keep my shop.”

The Duke looked down on her as if she was a foolish child that he found adorable and amusing.

“You are going to be a Duchess, my love. A Duchess cannot be a midwife.” He took her hands and laughed. “You will want for nothing. You don’t have to work anymore.”

He said it as if he was delivering the most wonderful surprise, as if she should be pleased giving up her life’s work, just giving up on helping people.

“I’m not closing my shop. I want to keep working,” Elyscia said, eyes flaring.

Nicolaus dropped her hands.

In her shock and anger, she had let the mask of the adoring fiance slip, but this was one thing she couldn’t bear. Not for anything.

...

What do you think of the story, so far? Would you have been happy at the Duke’s offer to quit your work and be a Duchess? Let us know in the comments! Ready for more? Check back soon for the conclusion to the story!

Thanks so much for reading!

-Clever & WTF