Posted by Leif G.S. in Fantasy, Short Story, The World of Niris (Manuscript World), Water Caster Series | 0 Comments
Fantasy Short Story: Water Caster (Origin)
This fantasy short story for The Water Caster is dedicated to you, my readers. I want to thank you for every moment you spent reading my flash fiction and serial projects. I hope you all enjoy this piece that clocks in at 2000+ words. If you have something to say about this piece, please let me know. I crave your input to know if I am providing you quality material. Other than that, I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving and if the gods/fate grant it, I will see you all on the other side of this holiday.
The ten-year-old girl with shoulder length platinum hair stood in the waist-deep pool of water, her ice-blue eyes glaring at her reflection as her slender hands hung a few inches from the surface. She drew in a deep breath, closed her eyes and started to weave a pattern in front of her. Fingers danced, and arms waved as the energy crackling from her fingertips forced the water to flow and twirl until it created an image in front of her. She opened her eyes wide and smiled as she stared at a small fox created from the pool. It sat in front of her, head tilted to the right as it whined. She squealed with joy as she turned her head. The fox dissolved back into the pool with a loud splash. As she turned back to see her creation destroyed, she splashed the water with her hands in frustration, “I’ll never be able to get this right, Rhan! No matter what I do, my magic won’t last!”
An older woman stood at the edge of the pool. Her hand pressed against a twisting pillar of blue ice. She chuckled, and she shook her head at the girl. The gentle smile on her face turned to a pain filled mask as her laughter turned to violent spasms and coughs. Rhan dropped her one knee as she drew in a wet, raspy breath; her violet eyes morphing to an ice blue as the pillar she touched glowed and melted at the top as a candle. After a few heartbeats, the older woman managed to staedy her breath, calm her lungs and regain her strength. She stood, brushed the dirt from her dress and hooked a wayward strand of long silver hair behind her ear, “You are not concentrating hard enough, Owena. Do not become so prideful in your efforts that you do not complete your work. You might have raw talent, but that will never get you through your new life. You must focus to complete your spells.”
Owena glowered at the water as she cupped some of it in her hands. She sighed as she watched the energy dance across the surface as tears of frustration welled in her eyes, “I don’t know if I can do it without you. You were the only one to believe I can do anything at all, much less cast water magic. Ever since my father died, my mother fears what I have become. My sister wishes I would follow Papa to the other side.”
“Never allow those who do not understand your ability to affect you, child. The villagers will use their fear against you as a shield, but it is a weapon made from their hatred. They cut themselves as one might cut their wrist, watching their essence bleed out from their frames, as they die a slow death. Your family has fallen prey to this fear, and their cowardice paid with their exile from this land. Trust in what I have to teach you, and nothing shall faze you. Try the spell again, this time you must keep your mind focused on the fox.” Rhan said.
Owena shook her head and chewed on her bottom lip as she opened her hands. The water splashed back to the pond along with the tears that fell from her cheeks. She turned away from Rhan as she sobbed hard enough to cause the pond to ripple. “Perhaps mother was right; she should have bashed in my skull when I was born.”
Rhan coughed once more, her rasping breath now wet as her lungs struggled for air. She fell to both knees as she spat blood on the forest floor. Owena turned around and took a step toward her mentor, but she refused the girl as Rhan held out her right hand and shook her head. The old woman sputtered as she drew more essence from the ice pillar until it was a nub resting on a small puddle inside of the brass brazier with her left hand. Her head snapped up, revealing an unnatural dark-blue glow to her eyes. She glared at her pupil, the edge in her voice as sharp as a blade, “You will stop such nonsense this instant, young one! Your mother does not lay claim to your fate. The twelve Mahri wove your tapestry before your conception. You are a Water Caster, the last of our kind who remain in this village and thus protected by my providence. When you learn what I have to teach, you will move on from this barren place to find a pond of your own. Until then, you will do as I say and absorb my words as a sponge. Now, cast the spell as I taught you. Remain focused, close your eyes and see the fox in your mind.”
Owena cheeks took on a rosy color as she returned to the center of the pond. Her eyes lingered over the six braziers resting on the ground, took a deep breath and nodded her head. She closed her eyes and held her hands above the water once more. She took a deep breath and started to weave her hands in a complex pattern, her body causing small waves to radiate across the placid pond. Rhan’s encouraged her as she cast, her raspy voice echoing off the forest canopy as Owena continued her motions, “That’s it, young one. Use your hands to move the liquid in front of you but allow your heart to guide you. The mind will see what you cannot observe with your eyes, and you will feel the creature in your heart instead of touching with your hands. Let the magic flow through your body as a conduit. You are not the sole reason that the water wants to become a fox, but your presence will excite the water. Your willpower shall form a new shape because it allows you to do so.”
Owena stopped, her arms frozen in place as she opened an eye to peak at her handiwork. She squealed when she saw the same fox she created before sitting in front of her, wagging its tail as its tongue lolled. Owena clapped her hands; her excitement caused the water to ripple violently. The fox tilted its head and whined before it stood, turned and ran away from her. The fox dissipated as it reached the shore, leaving a rainbow-filled splash in its wake. Owena squeaked as the fox disappeared. She watched as the rainbow faded from existence before scanning the shore for her mentor. The forest’s silence made Owena uneasy. She drew her hands to her chest. She took a step toward the empty brazier where Rhan once stood. She craned her neck to see over the brass body. The sloshing sound from the water was the only noise she could hear. As she made her way toward the last place Rhan was, she saw the water in the large brass bowl. It sparkled from the unnatural blue light. Even with the thick forest canopy, the surface shimmered from the sun. She shook her head. She brought her hands to her stomach and stumbled backward. She heard gentle laughter from behind her. She turned her attention to where the laughter came from.
A massive blackbird flapped its wings as it hopped around another large bowl of water on the opposite side of the pond. The bird cranked tilted its head to the left. It called out to Owena. The young girl gasped as she stepped away from the bird. It called to her. Her terror caused the pond to create waves that lapped against the shore. The bird disappeared behind the bow. Owena took a step forward. The water inside the brazier boiled until a large twisting pillar of ice shot out from it. Rhan stepped out from behind the pillar, the familiar eerie glow emitting from the top as a beacon as her hand touched the icy layer, “You forget the abilities I have, child. A Water Caster is not limited to one pillar, though she will need to create many before she can be successful.”
Owena’s smiled as she pointed behind her. “Did you see my fox, Rhan? I did it. I crafted water spirits!”
“You did, my child. You wove a complicated spell, one that many of my students could never master in all their years of training. Do you believe you are responsible enough to use it when the time arises?” Rhan asked.
Ownea nodded her head, “Yes Rhan. I am ready. I want to learn more. I have faith that I will cast great magic as you told me when you first brought me to this pond a month ago.”
Rhan sighed. Her breath rattled from her lungs once more. Another wet cough exploded from her lips. She fell to her knees but did not stop Owena from leaving the pond. The girl stepped out from the body of water. Her blue hemp dress dripped with water as she scrambled to Rhan’s side. Owena ducked under Rhan’s outstretched arm as she helped her mentor stand, “You aren’t well. You should rest. I will fetch some berries and gather some wood for a fire.”
Rhan’s cough turned to a hiss as she spoke through gritted teeth, “Stop! You will do no such thing. My time is limited. We do not have many sunsets before my soul vacates my body and returns to the great Mahri. I have more to teach you before I can leave this world.”
“You will die if we don’t stop!”Owena sobbed.
“I have no choice, my child. You will not survive on your own unless you have learned everything I know about Water Casting,” Rhan chided.
“Yes Rhan, I understand.”
Rhan drew in a muddy breath as the pillar her hand rested against melted to a nub. Her dark-blue eyes glowed as she looked at her pupil, taking a moment to run her hand through Owena’s hair with a gentle smile, “I am sorry, sweet one. You are my last student. You are the one that showed the greatest potential. Your natural ability is a marvel to behold. Your potential is limitless. I am willing to end my life to give you every secret I know because you are the next great caster the Mahri sent to this land that turned their back on the gods and goddesses of old. You cannot obtain greatness until you have mastered the basic principles. Do you understand, child?”
Owena nodded her head as she ran her hand across her nose.
“Excellent. This next spell will give you more power than the Mahri but there is a price, shortening your lifespan. I will need your help in creating more pillars. These pillars are from what little essence I have left to give. I cannot make more so I will need your vigor to help me.”
Owena looked away from her mentor and sighed. Rhan grabbed Owena’s shoulder as she knelt, the dark-blue color bleeding from her violet eyes. She offered a weak smile to her pupil, “I know you are frightened of the pillars. You have seen what they have done to me. It is the price you pay to cast Water Magic. Your life would snuff itself out as a candle if you did not use the pillars. The sacrifices you make now will lead you to great things later in your life. Your tapestry is in the hands of the Mahri, there is nothing to fear from their gentle grasp. I think it is time you learn this essential life-giving spell.”
“I don’t want to hurt, Rhan. I don’t want to see you hurting either.” Owena said.
Rhan gentle laughter turned to a rasping cough as she pointed across the pond at the bowl where she once stood. Her hand shook as she offered her sage advice,” Life is pain. You will never truly learn this lesson. Move your hand as I do and concentrate on creating the pillar in that bowl over there.”
