Sara Douglass – The Axis Trilogy 2 – Enchanter

“So for each Song there is a corresponding waterway?”

“Yes,” the Ferryman said, a little hesitantly.

“As an Enchanter I have learned Songs, melodies, each with a specific purpose. I use each Song to manipulate the power of the Star Dance, the Songs serve as a conduit to weave the power of the Star Dance to my particular purpose.”

“Yes, yes. All know that.”

“But the waterways act as a different conduit for the power of the Star Dance? Instead of singing a Song, I simply travel the particular waterway that suits my purpose? Each of the waterways has its own purpose?”

“Yes. The waterways are just another way of manipulating the power of the Star Dance. Icarii Enchanters use music. The Charonites travel a particular waterway. It is a, ah, slightly more cumbersome way.”

“In Talon Spike StarDrifter and MorningStar taught me all the Songs they knew. It is a finite number,” said Axis.

Orr’s great violet eyes sparkled. “A finite number? Really? How many?”

“Perhaps a thousand. It is what I find most restricting. If I have a purpose but no Song to suit, I cannot use my powers.” “They only know about a thousand Songs?” Orr said, his mouth twitching. “Have they forgotten so much?”

Axis leaned forward, his excitement growing. He had been right to come down here. “How many do you know?” he asked, his voice tight. “How many waterways do you have?” Orr fought to control his humour. “Let me answer that by asking you another question, boy. Did StarDrifter teach you how to use your ring?”

Axis frowned and looked at the ring on the middle finger of his right hand. Made of red gold and encrusted with diamond chips in star patterns, it was the SunSoar ring. Each House only had one ring, passed down through the generations, and StarDrifter had been happy to let Axis wear it.

“It is simply a symbol of my status as an Enchanter,” Axis said finally. Use it? What for? “The senior Enchanters of each House wear them. It has no use…does it?”

Orr covered his face with his hands and rocked back and forth with silent merriment. Axis frowned in exasperation. What had he said now?

“My dear young man,” Orr said finally, patting Axis affectionately on the knee. “My dear young man. I had not realised that the Icarii Enchanters had forgotten so much, had supped so deep into ineptitude. How can they still call themselves Enchanters?”

Axis almost shouted in his impatience. ” What is it?” “Axis,” Orr said, “there is almost no limit to the Songs you can sing, just as there is almost no limit to the waterways you can travel. You can wield the power of the Stars virtually any way you wish. How is it that the Icarii have forgotten this? Look at your ring.” Axis dropped his eyes. “Is the pattern uniform?” Orr asked. “No. The same pattern never seems to be repeated.” “Quite. Now, think of a Song you know, think of the music, and look again at the ring.”

Axis thought of the Song of Harmony. As the music ran through his head, his eyes widened. The pattern of the stars on his ring had shifted to match the Song.

“Now, Axis,” Orr whispered, “think of a purpose for which you have no Song. Something simple. I do not want you to blow us out of the water. Think of the purpose, and then look at the ring.”

Axis thought, and the colour of the Ferryman’s cloak caught his eye. A Song to change the colour of Orr’s cloak to silvery grey, he thought to himself, then glanced at the ring. The pattern of the stars on his ring had shifted again — into a configuration that he did not know. He translated the pattern the ring showed him into a melody in his mind and instantly the Ferryman’s cloak altered colour from ruby red into silvery grey.

Orr smiled. “Such a simple thing, eh? Yet the Icarii Enchanters have forgotten how to use their rings. The number of Songs that can be sung are limited only by the number of purposes you have.”

“Do you mean,” Axis said, hardly believing it could be this simple, “that all I have to do is to think of the purpose, watch the ring show me the pattern of the melody, and then I have the Song for the purpose?”

Orr nodded. “In the same way I use die waterways. There are relatively few physical waterways. If I have a purpose, or a place to go for which there is not a physical waterway, I simply diink of the purpose, and die waterway is created.”

“Can I use the power of die Star Dance for any purpose?”

“No. You can’t. Certainly there is a Song for most purposes, and all you need to do to learn the Song is to watch the patterns that the ring forms for you. But some Songs, some melodies, would be too dangerous for you. They would allow too much of the power of the Star Dance through — and you would die. A great deal of your learning as you grow in power, Axis SunSoar, is going to be knowing what patterns, what Songs, are too dangerous for you to attempt to use. That is why I asked you to think of a simple purpose. Generally, the more complex the purpose, the more you need to do, and the more power of the Star Dance you will be required to manipulate through Song. Having learned to use your ring, Axis, you must be very, very careful. Otherwise you will die as you attempt to use it.”

Axis looked at die ring widi new-found respect. For what purposes would the ring show him Songs that were too dangerous to use?

“You will learn, Axis,” Orr said. “You may scorch yourself now and again, but you will learn. There are purposes for which no Song exists. Only a few, and diey are mosdy to do widi healing. Rarely will you be able to use the music of die Star Dance to heal. Strange, because you can manipulate the Star Dance to recreate die dying, but a simple cut or bruise? At that die Star Dance baulks. I do not know why.”

“For what you have told me I thank you, Orr,” Axis said finally. “It is a great gift you have given me.”

Orr inclined his head. “And you have given me a gift in return, Axis SunSoar. I had not realised to what depths of stupidity the Icarii had sunk, but your revelations have been most informative. Forgotten how to use their rings, indeed!”

“Orr. MorningStar has told me some disturbing news,” Axis said, cutting through the Ferryman’s laughter.

“What is it?”

“She believes I was taught many Songs as a baby. She tells me no Enchanter knows a Song intuitively, yet I already knew many before I began training with her and StarDrifter.”

“She is right. You did not have that ring as a baby?”

“No. I only received it some eight months ago.”

“An Enchanter needs a ring, or someone else of their family, to teach him or her what Songs to sing. What were the Songs you already knew?”

“The Song of Recreation, and die Song of Recall.”

“Both are powerful and complex Songs!”

“Yes. Orr, is there another SunSoar Enchanter about? StarDrifter believes the same Enchanter has taught Gorgrael.”

Orr hissed in surprise. “I had never wondered who taught Gorgrael. It was remiss of me.”

“And Gorgrael uses the Dark Music of the Stars,” said Axis. “So whoever taught him knows how to use that music as well?”

Orr nodded, obviously troubled.

“Orr, can I use the Dark Music with this ring?”

“No. The rings are only designed to draw xm the power of the Star Dance itself. Gorgrael has no ring in any case, and what Icarii Enchanter knows the use of the Dark Music? None that I know of. Axis, your words trouble me. I will have to think on them further.”

After a long while Axis spoke again. “Orr. I have seen some of GorgraeFs creatures fade from view. They seem to be able to use their magic to move through space, perhaps time. Can I do that?”

Orr nodded. “Obviously they use the Dark Music to do that, and that you cannot touch. But it is possible for you to. travel across vast distances in a fraction of a heartbeat using your ring. Nevertheless, there are limits,” he said quickly as he saw excitement on Axis’ face. “Although you can travel from anywhere, there are only a few sites you can travel to.”

“What do you mean?”

The Ferryman’s fingers tapped the side of the boat. “Only certain sites in Tencendor can pull you to them. If you try to use the Song of Movement to travel to some other place, you will simply disintegrate into thin air. Do I make myself dear?”