Chapter 11: 11. The Goddess of Magic

Looking at the woman in front of her, Elyssia hesitates, thinking to herself.

‘Is this woman… well with how insane everything has been so far, why not? Given that it was likely a god that my grandfather was talking about earlier, it would make sense. However, this is likely a different god given her voice is melodic and not a deep.’

Seeing Elyssia hesitate, the woman chuckled.

“haha, there is no need to be on guard dear, you are completely safe here. Come on inside, I will prepare us some tea.”

Making sure that the woman held no hostility towards her, Elyssia accepted the woman’s invitation and walked inside.

The large entryway was decorated how someone would expect a Victorian mansion to look, the bottom of the walls covered by wooden panels while the top half was covered by wallpaper that had intricate designs. Covering the walls were a number of pieces of artwork some depicting beautiful landscapes and cities, while others depicted wars and battles. There were a number of sideboards around the room that held a variety of objects on display.

Looking towards some of the displays, Elyssia could see an intricately decorated metal staff that seemed to glow slightly, as well as a silver longsword that had some kind of runes carved down the centre of the blade. Looking closely, she thought she could almost see the runes light slightly oscillating.

Noticing Elyssia staring at the sword, the woman speaks up.

“Go on and take a closer look, but don’t touch. When you are done, Hecuba here will take you to the parlour.”

“Thank you, I will.”

Nodding her head, Elyssia walks up to the sword and takes a closer look. Examining the runes, she notices they look similar to the runes that made up the Old Norse language but were more intricate.

‘So, I assume these are magic runes. I thought that I would be able to feel some sort of force when nearby them. I believe the conception of magic in popular culture on earth was that you could feel the aura or something? Mothers book mentioned the flow of mana as well. Strange, I thought I would have felt something. I guess not.’

Taking the lead, Hecuba led Elyssia to the parlour before excusing herself, leaving Elyssia alone. Sitting down, she looked out the window, seeing vivid flowers and plants growing in a garden behind the mansion. Watching the black fog swirl around, Elyssia started planning on what to ask in the coming conversation and what to do if her assumption on the identity of the mysterious woman was correct.

Hearing the door open, Elyssia saw the woman walking in holding a tray with a tea set and snacks.

Sitting down in front of Elyssia the woman poured them both tea.

“So, I apologise if I am wrong, but you are Hecate, right? The goddess attributed to boundaries and magic?”

Slightly Widening her eyes in shock, the woman responded.

“I’m amazed, you are quite astute. I am indeed Hecate, but I must ask, how did you arrive at the conclusion?”

Internally shocked by her assumption being correct, Elyssia takes a moment to compose her mind before answering.

“Well, I read the myths about the Greek gods the other day, so when Hecuba and Galinthias introduced themselves, I recognised the names and the possibility crossed my mind. Then, after seeing your appearance I properly entertained the idea, and after seeing the staff and runes carved into the sword, I became somewhat convinced.”

“How should I address you? I apologise for any transgressions, but I have not met any gods before.” Elyssia asked slightly worried.

“Don’t worry dear, there is no need to be so formal. For now, you can just call me Hecate”

Warmly smiling, Hecate takes a sip of her tea before continuing.

“I imagine that you have an endless number of things to ask me, however there are only a few things that I can actually answer. But for now, I will explain some things to put your mind at ease. To be honest I expected your mental state to be far more agitated than you currently are. I commend your mental fortitude”

“Thank you, I am quite surprised myself”

“Well now, to the topic of where we are and why you are here. First off, we are currently in my realm in the underworld. As you might know from what you have read, I help guide souls to the underworld and so reside here. I know this might be shocking to you, but only those who I allow access can enter my realm, so you don’t need to worry about seeing the spirits of the dead walking into the walls.”

Widening her eyes in shock, Elyssia glances outside and looks again and the black earth and fog.

‘Well, it explains the scenery. But I should ask what Hecate means about the spirits walking into walls. Would they not just float through them?’

“Next, why you are here. While I am limited in what I can tell you, I can say that I will be personally training you in the various arts of magic. That will be everything I know, from basic mana manipulation to enchantments. In your family there have been a great many magic users like the great wizard Merlin and the Grand Archmage Theodore. You will easily surpass them.”

Surprised that she will be learning magic, a sparkle of excitement flickered in Elyssia’s eyes as she sat up a little straighter and looked at Hecate expectantly.

Noticing the slight changes in Elyssia’s mood, Hecate smiled.

“We will start your training tomorrow, but for tonight you will rest since you seem quite fatigued.”

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Noticing that she was feeling tired after it was pointed out by Hecate, Elyssia nodded her head and asked.

“How do you know what the time is? There is no sun or moon outside?”

Looking to where Hecate pointed, Elyssia noticed the odd clock with numbers going up to 24 instead of 12 hanging on the wall, showing that the time was 16:38.

Embarrassed, Elyssia looked to the side with a slight blush on her cheeks while Hecate chuckled.

Speaking up, Elyssia asked another question, her tone becoming serious with a resolute gaze.

“For what purpose have I been forced here then? Its clear to me that the gods have been manipulating my family for generations. While I will not say it has all been bad, its clear the gods want something from us. I personally don’t like being left in the dark not knowing what is to come. Especially not when it involves gods and other worlds.”

Elyssia’s voice started to become shaky as she finished speaking.

Looking at Elyssia with a gaze filled with both sorrow and earnest intent, Hecate replied.

“I know you want answers, however it is not something I can tell you about yet and it pains me to have to hide things from you. While gods are restricted in their interactions with the mortal planes, I promise that I will do everything in my power to help you become stronger and in the future aid you where I am able.”

While slightly annoyed that she was still in the dark with nothing but speculation, Elyssia did appreciate that Hecate seemed determined to help her. While the stories of how Hecate took pity on Hecuba and Galinthias helped reinforce Hecate’s kind personality, Elyssia was still sceptical that she would fulfil her promise.

After all, Hecate was involved with everything that was going on, however Elyssia realised that her grandfather was likely about to say ‘threatened’ earlier when he was talking about what booming voice had told him, so it was entirely possible that Hecate was in the same position. It was also possible Hecate was behind the dream and used magic to manipulate her voice and appearance.

Deciding to stop speculating, Elyssia chose to wait and observe Hecate.

“Well, for now let’s eat, we can talk more about all of this at a later time.”

Standing up, Hecate led Elyssia to the dining room where they had a friendly conversation about Elyssia’s past and family while eating.

 

****

 

Getting into bed after finishing her conversation with Hecate, Elyssia drew her knees to her chest and rested her head. Thinking about everything that had happened in the last day, Elyssia’s head started to spin. Finally having a chance to sit down and think, the mental strength Elyssia had started to fade away as her thoughts turned back to her family.

Realising that at best, it may be many years till she would see them again, and at worst, never, she buried her head between her knees and broke down crying.

 

** POV Hecate **

 

Sitting down in her armchair after Elyssia had gone upstairs to sleep, Hecate opened up her book at the last page she was on and started to read. Entering the room, Hecuba greeted her and curled up in front of the open fireplace.

“She seems like a nice girl. She was quite composed for someone who has just met their first talking animals and goddess” Hecuba chuckled.

“She is, from what Hermes has told me about her, she should be fun to teach. Apparently, she thirsts for knowledge, he estimates that she has read about a third of the books in their family’s library.” Hecate smiled, looking down at the curled-up dog.

“I guess the library must be quite big for you to be that impressed?”

“It is, approximately it holds a tenth of the books my library does.” Hecate returned her attention to the book.

“Hmmm” Hecuba replies, stretching out and enjoying the warmth from the fireplace.

Looking back up at the ceiling, Hecate looked towards Elyssia’s room that she had been keeping her attention on to make sure the girl was ok and didn’t need anything. Realising that Elyssia had started to break down in tears, Hecate hesitated, deciding on if Elyssia would even want her to try and comfort her.

Feeling the pang of sadness in her heart at seeing the state of the young girl, Hecate swiped her hand and created a portal to Elyssia’s room.

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