Chapter 19
Chapter 19
The first five tomes were so full of wordy explanations that I couldn't make head or tails of them. All of them seem to be speaking as if the reader is already familiar with warding. None of them explain HOW to set a ward.
So I switch over to the journals and handwritten grimoirs. A quick skim of them show three are little more than a diary, two read like an accounting of all the wards placed by the author, and two are full of what may be ward recipes but it's in some sort of shorthand that I can't decipher.
I find a drawing journal that helps a bit, having drawings of various symbols in beautiful and complex patterns. I keep it to the side, along with the journals that have the almost recipes in them.
Why can't their be a warding for dummies?!
Okay, so the recipe books have a bit of a pattern to them. Each of the 'recipes' list a type of stone, an herb, and a mark or number. So stones and herbs are important for warding. A couple 'accio' spells later gives be books of crystals. I don't get an answer when I try to summon 'herbs for warding', 'herbs in spells', or 'warding herbs', so I'll have to come back around for that.
Focusing on crystals teaches me far more than I expected.
Apparently, most of the 'rare' gems are actually useless for casting. Diamonds, for example, relect and refract the magic so quickly that it will overheat and shatter, even with the barest touch of magic. Sapphires and emeralds are only slightly better but still not sturdy enough to channel magic.
No, what you want is a strong and dense crystal to act as a conduit for your magic.
It's also fascinating how you need more than one crystal. There is often a 'ward stone' that is usually an unbroken geode. The ward stone is where the master of the ward can modify, update, or just recharge the wards.
For the border of the ward, you need a cluster of crystals, either a singular type or compatible ones. They are arranged at evenly measured points along the border to act as 'poles' and stabilize the ward net. The fewer points of stability, the larger and stronger the clusters must be to act as support.
The most basic ward over a home has three clusters of three crystals with a geode as the center stone. The ward would be a large triangular net, tethered at the poles. These are used most often as temporary or 'camping' wards.
The most complex that the recipe journal lists is made of three alternating groups of tri-clusters holding three different 'flavors' of wards up, each interwoven with the other two to strengthen the whole. Per the recipe journals, the favored crystals are obsidian, black tourmaline, and amethyst.
So I can't just wave my wand and expect a solid wall of magic to protect us.
There is also notations of lf and ef. I thought, at first, that it was the initials of whoever had cast the ward but a symbol next to one made me realize that I had missed a key component of ward casting; runes. A few specified summoning spells later gets me a couple decent books on beginner runes.
Dawn brightens the sky, visible through the large windows. Birds sing happily, trilling to welcome the morning.
Scrubbing at my face, I am almost ready to give it up but honestly, I think I may be getting closer to an answer. On the one hand, I have no idea where I will find the crystals needed to cast the ward. On the other, it would keep us safer than just tall walls will.
"Ya still at it, kid," Merle leans against the doorframe, framing over at the desk covered in books that have spilled onto the floor.
"If I can put up a strong enough ward then NOTHING will be able to pass without permission."
He hums thoughtfully, "I don't know nothing about that hoodoo but what I do know is that ya caint do nothing when you're too tired to hold your head up."
I tap my pen against the notebook, "I think that I'm close."
He hums again, nodding although it's clear that he doesn't understand, "Still, best take a break for a moment, eat somethin."
I am a bit hungry so I agree. I take the rune books with me, laying them out on the counter as I cook up a proper English breakfast. Merle wanders over, leaning close to read the book with a blank expression. I try to explain to him, more to help myself work it out loud.
"Each ward is different, unique to the needs of the castor," I explain. "We will need nine clusters of three crystals to act as 'tent poles' for our ward as well as a geode to be our central ward stone. We will need some herbs, although I'm not sure which ones yet, and a runic array so the ward knows what it needs to do. Like, 'keep out anything intending harm' or 'keep out anything moving without a heartbeat'."
"Runes?" He quips, pointing at the book on the counter. It's already open to a page with a simple summary of each symbol so I don't bother explaining their meaning. Instead, I explain how some can fit together to emphasize their shared message or to block a part of the rune that would not be needed.
He listens well, asking a few questions to get further explanation. I do my best, reminding him that I haven't been taught this so I'm not sure how right or wrong I am. He asks how I would build a ward, what runes I would like, and I do my best to answer.
It helps, even if I'm forced to admit that I will not be able to set it up anytime soon.