Chapter Seventeen
Justin straightened up and did his best to focus. "First, I think you need to give me a brief overview of what types of magic you can perform." Art let out a loud barking laugh before folding both of his arms across his chest. "There is nothing brief about that information, young man, but I will hit some of the major magic that the magical creatures provide us. Are you ready?"
Justin picked up his quill and ink and wished for the first time that he had put a pen in his pocket. It would be harder to keep up with Art with a quill than it would be with a modern ballpoint. He would just have to do his best.
Leaning over the table posed to write, he glanced up at Art and nodded. Art smiled at his eagerness and dove in. Some of the more powerful magical creatures that we have are unicorns, dragons, krakens, basilisks, phoenixes, and griffins. We will start with these." Art paused for a moment so Justin could finish writing. Griffins grant us Air Magic, and Phoenixes grant us Renewal Magic. Basilisks give us Poison Magic." Justin was intrigued. What positive use could a kingdom have with poison magic? Before he could ask, Art continued. Krakens give us Water Magic, and you can guess that dragons grant us Fire Magic." There was a long pause where Art looked off into the distance, seemingly lost in thought.
"What about unicorns?" Justin's question came out softer than he intended, but Art still heard it. "Unicorns grant us the ability to heal." Justin suspected it had taken more effort than it should have for Art to tell him that. He was completely baffled as to why.
Justin was unsure what to say to his statement until he remembered that Maggie had spoken to him about unicorns. "Princess Magdalin told me that unicorns and dragons were almost killed to extinction, and even now their numbers are low."
Art's nod was slow and still very distracted. It seemed to take a lot of effort for him to focus his gaze fully on Justin. "Yes, unfortunately, unicorns take longer than most creatures to reproduce. Unicorns tend to mate for life, but it may take them a while to not only find their mate but also become pregnant. We have not seen many pregnant unicorns in the wild, but the ones that we have on palace grounds have been here for a while and seem in no hurry to procreate."
Justin didn't miss what Art said, but he was confused by the turn in the conversation. "Why do you have unicorns on palace grounds?" Art's shoulders sagged as though weighed down by an invisible weight. It appeared to Justin that he had aged 10 years since the conversation started. Justin wasn't sure if his thoughts were so focused that he couldn't maintain his magic over his appearance or if the stress of the situation was working harder than the magic could.
Art flicked his eyes to Cora in a silent plea for help that Justin would have understood in any world. Cora straightened her already pristine dress and picked up where Art left off. "The king is determined to keep the unicorn population from going extinct, even if he has to breed them himself. So, when two of our knights found a mated pair running together in a field outside the woods, the king ordered them captured and brought to the royal stables. He did everything he knew to do to make them comfortable, even going so far as to find one more mated pair to join them so they wouldn't feel so alone. So far, neither pair has come close to reproducing. The king keeps guards on watch 24/7 to ensure he is alerted when the… um… act is committed."
Justin wasn't sure, but he thought he saw the briefest blush on Cora's cheeks. But before he could confirm it, she turned away and walked toward the fireplace.
Justin had been so engrossed in their story that he had not bothered to write any of it down. Still, he doubted he would have any trouble remembering everything they said. It was evident that the plight of the unicorn affected these mages greatly. As he looked at Oaklie and Philip, he saw sorrow etched deeply into both of their features like matching masks of mourning. He didn't understand the reason for such sadness, and he was too scared to ask.
At that time, Art looked up at him with the first real glint of hope that Justin had seen since the topic had turned to the unicorns. "You were called here because the spell was cast to bring us the best in this field. Do you know why the unicorns aren't mating?"
"The best?" Justin had never been considered the best at anything by anyone. Here he was, where 4 people who could perform magic and interact with magical creatures considered him the best. He had no way to process it. It was best if he just focused on the question and worked towards an answer. He was surprised to realize an answer presented itself almost immediately.
"They feel like prisoners." Justin leaned forward in his chair and placed his elbows on his knees. "How would you feel if you were forced to stay cooped up in a stable where people were watching you, just waiting for you to have sex? You said you found the first pair running together in a field. Do they get to run on the palace grounds?"
All 4 mages looked at each other sheepishly. Justin was sure it was partly because they had not thought of the obvious answer, and partly because they had allowed the unicorns to be treated poorly.
Their embarrassed faces sent a wave of sympathy through Justin, and he rushed to console them. "I know that you were only facilitating what the king wanted, but you must see that the unicorns will never feel comfortable reproducing with an audience and walls around them. They are creatures of the wild, and while they are animals, they have their own way of doing things, and without being able to, it just won't get done. If you know what I mean."
"Yes, well, I think we all see a bit more clearly now." Arts words came out stilted and quiet. "But what are we to do about it? We can't let the unicorns go back into the wild, not until we are sure that the female is with child. Even then, we need a way to ensure the foal is born safely and cared for. We can not let the unicorn's numbers get any lower. The king won't allow it!"
The desperation and desire of Art's words were so palpable that Justin could almost see it rolling off of him. It was extremely evident that the fate of the unicorns affected the king greatly. As soon as he left this room, Justin was determined to find Maggie and learn why.