>>5367851>>5367716>>5367681>>5367642>>5367837Well you'd hated her before and planned to probably kill and eat her, but now this sorceress has a newfound worth to you. The fist definite news of your goddess at least, since escaping your imprisonment.
<span class="mu-b">"It was... Zahra, yes?"</span> you try to speak gently and hold her shoulder with your hand, to try and calm her fears although you basically hold her entire torso and you might be making things worse for her. <span class="mu-b">"You need not fear, I won't hurt you. I just want to know some things."</span>
You lie of course, still not totally convinced you aren't going to just munch her to bits with your growing hunger that is now debilitating... yes, she does look quite appetizing... but first comes information!
<span class="mu-b">"Tell me... forbidden names? Who dares forbid our beautiful names?"</span>
<span class="mu-s">"N-Not... not just yours, any sources of magic with only harmful purposes... deemed evil."</span>
Sitting with the sorceress and conversing till night settles in, you can figure some essential things out, and temper your initial eagerness with the truth.
Firstly that Zahra like almost all (of the overall very few) humans with the talent for magic, was born that way, particularly attuned for water magic. When such power is displayed or noticed, different things can happen depending on factors such as culture, type of magic, who found out, etc. however Zahra was lucky for Faysal's father to recognize valuable potential, and like some others saw to it that she was magically educated. Ironically one of the only ways a woman in these times may gain such a benefit.
Here in al-Allusaan there is one madrasa which affords magical study, which she could not gain admittance herself but from which scholars could be invited to teach her. This is how she learned to do what she can do, along with some personal effort here and there. She can't definitely answer how many others there are like her since she never saw in person, but her estimate is some hundred or less in all of al-Allusaan, though she can only speak for Almhorad lands. Those of the northern aggressors she has no idea since they regard magic differently.
<span class="mu-b">"If this magic is evil, as you say, why use it at all?"</span>
<span class="mu-s">"I don't use it! Only approved works! Madmen would dare to use it and no other, I only know if it from my teachings."</span>
Here you can finally get to the core of the matter, for what concerns you personally. It seems that an "evil" subset of water magic exists which is based on you and your goddess, but it is forbidden magic and Zahra has never practiced it nor does she personally know anyone who has. Her education included this topic, but for the purpose of knowing what to avoid. Particularly because the water magic of "your" type is more or less limited to drowning and killing people, with no positive benefits.
