《Yggdrasil》 The Change In the year 2075 of the Earth as we know it. a group of eccentric jong people is riding in a rv bus to an unknown destination. The group of youngsters consists of boys and girls between the age of 20 and 25. They all have their own specialty, for instance one is very good with calculations, while another is good with materials. halfway to their destination, while everyone¡¯s a sleep and only the bus driver still awake and driving, suddenly one of the tires claps and everyone¡¯s awake, the bus driver is able to barely able to get the bus to stop in time before it starts spinning, but he succeeds. ¡°Yeah, yeah, all is fine, you can go back to sleep, it is just a flat tire¡± says the bus driver. ¡°I will fix it and get us back on track in no time¡±. While the driver is fixing the tire all the youngsters go back in side to sleep, after the long busy day they have had, Except for one, a red-heared girl who looks like she is around 23 years old, has a slender waist but curves at the right places, her hair is waving down till half way her back and she has those kind of piercing light green eyes that you don¡¯t see very much. She keeps observing the driver, from inside the bus, until he is done and gets back into the bus. A hour later. The bus is driving over a very long bridge over a canyon, on the tire that was just changed, one of the bolts that keeps it in place is showing signs of popping of, whoops, there it goes. The tire keeps getting looser and looser. The wheel breaks of, the driver can¡¯t hold the bus anymore, All of the youngsters are instant awake, but that¡¯s all in vain, the bus swirls over the road to the left side, the side barrier takes a big hit and cracks through, the bus goes down of the bridge and every youngster is screaming in fright. The bus landed a few seconds after that on the rocky ground. Later that night the news states that there are no survivors from the crash. At the same moment that the bus hit the ground, somewhere far very far away in a distant world a number of tiny gaps appeared in the plane barrier. 2 hours later, ¡°Ayana, wake up! Ayana!¡±. Slowly the vision goes from black to a murky stone room, with dim torch light, that looks straight out of the middle ages. There is a simple wooden bed with a normal matrass which I am laying on. On the right side there is a wall and on the left side there is a door, possible the entrance to this room, further left there is a wooden desk with some papers on it, an ink bottle on the left upper corner, a quill holder with a simple white quill in it. Above the desk hangs a shelf with what looks like book bindings on it, 4 of them. On the end of the bed there is a chest, those that you would find in the early ages of civilization, its 60 centimeters high, 120 wide and 50 deep, it is made of simple wood, it has 2 doors on the front, if you open them you can slide the drawers out. On top the is a lid, if you open it there is another separate space for items. For what I can remember there has to be a secret compartment on the lower side of the chest went through her mind. Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. While slightly looking in the direction of the chest I notice a mirror on the far wall, the mirror is around 2 meter high, and 75 centimeter wide, and it has a wooden frame. ¡°Good you¡¯re finally awake, I finished the patrol round in the garden¡± the man that is standing next to the bed says, I look at him with murky eyes, because I obviously have no clue what he means. ¡°Okay, let¡¯s try it this way, wat do you remember?¡± And I look at him again, trying to speak and realization hits me, how can I even understand him? If I speak, do the words come out the way that they are supposed to so he can understand? ¡°I... I... ¡° as I am trying to talk the memories of the old Ayana start appearing in my mind, me and the man named Garrick were doing a patrol round through the garden when we met with the murlock tribe, I was hit in the head bij one of them and went out. ¡°Yes I remember¡± did I answer. The memories kept coming back from the former host of the body I currently reside in. This is one of the few and far in between large planes in the multiverse, named: The Deviant world The plane mostly consists of humans, but when the population reached a certain number a small percentage of the humans began to show some abnormalities in body and soul, those people are called deviants. There are nine grades, each completely different from each other and more powerful than the other. But before you become a deviant, you¡¯re first an apprentice. Beginner apprentices are not so different from normal humans, but starting to show some sensitivity to the elementium particles in the environment. Intermediate apprentices are one step further in their progress of becoming a deviant, same goes for advanced apprentices and pseudo deviants. The room we are in belongs to the former host of this body named: Ayana. presumably she died at almost the same moment when I died in the previous place. Than I could live in this body because this was vacant. The room is located on the second level of the deviant tower, the tower is owned bij a medium sized clan named Armrose and is located in the territory of the Deviant Alliance that is located in the west side of the plane. Around the tower lays a garden, a so called resource site, there are a certain number of different creatures present in this garden. Every day there is a patrol around the garden, the ones on patrol check if there are any abnormalities and if you come across a resource you take it with you on your way. If it is something on the list of things to collect you have to hand it over to the tower management, if it is not, than you may take it for yourself. The apprentices are also in charge of cleaning up the magic experiment equipment and keeping the inside of the tower clean. In the tower there are 5 layers above ground and I am not sure if there are any more underground. The stationed deviant is called Wilson, a first grade deviant who specializes in water elementium, his chambers are on the fifth floors. On the fourth floor are the rooms reserved for visiting deviants from the clan and pseudo deviants from the tower, mostly these rooms are empty. On the third floor are the advanced apprentices and intermediate ones, they make up a small portion of the inhabitants of the tower. The beginner apprentices live on the second floor of the tower, they fill in the rest of the residents and last but not least are the meeting/dining room and all the other utility rooms of the tower, they are located on the first floor. Then the memories suddenly stop flashing by, but I can feel they¡¯re still there if I need them. I softly ask ¡°would you mind?¡± To Garrick while hinting at the door. ¡°Of course not, you need your rest¡± and with that he walks to the door while closing it after he¡¯s outside. I am still sitting up in the bed, pillow against the wall and my face is now staring at the mirror, against the far wall. I look at myself in the mirror and what I see amazes me. A red haired girl with an average face and those same light green piercing eyes that I used to have when I was still in my own body and I am wearing simple grey robes, standard issued for apprentices. Overall it looks like I was just plucked out from one place and brought here. I fold the blanket, which is over my legs, to the end of the bed, i try to move my legs. It worked! Was the first thing that came to mind, strange actually, this body looks so much like my old body, yet I am afraid of not being able to do the simplest of things. Next thing I try is putting my feet on the ground, so far so good. Then I try to get up but I feel a little different, I try looking down to my feet but I can¡¯t see them, bugger, still too big to see my feet huh, well let¡¯s try another comparison to find out why standing is weird. I try walking to the door, by earth logic a door should still be around 2 meter. Walking also gives a strange feeling, when I reached the door I started comparing my own height against the door, 10 whole centimeters, seems to be the difference between my former body and this body. Again I look at the mirror, I still have my white fair skin and those slender hands, but what is different are my boots, I used to have steal nose boots, but now I am only wearing some simple brown leather shoes, back on earth I used to work as a strategist behind a normal desk and people would give me looks about my outfit, here I¡¯m not so sure what happens if I could get those kind of shoes and put them on. My mind wanders off again, this is a world of advanced magic. The entire dimension is filled with a mystical material called Elementium. Based on the differences in these basic ¡®elements¡¯, these Elementium were classified into types, like Earth, Fire, Wind, Light, Darkness, etc. Chapter 2 new beginning I snap back to reality, how do I find my attributes? Is what comes to mind after and I start digging in the old memories. A little while later I found that there should be a tiny tattoo on my left shoulder, it looks like an enormous tree but the roots and branches seem to stop in a circle form. The most left and right upper roots and left and right lowest branches look interlaced with each other. in the places where the wind rose normally shows north, east, south, west, there are now a few simply designed signs, they look like three leaves, without nerves or a stick, laid over each other but one is turned 120 degrees clockwise, the second is turned 120 degrees anti-clockwise and the third stays where it is. all four of the signs are put together in a ring by a set of complicated runes, that I have never seen before. Let¡¯s try touching it, so I did, a menu popped up before my eyes. Ayana, Rank: beginner apprentice Age: 23 Strength: 0.7, Constitution: 1.3, Dexterity: 0.9 and spirit: 8. Elementium affinity: Darkness Known spells: none as of yet. Known skills: magic reading It seems that In this world, every normal human being possessed some basic body attributes at birth. After years of research and classification, which had been done by generations upon generations of Deviants, they had finally categorized these into four different attributes: Strength, Constitution (for short Con.), Dexterity (for short Dex.) and Spirit. As one could guess, deviants were differentiated based on these four basic attributes. Strength was primarily used to quantify a person¡¯s body strength. This attribute was very important for close combat fighters. The strength attribute would affect one¡¯s base damage when using close combat weapons, it also affects one¡¯s precision with them. Constitution represented a person¡¯s health and endurance. The minimum value for any human is 1. If a human¡¯s constitution dropped below 1, they would die. Dexterity is used to quantify body synchronization, flexibility, reflexes, balance and of course speed limit. And last but not least is Spirit, this determines how many things you can do that require magical energy. The path to increase Spirit is through constant meditation, reading spell books, doing experiments, waging war, consuming recourses, the list is endless. For the skill magic reading, it is used to read magic books, scrolls, tomes, notes and other written stuff about magic. If a normal human reads these kind of things he would only remember that he read something, not exactly what it is that he read about. Only the Apprentices, who went through strict mind training, could overcome this effect and access the real magic knowledge, hidden within the book. Hmmm, my elementium affinity is the highest for the darkness element, Unfortunately, this affinity was not considered good in the walls of this tall tower. As everyone knew, Great Master Wilson¡¯s elemental affinity was Water. This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings. let¡¯s see, there should be an explanation on what to do when meditating. let¡¯s just try the same way of meditation I did back on earth. I went and laid down on the bed my legs straight and my hands over my belly with the fingers interlaced. When breathing you try to feel the rhythm of your hart, then try feeling it in one of your pelvises, your knee and then your toes, one by one. After the first side is done, try doing it for the other side. This is as far as the old Ayana has been able to reach. After the lower part of the body comes the upper part. While maintaining the state of you lower body. start again at the hart, then move on to one of the shoulders, then the elbow, your palm and finish with your fingers one by one. Repeat the process with the other arm and something should happen. I start with the lower body, this should be easy because it was already completed many times before. Success, let¡¯s move on to one of the shoulders. I slow down my breathing and try to go to my left shoulder, after some time I start feeling a tiny pulse, again success, but then out of joy I lose focus, and it¡¯s gone. Bugger, but on the bright side, I made some progress. The road to becoming a deviant is going to be a long one, the conditions for advancement to deviant are still shrouded in mystery, the only thing that I know of through the old memories is that one¡¯s own spirit has to reach 20 for pseudo deviant. After that it¡¯s still a mystery. I tap the tattoo and the menu pops up again, great, my spirit has been active. Just an increase of 0.01 but it¡¯s still an increase, only 11,99 more to go. I look at the time on the same menu, oeps, 19:45 already and the dinner hall closes at 8. I open the chest and grab the first robe that I see, a black one and walk out the door while slamming it shut. The stairs aren¡¯t even visible with the speed I am rushing down the stairs to eventually reach the dinner hall. The halls is approximately 300 meter long, 40 meter wide and 10 meter high. Inside the dinner hall are three long wooden tables, they look like those seen in the medieval dinner halls. On the side are rows of pillars, wow those look like they came straight out of the old Greek time. Halfway on the right side is a counter, there is one of the senior apprentices manning the desk and at his back is the kitchen with several apprentices working in it. Overall the dinner hall looks very impressive when you walk in for the first time. if you come here daily that feeling starts to fade away to once in a while and over time it fades to just being another room. I rush to the counter to order. I look down to see what today¡¯s dinner is, sigh, it¡¯s soup night. The soup is made with normal bouillon, but for what I can see the meat there is toad meat. I have to eat something, ¡°one soup please¡±. The apprentice asks: ¡°do you want bread with it?¡± ¡°Yes please, is it possible to get two pieces of bread?¡± ¡°You may have 2 but it will be both white if you pay the normal amount, for two brown pieces, it will cost you 2 gold coins more¡±. ¡°I¡¯ll take two white pieces, please¡±. The apprentice grabs a bowl from under the counter and fills it up with toad soup. Next he picks two pieces of bread from the basket on the right side of the counter en gestures me to walk over there. ¡°That will be 4 coins then, please¡±. I hand over the coins and he places the soup and bread on my side of the counter. Quickly I pick up the soup with bread and walk back to the stairs that lead to my room. Gold is the currency used in the tower. In the outside world as well, but that only applies for mortals and apprentices, at least that is what the old Ayana knew. The official deviants should use a different currency, but which one she did not know. All tasks in the tower award some amount of gold coins, some more than others. The more dangerous the task the more money it awards. The daily rounds in the garden are one of the most dangerous tasks of the tower, so they award high amounts of coins. A special one to note is being the test subject for master Wilsons experiments, that one is the one with the most amount of coins rewarded, but also the one taken the least. One month ago my neighbour, named Vayentha, took up the task, out of despair, to be the test subject. She returned to her room at the end of the day, completely covered in a cloak and nobody heard or saw anything from her. Soon I reached the end of the stairs, followed the hallway for a while. The third corridor on you right hand and then the fourth door on the left is mine, the fifth door is Vayentha¡¯s. I open my door and put the bowl of soup and one piece of bread on the writing desk, walk to the chest to grab a piece of clean cloth. I walk out of the door while shutting it, then turn to left and taking a few steps to get in front of Vayentha¡¯s door. I place down the clean cloth with the bread on top, after which I knock on the door and walk straight back to my own door. After shutting it again and taking place behind the desk to start my meal, a creaking sound echoes through my ears. That should be my neighbour that¡¯s still alive. After my meal I went to pick up the cloth and brought back the tray to the dining hall. Maybe she would like a hot meal sometime, but that is noticeable if someone is paying attention. Let¡¯s try tomorrow when there is something different than soup. After bringing back al the dishes to the dining room, I feel it is time for bed. My spirit is completely drained. I close the door of the room and walk to the bed, my head didn¡¯t even touch the bed or I was already asleep. As de darkness of night settled over the tower, more and more apprentices went to bed until eventually a deep silence reigned over the tower. It was at this time that there a shadow started moving just outside the tower. Silently moving toward a specific area on the perimeter of the tower. If Ayana was still awake she would have recognized this as where the boobrie tribe lived. Boobrie¡¯s are small shapeshifting demons that usually take the form of giant water birds similar to giant auks. They live between the murlock and the kappa and mostly sleep while standing straight up clustered together on a small, just above the water, island in the middle of their piece of the surrounding waters that are protected by the tower. Chapter 3 Possible new ally As the shadow got closer to the boobrie¡¯s tribe one of the alarms, that the Deviant had setup up for invaders, started making noise somewhere in the bushes next to the shadow. Startled the shadowy figure moved back to the tower again, its movement was concealed yet graceful and it didn¡¯t make a sound over the course of its journey. When it finally reached the tower it jumped inside a shadow and disappeared to one of the rooms inside. The shadow appeared and started sighing, it was about to trash the room when the clouds moved just a little so that a ray of moonlight was shining through the window of that specific room. With that tiny bit of moonlight the shadow was revealed. Inside the room stood a slender figure with long pitch black hair, black cloth robes, pale white skin, ghastly green eye¡¯s that shined in the moonlight and slender fingers with long pointy nails in the same green tint as her eye¡¯s. If Ayana could see her, she would have vaguely recognized her as Vayentha who stayed in the room besides her in the tower. Quickly Vayentha hid herself in the shadowy parts of her room, where the moonlight could never reach. ¡­¡­¡­¡­¡­. The next day, Ayana was woken by a loud voice accompanied by loud, rapid banging on her room door. With a still half sleepy head she heads to the door to open it, as soon as it opened, two people rushed inside, it took her a couple of seconds to realize who it where, namely Liesel and Winfred, the two wing man of the apprentice leader Corwin. Apprentice leader Corwin was still guarding by the door while his henchmen where trashing about in her room. Al books where taken of the shelf and opened to check the inside, the bed turned upside down, the trunk on the end of the bed opened and rummaged through. ¡°Hopefully they don¡¯t look on the bottom of it¡± were her only thoughts. Luckily before they got to that they stopped and walked back to Corwin. ¡°Would you mind telling me what this is all about?¡± ¡°last night one of the alarms was triggered, Wilson asked me to find out who it was. So that¡¯s why we are searching everyone¡¯s room.¡± With that they moved out of the door frame and Ayana slammed the door shut. First she checked all her belongings, books, still there, as she puts them back she remembers her trunk. Hastily she moves to the trunk to look in the secret compartment, as she starts going thru all the things in there. ¡°I did not hear any alarms last night¡­¡­ wait¡­¡­ could it be¡­¡­? Vayentha?¡± As soon as she made the hypothesis, the same thing that woke her started happening at her neighbour¡¯s door, Ayana opens her door again just a tiny bit and looks in the direction of her neighbour. ¡°let¡¯s force the lock¡± Winfred suggests, ¡°Fine, fine¡± is Corwin¡¯s reaction. As he reaches for the master key, he has one to carry out Wilson¡¯s orders, the door suddenly opens. As soon as the door opens Corwin forces it to fully open, but misses some green nails that were on its way to his throat. It is a direct hit and his carotid artery. He stumbles back to the hallway, while blood is gushing out of his neck he tries to reach for a potion in his storage belt. The second he takes the potion out of the belt, Vayentha licks one of the droplets of blood from her fingernails. After she swallowed the droplet, Corwin started ageing, wrinkles appearing all over, his skin drying out and last he turned to dust, while Vayentha started getting a little color in her cheeks. Wilfred who could not stand blood very good fainted from the horrifying scene. ¡°hmmmm maybe my experiment has worked, finally someone who assimilated with the stuff and did not die¡±. A deep voice sounded all around. Water started forming into an eccentric form before solidifying and forming into the one and only: master deviant Wilson. As for his deviant rank, Ayana had no idea as of yet. He points to Liesel. ¡°you are the new apprentices leader¡±, next he looks to Vayentha, he points with his right hand to where she is and water starts forming around her ankles, wrists, neck and a couple of joints, eventually solidifying into shackles. ¡°you are coming with me, I want to have a little chat with you¡±. Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere. After chaining up Vayentha and promoting Liesel to be the new apprentice leader, his body turned back to water and so did Vayentha, before all the water disappeared again. Liesel, still in shock from the whole ordeal, after slowly regaining his thinking ability, suddenly thinks of something and starts moving toward all the stuff that was left behind when Corwin turned to dust. He picks it al up and stuffs it, without even looking, in his robes. Winfred slowly awakens after the whole ordeal and looks at Liesel. ¡°where did she go? What happened after I passed out?¡± ¡°nothing much, I am the new apprentice leader. o and Wilson took away Vayentha.¡± Winfred face changed to a sickly color green, not from sickness but from envy, he desperately wanted to be the new leader. Liesel looks at him and continues: ¡°come on we have to hurry, we must tell everyone as soon as possible there has been an accident and that I am the new leader.¡± --------- At dinner that evening everyone already had learned that they had gotten a new apprentice leader, nobody was surprised that it was Liesel and not a single person even asked what had happened to Corwin. That alone already showed the indifference they all had to each other. Ayana who did not like these kind of openly selfish and arrogant people could barely remain calm with Liesel proudly proclaiming that he was the new leader. ¡°Something like that should be earned, not given¡± those where her thoughts, but alas, not everyone agreed on that thought. Sssssshhhhhhhiiiiiiieeeeeeekkkkk. Right when Liesel wanted to start with his first speech as the new leader, the door of the dining hall slowly but steadily opened. When it was sufficiently open, someone came thru it. ¡°Vayentha!¡± was Ayana¡¯s first thought. Indeed, she was the one walking into the dining hall. Under whispers from all corners she walked to the food counter and ordered the only thing possible for today. After she got her meal, she paid for it and started moving for a seat somewhere in the hall. Ayana was a little caught of guard with her quick return. But regained her composure in no time at all. Vayentha stopped walking when she was at the table Ayana was sitting, strangely enough she took place at my table, ¡°what do I do next¡±, Ayana¡¯s head was filled with confusion. So she looks up from here diner plate and suddenly feels her arm tinkle. So she focuses on the tattoo on her left shoulder. After barely a second, a menu pops up in front of her eye¡¯s. Still looking trough the stats, she is flabbergasted, ¡°are these Vayentha''s attributes?¡± still a little in shock she looks to the top of the menu and confirms that it are hers. Name: Vayentha Estimated rank: advanced apprentice Age: 22 Strength: 4.3, Constitution: 3.5, Dexterity: 2.7 Spirit: 16,4 Elementium affinity: Death energy Known spells: create undead, drain life, fury of spirits, hymn of sorrow, body of beryl. Known skills: magic reading, dark vision ¡°woooowwwww, last time I saw Vayentha see was only an intermediate apprentice, but in this short couple of months she has become an advanced one¡± goes thru her mind with her mouth still agape she keeps looking at the attribute window. ¡°is something happening to you or something?¡± Vayentha askes and like a bubble that burst, Ayana regains her composure, ¡°no no nothing wrong with me, but how are you ?¡± she askes while she thinks ¡°well I guess she doesn¡¯t see the window that I just saw¡± Vayentha had joined the tower as a noble¡¯s daughter, slender and with brownish half long hair, she mostly stuck to herself and once in a while she would be seen in the dining hall. But today she looks like a whole other person. Those of the apprentices who had only mastered one or two magic and possessed a spirit attribute of 10 or less, are ranked as beginner apprentice deviants, classified as the lowest of the lowest in the deviant system. While those of the apprentices that mastered three to four magic spells and had a spirit level of 11 to 15 are classified as intermediate apprentices, in the eye¡¯s of the real deviants still an ant but for just the apprentices already a reasonably strong power. Finally, those who mastered five or more magic spells and cultivated their spirit above the 16 points, they are classified as advanced apprentices, also know as the current elite of the tower. Once the spirit attribute of an apprentice reaches 20 points, said apprentice is almost done with their apprentice journey, but not quite yet, so they are called pseudo deviants. Once someone reaches that point, the stationed deviant would give said apprentice a special treatment in preparation for his or her advancement ceremony. Vayentha still had a slender figure, but her hair changed colour and grew longer, her robes are still the same look, but her nails and eye¡¯s stood out so much more, those deep dark green eye¡¯s are so intense. New to the appearance is a faint smell of death. ¡°well I feel fine, but let¡¯s taste dinner, I hope it still tastes the same.¡± ¡°fine¡­¡­¡± and while she starts eating, Ayana remembers something and asks ¡°What happened while you where taken away?¡± ¡°well that is a story for after diner, dear¡± and with that they start eating. ¡°bleh, everything tastes al the same, just like some sort of in between meal that has been pureed and stored in a glass jar¡± where Vayentha¡¯s first thoughts after she chewed and swallowed a spoon full of tonight¡¯s diner. Chapter 4 Strange World After quietly eating diner while sitting across the table from Vayentha, Ayana stands up walks to the counter where she got her diner and hands over her dishes to the apprentice behind it. Slowly but steadily on her way back to her room, until somewhere vague in the distance she hears some noise. She stops to look around only to discover nothing behind her. She continues to move up the stairs until a hand is placed on her shoulder. ¡°pfew, I finally caught up to you¡±. Ayana turns around and replies: ¡°it¡¯s about time, join me in my room, I have some things I need to figure out.¡± ¡°how did you even know it was me?¡± Vayentha asks with her mouth agape. ¡°simple, you are the only one that has changed significantly in the last couple of months¡±. ¡°you keep track of the progress everyone makes? ¡°¡±Yes I do¡± ¡°And on the scale to know these kind of things?¡± Vayentha kept on questioning, while thinking ¡°what has happened to her? Why would she do that kind of thing while all the others are just trying to improve themselves? What use is there? What And so on. Ayana chuckled, ¡°Know thy enemy and know yourself, in a hundred battles , you will never be defeated. When you are ignorant of the enemy but know yourself your chances of winning or losing are equal. If ignorant both of your enemy and of yourself, you are sure to be defeated in every battle.¡± this only made Vayentha¡¯s face wrinkle even more, ¡°huh, what are you talking about?¡± ¡°well, it comes down to: just knowing a lot about them makes me stronger as well.¡± ¡°that still doesn¡¯t make any sense, but now I could follow what you where saying¡± ¡°lets just forget about it for now, come inside and show me what you have learned¡±. Was wat Ayana said after she opened the door to her room they arrived at while walking and talking. Ayana closed the door. ¡°well, show me or tell me, what happened to you?¡± ¡°well, when I got taken away, master Wilson just made me promise to not kill any more of the apprentices, after that he just asked me a couple of questions about how I was feeling, or if there was anything wrong. I answered and he asked one last question, if I wanted to continue my apprenticeship here or¡­.?¡± ¡°well? What was your answer?¡± ¡°I said yes of course.¡± ¡°Uh.. Oh¡­ that is a good thing, than at least we get to stay here in the tower together¡­¡­..¡± before Ayana could finish her sentence a thick book got shoved against her face. After composing herself again, ¡°what is this? Why are you giving it to me?¡± ¡°this is something I got from pickpocketing that snob of an apprentice leader before slashing against his throat.¡± Was her answer, a snob he was, always surrounded by those two little helpers and bugging other apprentices. ¡°I will have a look at it and let you know what I find.¡± ¡°let me know, books are not my strongest point Hehehehe..¡± ¡°I know, even before your transformation your where a hands on kind of girl and not the book studying type¡± ¡°hey¡­¡­!, I know a thing or two from books as well.¡± ¡°oke oke, I will shut up about that subject. But I have one last question: what did you transform into? ¡° ¡°Euhm¡­. Master Wilson told me that he used the blood or tissue of some kind of infant dark undead creature.¡± And Ayana took some parchment from the desk behind her and the quill out of the holder to put it in the ink and note down what Vayentha just said. ¡°Oke time to go for you, so I can do some research¡± while moving her hands, bidding Vayentha to leave the room. ¡°oke.. oke.. yes madam, I will leave you to your own devices¡­. for now.¡° while pulling the door shut behind herself and walking to her own room while giggling . So, lets get this book cracked. Hmmm, this is actually a book in a language I don¡¯t know yet, lets have at it then. Ayana opened the book and looked at the first page completely filled with words in a language that is completely made up form runes, sigh ¡°well this is going to be a very long night¡±. Right at that moment something started stinging at her left arm, and after a few seconds a menu popped up, it had a simple few sentences written on the, almost digital looking, screen, which said the following: Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator. *New book has been detected, do you want to copy the contents of the book to the database? Spirit cost has yet to be determent.* well, I did not see that coming, but if this works, lets try something. ¡°can I just copy the first page of the book?¡±. The screen changed: *order received¡­¡­¡­. Calculating spirit cost¡­¡­ * A few seconds later it changed again: *Copying first page of the book Spirit cost: 0.3 spirit.* ¡°hmmmm¡­. Wil this be a permanent loss of some spirit or just depletion of the spirit reserve?¡± Ayana thought out loud. And the screen changed again: *it will just deplete your spirit reserve* ¡°hmmmm, let¡¯s do it then¡± and the screen changed for a fourth time *order has been received, commencing copying progress* Well, I have no idea how long this is going to take. So let¡¯s find out what language this actually is, it looks a like there are Darmassian and Nazja elfish runes mixed together here. For what I can see there is also Eltharin and Pyandonean, but there are still some pieces that I can¡¯t place yet. Just as she was deep in thought, the screen popped up again with the notification that the first page had been copied to the database. ¡°how much spirit does the first chapter cost?¡± *order received¡­¡­¡­ Calculating spirit cost¡­¡­* *Copying the first chapter of the book Spirit cost: 7.7 spirit* Sigh, all of my remaining spirit, well it just has to be this way. ¡°start copying¡± *order received, commencing copying progress¡± As almost all her spirit had just been depleted she got light in the head, her mind had become fatigued, the most annoying symptoms for this are dizziness, swelling of some parts of the brain and mumbling. The spirit attribute can be described as the container for the spirit, just like a pool, the bigger the outline the bigger the amount of spirit, the water of the pool can be compared to the amount of energy you can use. And if the pool has been partly depleted, your spirit related performance drops as well. Overuse of the spirit energy leads to something that¡¯s called spirit exhaustion. So as soon as Ayana noticed that the mystical screen drowned her of her spirit she stumbled to the bed, dropped down and while her head did not even touched the bed yet she was already sound asleep. While she was asleep everything went silent for the night and slowly everyone in the tower went to bed. On the next morning Ayana was woken by banging on the door of her room yet again. She gets out of bed but her head starts hurting a little and her vision becomes just slightly dizzy, while walking to the door. At the door the banging intensifies, ¡°open the door and let me in!¡± can be heard from a loud voice of the other side. Waiting for her head to clear up Ayana takes the last step to the door and opens it up. Immediately Vayentha rushes though and starts asking: ¡°Well? Well? Well?...... tell me, did you learn anything?¡± ¡°I did, but it is not much¡± Ayana replied mumbling to her question. ¡°just that it is a combination of a series of runic elfish languages, which I am still deciphering¡±. ¡°well, if that is all, I am leaving again, your no fun at all.¡± And with that she leaves the room and slams the door shut. What happened just before Vayentha¡¯s visit was that stinging at her arm again, by now she had learnt to focus on it, so it was easier to distinguish, she focused her mind on it and luckily the screen popped up again, It displayed: Copying of the first chapter complete, would you like to review it? Ayana replied to the screen with her mind ¡°show me what you have¡±. Almost Immediately after that the screen started displaying the whole chapter that it had copied. In contrast to the numerous elvish languages jumbled together in the text, the Deviants alphabet uses only 26 major runes but hundreds of variant runes, there is actually also a book on the rune shrift of the Deviants. ¡°That reminds me to get that book copied¡± thinking about the book named Runes for Beginners, she should have it laying around here somewhere. That¡¯s when the screen gave a new prompt: Book Deviant Runes for Beginners has been detected, copying cost: 6 spirit Would you like to start copying? After reading trough the message, she agreed to it and her spirit drained again while she moved to the door, this al happened in the few seconds between getting up and moving to open the door. ----------- After Vayentha slammed the door shut Ayana started reading the mysterious text again. While reading through the first few pages the screen gave another prompt. It said: would you like to display it in Deviant rune language? ¡°Wow, it can do that?¡± whereas Ayana realized, I don¡¯t even know what the screen is capable of at all, and thus she was left whit more questions than answers again. ¡°yes, if you can do that, that would be very helpful¡± and the screen started loading again, piece by piece the jumbled up elfish rune started being reorganized and transformed into the runes the Deviants use. ¡°Hehe¡±, Ayana started again on the first page of the text and what she saw stunned her, ¡°Who would have thought that you were a book on the beginnings of magic circles, I certainly did not.¡± Chapter 5 Starting to know this world Still stunned after reading the first couple of words from the screen, Ayana slowly starts coming back to her senses and begins reading the rest of the first page and after that the first chapter. While reading her mouth went agape, ¡°I will have to start copying the rest of this book, this is probably very useful for later.¡± ¡°screen, what is the cost for copying the second chapter?¡± *order received¡­¡­¡­. Calculating spirit cost¡­¡­* * copying second chapter Spirit cost: 8.4 spirit* Bugger, that¡¯s more than I can afford right now. Only one way to solve that. So Ayana walks to the bed and lays down to start meditating. While relaxing to feel her heartbeat in her chest she notices that while breathing the beat slows down tremendously and her entire body starts to relax. She completes the lower half of her body meditation far faster than before and starts with the upper left side shoulder, the one where she lost focus last time she went into deep meditation. This round she needs some time but eventually her shoulder emits a slight pulse, pausing just slightly to fortify that pulse in her shoulder she moves on to the nerves connecting her shoulder to her elbow, and it starts pulsing as well. Stopping there to fortify the pulse, her spirit retracts into her body because she could not hang on to her relaxed state anymore. Ayana¡¯s body shuddered and she slowly opens her eye¡¯s after her spirit is retracted. ¡°Hopefully that did something again, Screen could you display my stats again?¡± *Beep* * Ayana, Rank: beginner apprentice Age: 23 Strength: 0.7, Constitution: 1.3, Dexterity: 0.9 and spirit: 8.09. Elementium affinity: Darkness Known spells: none as of yet. Known skills: magic reading, Known books: Deviant Runes for Beginners (complete), beginnings of magic circles (1 chapter) * ¡°great I made some progress yet again¡±. ¡°it is just 0.08, but is it something none the less. As expected, some changes had been occurring in her body, but those are so small that she probably wouldn¡¯t had noticed if the screen couldn¡¯t scan her and display her stats. In the memories, from the old Ayana, that she still has access to, there is no information about the tattoo on her arm at all, ¡°maybe this is something that wasn¡¯t there before I took over her body¡± and again Ayana was left with a lot of questions she probably wouldn¡¯t get an answer for anytime soon. Rumble¡­¡­ rumble¡­¡­ ¡°oeps, that¡¯s my stomach,¡± and she looks at the clock. ¡°I guess it is time for diner already?¡± -------------- This routine of copying, meditating, conversing with Vayentha, almost being late for diner and sleeping went on for a couple more days until it was finally time for her garden inspection round outside the tower that needs to be completed every week. Master Wilson had asked the new apprentice leader to find a replacement until I felt up to the task again, but I shut that idea down prematurely, because I feel fine and besides, I would lose out on the rewards that can be found outside and the one for completing the inspection. ---------- That morning Ayana wakes up rather well rested, she gets out of bed and puts on her robes especially the one with a magically expanded pouch on it and grabs her gear out of the secret compartment of the chest on the end of her bed. Goes through the door to the outside of her room and after carefully locking the door she continues her walk to Garrick¡¯s room. Knowing it is time for the inspection round through the gardens, Garrick prepared himself outside his door waiting for Ayana to show up. If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it. So they greeted each other and continued their way to the front door of the tower together. Garrick is a well build man, he has half long brownish hair that is tucked behind his ears. Presumably he originated from a town named Roseharbor. Roseharbor town is supposed to be located somewhere in the Rockwarf region, ¡°no idea where that is, but that is all that he told me¡±. After having crossed the corridors on the second floor, descended the spiral blueish crystal staircase that connects the first and second floor and walking through the main entrance hall, they approached the front doors. At the front doors an other apprentice was already waiting with 2 identical items in his hand, as they shortened the distance with the apprentice, the more clearer became what he was holding: ¡°talismans!¡± the kind we are going to be wearing when venturing outside the tower. The talisman was a small coin with the Armrose sigil on one side engraved. Strapped on a leather band to put it around the neck. While Garrick and I are putting the talisman around our neck the third apprentice turns towards the door and starts mumbling an incantation. A clicking sound is heard and the doors begin to slowly slide to the side into the walls until there is enough space between them for 2 bodies at once. Garrick and I walk through and behind us the doors start closing again. Both Garrick and I stood in front of the doors until they were completely shut. Following the closing of the doors, Garrick pulled up the cap of his mantle and directed his body to move to the right path, of the two paths in the garden that we have to traverse. ¡°I will take this way¡± could be heard mutteringly while he already walked away not waiting for me to even reply. Although it is supposed to be day time outside of the tower thick clouds surround the garden and very small amounts of sunlight could be seen from outside the dense layer of fog. ¡°Actually a pretty good fit for the gardens of a water element Deviant¡± the thought just popped up unconsciously. Right after Garrick left I focused on the tattoo, it had been itchy for a short time already, and the screen popped up. * bzzz¡­. Chhchchhch¡­¡­..* * gathering initial data complete¡­¡­. Would you like to display?* ¡°sure, why not, lets see what makes him tick.¡±. the screen started displaying and the corner of Ayana her mouth started twitching. ¡°his strength is almost as high as my spirit is, maybe he is trying to become a body enhancing deviant.¡± ¡°Anyways, I need to start moving or I won¡¯t be back in time¡± Ayana initiated her survey round of the left path, the first thing she should encounter, she learned from the flashbacks, should be the murlocks, Murlocks are basic but nasty creatures, they have the heads of fish, especially looking like piranha. There body resembles a merman and they do have 2 leg kind of things they walk on, but their feet have fins between the toes. Normally their weapon of choice is a crude spear made of a normal spruce wood stick with a pointy rock or something scharp lodged on the top side of the stick. In the Fog Garden however they only use the crude stick because master Wilson doesn¡¯t permit weapon use for the tribes living here. But still their numbers are not to be trifled by, there are enough of them to bludgeon you to death. Speaking of bludgeoning, if you don¡¯t watch out a group of parvum serpentis, small water serpents, could kill you with smacking their tails against you ass well, or they just bite you with their poisonous fangs. But that is for after you have survived the murlocks. There is only one item that is frequently found near murlocks that worth keeping them for: their scales, bendable but sturdy and water-resistant. On the inspection round just picking them up from just next to the path should get you enough scales to be able to finish the quest which requires 10 scales. Besides the simple scales, you may also be lucky for once and find one of the things they dove up from the pond behind their cave. Like the green colored malachite or the yellow brownish tigerseye, both are simple stones that can be used to make healing pastes, or so the old Ayana heard. If you pass the tribe at a good moment you might even find a deceased one. If your cautious enough you could skin their fins from the hands and feet and with a whole bunch of scales, you can make a killing from a dead one. ¡°lets see what we can find this time¡± and with that thought she continued walking on the path into the boundaries of the murlock tribe. Only 10 meters after the imaginary lines she spotted a scale just an arms reach from the path, walking a bit quicker she closed in on the scale. After bending down to collect it, she started walking again until the next scale came into view. Ayana repeated the cycle of walking, picking up and continuing for a couple of times before she registered that in the far end of the bushes something moved. Averting her gaze from the scale she currently has in her hand she moves her focus onto the bushes that supposedly made some noise. While putting away the scale she drops down to her knees to mask her presence, because the noise from the bushes slowly reveals itself by walking out of them. ¡°For what I can see is it just an older murlock¡± is the first thing that comes to Ayana¡¯s mind, but upon closer inspection out of curiosity she notes that this specific one has some dark spots all over his arms ¡°clearly a sign of elderdom within murlocks,¡± is what pops up from the old memories after she notices them. The murlock in question didn¡¯t move, but clearly something is happening, only it is way too far from the path to just go take a look, what if one of the others comes to check on it? While she is still debating with her self over whether or not to go take a look. The murlock puts down his old stick, before taking a seat itself, just like it is about to meditate. ¡°I suppose I could try to kill it?¡± shouldn¡¯t be her first thought but still, that was the first thing she could think of when going over the options of what she could do. She needed money and supplies and she needs them fast, so now the dilemma only consisted of how to kill it and not get busted by the other murlocks. Chapter 6 risk and reward Still carefully observing the ageing murlock, she starts planning her first ever murder. ¡°I should run around the bushes as not to make any unnecessary sounds. After I reach it, I should have a weapon¡­., o right, a weapon would be nice,¡± ¡°Let¡¯s see what she kept in the pouch, might be something useful.¡± And she starts digging. the pouch the old Ayana kept on her robe is a magically enhanced simple design leather pouch meant for apprentices as an better alternative to hauling with spoils through the hall ways, but the space in it is still limited, although very much more than in a normal one which has minimal storage space. out of the pouch first are some torches, simple wooden sticks with oil soaked rags twisted around the edges. Second out is some healing paste, packed in a tube for easy appliance. ¡°o well, this might help¡± and she pulls out what looks like one of the knifes that are sometimes given out in the tower to cut something that is on your dinner plate, but this one has been modified already. Just o so slightly sharpened at both sides of the upper part of the knife. ¡°did she buy this or did she make this herself and if she made it herself before she died, what the hell was she planning to do with it?¡± and an array of other questions arose within her. ¡°I will never know I presume, and her memories aren¡¯t of much help either, most of the more personal memories are covered in thick fog, too thick to go through for now.¡± Back to planning the murder it is and she looks over to the murlock, ¡°it hasn¡¯t moved yet, I am in luck.¡± She checks the surroundings for one last time. ¡°nothing in seeing or hearing distance, good, next, is the path clear? Yes it is¡±. She checks her weapon one last time and bolts of the pathway, she is supposed to stay on, around the bushes and reaches the murlock in no time at all. Still being as quiet as possible, she approaches the last steps that separates her from the murlock, she stops to listen if there are any sounds that may have alerted enemy¡¯s, not a sound to hear, but something else catches her interest. ¡°that is strange, I don¡¯t hear any breathing¡±. She leans forward to check and indeed the murlock is not breathing. ¡°did it die after it sat down?¡± let¡¯s try poking it and she puts the knife forward, a tiny fraction into the neck of the murlock. No reaction at all. ¡°well that makes it easy¡± she puts away the knife and grabs the spear from the ground, which also gets deposited in her pouch. Next she reaches out for the murlock and even it disappears. Then the sound of leaves rustling and she freezes. She looks around but nothing else to hear. After confirming that it is silent again she starts going back to the path only to step on a twig not long after. Immediately the leaves start rustling again and a loud grumbling sound can be heard not far from her previous location. She picks up the pace and the rustling, presumably a murlock that has come to check on the other one, gets closer. Nearly at the pathway there is an open space that she has to cross. ¡°no time to think, staying here means being found of the trail so I have to move¡±. She starts crossing the open space while running and not soon after comes out of the bushes, an agitated murlock. As soon as it sees her it starts making all kind of loud noise, most likely calling for help from the other murlocks. nearly closed in on her and with the trail in sprinting distance, the murlock takes out some rocks and starts throwing them. She picks up the pace, knowing that if it catches her as a result of being hit with the rocks it will all be over. The stakes are high and nearly back on the trail she feels a stinging pain in her ankle. ¡°I have been hit¡± goes through her mind and she falls face forward onto the trail, not hesitating for a moment, she pulls her feet onto the trail as well and the murlock stops his pursuit. You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version. It starts waving with its arms and jumping up and down while growling, knowing it can¡¯t go onto the trail or there will be punishment from the deviant that runs the tower, master Wilson. Slowly more and more murlocks start emerging from the bushes and all of them are growling. ¡°let¡¯s move on to the next area, those murlocks aren¡¯t going to leave me out of their sight again so finding spoils will be difficult¡±. Her face showed no emotion at all when she continued on the trail, but internally she was celebrating. ¡°wheuw that was a close one, I should apply some healing paste on my ankle though, otherwise it will swell and I can¡¯t walk¡±. Before she entered the next zone, or better said, habitat in the garden she sat down on the trail, opened her pouch and took out the tube, she had pulled out earlier as well, with healing paste. It even came with a small instruction note: pull of the cap, squeeze tube, apply evenly by hand, put on the cap, do not squeeze the tube when putting the cap back on or some paste will be lost. She follows instructions and near instant after applying she feels relieved of a small part of the pain. ¡°I guess it will be a multiple time appliance then¡±. She gets up and continues on her way over the trail, passing a set of bushes, that seem to function as some sort of boundary, the murlocks lose interest in following her every move and disperse back to where they came from or what task they had left behind to hunt the intruder. After a short rest on the path, she picks up the pace again and reaches the territory of the mini water snakes. Best way to describe them is half a meter long, half a wrist thick, side pieces on the body starting below their necks, scaly slippery body and decorated with al kind of blue patterns in different places. One has them only near one of the eyes going downward to the side piece only to stop there, while the next one has them only around their tale. You can tell by how much of the body is covered and the darker they are, the stronger the specimen in question is. Their favourite habit includes a lot of marshlands and a lake or 2 some distance from each other. Here they only have a few ponds, but the marsh environment is still present so it doesn¡¯t differ much from what they like. As for drops, every part of the water snakes is useable, so anything you find outside of the 10 mandatory scales will be your own. They like to gnaw on bones as well. So you may find those but usefulness is not one of their quality¡¯s, except for an apprentice deviant who dabbles in necromancy. ¡°Maybe Vayentha would like some bones, will have to ask her that later. ¡° The water snakes territory was a smooth sailing compared to the murlocks from before, while staying on the path she collected the scales she needed and in the distance she saw some of the water snakes, but those were too far too have reached her while she grabbed the scales she needed. After collecting enough scales and she made her way to the water sprite territory. While checking for parts of their wings, Ayana progressed smoothly on the path she was following, with not much to see except for high waterlike plants. The minimum amount of items she had to collect from the water sprites was a more tricky then the previous two. The sprites have small farm lands where they grow water grass, this grass is a delicacy for them, they make square farm lands with two rows of grass, after which there is a water stream followed by two more rows of the same grass. Fenced around by wood they make quiet the nice gardens. The water grass, that is to be gathered can be used for refinement into beats and used to enhance magical gear, but that is only applicable as an apprentice. as a deviant it is merely a tonic to be used for enhancing the constitution. These gardens are guarded by sprites and are only reachable if you leave the path, so to get the twenty stalks of grass needed to complete the tasks you need quite some time. Luckily for her the sprites don¡¯t use a one on one ratio for guarding the gardens, but just one guard for multiple fields, so the guard has to walk around and that is the window in which you should be able to pull out the grass. To be honest, among all the different fields that surround the tower, this one is in the top 3 for having the highest fatality rate among the apprentices with the inspection rounds, ¡°the high fatality rate is probably why the inspection rounds are being avoided like the plague by every other apprentice deviant except me and Garrick.¡± There are only 2 reasons why anyone would take on the task of inspecting the gardens, the first one is that they need the rewards promised by the completion of the task, the second is that they heard of or saw an item that is in the gardens and they want it. Her upper arm started searing and after thinking of opening the screen, it appeared with a paragraph of text and a single question: ¡°It appears host is in need of assistance with databases, this is something I might be able to assist with that.¡± ¡°Would you like to start the assistance functions?¡± That¡¯s when her whole mind started spinning with all kinds of questions again and she sat down to process what the screen showed her. Chapter 7 the screen Still staring at the screen, she starts surveying her surroundings to see if there are any living and breathing organisms around her, ¡°One can never be too careful¡±. After looking around meticulously, while only using the 2 side pieces of her vision, she confirmed that there were no threats in the immediate surroundings. She sat down and focused on the screen that was still in the middle of her vision. The message: ¡°Would you like to start assistance functions¡± still being displayed on it. ¡°screen¡­.. wait can I call it screen to ask it something ?¡± And the screen replied: ¡°Yes, Screen is perfectly fine¡± ¡°Well then, Screen, is it possible to explain to me what these assistance Functions are?¡± Basic functions that will be unlocked are: Ayana was dumbfoundedly looking at the Screen, ¡°if it has a data storage function, does that mean I don¡¯t need to read the books anymore to know what is in them?¡± ¡°that is a sure thing, just tell me what you want to know about data that you had me copy and I will transfer it to you¡±. ¡°Well that makes the choice easy, let¡¯s activate those assistance functions immediately.¡± ¡°this is going to hurt a little¡± was shown on the screen before an immense headache started¡­¡­. Ayana kept her consciousness but that was all that could be said about the situation she found herself in. halfway drained of her spirit and her body aching all over, not even able to stand up right after the Screen stopped activating. ¡°You could have warned me about that¡± she sounded agitated but grasped her head, after she finished mumbling all those words, because it still hurt like mad. ¡°Sorry for that, but if I told you it would hurt, you would have waited till you were back from the inspection rounds and I seemed like you needed help right away.¡± Was displayed on the Screen. Ayana tried looking at the Screen to read the message, but her headache was still too strong to properly read the message. ¡°Screen can you tell me what is on the Screen? I can¡¯t read it because of the headache you gave me¡± ¡°Sure, I can tell you what is on displayed on the Screen, I have a direct line with you conscious after activating the assistance functions after all.¡± a sweet mildly robotic like female voice answered in her mind. The voice continued to tell Ayana what was displayed on the Screen¡­. ¡°well duh, of course I would have waited, hack I would even have prepared myself for it at the least, but now I had no foreknowledge, no nothing and it hurt like hell.¡± She reacted a tad too quick and too loud, because her head started spinning and hurting again after raging against the voice of the Screen. Ayana took a short rest too regroup herself and stood up onto her feet on the trail albeit with caution not to fall over due to balancing issues. ¡°Screen, could you activated the elemental vision for me please, let¡¯s see what it does¡± ¡°command received, commencing features¡­¡­¡± followed by a bundle of warnings and blaring sounds. In less than 5 seconds her vision started blurring, after that it started changing colours, bright ones poured in her vision while the dark ones where getting pushed out. After the change the plants where overlaid with a bright green moving blob, whereas the ground was a dark orange or brownish tinted blob, the other colours where there as well but far less obvious like the grass and the plants. If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. Although her vision now was still way too blurred to even know if there was a bush of a plant standing next to her on the side of the road, let alone find the water grass she was supposed to find deep in the sprites territory. Deep wrinkles started showing on her forehead and she got a little annoyed, ¡°how is this an assistance function, while it only makes my vision worse?¡± this way it is even worse than before. ¡°it is supposed to show you what has radiation energy and what has not, but this zone is in range of the deviant tower, so everything is infused with radiation energy.¡± Would be nice if there was less of it¡­. So Ayana spoke with her mind to the screen again. ¡°screen can you dial it down?¡± ¡°yes, that is possible, how much would you like to dial it down?¡± ¡°Can you make it so that normal plants and creatures show no radiation colour, and scale it for the things that do based on the amount of radiation that I am giving off? ¡° ¡°Will do that right away¡­¡± and her vision became less blurry till the point where there was no more blobs, just the normal surroundings, but in the distance there were some blue figures outlined as part of the new vision. Those are probably the sprites in their base camp. She could also make out a couple of single silhouettes moving through short seas of greenish blue energy, ¡®those must be the guards in the gardens¡¯. At least I still have to walk before I get close to the first garden. After traversing the path for some time Ayana reached the first garden, although it was still some distance from the path, she did not need to travel more on the path, only outside of the path she would be fair game for the sprites, so she stayed on the path and started formulating a plan. Let¡¯s see where the sprites are at the moment, one is 3 gardens away and the other is even further, let¡¯s see how many gardens are under the watch of the nearest guard and she took a seat on the path, with her already dirty robe on the floor and her on top of it while still wearing it, she started observing the sprites behaviour. The sprites kept moving slowly from one field on to the next, and after some time had passed they stopped moving forward, turned around and started moving backwards to the first field. Ayana had kept track off the time it took the sprite to get from the third garden to the seventh, 30 minutes, that should be enough if your silent enough. ¡®I¡¯ll have to be as quiet as I can be, wait till the sprite is on it¡¯s way to the fourth garden, at that time it should be the safest to start cutting the grass on the backside of the gardens, that way the guard will not notice it as soon as it returns. And so the biding of her time began, she had to wait for the sprite to finish it¡¯s round, luckily there was no time restriction on when she had to be back from the inspection. When the sprite finally left the third garden again she started moving, on to the first garden, with the makeshift knife in hand, to the first stalk behind the fence. As soon as the first one was done she started with the second one, and so on, until the screen told her that her 20 minutes were up. 20 minutes was the time limit she had set for herself when she was still waiting for the guard, 5 for the trip to the garden and 5 for the return trip before the guard would turn around. Hurriedly she returned to the trail on which she should be, and she started biding her time again hoping the guard wouldn¡¯t be on high alert. And so she did 2 more runs, one to the other corner of the backside of the first garden and one to the closeted backside corner of the second garden. She had to do 3 runs because she only could get 15 by the end of run 2. As she was still celebrating while already on the trail, she could hear the screams of the guard that finally took notice of the missing water grass. She turned around to look at the gardens and there appeared more and more blueish silhouettes at the first and second garden. ¡°Luckily I am already done with the water grass, or this would get a hell of a lot more difficult to do.¡± And with that thought she went on with the trail to the end of the water sprite territory. And with that also the end of the inspection round for this time. Finally passing the last set of bushes that marked the end of the sprite territory, that¡¯s when the back entrance to the tower came in to view and with that also the other path¡¯s ending, from which Garrick appeared not long after she passed the bushes. If one looked very secure at him, one would notice that he was walking with some kind of slight limb. ¡°probably from the swamp alligators¡± But he only nodded to Ayana as they met up where the paths joined together. As expected from a fellow apprentice, they would only talk about things they had accomplished if they had the power to defend themselves, otherwise they would just keep silent and go on with their daily routines. The last part of the trail was traversed in silence by both of them, neither was in the mood to talk, nor would they have to. As soon as they got close to the door, they opened and the apprentice that handed out the talismans was waiting on the other side of them. Both Garrick and Ayana handed in the materials that were required to pass the quest and both went their separate ways. Ayana headed up stairs to look at what she got as extra¡¯s this time, and that was quite a lot. She takes out the murlock corpse and the spear that she hastily put in her pouch and starts examining them, but before she can even start with the close up looking at the murlock, the front door of her room bursts open and Vayentha barges inside, she slams the door shut, but before she starts rambling she looks in the room and her mouth falls wide open. Chapter 8 Aftermath ¡°what the hell is this ?¡± ¡°where did you get this?¡± and so on was all that could escape Vayentha her mouth right now. ¡°sssshhh¡± with a finger to her mouth Ayana gestured for her to be silent ¡°shut the door and sit¡±, and Vayentha did as commanded. After she took place on the bed, Ayana started explaining, ¡°I just returned from the inspection rounds and I just so happened to come across some extra stuff¡±. ¡°This is more than just a little more stuff¡­..¡± Vayentha rebuked, ¡°this is enough to last you quite a while¡­.¡± ¡°it isn¡¯t nearly enough if we want to be strong enough to defend ourselves¡± Ayana replied, thinking back to how the murlocks almost got her or how she had to hide away from the water sprites. ¡°We need much more, but for now it will do¡±. ¡°Let¡¯s have a closer look at the murlock then¡±. Immediately Vayentha said: ¡°I want the corpse¡± Ayana was shocked with mouth agape for a moment, it took her at least 30 seconds to regain her composure, ¡°Well? What are you going to pay me for it?¡± was the first thing she asked when she recovered from the shock, stunning Vayentha, ¡°well I haven¡¯t thought that far yet¡­¡± ¡°If you want something you have to exchange something for it, that is one of the rules of the tower and you know it¡± Ayana lectured Vayentha, not that she had any intention of giving or selling her the whole corpse anyway, those scales are just too good as a material for some simple armor. Vayentha made some awkward facial expressions and went on pondering about the problem again. After pondering for a little, Ayana came up with a solution, ¡°let¡¯s do it this way, I will scrape off enough scales of the murlock to make myself something nice and you can have the corpse, how does that sound?¡± ¡°But then I still haven¡¯t given you something in return yet¡­.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s make it a gift in exchange for the gift I got last time from you.¡± After processing what Ayana had told her, Vayentha¡¯s face lighted up and she became over joyed, this is a resource she could actually use instead of some old book that she had no interest in whatsoever. ¡°Well, start scraping, I want to take the thing back to my room¡± Vayentha urged her while waving her hands to gesture Ayana to start moving. ¡°have a little patience will ya? I don¡¯t even know how much I need yet, so until I find out, you will have to wait¡±. She rebuked. With a disgruntled look Vayentha stood up and made her way to the door again, ¡°I will be waiting, but if it takes too long I will come find you again¡± and with that she shut the door. leaving Ayana alone with her spoils in her room. After Vayentha left, Ayana returned her gaze back to the murlock, ¡°Well, I indeed need to find out how much scales I need for some body armor¡±, let¡¯s ask Percy if he knows if one of the apprentices might be able to measure how much scales I should scrape off and might be able to put together some armor. Percy, also known as the information trader in the tower that knows almost anything you might need about other apprentices. His room is located in the first corridor on the second floor, on the left side of the hallway, sixth door on your left hand. Although he is just a beginner apprentice just like Ayana, he is nearing the intermediate threshold and has many connections on the third floor. One of the reasons his room is so close to the stairs. The old Ayana has seen his room just one time, but It is a wirwar of paper and other stuff. how he keeps track of everything in such messy order, nobody knows, but it works pretty good for him. As for how he looks, his age is nearing the 30, so becoming more than an intermediate apprentice is highly unlikely, he wears a medium high hat over his black hair and a brown coloured robe, instead of the normal grey ones, around his body. His eyes shine brown if he is near a light source, but mostly he prefers the near dark places. He wears a watch around his right wrists which he is checking every other minute, like he has someplace else to be and doesn¡¯t like to stay in one place for prolonged time. He has a medium body hight off 1.70 meter, not too much muscle but also not too little, If his arms are anything to go by as an example. Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. With that out of the way, Ayana shifted her focus to the simple crude spear, ¡°actually just a stick with not much of a pointy end, but what does it matter, it came from the garden, so it must be worth something to someone, I guess¡±. Let¡¯s get it to Hayden, he might know what it is worth and might be able to buy it from me if it is worth anything. Hayden, as far as the old Ayana¡¯s memories go, is one of the trader apprentices in the tower, just like Percy he is on the quicker side with his personality, but stays more in one place, namely his room, which is located on the third floor in the first corridor on the right, third door on your right hand. The rooms on the third floor are considerably bigger than on the second floor but his looks a lot smaller, this is because the walls are adorned with shelves with al different kinds of items, most things that an apprentice doesn¡¯t need gets brought to him if the apprentice can not find an other apprentice to make a trade with. He gets by fairly well with this profession and doesn¡¯t have to take on as much tasks in the tower as the other apprentices. With her plan cut out for her and the day nearing its ending she puts the murlock and the crude stick back in to the pouch again, after which she unties it from her waist and opens up the hidden compartment of the trunk at the end of her bed, storing it away safely. After that she lays down on the bed and closes her eyes, whereupon she focuses her mind on the tattoo to make the screen pop up in her mind. ¡°Screen, can you remind me what the required spirit cost, is for copying the second chapter¡± The screen displayed: * Spirit cost: 8.4 spirit* ¡°thank you¡± With that she closes the screen, her face make a sighing motion while her mind supplements the reason: ¡°chapter one was just the introduction, hopefully chapter 2 has something worthwhile.¡± She relaxes her mind and tries to feel her heartbeat in her chest again, it slows down and she goes over the lower body part, while that keeps on going she moves her mind back to her heart again. After taking a pause at the heart, she moves on toward the left shoulder, it still takes more time then half of the lower body, but it is worth it as it starts pulsing, like last time, first solidifying the shoulder before moving on to the next part, the elbow. Moving along the nerves connecting them she notices a certain serenity that makes it easier to connect to the elbow. Finally connecting to the elbow, the pulse starts gaining momentum, while wavering a little and diminishing slightly, before it takes on the full drum of the heartbeat. While waiting for it to solidify in the elbow, Ayana notices she has capacity to spare to think about the whole situation instead of having to focus completely on her meditation. Making sure the pulsing is still keeping its momentum she lets her mind waver a bit, ¡°Why was it so much easier this time around?¡¯ But before she could think of a solution she feels she¡¯s losing control of the deep meditational state, so she returns to the elbow and has a wild thought, ¡°What if I move to the hand next?¡± and with that, begins moving along the nerves towards the hand. Feeling the same serenity kicking in she goes along with it and connects to the hand, there the pulsing starts as well. Enjoying the victory of the improvement she moves on towards the fingers one by one, thumb first and back to the hand, on toward the index finger, back to the hand, but before she reached the middle finger, the concentration finally started to waver until it got lost. Ayana gradually opened her eyes when she felt she couldn¡¯t get back in the trance anymore. ¡°Screen, please check my status again would you ?¡± The screen popped up and displayed the known lines of text from the status. * Ayana, Rank: beginner apprentice Age: 23 Strength: 0.9, Constitution: 1.3, Dexterity: 1.0 and Spirit: 8.54. Elementium affinity: Darkness Known spells: none as of yet. Known skills: magic reading, Known books: Deviant Runes for Beginners (complete), Beginnings of magic circles (1 chapter) * ¡°Wow, that is much improvement compared to last time, a whole whopping 0.45¡±. while flabbergasted about the improvement to her spirit, she failed to notice that 2 of her other stats had improved as well. Growl¡­ Growl¡­., ¡°Ah, there is the familiar noise from my hungry stomach again, guess I¡¯ll have to make a trip to the first floor before the dining hall closes, what time is it?¡± and she looks at the clock on the screen 19:50, ¡°shit¡± and she rushes of the bed and out the door to the dining hall. While going down the stairs she is just in time with yelling ¡°coming through!¡± to make sure on of the other apprentices, coming up the stairs and already with a tray from the dining hall, steps slightly to the side and they don¡¯t run into each other. Just after she passes the apprentice, she notices that the apprentice she was passing was in fact one of the two she was planning to visit later on, namely, The information broker: Percy. Chapter 9: The Fog of Alliances (Part 1: The Dining Hall) ¡°Ah, Percy! I¡¯ll come to visit you later¡ªI have to get dinner first!¡± I shouted and kept running toward the dining hall, determined not to be late. The tower¡¯s corridors were dimly lit at this hour, the flickering torches casting long shadows on the stone walls. My footsteps echoed as I sprinted past closed doors and quiet alcoves, the air growing warmer and more fragrant as I neared the dining hall. After racing down the large stairs to the first floor, I zipped past a couple of apprentices who were already leaving. The dining hall was about to close, and I couldn¡¯t afford to miss my meal. Sliding to a halt just past the doors, I felt the dining hall come alive around me. The hum of conversation and the clatter of trays filled the air, mingling with the rich aroma of food. My stomach growled loudly as I approached the counter, where an apprentice was dishing out meals. The menu was simple tonight: soup with bread or curry with rice. I hesitated for a moment. The soup was cheap and filling, but the curry smelled amazing¡ªrich and spicy, with hints of ginger and garlic. I decided to splurge a little. ¡°Curry with rice, please,¡± I said, handing over a few coins. The apprentice behind the counter gave me a tired smile as he handed me a tray. ¡°Good choice,¡± he said. ¡°The curry¡¯s spicy tonight¡ªjust the way I like it.¡± I took my tray and scanned the room for a seat. The dining hall was massive¡ª300 meters long, with rows of stone pillars lining the sides like ancient Greek ruins. Three long wooden tables stretched across the room, each dominated by one of the three advanced apprentices present tonight. I sat down with my back to the wall, giving me a clear view of the room. The three advanced apprentices were impossible to miss, each holding court at their respective tables.
  1. Ysondre: She sat at the central table, her sharp features and piercing green eyes scanning the room like a predator. Her followers¡ªa mix of intermediates and beginners¡ªclustered around her, hanging on her every word. They were the largest faction, and their presence dominated the hall.
  2. Grimshaw: To the left, Grimshaw¡¯s faction was in full swing. His deep, gravelly voice carried over the dining table as he regaled his followers with another story. They laughed loudly, their boisterous energy spilling over to the neighbouring tables. I¡¯d heard rumours that Grimshaw once killed a swamp alligator with his bare hands, and looking at him now, I could believe it.
  3. Tasselia: On the right, Tasselia held court with her usual charm. Her followers¡ªa mix of beginners and intermediates¡ªlaughed and chatted like old friends. She had a way of making everyone feel welcome, but I¡¯d heard whispers that her kindness came with a price.
I glanced toward the pillars on the left, where Dorceti¡¯s faction usually sat, but the space was empty tonight. Similarly, the table near the kitchen, usually occupied by Geranis and his followers, was deserted. Their absence made the hall feel quieter, almost eerie. Just as I took my first bite of curry, the doors to the dining hall slammed open. All conversation stopped as heads turned toward the entrance. Ysondre stood abruptly, her chair scraping against the stone floor. Her sharp green eyes narrowed as she stared at the doorway, her posture tense, like a coiled spring. ¡°What is the meaning of this?¡± she demanded, her voice cutting through the silence. A messenger¡ªa young apprentice I didn¡¯t recognize¡ªstood in the doorway, panting and clutching a sealed scroll. He hesitated under Ysondre¡¯s glare before stammering, ¡°A message¡­ for you, ma¡¯am. From Master Wilson.¡± The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. Ysondre¡¯s expression darkened. She strode toward the messenger, her movements fluid and predatory. Snatching the scroll from his hands, she broke the seal and scanned the contents. Her face went pale, and for a moment, she looked almost¡­ unsettled. Then, just as quickly, her mask of composure returned. ¡°Grimshaw, Tasselia,¡± she said, her voice low but carrying across the room. ¡°We need to talk. Now.¡± Grimshaw raised an eyebrow, his usual smirk fading. ¡°What¡¯s this about, Ysondre?¡± ¡°Not here,¡± she snapped, her tone leaving no room for argument. She turned on her heel and swept out of the dining hall, her followers scrambling to keep up. Grimshaw and Tasselia exchanged a glance before rising and following her, their factions trailing behind. The room erupted into hushed whispers as soon as the doors closed behind them. ¡°What was that about?¡± A voice rose from a nearby table, low and uneasy. ¡°Who knows?¡± Another apprentice leaned in, their tone tinged with nervousness. ¡°But it¡¯s never good when Ysondre looks like that.¡± I glanced around the room, my unease growing. The group in the corner was whispering more fervently now, their eyes darting toward the door. Were they talking about Ysondre? About me? I didn¡¯t know, but it made my skin crawl. I took another bite of curry, the flavours exploding on my tongue¡ªspicy, savoury, and just a hint of sweetness. I closed my eyes for a moment, savouring the warmth that spread through my body. It had been a long day, and this small indulgence felt like a reward for surviving the inspection round. As I ate, my mind wandered back to the murlock encounter. The memory of the elder murlock¡¯s lifeless body sent a shiver down my spine. I could still see its jagged teeth and glowing, predatory eyes, smell the damp, rotting stench of its breath, and feel the icy grip of fear that had paralyzed me. My hand instinctively went to the scar on my leg¡ªa permanent reminder of how close I¡¯d come to death. I had been lucky¡ªtoo lucky. If the other murlocks had caught me, I wouldn¡¯t be sitting here now, savouring this meal. I glanced at my pouch, hidden under the table, and thought about the murlock corpse inside. The scales would make good armor, but I had no idea how many I needed or how to craft them into something useful. I¡¯d have to ask Percy or Hayden for advice. Hopefully, Percy knows someone¡ªor something. My thoughts drifted to the water sprite gardens, where I¡¯d risked just as much. The sprites¡¯ shimmering wings and eerie glow had been mesmerizing, but their sharp cries still echoed in my ears. I¡¯d waited for the guards to turn their backs before darting into the fields, cutting the water grass as quickly as I could. If they had caught me, I wouldn¡¯t be here now, reflecting on my close calls. The gardens were beautiful, but beauty had a way of hiding danger¡ªI¡¯d learned that the hard way. My thoughts turned to Vayentha. The way she had barged into my room, demanding the murlock corpse, still bothered me. I had played it cool, but the truth was, I didn¡¯t fully trust her. She had changed too much, too quickly. Her green eyes and sharp nails were unnerving, and the way she talked about the corpse¡ªlike it was a treasure¡ªmade me wonder what she was really planning. Was she an ally? A threat? Or just another pawn in Wilson¡¯s game? My gaze drifted across the dining hall. The room was a microcosm of the tower¡¯s hierarchy. The three advanced apprentices and their factions dominated the central tables, while the intermediates and beginners like me were scattered along the edges. I couldn¡¯t shake the feeling that something was off. The group in the corner was still whispering, and every now and then, one of them would glance in my direction. Were they talking about Vayentha? Or was it something else entirely? I didn¡¯t know, but it made my skin crawl. As I finished my meal, I noticed Percy standing near the doorway. He wasn¡¯t looking at me directly, but I could tell he was waiting for something¡ªor someone. When our eyes met, he gave me a subtle nod and disappeared into the hallway. I hesitated for a moment. Percy was the tower¡¯s information broker, and if anyone could help me figure out what to do with the murlock scales and water grass, it was him. But I didn¡¯t fully trust him. He always seemed to know more than he let on, and I wasn¡¯t sure if he was an ally or just another opportunist. Still, I didn¡¯t have many options. I grabbed my tray, returned it to the counter, and made my way to the door. Chapter 10: The Fog of Alliances (Part 2: Percy) The hallway was dimly lit, the flickering torches casting long shadows on the stone walls. My footsteps echoed softly as I followed Percy¡¯s path, my heart pounding with a mix of curiosity and unease. The tower was quiet at this hour, most apprentices either in their rooms or still in the dining hall. The silence felt heavy, almost oppressive, as if the walls themselves were watching me. I turned a corner and saw Percy¡¯s silhouette ahead, his robes swishing as he walked. He didn¡¯t look back, but I knew he was aware of me following him. We passed the blueish crystal staircase that connected the first and second floors, its steps glowing faintly in the dim light. Percy turned down a narrow corridor, and I quickened my pace to keep up. The air grew cooler as we moved deeper into the tower, and the faint smell of old parchment and ink grew stronger. The walls here were lined with faded tapestries depicting scenes of ancient battles and mythical creatures, their colours muted by time. I couldn¡¯t help but feel a sense of history pressing in on me, as if the tower itself was alive with secrets. Why is Percy leading me this way? I thought, my unease growing with every step. The corridors here were less familiar, and I couldn¡¯t shake the feeling that I was being led into a trap. But I didn¡¯t have much choice. Percy was the only one who could help me figure out what to do with the murlock scales and water grass¡ªand, more importantly, what was really going on in the tower. As we walked, my mind wandered back to the murlock encounter and the water sprite gardens. I¡¯d been lucky¡ªtoo lucky. If I wanted to survive in this tower, I couldn¡¯t rely on luck forever. I need to learn a spell, I thought, my fingers brushing the scar on my leg. Something simple but useful. Something that could give me an edge. I glanced at Percy¡¯s back, his robes swishing as he walked. He moved with confidence, as if he knew every inch of this place. I envied that confidence. If I could just master a basic shadow spell, maybe I¡¯d feel a little less out of place. Shadow Bolt, I mused. That might work. A small bolt of shadow energy¡ªnothing fancy, but enough to defend myself if I need to. But spells weren¡¯t easy to learn, especially without a proper teacher. Percy might know a thing or two, but I wasn¡¯t sure I could trust him. Still, the thought lingered. I need to do something. I can¡¯t keep relying on luck. We passed a series of closed doors, each marked with strange symbols that seemed to shift and shimmer in the torchlight. I couldn¡¯t read them, but they gave me an uneasy feeling, as if they were warning me to turn back. Percy didn¡¯t seem to notice¡ªor if he did, he didn¡¯t care. He moved with purpose, his steps steady and confident. Finally, he stopped in front of a door that looked no different from the others. It was unremarkable, just like all the rest, but I knew this was his room. He pushed the door open and stepped inside, leaving it slightly ajar. I paused for a moment, my hand hovering over the doorframe. Was I walking into a trap? Or was this the break I needed? Taking a deep breath, I pushed the door open and stepped inside. The room was a chaotic mess of papers, books, and strange artifacts. Shelves lined the walls, crammed with jars of glowing liquids, strange crystals, and what looked like preserved animal parts. A cluttered desk sat in the centre of the room, its surface barely visible under stacks of scrolls and half-finished projects. Percy was sitting at the desk, his eyes fixed on a glowing crystal in his hand. I closed the door behind me and crossed my arms, keeping my distance. ¡°You wanted to talk?¡± I asked, my tone neutral but firm. Percy looked up, his brown eyes gleaming in the dim light. ¡°I did,¡± he said, setting the crystal down. ¡°But first, tell me¡ªwhat do you know about Corwin¡¯s death?¡± The question caught me off guard, but I kept my expression carefully blank. ¡°Why do you ask?¡± I countered, avoiding his question. He leaned back in his chair, a faint smile playing on his lips. ¡°Curiosity. And concern. Corwin¡¯s death wasn¡¯t just an accident, Ayana. It was the start of something¡­ darker.¡± I hesitated, studying his face for any hint of deception. ¡°I don¡¯t know much,¡± I said carefully. ¡°Just what everyone else knows. Vayentha killed him during the inspection. It was shocking, but it happened.¡± Percy¡¯s smile widened, but it didn¡¯t reach his eyes. ¡°Do you really believe that? That it was just a random act of violence?¡± Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. I didn¡¯t respond immediately, my mind racing. Corwin¡¯s death had always been a sensitive topic, shrouded in rumours and whispers. Some said it was sabotage. Others claimed it was part of Wilson¡¯s experiments. But no one knew for sure. ¡°What are you suggesting?¡± I asked, my voice steady but cautious. Percy leaned forward, resting his elbows on the desk. ¡°I¡¯m suggesting that Wilson¡¯s experiments have always been dangerous. And Corwin¡¯s death was no accident. ------- Meanwhile, unbeknownst to Percy and Ayana, who were deep in conversation about the recent events in the tower, more and more of the other apprentices began to grow restless. The air in the tower grew thick with tension, like a storm brewing just beyond the horizon. Whispers echoed through the corridors, and small groups of two or three apprentices scurried about, their faces etched with unease. The tower, usually a place of order and discipline, was beginning to unravel at the edges. On the second floor, a pair of beginners huddled near the stairwell, their voices low and urgent. One clutched a crumpled piece of parchment, their eyes darting nervously as they discussed the implications of Ysondre¡¯s sudden summons. ¡°Did you see her face in the dining hall? She looked like she¡¯d seen a ghost,¡± one whispered. Nearby, a trio of intermediates lingered by a flickering torch, their conversation punctuated by sharp gestures and wary glances Up on the third floor, the advanced apprentices were each holding court with their factions, their meetings cloaked in secrecy and urgency. Ysondre¡¯s Faction: In a dimly lit chamber, Ysondre stood at the head of a long table, her sharp green eyes scanning the room. Her followers sat in tense silence, waiting for her to speak. The scroll from Master Wilson lay open before her, its contents still a mystery to all but her. ¡°We must be prepared,¡± she said, her voice cutting through the stillness. Grimshaw¡¯s Faction: In a corner of the training hall, Grimshaw leaned against a stone pillar, his arms crossed and his expression grim. His followers¡ªa rowdy bunch of intermediates¡ªgathered around him, their usual boisterous energy subdued. ¡°Ysondre¡¯s hiding something,¡± Grimshaw growled. Tasselia¡¯s Faction: Tasselia¡¯s meeting was held in her private quarters, the air thick with the scent of incense. Her followers sat in a loose circle, their faces filled with concern. ¡°We must tread carefully,¡± Tasselia said, her voice calm but firm. ¡°The tower is on edge, and one misstep could cost us everything. Stay close, and trust no one outside this room.¡± Dorceti¡¯s Faction: Though Dorceti himself was absent, his followers had gathered in the library on the first floor, a place of quiet refuge amidst the growing chaos. The library¡¯s towering shelves and dimly lit alcoves provided the perfect cover for their hushed discussions. Geranis¡¯s Faction: Similarly, Geranis¡¯s followers were scattered and leaderless, their usual meeting place near the kitchen eerily empty. A small group of them had retreated to the gardens, where they huddled under the cover of the fog, their voices barely audible over the rustling of leaves. As the factions convened, the rest of the tower buzzed with activity. Apprentices moved through the halls like shadows, their movements quick and furtive. Some carried messages, others supplies, and a few even weapons. The sense of unease was palpable, a current of tension that ran through every corridor and chamber. The tower was a powder keg, and the spark that would ignite it was drawing near. Unbeknownst to Percy and Ayana, their quiet conversation was but a small ripple in a sea of turmoil. The factions were mobilizing, the apprentices were growing restless, and the balance of power was shifting. The question was no longer if something would happen¡­ it was when. ------- I felt a chill run down my spine but didn¡¯t let it show. ¡°And you think Wilson had something to do with it?¡± Percy¡¯s expression darkened. ¡°I don¡¯t think. I know. But proving it is another matter. That¡¯s where you come in.¡± I narrowed my eyes. ¡°Me? What do I have to do with this?¡± ¡°You¡¯re resourceful. Clever. And you¡¯ve got a knack for surviving things that would kill most apprentices. That makes you interesting¡ªand potentially useful.¡± I didn¡¯t like the way he said useful. It sounded too much like what Vayentha had said about the murlock corpse. ¡°If you¡¯re trying to flatter me, it¡¯s not working,¡± I said flatly. ¡°What do you want, Percy?¡± He sighed, as if disappointed by my lack of cooperation. ¡°Fine. Let¡¯s cut to the chase. I need you to talk to Hannah.¡± ¡°Hannah?¡± I repeated, trying to place the name. ¡°The crafter apprentice?¡± Percy nodded. ¡°She¡¯s the best in the tower when it comes to crafting. If anyone can turn those murlock scales and water grass into something useful, it¡¯s her.¡± I frowned, my unease growing. ¡°And why can¡¯t you talk to her yourself?¡± Percy¡¯s smile turned wry. ¡°Hannah doesn¡¯t trust me. She¡¯s a bit of a loner, keeps to herself. But she might listen to you.¡± I studied him for a long moment, trying to read his intentions. Percy was always playing some kind of game, and I wasn¡¯t sure if this was a move in my favour or his. But I didn¡¯t have many options. ¡°Fine,¡± I said finally. ¡°I¡¯ll talk to her. But if this is some kind of trick¡ª¡± Before I could finish, a loud knock echoed through the room. Percy¡¯s eyes flicked toward the door, his expression tightening. ¡°Wait here,¡± he said, rising from his chair. He opened the door to reveal a young apprentice, barely out of their beginner years, clutching a stack of papers. ¡°Uh, sorry to interrupt, but Master Wilson asked me to deliver these to you,¡± the apprentice stammered. Percy took the papers with a curt nod. ¡°Thank you. You can go.¡± The apprentice scurried away, and Percy closed the door, his expression unreadable. He returned to his desk, setting the papers aside without a second glance. ¡°Where were we?¡± he asked, his tone light but his eyes sharp. I crossed my arms, my unease growing. ¡°You were about to tell me why I should trust you.¡± Percy chuckled, but there was no humour in it. ¡°Trust is a rare commodity in this tower, Ayana. Alliances shift faster than the fog around the garden...¡± Chapter 11 A Larger Conspiracy Percy leaned back in his chair, his expression unreadable. The flickering torchlight cast shadows across his face, making him look older, more dangerous. ¡°You¡¯ve noticed it, haven¡¯t you?¡± he continued, his voice low and measured. ¡°The factions are mobilizing. Ysondre, Grimshaw, Tasselia¡ªthey¡¯re all making moves. And if you¡¯re not careful, you¡¯ll get caught in the crossfire.¡± Ayana froze, her mind racing. ¡°What are you talking about?¡± Percy¡¯s smile was faint but sharp, like the edge of a knife. ¡°The tower¡¯s balance is shifting. Ysondre¡¯s been gathering followers, Grimshaw¡¯s been stockpiling resources, Tasselia¡¯s been making deals in the shadows and about the other two I know very little as of recent, they seem to be couped up in their rooms or absent all together. None the less they¡¯re all preparing for something big. And when it happens, the rest of us will be left scrambling.¡± Ayana¡¯s stomach churned. ¡°And where do I fit into all of this?¡± ¡°You¡¯re a wildcard,¡± Percy said, leaning forward. ¡°You¡¯re not tied to any faction, and that makes you dangerous¡ªand valuable. Ayana¡¯s mind spun. She thought of the factions she¡¯d seen in the dining hall, the whispers in the corridors, the way the apprentices seemed to move in packs. ¡°And what about you? Where do you stand?¡± Percy¡¯s smile widened, but it didn¡¯t reach his eyes. ¡°I stand where it¡¯s safest. And right now, that¡¯s with you.¡± ¡°With me?¡± Ayana raised an eyebrow. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Because you¡¯re not like the others,¡± Percy said, his tone casual but his eyes sharp. ¡°You don¡¯t play by their rules. That makes you unpredictable. And in a place like this, unpredictability is power.¡± Ayana studied him for a long moment, trying to read his intentions. Percy was always playing some kind of game, and she wasn¡¯t sure if this was a move in her favour or his. But she didn¡¯t have many options. ¡°Fine,¡± she said finally. ¡°I¡¯ll help you. But if this is some kind of trick¡ª¡± Percy¡¯s smirk returned, but there was no warmth in it. ¡°It¡¯s not a trick. But if you want to survive this tower, you¡¯re going to have to start trusting someone. And right now, I¡¯m your best bet.¡± His words hung in the air, heavy with implication. Percy leaned forward, resting his elbows on the cluttered desk, his fingers steepled in front of him. The flickering torchlight caught the glint of a strange crystal on the desk, casting faint, shifting shadows across his face. ¡°The tower¡¯s a game, Ayana,¡± he said, his voice low and measured. ¡°And the rules are always changing. To survive, you need to play by your own rules.¡± Ayana frowned, her arms crossed. ¡°And what are my rules?¡± Percy¡¯s smile was faint but sharp, like the edge of a knife. He reached for the crystal, rolling it between his fingers as he spoke. ¡°That¡¯s for you to figure out. But remember this: the shadows are your ally, but only if you know how to use them.¡± Ayana¡¯s brow furrowed. ¡°What¡¯s that supposed to mean?¡± Percy leaned back slightly, his chair creaking as he tilted it onto its back legs. He held the crystal up to the light, watching the way it refracted the torch¡¯s glow. ¡°You¡¯ll figure it out,¡± he said, his tone casual but his eyes piercing. ¡°Just don¡¯t wait too long. The factions won¡¯t.¡± His words hung in the air, heavy with implication. Ayana didn¡¯t respond, but his warning echoed in her mind as she turned and left the room. The corridors felt colder now, the shadows deeper. She couldn¡¯t shake the feeling that Percy¡¯s words were less of a warning and more of a prophecy. In a place where alliances shifted like the fog, trust was a luxury she couldn¡¯t afford¡ªnot even with someone like Percy. As Ayana walked away from Percy¡¯s room, his riddle played on repeat in her mind. ¡°The shadows are your ally, but only if you know how to use them.¡± What did he mean by that? Her affinity for darkness was no secret, but how could she turn it into a weapon? Her thoughts turned to the library. If there was a tome with the model for Shadow Bolt, that¡¯s where it would be. She quickened her pace, her resolve firm. The library was her next stop, and she wouldn¡¯t leave until she found what she was looking for. As she descended the spiral staircase to the first floor, she noticed the torches were burning lower than usual, their flames flickering weakly. She quickened her pace, her boots echoing softly on the stone floor. The tower seemed to hum with a strange energy, as if it were alive and watching her every move. She shook off the feeling, chalking it up to nerves, and pushed open the heavy wooden door to the library. The library was a cavernous space, its high vaulted ceilings disappearing into shadow. Towering shelves of dark, polished wood stretched from floor to ceiling, crammed with books, scrolls, and strange artifacts that glinted faintly in the dim torchlight. The air was thick with the scent of old paper, dust, and the faint tang of ink, mingling with the musty smell of centuries-old tomes. Long, narrow windows near the ceiling let in the last faint rays of sunlight, casting slanted beams of golden light that illuminated swirling motes of dust in the air. This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there. Ayana stepped inside, her boots clicking softly on the stone floor. The library was eerily quiet, the only sound the occasional rustle of pages as a lone apprentice flipped through a tome at a nearby desk. The shelves seemed to stretch endlessly in every direction, their contents organized in a way that only the librarians seemed to understand. Strange symbols were carved into the wooden ends of the shelves, glowing faintly with a soft, blue light¡ªwards, perhaps, to protect the knowledge stored within. She moved deeper into the library, her eyes scanning the spines of the books. Some were bound in plain leather, their titles faded with age, while others were adorned with intricate designs and glowing runes. A few shelves held glass cases containing strange objects: a crystal orb that pulsed faintly with light, a dagger with a blade that seemed to shimmer like water, and a small, intricately carved box that hummed with a low, resonant energy. As she turned down the third aisle, the shadows seemed to deepen, the flickering torchlight barely reaching the back shelves. The air grew cooler, and she could feel a faint, almost imperceptible hum in the air, as if the library itself were alive and watching her. She shivered, pushing the thought aside, and focused on her task. She found the section on elemental spells, marked by a small plaque with the word ¡°Elementium¡± etched into it. The shelves here were crammed with books of all sizes, their spines bearing titles like ¡°Fundamentals of Fire Manipulation,¡± ¡°The Art of Water Weaving,¡± and ¡°Shadows and Their Secrets.¡± She began pulling books off the shelf, her fingers trembling with urgency as she scanned their contents. ¡°Shadow Bolt¡­ Shadow Bolt¡­¡± she muttered under her breath, flipping through pages filled with diagrams, runes, and dense blocks of text. The minutes ticked by, and the sunlight streaming through the windows grew fainter, the shadows lengthening. Just as she was about to give up, her fingers brushed against a slim, unassuming tome bound in dark leather. The title was embossed in silver letters that seemed to shimmer faintly in the dim light: ¡°The Essence of Shadow: A Beginner¡¯s Guide.¡± She pulled it from the shelf, her heart racing, and flipped it open. Inside, she found detailed diagrams of hand gestures, runic sequences, and a step-by-step guide to channelling shadow energy. This was it¡ªthe model for [Shadow Bolt]. But before she could celebrate, a sharp voice called out from the end of the aisle. ¡°The library¡¯s closing. You need to leave. Now.¡± Ayana looked up to see the librarian apprentice¡ªa tall, wiry figure with glasses perched on the bridge of their nose¡ªstanding at the end of the aisle. Their arms were crossed, and their expression was one of mild annoyance. ¡°I just need a minute,¡± Ayana said, her voice firm but hurried. ¡°I found what I was looking for.¡± The librarian sighed, clearly unimpressed. ¡°You¡¯ve had your minute. The library closes at sundown, and I¡¯m not staying late because you lost track of time. Take the book and go. You can check it out at the desk¡ªif you¡¯re quick.¡± Ayana nodded, clutching the tome to her chest, and hurried toward the desk. The shadows seemed to press in around her as she moved, the library¡¯s hum growing louder, almost like a warning. She didn¡¯t look back. Ayana hurried toward the desk, clutching the tome to her chest. The shadows seemed to press in around her as she moved, the library¡¯s hum growing louder, almost like a warning. She glanced over her shoulder, half-expecting to see the apprentice who had been reading in the corner earlier. But the desk was empty, the book they¡¯d been flipping through left open and abandoned. The library felt even quieter now, as if it were holding its breath. She reached the desk just as the librarian apprentice¡ªthe same one who had warned her earlier¡ªwas gathering their things. They looked up, their glasses slipping down their nose as they gave her a pointed look. ¡°Cutting it close, aren¡¯t you?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t realize how late it was,¡± Ayana said, setting the tome on the desk. ¡°But I found what I needed.¡± The librarian glanced at the book¡¯s title¡ª¡°The Essence of Shadow: A Beginner¡¯s Guide¡±¡ªand raised an eyebrow. ¡°[Shadow Bolt], huh? Ambitious. Most shadow apprentices stick to something simpler. But I guess you¡¯re not most apprentices.¡± Ayana shrugged, trying to hide her impatience. ¡°I like a challenge.¡± ¡°Clearly,¡± the librarian said dryly, pulling out a ledger and flipping it open. ¡°But challenges come with a price. You know the rules: knowledge isn¡¯t gained for free.¡± ¡°How much?¡± Ayana asked, already dreading the answer. The librarian tapped the ledger with a pen. ¡°Twenty-five gold coins for a week. One hundred and twenty-five if you want to keep it longer. And if you damage it, you¡¯ll owe double that.¡± Ayana¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°One hundred and twenty-five gold? That¡¯s more than my monthly stipend!¡± The librarian gave her a flat look. ¡°And? You think knowledge grows on trees? This tome¡¯s one of the few copies in the tower. If you don¡¯t want it, I¡¯m sure someone else will.¡± Ayana hesitated, her mind racing. She needed this book, but twenty-five gold was already a steep price¡ªlet alone one hundred and twenty-five. Still, she didn¡¯t have much choice. She reached into her pouch and counted out the coins, placing them on the desk with a reluctant clink. ¡°There. Happy?¡± The librarian smirked, sweeping the coins into a drawer. ¡°Ecstatic. Now, sign here.¡± They slid the ledger toward her, along with a quill that looked like it had seen better days. Ayana scribbled her name quickly, her hand trembling slightly from the rush. As she handed the quill back, the librarian glanced at the abandoned book on the corner desk and shook their head. ¡°Honestly, some people. They come in here, act all studious, and then leave their books lying around like they own the place. Do I look like a maid to you?¡± Ayana couldn¡¯t help but smile. ¡°I¡¯m sure they didn¡¯t mean any harm.¡± ¡°Harm? No. Inconvenience? Absolutely,¡± the librarian grumbled, closing the ledger with a snap. ¡°Anyway, you¡¯ve got your book. Don¡¯t forget to return it on time¡ªor else.¡± ¡°Or else what?¡± Ayana asked, half-joking. The librarian leaned forward, their glasses catching the light in a way that made their eyes look unnervingly large. ¡°Or else I¡¯ll send the library wraiths after you. They¡¯re very¡­ persuasive.¡± Ayana blinked. ¡°Library wraiths?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t want to know,¡± the librarian said, their tone ominously cheerful. ¡°Now, get going. I¡¯ve got a mess to clean up.¡± Ayana nodded, clutching the tome tightly, and turned to leave. As she stepped out of the library, she couldn¡¯t help but glance over her shoulder one last time. The librarian was already bustling toward the abandoned book, muttering under their breath about ¡°irresponsible apprentices.¡± The heavy wooden door swung shut behind her with a soft thud, and she was alone in the dimly lit corridor once more. Chapter 12 The Path to Power ¡°Twenty-five gold,¡± she muttered under her breath, thinking of the steep price she¡¯d paid for the book. It was a significant chunk of her monthly stipend, but it was worth it. Knowledge was power, and power was survival. She flipped open the tome, her eyes scanning the pages filled with diagrams, runic sequences, and step-by-step instructions. The spell seemed straightforward enough, but mastering it would take time¡ªtime she wasn¡¯t sure she had. While walking back towards her room to maybe do some meditating and getting a good night of rest, Her thoughts turned to Hannah. The crafter apprentice was known for her skill with materials, and if anyone could help Ayana turn her spoils from the garden into something useful, it was her. Percy had mentioned her earlier, and while Ayana wasn¡¯t sure she trusted his motives, she couldn¡¯t deny the logic of his advice. Tomorrow, she¡¯d visit Hannah and see what she could offer. Ayana reached her room and pushed the door open, the familiar scent of old wood and faintly musty air greeting her. The room was small but tidy, the bed neatly made and the chest at its foot closed. She set the tome on the desk and sank into the chair, her mind still racing. As she lay down on the bed, her thoughts drifted to the factions. Ysondre, Grimshaw, Tasselia¡ªthey were all making moves, Percy had said. Ayana didn¡¯t know what they were planning, but she knew she couldn¡¯t afford to be caught off guard. She needed to be stronger, faster, and more prepared. And she would be. Ayana shifted her position on the bed, her head resting on the pillow and her hands folded over her stomach. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, trying to let the tension drain from her body. The faint hum of the tower filled the air, a constant reminder of the power that surrounded her. She focused on her heartbeat, feeling its steady rhythm in her chest. ¡°Start with the lower body,¡± she reminded herself, recalling the steps she had practiced. She tried to feel the pulse of her heart in her pelvis, then her knee, and finally her toes. But tonight, something was off. Her thoughts kept drifting¡ªto the factions, to Percy¡¯s cryptic warnings, to the steep price she¡¯d paid for the tome. The shadows seemed to resist her, slipping through her grasp like smoke. She clenched her fists, frustration bubbling up inside her. ¡°Relax,¡± she muttered under her breath, forcing her hands to uncurl and her shoulders to sink into the mattress. She tried again, starting from her heart and moving down to her pelvis. This time, she felt a faint pulse, but it was weak and fleeting. She pressed on, trying to reach her knee, but the connection broke before she could solidify it. ¡°Why isn¡¯t this working?¡± she thought, her frustration growing. She had done this before¡ªreached her elbow, even her hand. But tonight, her mind was too cluttered, her body too tense. The more she tried to relax, the more her thoughts spiralled. The factions were mobilizing, the tower was on edge, and she was caught in the middle of it all. She took another deep breath, trying to push the thoughts aside. ¡°Focus,¡± she told herself. ¡°Just focus.¡± She started again, this time trying to visualize the energy flowing through her body like a river. But the river kept hitting obstacles¡ªrocks of doubt, whirlpools of fear¡ªand the flow broke apart before it could reach her toes. Finally, she gave up, letting out a frustrated sigh. She opened her eyes and stared at the ceiling, the faint glow of the torches casting flickering shadows across the room. She hadn¡¯t even reached her knee, let alone her previous best. The realization stung, but she knew why. She wasn¡¯t relaxed. She wasn¡¯t calm. And in a place like this, calm was a luxury she couldn¡¯t afford. But she couldn¡¯t give up. She needed to be stronger, faster, and more prepared. And that started with mastering her own mind. She closed her eyes again, this time not trying to meditate but simply to rest. Tomorrow was a new day, and she¡¯d face it head-on. For now, though, she allowed herself a moment of stillness, her thoughts drifting into the shadows as sleep finally claimed her. -------- The next morning, Ayana woke to the faint hum of the tower and the distant sound of apprentices moving through the corridors. She sat up, rubbing her eyes, and glanced at the tome on her desk. The events of the previous night came rushing back¡ªPercy¡¯s cryptic warnings, the steep price of the book, and her failed attempt at meditation. She clenched her fists, determination settling over her. Today was a new day, and she had work to do. This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. After a quick breakfast in the dining hall, where the usual chatter was tinged with an undercurrent of tension, Ayana made her way to the third floor. Hannah¡¯s workshop was located near the advanced apprentices¡¯ quarters, a place Ayana had never ventured before. The corridors here were wider, the torches brighter, and the air smelled faintly of metal and herbs. She followed the directions Percy had given her, her footsteps echoing softly on the stone floor. She found the workshop at the end of a long hallway, its door marked with a small plaque that read ¡°Hannah¡¯s Crafting Den.¡± The door was slightly ajar, and Ayana could hear the faint clinking of tools and the occasional muttered curse. She knocked lightly and pushed the door open. The workshop was a chaotic blend of materials and projects. Shelves lined the walls, filled with jars of glowing liquids, spools of thread, and chunks of raw ore. A large workbench dominated the centre of the room, covered in tools, half-finished projects, and scraps of metal. Hannah stood at the bench, her back to the door, her hands moving deftly as she worked on something Ayana couldn¡¯t see. Hannah was a striking figure, her tall frame draped in a patchwork robe made of mismatched fabrics¡ªsome plain, others embroidered with intricate patterns. Her dark hair was tied back in a loose braid, streaked with faint traces of silver, and her hands were stained with soot and ink. She wore a pair of goggles perched on her forehead, and her sharp green eyes gleamed with intelligence and a hint of mischief. Around her neck hung a pendant shaped like a tiny anvil, a symbol of her craft. ¡°Hannah?¡± Ayana called, her voice tentative. Hannah turned, her eyes narrowing as she took in Ayana¡¯s presence. ¡°Who are you, and what do you want?¡± she asked, her tone blunt but not unkind. ¡°I¡¯m Ayana,¡± she said, stepping further into the room. ¡°Percy said you might be able to help me.¡± Hannah raised an eyebrow. ¡°Percy, huh? That gossipmonger sent you? What do you need?¡± Ayana hesitated, then pulled the intact murlock corpse from her pouch. ¡°I was hoping you could help me turn this into something useful. Armor, maybe? Or a cloak? But I¡¯m not sure how many scales I¡¯d need.¡± Hannah¡¯s eyes lit up as she examined the murlock. She motioned for Ayana to bring it closer and laid it out on the workbench. ¡°This is a fine specimen,¡± she said, running her fingers over the scales. ¡°See these here?¡± She pointed to a row of larger, slightly duller scales along the murlock¡¯s back. ¡°These are the ones you¡¯ll want. They¡¯re older, thicker, and hold more power than the younger ones. This murlock must¡¯ve been around for a while¡ªits scales are practically brimming with latent energy.¡± Ayana leaned in, studying the scales. ¡°How many would I need for armor?¡± ¡°For a decent set of light armor, you¡¯d need about fifty scales,¡± Hannah replied. ¡°For a cloak with water-resistant properties, maybe thirty. But if you want both, you¡¯d need the whole thing.¡± ¡°How much would it cost?¡± Ayana asked, already dreading the answer. Hannah crossed her arms, tilting her head as if considering. ¡°Well, I usually charge fifty gold for the armor and seventy-five for the cloak. But¡­¡± She paused, her gaze sharpening. ¡°If you¡¯re willing to part with the murlock¡¯s core¡ªassuming it has one¡ªI could knock the price down significantly. Cores are rare, but they¡¯re powerful. I could use it for some of my more¡­ specialized projects.¡± Ayana frowned, her mind racing. If this murlock has a core, Vyenthia would probably want it, she thought. She¡¯s already suspicious of me. Handing over the core might make things worse. Still, fifty gold was a steep price, and she wasn¡¯t sure she had enough. ¡°I¡¯ll need to think about it,¡± Ayana said finally. ¡°But for now, let¡¯s assume I¡¯ll pay in gold. Can you at least start preparing the scales?¡± Hannah shrugged. ¡°Fair enough. Come back in two days, and I¡¯ll have the armor ready. And don¡¯t bother me before then.¡± Ayana left the workshop, her mind already turning to her next task. She needed to practice [Shadow Bolt], but first, she wanted to check on the factions. The tower felt different today, the air thick with tension. She made her way to the dining hall, where the usual chatter was subdued, the apprentices huddled in small groups, their voices low and urgent. She spotted Liesel, the new apprentice leader, sitting at a table with a few of his followers. They were deep in conversation, their expressions serious. Ayana hesitated, then approached cautiously. ¡°Liesel,¡± she said, her voice calm but firm. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± Liesel looked up, his eyes narrowing as he recognized her. ¡°Nothing that concerns you,¡± he said, his tone dismissive. ¡°Just focus on your own tasks.¡± Ayana bit back a retort, her frustration simmering beneath the surface. She turned and left the dining hall, her mind racing. The factions were definitely up to something, and she needed to be ready. Chapter 13 in the Dark The tower was quieter than usual as Ayana made her way back to her room, the hum of its magic a low, steady thrum in the background. The sun had begun to set, its fading light filtering through the narrow windows and casting long, golden shafts across the stone floors. The corridors were mostly empty, the apprentices either at dinner or sequestered in their rooms, and Ayana¡¯s footsteps echoed softly as she climbed the stairs to the second floor. She reached her chamber and pushed the door open, the familiar scent of old wood and faintly musty air greeting her. The room was small but tidy, the bed neatly made and the chest at its foot closed. On the desk sat the tome she had purchased earlier that day, its leather cover gleaming faintly in the dim light. Ayana crossed the room and picked it up, running her fingers over the intricate runes etched into its surface. The weight of the book in her hands was a reminder of the steep price she¡¯d paid¡ªnot just in gold, but in the risks she was taking to grow stronger. She flipped open the tome, her eyes scanning the pages filled with diagrams, runic sequences, and step-by-step instructions for [Shadow Bolt]. The spell seemed straightforward enough, but mastering it would take time¡ªtime she wasn¡¯t sure she had. The factions were mobilizing, the tower was on edge, and Ayana knew she couldn¡¯t afford to fall behind. Closing the tome, she carefully tucked it into her pouch, the same one that had held the murlock corpse just days before. The book fit snugly, its weight a comforting presence at her side. She left her room, closing the door softly behind her, and made her way to the first floor. Her destination was the spell practice room, one of only three in the tower reserved for apprentices. The first floor was quieter than the upper levels, the air heavy with the scent of damp stone and old wood. The utility rooms were located at the far end of the corridor, past the storage chambers and the apprentices¡¯ common area. Ayana had never been to the spell practice rooms at this hour, but she knew they were rarely empty. The tower¡¯s apprentices were a competitive lot, and even the early evening was prime time for training. When she reached the practice rooms, she was relieved to find the door to the third one slightly ajar, the faint glow of magical light spilling into the corridor. She pushed the door open and stepped inside, closing it softly behind her. The room was small and sparsely furnished, with a single worktable, a few scattered chairs, and a large, circular rune etched into the floor. The rune glowed faintly, its intricate patterns shifting and swirling as if alive. Ayana set her pouch on the table and pulled out the tome, opening it to the page on casting the [Shadow Bolt]. She took a deep breath, the familiar scent of a damp old room stiffening her lungs ever so slightly. The runes and diagrams seemed to shimmer faintly in the dim light, as if alive with latent energy. She traced a finger over the instructions, her eyes narrowing as she read: ¡°To summon the shadow¡¯s essence, the caster must first gather the dark power within. Visualize the energy as a river flowing from your core, through your arm, and into your hand. Once concentrated, the energy will manifest as a sphere of shadow, hovering above your palm.¡± Ayana took a deep breath, the familiar scent of damp stone filling her lungs. She stepped into the centre of the rune etched into the floor, feeling the faint hum of magic beneath her feet. Closing her eyes, she focused on the instructions, trying to visualize the flow of energy from her core to her hand. She started with her breathing, slow and steady, just as the tome instructed. In her mind¡¯s eye, she pictured a river of darkness flowing from her chest, down her arm, and into her palm. But the energy resisted her, slipping through her grasp like smoke. She clenched her fists, frustration bubbling up inside her. ¡°Relax,¡± she muttered under her breath, forcing her hands to uncurl and her shoulders to sink. She tried again, this time starting from her heart and moving the energy more deliberately. She felt a faint spark, a flicker of shadow at her fingertips, but it dissipated before she could solidify it. ¡°Why isn¡¯t this working?¡± she thought, her frustration growing. She had done this before¡ªreached her elbow, even her hand¡ªbut tonight, her mind was too cluttered, her body too tense. The more she tried to relax, the more her thoughts spiralled. The factions were mobilizing, the tower was on edge, and she was caught in the middle of it all. Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel. She took another deep breath, trying to push the thoughts aside. ¡°Focus,¡± she told herself. ¡°Just focus.¡± She started again, this time trying to visualize the energy flowing through her body like a river. But the river kept hitting obstacles¡ªrocks of doubt, whirlpools of fear¡ªand the flow broke apart before it could reach her hand. Finally, she gave up on standing and sank to the floor, crossing her legs and resting her hands on her knees. She closed her eyes and began a sitting meditation, just as she had practiced before. Starting with her heartbeat, she focused on the pulse in her chest, then her pelvis, her knee, and finally her toes. This time, the connection felt stronger, more stable. She reached her elbow, then her hand, and finally her fingertips. The shadows in the room seemed to respond, swirling around her like a living thing. ¡°This is it,¡± she thought, her excitement growing. ¡°I¡¯ve got it.¡± She opened her eyes and held out her hand, palm up, trying to channel the energy into a visible form. The shadows gathered above her hand, swirling and condensing into a faint, smoky ball. But just as it began to take shape, the energy faltered, and the ball dissipated into nothing. ¡°No!¡± she hissed, clenching her fist. She took a deep breath, forcing herself to stay calm. ¡°Again.¡± She repeated the process, starting from her core and moving the energy through her body. This time, she focused on maintaining the flow, keeping the river steady and unbroken. The shadows gathered again, forming a small, flickering sphere above her palm. But as she tried to stabilize it, the energy slipped away once more. ¡°Why can¡¯t I hold it?¡± she muttered, her frustration mounting. She glanced at the tome, scanning the instructions again. ¡°Visualize the energy as a river,¡± it said. ¡°Concentrate it into a sphere.¡± She closed her eyes and tried again, this time imagining the energy as a tightly coiled spring, compact and controlled. The shadows gathered more quickly this time, forming a small, dark orb above her hand. It flickered and wavered, but it held. Ayana¡¯s heart raced as she stared at it, her hand trembling slightly from the effort. ¡°I¡¯ve got it,¡± she whispered, a smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. But as soon as she spoke, the orb flickered and dissolved, the shadows dispersing into the air. ¡°Damn it!¡± she growled, slamming her fist on the floor. She took a deep breath, forcing herself to stay calm. ¡°Again.¡± She repeated the process, over and over, each time getting a little closer. The orb lasted a few seconds longer, grew a little more stable, but it always slipped away before she could fully control it. Her frustration grew with each failure, but so did her determination. She wouldn¡¯t give up. Not now. Not ever. Finally, after what felt like hours, she managed to form a small, stable orb of shadow above her palm. It hovered there, dark and shimmering, its surface rippling like liquid night. Ayana stared at it, her breath caught in her throat. She had done it. She had gathered the dark power and shaped it into a tangible form. But as she marvelled at her success, the orb began to flicker again. She focused all her will on maintaining it, but the energy slipped through her grasp, the orb dissolving into nothingness. ¡°Almost,¡± she whispered, her voice tinged with both frustration and pride. She had come so close. She could feel it¡ªthe key to using [Shadow Bolt] was within her reach. She just needed more practice. She glanced at the tome, its pages still open to the instructions for [Shadow Bolt]. Whatever it took, she would master this spell. She had to. The shadows were her ally, and she would learn to wield them, no matter what it took. Ayana was about to attempt forming the shadow orb again when a sharp knock at the door interrupted her concentration. The orb flickered and dissolved, the shadows dispersing into the air as she turned toward the sound. The door creaked open, and a tall, lanky apprentice with a bored expression poked his head in. He wore the standard gray robes of a tower apprentice, his sleeves rolled up to reveal ink-stained hands. ¡°Practice rooms are closing soon,¡± he said, his tone flat and uninterested. ¡°It¡¯s almost twenty-two hundred. You¡¯ve got ten minutes to wrap up.¡± Ayana blinked, surprised at how much time had passed. The faint glow of the rune on the floor had dimmed, and the shadows in the room seemed deeper, more oppressive. She nodded, forcing a polite smile. ¡°Thanks. I¡¯ll be out in a minute.¡± The apprentice shrugged and closed the door, his footsteps fading down the corridor. Ayana let out a frustrated sigh and glanced at the tome on the worktable. She had been so close to stabilizing the shadow orb, but now she¡¯d have to start over tomorrow. Still, she couldn¡¯t deny the progress she¡¯d made. She tucked the tome into her pouch and left the practice room, the corridor outside now quiet and dimly lit. The torches cast flickering shadows on the stone walls, and the faint hum of the tower¡¯s magic seemed to echo in the stillness. Ayana climbed the stairs to the second floor, her footsteps soft against the stone, and slipped into her chamber. Finally back in her room she had some spare time to finally start copying more of the book she received from Vayentha called: The Beginnings of Magic Circles. Remembering her dizziness from the first time she copied data to the screen, she made her way towards her bed, ¡°clever idea considering I¡¯ll need to do my meditation as well after copying¡± went through her head. Chapter 14 The Dark Within Ayana sat on the edge of her bed, the tome open to Chapter 3: The Beginnings of Magic Circles. She focused on the tattoo on her shoulder, and like always the translucent screen materialized, displaying:
Books Status
Deviant Runes for Beginners Complete
Beginnings of Magic Circles 2 Chapters
¡°Can you display the Spirit cost for copying the 3rd chapter, please?¡± she asked, her minds voice soft but firm. The screen obliged, the text shifting to reveal:
Copying the 3rd chapter of book: Beginnings of Magic Circles
Note: as this chapter contains more pages, spirit requirement increased.
Spirit cost: 8.7
She frowned. ¡°That¡¯s more than I have.¡± Her current Spirit reserves were already low, and she couldn¡¯t afford to drain them completely. ¡°Maybe I can copy it in pieces, like I did with Chapter 2,¡± she thought, her mind racing through the possibilities. The screen flickered, responding to her unspoken question:
Would you like 15 pages to be copied for a Spirit cost of 3?
Note: Partial copying enabled. Remaining pages will remain locked until sufficient Spirit is available.
Warning: Spirit exhaustion may result in loss of consciousness. Proceed with caution.
Ayana bit her lip, weighing her options. Copying 15 pages would leave her with enough Spirit to function, but it was a risk. If she pushed herself too far by trying to copy another set of 15 or more, she could black out¡ªor worse. Still, the thought of falling further behind was unbearable. ¡°I can¡¯t afford to wait,¡± she decided. ¡°Proceed.¡± The screen shimmered, and text began scrolling:
Copying Chapter 3: The Beginnings of Magic Circles Pages 1-15... Complete.
Spirit Used: 3
Remaining Spirit: 5.54
As the screen finished, Ayana felt a faint wave of dizziness, a familiar side effect of using Spirit. She steadied herself, gripping the edge of the bed until the sensation passed. ¡°That¡¯s it,¡± she thought, glancing at the tome. ¡°Fifteen pages. Better than nothing.¡± She closed the tome and set it aside, her mind already turning to her next task. With her Spirit reserves still low, she¡¯d need to replenish them soon, by resting , but for now, she had work to do. Ayana adjusted her position to laying on her bed, her head resting on the pillow and her hands folded over her stomach. The room was quiet, the faint hum of the tower¡¯s magic a steady backdrop to her thoughts. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, trying to push aside the frustration that had been gnawing at her since her failed attempts in the practice room. ¡°Focus,¡± she told herself, her voice firm in her mind. ¡°Just focus.¡± She started with her heartbeat, slow and steady, just as she had practiced before. In her mind¡¯s eye, she pictured the energy within her as a small, stream¡ªa trickle of water winding its way through her body, only this time it resembled an almost dark colour, ¡°must be the recent practise with forming the shadow orb¡± and she went back to focussing again. It started at her heart, a faint pulse of shadow that she guided down through her chest and into her stomach. You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version. But the stream was weak, its flow uneven. It splintered and faltered, slipping through her grasp like smoke. Ayana clenched her fists, her frustration bubbling up again. ¡°Why can¡¯t I hold it?¡± she thought, her jaw tightening. ¡°I¡¯ve done this before. I know I can.¡± She took another deep breath, forcing herself to relax. ¡°Start small,¡± she reminded herself. ¡°You¡¯re still an apprentice. You don¡¯t need a river yet¡ªjust a stream.¡± This time, she focused on the stream itself, imagining it as a cool, dark thread winding its way through her body. She started at her heart again, guiding the energy down through her stomach and into her pelvis. The stream grew stronger, its flow more steady, and she felt a faint pulse of shadow in her hips. ¡°Good,¡± she thought, her excitement growing. ¡°Keep going.¡± She guided the stream further, down through her thighs and into her knees. The energy flickered, threatening to dissipate, but she held on, her focus unwavering. The stream reached her calves, a faint, cool sensation that made her toes twitch. ¡°Almost there,¡± she whispered, her voice barely audible. She guided the stream into her feet, one by one, until the energy reached the very tips of her toes. For the first time, she felt the connection¡ªa faint but unmistakable pulse of darkness that linked her heart to her toes. But she wasn¡¯t done yet. To form a complete body pattern, she needed to establish a connection through her arms as well. She took another deep breath and redirected the stream, guiding it back up through her torso and into her shoulders. The energy flowed more easily now, as if her body was remembering the path. She guided the stream down through her upper arms, her elbows, and into her forearms. The cool, dark energy pulsed faintly in her wrists, and she focused on maintaining the flow. Finally, she guided the stream into her palms and fingers, one by one, until the energy reached the very tips. Ayana opened her eyes and held out her hands, palms up. The shadows in the room seemed to respond, swirling around her fingers like a living thing. She smiled faintly, a sense of accomplishment washing over her. ¡°I did it,¡± she thought. ¡°I finally reached my fingers.¡± But this time, she didn¡¯t stop there. Drawing on her progress with [Shadow Bolt], she focused on the energy flowing through her body, visualizing it as a complete circuit¡ªa loop that connected her heart to her toes and back up through her arms to her fingers. The cool, dark stream became a river, its flow steady and unbroken. For the first time, she felt the complete body pattern¡ªa network of shadow energy that linked every part of her. The sensation was exhilarating, like a current of cool water flowing through her veins. She could feel the dark element within her, alive and responsive, waiting for her command. ¡°This is it,¡± she thought, her heart racing. ¡°This is what I¡¯ve been missing.¡± Her progress with [Shadow Bolt] had taught her to focus the energy into a single point, but now she understood the dark element on a deeper level. It wasn¡¯t just about control¡ªit was about connection. The shadows weren¡¯t just a tool; they were a part of her. As she lay there, the complete body pattern humming faintly within her, Ayana felt a flicker of something new¡ªconfidence. She wasn¡¯t just an apprentice fumbling in the dark anymore. She was beginning to understand the shadows, and with that understanding came power. Her progress with [Shadow Bolt] had taught her to focus the energy into a single point, but now she understood the dark element on a deeper level. It wasn¡¯t just about control¡ªit was about connection. The shadows weren¡¯t just a tool; they were a part of her. As she lay there, the complete body pattern humming faintly within her, Ayana felt a flicker of something new¡ªconfidence. She wasn¡¯t just an apprentice fumbling in the dark anymore. She was beginning to understand the shadows, and with that understanding came power. But as she focused on the energy within her, something shifted. The darkness around her seemed to come alive, not just as a force she could control, but as something she could see. Faint, translucent orbs of light began to appear in her mind¡¯s eye, scattered throughout the room like fireflies. They glowed softly, their light muted and hazy, as if seen through a veil. Ayana¡¯s breath caught in her throat. ¡°What is this?¡± she thought, her heart racing. She reached out with her senses, trying to understand what she was seeing. The orbs weren¡¯t just random¡ªthey were clusters of mana, the raw energy that fuelled all magic. Each orb represented a different element, their colours and intensities varying slightly. She focused on one of the orbs, a faint, silvery light hovering near the foot of her bed. As she concentrated, she realized it was water mana, its energy cool and fluid. There were more of them than she expected¡ªdozens of silvery orbs scattered throughout the room, their light shimmering like moonlight on a still lake. ¡°Master Wilson¡¯s influence,¡± she thought, remembering his mastery of water magic. His presence in the tower must have saturated the area with water mana, making it more abundant than the other elements. Another orb, a warm golden glow near the window, was fire mana, its light flickering like a tiny flame. It was smaller and less numerous than the water orbs, but its energy felt vibrant and alive. And then there were the shadows¡ªdark, shimmering orbs that seemed to pulse with a life of their own. They were fewer in number than the water orbs, but their presence was unmistakable, weaving through the room like threads of night. ¡°This is incredible,¡± she thought, her excitement growing. ¡°I can see the elements.¡± Her progress with [Shadow Bolt] had taught her to focus the dark element into a single point, but this was something entirely new. She wasn¡¯t just controlling the shadows anymore¡ªshe was perceiving them, understanding their place in the world around her. The dark element wasn¡¯t just a tool; it was a part of the fabric of reality, intertwined with all the other elements. Ayana reached out with her hand, not physically but with her mind, and brushed against one of the shadow orbs. It responded immediately, its energy flowing into her like a cool breeze. She guided it into the complete body pattern, feeling the connection strengthen as the dark mana merged with her own. The water orbs seemed to react to her presence, their light flickering faintly as if acknowledging her. Ayana smiled, a sense of wonder washing over her. She had always thought of magic as something separate, something she had to force into submission. But now, she realized, it was all around her, waiting to be understood. As the mana orbs flickered and faded from her mind¡¯s eye, Ayana slowly brought herself out of the meditative state. The complete body pattern still hummed faintly within her, a steady reminder of her progress. She took a deep breath, feeling the cool, dark energy settle into her core like a quiet ember. ¡°I need to check my status,¡± she thought, her mind already turning to the screen. The meditation had been intense, and she could feel the toll it had taken on her mind. She focused on the tattoo on her shoulder, and the translucent screen materialized, displaying her current status. Chapter 15 Growth
Status
Name: Ayana
Estimated Rank: Intermediate apprentice
Age: 23
Attributes
- Strength: 1.3
- Constitution: 1.7
- Dexterity: 1.4
- Spirit: 10.06
Known spells: - [Shadow Bolt] (62%)
Known skills: - [Meditation] Mastery I - [Mana Perception] (Basic) - [Magic Reading]
Her fingers trembled as she absorbed the numbers. "Double-digit Spirit reserves..." The 10.06 figure glowed brighter than the other attributes, a hard-won trophy after weeks of straining with single digits. Almost forgetting to notice that al her other stats have gone up by 0.4 as well. ¡°Must be a side effect of completing the body pattern¡± she mused The new [Mana Perception] and [Meditation] entries caught her eye - the system''s clinical term for what had nearly broken her during her last meditation session. Seeing them listed alongside proper skills like Vayentha''s made her throat tighten. But the real shock was the affinity listing. Yesterday it had simply said "Dark". Now? "Shadow/Dark" - as if her breakthrough had refined the classification. She touched the Shadow Bolt percentage, watching it ripple. Sixty-two percent. She wanted to go out and try again with her new insights in mana flow, but she also knows she can¡¯t because it is far past closing of the training rooms. Ayana exhaled sharply, dismissing the status screen with a flick of her fingers. The glowing numbers faded, but the thrill of progress still hummed in her veins. She flexed her hands¡ª10.06 Spirit. More than she''d ever held at once. Knowing she has achieved the required amount of spirit to be called an intermediate apprentice made it all the more annoying that she was still behind with her spell mastery. Thankfully she started her progressing journey with spell mastery as well, although a little late, she is moving forward in that department. She turned to her bed, the thin mattress suddenly inviting. The night''s efforts weighed on her¡ªthe hours of meditation, the strain of forming her first complete body pattern, the dizzying rush of mana perception. Her muscles ached in ways she hadn''t noticed until now. She peeled off her outer robe, the fabric sticking to her skin with dried sweat. The cool night air from the narrow window brushed over her as she sank onto the bed. "Just a few hours," she told herself, setting her pouch with the tome within easy reach. "Then breakfast, and¡ª" A yawn cracked her jaw before she could finish the thought. Sleep took her like a shadow falling across the room. Dreams came in fragments: She woke to pale dawn light and the distant clatter of pots from the kitchens below. For once, there was no grogginess¡ªjust clear-eyed alertness. She sat up, rolling her shoulders. No stiffness. No headache. Her first conscious thought was for her Status, everything that happened last night felt like one of the dream snippets. The tattoo responded, before she''d fully formed even a question, and showed her, her status again. Ayana grinned. " [Meditation] Mastery I has a nice ring to it.¡± The numbers glowed steadily, no flicker of depletion. For the first time since arriving at the tower, she didn''t feel like she was running on fumes or lagging behind the curve. She sat up and swung her legs over the edge of the bed, the stone floor cool beneath her bare feet. The morning light streaming through her narrow window carried the faint scent of baking bread from the kitchens below¡ªwarm and yeasty, with an undercurrent of smoked fish. Her stomach growled in response. She dressed quickly, pulling on a fresh apprentice robe and lacing her boots with practiced fingers. As she fastened her pouch to her belt, her fingers brushed against the tome inside. "Later," she promised herself. First, she needed food. The corridor outside her room was already alive with murmured conversations and the shuffle of feet. Apprentices moved in clusters, their voices hushed but urgent. Ayana caught snippets as she passed. The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. "¡ªheard it¡¯s about the strong classing¡ª""¡ªno, it¡¯s the selection process, I¡¯m telling you¡ª""¡ªmust be something important when¡ª" The dining hall sprawled before her, its long wooden tables crowded with apprentices. The air hummed with the clatter of spoons against bowls, the occasional burst of laughter, and beneath it all, the low thrum of anticipation. Ayana grabbed a bowl of porridge from the serving line, the steam carrying the scent of honey and crushed nuts, and turned to find a seat. That¡¯s when she saw her. Vayentha sat alone at a corner table, her back to the wall, a half-empty cup of tea cradled between her palms. The advanced apprentice¡¯s sharp green eyes flicked up as if sensing Ayana¡¯s gaze, and for a heartbeat, the noise of the hall seemed to dim. Ayana hesitated. They hadn¡¯t spoken since their last strained encounter, and the memory of Vayentha¡¯s scrutiny¡ª"You¡¯re progressing faster than you should"¡ªstill prickled at her neck. But the tome in her pouch seemed to grow heavier. Vayentha had given it to her, after all. Steeling herself, Ayana crossed the room. Vayentha¡¯s lips quirked as she approached. "You look like someone who actually slept for once," she said, tapping the bench opposite her. "Sit. Before someone interesting notices you hovering." Ayana slid onto the bench, her porridge forgotten for the moment. "What¡¯s that supposed to mean?" Vayentha took a slow sip of tea, her eyes never leaving Ayana¡¯s. "It means congratulations are in order, Intermediate Apprentice." She stressed the title with a smirk. "But keep your voice down. The last thing you need is Liesel¡¯s faction noticing your little... upgrade before the announcement, some interesting things are going to happen ." Ayana¡¯s spoon froze halfway to her mouth. "How did she¡ª?" Vayentha¡¯s smile widened, as if reading the question in her face. "Your aura¡¯s brighter. Not by much, but enough." She leaned forward, her voice dropping to a whisper. "Eat fast. We need to talk before all hell breaks loose." Ayana forced herself to take a bite of porridge, the honey-sweet taste turning to ash in her mouth as Vayentha''s warning hung between them like a blade on a thread. "What kind of ''hell'' exactly?" she asked between mouthfuls, keeping her voice low enough that the nearby chatter drowned it out. Vayentha''s fingers traced the rim of her teacup, her nail¡ªpainted a deep, unnatural black¡ªclicking against the ceramic. Before she could answer, the tower''s announcement bell rang¡ªthree liquid chimes that resonated through the stone like water dripping in a cavern. Every head turned as moisture condensed on the empty podium, coalescing into Master Wilson''s form. Water cascaded from his slate-blue robes as he stepped forward, water orbs formed and then reshaped to lances. "Apprentices," he spoke, his voice carrying the weight of deep ocean currents. The water in every cup and bowl trembled in response. "You will assemble in the Grand Lecture Hall at noon. Attendance is mandatory." A murmur started among Liesel''s faction near the windows, but Wilson''s gaze snapped toward them. The floating water orbs realigned with audible clicks, pointing at the group. Silence fell instantly. "What will be discussed concerns the future of this tower and your place within it." His dark blue eyes, like sunlight through a deep ocean, swept the room. "Come prepared." With that, his form dissolved back into water, the droplets crashing to the floor in perfect unison. Reactions Rippled Through the Hall: Liesel''s Faction:The blond apprentice exchanged glances with his inner circle. "Missions," he murmured, flexing his fingers. A muscle twitched in his jaw as he studied the frozen droplets now melting on the floorboards. "Finally." Hannah: Near the back, Hannah slammed her tankard down, sending a drink sloshing over the table. "Bloody hydro-dramatics," she muttered, wiping ink-stained hands on her patchwork robe. Her goggles reflected the light as she started try reach for a rag to wipe them clean. Percy The gossipmonger had materialized beside the serving line, his usual smirk absent. He caught Ayana''s eye and made a subtle warning motions with his hands. Ysondre''s Faction (Front Tables):The elegant apprentice straightened her silver-threaded sleeves, her faction immediately silencing. "Missions," she murmured, exchanging glances with her circle. One member nervously traced the water droplets condensing on their untouched breakfast. Grimshaw''s Cohort (Corner Table):The hulking apprentice cracked his knuckles, making the ice crystals nearest him vibrate violently. "About damn time," he growled, his faction members straightening with predatory anticipation. Tasselia''s Group (Near Exit):The petite faction leader didn''t look up from her notes, but her fingers tightened around her pen. Ink swirled unnaturally in its well as she muttered: "Check your gear. Now." Vayentha released Ayana''s wrist, leaving frost patterns that melted instantly. "Notice how the water reacted to Liesel''s lot?" She stood, her braid streaked with silver catching the light. "The tide''s turning. And you, little shadow, need to learn to swim before noon." Vayentha''s fingers stilled against her teacup as the last whispers of Wilson''s announcement faded. The dining hall buzzed with speculation, but her gaze remained locked on Ayana. "Finish your porridge," she murmured, too quietly for others to hear. "You''ll need the energy." Ayana''s spoon hovered. "For what?" A flicker of amusement crossed Vayentha''s face as she dabbed her lips with a napkin. "Let''s just say... pack for rough terrain. And bring that tome." Her eyes flicked to Liesel''s faction, where apprentices were already adjusting their belts and checking pouches with military precision. "Notice how the seniors aren''t surprised? They''ve been waiting for this." Across the hall, Ysondre''s group huddled over a map, their postures tense. Grimshaw''s cohort laughed too loudly, but their hands kept straying to their weapons. Even Tasselia''s usually aloof faction had gone preternaturally still, their leader''s fingers tracing urgent patterns in spilled tea. "Whatever Wilson announces at noon," Vayentha continued, "it won''t be a request. The tower''s walls won''t protect you where we''re going." She stood abruptly, chair scraping against stone. "Meet me at the practice rooms in one hour. And Ayana?" Her smile didn''t reach her eyes. "Wear your darkest robes." As she walked away, Ayana realized with dawning horror: Every apprentice in the hall¡ªfrom the newest novices to Liesel''s elite¡ªwas preparing in their own way.