Elyndris stared at the frustrating geometric shape with her thaumic sense. She had been at it for weeks already.

"Focus." Said Alfred. "Don't let the image fade from your mind." Elyndris quivered in frustration. She lost the image the moment he started talking. Not quite as quickly as when she first started, though.

"I CAN'T FOCUS IF YOU KEEP TALKING!" Screamed Elyndris. She pounced from her perch and flew around the library in frustration. She wheezed her breath as if trying to breathe fire. A habit that she didn't remember picking up anywhere.

"Let's restart. I find it helps if I explain what I am doing to myself. Helps me focus. Give it a try." Alfred was staring at a kingless board, moving pieces with his poltergeist trick. Elyndris sighed and settled back down next to the engine cube.

"I am trying to imagine the shape within this engine cube. It contains a force engine." She explained out loud. "Once I envision it accurately, I can allow mana to flow into it and cast the spell."

"Good. Now wha-"

"Except I can't DO that, because I can't actually see the shape!"

"I was led to believe you can see with thaumic sense." Alfred reset the board and looked at her.

"Sort of. I can see, but it isn't sight. Physical shapes, easy. I can sense the shape of the cube, the books on the shelves, even every little crevice in your bark. But the shape is INSIDE the glass. Who designed it like that anyway?"

"It is common sense. Pure metals do not degrade. Glass keeps them in their proper shape without needing to attach supports. Portable, stable, and permanent. You can sense the shape, you've described it to me. What do you sense that makes it difficult to envision?"

"I can… somewhat sense its shape. But it is wavering. Like the shape of the whole is intact. I can see the box-like shapes, the rings, the pyramids, and how they all relate to each other."

"So what is the problem?"

"It's the actual surface. It keeps changing, gaining more or less detail at random. Sometimes the edges are beveled, sometimes the faces have subtle angles to them, and other times they are almost impossibly simple."

Alfred thought for a long moment. Elyndris tried to focus on the shape. Another issue she had was frustratingly basic. When new mages learned how to cast their first spell, they were instructed to close their eyes to envision the construct. Her problem? She didn't HAVE eyes. She couldn't turn off her thaumic sense any more than someone could turn off her sense of touch. So she was stuck battling her senses. She had to keep an image stable in her mind while the real thing kept changing and distracting her.

She could enter her status void, but she could still feel while in it. In fact, she rarely left the status void. There was no reason not to, for her.

"That may be a secret boon. It is difficult to do so, but a spell construct can be enhanced by its complexity. It is a higher level of spell craft than simply building the spell, so don't dwell on that thought too long. If you can truly sense the spell's different capabilities… you might become powerful indeed."

"That doesn't help me if I can't cast a single fucking spell!" Elyndrs hissed. "I've been staring at this thing for so long, it's etched into my memory. But I can't nail it down."

"Perhaps you do not need the reference."

"I am supposed to COPY the reference, right? I need it."

"Not if you already have it memorized. Let's try something." Alfred lifted a finger and the engine cube floated away and down a hole. It quickly faded from sight. "Now try. Focus on your memory of its most basic shape."

"That one is a bit… abstract. I'll try the next simplest." The image it sometimes took seemed to defy reason. Multiple shapes formed from one continuous flat surface. It gave her a headache whenever she sensed it.

Steadying her breathing, she tried again. In her mind's eye, she tried to bring the shapes into being. A ring surrounding and connected to a pyramid. Remember the right placement of the box-like shape. A few cubes here and there. She strained her mind to hold it. It was like looking at a painting all at once but also focusing on every detail.

Then, finally, she held it in her mind. She didn't know how much time had passed. Minutes? Half an hour? But she did it. She was sure! It was stable, and becoming increasingly vivid.

"Got… it…" she whispered. She sensed Alfred float towards her.

"Good. Keep it in your mind." His voice was soft, as if not to startle her. "Feel a source of power around you. A heat or light. That is mana. Imagine it flood-"

Then Elyndris exploded. It wasn't a big explosion, but pure force was unleashed. With nothing to guide the spell, it simply unleashed force. Alfred flew back a foot or two, but Elyndris bounced away and ricocheted off of a bookshelf.

[Feat achieved: Fledgling Mage. Cause: Successfully cast a spell. Reward: One level in Spellcraft.]

Elyndris roared in victory. The last part was easy. She could sense the mana directly. Willing it to flood the construct was as simple as unstopping a drain.

"I DID IT!" She screamed. "Soon, I will burn this world and tear apart reality itself! All will cower before the might of Elyndris, Mighty Mage!"

"Well done. Now, you should be able to more easily visualize the spell in your status void. Give it a try."

She did. Imagining the spell once again. This time, a clearly visible blue construct was being formed. It was the same system material that the assistants and the status screens were made of.

This time, she was able to cast the spell in only five minutes. It caused another minor explosion, which she used to catapult her into flight.

"YES!" She screeched. Then she floated down towards Alfred. "What's next?"

"Now, I can properly explain to you the forging of magic." He sat down on his chair, and then they both floated to her. He sat on it while it floated in mid-air.

"The more spells I can craft, the more powerful I become. Go on."

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"I've taught you the basics already. Repeat them to me. What goes into making a true spell?"

"A spell construct is formed by connecting spell engines in a particular order and flooding the creation with mana. The order of the engines determines the effects of the spell."

"Good. Now, there are a few more intricacies. Any engine can be modified with a drive. These have different effects, depending on the engine and drive combination. For instance, my efficiency drive reduces the mana cost of most engines. For force, it creates a more powerful effect when there is less mana available. For control, it allows me to use the spell longer."

"So, I will need to experiment."

"Indeed. Next, the more complex you make a spell, the higher its level. The level system is used to measure your skill. Starting mages can handle up to level two complexity spells. The more parts to a construct, the more complex those parts, and the trickier techniques, the higher the spell level."

"What can you handle?"

"Four, comfortably. But, if I focus, five. You should be able to cast a level three spell, but it will take a lot of time and effort."

"So, the spell I just cast. It was level one?"

"Yes. In time, you can cast that spell in seconds. Now, the third point. Mana. It is a tricky subject. But, essentially, the more ambient mana in the area, the more powerful your spells are. Higher-level spells require more mana. Luckily, we live near a font of mana. That is why my father chose this place to begin with."

"Are there places with no mana?"

"Yes. Which is why mana crystals are important. They allow you to store it for later use."

"Wonderful! I can rain death even easier if I can carry magic with me. As soon as I make a backpack… or something."

"Now, the last bit of warning before we get to work. You can, in theory, connect a spell to itself, or create a ring of engines. Never do this."

"Why not?"

"It causes a feedback loop we call a mana siphon. All mana in the area, depending on the complexity of the siphon, is pulled into it. Building and building power until you explode. It is why magic is illegal in most of the world."

"Whoa, whoa. First of all. I EXPLODE? How big of an explosion? And magic is illegal? Not that that matters, but it sounds inconvenient."

"Illegal in most of the world, to an extent. It varies from place to place. This land is backwoods enough that they don't bother. Another reason my father settled here. Same with alchemy. Both are very dangerous. As for the explosion… history tells me cities have been erased. But I've never seen it. There are also stories of suicidal assassins blowing up nobles' castles or even just the throne room. Either way, I don't intend to find out."

Elyndris hissed. That would kill her. But if she could find a way to survive being exploded… that was a powerful weapon. Cities would kneel before her in fear.

"We will have to go over all this in detail later," Elyndris said. She was eager to move on to more practical magic. "What's next?" Alfred floated over the three engine cubes, and the cane she had traded Anath for. Atop it was another engine cube, though this one was a sphere.

"There are two major types of engines." He said, hovering the glass objects in front of her. "Active and Directive. Active engines generally make a change or cause an effect. Directive generally do not work by themselves. Instead, they guide the active engines. These three cubes are Energy, Force, and Focus." He pointed at each cube in turn. "The first two are active engines. Focus is directive."

"What about that one?" She pointed at the cane with her tail.

"I do not know. It is very difficult to guess an engine before it is tested. But, testing them can be dangerous. Force, for example, could cause an explosion." He said.

"If I had eyes, I would be giving you a flat look right now."

"Noted. But, based on its general shape, I believe it is directive. It is yours, so I would like to ask for permission to use it."

"No! I want to try it." Elyndris said. Alfred floated back a few steps.

"Very well. But, let's do it elsewhere."

They moved to the tunnels below. Since they could both fly, more or less, they didn't bother to wait for the stairs to move. Elyndris squirmed in excitement as Alfred brought the cubes down.

She found it much easier to envision the shapes while she could see the construct. Her earlier issues were all washed away.

"Now, to connect the two engines, you need to envision the transitional nodes. For now, imagine simple four-sided bars that touch each face to the other. You will need to experiment to find which connected faces work best. Usually, each spell has one most efficient setup. For now, just go with what is easiest."

It took her almost an hour to focus on two engines at once. Energy and this mystery engine. She kept losing one while focusing on the other. Eventually, she managed to hold both in her mind and then connected them. Connecting them was harder than she anticipated. The nodes became more complex with each addition, meaning she had more and more to focus on.

Finally, gruelingly, she succeeded.

"Okay, casting it now…" She said. Alfred flew up and away. She poured mana into it.

A beam of red fire about three feet wide roared in front of her. She was startled, and she moved back, causing the beam to track a line, leaving a dark line where the fire touched the wall. After a second, it stopped.

"Beam. I think that's an appropriate name for it." Alfred said from below.

Elyndris's chuckle slowly became a cackle. A mad laugh of glee. Finally! She had her breath! However, she never remembered HAVING the ability to launch a beam of fire. It was something that itched at her.

That attack wasn't too powerful, though. It would burn clothes and not much else. Maybe leave a minor burn unless she focused the beam on a stationary target for a while. But, it was a start.

Already she was scheming. What if she added force? Or if she focused the beam or the energy? What was a beam of force like? The possibilities felt endless. That was with only three engines. What would a mage class add to it?

"Again!" She cried. "I will master this power." She turned to the boy. "When I rule the world, you will be rewarded for this."

She focused again, casting her spell. Again and again, late into the night. Each cast became slightly easier.

Elyndris

True Name: Elyndris Soul: Monster Genseed: Larva [ 1 Str, 1 Dex, 1 Con, 1 Int, 1 Wil, 1 Cha; miniscule Size]

Monster Level:

8

Attributes (0/12):

Strength:

10

Dexterity:

8

Constitution:

8

Intelligence:

15

Will:

7

Charm:

7

Feats:

Encounter: True Angel

Knowledge: System Knowledge

Act: Devotion

[layered feats]

Act: Blasphemy

Ability: Mighty Intellect

Act: Vile Concoction

Act:

Fledgling Mage

Skills (0/3):

Burst of Strength: 1

Pounce: 1

Construct Capacity: 1

Spellcraft: 1

Biotraits (0/8):

Base size: Miniscule

Jaws

Thaumic Sense

[Synergy: Tremor Sense + Magic Sense; Mutations:

Refined Sense

]

Complex organs

Limbs [Mutation:

Lesser Wings

]

Disease Resistance

[Source: Vile Concoction]

Force Distributing Flesh

Transformations:

Night Stalker form:

+2 strength

+2 dexterity

+2 constitution

Jaws [Mutation: Powerful Jaws]

Known Magical Components:

Engines

: Force, Energy, Beam

Drives

: Focus

Notable Gear:

5 Refresh Pills

Hero Scroll

Other:

Curse: Ungenesis

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