Kopius remembered not to take the first price offered, nor did he take the second or third option; which apparently was too much bargaining. There was a banter to haggling prices that Kopius had unknowingly bypassed, which ended up biting him in the wallet. Though he paid more in graphene then Yamabu had first proposed she was sympathetic to his novice negotiating skills and allowed him to call her Yama as recompense.

{NX: Practice Completed (Communication- Verbal II of III)}

He balked at the notification for several reasons. One being that he had forgotten about them, at least, the Non-Combative ones. Secondly, after all this time he still hadn't looked at the specific details so he had no idea what he had completed. Thirdly, the window provided no information to even guess at what he had done. Before he could open his interface to look, Yamabu had already begun explaining all the things he had done wrong so far.

After a brief lecture on proper bargaining techniques, Yama lectured Kopius on handing over unfinished spell books to complete strangers. She then leaned into a lecture regarding magical items and how to conceal them; something he would need to purchase from Parva. Once Kopius was properly dressed down, she began to teach.

"Shock Treatment," Yama began by waggling the textbook at both men, "is a dual purpose magic. By the look on your face I will have to explain. All Branch magic of the four basic elements have a single purpose, they do one thing. Your boots set fire when invoked, that is all they can do. Your Push spell, though it can grow in strength, is limited to only being able to drive away danger."

Kopius shook his head involuntarily as he just remembered something.

"You disagree?" Yama said as an accusation.

"No, sorry," Kopius said, raising his hands. "I just remembered my push bundle has a spellbook."

"You should read that, lad," Cici mentioned while he lounged on one of the comfortable chairs across the room.

"You have another unfinished spell book?" Yama scolded.

"I do, I do," Kopius protested. " I just fucking forgot about it okay."

"Fuk-ing," Yama repeated, practically tasting the word much like Oh-jin had.

"Jesus Christ," Kopius uttered under his breath, rubbing at his temple.

"Jesus Chr–," was all Yamabu could repeat before Kopius cut her short.

"I'll read it," he almost yelled for no reason. "I have the book, I'll read the book. I'll read right now."

"Temper, temper," Yama laughed. She looked over at Cici, "Is he always so tense?"

"It comes and goes," Cici replied in jest.

"Leave your issues at the door," Yama warned Kopius. "Magic works best with a clear intention; scattered emotions will weaken their appeal."

Kopius nodded in understanding.

"Now," Yamabu stated, returning to teaching mode, "For the higher elemental magics, they can have more than one purpose; some have three but those are rare and require twice the Intelligence to comprehend. Shock Treatment has two purposes; two ways to wield it. One is a single burst, designed to stun, subdue or paralyze. The effects only last a short while but can be devastatingly effective. Allow me to demonstrate."

"Wait–what," was all Kopius could mutter before Yama thrust an open palm jab to his sternum like some kind of kung-fu master.

She uttered the written words from the spellbook upon impact and his muscles all contracted at once rendering him incapacitated. With another fluid strike from her other palm, she shouted the phrase and Kopius was flung back across the room like a ragdoll, slamming into the opposite wall and dropping to the floor. If the first jolt felt like being tased, the second one felt like he had been electrocuted by a powerline.

Kopius groaned on the floor of the hut and caught a whiff of burnt hair along with a few strands of smoke. His muscles twitched sporadically and a tingling sensation raced all across his body while he waited to gain control of his limbs. By the time all the pain exited his person both Yama and Cici were standing above him looking down. Neither seemed concerned for his well being.

"What the fuck was that for?" Kopius managed to groan from his prone position.

Cici reached down and offered a hand. Kopius would have batted it away but he still had a few residual spasms. The big man lifted Kopius to his feet and dusted off the small bits of dust and debris that had been collected during the demonstration.

"The first pulse," Yama began to explain as she walked away like nothing had happened, "had minimal intention. You can call it a level one strike if that helps your understanding." The witch returned back to her original position and turned. She motioned to the ground next to her, inviting Kopius back to where he had been standing pre-assault. "The second pulse was more ambitious, using more than twice the mana as the first; a level five strike if you will."

Shaking off what remained of his experience, Kopius was hesitant to be near the witch. There was likely a lesson to be learned here but he was unable to wrap his head around it. He was starting to get the impression that the women of Metem all had some sadistic mean streak in them and that he was a viable target. Allowing his ego to go through its emotional arc, Kopius slowly made his way over to her.

"Did you really have to do me like that?" Kopius asked while stretching away his imaginary discomfort.

"Imagine if it were a fire spell instead," she answered with a smirk.

"Do you have the Shock Treatment spell?" He asked while simultaneously thanking the Universe that it had ignored his original wants for fireball magic.

Yama produced the text book containing the spell and flipped to the last page. She ran her thumb back over the written word and slammed it closed again.

"Not anymore," she smiled, handing the book back.

"I don't understand."

"Nor is there a need to."

"Okay, I guess," Kopius uttered when nothing else followed her statement. "I take it that was both uses of the spell?"

"No," Yama stated. "That was a weak and strong version for one of its purposes. The second use is like this."

Kopius jumped back when the witch raised her palm again, opting to create distance between the caster and himself. Yamabu laughed. Her hand continued its trajectory to point at the training dummy. He let out a short chuckle of his own, a bit embarrassed by his reaction.

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

"You will perform the second function on him," Yama remarked, "but first you will finish the book and recite your word of power."

"What's a word of power?"

"The words used to manifest the spell into action," she replied with a tilt of her head. "You have at least two so far, one for your boots and one for your Push spell. What word is used to invoke your boots?"

"Sparta," Kopius answered while mimicking a kick.

"Strange word," she replied and then gestured at the dummy. "Show me."

Kopius shrugged his shoulders and approached the dummy as if it were some Persian herald that had insulted his queen. With a forward thrust kick, Kopius struck the training apparatus with the sole part of his foot and shouted SPARTA! The dummy was immediately engulfed in flames as Kopius took a few steps back and admired his work. Yama flicked her wrist and the fire vanished.

"Impressive," Yama remarked before continuing, "though the yelling is not necessary. Some spells do require a more forceful bellow in order to increase their strength, that one does not."

"How do I tell the difference?"

"Trial and error," Yama said flatly. "And your power word for Push?"

Kopius cleared his throat a bit before answering, "Piss off."

"I see," the witch replied with a not so subtle hint of disappointment. "Uninspiring."

"That's what I said," Cici chimed in again, catching a sideways look from his friend.

"I suggest you stick with the written word for now," Yama suggested.

"I can do that? I thought I had to come up with my own… "

"Personalizing your magic is useful for its element of surprise," Yama instructed. "Using your own words allows you to keep the spell a secret until it is cast, while using the standard written word will give an educated enemy a glimpse of what is to come."

"That–makes sense," Kopius admitted. "Sooooo, shouldn't I use my own phrase now?"

"Please don't–I mean to say, Shock Treatment is a touch spell," Yama quickly added, "most casters don't like to get that close."

"Whatever," Kopius complained, though he was slightly relieved he didn't have to come up with his own phrase this time. Naming things, though fun and sometimes cool, was not as easy as it seemed. "Okay, fine. Tell me what to do."

"Turn to the last page," Yama instructed, handing him the book. "With your palm flush against the art, fill with your mana the same way you learned Push from its scroll. When the inscription is filled with a glowing light, recite the written word three times and pull your mana back."

"That's it?" Kopius said with more confidence than he should.

"Of course," Yama replied in mocking tones, "That is all there is to it."

Kopius took the text and opened it as instructed. As he placed his palm to the page, Yama motioned at Cici. The big man stood and placed himself close to his friend. Not wanting to be distracted, given the explosive nature of infusing mana, Kopius ignored the commotion and focused on his task. After a few moments, the art on the page began to shine. Another several seconds passed and Kopius could feel beads of sweat beginning to congregate on his brow.

When small droplets hit the page the words lit up. Kopius recited the phrase with an increasing strain for each rendition. His throat went parched as he pushed the word out for the third time and pulled the mana off the page. His mind was assaulted with symbols and colors, statiko-ilektri echoing within his mind. He felt a wave of weakness pass through him and he swayed side to side before the whole room went black.

Kopius awoke to find himself resting on one of the comfy bean bag type chairs that were scattered around the lounge side of the hut. Startled by the realization that he had blacked out he jerked up right to find Cici and Yama partaking in some steaming beverages and engaged in chat.

"Welcome back lad!" Cici shouted, raising his tea-shaped cup in a lazy salutation.

Yama did the same gesture but left out the yelling.

When Kopius went to stand, he found that he had a pounding headache and opted to stay seated. Cici came over with a second cup and Yama insisted he drink the beverage before his next attempt to rise. Kopius took the advice and slowly made his way to the bottom cup at which time all of his ailments stopped existing. He relished the moment of zen before standing.

{NX: New Spell: Shock Treatment- Will stun, shock, paralyze and electrocute; sometimes all four +XP}

{NX: Shock Therapy- 50% increase to Lighting Resistance}

{NX: Two for One- You equipped a dual purpose spell. +1 LV to Shock Treatment}

"You people can warn me, you know," Kopius complained while closing his notifications. He stretched his arms, back and neck before continuing. "I got a resistance and my spell leveled, is that normal?"

"It is normal but not absolute," Yama answered. "You're not immune to it, it just takes more to affect you."

"Wish I had it like ten minutes ago," Kopius remarked. "And the level up?"

"Your first higher magic spell gives you the boon, don't expect another one," Yama said before adding."Unless you learn a three purpose spell."

"I don't even know the second part of the spell I have," Kopius pointed out.

"Well, now that you are done napping we can address that," Yama motioned to the training dummy and instructed Kopius to do as she had done to him; first soft and then loud. "And check your mana levels between strikes."

Kopius stepped up and prepared himself. A tinge of excitement ran though his body with the anticipation of using the spell. His gaming life had long given him the sense of dealing magic but now he was about to wield it for reals. Caught up in his own enthusiasm he placed his hand on the dummies chest and shouted the words of power with passion and vigor.

The dummy reeled back as though it had been struck with a mighty blow but it did not reach the ground. Instead the apparatus sprung back at Kopius as if the thing were a playground rocking horse. The helmet of the dummy headbutted Kopius with a healthy crunch and sent the air elemental sprawling to the floor.

Blood flowed from a slash on his forehead and dripped on the floor of the hut as he stood. Yama quickly retrieved a towel rag while cussing under her breath about the impetuous nature of young men. Kopius took the verbal lashing as she returned to her lecturing tone regarding following instructions, respecting the nature of magic and other relevant metaphors that all seemed to boil down to walking before we ran.

During Yama's diatribe, Cici produced one of the healing leaves from his pouch that he had used during their battle with the skeletons. Kopius chewed the leaf until it was malleable and placed it on his cut, stopping the bleeding in the process.

He also took the time to open his user interface and peek at his mana bar. Half of the bar was empty. His other vital indicators looked full but he was surprised that there wasn't a bleeding icon or some other symbol informing him of the injury. He chalked up the absence to Cici's healing patch and moved on to other thoughts.

"Sorry about that," Kopius apologized. "I got a little excited."

"Did you at least check your mana," Yama scolded.

"I did," Kopius replied in placating tones. "Took half my mana."

"Very well then," the witch huffed. "Softer tone will result in less mana usage. Try again."

Kopius stepped up again and gave the dummy a whisper. He heard a soft zap emulate as if he had just scooted his socks across a carpet and shocked someone with the static charge. He tried varying volumes until he was comfortably aware of the mana used for each. He found that his normal voice level was sufficient to stun where his shout would likely paralyze.

"Now the second purpose," Yama instructed, pleased with Kopius's progress. "Volume matters just like the first," she said pointedly. "Where that strike is one quick spike of energy, the second is a consistent flow. It requires both hands so that the shock circles through you instead of striking at you."

"Like a resistor?" Kopius asked.

"I don't know what that is," Yama replied. "If you try this with only one hand, you will receive as much damage as your target."

"That's basically a resistor."

"Fine, call it what you will. The spell is invoked by simply repeating the words of power in a consistent tone and repetitive nature. Depending on the two, you can cast the spell until your mana runs out. Do you understand?"

"I think so," Kopius admitted. "What happens when my mana runs out? Do I get a splitting headache or spell damage from feedback?" He asked as these were common tropes in his VRRPG gaming experience.

"No," Yama answered plainly. "That only occurs if the spell is interrupted after mana build up. Now show me what you have learned!"

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