Chapter 10 - Achievement Get! First Spell
Lilith
“Well, that went… uhm,” I say as I look at the glass in my hand, swirling it around a couple times before I bring it to my lips, closing my eyes I tilt my head back and drink the entire glass in one go.
At that moment, the ‘Augmented Reality’ display enters my vision, though, it looks somewhat different now. If I had to compare, originally it reminded me more of a text only display similar to the Apple II computer my Dad let me play with as a kid. But now it’s like some weird cross of MacOS 9 with the interface from Final Fantasy 8. And in the lower left a series of notifications in a box styled more similar to Windows 10 appear one after another.
| >> |
| (!) Notice: New Spell > WorldMethod.Manifest.Item(Wine(Fruit.Strawberry).Sparkling) |
| >> |
| (!) Notice: WorldMethod.User(“Lilith Everhart”).UpdateUI Complete |
| >> |
| (!) Notice: WorldMethod.User(“Lilith Everhart”).AddFunction(WorldMethod.Undefined.RoseBloom) Complete |
| >> |
| (!) Notice: New Tutorial Available! |
After the last notification appeared, I was greeted with a ‘Dialog Box’ in the middle of the ‘screen’ with a message from Izanami.
| (=) | System Message | |
| Hello Dear, I fixed things up for you a bit. You have my sincerest apologies, I am new to this sort of thing, you see, and I had not considered the importance of this to you properly. It’s rather embarrassing, but we are not infallible, you see, and I never sought to bother with these sorts of things in my own worlds. This is actually a bit of fun. Expect to see more later ;) | ||
| [ Dismiss ] | ||
Am I weird? Because the first thought on reading that is, a goddess, just sent me a message with a winky face. For some reason I find it hard not to giggle at that. I suppose Izanami isn’t as bad as I thought.
I also can’t help but think, reading that line about it being a bit fun, that I might have inadvertently created a monster, sorry people in Izanami’s worlds if she ends up doing crazy things to you! Not my fault! Nope. Not one bit. I deny EVERYTHING.
I also find it interesting how she claims they are not infallible, I wonder to what degree? I hadn’t really considered it either way before now, but now that I am, I am really curious. I wonder what even makes a ‘God’? Maybe one day I can tease some information out of her to sate my curiosity.
Anyway, I ‘dismiss’ the dialog with a button of the same name, and a new menu appears along a bar at the top of the ‘screen’ with the word ‘Tutorials’ and it automatically opens to a list of items, all but the first are greyed out though.
| (-) | Tutorials | |
| > | Magic Basics | |
| x | Intermediate Magic | |
| x | Advanced Magic | |
| x | Vampire Basics | |
| x | Succubus Basics | |
| x | ShapeShift Basics | |
| x | Undefined | |
I can’t help but ‘Squee!’ out loud, but... quietly. A soft squee of glee, mind ye! Ahem. Where was i? Ah yes. Magic Basics! Tutorials! Excite, Much, Very. Enough memes it seems my dream is real so I no longer feel so tragic, now onto the MAGIC!
That was a hard rhyme ok. Don’t you shake your head at me, yes you, I see you. Erm, actually forget that. I didn’t say anything. We were practicing magic! Yes! Exactly!
I open the ‘Magic Basics’ tutorial and am greeted with another window that looks more like a word document. Scrolling up and down quickly, it seems rather long. I sigh a little, and slide down the wall I’m still leaning on such that I’m now sitting against it with my knees still up, folding my arms across them, I shapeshift some very soft fluffy fur along my forearms then I rest my head on top and begin reading. I can’t help but comment in my thoughts while I read.
| (>>>) |
| Welcome to the Magic Basics Tutorial by Izanami, First Edition |
‘Oh really, first edition? Let’s hope Izanami-sensei is a good teacher.’
| Magic at its core is about controlling a special energy, the details aren’t important right now, for the time being we will just call it Mana. Think of Mana similarly to how you would Electricity. It flows like electricity, and can be used to power things, and with special patterns create various effects or alter the world. I suppose, to take from what you know from Earth, it might be akin to an Electrical Engineer or for more advanced magics perhaps a Circuit Design Engineer. |
‘Hah! I didn’t spend 230 hours messing with Redstone in Minecraft for nothing!’
| Mana radiates from the Sun, and permeates all the planets, gathering in places with gravity. Raw Mana must be gathered within one’s essence which takes time. Gathered Mana becomes attuned to you, allowing it to be separated and reabsorbed at will without needing time to be gathered. Your Mana can be imbued into objects to be stored until you are ready to use it. |
‘The Sun? Really? That’s interesting. I wonder what a Physicist would think, is Magic, Dark Matter? No, wait, that doesn’t make sense. It sounds more like some weird version of Electro-Magnatism. Hmm.. Mana-DoesThings ...tism!’
| Your essence can also be expanded to contain and manipulate more mana at once. But, that is a topic for the more advanced tutorials. For now you only need to focus on using the Mana within your essence and storing it to be used later. |
‘Wait, so the Matrix was on the right track, we really are batteries, just, for Mana? Damnit, where is my KeanuReeves-Whoa.gif when I need it?’
| Mana does not work like you might be expecting from your experience with video games, there is no neat unit of mana and you will not have a counter like 500/1000 Mana. It works more like electricity in a battery, the flow will get weaker as it empties. Mana has the same two properties as well, like Voltage, there is pressure, or how fast, it flows. And like Amperage, it has a volume of flow, or how much is flowing. |
‘So what you’re telling me is, it’s going to crap out on me like the batteries in my wireless mouse during the final boss of the dungeon raid?’
| This world you are in, has its own special construct that governs the ‘RPG System’ as you called it, the WorldMethod. The WorldMethod can assist you in making and using spells, as well as keeping track of every spell ever created with it by the people of this planet. However, I would suggest that you do not rely on it. |
‘So the WorldMethod assistance is like having a Macro you copy pasted to do your hotbar rotation for you?’
| I will briefly tell you about it though, as I believe you can learn more by dissecting the spells within it than I could easily teach you here. The WorldMethod uses ‘modules’ of Mana patterns that can be connected together for various effects, the denizens of this world are given magic casting assistance by the WorldMethod by applying ‘modules’ to the casters to enable them to cast the spell they wish. |
‘So it’s like using a level editor and taking premade bits and pieces and sticking them together into one whole piece that does what you want?’
| The WorldMethod allows someone to witness a spell, combine it with a rudimentary understanding of Mana use, and be capable of recasting the same spell, as long as they can properly combine the ‘modules’. The WorldMethod also acts as a universal Mana storage, allowing casters to ‘borrow’ mana from that which it is collecting from the world itself. |
‘So it’s like having a Calculator in math class? Aw come on teach, don’t ban my calculator, I promise I won’t play Tetris on my TI84 calculator anymore, don’t ban them from the class!’
| The WorldMethod Mana storage is a ‘one size fits all’ attunement, meaning it either takes a short time to gather Mana from it, or it is terribly inefficient for instant use, requiring the caster to have far more Mana control ability than the spell actually needs. |
‘I never liked one size fits all clothes, THEY NEVER FIT ME, fucking liars, all minus one is NOT ALL, and just because you change the wording to one size fits most doesn’t make it any less shitty, bastards. No I’m not still upset over that one hat, shut up.’
| I have made you a special ability that will allow you to deconstruct any spell you see, along with all of its ‘modules’ so that you may see the raw Mana patterns. You can of course use the WorldMethod to cast spells, I gave you one already, for a treat whenever you want one, some of that wine I know you liked. ;) |
‘Oooh neat! More special abilities! Hurray! Also I can’t get over Izanami using a winky face, it’s like the first time my Dad sent me an emoji in a text when he got his first smartphone. Oooh.. new notification?’
| >> |
| (!) Notice: WorldMethod.User(“Lilith Everhart”).AddAbility(WorldMethod.Undefined.RoseBloom.DeconstructSpell()) Complete |
| >> |
| (!) Notice: NEW Unique Ability Granted > {Deconstruct Spell} |
‘Ooh, a dialog box popped up for it!’
| (=) | Deconstruct Spell | [-] |
| Unique Skill | Divine Providence | |
| Allows the user to analyze any witnessed spell, automatically adding it to the user’s WorldMethod SpellList, and exposing the Mana patterns of the spell, including the entire module dependency chain. | ||
| [ Dismiss ] | ||
‘Sweeeeeeeeeet! A new Cheeeeeaaaat! Actually it just means more work for me, I just wanted to rhyme with sweet.’
| I would suggest you learn and practice casting on your own, though. Do not rely on the WorldMethod, I am warning you now, you will regret it. So please Dear, don’t be lazy on this one thing, understand? |
‘See? More. Work. Damnit.’
| I can feel your impatience, enough chatter, you know the groundwork now, here is how to cast your first spell. First, you must create a Mana pattern and imbue it into your essence, do not worry, they will stay with you like memories, and you can use them more easily over time. |
‘Give me more credit! I wasn’t THAT impatient yet, I was keeping myself entertained by picking apart your lesson and thinking about memes. Wait, no, forget that, I was very seriously studying it, seriously, totally, that. Not goofing off at all, me? No? Never! Perish the thought!’
| To make a Mana pattern, you need to imagine every step of the spell, ever action, reaction, and so forth you wish to happen, in as much detail as you are capable. Let’s start with a simple spell, to refill the glass I gave you with water. |
‘Wait I skipped the last part while rambling about how seriously I was studying. Uh, oh I see, Mana pattern + Essence = Mana… Memory? Easy. Ok, make a pattern, imagine EVERYTHING, no regrets ok Izanami? I’m very imaginative, you see, don’t feel bad if I ace this like… wait I can’t remember what class I aced? Hmmm, no, no, maybe, no... uh... It really happened ok! Don’t doubt me! I doubt me enough! What? I didn’t say anything.’
| Picture in your mind drawing the water vapor from the air, flowing like a wind into your glass, as it enters the glass picture the vapor cooling off, however you wish, remove the heat, add cold air, the details are up to you, the more specific you are the better the result will be. |
‘Sluuuurp, Sluuuuuurp, Drip, Drop, Drip, Drop. Hehehe I did it.’
‘...’
‘Wait, Reader, you saw that? I- I can explain! Uh, see, making sound effects... helps, yeah that’s it! I totally wasn’t doing it just because!’
| This simple spell should fill your glass with condensed water from the air if you managed it properly. |
‘I totally did it properly, how could you doubt me. I have feelings you know.’
Looking at the end of the document I can’t help but blurt out at the abrupt end, “Wait, that’s it? Awwww, write more text that I can avoid reading! No? Ok.”
After I close the tutorial document I see a new menu named ‘Main’, underneath which are the submenus Spells, Abilities, and Character. Interesting, the entire setup seems rearranged. I can’t help but feel like an Alpha Tester for a new MMO or something though, it’s still very rough. It makes me wonder if Izanami is making this for me, what do other people in this world see? How does everything work for them?
Also, if she made this, did she record that voice clip I first heard? I didn’t think it sounded anything like her at the time, but, I’m not sure now, she normally seems to have this certain, ‘air’ about her voice that’s very, damnit, why is she such an oxymoron, I was just thinking she talked in a playfully serious way or... something?
Anyway... I open the spells menu! And am greeted with two.
| (-) Spells |
| > WorldMethod.Manifest.Item(Wine(Fruit.Strawberry).Sparkling) |
| > Condense Moisture |
Izanami if you’re watching that wasn’t a facepalm at the broken looking spell, ok? I was just, uhm, holding my head for a moment, that’s all. I’m sure it’s not easy, I’m not judging you. Not one bit, you’re a great goddess, you saved me after all! Yeah! My impression of you is totally intact, ok? Don’t worry about it.
Let me… try this. I dump out the water from my glass, and then, I try to cast uhm, ‘Strawberry Wine’ and uhm, oh dear. That is more than the glass holds, and it is now all over me, and the floor. I think I might have used too much Mana. Apparently, Wine is really cheap. Good to know. Totally not planning to get wasted, not at all. Perish the thought.
I take a drink from the glass, and it tastes as wonderful as I remembered. Oh, look at that, the glass is empty, how did that happen? Oh well, guess I need to refill it again. Oh dear, it keeps getting empty on its own, I can’t imagine what’s going on? Let’s try it again. Yep, see, totally gone. Just vanishing into thin air, totally not drinking it all. What are you even thinking?
Ahh.. erm I could use a nap.
Kharius’ Office
Kharius was going over his investigation notes for the 3rd time. He was more frustrated than he could remember ever being. He stared at the paper with Lilith’s name, paired with a mundane set of attributes and no abilities, and identifying her as Human. After several moments he slapped it down on the desk with a bitter growl.
He began to go over his notes a 4th time, perhaps in vain, he knew, but he was so sure he was on the right track. He went over the key points one by one.
| Based on Elicia’s encounter, she can have wings and/or claws, and sucks blood like a vampire, is seemingly not weakened by daylight, has Red Eyes, with White or Black hair. |
| She was able to escape somehow from the cage and room, while both were still locked, and incapacitate the guard with a spider that had red eyes, and swap places leaving him bound and gagged locked in her cell. |
| She was strong enough to rip the steel grating straight out of the wall but seemed unable or unwilling to fly away, possibly unable as a nearby roof was damaged by something large crashing into it. |
| Two ‘gentlemen’ in the employ of house Freedwell were found dead, one in an alleyway with possible claw marks on his sides, and a chunk missing from his neck, with very little blood spilled. The corpse of an unknown, presumed Nobleman was some distance away, seemingly dropped in a hurry. |
| A large pool of blood with no accompanying body was near the first dead Freedwell ‘gentleman’, presumably belonging to ‘Lilith’ due to injuries from the fight. |
|
The second Freedwell ‘gentleman’ was escorting an unknown woman in all black wearing a hood, of approximately the height of ‘Lilith’ back to his room, she did not talk to the owner, and neither did the ‘gentleman’ described as seemingly in a daze, the woman went to his room, where evidence suggests they had sex, somehow she then killed him with no signs of blood or injury, followed by ransacking the place taking valuables, then possibly leaving by jumping out of the second story window. The door to the room was locked from the inside with the deadbolt which has no outside key and both the tenant's keys were missing. A stained shirt, used by her to clean up with, was discarded next to the bed, the divining crystal returns the same information as the blood. |
Kharius flopped the notebook onto his desk and leaned back in his chair with a defeated sounding groan. ‘No’ he thought, ‘I won’t give up so easily. I will visit Humphery Freedwell and he will tell me what his thugs were doing that night, and he will give me the body he recovered from the rental house.’ Filled with Determination, Kharius saved— his notebook from falling off his desk, before grabbing his coat and heading off to visit the Freedwell estate in the city.
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Too Fast Votes: 2 3.2%
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Seems Good Votes: 51 82.3%
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Too Slow Votes: 9 14.5%
I'm salty that there aren't more chapters. take my 5 stars and keep writing please I love you
Don't worry I'm working on the next chapter, and I think I have a really nice direction now and am excited to write the next several chapters to explore it!
Thank you for reading!
Undertaaaaaaaaaaale!
Thanks for the chapter!
10 points to Hufflepuff! Er.. Scizorpuff! ah, you know what I mean!
Maybe a bit to much ramblig in-between the info dumps, but an enjoyable chapter.
Thanks for reading and for the feedback!
I might have gotten a little carried away, it was a bit fun lol. What started as a way to make the 'tutorial' more interesting was like, me imagining as Lilith read it, her getting easily distracted and rambling again, and Izanami possibly sneak editing it on the fly as she scrolls, hence the impatient part.
Hopefully, I can strike a better balance in the future with character rambling. In some way, I feel like, part of it is because Lilith can't really talk to anyone else yet that she's starting to talk to herself a lot more. I've been trying to strike a balance between spending hours editing vs writing, sometimes things can be rewritten so many different ways it's overwhelming!
@Freesia.Cutepearl i'm with you there, stupid language let's is doo to many things, so annoying!
I liked the idea, I mean it's hard to write or read a new description of some magic system every.
Your idea kinda kinda workers on me. I'm just always afraid of characters that talk to themselves all day and don't get anything done.
I mean, every word that the MC rambles could be used for world building, some action, or mundane thing that mc does and not only thinks. Tho, mc that just does, or only, discribes the world is boring to... So all things in balance?
Now I'm rambling... Great
@bakafennek I can't help but think about a paragraph from chapter 8 with a quote that I think fits Lilith to a T lately. "I goof off with purpose!"
I feel rather happy with my progress. It vaguely reminds me of how I felt when I spent a couple hours working alone on a problem in the office, and a certain someone would complain I was goofing off all day, but then I was the one who had solutions to propose. 'That's right Janice, I goof off with purpose!'
@Freesia.Cutepearl Try to get the ramblings under control.. nobody likes to read an mc rambling and musing like an imbecile child..
@WeezyF7 I do have a tendency to ramble a bit too much, personally, and Lilith does too, I do wonder how much I could try and constrain it before it becomes, not Lilith anymore? Something I think I can only learn with practice, I guess?
As for the "nobody likes" -- I have to politely disagree, different people have different likes/dislikes. Depending on how it's done, I've actually quite enjoyed it some other things I've read.
That said, if this whole thing was narrated in 3rd person it'd likely feel very different. So much of Lilith's personality is in her narration. The good and the bad. I'm not really sure how to balance portraying the bad and still having the narration be... well, more standard and less... Lilith?
@Freesia.Cutepearl im sorry for forcing my opinion. I agree some people would probably like it while i did not. I realize i tried to force my opinion/frustration on you/mc which is totally wrong, again I apologize and good luck with writing further
@WeezyF7 Thank you, I appreciate your replies, apology, and your readership and comments in the first place. I kind of feel like I've messed up in some fundamental way if I've given the wrong impressions of the story somehow/so much. I've been thinking for a while about the tags.
And the description blurb went through a few rewrites. It seems like shorter is supposed to be better, but I'm wondering if it might not be better to make it a bit longer and try to add in some commentary or some other indications of my intentions.
I really don't know.. ugh.