How to: Mana manipulation, Part 1.

Silence returns to the tent, and I focus my mind on removing... distracting thoughts. Time passes slowly. The only sound is our steady breathing, and the occasional rustle as Ash attempts to make herself comfortable. I block everything out, all the distractions, all of my body’s intrusive messages about being too cold, all of it passes me by. I feel I am getting the hang of things, but I let that thought pass me by too rather than let it break my concentration.

Then, in the silence of my mind, I hear a loud “ding”. My concentration wobbles, almost drawing me from whatever state of mind that I’d entered, but I hold firm. A few more seconds pass, then I am filled with an overwhelming impulse to open my eyes. I am tempted to ignore the distraction too, but this one feels different. Unlike the ding, which apparently tested my concentration, this new impulse somehow feels helpful.

Backing up my gut feeling, aspects of my HUD appear in my mind. Apparently, I have 3 notifications pending. I smile, pleased that I have apparently finished the first step of my plan. Opening my eyes, I focus for a moment and open my notifications.

0----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------0

Achievement unlocked!

I didn’t hear no bell!

You took your first step on the path to enlightenment and didn’t falter when pitted against the dreaded ‘ding’ test. Good job buddy! Oh, and just FYI, the first rule of the ding test is don’t talk about the ding test. sharing the secret of the test to anyone who hasn’t undertaken the test would be a bad idea. Don’t… test us on this. Heh.

Rewards:

• You unlock the Meditation Skill.
• As this is your first piece of restricted information, you earn no further rewards. Prove that you can be trusted with sensitive information, and you may earn extra rewards if you discover more restricted information in the future!

0----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------0

Congratulations! You have passed the dreaded ding test. As a reward for your mental fortitude, you have unlocked the following Skill:

• Meditation (Lvl 1).

Description: Meditation is the art of achieving a mentally clear and emotionally calm and stable state by focusing the mind on a particular object, thought, or activity. There are many benefits to this state of mind, but for a fledgling mage, a major benefit is the effects on visualisation and restoration of mana.

For unlocking a Skill at the Novice rank, you have been awarded 50 Exp.

0----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------0

Achievement unlocked!

It’s not what it looks like, I swear!

You unlocked a new Skill that Isn’t related to sex whilst in the same bed as someone you find attractive. Awwww, buddy… there’s other thing you could be doing to pass the time, you know?

Rewards:

• +100 Reputation with ???.
• +1 ???.
• +100 Exp.

0----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------0

Everything is all smiles, right until I read through that last Achievement. Slightly stunned, I read through the description a second time, sure that I had somehow misread something, but nope. ‘That's… a lot to unpack.’ First, what’s up with those rewards? Increased rep with god knows who, and +1 to some unknown stat? Huh?!? And then there was the bit about sharing a bed with someone who I find attractive? Says who? ‘She’s my sister for god’s sake, I don’t see her like that!’

0----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------0

Congratulations! You have unlocked the following Skill:

• Lying to Yourself (Lvl 1).

Description: You are growing increasingly adept at buying into your own bullshit. Level this skill a bit, and maybe someday you’ll be able to make a jumper out of all that wool you’re pulling over your eyes.

For unlocking a Skill at the Novice rank, you have been awarded 50 Exp.

0----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------0

My mouth opens and closes a few times as my brain scrambles for a response. ‘Huh. I got nothing. Theres literally nothing I can say that won’t make me look bad here, good job.’ I shake my head, moving on with a small smile. Weird notifications aside, I had unlocked the skill I needed. ‘Now for step two, manipulating Mana. It’s nice to know I’m on the right path. The description for Meditation made that clear enough.’

I close my eyes and submerge myself in the elusive mindset that I had achieved earlier. Now that I have the proper skill, I find it to be considerably easier to reach that point. Not only that, but I am delighted to discover that I can now think simple thoughts without risking instability. Neat! Back in the needed mindset, I consider how I will go about achieving my next task.

‘The Skill description mentioned visualisation, so I’m going to start there. Luckily for me, I just unlocked a focal point for Mana.’ I form a basic image of my body in my mind's eye. Nothing complex, just two arms, two legs, and one head. My vague mental image complete, I focus my attention on the form’s chest, where, to my delight, a small, pulsing core has formed.

I focus on my core for a time, watching with interest as the little bundle of light brightens, then dims with a rhythmic pulse, one that I realise is in time with my heartbeat. 'Here goes nothing...' I try to grab at my core mentally, and attempt to draw Mana from it. Nothing happens for a couple of seconds. Then my concentration is shattered by a burning pain that forms deep in my chest.

My eyes spring open, and I yelp involuntarily. The sharp sensation slowly fades, leaving an uncomfortable, raw sensation in its place. I glace at my HP, and wince when I realise 9 points are missing. ‘That was pissing stupid.’ I repeatedly and rather thoroughly swear at myself internally as my hands form the gestures required for my Minor Healing spell. I finish casting and release the magic, sighing in relief as the spell sooths the pain.

Any further healing or self-recriminations are halted as I feel a hand latch onto my shoulder and joggle me. I turn in the arms direction, only to come face to face with a concerned-looking Ash. Seeing that she now has my attention, Ash glares at me and says, “What the hell happened? One moment you were lying there, breathing all heavy like, then you started whimpering as something took a chunk out of your health.” Her eyes roam around the tent’s interior, as if she were seeking invisible attackers lurking in the gloom.

Movement at the tent flap draws both of our attention. In a flash, a dagger appears in Ashley's hand, pointed at the looming figure of… Emily, who had apparently also seen me take damage over the party interface, and had come to check what was going on. Ash glares between me and her, then says, “Something’s going on, I can tell. You’ve been stressed out and acting weird ever since you came back in after that attack. You were gone for so long. I thought you were just comforting Em at first, but now I’m not so sure. Are we in danger? What are you hiding from me?”

I sigh, then gesture towards Emily, and back out at the rest of the campsite. There wasn’t long until Ashley’s shift started anyway, so she followed us out of the tent with only minor grumbling. When we were settled around the fire, Emily, who was clearly uncomfortable, filled Ash in, keeping her voice low. Ash’s expression of annoyance shifts into one of sympathy as the story unfolds. When Em gets to the part where I swore the Oath, I take over, explaining my reasoning, the quest I received (which was news to Em too) and the plan I have to cure her.

Ash listened all the while, a small frown on her face. When it was clear I'd finished, she said, “and why the hell didn’t you tell me? I don’t get why you left me in the dark.” I sigh, then try to explain my reasoning. “Are you likely to sleep now that you know?”

“Not bloody likely! What does that have to do with anything?”

“So, you’re going to be up all night now, yeah? So now that you’re up, what will you be doing? It’s not like we can run off into the forest in search of a potion or anything, it’s the middle of the night. Unless you have magical affinities useful for healing and can also help craft a spell, you’re going to be up all night worrying with nothing to do. What are your affinities?”

“… Dark and Air.” At her dejected tone, I sigh. “Listen, sis, I’m sorry I didn’t tell you. If there was anything you could do to help, I’d have fessed up and asked you straight away. Unfortunately, no-one in our group other than me has access to life magic, and I didn’t want to worry you without a way to help. I know from experience how shit it feels when something bad is happening and you have little to no power to do anything about it. Are we cool?”

She sighs, then nods. “yeah, we’re cool. Just tell me next time, even if there is nothing I can do, I want to know.” She treats me to a small smile, but a poke from the side draws my attention to a pouting Emily, “You never told us why you took damage in there.” Ash nods in agreement, adding, “Fair point, sis. What were you doing, Adam?”

I look between the two expectant women before I sigh and sheepishly explain what happened. After my explanation, I am treated to a short but rather heated lecture on the benefits of thinking before doing by Em, Whilst Ash tries her very best to keep a straight face throughout. Eventually, Em runs out of steam, and we decide as a group that my sisters would keep watch together whilst I focus on unlocking the skills I need to help Emily.

I settle in, intent on very carefully trying to interact with my Mana. I start slowly, with simple observation, and my patience pays off. I notice that teeny tiny motes of energy flow through my body as they converge on my core before seeming to disappear inside. I watch the phenomena intently, smiling as I start to realise that these motes always seem to travel along set routes. ‘Are these mana channels? Is that why it hurt earlier, I tried to draw Mana out of my core and into my body, but didn’t follow a set path?’ Excited to test my theory, I attempt to track the path the motes take so I can work out where these channels are.

That, of course, is when the motes stop coming. I wait for a time, but no more motes appear. Irritated, I open my eyes and attempt to work out what the problem is. I spend longer than I care to admit, trying to work out why the motes have stopped. The amused expressions exchanged by Emily and Ash were not particularly helpful, so I try my best to tune them out. Eventually, I break down the problem, then sigh as I work out what’s going on. The motes of light I had been tracking were my Mana recharging, everything had been hunky dory, until my mana fully recharged…

Shaking my head, I cast my healing spell, grumbling when I get a prompt informing me that I had no valid target, and that the spell failed. I consider briefly firing off my Ice Shard into the night, but think better of it. Instead, I borrow a dagger from one of my sisters, then wince as I open up a minor cut in my hand. This time, my healing spell works, and I go back to examining my mana channels.

My second attempt to draw Mana ends exactly as the first did, with me burning inside and trying my very best not to curse up a storm. After another couple of healing spells, I take a moment to consider what went wrong.

With my second attempt, I had tried to draw mana out at the point of convergence, but had failed. For my third attempt, I carefully draw mana out of the top of my core, rather than the bottom. 'Maybe the channels are one way?'. There is the sensation of resistance, but no pain. I grin ear to ear as I watch a little ball of Mana appear at the top of my core. I have a moment to pat myself on the back, before my whole view shifts, and I'm drawn inexorably inward.