A Spark of Electricity

Chapter 4

Fineus was an interesting man. He was erratic and hard to understand sometimes, but he seemed to have an endless knowledge about elements and had an intense interest in Jack. Thankfully he didn’t ask too many questions about his past as Gant had, he just seemed interested in how he absorbed the element and anything he could remember about the experience. Jack did what he could to describe the event and sensations, but unfortunately, he lacked the vocabulary to describe the advanced feelings he experienced.

Jack could feel the power within him, it felt violent and dangerous. When he reached for the power with his mind it would react with excitement, eager to be released like a wild animal. Fineus told him he needed to meditate and learn to control the power. He told him that as his body becomes more accustomed to the element it will become easier to wield and manipulate.

He taught him a couple of basic training routines to help him gain an understanding and some control of his element. Just before he left Fineus pulled an extremely large and hefty tome out of his jacket. The book seemingly formed out of nowhere. This was common for Fineus, his jacket seemed to be magical and held all sorts of items in what Jack could only assume was another dimension. He threw the large book onto Jack’s lap. Jack winced as the book hit his scar. Fineus didn’t seem to notice, already lecturing Jack more. “Now, I expect you to have this book memorized inside and out next time I see you, is that understood?”

The book was pretty heavy, but with Jack not being able to walk he was actually happy to have something to read. He thanked Fineus, who only waved him off and said, “Knowledge is for everyone.” Jack now knew a little about the elemental cores, but he was happy to have Fineus give him a book with info on all the elements.

Fineus soon left, leaving Jack alone with Gant for the first time since waking up. “I wanted to thank you,” Jack said. “You have helped me a lot and it means everything to me.” Jack was embarrassed to say it out loud, but Gant was the first person who had talked to him like a normal person in a long time. Jack had begun to doubt his humanity because of how long it had been. Gant blushed, then he mumbled something about work and left.

Jack looked down at the large book in his lap. The book seemed like it had all sorts of interesting info, but he immediately wanted to know more about his element. Quickly he skimmed through the book until he found electricity. He learned that although not highly looked at, it was still a rare element, the second highest. The rankings would go common, uncommon, rare, and legendary. Not only that but elemental cores came in 4 levels of strength otherwise known as purity, and Jack also absorbed a pure core. The pure core was the strongest of the four levels. Elements would form in 4 levels: Partial, Crude, Refined, and Pure.

The reason a normal person didn’t have access to an element was because the average human would end up naturally absorbing the partial element without their knowledge. The partial element was completely different from the higher three forms. Partial elemental cores were naturally occurring everywhere and invisible to the naked eye. The partial element is an incomplete formation and doesn’t give the person any control over the element only taking one of the four available spaces. To absorb the three more refined versions; crude, refined, or pure, advanced rituals and procedures were normally performed. There were only a few recorded instances of an individual absorbing a refined element without a ritual and surviving. Jack realized he was now one of them.

Jack also took the time to learn more about how elemental cores were formed. The book he was reading was incredibly stale, but Fineus had said it was one of the most recognized and accepted scientific journals on elemental core creation.

Elemental cores are formations of ambient mana, and they only form in areas that have an excess of mana. They are constantly forming all around us and are usually in a partial state. Once enough excess mana has stayed in an area it will coalesce into a crude element core. If the core is left undisturbed long enough, then the core will turn into a refined core eventually turning into a pure core. The time it takes for a core to change into its more refined state is highly disputed and no theory is currently accepted. Some have argued there is a state higher than pure, but it has never been seen or recorded.

Jack was finally able to leave the hospital after two weeks. At first, he was completely lost. Even though he grew up in the city, physically sleeping on the streets many nights, he had never been to this neighborhood; It was way too fancy. Eventually, Jack found his way back to his little shack, the shack was hidden away in an abandoned factory. The factory at one time had been used for automobiles, but at some point, the company collapsed and just like Jack’s orphanage was completely abandoned by the government. He was able to build himself a livable shack out of the remaining material left around. The workshop seemed to have been abandoned in a hurry, lots of schematics and tools were still lying around when Jack found the place. Taking advantage of the workshop he lived in, Jack learned to create and modify machines. He would sell the modified machines, which would then fund his workshop to allow him to work on more advanced devices.

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His shack was small, the walls were covered in all sorts of schematics and design papers - anything he could get his hands on. Jack loved to design and create, and his shack was full of some of his favorite creations. He entered and threw the leather satchel he was carrying onto his workbench. Fishing out the large book Fineus had given him he fell onto his favorite old comfy chair.

Learning the basics of elemental control was enthralling for Jack. Being a rare element, the available literature on electricity was limited. Unfortunately, he was having a lot of trouble controlling his element and the techniques in the books were excruciatingly vague. One exercise was to coat a small item in the aura of your element. Basically, covering it in the element without actually touching the item. It was supposed to be one of the easiest techniques. But Jack kept destroying his pens and pencils every time he tried. He quickly switched to a small stick and other disposable items but they too kept being destroyed. Eventually, he found metal was the best, probably because it was a natural conductor. But even the metal rods would quickly disintegrate and get destroyed. Fineus had tried to explain to Jack that “you need to control the flow at a microscopic level.” This didn’t help him at all.

Jack was also able to get Fineus to give him a basic enchanting book. Enchanting was something Jack had learned on his own by reverse engineering basic contraptions. He had only been able to make basic enchantments due to his spotty knowledge. With Fineus’ knowledge and the wide variety of books now available to him, he was able to finally learn things he had been wondering about and trying to figure out for years.

Soon, the government gave Jack a proper flat and a meager stipend for living expenses. Gant made sure Jack had everything he required. Jack was very certain that Gant felt bad about nearly killing him. He visited Jack practically every day and regaled him with epic tales from his past. Jack knew most of them were overblown, but he still enjoyed the attention. Gant provided him with more information regarding the Royal Whispers. “They are a guild that directly supports the regal family. They are reputed to be the country's best elemental users.”

Gant decided to start instructing Jack in the fundamentals of self-defense. Jack questioned why he needed to learn to fight considering he wasn't a fighter. It turns out that the military has a significant influence on how the academy trains recruits because it is a mandatory requirement to become part of the military, after leaving the academy. Gant wanted to prepare Jack by forewarning him that school would be difficult. Jack had frequently had to defend himself while walking the streets, and after some training with Gant, he quickly improved his sparring skills.

To Jack’s surprise, he picked up a lot of the techniques very quickly. He had always been dexterous, but most of the time the techniques required good footing first and foremost. This is pretty easy. Jack thought to himself. Compared to running across the rooftops at night in the dark, while being chased.

“Before the start of the school year, you will need much more training and education to get you up to speed with your peers, luckily it doesn’t start for a few months,” Gant said.

The following several months passed quickly. Jack learned things he had only imagined. Sadly, not everything he learned was fascinating. Jack spent a lot of time studying geography, politics, and correct manners because some of his classmates came from families with high status. By the end of his training, he felt like his head was going to explode from trying to remember all the proper etiquette.

Eventually, the time came for him to go to the academy, and Gant seemed truly sad to see him go. It had only been a couple of months but in that time, Gant had quickly become like a father figure to Jack. Jack swore he saw tears in Gant’s eyes when they said their final goodbyes.

Gant surprised Jack with a departure gift, a simple-looking sword that was finely constructed. It had a small copper wire engraved into the hilt that swirled around the handle and up into the blade. The copper shined beautifully, accenting the smooth and shiny silver of the blade.

“When I went away to school my father gave me a present, and uh, I didn’t want you to go away empty-handed.” Gant scratched at the back of his head sheepishly. “I uh had this sword made for you. It’s got a copper inlay to help you control electricity in the blade.” The blade was a normal sword length, but it was thinner than the swords Gant and he had been using to spar. It was double-edged but the end of the sword tapered into a fine point, almost like a needle. The very tip was capped with a small copper piece. The sword looked absolutely incredible, and Jack was speechless. All he could do was hug Gant. After a few moments, they broke the embrace, both obviously trying to hide tears.

Gant slapped Jack on the back and said, “Well, you’d better get on the train before it leaves you behind.” The man’s huge hands were like anvils almost knocking Jack over every time he bumped him. As Jack stepped onto the train, he looked back at Gant and the city he had grown up in. Its industrial smokestacks scattered the skyline, and the smoke made the sky dark.

He thought back to when he had slept on the streets, and then looked down at his new school uniform and the beautiful sword in his hand. He never could have imagined himself leaving the city, let alone obtaining elemental powers. He entered the train and wondered what his future could possibly hold.