Trent blinked awake, combating the light suddenly assaulting his vision. It had taken him the full two weeks to get used to the school's automatic wake-up system, but he still didn't enjoy it. He groaned, enforcing it as part of his morning ritual, before unfolding into a bone-quaking stretch. Releasing a sound reminiscent of a Sonic Lurker, Trent stood up to complete his morning ablutions. Eventually, after a quick breakfast of a buttered roll that had appeared on his nightstand while he was busy, he left his room, angling towards the mandatory classes. He might have been excited, but he had been excited for the past two weeks. The start of classes barely registered over his general elation to be in the city for the first time.
He was ambushed in the hall by Joan, Isabella, and Terrance. The girls both looked clean and ready for the day, but Terrance looked like he had lost a fistfight with a wagon. His hair was disheveled, his glasses askew, and his clothes wrinkled. By comparison, the girls looked as if they had awoken hours earlier to prepare. Isabella looked Trent up and down, seemingly surprised that he was put together.
"Hey! Good morning! Sorry I'm late, I took a while to get ready." He apologized as the others turned to include him in their discussion.
"Hey there Trent, we were just talking about our classes for the day. I've got Laws and Ethics, and then Earth Magic Applications in the afternoon." Joan said, almost blurred with how fast she was moving.
"I've got Magical History, then I'll have Biomancy with you Trent." Isabella said coolly, before her grin slipped out. Clearly, she was excited for Biomancy. The enthusiasm was infectious, and Trent couldn't help but be excited as well, regardless of the source of his interest. He still hadn't told Isabella about his new appendages, fearing... something? Part of him wanted to, but a larger, much louder part kept drawing his attention to all the expressions of digust or fear she could possibly make.
Oblivious to Trent's inner struggle, Terrance described his schedule before casting an expectant look at Trent. It took a light nudge from Isabella to draw Trent from his thoughts. Jumping, he recalled his schedule for the day.
"I've got Basic Mana Control first. I kind of assumed I would need something for the classes, but I haven't seen a list of supplies. Did you guys get anything?" Trent asked, prompting everyone else to mentally search their rooms. They each responded with a negative. Trent sighed, realizing he would have to find out what he needed during class.
"Well, we should head to our classes. Being unprepared is bad enough, don't want to be late on top of it." He said as the group split up towards their respective classrooms. Trent's was fairly close by, just down the hall. He stepped up to the door, taking a deep breathe to prepare. He had longed to learn magic for so long, and he was finally there. He wanted to compose himself, lest he start vibrating faster than Joan.
The door swung open, revealing a fairly small room. There were 30 small pillows laid out in a grid pattern on the floor. About twenty of them had a person resting on them, all facing the front of the room. Their attention was fixated on the person seated there, hovering a good two feet above the ground, along with her pillow. A large board spanned the length of the wall behind her, scrawled with white chalk. directly behind her was the words "Mrs. Nevantel", evidently her name. Mrs Nevantel, clearly the teacher of this class, opened her eyes. She looked about middle aged, wearing a robe of deep blues shifting into purples. Straight brown hair framed her face, covering the arms of her small half-moon glasses.
"Mr. Gilden? Come take a seat next to Mr. Livery over there." She said, her voice stern as she pointed to a pillow near the center. His neighbour, Mr. Livery, smiled at him as he walked over.
"Hey there! I'm Tony Livery, or 'Mr. Livery', as Mrs. Nevantel calls me." Tony said amiably, sticking his hand out for a handshake, which Trent accepted.
"I'm Trent. Am I late or something?" He asked, a little concerned. Tony looked confused for a moment, before looking around the room. He laughed, realizing what had prompted Trent's question.
"No, not at all. We still have a few minutes before class starts, in fact. I was told that Mrs. Nevantel considers punctuation very important. The upperclassman who told me seemed almost scared when he warned me, and I didn't want to take my chances." Tony explained. Trent was about to ask another question, but bell rang out, prompting everyone in the room to sit straight up. Mrs. Nevantel waited for the echoes to stop before floating down to the floor. Once her pillow was fully on the floor, she unfolded directly into a standing position, form being crosslegged.
"Hello class. Welcome to Basic Mana Control. My name is Mrs. Nevantel, and I will be your teacher for this class for the duration of your stay at Vantall Magic College. In my class, you will learn to wield your mana as a blade, not a hammer. You will endeavour to make your mana a tool of finesse. You will not simply learn to cast spells, you will learn to excel at spellcasting. The greatest masters of mana control could turn a basic light spell into a beam of blinding light capable of leveling mountains. You will follow in the footsteps of these great mages, and the first step is to learn to recognize your own mana. I will have no tomfoolery in my class, is that clear?" Mrs. Nevantel concluded sharply, waiting for the students to respond. A chorus of affirmations sounded out, to which she nodded and sat back down.
"First, we must Spark the connections between ourselves and our mana. To begin, close your eyes and cross your legs, like so. This is called the lotus position. You will assume this position many times over the course of this class, so I would suggest becoming familiar with it. Now, with your eyes closed, I want you to imagine a small cavity, directly behind your navel. It is empty, lonely. Imagine yourself cupping the cavity with your hands, holding it gently. It is fragile, like a baby bird, and you must hold it firmly, but not crush it. Now, breathe life into the cavity, warming it. Once you have cultivated a suitable environment, the cavity will Spark, flooding your body with mana.
The mana then destroys and reforms your blood vessels, allowing them to infuse your blood with mana. This typically renders the individual unconscious, but the process is stronger the longer you remain awake. Should you last the whole time, I would recommend you take a cultivation class in your second year." Concluding her instructions, Mrs. Nevantel simply watched the class follow them.
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Eleanor Nevantel watched a group of 25 students attempt to Spark their mana. She had her eyes on a few who looked like they would do particularly well. The young lady at the very front of the class, with a serene look on her face. The woman much farther back, her passion for magic clearly on display. Then there was that young man who had nearly arrived late. He had the typical look of wonder that always accompanied students from the countryside, but when he started forming his spark, his expression slipped into one of fierce determination. She was truly excited to see who would surprise her this year.
It took 20 minutes for the first Sparks to take hold. The two women that had drawn Eleanor's attention at the start had Sparked at almost the same time. She casted a sound dampening spell on both of the girls, so as not to disturb the rest of the class. The growing pain they were experiencing was clearly visible, but released no sound. Five minutes later, the young man Sparked, the rest of the class slowly following. Eleanor watched her students, making sure any students who passed out would be taken to the healing ward immediately. She got her papers in order, stoutly ignoring the silent screams.
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Trent was elated when he felt the Spark catch. It almost broke his concentration, but he pulled it together, only for a searing pain to slam into his chest, halting his breathing. He fought to get himself under control, but the pain did not dull. If anything, it got worse, slowly burning hotter as it spread over his torso. By the time the fire in his veins had reached his shoulders, Trent had to clench his teeth to stop himself from screaming. His breath came shallow and fast as the mana spread to his limbs. His vision flashed white, but he held on.
His shoulders, biceps, forearms, fingers, burned from the magic rebuilding them. Hips, thighs, calves, feet, were wracked with pain. His tentacles twitched, crushing his torso slightly as he clenched every muscle in his body. Then the mana encroached on his head. His neck spasmed, jaw tightened, eyes dry, the pain having driven tears from them long ago. He screamed, his entire body crying out with pain. The flames in his blood reached the top of his skull, and it suddenly became easier to bear.
The pain trailed away, leaving a vague sense of power in its wake. Instead of a debilitating pain, Trent only felt a light burn, as if he had just finished a workout. He looked over his body, but didn't see any physical changes. Despite any obvious visual signs, he could feel the mana flowing through his veins. Wondering what had happened to the Spark, he pictured his cavity once more, only to see it was no longer a cavity. A small, roiling ball of blue energy sat where the empty space used to be. A sharp clap jolted Trent out of his reverie.
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"Congratulations, all who remain. You have remained conscious through the Sparking. Cultivation is the study of leveraging your tenacity in order to increase the power of your mana, and I encourage all of you to look into it for next year's class choices. Now, your fellow students won't be waking up for a while, so we will continue learning to cast spells next week. I encourage you to practice on your own, however. Just be sure to do it in a safe area. Your dorms are equipped with protections for this express purpose, but you should have a friend nearby. Class is out early! Enjoy your day!" Mrs. Nevantel punctuated her closing statement with a clap, before stepping off her pillow and vanishing entirely.
Trent looked around, noting that only three of his classmates had made it, before standing up form his pillow and stretching. He had been seated for quite a while, not to mention the excruciating pain. Joints cracking from disuse, he walked out of the room, weary down to his bones. Absently, he wandered his way to his dorm, collapsing into his bed until the bell for his next class rang out.
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Trent stumbled into the Biomancy room 5 minutes late, still not fully recovered. He looked around the room, noting that it had been cleaned sometime between the tour and now. He spotted Isabella waving vigorously and pointing to a seat next to her. He sent a nod towards the teacher as he passed before slumping into his seat. Isabella looked at him quizzically, prompting him to explain is uncharacteristic tiredness.
"Mana Control. Pain. I'm gonna sleep for the next decade, the second this class is over." He said briefly, resting his forehead on the table.
"Oohf, that sucks. I'll share my notes with you after class." Isabella responded, lightly patting his back before placing a notebook on the table. Trent didn't remember seeing her holding a notebook earlier, but he had been rather tired, and was currently in no shape to recall such details.
"Much appreciated." He grunted. The teacher clapped, drawing Trent's reluctant attention. Tall and gangly, the teacher stood up from his desk, though his slouch lowered his height by an inch or two. His face was shockingly handsome, looking almost sculpted from stone. His hair was a shocking white, and seemed to be waving in the wind, despite the classroom having no open windows. The most shocking part of his visage, however, were his eyes. They were a deep blue, but lines of gold raced across the iris, giving them a rather cracked look. His pupil seemed slightly larger than most, and was speckled with white spots, like the night sky.
"My name is Dr. Nertan, and I will be teaching you Biomancy this year. I have dedicated my life to the study of this beautiful craft, and I do hope you will be able to find the same joy in it that I do. However," He punctuated his transition with a clap, seemingly a favorite of the teachers at this school. "We will not be casting any spells in this class for the first week. At least." A chorus of groans rang around the room. Dr. Nertan nodded at the interruption, clearly having expected it, before continuing his speech.
"There is a litany of safety concerns and rules that the school board has levied against this class this year, after a number of imbeciles tried to enhance themselves in their first year. In an attempt to prevent such foolishness in the future, we are now required to run a weeklong safety course beforehand. Thus, if I catch wind of a single one of you little troglodytes trying to perform Biomancy on yourself, I will rearrange all your appendages." A couple of the students chuckled at the extravagant threat, before realizing that their professor was entirely serious, and also teaching them the practice of rearranging limbs.
Dr. Nertan gave the class another few moments to let his statement sink in before bringing his fingers up to his lips and releasing a piercing whistle. Like a wave, the seemingly normal desks demonstrated the falsehood of that assumption by opening up, in what looked like the gaping of an unsettling maw. Trent jolted off his desk, suddenly wide awake, and peered into the newly formed orifice. The cavity was red and fleshy, looking disturbingly similar to the inside of a mouth. Resting along the bottom was a well crafted leatherbound book. The colour was dulled with age, but the text on the front was still visible. Biomancy: The Crafting Of Flesh, by Notzral Kierkegard.
As much as Trent really didn't want to feel the insides of his apparently alive desk, the textbook within had piqued his interest. Gingerly, he reached in, lightly brushing the slightly moist interior, before pulling back with the book in hand. Trent grabbed it firmly, ignoring the unsettling texture, lest he drop it back into the desk. Once its cavity was emptied, the desk closed back up, redonning its guise of a regular wooden desk. Trent had been focused on the textbook, but most of the class was much interested in knowledge, and much less tired.
Shouts of alarm rang out as students kicked their seats back in an effort to escape the disturbing spectacle. Dr. Nertan just sighed, as if expecting the reaction, before drawing the classes attention with yet another clap. He looked around the room, noting the exactly two students that hadn't jumped from their desks in fear, if only for the oddity of their muted reactions, before convincing the class to retrieve their books. To a chorus of "If you can't look at a Mouth Container spell, how are you going to cast one?" and "Come on, it's not that slimy." the students collected their textbooks, albeit reluctantly. Satisfied that each student had their learning material, Dr. Nertal continued with his lesson.
"Excellent, excellent. Now, open your books to page 4 and begin reading from the heading "The Basics". I think we'll have... you, Mr. Tiernman, is it? Read this passage, if you would be so kind." The chosen student, a rather subdued looking young man with shockingly red hair stood up shakily, stuttering out the paragraph.
"T-the main difference between B-Biomancy and other magics is the need f-for a Focus. An i-item that is magically l-linked to the caster, having gained a form of sentience. This allows the mage to them to k-keep hold of themselves while casting. M-many a caster have foregone this crucial aspect and lost themselves to their m-magic, becoming nothing more t-than shambling... masses of flesh. Thus, t-the first goal of any aspiring Biomancer should be to create a Focus. T-this process typically takes around a year without instruction, but the w-words written in this very book will allow any mage to accomplish the task in around t-three months." Tiernman finished the paragraph, taking a deep breath before regaining his seat.
"Wonderful, thank you very much Mr. Tiernman. As he has just informed us, we must form Foci before we can get any real Biomancy done. In order to demonstrate what a Focus is, I will show you mine. Hector!" Hearing the call, a cane that had been lying at the back of the room shot into the air, coming to a rest in Dr. Nertan's hand. it was matte black, with a golden cap on the end. The top of the cane turned into a lazy bend, upon which Dr. Nertan rested his hands. The cane vibrated slowly, emitting a low hum. Dr. Nertan nodded, apparently understanding, before turning to address the class once more.
"This here, is Hector. He is my Focus, and has been assisting me with Biomancy for quite some time now. He has also been known to help out with more typical spellcasting from time to time, but he certainly prefers Biomancy, much like myself. And then, of course, there is his use as a mundane cane, a function that has proved invaluable when I spend a little too long at the tavern." The professor coughs, looking away, before continuing on.
"He originally formed due to my longing for stability, and for my passion for Biomancy. I've seen a large variety of Foci, from swords, to shovels, to a cloak. One individual even had a Focus that was simply a ring of keys. Let him get into any amount of trouble. Though this does bring me to my next point. Each Focus has an ability unique to it. To use they key ring Focus as an example, that one could breach any mundane lock. Everyone in the village he lived in had a magical lock on everything important to them, and quite a lot that wasn't. Should your focus be a sword, you might get the ability to swing harder, or maybe even have a daily spell. However, the ability is heavily dependent on the user, and always uses the Focus as a proxy. You won't get a shield that lets you just throw a fireball, however, you might be a lot harder to knock down while hiding behind it.
Now that I've properly explained Foci, your homework for next week is to simply think. What will you Focus be? What do you want it to be? What do you need it to be? We will go over the actual process of forming a Focus next class, but for now, think on it. Class dismissed." With those final words, emphasized by the ringing of a bell, Dr. Nergal walked to the side of the room and waved, the outline of a door forming straight from the wall. He walked through, letting it swing shut on its own. Once closed, the door melted back into the wall, leaving it pristine.
Students slowly trickled out of the room, grouping up to talk. Trent stood up, his fatigue returning, before Isabella yanked him around to face her. While startled, Trent recognized the stars in her eyes from anywhere. She had the very same look on her face when they were studying Biomancy. Knowing this, he braced for the onslaught of words, and his efforts did not go unrewarded.
"THAT WAS SO COOL! Did you see how Hector flew across the room like that? And the desks? That was so gross! I'm gonna be reading this book for the next month!" While she gushed, Trent steered her out of the classroom and towards the library. that was the agreed upon meeting place, so he wasn't surprised to see Joan and Terrance waiting for them.
"Gods Trent, what happened to you? You look like you fell off the Belltower." Joan exclaimed upon seeing him.
"Ugh. Mana Control had use systematically destroy and rebuild all of our blood vessels so we could actually cast. I don't want to move anymore. Actually, I think I'll just-" The fatigue finally grew too much for Trent to overcome, leaving him slumped over the library floor. Terrance sighed, but grabbed Trent's arms and dragged him to the dorm room. The others helped, of course, Isabella grabbing his legs and Joan trading in when Terrance ran out of steam, but the girls couldn't enter the men's dorm, and so contented themselves with waiting for Terrance to confirm his charge as resting in bed. Once they were reasonably certain Trent wasn't going to die, they headed back to the library, to discuss their classes.