“Some say our world is a nexus point. The ancient druids used it as a staging ground or perhaps a humble halfway point in their multidimensional network. How else can we explain the sheer number of planeswalkers and other people of power that have passed through our realm?

The Ink Mage. The Golemancer. Flint Woodson. Myrina Woodson. These are just names from recent history.

Then there is also the matter of the godfalls and rifts. The divine’s reach supposedly extended to multiple worlds and dimensions. Why would they land on our world and settle their domains here? There is something special about our world, and it's not just because of Ygg’s presence.

Forgive me if this comes across as hubris or self-importance, but perhaps our world connects directly to Yggdrasil’s heart. We had magic long before the druids came to us or the gods began their tyrannical rule. Maybe this arcane power and connection to the source of all life is why the divine tried enslaving us in the first place.”

— Lorraine Woodson, Dungeon Researcher, Stone Gollemancer

Since it was still the first week, Nox had Thirday off. Nox and his party had already attended Advanced Dungeon Combat for three semesters and technically didn’t need to after the first—they technically had a pass, after all. So, Professor Wolfhammer gave them privileges like prioritizing other pursuits. They still needed to attend the Fifthday six-hour delving sessions, but those wouldn’t start another week. So, Nox took advantage of Sapna’s gift and free time and spent the day in her laboratory.

“I hope you don’t mind that I started without you,” she said when he joined her after a late breakfast and some time in the alchemical baths. The spatial bangle levitated six inches above the work surface, and several luminous wards covered the desk under it. Lenses of various sizes sat on spider-like arms, magnifying the magic accessory’s runework. Sapna had already done most of the setup. “I’ve been itching to get my hands on a real spatial relic for decades.”

“I thought you already had a couple,” Nox commented, looking through the magnifying glasses. At first glance, the bangle had appeared complicated. That was the case for most devices of the forgotten age. However, he recognized a good deal of the device's runes, syntax, and shapes.

“Cheap imitations with impossible patents and destruction runes for imitators. An Imperium artificer had them. The handsy bastard is probably in the ground by now. Mine connects to a secret underground vault I had built in the Arctic Wastes. The mages who constructed it for me are long dead. Only I know where it is. The knowledge will pass to my heir if and when I pick one.”

“You’d really let the knowledge of your fortune and life’s work die with you?” Nox asked, raising an eyebrow.

“I would,” Sapna replied. “I’m happy for you, Mou, and her children to inherit my wealth. However, my life’s work will only go to the deserving.”

“That’s fair, I suppose.” It felt odd as Nox studied the bangle’s runework closely. He recognized most of the runes etched into the metal except for a dozen or so symbols. “Is it me, or is it the most simplistic relic in your collection?”

Sapna laughed. “Simplistic? I swear that Sigil of the Artisan is the most unfair bit of magic I’ve encountered. The bangle is anything but simple. You might not be a practicing artificer, Nox, but you’ve been studying the craft, scripts, and runes with me for the past year. It probably just felt like input on the new-and-improved Ratra’s Bow, but you’ve absorbed old Ratra knowledge like a blighted sponge.”

“How could studying Ratra’s Bow help me understand old artificing? Is this an old Ratra creation?”

“No. An artificer couple made it. One was an ink mage and rune scholar, Udit Diya Sen. The other was a brilliant arcane researcher who came up with the concept of warlocks pacted to relics. The bangle’s magic isn’t just ancient but otherworldly. They came from another dimension a little over a century ago, with tales of a multiversal tower called Gaia’s Ark. Apparently, it gave them their magic and the ability to come up with strange arcane machines.”

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

“Udit Diya Sen?” Nox frowned. “The head of Spell Weaving is called Diya Sen.”

“Probably not a coincidence. I’ll bet my right tit she’s a descendant.” Sapna chuckled. “I never met them, but apparently, they had dealings with my father and grandfather. Perhaps they shared and traded knowledge. I like Oleg, but I would prefer him not to discover all our secrets. He thinks it's an ancient piece of knowledge and would like to keep it that way. Understood?”

Nox nodded.

Thanks to Sapna’s experience and Sigil of the Artisan’s gifts, the pair had little trouble isolating all unknown and strange symbols, rune pairings, syntax, and scripts. The hours disappeared as they ran tests with mana scripts in a warded isolation room. Nox also channeled his second star’s mana through a few of them but failed to get concrete results. Nox and his great-aunt completed their day of research without making any progress, but both ended up with several new runes and syntax for individual experimentation.

On the bright side, Nox got ideas for a spell that would, hopefully, satisfy Professor Reginald Dwight. It would also serve as research for his Advanced Mana Theory dissertation.

Nox failed to isolate the script that maintained the dimensional pocket or opened portals to it. However, he successfully identified the processes and techniques involved in the latter. Much like Manipulation magic, which dealt with pre-existing naturally occurring substances or concepts, it utilized mana cages. The bangle didn’t just Manipulate cages but also constantly Shaped them while doing so. In fact, the runes looked like an Animation script and demanded minimal intent-driven casting from the wielder.

The new mana cage technique demanded excellent arcane sense and control. It wasn’t enough to sense one’s mana zone but also perfectly control the mana within. Nox only managed to displace and expand his personal bubble by removing and creating a cage completely devoid of arcane energy. Removing all traces of mana from a region took reasonable mana control.

Nox wrote a script for a perfectly rigid mana cage whose surface acted like a mana filter. It extracted all arcane energy from within and expelled it from the sphere. Once completely empty, the space gained the power to displace the rest of the mana zone. After some thought, he rewrote the first half of the spell. It wasn’t enough to have a displacement cage. A rigid shape lacked the power of expansion, and, therefore, he had no control over the displaced volume. So, Nox made a foldable cage. Instead of a sphere, he ended up with an ovoid.

The second half of the spell controlled the second mana cage. Nox once again utilized a folding structure. The outer surface didn’t carry any magic. It only molded itself around the mana zone. It just needed to have enough give to accommodate the expansion.

Animation scripts controlled the two halves of the spell. He wrote several iterations, making each simpler than the last. Kris and Diya had taught him the value of simplifying scripts and detracting unnecessary sections. After all, if he wanted to produce a new technique, it needed to be uncomplicated enough for others to use.

The technique involved three reasonably simple intent-driven sections:

* Managing the foldable sphere’s size to change the volume of displacement

* Moving the inner cage, controlling the side of displacement

* Extending and stretching the external cage to affect the mana zone’s shape, width, and height.

“Simple concepts executed efficiently,” Sapna stated, studying the completed spell. “Do you know this could make the perfect foundation for the Fold Step spell you wanted to devise?”

“That’s precisely what I was thinking,” Nox replied. “I can only manage a maximum of ten feet right now without the outer cage unraveling. I know that’s not the biggest of deals, but I could give it a second purpose.” He scribbled two large dots on his sketched spell diagram. “If the spell locks on to where I’m standing and the furthest point before folding the space in between, then I could, theoretically, cross the distance in half a step.”

“First, we need to isolate the spatial runes.” Sapna sighed, glancing at the bangle. After a day of research, notes, diagrams, and scribbles surrounded it. She returned to Nox’s spell design and tapped on the inner sphere’s script. “I especially liked the twin folding spirals on the cage’s outer surfaces. Is this derived from an alchemy script?”

“Not quite. It's a part of my primary star’s core spell. The spirals serve as mana filters for Crystallize Essence. So, I reused them to create the displacer. It will significantly reduce the technique’s mana control requirements. The spirals also sit nicely on the mana cage. I can fold it without disrupting the script.”

“Clever. Accessibility and simplicity are directly proportional to popularity when it comes to spells and techniques. You’re on to something great, grandnephew. The limited applications and niceness might get in the way of a Scholar Arcanum award, but they’re pointless, in my opinion. Patent the script and charge people to access it. Get richer and build an even more meaningful legacy.”

“I like how you think, Sapna.”

“It’s the Ratra way.” She winked.