In her idle hours thoughts of creating ointments and other wonderous concoctions war in her mind with those of fulfilling her deepest desire, to finally wield magic. With [Mana Control] added to her list of Skills, Kori has a long awaited chance to acquire the [Spell Shaping] Skill. The Skill that bridges the gap between controlling mana and actual spell work that remains as the final barrier standing in her path to casting spells.

Oddly enough the Skill is not among those that Ortik has assigned her to learn under his tutelage, though that is of course not likely to stop her from trying. She’s unsure as to why the Skill isn’t on his list, her time with the mages having taught her that all spells needed to be shaped to be cast.

It must be one of the differences between elemental magics and spiritual magics. I do hope Ortik starts teaching that soon.

The practice method for this Skill is fairly simple and it is one that she had overheard being lectured countless times in the training hall. Combine sensing the mana within and surrounding yourself and directing it with control to guide it into the shape of the simplest spell possible, [Lantern], which creates a floating mote of light held above your hand, or wherever it was that you formed it. The spell barely more than a three-dimensional knot of mana, not so far removed from the simple bead of mana she was able to momentarily hold after learning control, just stretched and turned in upon itself.

Creating any shape more complex than a lump, let alone a specific shape, was however seemingly just as far beyond her ability as it was to corral that tiny bead of mana throughout all her months of trying. With practice she was able to maintain the floating spec of mana she produces for slightly more time, but still not enough to run out of fingers upon her hands if she were to count, not even making it high enough to need the second hand usually.

Over and over again she attempts to alter the dimensions of the mana in her grasp, each time it dissipated the same as the last before the shape can stretch, twist, or enlarge in any meaningful manner. Reminding her of her many attempts to garner herself the control skill, though thankfully without any repeats of bottoming out her mana. That was at least one lesson she did in fact learn on her first try. She even made a few rather futile attempts towards entering the meditative state favoured by the mages. Those attempts turning out exactly as all those that came before, and exactly as expected, unfortunately.

Each day she spent her time between attending to Spiritcaller Ortik, producing herbal remedies, both in her effort to attain the [Basic Herbalism] Skill or to gain whatever the unknown Skill that governs her ability to produce the imbued ointments happens to be, and to supply Elder Blonc, who was immensely pleased with the results of the testing from the first batch. Having found that each jar of ointment could furnish at least 4 treatments.

The rest of her days were taken up by her evening lessons with Vri, her bowl of sand having produced results within barely a week of first acquiring the skill.

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And her nights spent summoning her mana until she fell asleep, only to repeat it all over again the following day. The more she worked with the ointments, no other manner of imbued creations having been discovered as of yet, the more she feels certain that something is similarly missing from all of her attempts to shape her own mana.

When Ortik finally deigned to continue her instruction in herbalism, over a week since the last lesson, she had gotten a good sense for the three herbs that she’d been introduced to so far. Their uses and quirks and how to best prepare them, at least with her burgeoning skills, and how they may be used to treat the ill and injured. When he finally introduced her to a fourth herb, she was eager for a change of pace.

This new ingredient, Ashen Tuber, is unlike any of those she’d prepared before. Consisting of a tall pale green stalk that fades to a dried golden brown adorned with numerous seedpods encased in a hard shell when the plant has completed its lifecycle. Originally found deep, deep beneath the surface near pockets of intense heat the plant developed a symbiotic relationship with fire; it can easily be cultivated by burning the above ground portion of the stalk and the seedpods, causing the pods to burst open in a spray of relatively flame resistant seeds, and mixing the burnt remains with ash collected from the various hearths and cook fires throughout Emberscale Caverns, before spreading it across the prepared cultivation area, provided the temperature of the area remains sufficient during its growth.

This particular plant serves a much different purpose than those she’d dealt with previously. It is not medicinal in the least and she was informed it is in fact one of the foulest tasting plants to be found in the caves. Not particularly dangerous in any way, but also not something any of the creatures that live in the depths find in any way appetising.

The useful portion of plant resides below the surface, the pale grey root bundle which itself is much the colour of the ashes in which it grows. These roots bleed a sap when scored with a blade, a murky white liquid that slowly seeping from the wounds that has many uses. Given the nature of its growth, one of the primary uses is in creating fire affinity runes, something that she had watched countless times over her months with the mages, but it is also prized by the shamans of the Circle for its use painting ritual diagrams and binding circles when communing, or even summoning, the spirits.

The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

With the process for draining the sap from the roots detailed and, after a few less than ideal attempts when she cut too deeply, not deeply enough, or even just in an insufficient number of or improperly spaced places before hanging them to slowly drain, she eventually managed successfully reproduce the process. When she did, Kori found herself with a new blinking notification at the edges of her vision signifying finishing yet another goal from her list given to her by Ortik at the beginning of her apprenticeship with him.

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“Spiritcaller Ortik, I’ve gained the herbalism Skill. What should I work on next? Will we be moving on to spiritual magics?” Excitement and apprehension both vying for prominence in her emotions, unsure how well she’ll do, given her difficulty attaining the rest of her mana skills so far.

“Excellent Apprentice. No, we will not be starting Spiritual magics quite yet. You are not yet prepared to delve into the nature of the spirits, we will need to begin your mental resistance training before you attempt to reach out to even the most benign of them.”

She isn’t exactly sure how one trains that particular resistance and from the look on Ortik’s face as he says that; she isn’t looking forward to finding out either.

“There is another very important task ahead of you that must come next now that you have acquired both the [Basic Herbalism] and [Basic Calligraphy] Skills.” Ortik retrieves a pair of books stacked upon one of the shelves near the ingredients and herbs. “Your next task will be to improve your foundations in herbalism, this will both grow the Skill now and create a strong place from which it may continue to grow in the future.” Brushing some dust off of the books as he carries them over, “As a skill that focuses on knowledge, the best way to advance it is to learn as much as possible. To that end, all apprentices, when they can be trusted with a pen and ink enough to not create an illegible mess at least, are given this task. This rite of passage.”

As he lays out the two books, Kori sees that one is old and worn, its leather cover faded, scratched, and lightly stained by the passage of time, the thin cord of leather tying it shut smoothed by many years of handling, the second nearly identical in shape and size, but new and unblemished.

“This apprentice,” Pointing to the worn volume, “Is my herbalism tome, a book I began writing many years ago when I was an apprentice about the same age that you are now. It was copied from my master’s tome, who had copied hers from her master’s before her. In many ways, this tome is a chronical of my journey beginning as an apprentice and continuing as I grew into a Spiritcaller, and that of all those who walked this path before me.” A note of reverence present in his voice. “I have added to it over the course of my life, copying new information found by my fellows or adding to it myself from my own discoveries, which I in turn shared with them. I have even created an entry detailing your own creation.” His tone solemn and serious as he describes the book.

“Now it is your turn.” Pushing the newer volume towards her. “You will spend your coming days creating your own copy, faithfully reproducing the information I have gathered. This book should serve you for many years to come and someday may even be copied by an apprentice of your own.” A moment of what might actually be pride showing through as he speaks to her. “For the members of the Circle, our tomes are one of the most important possessions we will ever have, second only to our totems,” indicating to the bones, beads, and gemstones braided into the cord that hung around his neck. “Which represent the spirits we have entreated with and with whom we hold pacts.”

Pointing back to the books on the workbench in front of them, “This rite of passage will be the sole focus of your efforts for the next ten days. You will not attend meetings and I will inform Vri when she arrives this evening that your lessons are to be suspended for the duration; though I suggest you make use of her to offer guidance or check your work. She may save you from costly errors or misspent time.” Untying the leather cord and opening his tome with a gentle touch, the paper decades old but remaining in impeccable condition. “I expect you to finish creating your copy by the end of that time. Your tome must be written neatly and with precision, reproducing the knowledge held within to the best of your ability.” He idly flips through his tome as he speaks, a hint of nostalgia in his voice as he looks at each page. As he does so, Kori spies lines of neatly arrayed text and even drawings depicting many of the species of herbs, fungus, and other plants described on the pages.

Kori looks between the two leather bound books, seeing that there must be at least 200 pages within, though unsure if they are all occupied, and with the amount of writing and even images to be copied, she most definitely has a great deal of work ahead of her.

Ten days?! He can’t be serious…

“Is this really something that I can finish in just ten days, Spiritcaller Ortik?”

“It is not a matter of whether you can apprentice, you simply will. Most apprentices take as much as three weeks, occasionally more. But as I have said time and again, you are not to be most apprentices, you are my apprentice, and you will hold yourself to a higher standard.”

“Yes, Spiritcaller Ortik…” A sinking feeling in Kori’s stomach as she contemplates the task ahead of her.

I don’t think I’m going to be getting a lot of sleep over the next ten days…

“I will warn you now, do not dare mar a single page within my tome. It is older than a few of the other Elders and precious to me beyond measure.” His stern voice returning from one phrase to the next.

“I suggest you begin; I will inform you when it is time for you to fetch dinner.”