More time passes, the vast majority of it spent deep in meditation. With the concentration of mana in the surroundings increasing and my mana loss thusly decreasing, the pace at which I raced forward skyrocketed.

Naturally, it wasn’t all just fine and dandy meditation. The mana gathering formation lasted barely a week before breaking apart and leaving behind a slowly dispersing cloud of mana. I had to build it all anew of course, but I learned a valuable lesson. It’s more worth it to spend a little bit if time maintaining it each day, than spending a long time constructing it from scratch after a week.

I also took this opportunity to install another one into the caves ceiling. This reduced the lifespan of both, but I though it fair in exchange for even less mana loss while growing my soul. I still only had to spend a couple moments each day with each formation, so no harm done.

My optimistic prediction of a week for my second soul to catch up to my original turned out to be a bit off, but it still took much less time than I first thought.

Once they were each of identical size, the orbiting had completely stopped. Now, both of them stood side by side in my soul space, generating as much mana as I could force them to. And oh boy, how much mana it was. Turns out I was right, and the presence of two souls somehow added up into a higher mana generation than just adding them both together.

So, with my first proper milestone reached, I set out on the proper path to advancement. With a proper source of mana, combined with my boosting techniques and minimal loss thanks to my mana rich environment, I thought I could reach the original prediction of at most a single month before I properly advanced for the first time.

I sent the river of mana generated back to my original soul. Maybe I was biased, but it seemed wrong to have a soul other than my original one reach such a long-awaited goal first.

As more and more mana rushed towards the soul, it gradually began to grow. And as it grew, and once again eclipsed the second one, the orbiting began again. My original one remained stationary as it had always. The second one began to slowly circle around it though, at first slowly, but as the size difference increased, so too did its speed. I still wasn’t sure why that was.

Days passed, filles with meditation and formation maintenance. It seemed we were both focused on our own growth, Aiden and I. I spent all day inside, huddled in my little corner generating as much mana as possible to grow my soul. Aiden spent all day outside, practicing magic and spellcraft. We didn’t talk much, but we both sort of came to a quiet understanding between each other.

And yet, as it turned out, I wouldn’t need even the full month to advance. Apparently, I was already much closer and expected. Maybe if I could grow like everyone else, I could have set a new record for how fast I advanced. Oh well, perhaps it’s for the best. I am on a better path now, after all.

Anyway, advancement, yes.

As I was happily meditating away some kind of threshold was reached. My soul (the main, original one) lurched, contracted and then suddenly experienced brief explosive growth. In that moment its size increased by more than the whole time I’d been feeding it mana.

As it stabilized, it also solidified, appearing much like my own appearance. A sort of silvery orb. I knew that while it was still my soul, at the same time it became something more. A soul core.

Along with the crystallization of my first soul, something about my very being also changed. I felt more solid, more here, just more in every way. This feeling of being more was also accompanied by sudden desire. A desire to direct that more-ness in a concrete direction. And yet, something held me back.

Panicking, I scanned all I could think of to scan, looking for the irregularity that was the last hurdle before my long-awaited goal. I was so close!

My instincts came to the rescue. I got the impression that I cannot truly become more, and thusly something concrete, without having all of my being ready. And that’s when I realized I’d screwed up. Well, ok, maybe not screwed up. It was more of a minor inconvenience, but still.

Turns out that the very thing that allowed me to come this far was now holding me back. I would have to advance my other soul too if I wanted to finally gain a form and lose the title of unformed.

You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

So, I set about to it. Filled with restless anticipation it took me three days to notice that although my advancement may have paused halfway through, my soul core still produced the vast quantity of mana that I expected after an advancement. With it, this would be a breeze.

Of course, I still had to take some time off to fic the formations in the ceiling and floor, but that hardly slowed me down and just a week and one day later, I had finally reached my goal. For real this time.

The same thing that happened to my original soul happened to my second one. It grew and then crystalized into a proper soul core.

And then, as it finished forming, all the things holding me back were gone and I was allowed to advance at last. With my instincts free, I rushed head first into whatever process allowed me to gain a form.

And promptly passed out.

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Except that in the very next moment I woke up in a very familiar land.

The familiar mists of the spirit realms roiled all around me. The ever-present light shone without a source everywhere and I almost felt like in the very first moments of my birth. Almost. For a part of me knew what was happening and told me that this wasn’t the spirit realms at all.

This part also slowly became bigger and stronger until I knew exactly what I had to do.

I used my instinctual understanding and got to work.

The body which I had used up until now just sort of, dissipated. I caught the resulting mist like substance and reformed it how my intuition guided me. It’ll be my first body, so I need something stable. I briefly apologize to the big snake for not going with a similar serpent body, and instead form four strong thick grey legs.

For reasons unknown to me my instincts scream at me for the need of some mind of protection. Why would I need that? Nonetheless, they momentarily overwhelm me and a thick shell of hexagonal plates forms upon the main body.

The size of it all worries me. What if I won’t be able to fly anymore?! Or not even float? In my panic I hurriedly attach some black wings to the shell. When folded they are nicely flush. Hopefully that’ll be enough for flight if I do indeed lose my magical one.

My mind wanders off to the past, when I struggled to open Aiden’s dorm window. I need something quite dexterous. I remember a quite a few different Familiars at the Academy. They had a bird like head with beaks which they used to manipulate with stuff. Before I can properly think it through the changes are already made.

Something’s still missing though and since I no longer have much concern over its shape, I let intuition guide me.

Almost immediately a short tail sprouts from the back with a ball of fluff at its end.

And there I am, in all my future glory. I recall a book on animals I once read in the library. It described many animals and I wonder if maybe my instincts shaped me based on that.

Four powerful legs of an elephant connected to the armoured torso of a tortoise. From behind sticks out a short elephant tail and flush with the shell on its sides are two black wings. From the front sprouts a similarly black bird head with a sharp beak. A crow.

As soon as I accept this as my new body, the surrounding mist all rushes in towards in, locking it in this form until my next advancement (presumably) and strengthening all its qualities, making it more.

The last specks of mist envelop my new body and once I once more promptly pass out.

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This time though, I actually sleep. It’s a strange sensation, sleep. It feels alien to me, like something to be avoided at all cost, yet at the same time it’s strangely comforting and rejuvenating. Eventually, I manage to fully relax into this strange sensation and fall into a deep sleep.

Some time later, I wake up. I’m still in the little corner of the room, and yet things are still different. My vision, for one. No longer can I change where I’m looking just on a whim, but now I have to turn this neck. And yet even it is not enough and I have to turn my whole body.

Which brings to my legs. I shakily stand upon them, not because they’re weak, but because it’s my first time. I do manage it though and start turning around. It’s slow. So very slow. Ah, no matter. I suppose I have a wide enough field of vision.

Taking a couple unsure steps forward, I step away from the wall. So far so good. Once far enough away, I try out my wings. They raise from my tortoise shell, leaving shallow divots behind, and stretch to either side of me. Turning my head, I behold them. They are beautiful. Almost pitch black they almost give the impression as if they could wrap around the whole world. Magnificent.

Done checking myself, although I’ll need to do a more thorough one later, I finally focus on my surrounding for the first time as a creature with a form.

Everything seems a bit… smaller. Apparently, I’m a little bit bigger than I was before. The artful engravings on the walls made by Aiden have progressed a considerable amount. I must have been out of it for a couple of days at least.

Which reminds me. Quickly focusing on the mana in the room, I check the twin formations. They’re still holding on, even if only barely. Good, I’ll fi them later. For now, I have to show this to Aiden.

Leaving out cave, I enter the sunlight for the first time. Oh, it’s warm.

The clearing is much bigger than the last time I saw it. The edges show the usual scene of devastation, but nearer to the cave entrance it’s clean, all the logs piled onto one pile, similarly to all the rocks. Still, there’s no sight of Aiden.

Our bond pints into the forest, in the direction of the forest. Damn, that’s too far away. Let me see if I can figure this flying thing out.

My worries of losing the ability to fly are fortunately unfounded, even if I’m clumsier now. At least the wings won’t be useless and will help me in something. Ah, but actually. Hmm, yes. It seems a tiny trickle of mana is being consumed as I stay in the air.

I can live with that.

Anyhow, let’s find Aiden. I wonder how he’ll react to my advancement.