Mosh hefted his pack on his back, its weight almost negligible and not needing adjustment, a nervous tick. He eyed the forest. His pack contained a few days rations, his water bottle would remain full, so his most pressing need was someplace secure to settle in until he moved into a higher mana concentration area.
About to move forward, he remembered what Shiel had said and muttered quietly under his breath “Initiate interface.”
At first, nothing happened, and he thought he might need to speak out, to make it louder, but then the air before him swirled, a spiral of colours, randomly interlacing with each other. Some in solid waves, a few flowing ribbons of light, others just single points darting and flowing between the waves and ribbons. He watched, fascinated, as they coalesced before him and a voice spoke.
Candidate is in The Crucible, connection to the Mana Records is permitted. Connection initiated.
Welcome Candidate. Do you wish to have an auditory or visual representation? This decision can be changed at will. Please note that many prefer a visual representation to make detailed inspection easier.
Mosh looked around, seeing no one, realising that this must come from the interface Shiel had spoken of. He opened his mouth to speak, having made his decision but was baulked as text appeared before him.
Text representation is chosen. Candidate, please note that you do not need to voice your commands or desires to the interface, a mental decision is enough.
Mosh swallowed a bit as he read the scrolling text that finished, then just hung there. It can read my mind? More text rapidly scrolled across.
Candidate should note that the interface does not so much read your mind but the mana records. All is known to the records. None can read them except through their interface and the records of one are not available to another. No enhancements, spells, affinities, abilities or elevations exist to allow the accessing of records of another.
Mosh read it, the text vanishing as soon as he was done with it and no longer wished it to appear. Useful, pragmatic, and frightening for what it said about the mana records and how quickly they knew of his decisions. Not that there was anything he could do about it, he would just have to pray that the interface was truthful about no one else having access to his records. So, how to use it?
Candidate, to make use of the interface the most basic functions are to track your Indices, your Evolution potential, your Evolved tier and evolved effects, skills, and traits, mana, chi and psi abilities and any other personal development information that is relevant. The candidate is aware of more than the minimal information that those who do not have a Mana can access, the information the candidate has is far more extensive.
Mosh nodded, the interface confirming what Shiel had said as well as what she had hinted at. Now was not the time to experiment. He was on the edge of a cliff, and the clearing between him and the forest was not large enough for real safety. He would investigate the interface later, but now he needed to find a place of safety.
He moved slowly towards the trees, making sure to look up and to the sides, to not forget the instructions of Shiel. Don’t hyperfocus, don’t look at the sun and let it blind you even momentarily, remain aware. Never forget, that you live in a three-dimensional world, above and below can be places of reward and danger. He moved slowly, not seeing anything but hearing rustling from the bushes. It quieted as he approached the tree line, though the birds could still be heard calling out in the trees.
Mosh stood a while staring into the bushes, straining to see anything, to catch a hint of movement, a glimpse of something not matching, a break in the pattern of leaves on a tree, or even a too-perfect pattern. But he saw nothing, heard nothing more. His nerves were tight, stretched, and the stress biting at him, but he had to move in, the thin sliver of land between cliff and forest was too exposed, and not somewhere he could set up camp. Taking a deep breath, trying to relax his hands that were gripping the shaft of his spear too tightly, he stepped into the forest, the shade of the trees falling onto him, the thin branches of the bushes of the undergrowth being pushed aside b his leather armour clad legs.
The margins of the forest were dim, dappled sunlight coming through the forest roof. His feet sunk into the mulch, the coating of leaves and detritus from the trees, wet from recent rain, sticking to the bottom of his boots. He tried to implement the lessons from Shiel and tried to move silently, but he could not avoid the scraping against his leather pants, the wet sounds as he stepped, and the sucking as he lifted his feet. Above he could hear the flittering of birds, their cries as they called to each other. But the sounds of rustling had stopped, either the creatures below had all stilled, or they were quietly stalking him. He prayed for the first.
An insect bussed near his ear, he was about to slap at it when a whir of wings flashed past him and the insect was grabbed out of the air by a winged lizard. Mosh watched it swallow the insect and then let out a trill as it darted back into the trees, becoming invisible with its mottled green colouring. He stared trying to make it out and felt some kind of energy rushing to his eyes. The singing was not birds, but lizards. He berated himself for making assumptions. he had to remember, this was the crucible, not the comfortable family farm on Earth.
The candidate is being offered the Chi enhancement of
His first enhancement, and a useful one! It was what they had learned in school. Awakening improved you, but the enhancements came from practice and intent. Shiel had expanded on that. Outside of the Crucible gaining enhancements often took years. It was why mages, both mana and psi-based, as well as those dependent on energy even with a Body base, studied after their awakening as others tried to impart the best ways to activate their energy and its enhancements. Shiel had explained that activation was far easier in The Crucible, so he should not be too hasty and grab every enhancement as it was offered, but be more discerning. She had also stated, that sometimes enhancements came with evolutions and were not included in the Tier restriction but those were automatic and could not be rejected.
Mosh pondered his choice. He was certain that many animals would have sensory Chi enhancements, but to gain from that source meant first killing such a creature, which meant finding it in the dimly lit forest in heavy undergrowth. It also meant not knowing what Tier it would be. Gained by himself, it would be at his Body Tier, gained elsewhere and it would be at whatever Tier the beast was. Most likely lower than his own as he would prefer to have less risk in his battles. He needed this, even if it could be gained elsewhere later or if a better version existed. And as he made his decision, the words before him changed.
The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.
The candidate has indicated their agreement to the new enhancement. Chi enhancement
The energy in his eyes burned, and he felt blinded for a moment, his skin went numb, his tongue felt thick in his mouth, all scent disappeared, and the world fell silent. It was but a moment, but for a few seconds his body rejected all sensations. Then it rushed back in.
He almost screamed as he tried to adapt to the sensory overload. The dimness was suddenly lighter, colours were showing that he had not seen before. Sound battered at his ears, disorienting as he slowly acclimated to it. He could taste the air, the tastes of water, leaves, and pollen filling his mouth as he breathed. The smell of the mulch, and fragrances wafting from previously unseen flowers hidden in the depths of bushes coming to his nose. He could feel the moisture in the air slowly building up on his arms even though they were not yet wet. The scrape of branches and leaves more easily discernible, though not creating pain or anything like that, just his awareness of them, their placement, their feeling. Every sense was magnified, and for a moment he had to stop, take stock, and wait for his mind to adjust to the inputs from his body.
He waited, letting himself relax, growing used to what he heard and saw. It took time, maybe an hour, he had no way to tell the time accurately and the sun was not visible through the forest roof, but eventually, he felt comfortable enough to move on. He had been inspecting everything around him as waited so he felt confident that nothing was watching him right now, so he stepped forward, pushing through the bushes, only to feel something wrap around his ankle.
He let out a startled yell, not making the mistake of trying to yank his foot up, which would only have sent him to the ground as he would have slipped on the dampness underfoot. Instead, he reversed his spear, stabbing down near his foot, into the patch of leaves that looked a slightly different colour to those nearby.
A hiss followed, and a creature, more like a land octopus than anything he could describe, shot out numerous tentacles, trying to grab at his spear, his foot still trapped by the other tentacle, but seemingly safe within his leather boot.
Mosh pulled his spear up, the sharp edge cutting into some of the grasping tentacles, leading to spurts of blue blood as cuts opened. A shrill from the land octopus, its beak opening, then biting down onto his foot. It did not penetrate the hard leather, but Mosh felt the pressure, could feel it clamping down and not letting go. He noted the extra eyes that gave this creature 360-degree vision and knew it was unlikely to let go as it strained at its biting, worrying at his foot.
He stabbed down again, his balance ungainly but enhanced by his new Body Tier that Shiel had worked at getting him used to. Before the enhancement, before her training, he doubted he could have remained upright as the creature pulled and tore at his foot trying to force him to the ground as he tried to stab downwards.
His stab was driven with the maximum speed he could muster, more important to get through the tentacles to the main body than a bit of extra strength would have helped. His tactic worked, he felt the blade penetrate its body and push through to the other side. Even without maximum strength, it was strong enough to completely overwhelm any protection its leathery surface offered. He pulled the spear back, but the blade was stuck on the other side of its body, the wound misplaced as it writhed and its orientation changed. His blade not being up to the task of creating a new cut without any momentum.
Mosh heaved, the land octopus coming up from the ground, its tentacles flailing out, reaching for his body, with its beak still locked onto his foot. He knew it must be quite an amusing sight, a flailing land octopus, almost vertical as its body was impaled on a spear, trying to bite through his boot. He cursed, staring at it, wondering what he could do.
Inspiration struck, and he thought of some of the scenes from the Game as shown on Mana screens on Earth that Shiel had him watch, describing some of the weapon effects as “Mana Imbuing”. If it was easier to gain enhancements here, could he do so in combat? This stalemate could not continue. He could not move with the octopus attached, nor could he reach for his boot knife with the tentacles wrapped around it. Patience would probably be rewarded as it bled out, impaled on his spear, but how long would that take and what if some other creature arrived and attacked while he was rooted here?
He concentrated, trying to centre himself and feel the energy within. The pulse of chi as it circulated throughout his body was the easiest to discern, followed by the waves of energy within his head he was certain related to Psi. These two, intrinsic to his own body, seemed the easiest to feel, it took no more than five minutes but felt like a lifetime, the land octopus relentless, grabbing, and trying to penetrate his boot. Mana seemed more elusive, it took another twenty minutes before he found the traces of it, the whisps of energy flowing into him from the air, coalescing near his heart.
Once found, he concentrated on it, trying to move it, to will it into the spear shaft, to burn the octopus. It took another ten minutes, and he felt a stirring, the whisps of mana slowly detaching from near his heart to move towards his hand. Perhaps patience would be enough and he would win before he learned a mana technique as he felt the grip of the octopus loosening, but luck was with him.
Mana Enhancement available: Imbue energy. Does the candidate wish to accept this enhancement? Note: Candidate can only have a number of mana enhancements equal to their Mana Tier.
Mosh silently cheered as he accepted and watched the text change.
Candidate has indicated their agreement to the new enhancement. Mana enhancement
His intent was clear, he willed his mana into his spear shaft. Flames erupted, burning the octopus both inside and out as the flames danced around on its skin, and within its body from the flames on the spear shaft. It did not take long, and the beak opened in a screech as it protested against the pain. The shriek did not last long, and a new, though expected from Shiel’s lessons, screen appeared.
Tamnun Aretz killed. Body enhancement points earned: 2. Body enhancement points needed to next Tier 2/1000. Mana enhancement points earned: 3. Mana enhancement points needed for next Tier 2/1500. Evolutionary essence gained: 2, Evolutionary Essence to next Tier 2/6600. Evolutionary Potential Points gained 2, Evolutionary Potential Points to next tier 2/6600. Evolution offered: Tentacles.
Mosh shuddered, rejecting the offered evolution. He did not know if he would gain extra tentacles and keep his arms and legs, but even if he did, he had no desire to be waving tentacles around! He inspected his boots. The tentacle that had wrapped around the ankle had just left an oily residue. The beak had done some damage even though it hadn’t penetrated. Slashes and scratches marred the surface and a hole was drilled, almost breaking through. The fight was a good start, he had gained much, though the damage to his boots was a lot less auspicious. And talking about damage, he pulled his spear through the cooked body and inspected it.
The blade looked perfect, its forging by a master smith showing as it had no rolled edges, no chips, and seemed to retain its sharpness. He inspected the shaft, worried that the fire bursting forth from it would bring it harm. But it seemed the flames burned only outwards, and the shaft was not even blackened by the intense heat. He breathed in and prepared to start moving, but felt a wave of tiredness as he did so. He wondered why he felt exhausted, and the Mana Records answered him.
The candidate is suffering from mana depletion. Mana regeneration is based on exposure and Earth’s mana level is too low for rapid recovery thus the candidate does not have an expectation of short-term recovery. Crucible mana level resulted in increased regeneration, but insufficient time has passed for recovery to impact current energy levels. Mana was depleted on using the mana Enhancement.
Of course. Mosh could only ruefully mentally kick himself. We learned about energy depletion of all types at school, and that mana was much slower than other types to recover since it relied on what was outside of ourselves, unlike Chi and Psi.
Remaining alert, and after stabbing down a few times to make sure nothing was lurking below, Mosh sat down, waiting for enough mana to recover so that he could move on.