They set camp later that night, planning to scout the riverbank when the sun rose. After going through their usual training regimen, Nick was ready to move onto something new. Learning how to control his passive ability well enough to use it in battle.

Each evening since they’d left the mine behind them, he had burned through a chunk of his mana training with force acceleration. He couldn’t afford to go overboard. Especially on days when he’d cast multiple spells.

He had to keep some mana in reserve in case they were attacked at night, as it was a critical component to his combat effectiveness, and needed to be full again the next day, able to bring his full power to bear against the countless dangers roaming the bog. Fortunately, his wand was still gaining charges on its own, at a rate of about one charge per day. By now, it was full once more, ready to use in an emergency.

While these were valid concerns, it was important that Nick learned how to use his new ability as soon as possible, because right now it was useless in a fight. He didn’t have enough control over his movements, and he couldn’t afford to jettison the mana it consumed by wasteful actions.

Right now, he would wind up impaling himself on his opponent’s claws or leaping straight into the bog, if he were foolish enough to give it a try.

The main reason why force acceleration was so tricky to use was that it didn’t just enhance the part of Nick’s body that was involved in whatever maneuver he was attempting. It made every move he made faster and more forceful, all at the same time. Worse, it offered him no protection against the power contained within his mana-boosted movements.

This point had been hammered home during his last training session, when he had turned his head to track a noise and almost given himself whiplash. If Nick tried to pick his nose while force acceleration was active, he would probably poke out his own eye instead.

Thus, his first goal was to learn how to turn the ability on quickly and reliably. His second was to wait until he needed it, rather than activating it beforehand.

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Too soon, and Nick would waste mana and risk losing control over his body. Too late, and the opportunity the extra speed granted would pass him by. Even when he got it right, there were some real restrictions on how useful the ability was, at least until he raised his attributes enough that his body could withstand the pressure.

Even with his high toughness, if Nick tried using force acceleration to throw a rock at full power, he risked tearing the muscles in his shoulder, possibly breaking his own arm for good measure. This wouldn’t be a problem if he knew how to use only a portion of the power at once, but right now, activating the ability was an all or nothing deal.

His third goal was to learn how to control his body more precisely. To flex only the muscles involved in his chosen movement and nothing else. This level of precision required Nick to deepen his understanding of the mechanics of motion, especially those used in evasion and swordplay. An extension of what he had learned while dancing to the alien music back in the safe room.

The best part about this step was that he could practice it without turning on the ability. It helped improve his coordination in general, taking him closer to capping his baseline dexterity.

The final step was a mirror to the first. Nick needed to be able to turn the ability off the moment that he was done using it, or risk unintended consequences. He had to learn how to stop using force acceleration instantly, rather than panicking, overcompensating, or generally making things worse. Like what had happened when he’d run right into a wall when he was down in the mine.

Some of this would take him months to master, let alone to use freely in the middle of battle. Right now, he just wanted to be able to take an accelerated leap back or to the side without losing control. To dodge a blow that would otherwise be too quick to get out of the way in time.

Once he learned the trick, Nick would be able to accelerate in tiny bursts to enhance his defense and heighten his mobility in general.

After training for a few days, he had reached the point where he could manage a short leap if he concentrated intensely, but his timing still felt off. Which was why he had asked Sophia to start throwing rocks at him, so that he could turn his jumping into a true dodging technique.

Even if he had more control, the ability wouldn’t live up to its potential until he could react on the fly to novel stimuli, instead of only being able to pull off premeditated maneuvers in controlled conditions.

On that note, out of the corner of his eye, he saw a rock flying for his face in a lazy arc.