July 23, 491 U.C.

Steel is such a fascinatingly useful material. We use it everywhere for all sorts of things. The atomic diagram is orderly and comforting. Enchanting it, on the other hand, was infuriating. I shot the shiny knife a dirty look. Why can’t this just be a nice grid too? With a loud huff, I leaned back in my chair and massaged my brow.

Stretching, I looked back at my desk. Then my fingers danced across it. On the off chance you are some time traveler who stole my journal, it’s the standard desk with a built in computer. It’s like a cell phone with a massive touch screen. The back portion was up against the wall, providing more screen space.

I pulled up the internet. Then I saw my game and smiled evilly. I deserved a break from studying. It was gaming time!

“How’s it coming?” Dad asked, poking his head in.

Spinning my chair, I met his gaze. “Terribly. I think I’m missing something.”

Dad sighed and walked inside. “We need progress, Casey. They will erase our genome and rule over us like tyrants! That’s why they killed your mother. That’s why they want to kill us; you are proof of that fact. That is why we must get magic. For it is -”

“Dad, no! I’m not getting this lecture again. I know we need it for this plan to work. I’m trying,” I said, interrupting his rant.

“Fine,” Dad said and stretched. He turned and glanced at my shelves. Like a kiltr eyeing a snake, he stared at the plushie of Jaqueline sitting on my shelf. The poor, cute plushie remained blissfully unaware of the danger. I, on the other hand, got doused with icy panic.

“What is that plushie?” Dad asked, horror dripping from his voice.

“It’s nothing, Dad. Calm down.”

His frown grew; he reached for it.

“I stole it!” I lied, vaulting out of my chair and darting in front of him.

Dad nodded. “Alright then. Be careful stealing. We can’t get caught.”

“Don’t worry. No one caught me.” The panic helped me sell my lie. I chalked it up as a win as the panic slowly drained.

Dad paused for a moment. “I don’t like it. We should get rid of it.”

I regretted not hiding it while I racked my brain for an alternative excuse. Then I seized upon the obvious answer. “It makes me look like a normal girl. You know the fae are searching for me. This helps sell it, Dad.”

Dad’s frown faltered. “That’s true.”

“Exactly!” I said, while trying to mask my relief. Dad studied me while looking for some tell. I kept my poker face going, which was absurdly difficult. I could see the doubt in his eyes.

Dad sighed. “Promise me that it can’t be tracked.”

“I promise!” I said without lying.

“Promise me that you don’t want to join them.”

“They’d kill me!” I said with a look of confusion. “Why even ask that?”

“Then why keep it?” Dad asked. “They want you dead.”

“It makes me look normal!” And feel normal. I left that second part out. It was nice to feel normal.

Dad’s brow quirked. “What else?”

“And feel normal,” I admitted.

“We are not normal.”

“But I want to feel normal.”

Dad rolled his eyes. “Why?”

“How should I know?” I asked. “I’d need therapy or something to know that. But you said that would be a very bad idea.”

Dad sighed again. He does that a lot. “Very well. You can keep the silly plushie. But if you end up with more than a few, we’re having another chat.”

“Deal.” I let out a breath of relief. It was silly, but I liked it. It was a reminder of fishing with a guardian. I had fun, and Jacqueline seemed nice.

I headed back towards my chair, scowling at my dagger.

Dad stopped me. “Now, the enchanting?”

“I don’t know. I think this book is missing something important.”

Dad grabbed the book and rapidly read. “You are using both spells?”

“Yes.”

“And the item has magic?” Dad asked.

“I assume so. It has been on Vuln for ages.” I gestured at the knife. “And I put my mana in it.”

Dad continued reading. I walked back to the desk and began browsing the news, wincing as I saw something about me again.

First Self-Awakened? Rumors on Vuln.

Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.

I skipped it and opted to pick another.

Magical Monsters of Earth! Attack on Adelaide.

I clicked it. Then a video began playing. Overgrown emus that were nearly three meters tall were running amuck. Their beaks had serrations. And their talons were massive. Racing up to a grain silo, they began trying to rip it apart. Sirens were blaring in the background.

They broke the thing open and started devouring grain, bags, and anything else they encountered. Then the sound of thundering guns rolled. The bullets knocked the birds over, slamming them into the ground. Half of the flock stood up and ran off while the drones followed from above, sending rounds of bullets into the creatures who slowly dropped.

Holy shirt! I thought. Earth is going to end up like Vuln soon. The sound of a book snapping shut pulled me back. I spun back to my dad.

“How would you give magic to something?” Dad asked.

“No idea. It just has it in it. When you kill a fish, it has mana.”

“The sealing spell? Do you need to engrave it?”

I shrugged again. “I don’t know.”

Dad frowned and contemplated for a while. I turned back to the web and went browsing. Finding Fred’s stream, I pulled it up. Then I blushed and closed it before Dad could see. Having a guardian on your stream is a great way to get views, and he certainly did. However, the thumbnail was me jumping while Jacqueline put her arm around me.

I contemplated trying to get that deleted while searching for some earth friends.

“Wait. It’s three-dimensional. What if that’s the problem?” Dad asked, interrupting my tangent.

“Why?” I asked.

“Is your spell in something else?”

I rolled my eyes. “Yes. You need to surround the enchantment.”

“Do it inside the item and around the enchantment.”

He had a point; I turned my focus back to my knife. I began repeating. As the final spell kicked in, my mana drained to nothing once more.

Dad watched. “Well?”

“We’ll see.” I studied the knife that sat there. “At least it isn’t radiating magic.” Picking it up, I could feel the enchantment. It would require mana to use it, but it is there now. “Give me a second.”

We both waited. Not giving it much time, I used my tiny bit of mana on it. The enchantment was blown apart as my mana hit nothing again. I groaned.

“What?” Dad asked.

“I just destroyed it. One second.” I shut my eyes.

“Ela!” I yelled mentally.

“Yes?” Ela fluttered out into the dark and grinned. “Ready?”

“Nope. How much mana does an enchantment take to use?”

Ela sighed. “Depends on the enchantment. I could analyze them, but you’d have to agree to let me tell people things.”

“Can you tell me how much mana it would take for a returning enchantment on a knife?” I asked.

“Yes. It depends on the quality of the enchantment. More mana helps with that. The best one will take two each time you throw it.”

“How much do I have right now?” I asked.

She smiled brightly at me. “About twenty-three.”

“Is that a lot?”

“No. We’d classify you as level two, which means you are new. You should get an escort!” she yelled at me. “Sign up!”

“Sorry, Ela.” I opened my eyes and blinked. Then I grinned up at Dad. “It worked. I don’t have enough mana to use it. It took all my mana to cast it.”

Dad patted me on the shoulder. “Go fishing.”

I groaned and nodded while he walked out. Standing up, I stretched and glanced out the window. It was overcast, but it wasn’t raining. Then a furious grumble echoed through the room.

Sighing at my stomach, I headed towards the kitchen, pulling out some fish. Yes, I was tired of it. Part of me was tempted to try to swap fish for something else. I mused on it while heating a pan. Then I shut my eyes.

“Hey, Ela. How do I summon you?” I asked.

Ela shook her head. “I have to give you a spell, but you need to be stronger.”

“Do enchantments wear out?” I asked.

“Yes, but it takes a while. And it depends on how much was put in. Yours would only last a few weeks right now. It takes stronger magic to make them last longer.”

“Oh. Why am I growing so slow?”

“That’s the nature of magic,” Ela replied. “It grows through you. That takes time. It’s growing little roots. Think of it like that.”

“And can I change it?” I asked.

“You can alter your internal mana networks. You have to meditate and guide them.”

I opened my eyes and tossed in the fish. The smell hit the air as I began cooking. In the name of brevity, I’ll skip forward a little. After all, you probably don’t want every random thing that happened. I don’t want to write it either. Instead, we’ll just jump to the complication that arose because of my fishing.

~~~

July 25, 491 U.C.

The giant towered in front of me. While I’m tall for my age, I did not feel tall at all. “Hello, Mr. Giant! Please do not grind my bones to make bread.”

Job mussed with my hair, sending the brown waves everywhere. “Why do you have yet another dozen fish today?”

“I need more throwing knives,” I replied, giggling at my joke.

Job frowned and pulled me inside. “Casey, what’s going on? You do not need a dozen throwing knives! Do I need to talk with your father?”

“Just in case, Job.” I winked at him.

“What does that mean?” Job frowned. “You should not be fighting anything. And you… My god. Casey, are you that Platinum girl?”

Panic slammed into me. Blood surged to my face. I tried to stop it, which just increased the fire somehow. “No,” I lied flawlessly.

“Right. I get it now. Shit.” Job started thinking.

Taking several breaths, I doubled down. “I’m not.”

“You need to learn to lie. And I need to figure things out.” Job frowned and took a seat. “I assume your father has been training you for years?”

I began setting down the fish. “Yes.”

“Well, that explains why he had me train you a bit. And how do you look different?”

“Amulet,” I whispered.

“I see. Promise me that you’ll be safe?” Job asked with a stern frown.

“I’m trying,” I said, gulping down my anxiety. “That’s why I need them.”

“Fine. All you want. Now, what lessons do you need? I need you to stop getting hurt. I think you need a lesson in tactics. You know how to throw. Why are you getting close to them?” Job asked, pulling me away from the fish.

I looked at the floor instead of his face. “I messed that up.”

“At least you realize it,” Job replied. “Use the range to your advantage. Don’t get close unless it will give you an advantage. It’s time to learn how to use a bow if you can’t get a gun.”

I nodded.

“You’re going to help in the shop so I can get you a bow. And so I can train you further. I want you to be as quiet as possible while working. Got it?” Job asked.

“Yes, sir.”

“Good. Follow me.” Job walked into a side room and began breaking down a carcass.

I joined him. Every so often, he’d point out when I made noise or used the knife wrong. Minutes ticked by while I helped him in the shop. He corrected my actions several times while we worked. And thus began my new training regimen.

Current Level 3 Current XP 1.39% Current Max Mana 24.45 Regen per minute 0.14 Growth Time (Days) 7.92 Potential Mana 4.50 Reputation 50

Tier Skill Cost Tier 1 User Time Dilation

- User experiences 4 seconds for 1 earth second. - Costs 1 mana per earth second.