Elizabeth huh? I hadn’t thought of her as the combatant type. I suppose she was using an Aether artifact when we first met her. Come to think of it, if you can only receive a class from somebody who has had it before, does that mean she had the Adventurer class in the past? Interesting.

Wren walked up to the desk where Elizabeth normally was. She was, like she seemed to always be, not at her desk but could be heard rummaging around in the back. Wren took a moment to prepare himself then rang the bell.

“Coming! Just a moment!” The voice of her muscular, manly form called out and was soon followed by her emerging. “Oh! Wren, how are you? Have you been fitting in as an apprentice fine? I heard you guys found the Dragon’s Highway. That’s so exciting! I remember when I traversed it as a younger adventurer.”

“As a younger adventurer? How old are yo-” Wren cut off his statement as she(still in manly form) gave him a razor sharp glare. “Never ask a woman her age, young man. Now what can I do for you today?”

Off to a great start. Already making her mad.

“I, well, you see, I wanted to get the Aether Manipulator class and was told that you could give it to me. If that’s alright.”

She poofed into her small form and gave him a big smile. “Of course dear! I’m always glad to help a gentleman like yourself. And I love when people are willing to take the dive into Aether studies. It is quite the fascinating field and many get scared off due to how complex it can get. Now where should we begin? There are so many possibilities. We could start with fundamentalist theory. Or the Agrean Laws. Or should I make sure he knows the basic sciences behind the-”

“Uhm, Elizabeth. Don’t forget that I’m here.” He had the feeling that if he didn’t stop her, then she would continue to rant about the possibilities for quite a while.

“Right! Right, right, right, right, right. Let’s start with giving you the class.” She held her hand up and an alert popped up in front of Wren.

Aether Manipulator class

Stats: +10 Speed, +40 Intelligence, +20 Luck

Abilities: Aether Manipulation, Aether Channeling

Requirements: 50 Intelligence, 30 Luck, understanding of basic Aether theory

Accept

Deny

Wren looked down at Elizabeth, “I don’t have an understanding of basic Aether theory. I can’t accept this class.”

“Oh, just accept for now. The change will take place when you learn the theory.”

Wren shrugged and pressed accept. Just as she said it let him accept but then another notification popped up.

Unable to finish acquiring class until all requirements are completed.

“Alright. So how do I learn basic Aether theory?”

“I’ll teach you. Pay close attention. The core of what makes up Aether is unique. In early days of Aether experimentation, it was thought that Aether was equivalent to lifeforce, and that by using Aether you would be using up your lifeforce. This was disproved by a pair known as the Agrean brothers. They revolutionized what we thought of as the relationship between Aether, living things, and the natural world. They stated that Aether is actually an individual source of power, independent from lifeforce and any other source of energy, like electricity.” They have electricity? First time I’ve heard that here.

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Suddenly, a bright light flashed in front of Elizabeth that blinded Wren for a second but when he could see again he noticed that she had created a small diorama out of energy, Aether, in front of them. In it was an ancient looking classroom with two men dressed in greek robes talking to a crowd.

“Based on this idea that Aether is its own source of energy, they thought up multiple laws that help us define and understand how Aether interactions work. These are known as the Agrean Laws. First is that Aether is energy. It has no mass and cannot create mass. Second is that Aether naturally disperse over time. Without a form of containment, it will lose its effects. Third is that every being’s Aether is different. It cannot be combined or merged into each other. On these three laws, everything we know about Aether is built. Does everything make sense to you?”

Fascinating. It seems they have a form of Newton’s laws but for Aether. But that does give me some questions.

“First of all, it makes sense. But I have some things I need to ask to make sense of it fully. For one, I saw Bella put a hole in a goblin’s head with a beam of what seemed like Aether. If it has no mass how is that possible?”

She nodded eagerly, “Very astute. That is a very simple form of Aether manipulation that is quite commonly used among beginners. The beam that you see is actually condensing the air that is in front of it to create a projectile of sorts, which then gets pushed forward by the extended Aether from the user. This is common among beginners as they will struggle to have their Aether last without being connected to their bodies, thus the appearance of a beam. True masters can have their air bullets be nearly invisible.”

“Alright, how about this. I saw a goblin shaman buff his fellow goblins. Would their Aether not reject his Aether when it tries to buff them as it cannot merge?”

“Great question! When buffing allies, your Aether is not actually interacting with their Aether. It is merely giving a boost to the capabilities of the muscles. However, because it is not contained it will eventually fade.”

“And one final question. This one is related to you. If Aether cannot create mass, how do you grow larger?”

She got the biggest smile off of that, “I’m so glad you noticed! That is actually a little test and trick I give new people who join to see if they know the difference. The truth is that the big form is my original form and this is an alternate form that I prefer. I store the extra mass in a third dimensional space when I look like this and use it to regrow when I am big. I’m very proud of you for noticing! Surely you’ve been approved to get the class now right?”

“Yeah, the notification popped up when I got my first question answered, but I wanted the other answers first.”

Wren looked down at the notification that had now popped up.

Before you change class, select one skill from the Adventurer class you would like to keep.

Locate

Storage

There was no doubt in his mind about which one to pick. And he knew that Javi would pick the same. Locate was too good to lose. Making his choice, he could feel the effects of the stats first. Getting a little quicker and his brain being a little clearer. He quickly looked at himself to see the changes.

Name: Wren Johnson

Class: Aether Manipulator

Strength: 55

Speed: 82

Durability: 47

Intelligence: 121

Charisma: 39

Luck: 101

Abilities: Analyze(A), Power of Friendship, Locate, Aether Manipulation, Aether Channeling

Titles: Agent of Frantal

But then it really struck him. He could feel something else. An energy he hadn’t known was there. Aether. He could feel it. He could use it. He pulled a little of it up to his fingertip and looked as his finger glowed with energy. He laughed and pulled some energy up to his other hand. Now each of his fingers were aglow. He touched them together and started pulling it apart, leaving strands of Aether between his fingers. He flung them up but they quickly vanished. He didn’t care though, he could do so much with this.

This was what he had been looking for. When coming to a new world he knew he wanted his life to be different. And now he could feel it. Quite literally right at his fingertips. Aether. A new power. A new energy to accompany him in this new life.