Kaleb watched, trying hard to maintain his concentration, as the orange glow of his Mana poured into Jar-lock’s armor. A cylinder of bright orange seemed to pour power down into the Ifirt leather. Almost as fast it started the tugging sensation on his hand stopped and the orange Mana ceased flowing. The image he had held in his mind was now imprinted, in miniature, on the leather.

“What the hell were you concentrating on, boss?” Daivor asked as he looked at the image.

Kaleb stared at the design, it was several images of a man moving left to right getting smaller as he went. Kaleb shrugged after studying the image for a while. “It was all I can think of. Look like it worked too.”

*Resizing Rune Imprinted*

Rune Image: 86%

Grade: B

Makers Mark: Yes/No?

Kaleb tapped 'yes’ on the window that obscured his vision and another set of windows came up. Looking through the windows he found his mark could be his name, a pseudonym, or a created image. Choosing created image, Kaleb drew a small Cheshire grin with pointed teeth and had it appear at the bottom right of his imprinting. Saving the design he looked back up to Daivor.

“Well now comes the big one.”

Daivor just nodded before he went back to his own work. Kaleb took several deep breaths, feeling surprisingly tired. A sudden thought occurred to him and he checked his Mana Points. Sure enough, he had lost 15 Mana imprinting the Resizing Rune. So he could channel Magic for free, but Imprinting cost him Mana points. He wondered how that related to Spells, but he would worry about that later.

This time Kaleb focused on the image of armor in his mind and placed his hand over the Protection Rune. He kept his eyes open, wanting to watch the entire process. He focused his magic on his left hand and watched as a bright yellow energy gathered in his hand. At the same time a red energy almost leapt up from the Ifrit skin and tugged on his own magic. The two Magics combined created the orange cylinder of energy he had seen before. My Magic is yellow? That’s weird. Kaleb thought as he maintained his focus on Protection Rune and the image of the armor in his head.

As he maintained his Mana flow Kaleb felt a sudden headache come on. Along with the headache, a sudden tiredness flowed through his body and down to his legs. He had to fight to maintain concentration as his right arm felt like it was growing heavier. Soon he noticed his legs going weak. He was almost about to collapse to his knees when he the bright flow of Mana cut off and another window popped in front of him.

*Protection Rune Imprinted*

Rune Image: 88%

Grade: B

Maker’s Mark: Auto

Kaleb collapsed the windows and checked his Mana. 10/100 MP. 75 Mana?! Kaleb was incredulous as Daivor walked toward the edge of the table, getting a better look at him. The bearded gnome looked bemused as Kaleb leaned against the metal work bench with both hands. He realized that he was breathing hard, and he figured if he could sweat, he would be.

“Took a lot out of ya, huh?” Daivor asked not hiding his broad smile.

“Yeah, you could say that. Damn near tapped me dry.” Kaleb panted.

“Whoa! That’s not good. Running out of Magic will leave you exhausted. But if you run out while imprinting then you’ll get hit with magical backlash. It’s the same with spell casting, going past your Mana Limit is dangerous.” Daivor explained, the smile gone from his face.

Kaleb looked up stared down at the leather not really seeing it. He was thinking about ways to raise his Mana Points. Other than continuous practice he couldn’t think of many other options. He looked back to Daivor to see if the Gnome had any ideas.

“How do I raise my Mana Limit?”

Daivor shrugged his shoulders as he answered. “It’s like a muscle. You are tired right now because, Magically, you went on a 5-mile run. Training and practice that’s the only way to get better. Use your magic as much as you can, not just for enchanting.”

Kaleb shook his head as he muttered. “I haven’t even picked a Domain yet.”

“So?” Daivor asked, making Kaleb snap his attention back to the gnome.

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Seeing Kaleb’s confused face the Gnome continued. “Why limit yourself? Magic is the fuel, all you have to do his decide how to use it? Why go through all the rigmarole of Domains and proper areas of study. Here, conjure a small flame or some other element.”

Kaleb was a little hesitant, his Mana was up to 14 MP, but he didn’t want to do anything too taxing. Eventually he settled on trying to make a small flame on the tip of his finger. He raised his finger up to his eye level and concentrated. He felt and saw his magic course through his arm, building in his finger. It took a little more concentration, but soon a small flame grew from his finger.

*Evocation Domain Discovered*

Set as Domain: Yes/No?

Kaleb let his concentration slip and the flame disappear as he clicked ‘No’ on the pop-up window. Daivor was smiling wide up at him as Kaleb’s mind raced.

It’s so fucking obvious! Why choose a damn Domain when you already have access to Magic! Sure, learning the spells is probably simpler in a structured format, But I have Magic! Anything should be possible if I have a general idea of how it works, it’s fucking Magic! With proper practice I could be able to use the most basics of Magic, maybe even more advanced stuff. I bet most players just go with what the system presents them and why not. It’s the way the game is set-up, why bother looking for another way?

“Um, Boss? You all right? You have a creepy look on your face.” Daivor said looking at Kaleb worriedly.

Kaleb was about to answer when he realized another pop-up had come into being in front of him.

*Secret Archetype (Jack-Mage) Discovered*

Description: A Jack-Mage is a Jack-Of-All-Trades in magic. They are rarely well-liked by certain other magical communities for their insistence on pushing the limits of Magic. Most official Magical libraries are closed to Jack-Mages and the Magical Council does not recognize them. They cannot chose Domains and may not spend SP to raise the power of their spells. But, they can use any spell and spell-type they have discovered or created themselves. Instead, Jack-Mages hold databases, written or otherwise, of their completed or in-progress spells and must work on filling the blank spots themselves. Many a Jack-Mage has been found dead trying to increase their own power.

Set as Magical Archetype: [Yes/No]?

Kaleb smiled wide as he read through the description of the Jack-Mage. He couldn’t think of a reason not to choose it. If he understood the other Archetypes, they let players spend SP on Skill Trees to raise the spells to the next level. With Jack-Mage he would fill in the Skill Tree himself, all he would have to do is find or create the next level of the spell. It all depended on his MP, the more he had the more he could practice and create.

He quickly tapped ‘Yes’ beaming as another notification window popped into being.

*Secret Archetype (Jack-Mage) chosen*

Wizard (Community) Affinity changed to Friendly

Sorcerer (Community) Affinity changed to Unfriendly

Warlock (Community) Affinity changed to Neutral

Spell Book cost raised by 20%

Magically Backlash Damage increased by 15%

Spell book Tab added to Character Page

Set a Sanctum: [Yes/No]?

Warning: You can choose Only one Sanctum at this time. Learn more about Sanctums to create more.

Kaleb dove into his Character Page as Daivor looked on worriedly. He found the Spell Book tab and glanced through it. He had the Enchantment spells he had used, along with the Fire [Tiny] spell he had used on his finger. A few pages over he found Daivor’s own page, complete with grayed out level up buttons. It listed Daivor as a Level 2 Builder Gnome but, unlike Kaleb’s skill list, Daivor only had a few Skills and Abilities.

Crafting 2–Anything from crafting with wood and stone to high-end construction. Building things is the Builder Gnomes bread and butter. Swords, armor, electronics, jewelry… etc. if hands can build it, then the Builder Gnomes know how.

Alarm 1–The Builder Gnome can sound an unpleasant warning signal whenever his workshop and master are under attack.

Unseen 2–The Builder Gnome can go unseen if it wishes and if it still has Mana left. This ability is free to use if the Gnome is in his Workshop.

Magic Dust 2–Allows the Builder Gnome to converse with their master or their chosen companion. Its creation is a secret held only by the races who use it.

Magical Knowledge 4–Builder Gnomes are granted increased knowledge about Magical effects and spells. But only when they pertain to crafting and the materials used therein.

Banish from Workshop–A Builder Gnome can banish beings who wish them or their master harm from their workshop. Only works if the Builder Gnome’s Mana is greater than the one being banished.

“Boss! Snap out of it, Damn it!” Daivor yelled as Kaleb felt something smack into his chest.

He looked down to see a bolt rolling around the floor and looked back up in time to see the Gnome rearing back for another throw. Kaleb quickly threw his hand up, stopping Daivor. He supposed the last thing Daivor had seen before he went through his menus was Kaleb deep in thought.

“Whoa! Sorry got lost in my own thoughts. Your talk about Domains and not being held to a certain outlook shook things up for me. Made me think about this whole Magic business and how I handle it.” Kaleb smiled as he thought about his recent choice.

Daivor looked Kaleb up and down. “Still seem like the same idiot lizard. So what were you thinking so damn hard about?”

Another Notification window came up as Kaleb smiled a tooth-filled grin and answered his diminutive friend. “The possibilities, Daivor. I was thinking of all the possibilities.”

*Congratulations*

You are the 10th player to unlock a Secret Archetype. The system will generate and send an award equal and related to the Archetype unlocked: Jack-Mage. The System will generate an announcement. Would you like to share your name and the Archetype discovered?

[Yes/No]?