Amy sat herself comfortably down onto a park bench, leaning back and stretching her arms. Rubbing some sleep from her eyes, she looked carefully at everyone passing her by, the morning traffic quite severe as everyone hurried to get to work. Even though travelling through the park wasn't the best path to the factories, some people still took it, liking the sights on their morning walk. As they walked past her, oblivious, she could see it in their eyes. The way they unfocused as they locked onto her, their gazes trailing off to look at some distant vista or peculiarity. That same oddity repeated itself to every person who walked past her, even those who didn't look in her direction. A person looking in from afar might not notice anything strange at first, but they'd soon recognise it, just as Amy did herself as the eye of her own storm. Like a stone jutting out of a river, the stream of people parted around her, unconsciously avoiding her completely and in every way. A Mage would have also struggled to notice the Magick on first look, the subtleties of the working uniting with the sneakiness of Unknowable to create a truly unnoticeable effect.
Taking in the grand symphony of Fae, Unknowable, and Mind, in front of her, Amy sighed. Witch's Cloak, version four, failure.
It had almost been a week since she and Felin had resolved to break into the museum, the date of her and Beatrice's next meeting sneaking up on her in no time at all. And in that time she had mostly spent it putting her head down and working, conjuring workings of various designs and concepts to see what sticks. Of course, Witch's Cloak was always one she was going to try and fully flesh out, but unfortunately there were still a lot of kinks to work out of the working before it could be turned into a proper Spell. Her lessons with William had also continued, him explaining the various parts of the brain to her, and, as she had managed to tease out of him, how her ring of Mind Blank worked too.
I don't remember the specific since Mind is all too weird and abstract for me, Amy tried to recall, but I think it involves amplifying someone's inherent feelings of loneliness and isolation into a truly magical effect, blocking them off from all communication. Just like actual isolation, it can be broken through, but it's hard, especially for those unspecialised in Mind Magick. The reason it begins to dull the senses and mind is because the isolation begins to affect inside the brain just as much as out of it. It isolates parts of the brain from each other, stopping them from communicating, and dulling the person's overall intelligence. This working in particular, actually, would be weak to a Mind Blank. Even with the passive concealment, it needs Mind to interact through that avenue of 'attack'. Without that path available to it, the working can easily fall apart if they just focus a little harder on me.
Resting her hands on her lap, Amy smoothed out her long skirt and touched upon the Magick all around her. It took the form of a simple, unadorned black robe that fell to her feet, covering her from neck to toe. It rested upon her like a phantom blanket, translucent to those with the Sight to See and invisible to mundane vision. The true Spell, as Amy theorised, would likely involve conjuring an actual cloak, one visible in both reality and the mana.
With her test somewhat complete, and not wanting to attract any unwanted attention from other Mages, Amy dispelled the Magick, watching it swirl in half-patterns and shapes into nothingness, a new fractal of forms entering her mind as the Ocean imparted its enlightenment. She imagined it disorienting for those around her; to go from ignoring someone so completely it was like they didn't exist, to noticing them, suddenly there, suddenly present. That definitely reflected in someone she almost walked into as she got up, eyes wide and blinking rapidly. All it took was a quick apology and they were both on their way again, although the man was assuredly confused by the way he kept on looking back at her from behind.
This was the same park she had visited a couple times before this, so it wasn't long before she was back in her room, the journey well known and well travelled. Felin, lounging on her bed, was there waiting for her, his ears perking up awaiting the result.
"Still a failure," Amy announced, giving him a sad smile.
"Hmmm... Perhaps the mistake is in the Tier cap?" Felin suggested, inspecting his claws.
"I could raise it but I'm not too confident in trying for Tier 5. I've only casted two Spells in Tier 4 and I'd prefer to get more practice in than try for the next one just yet." Amy said. "I still think its possible at Tier 4, though. It just might need some compromises. An addition of an anchor for the Spell, a physical cloak, would do wonders for it too, I imagine."
"Well... Good luck," He purred annoyingly.
"And you still don't offer any help?"
"No, I still won't. I'm your master not your nanny. I won't pamper you."
"Even if getting this Spell right means saving my life in a bad situation?"
"Well maybe avoid getting into that situation at all if you don't have the right Spell to escape it, eh?"
"...Fine," She backed off, turning to her notepad filled with scribbles and Spellforms of all kinds of designs. "And, let me guess, you still won't tell me what Fae Bolt does either?"
"No as well," He grinned. "That, I believe, you can learn for yourself. A part of a good Apprenticeship is learning to learn. I can teach you the hard stuff but the easy stuff? I'd rather leave that to you."
"It just seems like a regular old Bolt!" Amy threw her hands up in frustration. "None of what I tested seems to work."
"Well... All I'll say is that you're going to kick yourself when you learn the answer."
"Alright then," She shook her head for the last time, returning to her studies.
While she had experienced some of this already with Monstrous Visage, it seemed especially bad now that she was trying to create Witch's Cloak. The runes in the mana were vague and fleeting, able to fit together in hundreds of different ways, able to be taken in just as many directions. Before, she had Felin's assistance in helping her sort through the Spellform designs, picking out mistakes or pointing out dead ends in her thinking. Now? He was just watching, having refused to help at all the entire time. She had asked for it the first time she casted the working, confused by the frankly terrible results she had gotten, barely having any effect at all. Even still, he only stood back and observed. Amy of course imagined that Felin would step in if she truly was about to make a bad mistake, but even that she wasn't too sure on. He hadn't even stopped her from going out today to test the Spell and he cared about being inconspicuous in the city as much as Amy herself. There had been a trick she had learnt however through her having to do everything on her own.
Summoning her Record in front of her, Amy brushed through its pages, coming across three in particular. Now with her mind more enhanced than before, having gone through several rounds on many parts, she had managed to store three total pages in her Record now, proper paper and all too. Ignoring her question page for now, she looked to the other two, filled with strange shapes, similar to those she had in her pad, but ever so slightly different; almost as if the ones in the Record were real, clearer, than the other imitations. That was because they were. By immediately focusing on the runes she received from the Ocean, Amy found that she could transmit them onto the pages, imprinting them down permanently on the paper, unblemished and perfect. I still prefer writing them down physically too though. It allows for experimentation more easily. The ones in my Record are the blueprints, and the ones in my pad are my plans.
And then, of course, are the questions. Amy's attention turned to the opposite page, frowning slightly. It still held only one question, that of why Wizards could only study, or perhaps a better word would be specialise, in two Elements rather than just one or all three. She had theorised some things about the question, but strangely enough she felt reluctant to ask. Felin had said she'd learn things better if she figured them out on her own, so why not try this as well?
It could be a simple problem of time. Back in the Wizards' heyday perhaps there were people who studied more than two Elements, but now there's only Felin. He probably can't teach me as well as a whole School of Mages could. At the same time, it sounds a bit too simple. If he really didn't have the time, wouldn't he have just said it outright? Instead of making it all cryptic about my path. Another flaw in that is then why was I not offered just one? That would surely 'save' more time, if Felin was in need of it. There's something else other than the mundane solutions to this problem. So, here I am again, Amy grimaced. Stuck.
Amy had been thinking over the question for almost a week now and she had gained no further ground into it than the first day she seriously contemplated it. She had considered relenting, asking Felin about it, multiple times but something didn't feel right about that to Amy. It would be... unsatisfying.
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And he also tells me to figure out Fae Bolt on top of this. I get that my venture with the Elements is my own pursuit, but still? Really? And he just expects me to get the answer straight away. Despite my supposed skill in the Element I've only casted a few Spells from it: Familiar, Command and Fae Bolt, the latter two which aren't even really Fae Spells. I suppose Monstrous Visage and now Witch's Cloak could also count, but they're not purely Fae like the others.
Is it something to do with my affinity then? Since it's so high he expects me to get something as simple as a Bolt easily? All the Elemental Bolts have different applications, especially the Esoteric ones, and they're usually all obvious. This just seems too subtle in comparison. Maybe... looking at its other Wizardly Elements would help? Illusion 'interferes' with Fae so maybe it's similar to an Illusory Bolt? It can't be the exact same, so I doubt it's another 'make it what you believe it' situation for the Magick. If Fae and Illusion interfere though... what would be an effect, close to the existing Illusory Bolt, but different enough that together they'd be incompatible? I've trodden this same line of thinking before, but maybe... maybe it's worth linking to my other issue?
Turning away from her Record, letting it dissolve away into endless patterns fizzling out in the Ocean, Amy turned to her notepad, bringing out a pencil. Mages have affinities, both positive and negative. Some people are simply opposed to certain Concepts and others are more in tune. Wizards offer them three Elements to choose from, out of which they pick two. Realistically, an Apprentice Wizard should have decent affinities in all three of them. Why, in spite of their affinities, no matter how high, are they restricted? Is it something fundamental with the affinities themselves? Could it be... what Felin told me so long ago back in Triesen? That due to my high Fae affinity, I needed another one. Not a negative affinity, to cancel it out. But a complementary affinity, both as high as each other so that they form a balance instead. Is this what that pairing is? A need for balance? I suppose a trio of Elements could work too, but it'd be harder to get three Elements up that high let alone just two. One would be impossible as there's no balance there... Is that the answer I was looking for?
Maybe.
If what I'm looking for in Fae Bolt is not just similar or different but complementary to Illusory Bolt - hence interfering in some cases and bolstering in others - then what comes out?
A spark of mana flashing through her brain, epiphany struck.
"Oh, I get it."
"Hmm? Get what, my Apprentice?" Felin turned, a slight smile on his face.
"If Illusion is a variable Bolt, dependent on every observer, then Fae is an absolute Bolt, dependent on no observer. It does what the caster wants. It's similar to a normal Pure Bolt but with one key difference."
"And what is that?" He leaned in closer with a wider grin this time.
"It, like Illusion, and yet different, is variable just on what the caster wants instead. Illusory Bolt on the other depends no amount at all on the caster. It's like... a controllable Bolt."
"Correct," Felin confirmed, bearing his fangs happily.
"Then doesn't this make the Fae Bolt just a better Pure Bolt?" Amy asked, confused.
"I'd say so, but I'm obviously biassed so let's ignore my opinion for now," He said. "Fae at the low Tier is all about asserting yourself onto what you reasonably shouldn't be able to. Command is a key example of this, it, while not always being Fae-based, working best when it does. Again, my opinion; I know a few who'd very much disagree. At the higher end of Mageling-Tier Spellwork, Fae Bolt is limited in what it can affect and so focuses on itself. This 'reinforcing' effect of your own will lessens the greater distance the Bolt is from you. So, in reality, you only have a small time of adjustment for your Bolt. And, in doing this adjustment mid-Magick, you weaken the existing Bolt. You can't feed in more mana unless you're still connected to it, and casting the Bolt requires cutting the mana flow. So it uses the only attuned mana it has available and cannibalises itself.
"Another less-spoken detail about Fae Bolt is that even in its base form it has less power than its Pure counterpart. This is simply because of what the Spell is geared towards. In focusing on 'reinforcing' itself, the Spell has to allocate more mana for that passively. A regular Pure Bolt? It only cares about one thing, flying in a straight line towards a target. Simple stuff."
"Interesting," Amy said, thinking about some of the applications. Last second adjustments to the Bolt's trajectory would be very handy. It's like a Guided Bolt but obviously not as strong. Only Tier 2 for an Esoteric Bolt after all.
"Now, as a little congratulations towards figuring that out... I shall give you a hint," Felin smirked, seemingly triumphant over his Apprentice's success. Wait, why is he triumphant over my succ- "I recommend looking up a small Spell in your 'FPG', which I have no doubt is in there; maybe not in the exact same form but very similar. Its name is Handy Attire. It might be helpful towards your current dilemma."
And with that, he turned away, acting all nonchalant towards her again as if he wasn't just celebrating her deduction with her. Amy, too perplexed and well versed in the strange ways of the feline menace, shook her head and searched through her FPG's Arcane Repository.
"...Alright? I've already looked into clothing Spells and they've all... been..."
There it was. The Spell Felin had said and very similar to what she desired.
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Tier 2 - Handy Attire
Brief - Assume an appropriate attire.
MTR-Mana Cost - (Low - Medium)
Attunement Difficulty - (See Details?)
Range ~ (Self)
Description:
Find yourself dressed inappropriately? Missing that small fashion piece that would've made the outfit?
No need to worry. Merely conjure a piece of Handy Attire to act in its place, illusory
and semi-tangible, to avoid any possible embarrassment. There, perfect!
Casting Details:
Element - Illusion, Pure
Elemental Affinity - 8%, 31%
Previously Casted - No
Spellform - VIEW
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_______________________________________________________________________________
Is this... Advanced Illusion?
"...Advanced Illusion?" Amy said out loud accidentally.
"Indeed," The cat commented, still looking away. "From what I remember of the Spell, it uses old and reliable Advanced Illusion to make a detailed fake image of the article of clothing you wish for, and then Pure to give it some 'weight' so that it reacts to things. A hand touching it will still pass through it, but it won't be just a static image. It will react to your movements and the wind and your own clothing and all sorts of minor details like that. There were ways to tell it apart from genuine clothing but my previous contractor used it a lot. Forgetful fellow."
"This is..." Amy trailed off, her eyes widening upon realising what Felin meant. This is amazing. It has exactly what I need and it's through an Element I'm already somewhat familiar with. I didn't want to go through the Conjure Item line for my Witch's Cloak as it'd be too high Tier, but this? Low enough to not affect the Tier while decent enough to actually look like real clothing. "Thank you, Felin. This is perfect."
Felin only harrumphed in response, staring off into the distance once more, looking contemplative.
The Witch herself turned her attention to the Spellform, summoning it from her FPG. Mana swirling in her eyes, information swimming though her mind, decrypting the mysteries behind its strange pattern, she picked bits out of it, piece by piece, effortlessly merging them with the working's runes in her mind. The puzzle came together slowly but surely, each disconnected segment coming together as if reuniting with each other rather than joining for the first time. Amy knew that Handy Attire was going to be the Spell she needed the second she saw it, but the way it slotted seamlessly into what she already had only confirmed her theory.
All of it coming together, the picture becoming whole, Amy could only grin.
* * *
Beatrice was sitting on a seat in the aviary atop Janice's shop, fidgeting her fingers and bouncing her knee up and down. Her eyes darted around looking for something while focusing especially on the stairs up to there, waiting for the first sign of movement. It had been a couple times now that she'd thought it had been her, the loud creaking of the front door sounding out as someone came in but not one person came up. The sun's movement in the sky was lazy yet inevitable, gradually spelling out her worst worries. Damnit, she swore, scratching at her legs anxiously through her dress. I'm not getting any help from her, am I?
Sighing, she couldn't help but look up, away from the stairs, watching the birds. No matter where she looked, they were everywhere: flying, playing, eating and simply enjoying their lives, caged as they were. Her tensed attention wavered, less and less of her focus trained towards her surroundings almost as if something was blinding her. To Beatrice however, all she felt was the want to continue staring upwards, enjoying the sights. Getting her aid was always going to be a stretch, Beatrice lamented, but it's not like I don't have other plans. It'll cost some favours but I think I'll manage well enough-
Out of the blue, a figure suddenly appeared in her sights. Cloaked in bright darkness, sloughing off of her like a viscous gloom, she had appeared directly in front of Beatrice, blocking her view. She couldn't possibly comprehend how she had gotten in front of her, or even upstairs, without her noticing, but Beatrice was too surprised to think about those sorts of things at that moment. All she saw were those sharp green eyes piercing her black, horrifying visage, glaring down at her from above.
Amy's voice came unbidden, bright and light compared to the monster she was.
"Hello, Beatrice. Let's talk."