Chapter 22

Riley was back upright, holding a crust of bread between her paws, nibbling it meditatively.

"Feeling better?" Tobias asked; about fifteen minutes had passed, allowing Riley the time to stop randomly twitching.

"Yeah, can we do the rest today? I've never learned so much that fast! It's heady, a real rush," The prompt notifications were still there, demanding her attention, but she pushed that away. There was more work to be done and more to learn. It made sense to face it all at once instead of in pieces.

"If you're up for it, I'd love to see what you did," Tobias looked at her as if she was a tempest in a teapot, his eyes portending wonder and concern.

"Me too, that was one hell of a bright flash; circles aren't normally that rough, but outside of some First Tier shenanigans, I've never seen anything like that before," Justinian added.

All concern for homework and schedules was gone, replaced by a hopping mystery.

Riley, consuming the last bit of her snack, swallowed, "Alright, barkeep, hit me again!"

She held out her forelegs and made a chopsticking motion with them, clapping her paws together as if they were tongs.

Tobias chuckled and drew the second crystal up off the ground where Riley had left it.

"Now, go easy," he cautioned.

Riley took it, considered its prismatic beauty for a moment, then reached out to the new prompt.

Light flashed, and again, she was knocked back as the data took root, but this time, it felt more like a car than a bus, carrying euphoria in its wake, racing through her brain.

She shook her head, trying to get clear. A static-filled roar surged around, causing her fur to stand on end.

Justinian and Tobias both watched in amazement.

"That was a little smoother this time. Less bat to the face and more of a bad hit in a pillow fight. ANOTHER!" Riley felt insatiable; after a lifetime of learning the hard way, this seemed a quicker path to everything she had ever hoped to know.

"It's all in there, first position, second position for ritual casting, charts of times and tides for summoning… Spraga's dialectics on magical theory…" She rambled.

"You're certainly sounding more like a Calarian," Tobias grinned, looking again toward Justinian as they each shared looks of wonder.

"When in Rome and all that," Riley trailed off, shaking her head, trying to clear the tinnitus that had seized her.

"Or maybe not," Justinian chuckled, "she's taking it well, fast recovery time."

"What do you mean?" Riley asked.

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

"You're getting a few years of basics in minutes. Normally, your first three years each start with one crystal, after which you spend the rest of your year working with what you absorbed. That's how we learned, but we're in a bit of a time crunch here, so we're pushing a bit. All that aside, you seem to be handling it well," Tobias explained.

"It's a bit of a roar upstairs. My world is topsy turvy, but this is the raddest thing ever," Riley exclaimed, already eyeing the last crystal.

"We can be late for dinner Riley. This is fascinating, but it's not worth getting hurt over," Tobias cautioned.

"Are you kidding? This is the best way of getting beat with a club ever devised!" She said, already reaching for the third.

Justinian shook his head, "You've got a real live one with her."

"Don't I know it," he sighed and swiped the third crystal, holding it out for her.

Taking it, acknowledging the prompt, there was another familiar flash, but this time, the concepts flowed smoother, as Riley blinked wide eyed.

"That seemed better," Tobias eyed her curiously.

"Smoother, it was like the first time it was breaking down walls in my own head, new concepts challenging old ones from the old place, maybe? These crystals function by a method of magical imprinting, but the mind still has to process the data. That's what keeps it from being brainwashing. It's just information; you have to decide how to work with it, but I've got all these concepts from somewhere else in competition. I still know about electrons, what physics is, and all of that, but I also have an understanding of magic and ritual work," Riley intoned like a scholar.

Tobias and Justinian looked at each other, "Oh yeah, she's getting it!" They both said in unison.

"Let me catch my breath a moment," Riley closed her eyes and set her paws above her eyes, reaching out to her prompts.

The purple boxes surged forward.

You have absorbed Cram Crystal Level 1: Basic Fundamentals of Ashen Magic

You have absorbed Cram Crystal Level 2: Intermediate Fundamentals of Ashen Magic

You have absorbed Cram Crystal Level 3 Advanced Fundamentals of Ashen Magic

You now have a basic understanding of the magic of the Ashenrealm, allowing you an understanding of the basics of magical theory and manipulation. Be warned the knowledge of a thing is only the beginning of the path.

Riley dismissed the prompt and moved on to the next.

Your knowledge of magic has now unlocked your combat abilities.

Righteous Flame, Celestial, (Holy)- Shake and bake an opponent in the light of purity. This ability manifests an effect similar to fire.

Chaos Cracker, Shadow, (Offensive)- Hello darkness, my old friend! You can now utilize the forces of chaos to send a bolt of coalescent entropy at your opponent, unraveling their physical body.

Plant Whisperer, Life (Mixed)- You talk to your food; utilizing your abilities, you can cause plants to grow and, at your current level, control two, working them to your bidding.

Riley's eyes went wide as she accessed the last prompt.

Healing Halo, Celestial/Life (Holy)- Dammit, Jim, you're a caster, not a doctor! This area effect spell cures minor wounds.

Progression of all skills is now at 1%, and progression to level 2-1 is now at 10%

Riley centered and thought back to the first time she felt her magic and her meeting with Chadrick.

It was instinctual then, the power leaping up without a thought. It was a natural reaction to the threats and injustices she had perceived around her.

"But that hasn't changed; it's still an instinct. My emotions brought it out, though..." She pondered, reaching deep within, trying to think out the problem, but it was as if she couldn't quite grasp her power that way because it wasn't a thinking action.

"It's like my ears twitching, or the way my nose gets going when I smell something good, or the way I move. I don't have to think about it. Do or do not, there is no try," she thought, talking to herself within.

Closing her eyes, she tried again, going for a meditative place, recalling the emotions of joy at seeing the woman healed, how it felt to see the man fly in Tobias' after lunch class, and then the anger at all the injustice she had seen, and now could, potentially, do something about.

The power leapt up, but, knowing more what to do now, she did not resist it. White flame exploded around her, with rivulets of black shadow working their way through it. At the far edges of her peripheral vision, she caught the hint of spectral wings, massive in their scope, stretching out before her, as Tobias and Justinian dropped their quiet conversation and turned towards her.

"Holy shit, I know Kung Fu!" Riley cried.