I put on my shoes and get ready to go. I throw some food, one of the handguns, the machete, my wallet, and keys into my bag. I head out the door after receiving a kiss from my wife. As I start jogging down the road, I activate my first Class spell, Earth Strider. At first, nothing seems to happen for the first three hundred yards, but then everything suddenly speeds up. It's not as if everything is blurring; it's more like if I were to stop jogging, I would come to an immediate halt.
Reaching the front of Jake's house, a jog that usually takes me 10 minutes now only takes 2 minutes. I notice a normal amount of smoke coming from the back of the house and hear the sound of metal pounding against metal. I check the area as I make my way around to the back. There, I find Jake shirtless, wearing his Workshop shirt, vigorously hammering what appears to be an ax head.
I walk over to the waiting pole and flip the light switch. A blinking light appears above the forge, and about a minute later, Jake notices it, turns around, and sees me. He tosses the piece he's working on back into the forge, rekindles the heat, and then greets me.
"Hey, brother! It's been a hella long time. What brings you around?" Jake says.
"I was getting worried about you, man. You haven't been responding to any of my calls," I say.
"Y'know, I never check it when I'm workin'. I've been goin' at it for the past 3 hours, tryin' out new designs. This system has inspired me in so many different ways to up my blacksmithin' game. A few beasts attacked me, but I quickly dispatched 'em with the rifle I keep in the shop," Jake excitedly explains.
"Well, you know how you asked me what brings me around? Turns out, some of our people are going to be teleported to a city called Ursa. My wife, along with her two work friends, is among them. I was hoping you might have some weapons to better ensure their survival in a different world," I explain.
"That's a lotta take in. Sorry to hear that. Do ya know when they'll be teleported away? I assume this world they're talkin' 'bout is Radigar?" Jake responds.
"Yeah, tomorrow at noon. They have 24 hours from noon today. I was hoping to swing by and see if I could either pick up some weapons you've already made or commission some to be made on short notice," I reply.
"Damn, man. Of course! What kinda weapons do they want? I got some swords and axes already prepared," Jake offers.
"You know what, that's a really good question, and one I forgot to ask before I left. How about you start forging, and I'll give him a call to see what kind of weapons they might want. However, I do have a question regarding a couple of items I harvested from a massive Elemental Bull," I say as I pull out the horns.
Item: Horns of the Elemental Bull. These horns are from an Elemental Bull whose elements were Earth and Metal. Each horn weighs about 5 lb and is made from solid stone with veins of metal running throughout.
"I was hoping you could do something with these. So, while I make the call, how about you take a look at them?" I suggest, placing the horns on the table.
"These are real unusual and incredibly heavy. Seems like they got a metal core. My metallurgy skill ain't high enough to determine the type of metal yet. Gonna have to run some tests. Gotta remove a small section from the bottom of the horn," Jake says, his eyes filled with excitement.
"Of course, brother. As you can see, they're still attached to the skull. If you want to clean them up, you can remove a little from the bottom," I reply, turning to walk towards the front of the house. I pull out my cell phone and call my wife. She answers and says, "Hey honey, how's it going? Did you make it there safely?"
"I didn't encounter a single monster during the entire jog. It only took me about 2 minutes. This new spell seriously kicks ass. I called because I found Jake. He wants to know what kind of weapons you all would like," I explain. I hear them conversing in the background, and after a couple of minutes, they come back to me with a list of weapons they would be interested in acquiring.
"Sounds great. Jake has a few swords and axes available. Are we ready to go? I'll see if he can make a mace and a warhammer. Is everyone okay with using the bullhorns to create weapons? I just want to make sure everyone's on board with turning the loot into weapons," I ask. Valerie consults with the others, and they express their curiosity about the weapons that could be crafted from the bullhorns.
I make my way around the house to the back and see Jake standing there with one of the horns. He's using an angle grinder to remove the remaining bits of the skull attached to the horn. I approach the table, observing his work. Once the skull is removed from the base of the horn, a fractal pattern becomes visible, with layers of stone and metal forming concentric spirals at the center of the horn.
Jake takes the angle grinder and attempts to cut off the bottom half inch of the horn. The blade emits a loud, piercing shriek as it struggles to penetrate the horn. Jake looks surprised.
Jake realizes that his angle grinder is not up to the task, so he takes it over to his band saw and starts cutting into the horn. It's slow going, with sparks flying, but eventually, he manages to cut through the first half inch of the horn.
Examining the piece of horn, Jake remarks, "This is some real strong stuff ya got here. Didn't think a material could be this hard, especially coming from somethin' livin'. Ya got this off an Elemental Bull."
"Indeed, me and the ladies took it down earlier today. So, I've got the list of weapons they would like to pick up, if that's alright. They're looking for three short swords, two axes, a mace, and a warhammer," I inform Jake.
Jake nods and replies, "I got plenty of short swords, and I got a couple of axes lyin' around. They're all serviceable, nothin' fancy. I do have a winged mace, but unfortunately, I don't have a Warhammer. By the way, this horn is really somethin' else. I reckon it might be able to push me through my first skill cap at 30."
I look at him in astonishment and ask, "How are you already at level 30 in blacksmithing?"
Actually, I've been a blacksmith for almost 15 years. While incorporating magic and bein' able to inspect items for durability and stats is new, the art of blacksmithin' itself ain't new to me. Turns out, all ya gotta do is prove your skill by crafting or creating somethin', and the system rewards ya with skill levels based on the quality of yer work. This has increased my blacksmithin' skill and speed, as well as the quality of items I can produce. I recently hit a bottleneck at level 29, and nothin' I do seems to make a difference. But I reckon incorporating some aspect of magic or something magical into my blacksmithin' might help me surpass this level," Jake explains as he begins to pull out the requested weapons.
I inspect each weapon laid out on the table, carefully examining their craftsmanship and details.
"These may be described as 'nothing fancy' or 'serviceable,' but they're truly awesome. How much do I owe you for the lot?" I ask, taking out my phone.
"500 should cover all five items and 'nother hundred for the Warhammer. I can have everythin' ready by tomorrow mornin'. Let's say 9 a.m.," Jake suggests.
I transfer the money to him without any haggling. Typically, items like these would go for twice or three times the price, but Jake and I have been friends for a while, and he knows that I'll bring him new materials and interesting finds.
"So, what do you think you can do with these horns?" I ask, my words filled with excitement and impatience.
Jake laughs and says, "Hold yer horses. It's gonna take me a bit 'fore I can figure out what I can do with these," as he puts the piece of horn into the forge. We stand there, like kids in a candy store, waitin' for it to heat up. As it heats up, it starts to take on a darker hue, and the stone condenses tighter to the metal, shrinkin' to roughly half its original size. The whole piece starts to glow with the orange heat of metal. Jake reaches in with the tongs and pulls out the horn.
He places it on the anvil and begins examining it. It still retains its spiral pattern, but the stone has transformed into something resembling metal, with bismuth-like fractals. While the horn is still glowing, Jake takes the hammer and strikes the top of it. The metal compresses slightly but maintains its shape. Jake performs a few more test swings, changing hammers, and then bends and folds the horn before throwing it back into the furnace in an attempt to forge weld one side to the other.
"This material's quite odd. It heats up like steel but lacks the same rigidity. I might be able to make a claymore or a hefty longsword. Ya got any preferences on what type of weapon should be made from this?" Jake asks.
"Well, I have this staff, and I've always loved the Naginata. If you think you're up for the challenge," I say with a grin, knowing that I'm teasing him.
"Ya know I'm up to the challenge, of course. Let's get one of these horns heatin' so we can draw it out and see how much length we have to work with," he scoffs in response.
We set up to heat the horn, which takes longer than expected as it's a larger piece of horn compared to the earlier sliver. During this time, I send a text to my wife, letting her know that I'll be longer than expected as I assist Jake in forging weapons for them. As we wait for the horn to heat up, I collect the weapons into my storage ring, eliciting a shocked gasp from Jake. I then explain to him about the class system and everything we've been through up until this point.
"Ya've done a lotta in just a handful hours. From everythin' ya tell me, I'm surprised you guys didn't get an achievement for bein' the first folks to acquire a class. But at least ya were the first to acquire a title for claimin' the prize from the stream," Jake says.
"Yeah, I think that has to do with the timing of everything. While we were rushing around and accomplishing tasks, we rapidly reached Level 5. I insisted that we pick an item from the stream of creation as quickly as possible. By the time we got back to the house from Level 5, over a hundred people had already chosen a class. From my observations and acquired titles, it seems that the system works in tens and hundreds. If it were based on thousands, we would have surely received a title. So I believe it's only the first hundred people in any given world who get the title. I'm actually more surprised I didn't get one for reaching Level 5 so quickly. I don't think we'll be getting any more titles for a while, except for those that are quest rewards," I explain with a tinge of sadness.
"Yeah, that makes sense. The titles ya got now are pretty strong and should significantly improve yer survivability. So you're sayin' all I gotta do is reach Level 5, and I get one of these rings. Have ya had a chance to experiment with it yet?" Jake asks.
"No, not really. I got it, then I threw a chair into the storage device, and then I decided to come over here and check up on you to make sure you're, you know, alive," I reply, chuckling.
Jake laughs and says, "Well then, how 'bout we do some experimentation while we wait for this horn to heat up?"
So we play around with the ring until the horn has decreased in size by 50%. During our tinkering with the ring, we discover that living things cannot be placed inside it. However, we find that pouring hot water into a cup and placing the cup in the ring works. Just then, I receive a notification stating that items containing liquid cannot be put in an open container. I try pouring regular water directly into my hand and putting that into the ring, but I encounter another problem message stating that all liquids must be in a sealed container. So we grab a thermos, pour boiling water into it, put it into my inventory, and check it periodically. As far as we can tell, the water stays hot and fresh, although I'll have to keep an eye on it over the next few weeks.
"Well, there go my dreams of draining an ocean into my ring," I say, chuckling, as I explain the prompts to Jake.
We check the horn, and it has decreased to about 50% of its original size and is glowing with the appropriate color. Jake takes it out, places it on the anvil, and starts drawing it out before returning it to the forge. We continue this process for about an hour and a half until we have a rough bar of metal that's roughly 5 feet long. It tapers sharply towards the tip.
Jake whistles through his teeth, sayin', "Now this is somethin' I've never seen. Look at how the horn has transformed into metal but hasn't fully blended with the existing metal. It's almost like Damascus steel. See how the overall color is now a grayish brown with streaks of purplish metal? It indicates that the two types of metal have been forge welded. I can't identify the exact metals, but I know it's unlike anythin' I've encountered before. I could probably craft three short swords with this, or I could make one short sword, an axe head, and a Warhammer. It depends on the shape of the naginata ya want, but I might be able to create a naginata and a rapier or a second short sword. What do ya think ya wanna do with it?" Jake asks.
"I'm not sure. Let me ask the wife and her friends to see what kind of weapons they would prefer," I reply, pulling out my phone.
After some deliberation on weapon choices and fighting styles, we settle on two short swords, a rapier, a naginata, a war axe, and a Warhammer. Avery wants the rapier and one of the short swords, Olivia chooses the axe, and Valerie opts for the Warhammer and a short sword. Avery is content with a regular short sword, while Valerie gladly accepts the elemental bull short sword, as she will be at the forefront as a Paladin.
With the order placed, I ask Jake if he needs anything from me or if he could use my assistance. Waving his hand dismissively, he replies, "To be honest, ya'd be more of a hindrance than a help. I need to conduct further experiments on this metal to assess its grind-ability. It'll go faster without ya bombardin' me with countless questions," Jake says, his voice tinged with a touch of impatience.
I smile at Jake and jest, "What do you mean? Why would you think I would ask so many questions? Don't you hold a higher opinion of me? Have I ever offended you with my curiosity? You know I value our friendship, don't you?" Jake interrupts me with a chuckle, raising his hand to cut me off before I can continue.
"Enough of that, I got work to do," Jake declares, turnin' back to the forge.
Laughing, I turn my back and make my way onto the road, activating the Earth Strider spell. I head home, eager to check my new notification.
This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
Congratulations! You have reached Blacksmithing Level 1, 15%.
The journey from Jake's house to mine passes uneventfully. I spot a monster in the distance, but it's too far for my scanning skill to assess. It doesn't appear to be concerned with meRunning across the road, it must have been a native monster. Upon returning home, I notice that the lights are on and there seems to be commotion inside. I approach the door cautiously, trying to be as silent as possible. As I sneak up to the front door, I hear what sounds like crying. Regretting not having a window in my door, I brace myself. I cast and hold a Magic Missile, ready to unleash it as needed. I pull back my leg and kick the door, forgetting my own strength in the process. I end up kicking the entire door off its hinges, ripping the locks out of the frame and breaking the frame around the hinges. The door slams against the ground, causing screams to erupt from the living room. I enter the house, prepared for a fight, even willing to take a life if necessary.
To my surprise, I find the ladies sitting on the couch in the living room, watching TV. Their fearful eyes show signs of recent crying. I lower my arm, attempting to cancel the spell, only to discover that I'm unable to do so. Panic sets in as I desperately try to get rid of the spell. Eventually, I decide to step outside and shoot the spell into the ground. "Man, I really need to figure out how this spell-casting thing works," I mutter to myself.
Returning inside, I see all three women standing, weapons in hand, prepared for a fight. I raise my hands and begin apologizing profusely, explaining that I heard crying and thought they were in danger.
"I was expecting to encounter a monster or something, and then I find all of you sitting on the couch, crying. I knew I messed up. And then I compounded that mistake by not understanding how to cancel the spell, which made me panic and shoot it into the ground. As you can see, everything is okay now. I'm truly sorry for scaring all of you," I say sheepishly, feeling the weight of their glares.
They all holster their weapons, continuing to shoot daggers at me with their eyes. I pull up a seat at the living room table and begin producing some weapons for them to take.
"I got these as spares in case something happens to our primary weapons. It's always good to have a backup," I explain.
The ladies pick up the weapons, examining them and reading their respective prompts. Everyone nods and stores their weapons within reach, just in case. I walk over to the front door, pick it up, and set it aside. Now I need to repair the door frame. Retrieving the necessary tools from the garage, I return and realize that I have a new spell that might be able to assist with the repairs. "Contour Nature: Allows the caster to manipulate nature within a 5-foot radius for every 5 levels of the spell sphere of themselves. Wood: 50mp/1 second. Can warp, repair, or cut. Can't cut living wood."
I pick up the pieces of the frame and cast the spell. As I do, the area around me feels more connected, as if I can reach out and touch it with my mind. I sense a pull on my mind, so I reach out and push a piece of wood back into its original position. Energy flows out of me, along with the image of how it should look, and the drained mana. I see the wood I'm pressing sealing itself back to the frame. I repeat this process for each piece of wood still connected to the frame before moving on to the completely separated pieces.
For these separated pieces, I find that I need to focus more on returning the wood to its original place. As I think about it, I push the wood back into the area it came from. I notice that the wood feels malleable, almost like clay, under my fingers. Inspired, I try shaping it and find that I can move it to the side and create indentations or depressions. However, the wood resists, as if it knows it shouldn't be in that position. I smooth the wood back into its proper shape, thinking about the cutting aspect of the ability.
As I think about cutting the wood, I envision a tool for planing the wood. As I move my hand over the wood, a thin shaving curls up underneath. I turn my hand up and see the wafer-thin slice of wood. Intrigued, I try it again, this time focusing on making a deeper cut. Once more, a thicker slice of wood forms in my hand. Fascinated by this newfound power, I attempt to pre-drill holes for screws, envisioning a drill in my mind. It initially resists, but eventually, it starts digging into the wood, gaining speed as it goes deeper. Realizing that a drill bit isn't suitable, I transform it into an apple corer, hoping its shape would work better with the clay-like wood. It yields mixed results—while it does punch through, the hole ends up too large. I shrink it down, try again, and once the first attempt is back in place, I meld it with the rest. Marveling at the novelty of it all, I proceed to work on the second hole.
After approximately an hour of work, I hang the door, and it looks as if I had never kicked it in. I gather my unused tools and check my notifications.
"Congratulations, you have leveled your Carpentry skill to 5."
"Congratulations, you have leveled your spell Contour Nature to level 3."
I'm astonished by the progress I made in just one hour of work. Then it dawns on me what Jake meant about the system recognizing your previous level of skill. I had worked in carpentry for five years, gaining considerable expertise in various aspects of construction. With everything done, I take a seat in the living room to unwind and watch TV.
We're watching a sitcom whose name I'm not familiar with, and I find myself not paying much attention as I let the events of the day wash over me—the crazy rush of events and how the day started Normal, so average that it might have been forgettable, but not anymore. No one will ever forget the day the world was changed irreversibly. Our way of life is set aside so we can fight some dark monster. Our world is losing one-third of its population so the rest of us can have the strength to survive. The weight of it all is crushing. As I lay there, pondering it, I come to the realization that it's not one person's job alone. It will require everyone if we're ever going to expand beyond our world, to have the strength not only to fight the sower but to defeat it. I want to gain the power to venture beyond our planet, to explore unknown worlds and make an impact in the fight against the sower. In that moment, I knew I wanted to be an adventurer. The weight of everything felt lighter as I shared the burden with all those fighting alongside me. Closing my eyes, I doze off with thoughts of adventure, monsters, and treasure floating through my sleepy mind.
"You have 10 unspent attribute points. You may now assign your unspent attribute points."
After giving it some thought, I decide to allocate 4 points into intelligence, 5 points into wisdom and one into luck. I select the Finish button and then fell asleep.
I wake up groggily to the sun shining into the room. My brain tries to grasp onto the dream I was having, but it slips through my fingers. I roll over and see the peaceful face of my loved one asleep. Knowing our time together is limited, I simply lie there, basking in her beauty until she wakes up. I greet her with a kiss and a smile, and she smiles back. We sit there in bed, enjoying each other's presence. Who knows how long it will be until she returns?
I let her take a shower alone, giving her the space to herself. It takes longer than usual, but I understand. While she is showering i check my character sheet.
NAME: Havoc Deamhan
LEVEL:5
CLASS: Arcane Arborist
Race: Human
HP: 235
MP: 270 (27/min)
Stamina: 117
Profession: ???
TITLES:
Quartz hunter: +10 to all stats
Arcane Catalyst: +5 damage with arcane spells
Brave and the Bold: +10 to all stats
Minuteman: +2 to perception and +5 to all stats
First of the basin: +1 Basin rank
STATSbase ADD= total
STR: 25 (+25) = 50
DEX: 22 (+25) = 47
CON: 22 (+25) = 47
INT: 31 (+25) = 56
WIS: 34 (+25) = 59
CHR: 29 (+25) = 54
LUCK: 21 (+25) = 46
Stream Points
Generated per lvl: 11
Available: 55
Basin Rank: 1
Bonuses : +1 selection
Mana Affinity Percent: 75%
SPELLS
Magic Missile level 2
* mage armor level 1
* gift of focus level 1
* Healing hands level 1
* Earth spike level 1
* Minor Cleanse level 1
Earth Strider level 3
Contour Nature level 1
CRAFTING SKILLS aka SKILLS
Combat Casting lvl 1 30%
carpentry lvl 1 20%
Gunslinger lvl 1 30%
Perception lvl 3 40%
Arborist lvl 1 10%
Channeling lvl 10 %
As we get dressed, we engage in small talk about the tasks we need to do around the house before I leave. She finishes packing everything she needs to take with her, and then we head into the living room where Avery and Olivia are chilling, having finished preparing for the day. I glance at the clock and realize it's time to meet up with Jake. Avery and Olivia express their interest in seeing the weapons Jake has made. We all head to the car, and I have a fun idea.
"Follow me as I jog there," I say. "It shouldn't take long, maybe just two minutes. I want to see what it looks like to people on the outside. Avery or Olivia, can one of you record a video? It takes about 300 yards for me to get going, so give me a bit of a head start."
I activate the ability Earth Strider and start jogging. As I reach 300 yards, the familiar sensation of acceleration without an increase in momentum washes over me. About 30 seconds later, I see the car pull up next to me. The women are looking at me, then at the speedometer, and then back at me. Then down at my feet, and then behind me, confused. So I look down and see two rings around my ankles each time I raise my foot. It looks like a heat shimmer lifting the ground to meet my stride. Then I push off into the next step, and it repeats.
Before I can really think about it, we arrive at Jake's house. I slow my jog to a walk as I reach the driveway. The car pulls up behind me, and the team jumps out, running up to me.
"Did you know you're going 18 mph while looking like you're not even trying? It's the oddest dichotomy I've ever seen. It looks like you're jogging, but the area where your feet meet the earth looks like it's moving you instead of you moving on it," Avery says.
"Oh, I get it! It's like if you were running on a treadmill, but the treadmill itself was going 30 mph while the runner was only going 5 mph," Olivia adds.
"Holy shit, you hit the nail on the head. Here, check it out for yourself," Avery responds, handing me the phone. After watching the footage, it's as odd as they say. Olivia nailed the description perfectly.
"Wow, I wouldn't want to mess with me if I was moving like that. It's hard to wrap your mind around. Thanks for recording this for me. It's good to know how impressive I look when running," I say with a wink at Avery, who blushes, catching me off guard for a moment. I give her a mischievous smile, to which she responds with a grin and rolls her eyes.
I didn't notice that my wife was standing behind me. She leans forward when I grin at Avery and whispers in my ear, "Remember the rules, my love. Coworkers are off-limits; it gets awkward and messy." Then, speaking more loudly, she says, "Enough playing around with your powers. Let's get equipped. I'm more than a little excited to see what Jake has made."
We head around the house to find Jake at a belt sander, sparks of a veritable rainbow fanning out from the weapon he's grinding. The sparks cascade in a range of colors, starting with purple and becoming brighter the farther they get from the weapon. I gesture for the team to stay back, and I move to the waiting area, flipping the switch labeled "waiting." This time, Jake notices and reaches a stopping point. He turns to us with the biggest, goofiest smile and says, "Spike, my savior, my muse. Where's this beast? I gotta have more of this material," his eyes gleamin' with manic excitement.
"It's in town. We can go pick it up after the ladies leave, so let's call it around 1 p.m.," I respond with a chuckle. "Well, how did it go?"
"It was phenomenal. I broke through the limitations with the first weapon I crafted each time. I gained a deeper understandin' of the material—how it acts, how it moves, how to temper it. But it wasn't until I tried to put an edge on it that I realized how much I still don't know. This is the thickest, heaviest grit sandpaper. It takes forever to make progress with it. I got 'em done, and they are undeniably the best weapons I've ever made, but also the most lackin' considering my new level of blacksmithin'. But enough 'bout how the weapons were made. Take a look at 'em for yourselves," Jake says, pride and a hint of frustration lacing his words.
All of the Elemental Bull weapons have the following bonuses: +10 earth damage and Force Strike. The Rapier has a high percentage of armor piercing damage. This effect has been doubled due to being made out of the tip of the horn and the Naginata has extra slots. These are the only 2 that have different characteristics. The rest are the same in every way but the shape.
Blackwood Naginata of the Elemental Bull:
Damage: 25-34
Weapon type: Polearm
Durability: 20 out of 20
Item Rarity: Rare
Slots Available: 2 Augmentation
Effects: +10 earth damage to casting or attacks, Once a day can use Force Strike
This weapon has 2 Augmentation slots. Due to the synergy between the two pieces, this item has gained an additional augmentation slot.
Force Strike: Once a day create an image of a bull rushing down your weapon. When connecting with the force strike the target takes no damage but instead is knocked back equal to the damage that would have been dealt 1 dam / 1ft. The spirit of the Bull still resides within its horns. Call upon its strength to turn the tide of battle.
You have found the Short Sword, Warhammer, War Axe, Long Sword, and Rapier of the Elemental Bull.
"Alright, before everybody gets too excited, we gotta talk 'bout the price. I'm willin' to let ya have all of these weapons 'cept one. It comes down to Valerie. I've made a longsword and a short sword, and whichever one ya don't want, I'll keep. Assumin' we all agree that I don't care which weapon I get as long as I get to keep one, or ya can fork up 10k to replace all the equipment I blunted that is includin’ labor," Jake says, his tone assertive and business-like.
Valerie looks around and says, "I'm fine with him having the short sword, but Avery is the one looking for an off-hand weapon. What are your feelings on it?"
"Sounds great to me. I want this Rapier," Avery responds.
Valerie looks over at Jake and says, "You've got a deal."
As I stand there, holding my love at 11:58 a.m., I can't help but think about the time we spent apart at the beginning of our relationship when she was a student at UC Santa Cruz and I was working construction in LA. I would often take trips to Santa Cruz, but it was hard being away for weeks at a time. I mention this to her, and we laugh about how young we used to be, spending all our money on seeing each other. It's a moment I'll cherish forever, standing there, knowing that she'll be gone again for a while, but I'll see her soon. I can't help but feel a little nostalgic.
I break my embrace to address everybody and ask if they have everything they need, helping them finalize anything. We decide not to attempt to hold onto her or carry her or anything like that. In case whatever magic it is goes awry, I don't want to be fused to her.
Feeling nervous, I can't help but watch the clock as it turns over to 12 p.m. Nothing happens for a moment, and then, underneath all three of their feet, a large magic circle springs into motion with multiple rings and a diagram drawn all over it. I compare this to the circle I see when I cast a spell. I can see how the more layers and diagrams you add to it, the more it refines and specifies the spell. Even though I can't begin to comprehend it, I start to see the full potential of what our spells could be.
"I love you, baby. I'll see you soon," I wave at her as she starts to fade away. She waves back at me with a smile I know all too well. That smile carries the joy of knowing we'll find each other again and the sadness of our temporary separation.