The next morning, Jeb looked at the piles of Managrass that had begun collecting in his room. Now that it had been a few days, the excess Fire Mana had bled out of the pieces that were not Firegrass, and they just felt like his memories of what the fibers should be. On instinct more than anything else, Jeb went to write a note for his uncle. Only after he found a piece of paper did he remember that his uncle was far away.
“Well darn,” he said to himself, “how am I going to get Manaweave now?” Jeb paced around the room as he considered his different options. The most obvious answer was that he could just learn how to weave himself.
He thought back to his grandfather’s statement about how a benefit of living in the Capital was that he could rely on others to have the Skills he could need. Jeb wasn’t sure where he could find someone for that, but Dean Aquam might know. He kept walking as he considered other options.
After three laps of his room with no new ideas better than looking for an Enchantment that would weave the Managrass for him, Jeb sighed and went to the cafeteria. To his relief, Dean Aquam was just sitting down to his breakfast when Jeb came in.
“Good morning Jeb!” he called, seeming excited.
“Good morning,” Jeb said hesitantly.
“I take it by your presence here at breakfast that you heard the news?” Dean Aquam said as Jeb approached him.
“What news?” Jeb asked.
Dean Aquam frowned at him. “If you are not here to receive your grades for this past term, which I would like to note is best done in my office, what are you doing here?”
“Oh! Did I pass?” Jeb asked. “That isn’t what I came to ask, though,” he quickly followed.
The Dean rolled his eyes good naturedly. “I can tell you that you passed all of your courses, correct. What did you want to ask me, though?”
Jeb paused, considering how to frame the situation. “If I had some Managrass that I needed to turn into Manaweave, how would you suggest that I do that?”
Dean Aquam hummed. Jeb noticed that the liquid in his bowl stayed completely still as the Dean considered his question. Clearly whatever Dean Aquam was thinking about, he was not relying on any Skills to do so.
After a few moments of off tune humming, the Dean nodded. “Is there a reason that you do not wish to weave it yourself?”
Jeb shrugged. “I don’t know how.”
The Dean stared at him. As he did, Jeb noticed that the liquid in the Dean’s bowl had begun rippling. Just as Jeb grew uncomfortable enough that he was going to ask what the Dean was looking up, the Dean nodded again.
“Interesting. Is there a reason that you did not develop that Skill before you came to the Academy? I would like to be clear in saying that this question is meant in earnest.”
Jeb thought back to his time on the farm. “I guess that the primary answer is just that I didn’t. As you might have already guessed, my education before coming to the Academy was far less structured than it has been here. My family tended to support whatever plans I had.”
“I had presumed as much, yes,” the Dean agreed. “Why did that preclude weaving?”
“It didn’t?” Jeb said questioningly. “Or, at least, it didn’t any more than it precluded any of the other Skills that I did not learn. I don’t have the Cooking Skill or anything similar either.”
“Were you not interested in learning how to weave?”
“I don’t think that I was explicitly disinterested, no.” Jeb thought about why he hadn’t learned to weave. “My uncle did a majority of the weaving for the family and town at large. He didn’t,” Jeb paused, “doesn’t really enjoy talking to people. I suppose that did deter me from learning the Skill, at least a little.”
“To clarify, though, you are not opposed to learning the Skill?”
Jeb shook his head. “I’ve gotten the impression from my time here that most people tend to limit the number of Skills that they have.”
The Dean nodded. “You already have far more Skills than the average student graduates the Academy with. One more will not make a significant difference, and it seems as though it would be beneficial to your future plans. I would advise you to learn the Skill, unless you can think of a pressing reason not to.”
“Where would I learn how to weave?” Jeb asked.
The Dean shrugged. “That lies outside of my expertise. Luckily for you, however, the Library is accessible.” Conversation finished, the Dean quickly drank his soup and stood to leave. Before he did, Aquam addressed Jeb once more, “when you would like to receive your term grades, please find me in my office. Please do so before the start of the next term.” With that, he left.
Jeb considered the Dean’s words as he ate a slow breakfast. By the time his plate was empty, he found himself agreeing with the Dean’s opinion. He planned to keep working with Managrass for a long time, so learning how to work it into Manaweave was almost certainly worth it. I suppose I should also make sure that the Firegrass I grow has enough Mana to hold multiple Glyphs, he thought to himself as he moved to the Library.
Kaitlyn and Margaret were discussing something in hushed tones as Jeb entered the Academy Library. As the door closed behind him, the two cut off and turned to see who had entered.
“How can the Library help you today?” Kaitlyn asked, tone oddly formal.
“I was advised to learn the Weaving Skill,” Jeb replied, trying to match her tone. “Do you know where I could find resources to do so?”
“I would advise going to the Workshop for that request,” Kaitlyn replied even more stiffly, “unless there is a pressing reason you would request Library materials.”
Margaret was frowning, but she didn’t say anything to contradict the older Librarian. “Thank you for answering my question,” she said to Kaitlyn, “I will return to the Stacks now.” Both of them made subtle gestures implying that Jeb should follow her into the Stacks.
“Oh, um,” Jeb stammered, “thank you. I will go to the Workshop.” He turned as though to exit the Library, thinking as hard as he could that he wanted to end up in the Stacks. As he walked through the hallways of indeterminate space that had made up a steadily increasing part of his daily commutes, Jeb focused all the harder on seeing his usual desk.
As he took a turn on impulse, he found himself walking to his desk. The transition from vague unreality to the incredibly concrete nature of the Stacks grew, if anything, more disorienting each time that he traveled it. Jeb stood beside his desk for a few moments, debating between moving to look for Margaret or staying where he was so she would know where to find him. As he deliberated, she came up to his desk, blue eyes radiating cold anger.
“I apologize for the oddity of Kaitlyn’s response to you earlier,” she said, voice seething, “we are currently undergoing an inspection from the Republic Auditors over our communications with your hometown’s Librarian. It is nothing that you need to worry about, though it may impact the level of service we are able to provide in the coming weeks.”
“I’m sorry if I caused any problems,” Jeb replied.
Margaret shook her head emphatically. “This issue would have come up eventually, especially given that he is apparently still active. Your presence did nothing except give us the opportunity to prepare for this inspection.”
“If you’re sure,” Jeb replied hesitantly.
“I am.” Margaret said, before gliding back into the Stacks.
Jeb watched her leave. When she had faded from view, he left the desk himself and began asking the Academy to lead him to the Workshop. The transition was far smoother, and the bookshelves steadily faded into the sounds of a number of people working on different crafts. When the bookshelves were completely gone, Jeb saw the Workshop in its entirety.
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The room was little more than an oversized hallway, with doors leading to a number of directions. Each doorway had a label indicating what kind of Skill was worked on behind the door. Jeb spun in a circle, noticing that the labels on each door changed each time that he looked away. As he kept spinning, Jeb looked for a sign labeled “weaving”.
Just as he was starting to grow dizzy, the sign appeared. He stopped, hoping that the doorway would remain in the same place. To his relief, it was still there when the world stopped spinning.
Jeb walked through the doorway and felt the momentary vertigo that accompanied transitions. He looked around the new room, noting the woven artwork covering each wall. They ranged from intricate designs and fabrics woven so tightly that they seemed solid to fabric so thin that it seemed like a stray breath would blow it away.
The room seemed designed to have a number of students working at once. That was a little strange to Jeb, especially given that he had never heard of another student weaving. Then again, Jeb thought to himself, It isn’t as though I know that many students.
There didn’t seem to be anyone in the room, so Jeb took his time walking around and looking at the pieces in more detail. One in particular caught his eye. It was, at first glance, nothing but a simple color gradient. In the top left corner, it was white, growing more and more colorful and saturated until the bottom right corner, where it was pitch black. The longer that he looked at it, though, the more detail he noticed.
Jeb was so engrossed in the tapestry that he missed a coughing sound behind him. When he felt a hand on his shoulder, Jeb spun around quickly.
“Welcome to the Weaving Workshop,” a mass of fabric said to him. Looking more closely, Jeb saw that it was just a small man holding a large pile of fabric. “How can I help you?” he asked, setting the pile down beside him.
“I was hoping to learn how to make Manaweave,” Jeb replied.
The man sighed sadly. “I would love to teach you that. Unfortunately, it is nearly impossible to get Managrass anymore.”
Jeb cocked his head. “I have Managrass,” he replied.
“Oh!” the man brightened. “Are you a student of the Academy?”
“Yes?” Jeb had assumed that only Academy members were allowed in the Workshop. If others were as well, it would do a lot to explain why there were so many spots in the room.
“I suppose that means that I cannot ask for Managrass as payment for teaching you.”
Understanding dawned on Jeb. “I would be happy to share,” he said, “it isn’t like I need that much.”
“Well then, what are we waiting for?” the man asked. “Go get your Managrass, and I’ll teach you how to Weave!” He shooed Jeb out of the room, and Jeb left, smiling. It was nice that there was someone here excited to share a Skill with him.
As he tried to make his way back to his room, though, the Academy seemed to block his way. Jeb frowned but went where it wanted him to go. When he found himself in the static forest outside of Dean Aquam’s office, he nodded. “I suppose it’s time for me to get my term grades.”
Jeb’s Status Sheet at End of Chapter:
Jeb Humdrum Human Age: 16 Class: Wizard Level: 3 Experience: 1092/204
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Total Statistic Load: 642 Physical Load: 228 Strength: 52 Dexterity: 53 Endurance: 54 Vitality: 55 Presence: 14
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Mental Load: 414 Intelligence: 88 Willpower: 89 Magic Affinity: 89 Mana Depth: 74 Charisma: 74
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Mana: 1775
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Glyph Attunement: 31 Least Shape Earth (Modified) Tier 1 Spell Least Hold Earth (Modified) Tier 1 Spell Least Create Earth (Modified) Tier 1 Spell Least Destroy Earth (Modified) Tier 1 Spell Least Shape Earth - Efficient (Modified) Tier 3 Spell Lesser Shape Earth (Modified) Tier 3 Spell Least Shape Water (Modified) Tier 1 Spell Least Shape Water - Efficient (Modified) Tier 3 Spell Lesser Shape Water (Modified) Tier 3 Spell Least Hold Water (Modified) Tier 1 Spell Least Create Water (Modified) Tier 1 Spell Least Conjure Water (Modified) Tier 1 Spell Least Conjure Water - Efficient (Modified) Tier 3 Spell Least Destroy Water (Modified) Tier 1 Spell Least Move Air (Modified) Tier 1 Spell Least Hold Air (Modified) Tier 1 Spell Least Create Air (Modified) Tier 1 Spell Least Destroy Air (Modified) Tier 1 Spell Least Move Fire (Modified) Tier 1 Spell Least Hold Fire (Modified) Tier 1 Spell Least Create Fire (Modified) Tier 1 Spell Least Destroy Fire (Modified) Tier 1 Spell Least Create Mud (Modified) Tier 2 Spell Attune Earth Mana (Modified) Tier 0 Spell Attune Water Mana (Modified) Tier 0 Spell Attune Water Mana - Efficient (Modified) Tier 2 Spell Attune Air Mana (Modified) Tier 0 Spell Attune Fire Mana (Modified) Tier 0 Spell Attune Sand Mana (Modified) Tier 0 Spell Least Create Sand (Modified) Tier 1 Spell Attune Sand Mana - Efficient (Modified) Tier 2 Spell
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Bard Songs Known: 1 Lute Enforcement
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Skills: Meditation Spell Glyphing Gift of Gab Identify Soil Savvy Animal Handling Fertilizing Lute Playing Singing Musician Pollination Brewing Distilling Smithing Wood Identification Woodworking Soil Improvement Glassblowing Magic
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Achievements: Focused Meditator Student of Magic Glyph Specializer
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Quests: Major: Slay the Dragon of the West (Progressive)