Devi was sitting on a carpet of lush green grass, turning over a small metallic rod in her hands. She had just obtained the odd object by touching a stone pillar and purchasing it with her mind, only to have it appear out of thin air. If the glowing blue boxes were to be believed, which she had no reason to doubt so far, the rod was a magical tool, one that was supposed to be able to start fires.
Starting at the base of the rod, there were strange engravings running up its length, all the way to the tapered point. They were inlaid with a copper-colored material that stood out against the silvery metal. Besides the engravings, the whole rod was completely smooth, with no sharp edges.
She held the rod in one hand and pointed it at the ground in front of her. I wish this thing came with an instruction manual, but of course, no such luck. Why would there be any easy answers in this place?
Devi tried to concentrate on the idea of sparks flying out of the end of the rod, but instead of flames bursting from the top, nothing happened. She tried to imagine flames gushing out like a reverse fire hose, but again, nothing happened.
It didn’t matter what she tried, the rod sat inert in her hands. No campfires sprung into existence, no fireballs erupted, and the rod did not even get warm in her hands. Well,no one said magic would be easy, Devi thought to herself after her latest attempt to activate the magic tool failed. Maybe I really do need that Skill, the [Magic Tool Proficiency] one. She grimaced, hopefully not though, since I used all my Credits.
She slipped the magic tool back into her pocket, giving herself a small break after so many attempts not producing any results. No use trying the same things repeatedly, after all, that is what some people define insanity as.
Instead, she pulled up her Status screen and looked at the two newest additions. Both of her Skills had a small lvl 0 next to them, indicating that they too could grow in power, if everything continued to follow the same game logic it appeared to. Though I still have a lack of proof that everything is real. It all could just be my imagination.
Shaking her head, not wanting to dwell on things she had no control over, Devi turned her focus to the first of the Skills she had purchased, [Attribute Enhancement]. Time to see if these Skills actually work or not. If they do, it would lend weight to the fact that everything is real. Except if I am just hallucinating everything, but even then, going along with this hallucination seems interesting.
Glancing around, Devi didn’t see anyone nearby, so she decided to say the name of the Skill out loud while focusing on the glowing letters in front of her.
“[Attribute Enhancement],” she said forcefully.
As soon as she did, she felt an odd sensation swell up out of her chest, like a wave of sparks rushing out and down into her fingertips. Devi tried to concentrate on the feeling, but it was fleeting until it reached her hand, where it coiled as if waiting.
She cocked her head to the side, studying her hands. She had an odd feeling that the Skill hadn’t been activated yet, though she couldn’t tell where it came from, she just knew. It was almost as if the Skill was waiting for more input, for more instructions.
Devi’s eyes widened in realization. The Skill probably needs a target, can’t enhance empty air.
She focused on herself, but the Skill still did nothing, content to sit in the tips of her fingers, growing warmer by the minute. What else could it need? Devi hummed to herself. I gave the Skill a target, now all it needs is to enhance an Attribute.
Devi thumped her palm against her forehead. Of course, I need to select one of the ten different Attributes.
Thinking the easiest of the ten to see any changes would be strength, she mentally tried to push the Skill to do that.
There was a sort of mental click when she made that decision, and the energy that had been coiled in her hands rushed out into the air and then slammed back into her. A sudden rush of tingles followed, though not quite as intense as any of the previous times she had felt the sensation. It was milder, and the feeling did not invade every part of her like before, just her muscles this time.
She pulled up her Status sheet, and her strength had indeed been raised a single point, from an 8 to a 9. Don’t know if that is a lot or not. She stood up and did a few experimental jumps. Does not feel all too different though. Possibly a little easier, but can not tell for certain. I would need a set of weights if I were to figure anything out. See what is the most I could lift before I enhance myself, and then record how much I could after. She made a note to find some way to get standardized weights so she could see how much the enhanced version of her strength changed.
As she had been doing that, there had been a small pressure in the back of her mind. Nothing painful. It was more like someone was resting their fingers on the base of her skull. For some odd reason, Devi knew somehow that the pressure was directly related to the Skill she had just used. The Skill was still connected to her in some way.
Curious, Devi tried to end the Skill, to see what would happen. Immediately after she focused on terminating the Skill, the pressure in the back of her head evaporated, and she felt a small wave of tingles flood through her body, but it felt different this time. Before, the sensations always felt like she was gaining something, but this time, it felt like a loss.
Looking at her Status screen, she confirmed that she had indeed lost the one point of strength she had gained. Her mana had also been decreased by 3 points, sitting at 107 now.
So the Skill takes a little bit of mana to activate, that is good to know. About 3 points it appears. That is not that excessive, as I have over 100 points of mana, so I could use that Skill over 30 times without a problem.
Deciding to test if she could enhance someone multiple times, Devi focused on her Skill again, choosing to enhance her strength just as before.
“[Attribute Enhancement].”
She didn’t know if she had to say the name of the Skill out loud, but it worked last time, and she wasn’t experimenting with how the Skill got invoked, just if she could layer it multiple times. Other tests would come later.
Once again she felt a rush of energy swell up out of her chest and rush down into her hands. This time, however, it did not stop there, but continued out into the air, and then rushed back into her, sending tingles throughout her body.
She checked her Status again, and her strength had improved by one point, while her mana had dropped by 3 once again. Looks like that remained consistent. Now to see if I can stack this.
“[Attribute Enhancement].”
As soon as she focused on using the Skill, the pressure in the back of her head disappeared, as the now familiar rush of energy flowed out of her body and then back.
Devi glanced at her Status and saw her strength did not change, staying at one point above her baseline, while her mana had taken another 3 point dip.
Well fuck, that is more than a little disappointing. No stacking buffs to infinity. Now to see if I can buff multiple Attributes.
Another utterance of the Skill, this time she focused on Agility, saw her mana drop by 3 points, and her Agility jump by 1. What she didn’t expect was for her Strength to go back to her baseline.
As it did, she felt a slight weakening, at the same time she felt more in control of her movements than before. It was a slight difference, barely noticeable, but still there.
Now that’s unfortunate. No stacking buffs, and no multiple buffs at the same time. This Skill is quite lackluster.
Disappointed in her Skill, she leaned back on the grass. Still, there are quite a few more tests I can do before moving on to the next one.
She quickly activated her Skill 8 more times, selecting a different Attribute each time, going down the list in her Status screen. After each iteration of the Skill, she waited a few moments and tried to see what changes happened when she increased her Attributes. None of the changes were quite as easy to pinpoint the exact differences of the increase as when she enhanced her Strength, though she did feel like she noticed a few changes.
The biggest changes were when she enhanced her Vitality, Endurance, and Wisdom. When she did, her Health, Stamina, and Mana each increased by 10 points. So that assumption was correct it seems, Health is just my Vitality multiplied by a factor of ten, and the same with Stamina and Endurance, and Mana and Wisdom. Glad it was simple, and not some complicated formula that would take ages to figure out.
The most disappointing Attribute was Intelligence. Devi had high hopes for it, but when she bumped it up by a point, she didn’t feel anything except for a small tingling sensation that confined itself to her skull. She wasn’t suddenly able to recall things clearer or think quicker. Devi couldn’t even tell if anything had changed.
Finally having enhanced her Willpower, Devi sat back on the grassy clearing, trying to figure out what she should do next. The magic tool she had bought was not what she had hoped for, and her Skill was exciting, but also a bit lackluster. It was certainly magic, bolstering her Attributes via her mana, but was unable to produce any noticeable results. Hopefully, that is only the case due to the Skill being still at level zero. She had double-checked the level of her Skill as she tested it, only to find it stubbornly remaining at zero.
Either I need to be doing something different to level up my Skill, or it just takes a lot more time than what I have been doing. She shrugged, still not having any good information on the rules that governed the odd blue boxes. At least now I am very certain everything is real, those sensations I kept feeling whenever I enhanced one of my Attributes proved that to me. And the sensation of what I can only assume was mana leaving my body each time, I never felt something like that before.
Devi focused on the memory of the odd surge of power that flowed out of her chest, down her arms, and out of her fingers. It was quite peculiar, though it felt as if she was not in control of the process entirely. The energy moved as if guided by an unseen force, rather than being directed by her thoughts.
This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it
Caught by a sudden idea, Devi reached into her pocket and pulled out the small rod that she had obtained earlier. The one that she had failed to produce any fire with. But this time, she had more of a plan.
Closing her eyes, Devi tried to pull at the small bundle of energy she had felt in her chest.
At first, she didn’t feel anything, but instead of giving up, she focused on the sensation she had felt before when she had activated her Skill. The odd sense of power swelling up inside herself, the feeling of untapped potential waiting to be used.
It took her a few moments of concentration, but eventually, she felt it, the bubble of what she could only imagine was mana nestled inside her chest. Grinning, she began to mentally prod at it, trying to get it to react, to move as it had with her Skill.
Instead of rushing down her hands eagerly when Devi prompted it, the energy moved reluctantly, as if it was content to stay in her chest. But, Devi focused everything she had on getting it to move toward her fingers, and the rod that rested there. Slowly, but surely, the energy started to move, but once it did, Devi lost control as it wildly flowed down her arm.
She opened her eyes in shock and saw multi colored sparks fly out of har arm, bleeding into the air before dissipating. Devi winced in pain as each one left a small mark on her forearm. Well, that was certainly unexpected, but it did do something.
Checking her mana, she noticed that her stunt had only cost one point of Mana and Health. So I guess Health really does represent how healthy I am, but it doesn’t stop any pain, because that really hurt. It was a small price to pay to learn some things. I am definitely getting somewhere. I will have my fire!
Devi grinned and closed her eyes again. This time, it was much easier for her to find the odd energy she could only assume was her mana in her chest. Focusing, she started guiding the mana down her arm. She did not know quite what she was doing, only that she had a mental grip on what felt like a live wire.
As carefully as she could, Devi guided the energy to her fingertips, fighting the mana the whole way. It did not like to be constrained and moved, and it took a considerable amount of focus to not let it slip through her grasp and release the seemingly volatile energy.
After what felt like an eternity, the energy finally reached her fingers and began to pool. As it did, her hand began to heat up slightly, similar to what happened with her Skill. With one final mental push, Devi guided the energy out and tried shoving it into the rod she was holding.
She opened her eyes the moment she pushed the mana out and saw a few multi-colored sparks fly out of her hand. As sparks faded away, Devi felt the rod warm up in her hands, the odd engravings glowing as a small flame appeared above the tapered point.
Devi sat there, staring at the small flickering flame she had just conjured into existence, using magic. As the fire danced, she grinned, her eyes reflecting the light. I just did magic. Real magic, not some weird Attribute stuff I was doing before. This, this is magic.
As the fire sat atop the rod, Devi could feel a slight connection to it, through the rod. It was as if it was still drawing energy, and after a brief moment of concentration, Devi realized that was indeed what was happening. She could feel a small stream of energy running down her arm and into the rod. She didn’t even need to be concentrating to keep it from shooting out of her arm. It seemed like the rod was helping the mana along, exerting a small amount of control over her mana as it moved, though it was unlike how she had been moving it. The mana moved as if the rod were a magnet, and the mana were small iron shavings.
Curious, Devi tried shutting off the stream of mana. Once she focused on the energy, she found she could stop it. As soon as the mana stopped flowing down her arm, the small flame atop the rod flickered out. Looks like it needs constant fuel to keep alight, that is good to know.
She took a few more moments to mentally wrestle with her mana and managed to return the small flame to the top of the rod. Though it is quite small, I wonder if I can make it larger.
Focusing, Devi tried to force more mana into the small rod, only to have it pool in her fingers painfully. The rod refused to accept more than the small stream of energy it already was pulling from her. Something in the rod rebuffing any of her attempts to force more mana to power the flame.
While she was wrestling with her mana, she noticed a few parts of the rod seemed to glow a bit brighter than the rest. A couple of the odd patterns that were outlined in the reddish gold metal seemed to glow whenever she pushed with her mana.
Now that is interesting. I wonder if those act as limiters to how much mana this rod can take at a time. I will need to test that, eventually.
Her eyes winded a bit as she got an idea. I wonder if those odd patterns are the things responsible for turning my mana into fire, instead of the multi-colored sparks? They seem to interact with mana in some way, so it is not that large of a leap in logic to assume that they are the reason why the mana gets converted into fire. She paused for a second, though, it could be the material or a numerous amount of other possibilities that I have not thought of. Though I can test this theory first, and then dive into any other reasons this rod behaves the way it does.
She looked around to see what materials she had to work with. There really wasn’t all that much inside the clearing, and she didn’t quite want to venture past the odd shimmer in the air that surrounded it. She still had the other items she had purchased, the satchel of Tinkerer’s tools, her crossbow, and the light armor. None of which really suited her needs for something to carve into a replica of the small rod she held.
Shrugging, she began to unpack all of the items from her Tinkerer’s tools to see if there was anything she could use there.
The assortment of items was quite impressive, there were small glass vials with corks, a small mortar and pestle, a small knife, a wire-wrapped magnifying lens, a needle and a spool of thread, a couple of metal pots, a spool of twine, and a charcoal pencil. Looks like someone went to a craft store and picked up a bunch of random items and dropped them into a bag, and then handed them out.
Devi could imagine uses for everything, but, there weren’t any materials to make anything. It was just a bunch of tools. Any actual crafting would require her to gather materials herself, apparently.
Grumbling a little about the lack of crafting materials, Devi took off toward the edge of the clearing, bringing along her bundle of assorted items. The closer she got, the clearer the faint shimmer in the air became, until she was right up next to it. It stretched out in front of her, a translucent barrier that looked like the edge of a soap bubble. Its iridescent hues swirled in hypnotic patterns as it faded into the sky, disappearing the further away she looked.
Not wanting to physically touch the odd shimmering in the air, Devi pulled out one of the bolts she had hanging from her waist and cautiously moved it to the barrier. As the bolt crossed the barrier, there was a slight disturbance in the swirling patterns, but nothing else. She didn’t feel any resistance as the bolt moved.
Curious, she pulled the bolt back to see if going in the other direction was any different. To her surprise, the barrier flashed a bit brighter, and pulling the bolt back felt as though she was moving it through thick syrup.
As soon as the bolt was clear of the barrier, any resistance stopped.
So, it appears that going both ways through the barrier is possible, but going into the clearing takes more effort.
Wanting to make sure what just happened was indeed repeatable, Devi moved the bolt once again through the barrier, only to have it feel as though the air had been turned into honey.
It took her a few moments to figure out the barrier worked like a non-newtonian fluid. Anything moving faster than a slow craw was hard to push through, but anything moving slower didn’t seem to be affected by the barrier at all. She had yet to find anything that couldn’t pass through the barrier, even her own finger had been able to go back and forth with no problems whatsoever.
Tanking a deep breath, Devi slowly walked through the barrier. A slight tingle ran over her whole body as she did, but she was moving slowly enough that it didn’t slow her down. She waited a few seconds and then walked back through. Nothing prevented her from going back into the clearing, much to her relief. Devi had been fairly certain she would be able to go back in, but it was still nerve-wracking to test it herself, but there wasn’t anyone else she could ask. That would require her to ask someone, and she didn’t know anyone.
Armed with the knowledge she could pass through the barrier at will, Devi began to search for a fallen branch near the clearing that she could carve into a replica of the rod she had gotten. After only a few minutes of searching, she saw one that would fit her needs. She grabbed it and headed back to the clearing to start carving.
It took her a while to shave the tree branch into the same size and shape as the metallic rod, but she finally got her duplicate to match up as close as she could without the use of actual measuring devices. What I wouldn’t give for a pair of calipers, Devi bemoaned as she finished checking the diameter of the wooden stake with a length of twine.
After getting the shape down, Devi started carving the intricate patterns traced on the metallic surface. She only had a small knife, so carving the lines was a bit harder than she had anticipated, but she was able to dutifully replicate every swirl of the pattern.
Doing one last check to make sure every part of the odd pattern was carved in her wooden replica, Devi was certain it was as close as she could make with the tools at her disposal. Now the only thing left was to see if it worked.
Closing her eyes, Devi once again started to mentally wrestle with her mana, trying to have to move down her arm and into her newly carved stake. It took her a few moments to get it to bend to her will, but she was able to guide it successfully down her arm and into her fingers. With one final push, Devi sent the energy out of her hand and into the stake.
Instead of the mana being drawn into the stake, it exploded out of her hand into the air in a cloud of multicolored sparks, leaving small burns along her palm. Some of it seemed to enter the stake, but then exited, not constrained at all, unlike when she had activated the metallic rod before.
Well, I am definitely missing something here. Maybe it is not just the odd patterns, but the material that matters. If that is the case, I have no way of duplicating it.
Devi studied the two rods she had, the metallic one that had appeared out of thin air, and the one she had meticulously duplicated out of wood. She traced the odd patterns made with the goldish metal while double-checking to see if she had copied them correctly.
The only differences she could detect between the two were small notches or other imperfections of the carving, though the patterns themselves remained very similar. Either the lines had to be perfect, or she was missing something else.
The pattern probably needs to be lined with whatever that gold metal is. The mana seemed to be drawn into the patterns, and with the wooden replica, the mana did not even seemed to be affected by it at all, Devi observed to herself. If only I had some of that stuff, then I could figure out if that was the case. Or something else that the mana would follow. But I do not have anything of the sort, the only thing I have seen mana flow through has been the metal rod and my own body.
Devi paused, struck by a thought. If mana can flow through my own body, could I use that instead of trying to get whatever this metallic stuff is? She thought about it for a second and didn’t see a reason why it wouldn’t work, though she still didn’t have any idea of the rules which governed what appeared to be magic.
She had a few options she could choose from she was going to use her own body to try and make a magic item. The first was her blood since that had a certain feel to it. Blood just seemed a lot more fitting than anything else. The next was hair, and after that, she really had no idea other than carving the patterns into her own skin, which seemed like a very bad idea.
Going with the first option, Devi grabbed her small knife and prepared to give herself a cut. As the blade neared her leg, she paused, flashes of memories she’d tried to forget and suppress from long ago resurfacing like trapped bubbles floating to the top of a lake.
It’s okay, she thought, trying to reassure herself. This has a purpose, I’m okay. I'm going to be okay. Repeating the mantra, she closed her eyes and made a small incision. Acting on an impulse, she started mentally guiding her mana to the spot she was going to cut, figuring that trying to put a bit of her own mana into the blood wouldn’t hurt, and probably help.
She winced at the pain of cutting her leg, but it was for a good cause she remind herself, for magic. The blood pooled down her leg, while she struggled to keep a mental hand on her unruly mana. She put one of the small pots near the cut, and after a bit, she figured there was enough there to outline the patterns of her wooden stake.
Keeping one hand on the cut, she started applying her newly acquired red paint. Devi had to get more blood two more times, each time urging her mana to the cut she had made. She checked her Status page and saw she had used a total of 10 points of mana. Hopefully, this is worth it and it actually does something, Devi thought to herself as she covered the last bit of the pattern with her own blood. Cutting myself really hurt, so it better work. I even lost two points of Health for this!
The moment Devi finished painting the last bit of the pattern, a flurry of windows appeared in her vision.
Well, that certainly did something.