I decided to spend some extra time in Druidale figuring out the meaning behind the wooden tablet Ligmas had found.

Coward.

But first I had a bit of unfinished shopping to take care of.

You’re nothing but a hypocrite.

I had some extra coins left over that the Architects gave me for that trip, so I went back to the shop with the roof that looked like a witch’s hat.

You’re just like the Architects.

“Norville.”

“Oh, Marina, come back for that figure?”

“Yes, but also- why didn’t you tell me the last time I was in here about the job when you knew I was an Architect?”

“I thought you were a consultant.”

“Don’t-. Yes, but that’s beside the point.”

“I’m not sure what job you’re talking about.”

“The job to find your lost students.”

“I don’t have any students. I merely run this novelty shop.”

“Right.. Anyway, I think I’m ready to have that figure made. I can’t really draw, but I think I can describe it well enough.”

“No need. Close your eyes and imagine what you would like the mold to be of. I will make it.”

I closed my eyes.

“They’re done. You can open your eyes.”

That fast?

Two painted figures, roughly 7 inches tall, were perched atop the wooden counter. The miniature Evie and I that made up the first figure stood back to back with our arms crossed and our back legs kicked up against each other's feet. The other was of the four adventurers huddled together and smiling without a care in the world.

“Those aren’t-”

“They’re exactly as you imagined, are they not?”

“They are. Thank you Mr. Eliwood.”

“Oh, no, my name is Norville Duskwyrm.”

I’m gonna lose it with this guy. But what was that? I didn’t feel anything. Layering a charm component would make sense. I can’t even begin to piece together all the other parts that would need to go alongside it. What would even be the point?

“Would you mind also looking at something for me?”

I pulled the wooden tablet Ligmas had found out of my bag and handed it to him. A smile crept onto his face and his eyes narrowed.

“Is this yours?”

“No, no. It has just been a while since I’ve seen something written in Amien.

“Ah- I thought that was proto-common.”

“Oh, so it is. My mistake. I’m sorry, I can’t help you.”

“That’s alright. And I’m sorry I was so snappy when I walked in. A lots happened.”

“No need to apologize Marina, honestly. I heard about young Loric. How about we settle on a two for one deal? It’s good to know he’ll be remembered fondly.”

“Thank you so much.”

I dropped eight adamant coins into his hand. In mine, a red notebook dropped from blue light. I flipped through the pages.

“Do you mind if I open my extra-dimensional pocket here? I’m not sure if I have enough space or not where I want to keep it until I get back home.”

“By all means, be my guest.”

I backed away from the counter.

Sir Miles’s Dimensional Visitation

ᛞ+3 | ᛝ+2 | (🜁,🜂,ᛈ,ᛃ)

🜁 . 2🜂 . 3ᛞ . 4ᛝ . 5ᛃ . 6ᛞ . 7ᛈ . 8ᛞ . 9ᛝ

Perhaps in a perfect world things go according to plan, however we are not creatures capable of calculating complete circumstances. We must see for our own eyes the task ahead and make judgments accordingly.

“Imagine standing before a glass door. The other side veiled in a blanket of night, unpierceable by mortal eyes. Believe yourself to have ascended, hold that in conviction that you alone are the one to see what lies beyond.”

Founded by Erron Dankus

1-2 Mid Fall Year 1: Age of Legends

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

A white rift ripped through the space in front of me. Oak floors blended into bleached birch beyond my first step. Racks of skirts, shoes, shirts, and sweaters stood in rows along the middle of the room. Shelves painted white from the floor to the ceiling lined the walls, some of my possessions placed upon them. I scribbled a few corrections into my notebook and course corrected back into the novelty shop after placing down the two figures I acquired.

A bell chimed above my head when I pushed open the door to leave.

“Oh and Marina, stay safe out there.”

Humidity wrapped around me and my feet crunched against a moistened dirt road. The scent of a sudden rainshower still permeated the air. Alone with thoughtless thoughts, I trekked north to Gerald’s and Veronica’s home.

The door flung open.

“Marina darling, come in - come in.”

Veronica grabbed my wrist and yanked me inside.

Wheee~

“We heard all about what happened. We are so glad you’re alright.”

“Thanks for worrying about me. I found this old spell that I need some help deciphering.”

Concern covered her face, but came and went like the rain. I shuffled through my bag and handed her the tablet.

“Oh my. Spreading the containment component across so many of the others really ramps up the amount of imagination required.”

“Yeah, and right now the only way I can think of to reverse it is with inversion magic.”

My worst subject bleh-

“But reading the proto-common I think it mentions a lake. The only one I’ve seen around here is Lake Silver, so it might have something to do with that.”

“Hmm~ That is the area of magic I struggle the most in.”

Ah- pain.

“What about Gerald? Where’s-”

“Is that Marina? What a pleasant-”

Gerald’s foot slipped down the steps of the staircase, sending him forward. Avoiding disaster, he levitated himself in place and continued his stride to the foyer.

“I found this old list of instructions for a seal at the lake, but need some help working out the best way to invert it.”

“Oh- my worst subject.”

Waaaah- not you too. I guess I’ll just have to figure that one out as I go.

“Um- one more thing I’ve always wondered about. I get that we should only teleport small distances, but why is the one spell that can do long distance teleportation so rigid and different?”

Gerald stepped over to the dining table and waved his hand toward the seat next to him. Veronica disappeared into the kitchen.

“Hm? Why do you only use it for small distances?”

“Huh? Because if something is already there it could crush us or end up inside us or stuff like that. Is that not what happens?”

Gerald chuckled and laced his fingers together.

“No no, you are correct, that’s certainly the case. You’ve got a good grasp on the subject.”

I didn’t think I was gonna be quizzed today.

“It’s an interesting question. I’m interested to hear any guesses you might have.”

“Maybe because- uh. No idea.”

“Let’s back up a bit then, why do we use well established spells when manipulating magic?”

“Because they’re either the most intuitive or easiest to handle ways found so far to get the result we want.”

“And why’s that?”

“Because there’s usually more than one way to do something, but there’s always going to be some ways that are easier for most people.”

Cups half-filled with tea sailed through the air and glided to the tablecloth before us. Veronica skipped around the bend and took a seat at the table to join us.

“But with that kind of teleportation if you don’t do it perfectly you don’t even get an unrelated result.”

Gerald brought his cup to his mouth and blew an unrealistic stack of steam toward Veronica. Her scowl was met with laughter.

“Sorry, sorry- I couldn’t resist. Hmm. Let’s hold onto that thought and we’ll come back to it Marina. Why do spells fail?”

“Usually because whoever is casting it messes up the spell, but it could also be a lack of ether or anima - or the amount of prima could exceed the amount of ether. Ah- but that’s the opposite of the problem, because we can’t scale it down to work with less-”

“And what happens when a spell can’t be scaled down?”

“Then its result is so tiny it might as well not even be magic. -But that can be done for the other teleportations that we need to be careful with-”

“Let’s bring back that idea of unrelated results. Are there any other times where you don’t get a result?”

“When a spell is countered. It’s daunting to pull off because the inversion component is piled on top of a recreation of the original spell.”

Which is evidently way harder when your bones are being crushed, who could have guessed. Eeh- it always comes back to inversion.

“In conclusion?”

“Ah- something is blocking it? But what could do that? How’s that even possible?”

“That right there. That is the answer that has eluded me for the last fifteen years.”

I kinda just came to that because he said ‘in conclusion’ - it’s not like I actually solved anything.

“Thirteen thousand four hundred ninety. That’s the standard unit amount of ether required to perform the spell. No more and no less. It cannot be scaled down, but it also cannot be scaled up. Using it to teleport to the other side of this room requires the same amount of ether as it would to teleport to the planet of Requius.”

“On top of that it’s accurate, but imprecise. If you do try to teleport to the other side of the room you might end up at the village’s front gate. Come to think of it, I don't think I’ve ever heard of anyone using that spell and finding themselves anywhere but outside.”

“Precisely, no pun intended. But most curious of all, the prima that radiates from metals and our mind’s will to resist magic is only taken into account for the starting location, not along the path to its destination. It defies everything we know about magic and my conclusion ended in a guess that it’s just an anomaly of how our world works. I wish we had a unified model of teleportation theory, but so far that has eluded us.”

Much like my leads, my teacup sat empty. Unlike my cup, my heart was full after being able to see Gerald and Veronica again.

“If you’re ever in Ravenford, some of my old colleagues still have an interest in it. They all sleep, breathe, and eat the summoning component no matter what time it is.”

Well, I didn’t get an answer, but at least I know more than I did. I wonder if-

Gerald stood up from his seat and his black robe unfurled from seemingly nowhere.

“Well, we better get going if we want to make it to the lake before sundown.”

“You’re coming with me?”

Ehehe~ I get to show off my magical prowess to some real pros.

“Of course, this spell will be too much for you to handle on your own.”

Eeeh. That hurts to hear.