“Construction is the common compound mana formed from earth and mind. As the name implies, it’s pretty handy when it comes to creating and reinforcing buildings and fortifications. Construction wizards are very important for controlling a battlefield during large attacks, as well as for clean up after the fact. Very useful mana to have access to, but it’s not what I want.”

After leaving the valley where Aranthia was, Gabe and his party made their way up the mountain following a game trail Drevock had discovered. It turned out the bodyguide knew how to navigate through the dense forest that covered the lower portion of the range. The trees thinned out the farther up you went, eventually giving way to cliffs and canyons formed by flowing water when the snow at the peaks melted during the summer season.

They had been hiking for a few hours and decided to take a break in a small clearing they’d come across. By Gabe’s best estimate, they still had another hour or so to go before they reached the end of the forest, and then another few hours after that until they reached the cavern. As they were resting and snacking on some of their travel rations, Gabe had asked Simon more about what type of compound mana node he was hoping to find in the tunnels.

“Personally, I’d prefer something with a little more oomph. I’ve heard of wizards being able to use both earth and mind mana to form golems and other constructs that can act independently of the caster. If golemancy mana exists, that’s what I’d choose.”

As was often the case when he spoke with Simon, his answers left Gabe with more questions. He hated that he knew so little about magic and compound mana types, but rather than stew in it he decided to just ask.

“I know you’ve explained this before, but assuming ‘golemancy’ mana exists, how would spells using it differ from the ones you just mentioned?”

“Master, could you help me out with this one? I think a picture might help the junior apprentice understand it better.”

Gabe bristled slightly at that, but tried to let it go. The truth was he wasn’t a true apprentice to either Simon or Professor Alrik, so even though Simon meant it as a joke at his expense, it was kinda true. He turned to face Professor Alrik, who had been sitting to his right looking through a tattered book he’d asked Simon to pull out of the pack.

Very gingerly, Professor Alrik closed the book and set it on a large flat stone that was near him. He then chanted a short spell that caused the tip of his left index finger to glow with a bright white light. As he moved his finger through the air, the light left trails that hovered in place. He drew out two different patterns that had the characteristic loops and interwoven strands of spellforms.

“I have often found that when a student does not understand something after having it explained to them, the blame falls on the teacher, not the student. "

He shot Simon a pointed look as he said that before turning to face Gabe directly.

"Gabriel, recall that what we call spells and magic is simply the interaction of mana upon itself manifesting in the world. Each strand of mana carries its own unique energetic profile. Compound mana types are useful because they are specialized for producing certain types of effects, which in turn influence the complexity of the spellform pattern. Compare these two spellforms. What do you notice about them?"

"They look similar, but the first one you drew is more complex. I can tell it has an additional thread, so it must be tier two. The other one shares the same general shape but is a much more streamlined pattern. "

"Very good observation. The reason the patterns look so similar is because when cast they both produce a lance of ice to shoot from the carter's hand. Even though the effects are nearly identical, the spellforms are different due to the mana threads used."

Pointing to the more complex pattern he continued. "You were correct to notice that this is a tier two spell. Ice spells can be cast using just water mana, however they are almost always done using multiple mana threads. The interaction between these threads is what turns the water into ice. Knowing that, why do you think the other spellform is only tier one?"

Gabe took a moment to think about it, though the answer seemed obvious given what had prompted the lesson.

"The second spell is simpler because it uses a compound mana type. I'm guessing one of the compound nodes using two strands of water mana is ice mana?"

At Professor Alrik’s nod he continued. "Compound nodes are useful because they allow a wizard to cast more complicated spells at a lower tier than what the prime nodes could produce."

"Precisely Gabriel. Additionally, since compound mana threads are more dense, the spells themselves are generally more powerful than those of an equivalent tier from a prime node."

"How do comp-" Gabe's next question was cut off as Drevock suddenly stood up and made a loud shushing noise. He pulled out both of his axes as he walked towards the edge of the clearing, a faint orange light appearing around his feet that muffled the sounds of his steps.

As Gabe, Simon, and Professor Alrik all looked at one another, Gabe noticed that the forest around them had gone deathly silent. Professor Alrik waved his hand through the images he'd drawn in light to disperse them and motioned for Gabe and Simon to stand.

The gnome then did another complicated gesture with both hands and suddenly Gabe heard the professor’s voice in his head.

"I've linked us all telepathically and used a higher tier version that imparts intent and meaning regardless of the language used. Drevock, status report. What is out there?"

Drevock’s reply came a few heartbeats later. Even with the professor’s explanation of his spell, Gabe was surprised to hear the fluidity of Drevock’s speech in his mind.

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"I believe we're surrounded by a pack of large creatures. At least five, possibly more. They're hard to track. They seem to vanish and then reappear somewhere else.”

Gabe’s eyes widened at that. He recognized that description and it didn’t bode well for the group.

Hoping he understood how the professor’s spell worked, he directed his thoughts towards the group.

“They’re shadow prowlers! Magical panthers that can travel through shadows. They’re one of the most dangerous monsters in this part of the mountain range.”

As if on cue a large form burst from the shadow of one of the trees that surrounded the clearing. The shadow prowler was a bit larger than an average panther with fur a deep, oily black color. It had long claws extending from its paws and they were on a direct course to Drevock’s back. Just before the prowler made contact, the orange glow surrounding his feet expanded to encompass his whole body. Moving almost too quickly for Gabe to properly register it, Drevock spun around and brought both his axes down to slice through the creature.

Before Gabe could process what had just happened, more shadow prowlers burst into the clearing. One rose out of Drevock’s shadow and sliced a long gouge into his left leg, causing him to stumble. A second prowler jumped out of the treeline and crashed directly into Drevock. It attempted to scratch at his chest but its claws failed to leave a mark on his armor.

Gabe couldn’t afford to keep watching as two more prowlers stalked into the clearing. Unlike the ones going after Drevock, these approached the three wizards with a coordinated grace. Their bodies were low to the ground, muscles tense with anticipation. A keen intelligence gleamed from their ash gray eyes.

During Gabe’s previous jobs, he’d been in dangerous situations before, but never something like this. Even with the dire cave bear, he was never in any personal danger. He’d always been in the background, a support there in case something went wrong. When he’d accepted this job, he told himself that he might have to fight at some point and so he tried to prepare himself for it.

He bought a new knife and even purchased a book on beginner combat forms from the Scholar’s Guild. He would practice some of the stances in the evening after studying with Simon and Professor Alrik. Despite all his preparations and efforts to get into the mindset of a fighter, the moment the two prowlers stepped into the clear, Gabe froze. All he could do was watch the beasts and feel his heart thunder in his chest.

He was faintly aware of someone speaking but he couldn’t make out the words. It wasn’t until a wall of stone rose from the ground between them and the prowlers that he snapped out of his stupor and registered what was being said.

“Cast your damned aura!”

Drevock was fighting the two prowlers while on one knee. He’d somehow managed to flip the one that had jumped on him into the one that had come out of his shadow, knocking them both to the ground. They’d just gotten up and were stalking around Drevock in the same manner as the other two when Gabe finally heard him.

Gabe quickly raised his right hand to cast Aura of Vitality but found that he couldn’t properly concentrate to control the other mana thread with his will alone. Cursing under breath, he raised his left arm and completed the motions. When he’d learned the spell, Professor Alrik pointed out the two regions of the spellform that could be modified to increase the range and strength of the aura. Acting without really processing what he was doing, Gabe expended nearly half his mana to triple the effects of the spell.

A green glow extended out from Gabe, encompassing the entirety of the clearing. Once the light passed over Drevock, he was able to stand up and swipe his axes at the prowlers when they lunged at him. His leg was still bleeding but he seemed to be able to bear the weight of it without issue.

Gabe himself felt much better compared to how he was just moments before. He still felt fear, but it no longer paralyzed him. He was able to register that Professor Alrik was just finishing up a spell as he finished chanting and four spheres of golden light shot from his hand towards each of the prowlers. The two that had been stalking towards them had just made it around the wall Simon had conjured when the golden spheres hit them.

While the prowlers jumped back in surprise as the attack made contact, the light didn’t appear to cause any physical effect. Instead, they caused the creatures to glow with the same light, the golden radiance making their fur seem dull and faded. The beasts began approaching again, this time with more caution.

“That will prevent them from being able to travel through the shadows. Unfortunately I had to drop the telepathy spell to cast it. Gabriel, Simon we must be ready for when they attack. I know a Ray of Light spell that should be able to neutralize one of them if I can manage to land a few well-aimed strikes on it. Gabriel, I will need you to cast your shield spell. Preferably on all three of us if you have the mana for it. If not, cast it on yourself and Simon.”

Being able to sense how much mana was available in a node was a skill that Gabe never really developed. He knew how many times he could cast Repair before running out of mana and he used that as a system to judge how much mana he had. The flaws in this system became very apparent once he learned his two new spells. Fortunately another benefit of cycling mana through his node was that it allowed him to better sense the spiritual weight of it.

He quickly cycled his mana and was embarrassed by what he felt. He’d used up more mana than he thought when he cast Aura of Vitality. With what he had remaining, he’d only be able to cast Restorative Shield twice. He should have thought it through more before expending such a large amount of his mana.

“I can only cast it twice. And what about Drevock? Should we go help him?”

“Use it on the two of you. As for Drevock, I would not worry about him. With your aura boosting him, he will be just fine.”

Indeed Drevock was handling himself much better now that his strength and stamina was being buffed. One of the prowlers had tried to hop into the shadow of a tree, likely to try and strike him from behind again, and instead crashed right into the trunk. Drevock capitalized on the beast’s stunned state to land a deep gash through its side.

At his own fight, Gabe was beginning to cast Restorative Shield when Simon put his left hand on Gabe’s shoulder, signaling for him to stop his spell. His right hand was moving through a series of complex motions with a speed that surprised Gabe. He knew that Professor Alrik had said Simon was a prodigy with magic, but he’d never seen the apprentice cast anything truly impressive. Seeing him now however, opened Gabe’s eyes up to an entirely new level of magical potential.

“Save you mana Gabe, we don’t need shields. If Master Alrik has taken away their ability to travel through shadows, then they’re essentially just normal, albeit big panthers. Best way to deal with them is with a pit trap.”

As he said those last words he brought his right hand down with a dramatic flourish. A large hole began rapidly forming below the two prowlers, instantly dropping them down. The pit trap sunk thirty feet into the ground before a series of stone spikes with metallic tips rose up from the ground. The prowlers tried to travel through the shadows on the walls but Professor Alrik’s light prevented them. The two beasts let out a loud shriek as their bodies hit the spikes.

Hearing the dying cries of the remaining members of its leap, the remaining shadow prowler turned to run back into the forest. With a quick motion Drevock threw one of his axes, which glowed orange as it sailed through a tree and into the side of the prowler.

And just like that, the fight was over.