The group decided the split for the night shift, with Marcus also suggesting two people per night should cover the night watch. Olek already volunteered himself, which left the other shift needing to be filled. Marcus said he would take the shift, as he'd experienced night watch before and it was more likely something to happen after the first four hours.
"Then it's decided," Isaac said. "I don't know about you guys, but I am beat! I'm heading in for the night, I suggest you all do the same; there's water to find in the morning."
The three stood up, going through the metal rusted door and leaving Olek alone with the flickering glow of the fire in front of him. There was quite a bit of fuel left in the pit, he prayed it would last the night, since venturing out and finding wood in the dark would be a nuisance.
Before experimenting with any magic, he floated around in his mind whilst stoking the fire, waiting half an hour to make sure the others were fully asleep.
Olek's eyes were heavy, he hadn't stopped yawning since he finished his meal, yet his mind was abuzz from the day. Thoughts of space magic dominated his mind. The concept of space magic itself was a difficult concept for him to wrap his head around – because really, what was space? And what did an affinity toward it mean? The Envoy had reacted in a peculiar fashion, it clearly shouldn't have been possible, which only made Olek more curious about what it could lead to.
He'd been gagging to dig his teeth into his affinity, but with the little time they've had to dawdle, and the fact he wanted to keep it up his sleeve for emergencies – he just hasn't had the chance.
But finally, I get to see what I've been missing out on.
But then, that also begged the question, how could he even use the space element? So far, his only experience was using the Spatial Pocket. But that wasn't really circulating spatial mana but tapping into an inherent skill.
Using Spatial Pocket on the silverice flower felt different than with normal mana, it felt substantial, like a wave of heat that felt like it had a thickness to it. But with spatial mana, he felt the tug reality folding into itself, swirling like a vortex into a singular point. It was silent but absolute.
He leaned back on his haunches and shut his eyes. First thing that came to mind was to chase the feeling from before with the Spatial Pocket. Mana Manipulation was like flexing a muscle, he could feel the mana coursing through his veins.
But how do you change the element to your affinity?
Well, perhaps he had to imitate how space mana felt when he last used it. He used Spatial Pocket once more, storing a random rock he had in his hand, and as the mana surged out of his body, this time, he didn't let it go, he held on to the opened space, feeling it.
Because if he can't feel it, how was he ever to control it?
He begun his imitation, feeling the swirling and folding motion of the space element, and slowly, starting from his hand which held the spell, the raw mana inside of his veins started to take a new pattern, the swirling was infectious – running its way along his arm and into the rest of Olek's body.
"Argh…" he groaned, he started to sweat from head to toe. It was getting a little tough to breathe.
It felt intense, his veins felt like they were ready to burst, the pressure like you've ate way too much food and filled your stomach beyond its capacity. His body was resisting the flow… when it should be giving way.
He followed that instinct, relaxing his body and allowing the spatial vortex to swirl and swirl round his entire body's circulatory system, his blood gave way and started to dance along with the motion of the element. And eventually, instead of pain and pressure, he felt whole and oneness with the element. His mind calm, but his breath still strained and sweat still pouring.
The air around Olek started to show that hazy ripple, he closed the spatial pocket, and instead his hand held a small transparent blue vortex.
[ Congratulations! You're reverse engineering of the skill Spatial Pocket has led to the acquisition of a new skill! ]
[ Skill Acquired ]: Spatial Manipulation (Novice) – The space element is known as one of the most incompatible elements in the universe, any attempt to circulate the element results in a physical implosion. Yet due to an unknown genetic factor, you have grasped the ability to manipulate spatial mana. Allows the circulation of spatial mana as well as the creation and use of spatial spells.
WARNING: - Space element is highly volatile and hard to control; caution is advised when testing theories and creating spells.
Olek let out a gasping breath and released his Spatial Manipulation, the haze and vortex dissipated, his mana regains its original flow, and his body folded forward as he was now on his hands and knees.
"That- That was intense." His breath was ragged.
His mana hadn't been used, but his body felt the strain more than anything. His previous tired state came crashing down at him all at once, turning him over as now stares at the stars.
"Hahahaha…" He laughs at himself.
Implosion? I could have imploded! Thank fuck I'm still alive… they should tell you these things man.
Slowly, Olek calmed. His breath returned to normal as he was vacantly staring at the night sky. The sky that was illuminated by a near infinite number of stars as the galaxy was laid bare before him. The lack of light pollution revealed an awe-inspiring sight.
Space is cool… I kind of get stargazing now. Olek admitted.
And yet, he sat up. His experiments weren't done, and he didn't know how much time he had. But gathering that the blue moon was halfway to the horizon, he imagined he didn't have much longer until he should wake Marcus. Not to mention, he craved the sweet embrace of sleep as it is.
Right. As much as manipulating spatial mana is great, it doesn't do anything on its own… I need to create something – or more precisely, change something.
Olek felt that it was too difficult and risky to create something original, but he wanted a trump card and more than that; he wanted to see what the fuck his element could really do!
Thinking about it, he realized that he could just change the element of a skill he already possessed and knew quite well – Mana Bolt.
Grabbing his staff, he walked a bit away from the dilapidated warehouse, just in case it made to much noise. It was dark, but the moonlight was just enough for him to kind of see the outline of a small bump in the ground in front of him.
He already knew how to use Mana Bolt, circulate mana, send it through the staff and envision using the skill to send out a bolt of raw mana. Olek wanted to keep the same foundation of the skill, it was simple and crude – but that was his current skill level now, so it felt right.
Hesitating for a moment, he took a breath before activating Spatial Manipulation. The spatial mana that filled every vessel in his veins returned, causing that same intense vorpal sensation. But perhaps due to acquiring the skill… he felt it was easier to control than before.
After holding it for a moment, grounding himself, he brazenly attempted to send the mana through the staff, spatial mana swirled through his arm and tried to shoot out of his hand, but instead, it just kept building and building on his palm.
"AHH!" He yelled, covering his mouth shortly after, his head shooting toward the warehouse.
He released his staff and immediately stopped his Spatial Manipulation, causing the mana to dissipate.
Sighing in relief, he looked at his hand.
The mana refused to enter the staff… I feel like I almost lost my damn hand!
He meant it. When the spatial mana built up on the surface in his palm, he felt his veins expand and throb. Genuinely feeling like they were about to explode.
But why did it reject the mana? He picked up the white staff and inspected it once again to read the description.
[ Staff (Novice) ] -This staff is given to new initiates of the universe walking the path of magic. This staff better allows novices to grasp the concept of magic, their affinity, and is more efficient at casting spells.
So, it says affinity. Then what was he missing? Why did it seamlessly take in raw mana but the moment it was elemental it refused it, how could it possibly help him with his affinity if it refused to accept it?
Olek shook his head. No, there must be something else to it.
He inspected the staff further, looking at its design, he couldn't notice anything peculiar until he got to the tip of the staff. In general, it was a sleek white staff you'd commonly see in movies or anime. It had a decorative flair that was quite minimalist, but the tip left something to be desired, it seemed… cut off, almost. Leaving naught but a small hole in the end of it.
Then, a lightbulb lit up in his head. What if…
He pulled out the crystalline horn from the Shardhorn, this was a neutral focus. What if this staff didn't have a focus? Is that why the end is stopped abruptly?
Olek had thought the staff was a focus naturally, but perhaps he was mistaken…
But then again. How the fuck do these two go together?
As if reading his mind, a system interface appeared before him.
[ System has recognized the focus Crystalline Horn (Apprentice) as a compatible focus for Staff (Novice). As it is a System granted equipment, the Mana Accord will oversee the application of the focus. Would you like to merge these items? ]
WARNING: - Once merged both they will become inseparable, if the focus is removed the staff's effect will become null and void. Choose your focus carefully.
Olek smiled. This is it.
He just knew there was something else to the staff. It was supposed to guide new initiates on the path of magic; there was no way it didn't include their natural affinity! Turns out, the initiate had to find their very first focus.
This left a slightly bitter taste in Olek's mouth. Ideally, he'd quite like to find a spatial focus, but he reckoned they were near impossible to find here, definitely not as easy as a regular element like earth or fire.
With that in mind, he affirmed the System.
The horn and staff glowed a bright white light, making Olek close his eyes for second. When he opened them again, the process was already complete.
[ Staff (Novice) | Focus: Crystalline Horn (Apprentice) ] -This staff is given to new initiates of the universe walking the path of magic. This staff better allows novices to grasp the concept of magic, their affinity, and is more efficient at casting spells. Merged with the crystalline horn of a Shardhorn, this staff has a neutral nature.
In his right hand was the same structure of white staff as before but now it looked complete. It had a crystalline horn you could see straight through at the end. The way the horn was structured was more like a serrated dagger than a traditional horn, which made his staff look kind of more like a glaive than a mage's staff.
But that was just a benefit, probably meant he could stab things with it too, not that he intended to get too close to his enemies.
"Okay, let's give this another try…" He muttered under his breath.
He surged Spatial Manipulation once more, feeling the overpowering pressure of the space element flood through his body. This time he imagined using the skill Mana Bolt, and immediately he felt an absurd amount of mana being drained from him – something was happening this time! Despite the feeling being akin to losing all the blood in your body he firmed his mind. Controlling its direction, he led it across his arm, through his hand, and into the staff from his palm. Lone behold, it worked! Slowly.
His face and body paled, sweating profusely all over, but unlike last time, he didn't almost lose a limb and only his consciousness, he did however have to slow down the rate at which it entered the staff. The crystalline tip of his spear started to glow that washed blue, and it grew brighter until he felt the focus couldn't handle anymore.
When it reached its boiling point, it was like a railgun that finished charging it's shot.
From the tip of his staff, a swirling washed blue bolt coalesced, Olek staggered, barely managing to aim the staff toward the mound in front of him. As he let go of the bolt it flew at a ridiculous speed, distorting the air around it.
He was expecting a collision, a boom, or bang. But what he got was silence – complete and almost unsettling.
The bolt didn't explode; it didn't impact; it minced.
As soon as it touched the mound, it just kept going, collecting, shredding, and mixing every gram of soil and stone like wet paper. There was no resistance- It wasn't allowed to resist. There was no scatter, no recoil – just a clean shearing.
The bolt kept going for a surprising length of time, a solid five seconds, endlessly mincing the ground until there was a head sized whole several feet into the mound. The light dissipated, dissolving like mist into the air.
Olek gasped for air, his hands felt numb, and his body lost a lot of sensation after casting that.
[ MP: 7/150 ]
Holy fuck… that would explain things.
He walked over to the trench he'd created, it didn't look normal, like someone had blended the world's most perfect smoothie.
Using his staff as a crutch, he kneeled over the hole, it was almost wide enough to fit his shoulders, he scooped a handful of the aftermath from the lip.
Whatever it was, it wasn't rock anymore.
Or mud.
Or grass.
It was all of it – and none of it. They were seamlessly blended into one another, crushed, ground and compressed until they became this grey-brown-greeny paste that clung to his fingers like wet clay.
He turned his palm, watching it slide down sluggishly. "What the hell…"