29 A Pound of Flesh

I pursed my lips as I said, "Is it really that bad?"

Torix said, "There is a distinct reason why Althea doesn't use magic. You are about to discover it."

I raised an eyebrow as I said, "Then why does she have arcane blood?"

"The eldritch within her is essentially a form of energy. In order for that energy to manipulate her body as it does, her body must be a kind of energy. Arcane blood was the simplest solution."

Torix turned to me before sitting in a chair of black. The dark energy buzzed lightly as he put his fingertips together. He said,

"In all honesty, I don't understand why you'd want to use magic. Your aura is powerful and with a few levels, you'd be able to beat anyone in hand to hand combat. What's with the sudden urge to learn it?"

He snapped his fingers before a chair spawned behind me. As I sat down, I adjusted myself, noticing just how damn soft these things were. I said,

"There's three reasons." I lifted a finger as I said, "First off, I've gained quite a bit of intelligence, willpower, and perception. This makes for a very potent combination for learning magic with relative ease. That's not something I can neglect."

Torix tilted his head as he said, "Fair enough."

I raised two fingers as I said, "Second, having no meaningful way of attacking someone at range is one hell of a weakness. If I could get some way of elongating my attacks or some shit, I'd be far more powerful."

Torix pursed his lips as he said, "Hmmm, very true."

I put up my third finger as I said, "I want to be a badass, fighting sorcerer."

Torix leaned back, pulling his hands apart as he said, "But of course. The most important reason of all. How else could you be a, what was it...ah yes, a badass?"

I frowned as I said, "Come on Torix. You're busting my balls. Why do you have to bust my balls?"

Torix actually laughed a little before saying, "Alright, I'll show you some basics."

Torix stood up before spawning a plume of blue fire in his right hand and a spiral of water in his other. He saiFd, "Magic is usually taught with the three forms of magic. Origin, dominion, and augmentation. Each of them result in differing outcomes."

He pulled the fire and water together, creating a ball of steam. He clenched his hand, forcing the steam to collapse back into water. Torix continued, "This is the magic of origin. It is to create from nothing, to generate. You become the origin of fire, earth, metal, whatever you can imagine, you may project. Elemental magic, summoning, even most high level healing spells are of this class."

He lifted a hand outwards, lifting a rock in the distance. He split the rock before making the pieces of it spiral like electrons around an atom. He continued, "This is the magic of dominion. By extending your will, you may warp and bend the material and immaterial to your desires. Corruption, mind magic, and telekinesis are all under this branch of magic."

Torix let the spinning rocks hit the ground as he smashed his hand into the wall. His hand thundered out an echo before he grabbed a stone. He crushed it in his palm as he said, "This is augmentation. By using your will, you may build on whatever it is you wish. I've seen augmenters even enhance their eyes and bones, or let their frail, old hands punch through stone."

I nodded as I said, "Then I'd probably be using augmentation."

Torix shrugged as he said, "It depends on your affinities. For most people, they lack an affinity for any specific form of magic. The more focused a person's personality and actions, the more affinity they have for certain styles."

Torix leaned forward as he continued, "I, for instance, have an affinity for dominion magic. Of course I've practiced originmagic as well, but I could never create something as powerful as the monster's I found on fringe worlds. That was when I focused my efforts into dominion magic, eventually even being able to control creatures as powerful as Moloth."

I nodded before leaning forward and saying, "All the books you gave me never mentioned all this. It all seems very important. Why didn't any of your books focus in on this shit?"

Torix laughed before leaning onto a hand as he said, "I was trying to teach you as much about magic as I could without you actually using any. Remember the portal trick we tried? Without you having a nebulous understanding of magic, you may have rejected the mana from the eldritch and whatever else was on the other side."

I shivered before thinking about Michael and Kelsey. Thinking about Etorhma, the deep cold of the portal, and baldag-Ruhl's dripping face...It reminded me why I kept Kelsey and Michael at an arm's length. Keeping them away from all this had been a good idea.

I sighed before Torix laid a hand on my shoulder and said, "I know leaving them wasn't easy. I understand that hollow feeling of loss, trust me. You have to swallow it and keep moving forward. Use that emptiness. Don't let yourself be consumed by it."

I nodded as I said, "Thanks Torix."

He leaned back away from me before saying, "It is nothing, apostle."

I waved off the sentimental atmosphere before saying, "Ah yah, but continue with affinities. Sorry for getting distracted."

Torix raised a finger as he said, "The important part is learning your affinity, then trying to work with it. The easiest method for finding your affinity is taking a piece of yourself and flowing the different mana's through it. Depending on how easily a certain kind of mana flows determines your affinity for said style. In order to do this, I'll need some piece of you."

I glanced around before asking, "Why not just do that right now?"

"Because there's a very real chance for rejection of another being's mana. If you aren't compatible with the mana, it can create horrific side effects."

"Then that shit with the portal was damn dangerous."

"Indeed it was. You lived through it, which likely gave you something in return."

"Eh, we'll see. Anyways, couldn't I just give you some hair?"

"Hair is only keratin squeezed out in long strands. What we need is tissue that was once alive. In other words, some flesh."

I sighed before clasping my hand into a fist. I banged my head a few times, before peeling the armor away from my arm. With a quick, decisive grab, I dug the sharpened points of my gauntlet into my arm. It still hurt, though nowhere near the amount I expected. I tore out a chunk of skin before reforming my armor over the wound. I only let out a slight grimace before Torix said,

"Tell me, what is your pain tolerance at?"

I checked my status screen and said, "94."

Torix groaned before saying, "No wonder that was rather anticlimactic. You weren't exaggerating that old skill of yours, were you?"

"Yeah, Agony was, well, agonizing."

Torix nodded, "Noted."

He lifted the patch of skin with telekinesis before creating a wave of blue mana, much like what I used to make with little streams of cool air. The mana stopped right at my skin. Torix nodded and said, "I was doubtful that you'd have any talent for magic of origin."

I shrugged as I said, "I'm not really an airy type."

Torix nodded as he said, "Indeed."

Torix then created a stream of writhing black mana, similar to eldritch energy. He doused a stream into the patch of gray skin. The mana sunk straight into the skin before Torix gasped. He said,

"You're affinity for dominion is..remarkable. I'd never have guessed it."

I frowned as I said, "Why not?"

"User's of dominion magic are often those that put their every effort into control. They pan out their every action using every detail and piece of knowledge they have at their disposal. They don't desire control over themselves either. They desire control over everything around them."

I crossed my arms while I said, "Hmmm, maybe this is because of the portal? That energy seemed similar with the eldritch of before."

Torix narrowed his eyes in surprise as he said, "What? Eldritch is nothing like dominion. Eldritch warps and takes over whatever it touches. Dominion never consumes, it merely controls."

I nodded as I said, "Then maybe it's because I was able to sort of control the eldritch energy when it went within me?"

Torix nodded as he said, "Perhaps. It's tough to tell without any research into the matter. You're next level of affinity will determine whether or not that is the case."

A vibrant steam of orange mana streamed from his hand before he guided the stream into the skin. The mana cackled and arced bits of energy before Torix nodded and said,

"It was most certainly the portal. You have an excellent affinity for augmentation mana as well. I suppose further elaboration is necessary then."

He leaned a hand out towards his right as he said, "Each style of magic is guided by certain personalities. An excellent affinity in one means a poor affinity in the others. Origin, for example, requires a loose, carefree individual. In order to originate, you must allow the magic itself to breath and grow. This means letting go, something the other two types of personalities struggle with."

He leaned out his left hand as he said, "Then there is the magic of dominion. In a sense, this is the polar opposite of origin. Dominion users want control of their environment and the people around them. They do not blame nor hate themselves after they make a mistake. They find fault in the situation and those around them. This gives them the drive and desire to change and warp the world around them."

"Makes sense so far."

"Indeed. Augmentation users are different from both. Instead of focusing on the external, they look inward. They wish for control, but unless that control is of themselves, then it lacks any meaning. They are an interesting case. They will often be the most afflicted with guilt or self loathing out of the three dominant types."

Torix leaned his hands onto the chair as he said, "Of course, most people fall between these three different types, or in other realms all together. I had you pinned as an augmenter, so finding such a strong affinity with dominion was surprising. Now it is less so."

I nodded as I said, "So how the fuck do you turn your mana into different colors?"

Torix said, "You must convert it."

He released a stream of dense, whitish mana his hand as he said, "Notice the near whiteness of the energy in its current state. This means the mana is unguided and pure. The more mana, the more unstable it becomes."

The mana swirled into a compact ball before changing into a light blue, then a vibrant cyan. The mana pulsed in his hand, as if it were struggling to escape from his clutches. He said, "This is converting it into origin."

The ball turned black, the edges rippling. The mana's rippling form eventually pulled outwards, like it was trying to crawl into everything around him. "This is dominion."

The ball turned a vibrant orange, arcs of electricity rippling from it. This mana circled around the central point, the ball spiraling like a top. "And this is augmentation."

Torix pulled the mana back within himself as he said, "It's simple really. You must focus on what you want and nothing else to produce a type of mana. That focus, resolve, even determination is what changes the mana. I shouldn't have to spell out what each desire is for each mana, should I?"

"Origin is desire for creation, dominion is desire for control, and augmentation is desire for discipline. Hell, if I took it a bit further, I'd imagine that charisma is for creation, intelligence is for dominion, and perception is for augmentation. Don't know for sure though."

"As for desires, you hit the mark aptly. For attributes, not really. The magic oriented attributes assist with all the different types of magic, regardless of your affinity. Still, having excellent dexterity would help tremendously with using your augmentation, for example. The attributes aren't quite so simple."

I stood as I said, "Alright, then do you have any tips on how I'd work on my augmentation?"

With an edge of disappointment in his voice, Torix frowned as he said, "Why not work on dominion magic instead? I have a few common breakthroughs I can share with you. "

"Augmentation will weave into my fighting style without me really having to adjust to the magic."

Torix sighed as he said, "Bah. Of course. I chose a simple minded soldier as an apostle. Fine. Go learn how to convert your mana then weave it into your style. I'll be here creating the ritual."

I patted Torix's shoulder as I said, "I'll learn some dominion magic when we get off world. We need you working on the ritual, not teaching a total newbie how to use basic magic."

A slight smile crept up Torix's lips before he said, "I suppose so...Good luck then."

"You too."

"I don't need luck for something like this." He leaned towards the wall and began carving with a white blot of mana on his hand as he said, "I only need some time."

I ran off towards the quarry before creating another red stream of mana from my hand. I tried controlling it, making it turn orange and let out the sparks from earlier. Nothing happened. After a few minutes of thinking about it, I figured I just needed to want more control of myself as I summoned the mana.

As I summoned the mana, I thought about myself. I sifted through my memories, focusing on regrets and my mistakes. They stuck out, like missing bricks in a wall. What if I'd tried discovering Baldag-Ruhl's plot before killing Alfred Worm? Torix may still have his son. What if I'd handled the situation with Kelsey and Michael differently? Maybe we could still be friends, albeit at a distance.

This sinking feeling of regret molded in my chest before taking form in my palm. The red mana turned less crimson, more like blood soaked fire than red wine. Arcs of lightning, like glowing sparks given life, ebbed from my hand. A burning sensation grew from my palm as I pressed more and more energy into the palm.

Ever since using agony in a similar manner, I had a feel for how much pain was required to match my health regen. It was higher than I remembered, but the feeling wasn't unwelcomed. I almost wanted it back. Almost. I'd slept for months with the pain keeping the bats away. That feeling of pain was a sign that I was protected and safe, at least in my mind.

Using that feel, I found my threshold of health regeneration with mana usage. After a few minutes, the feeling became less prominent. The mana poured from my palm like a wild, blazing torrent. At that point, I tried pulling the mana into my arm.

My hand shook as a bead of sweat poured from my head. The torrent flattened in my hand before coming into my arm. A skill notification came up.

Skill learned! [ Augmentation(lvl 1) - Why fight with many when you may fight with one? +1% increased ease of converting mana into AU(augmentation energy)]

Skill learned! [Augmentation Manipulation(lvl 1) - Empower and embolden yourself so that none may stand against you. +1% increased ease of manipulating AU(Augmentation energy)]

The pouring torrent of mana began sparking from my hand before another skill notification appeared,

Skill learned! [Surge(lvl 1) - Channel your spirit into fervor. +1% to effect of internalising AU for power.]

My health depleted far faster as another message appeared,

Unique skill activated. Due to interaction with Boundless Storm, Surge changes into Unending Tempest.

[Unending Tempest(lvl 1) - Pain is fleeting, but victory is forever. +1% to effect of internalising AU for power. +1% to effects of Boundless Storm when internalising AU.]

The force continued building before the energy consumption burned like I was dipping more and more of my arm into a pit of magma. I stopped the stream before looking at my hand. The armor looked fine, so I peeled it back. Blots of blood were leaking out of my fingers, like the flesh in my hand was disintegrating. The nerves and control of my hand was limited, like my nerves had been fried.

After a few minutes, the blood disappeared and feeling returned to my hand. With blood magic, using augmentation would be risky business. Of course, if I could learn to handle it without letting it eat through my health bar, it would be a powerful buff. Getting to that point was where the challenge would be.

With that in mind, I tried producing as small a stream as possible. I figured just having the buff on at all times would be a tremendous increase in my effectiveness. This was because of how the skill unending tempest was worded. It said the effects of boundless storm was enhanced when internalizing augmentation energy. This likely meant that it didn't really matter how little mana I was absorbing, as long as I was absorbing some.

If I could prevent that stream from running wild, I'd get quite a bit of free energy. Unfortunately, this was easier said than done. Finding the right balance was like balancing on a tightrope. Trying to move while I channeled the mana made it far more difficult. Trying to use boundless storm with it was like trying to juggle while walking on the tightrope. There were too many tasks with too little time and focus devoted to each one of them.

Still, I struggled through the process. At one point, I overdid it until my bones were straight up jello. If I died from overusing the augmentation, I'd be the saddest summon of Torix's ever. I couldn't be a zombie or a skeleton. I'd be a goopy slime.

The pain helped me focus though, and it had the added bonus of activating boundless storm. The clarity of the skill would wash over me as I focused, helping me progress. After a few hours of this training, someone tapped my shoulder while I was deep in concentration.

I turned around, finding Althea leaning over my shoulder. Wearing one of her rare grins, she said,

"Want to spar?"

I laughed a little before standing up and saying, "Alright, sure. What's got you smiling though?"

She narrowed her eyes as she said, "You'll find out when you lose."

Rolling my shoulders, I said, "I look forward to it."