Completed The Third Element

[Kynier]

89th of Summer, 518 A.V.

Walking out onto the deck, Kynier was greeted by a fresh breeze from the sea. The still cool air of the ninth bell was relaxing with the scent of salt water. Closing the door behind him the mage ventured out to the vast stretch of yard past the deck. It was finally time to branch out in his knowledge as a mage and this morning was just as good of a day as any to do so.

Taking a seat in the grass midway between the Midnight Gem and the edge of the property, Kynier thought on what he was going to do. While he wasn't a master, or even and expert by any means, he had reached a plateau with his understanding of Reimancy and the use of fire. It was time to select another element. Which one should he choose though? Water was a critical resource and being able to form and manipulate it seemed like a necessity as a Reimancer. And earth was everywhere. It was a difficult choice.

There he sat surrounded by the remaining two choices in a way. For a long moment he did nothing and thought of nothing. Hoping that an element would choose him with some sort of sign. For several chimes nothing happened. Wind continued to blow, causing the clouds to slowly drift through the sky. The waves of the ocean crashed with no variation. In his absent mindedness, Kynier’s hand had been picking at the dirt by his foot. The mage looked down and examined the soil that had gotten stuck under his fingertip. A small smile began to sprout. “Earth it is then.”

Kynier closed his eyes and meditated. Allowing for the rhythmic sound of the beach to carry him into a state of relaxation. Tension left his body, and his stiff hands almost felt at ease. The encompassing blackness of sleep nearly took him before his mind began to stir again. Through his state of complete comfort he reached to his soul for djed. The mystic energy came forth easily in response. Kynier held a hand with the palm up close to his chest, eyes still closed. Djed transmuted to res and came out of the palm of his hand in a gaseous state.

As the gas floated in a tight sphere the mage considered how to form earth with the res. Fire was a sense of passion or hatred that required ignition. What was associated with the ground? Stability, firmness, and… solidity? Kynier focused on those concepts as he stared at the res above his hand. Solidify. The translucent purple res darkened in color as it changed. From gas, to liquid, to solid, to rock all within fifteen ticks. A hard gray exterior formed and floated above his palm as the gaseous res still inside it remained unchanged. Kynier focused more on the concept of solidity and the inner magic changed until the magic formed rock fell into his hand. It wasn’t sharp, nor was it smooth. It was a very strange looking rock with rounded protrusions on almost all sides. Water could never have formed a stone like this one.

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[Kynier]

The mage twirled the strangely shaped stone in his hand as he reflected on the results and his method. Earth was obvious going to require much more finesse. Fire was useful for lighting and throwing. Beyond that there weren’t many variations you could do with it. Burn hotter or not as hot, a larger fire or a small ember, and that was really it depending on the situation. The earth element was going to require more from an artistic standpoint he suspected. At least, for things like forming the stone so that it would look more natural.

Kynier shifted on the ground and chucked the stone as far as he could. With another deep breath he conjured his djed again. The mage was finding the process of repetitive casting with Reimancy easier now. Whereas before he would feel like he was trying to run another mile after feeling the need to collapse. Now, the djed resurfaced more easily and transmuted more res to flow out through the pores of his skin. The gaseous res formed a sphere above his hand. This time Kynier though on solidity and made a mental image of the stone he wanted to form. One that was perfectly round and smooth.

It didn’t occur as quickly as the last time, but the res changed its physical properties to form solid matter. It was more rounded and gray like the last one. Hazel eyes stared hard at the forming stone as his will attempted to sculpt its shape to his liking. Once all the res had turned stone, it fell in his hand. It wasn’t a perfect sphere, but it was much better and not far off from what he imagined. Like the last one he spun it around in the palm of his hand. This stone looked more natural though it didn’t have any blemishes in its material.

Kynier took a relaxing breath and thought about what Bourin had said all those years ago. There had been a lecture on the various uses of the elements. What was it that was so special about geomancy? Kynier believed that’s how Bourin referred to it. That it was a lot more versatile than must generic Reimancers knew. That their imagination was limited to forming rocks to hurl at an enemy, or that it was merely a stepping stone for para-element usage. The mage tried to grasp the memories from long ago. As a child he naturally chose fire for his first element. Though he recalled that Bourin had given him a demonstration of each element first before a chose had been finalized.

Fire had been the most colorful and impressive. A demonstration of intimidation and power. With his family recently murdered, that was of course what he selected. Bourin had created a typhoon with air and forced Kynier to clean up the mess afterwards. Water had been used to fill the bath. As exciting as that sounded to a young mage. Earth though… what did he do with earth? Kynier remembered thinking geomancy was his teacher’s favorite form. Yet what the old eypharian did was escaping him.

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[Kynier]

It was only after several chimes of forced recollection that Kynier was finally able to remember what Bourin had done to demonstrate the abilities of geomancy. Of course the old eypharian had produced earth from his res and attracted it to his collection of res, much like the other elements. What was different, was that he could alter the mineral used. Changing something from granite to shale to other types of rock Kynier wasn’t familiar with. It had been a longer demonstration than the others to be sure. Kynier could remember the look of disappointment in the old man’s eyes when he chose fire for the first element.

Kynier wondered if that was the point where Bourin had made up his mind on the sort of mage Kynier would be. After that point, his instructor had been even more calloused. All judgments had become more critical, or at least it had felt like that. Once the Initiation ritual had been performed, Bourin’s dedication to teaching Reimancy had diminished in comparison to the other disciplines he managed to teach. The old eypharian had taught him the foundations and principles. How transmuting djed to res occurs unnaturally and how it taxes the mage’s reserves more significantly than most of the other disciplines.

A long time ago, the mage had given up on the idea of satisfying his instructor. Part of Kynier’s way of looking more at the grand scheme came from Bourin. The old wizard always seemed to be rambling about a discovery to change the world. As a child, Kynier didn’t pay much attention to those rants. He just remembered that when Bourin wasn’t teaching, he was researching or gone and searching. As though the eypharian was in pursuit of something that had evaded him his whole life. Bourin even tried to convince him to partake in the obscure research. But Kynier had no interest in work best left for Sages. He’d rather use his knowledge more practically.

So he held the stone flat in his palm and set his focus on it. With a deep breath he sought to calm any tension in his body. A second deep breath to still all unnecessary thoughts that were unrelated to the task he had set before him. On the third, he reached for more djed from his soulcore. The mystic energy came forth. This time when it transmuted itself to res, it took a liquid state. Translucent liquid that pooled in the palm of his hand and around the second stone that he had formed. The res bent to his will and coiled itself around the artificial stone.

Once the stone had been coated all the way around, Kynier’s will directed the liquid to fill the dips and gaps in order to make it completely round. Thoughts of solidification followed by sculpting were repeated as he worked on each imperfection of the stone in his hand. The amount of res slowly diminished as the shape changed into something resembling an oversized marble.

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[Kynier]

The task had been completed and there was still some residual res left unused. Rather than letting it go to waste, Kynier repurposed the res. Instead of adding stone to alter the shape he set his thoughts on removing or altering the stone to change it to a more brick shaped square. Yet the mage’s mind had difficulty finding a word to easily associate with the task. That was a little nuance he had learned with Reimancy. There was the will and the intent, but when associated with a word it was easier to concentrate on all those concepts rather than trying to hold something with an empty mind.

Kynier could sense the res was trying to deteriorate. A choice of association needed to be made and in his desperation he picked a word. Remove. Sections of the stone disintegrated into ash before even that transitioned to sand. The stone’s shape never made it to a square, as the res ate its way through the stone rapidly until the entire thing had turned to tiny pebbles that ran in between his fingers. Kynier sat there staring at his hand, perplexed at what had just occurred. All of it was gone when he tried to merely will small pieces of it to give way.

Closing his fist he ground the flesh of his palm against itself and his fingers. Kynier felt no grit or dirt on his hand. The transformation had been utter and complete. What was surprising was that so much res had been consumed to create the stone, and so little had been required to destroy it. But it wasn’t really destroyed… was it? Djed could neither be created nor destroyed, only transformed. It was a law of magic. One of the few scraps of knowledge that had survived the Valterrian.

Suddenly he could understand the fascination with geomancy. Trying to understand the nuances of it. To build or breakdown, rather than to simply form a fire which could only burn and produce heat. Geomancy was capable of making shapes, of building structures. Or taking them down. With it, Kynier could possibly begin to explore the mines and not be fearful of a cave in. Of being trapped below the surface to slowly die, only to never be found.

More experimentation would be required. Kynier suspected he was only scratching the surface with knowing how to make, shape, and breakdown the earth element. Questions of the limitations began forming in his mind. How hard could he make the materials be? Was it possible to form a precious stone with enough practice and study? How natural could the artificial look? The Quay was the only district cordoned off with a mason wall. Kynier wondered if he could form his own stone barriers. Ones that were taller, thicker, and denser than any other structures in Sunberth. Could he reshape the whole city with this power?

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[Kynier]

With so many questions that he wanted to test, it became difficult to decide which one to begin exploring. For a chime he sat there debating it before Kynier ultimately gave his head a shake and determined that for now none of them should be explored. He had only just started expanding beyond the limitations of fire. There were basics of a new element to establish. While the urge to discover burned in his mind, that was the sort of reckless thought process he had condemned in other mages. Having reached a point that they had, Kynier felt hypocritical. Though now he better understood the reason for their reckless passion to testing and discovery.

Kynier ran his fingers over the ground, thinking of something simple he could do. He could create, shape, and remove the earth. Expanding on one of those should be done first. Shaping was making a really strong bid. He had shaped something that he created… So why not try to shape something that was already there? Kynier plucked at the grass in front of him, ripping it out of the dirt and tossing it aside for the small breeze to carry. After a bit, he had a rather small clear patch in the grass and his fingers were stained green.

With a deep breath his body began to relax. Kynier listened to the sounds of the water and wind to ease his thoughts and cast aside the unnecessary ones. Once he was as relaxed as a conscious person could be, the mage reached for the power that the city condemned him for knowing how to use. Djed answered his call and welled up in the deepest recesses of his body. Willing it to transmute into a gaseous state as it came, the res permeated from his fingers. It descended on the small patch of grassless earth he had prepared. In his mind’s eye he saw the earth shifting and parting to create a divot in the ground. Kynier chose an easy word to match the concept. Tunnel.

Res moved with a purpose and drove itself into the ground. Sliding through the gaps too small to see with the eye in order to attach to dirt and rock. With less mental effort than he anticipated, the ground began to shift as Kynier poured more djed into the flow of res. First an inch parted, then six, then more… Kynier cut off the flow of djed before he even felt tired or any overgiving effects. The pocket in the ground was only as wide as his hand, but when he reached in, all his hand could feel was soft sand that parted easily. A curious smile formed.

It had seemed like a lot, yet it hadn’t taxed him as much as he had anticipated it would. Either he had a natural affinity, or geomancy was simply much more efficient than pyromancy and aeromancy. Kynier remembered how Farris and Bourin talked about para-elements, and was curious about what fire and earth would create. He already knew that Fire and Air created Lightning. Though he wouldn’t experiment with that anymore right now. Not in the back yard where the fire could spread, or his efforts be noticed. For something like that, Kynier needed a space where he didn’t fear damaging anything and it all could be contained if something did happen. Unfortunately, even the Midnight Gem didn’t have a space like that. With a glance over his shoulder, he considered something bold. Was it possible? Kynier stood up and started back towards the Midnight Gem.

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[Kynier]

The basement of the Midnight Gem was noticeably cooler than the rest of the building, even at the latter end of summer. It made for the perfect place to have a training room. Kynier descended the staircase and looked about from the bottom step. The set of workers that Kelski had hired to renovate the living arrangements were here and hard at work. It seemed like the perfect opportunity to do something that the mage had been considering for some time now. An expansion of his own to add to the Midnight Gem. Only now, he may be able to do it entirely by himself.

Taking the final step down, the mage circled around to the stone support of the staircase. Hands brushed against the stone, feeling exactly how porous the material was. Replicating that texture was bound to be the hardest part of what he intended to do. The finest details of a project were usually the hardest to get right. And what he was planning was a very bold maneuver considering how much he had actually practiced his geomancy. Kynier was under no delusion that this would take him a long time to complete.

Taking a step back from the wall, Kynier looked up at the ceiling and slowly spun around looking at the Midnight Gem itself. Without the need to use Auristics, the mage could sense that the structure was teeming with life. It was that slight sensation along the skin of the spine that rose the hairs on end. A primal sense more than a magical one. The structure was supposed to be “awakening”, by feeding off Kelski’s djed. To Kynier that implied some form of sentience. But he didn’t know anything for certain, apart from the fact that Kelski was magically connected to it now.

“So… there’s something I want to do for Kelski,” he said with uncertainty to the walls. He was actually talking to walls and expecting them to understand. Kynier smiled at that. Magic. It was beautiful. “Something I want to make. But I don’t want her to know about it until it is finished. That way, I can surprise her. If it’s possible… I’d like you to keep what I’m doing secret from her.” Several ticks passed in silence. Kynier’s eyes scanned the room around him. Had the Gem understood him? It was impossible to tell.

When about half a chime passed he turned back around and gazed at the stone wall supporting the stairs. Kynier took a deep breath and allowed his eyelids to droop. Then he paused before getting too deep into his meditation. “If this hurts, I apologize,” he said to the Gem. Once again he took a deep breath. Rather than completely clearing his mind as his body relaxed, Kynier kept an image in his head. That of an archway in the wall. Tall enough for him to comfortably pass through, and wide enough for two.

With only that occupying his thoughts, Kynier conjured gaseous res from his hands which he willed towards the wall under the stairs. The translucent res touched the stone and spanned out to cover the area Kynier had in his mind. Tunnel. The stone appeared to recede into the wall in the shape of an archway. The process was slow as Kynier regulated his breathing with long inhales and exhales. Djed consistently flowed from his soul and into res as the archway became an inche deep. Then another inch. And another.

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[Kynier]

Grades!

Skill Rewards

• Deduction +2
• Logic +3
• Meditation +3
• Planning +1
• Reimancy +5
• Research +5

Lores Learned

• Djed: Can neither be created, nor destroyed, only transformed
• Reimancy: Geomancy, a sense of stability and firmness
• Reimancy: Pyromancy, a sense of passion and hatred
• Reimancy: Making a rock from res
• Reimancy: Geomancy requires more finesse.
• Reimancy: Altering a stone’s shape
• Reimancy: Breaking down earth with geomancy
• Reimancy: Making a tunnel with geomancy and aeromancy
• Bourin: Favorite form of Reimancy was geomancy
• Bourin: Seemed disappointed by Kynier’s element choice
• Bourin: Trying to change the world with magic
• Self: Would rather use his knowledge more practically