Magic is blood; blood is magic. Yet this is not a blood magic as I now understand such arcana. It is something more. Something on the par of spirit magic. Supposedly, such magics are extinct. Scholarly pronouncement in haste, it seems... --71.4 Seconds Post-Integration.
Clark signed up for the next tutorial session. Because it wasn't held until later that afternoon, he had time to grab a bite with Hera. She took him to a place which specialized in serving vegetarian dishes. He tried a fried tofu heavy salad topped with a number of nuts, dried berries, and seasonings. He kept his vegetables tame, however, and forwent any of the unusual veggies Hera had eaten in the past to his dismay.
"How's the League so far?" he asked.
"Boring!" she replied with a laugh.
"Yeah. Same! It was hard to believe those other guys. How hopeless they seemed."
Hera's smile faded somewhat. "That's true. But you shouldn't be too hard on them. We all start somewhere. Heaven knows when I was younger, I couldn't even kill a bug without flipping out."
"Sounds like you were mighty sensitive. Wow! I couldn't imagine being so soft on insects, not in the Wastes!"
"I was sensitive. But there was more to it than that. My church's denomination at the time -- well, my parent's denomination -- was of a belief that all things, big, small, dumb, smart, had a soul and thus could exist on par with that of Humanity. Combined with the fact that I was naturally on nerves, and you got a recipe for disaster! Ha!"
"Seems like you've overcome that hurdle well, judging by the training... and by everything else."
"Like in the dungeon interior, you mean?" Hera snickered, then took a large bite of her chunky soup. "I have. The way I am now took a long time to build. I still somewhere believe in the tenants of my youth, but out of necessity, I have moved away from them on the whole. Change takes time. Today, those recruits were a touch daft, yes, but tomorrow, they will be less daft, and even less so the day after tomorrow. A year from now, two, three, five, they will be champions of the store's defense force."
Clark agreed with everything Hera said. They finished their meal then returned to the stadium. While waiting for the tutorial to begin, it suddenly occurred to him that Theo might be getting floors and floors ahead of them regarding Tower Climbing.
Hera had a response for that, too. "I think Theo has listed Fulfillment as one of his Specialty departments. I doubt he will be getting too far ahead of us in the Climbing grind."
"Really? Fulfillment? I haven't spent much time doing that department. I wonder what it is like?"
"I've spent a little bit doing Fulfillment. It mostly boils down to how well you learn the layout of the salesfloor. The quicker you can find an item, the further you can push your Metrics. People with a talent for shopping effectively can rack in an incredible amount of Metric bonuses. I think with his fast-thinking mind, Theo is well-suited to the job."
Making a pleasant face, Clark shrugged. He would have to ask Theo about his time in Fulfillment when he next had a chance. Though he was tempted to send Theo a voice message asking just that, Salsa, the League instructor, cleared his throat before calling everyone to attention.
"Welcome one and all to the League's new recruit training session," Salsa said, some food still clinging to his beard. "Today's topic is Magic. I don't want to alarm you recruits, since magic is one of the hardest tools a Leaguer will develop, but the use of Dandies during combat is a vital skill. During my previous tutorial, Dandy use was included in the tutorial as the means to defeat the slime. But that is a far cry from the more specialized Dandies which exist for a wide number of combat roles. This lecture, then practical engagement, will teach you how to use Dandies for more than mere blessings. Can I have another volunteer? Ah, Clark! Come up, boy."
Clark went up with less angst than during the first training session when his fellow recruits volunteered him for them. Hands on instruction with the instructor, he found, was the best way to train.
"Now then," Salsa continued. "I will skip asking if you know about Dandy use already as I am willing to bet you know a thing or two. So, I will talk to the class." Salsa turned to face the recruits. "Dandy use comes in three basic varieties. One is Blessing. Two is Healing and Self-Enhancement. The third is Manipulation. Using all three Dandies in conjunction is the key to defeating the baddest, most vicious monsters in Augustford Central. And let me tell you boys and girls, I've seen some nasty pieces of claws and muscles. Trust me -- you will need all your wits if you want to survive the beasts lurking on the highest floors!"
Properly animated and given reason to pay attention, Clark hung on Salsa's every word. Not that he really needed to since his Dandy usage was already head and shoulders above his fellow recruits, in part thanks to Hera's dungeon spelunking. Paying attention was only polite, of course.
The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.
"Clark. Since you seem experienced, you can be the example: drink this dandy, stretch your arm out, and point at the stone chunks I dropped around the stadium. Will them to move. Once they do, toss them to the other side of the stadium. You will do this until you feel yourself depleted of stamina. At that point, you will then drink this Dandy to restore your stamina. Begin!"
An instant later, Clark had chugged the dandy which would allow him to manipulate objects as a distance. He had never used such a dandy before, though he had seen them sold at the Guild stalls. He couldn't afford to spend twenty-five credits on a manipulation spell. 'Course, when he considered what his rate of pay was now compared to what he made back then, he figured he would be able to handily afford a couple of manipulation dandies. He outstretched his arm and pointed at the nearest masonry chunk. "Move...!" he uttered under his breath as he willed the chunk to bend to his will.
It was by inches when it did shift. Manipulating the earthenware took a lot more from him than he anticipated; sometimes, though it moved, he lost his grip on it and the chunk fell back to the ground with a plop. When this happened, he redoubled himself and willed the piece back to movement. With effort, he managed to drag the piece of debris from the one part of the training arena to the other side. Sweat dripped from his face.
"Looks like you are tuckered. Here, drink this stamina potion. Now, tell the recruits how you feel, if you would be so kind," Salsa commanded.
He happily guzzled the stamina potion. "I feel wonderful. Like I just took a break in a nice, cool breakroom, and had a glass of iced water and a snack."
"And a snack!" Salsa exclaimed. "I think that is a good place for the rest of you to join in, yes? This exercise is a solo exercise. Each of you will be given three manipulation dandies and three stamina restoration dandies. To pass this Rank Training, you will need to move at least three pieces of masonry before the period ends. Everyone understand?!"
Salsa blew into a whistle signaling for the recruits to begin. "Clark. You only get two additional dandies. I will count that demonstration as one of your three needed to pass."
Clark nodded. Restored by the dandy he drank, his only focus was upon a stone chunk in front of him. He downed another Manipulation Dandy then got to work. Arm outstretched; mind, focused. He willed the debris to move, and it did. It wiggled but not as much as he needed it to shift and so he concentrated more. After painful but focused minutes, the chunk was moving more efficiently. "And now for the finishing touch!" With a significant mental heave, he flung his arm in a wide arc to the left and the chunk -- surprisingly -- rocketed away toward the safe zone.
"Nice one, Clark!" Salsa shouted and clapped. "That's two. Keep it up!"
Clark had to rest before doing any more. He had the stamina dandy with him, sure, but sometimes one had to just give the old muscles a break.
"Five minutes left!" Salsa shouted as he blew on his whistle once more.
Five minutes?! He couldn't believe it. Had he not heard Salsa before when he spoke on the time they would have to finish the assignment, or had they never said how long they would have? Clark hurriedly drank his final dandies, Stamina and Manipulation both, then got down to business.
By now, there were only a few masonry pieces left in the arena. His peers were going for the smallest pieces. Accordingly, arguments broke out among them for who set their sights first on what tiny piece. Clark didn't have time to participate in the petty squabbling, so he went for broke and took aim at a nearby piece of debris. It was uncontested because it was so large. He pointed his arm toward the piece and steeled himself for an effort and a half: "MOVE!"
This time, the fragment moved easier than the other two pieces. Clark didn't have the time to think on why that was. He instead continued his concentration and slowly moved his arm toward the safe zone, the chunk following at a snail's pace. Sweat fell from his brow as if it were a waterfall, surely exacerbated by the dandy use. "Just... a little... more!"
After such intense activity, his arm was heavy. It was as though the weight of the chunk had somehow transferred onto him. Forced to use his free arm to support his 'active' arm, even with both of his limbs, the masonry wedge proved difficult in moving through those final few inches; if the piece had been easy to move at the start, it was now anything but. Teeth gritted, Clark blocked out all distractions and narrowed his concentration.
Another whistle blow. "One minute!"
Clark gasped for breath and took in a massive lungful of air. "I won't fail! I can't fail! MOVE!"
Channeling everything he had left, ignoring the strange feelings being produced in his lower extremities, the chunk moved with imperceptivity haste.
He twirled his wrist in a final gesture; the chunk dropped; and the final whistle blew. Had he done it?
"Anderson -- pass! Fuller -- fail! Jason -- fail! Mike -- fail! Rachel -- pass..." and on Salsa went in his snap evaluations. "Clark," Salsa narrowed his eyes, looking closely at his final chunk. "Narrowly, but Clark -- pass!"
The instructor finished their grading. Everyone reformed into formation, looking much worse for wear, their athletic outfits soaked with perspiration. A terrible smell permeated the air. Clark tried to ignore the odor but that wasn't so easy with the number of people crammed into the modestly sized stadium.
Salsa resumed: "Nearly three-quarters of you failed. Harder than you thought it would be, wasn't it? Let this be a lesson to all of you -- just because you're at the bottom of the League doesn't mean you can slack off because, 'oh, the trainings will be easy.' These trainings are meant to test you. They are meant to build you into capable defenders of the corporate order! If you failed, it means you are not yet ready to defend our corporate benevolence." The recruits looked ashamed. Clark was ashamed as well but for different reasons -- only now did he realize he had 'released waste' during his exertions. That must've been what that 'strange feeling' was in his lower body. His face reddened. If he could see his reflection now, he had no doubt his embarrassment would strike through his physically flushed cheeks. Salsa continued, "I have good news for you failures. This is not the end of your League career. In fact, it is only the beginning. Magic works with your body. Use magic more, use certain types of dandies more, I mean, and you will discover your talents with them come more naturally. Failure here simply means an easy pass in the future."
Salsa answered some basic questions about re-taking the exam. Most of his answers amounted to 'check the League's webpage.' Those who passed received their System notification: [Congratulations! You've Received a League Rank Promotion! Promoted from Z to Y!]
"You lot are dismissed -- and for real, take a shower! All of you reek!"
What Kind of Magic Potion Would You Drink For Work?
