The rest of the day passed quickly, with Samuel and Tobi fully introducing themselves to the mages of the colony. They learned that the group had previously lived at the direct center of Zaban, between the three great lakes, but had been forced to flee when the chaotic mana had devoured their settlement. Thankfully their losses had been minimal. There were very few scrolls and books to speak of, as their magic was taught orally, and they did not rely on lengthy incantations to cast.

They asked Tobi and Samuel at length what Gorteau was like, as they were hermits, and the furthest any of them had been was Stormbreak Harbor. There were a lot of similarities between these people and the druids of Zaban, the key difference being how and when they interacted with nature. These people called themselves Wild Mages, drawing raw mana from nature around them and using it to great effect.

Every wild mage in the colony could use magic, and, watching them demonstrate their skills, Samuel estimated that they would be on par with Adepts and Masters from his own college. The thought that their magic could be so advanced despite their barbaric living conditions was a shock to him, but, like himself, their curiosity and love for learning the arcane arts was obvious. After they stopped seeing him as an awkward outsider, they got along quite well.

Samuel demonstrated his Mana Screen for them, and they picked it up very quickly, already proficient in the manipulation of their own mana. In return, one of the older members explained in detail how Sivarn had achieved his nearly indestructible reinforced body. Apparently, the wild mages had developed and perfected a style of runic magic. They painted the required symbols onto their body. When fueled with mana, these symbols had a profound effect on the power of both their bodies and their magic.

Samuel was taught some basic runes, but they were incredibly difficult to master. The slightest variation in the lines of the runes either failed or had a random effect. The elders consoled him in his mild frustration, explaining that there were masters of the craft among them, and they were often sought out to give permanent tattoos. Failure to write the runes was very dangerous, they advised.

The mages questioned Tobi on his experience with magic, expecting it to be on par with Samuel. When he replied that his arcane skill was sorely lacking, they did not disparage or dismiss him, but listened patiently as he described what he’d learned, and they showed particular interest in the experiment that Samuel had set him. When he demonstrated it by making a fallen twig fly through the air around him, they gasped aloud, and chattered amongst themselves hurriedly, then turned to the apprentice.

“There is a name in our people for this magic,” one of the elders said, his eyes shining. “It is psionics. The power to move objects with your mind alone. Very few are capable of this.”

“Psionics?” Samuel asked, his own curiosity coming to the forefront. “I’ve never heard this term. How does he train this skill?”

“Well, it is very difficult,” another elder said. “Only two of our number can perform it. But it is the source of our powerful runes. When you have an item inscribed with these runes, you gain greater control over it, and it has more power behind it.”

Sivarn, who had shown up at that moment after eating a quick meal in his tent, sat down at the circle of elders and nodded at Samuel. “Your sword bears these runes, Champion of Arcana. The Mind’s Blade was designed to be compatible with psionics.”

Tobi and Samuel shared a look of confusion, and Samuel summoned the blade. He’d noticed the runes before, of course, but it was only as they flared to life under such direct concentration that he finally made them out in proper detail. When he withdrew his mana from the blade and handed it, hilt-first, to Tobi, there was a mutter of interest among the elders.

“A Katawan blade,” someone sighed. “I never thought I’d seen one in my life.”

“Katawan?” Samuel queried, not understanding. “Body?”

“A Katawan blade is forged from the body of the Mother,” Sivarn interjected. “It is a very rare metal, nearly impossible to work, and only present in a small handful of weapons.”

“The last blade created was made for the Wanderer,” another elder said. “And that was hundreds of years ago.”

“The non-ancient people of the world call it Acquite,” Sivarn added. “Including your blade, only one other weapon is held by a mortal.”

Samuel had never heard of Acquite before, nor of special blades forged “in the body of the Mother”. Deciding to file the information away for future reference, he turned his attention to Tobi. The apprentice was holding the crystal blade, which by now had absorbed his own mana efficiently, and stood there, glowing brightly white, the runes standing out like little fires.

“Give it a try, Tobi,” He encouraged. His apprentice nodded.

First, Tobi merely let go of the weapon, his total concentration on it, and the blade stayed where it was, spinning gently in the air as it floated there. Judging by the surprised expression on his face, Samuel guessed that it was much easier than he’d expected. With a grin, Tobi moved the blade away from the crowd of people and thrust the blade forward. It spun away from him in a bright white blur, and thudded, hilt-deep, into the trunk of an ancient tree.

“That’s amazing,” Tobi commented, staring fixedly at the blade. “But its only good for one attack, it seems.”

“You can call it back, just as you sent it out,” another member, much younger, said. He stood up, pulling something out from his long sleeve. “Watch this.”

The item was revealed to be a small blade, just over six inches long, like a throwing knife. He did indeed throw it, choosing the same target as Tobi. But as the weapon left his hand, mana leaped from his body into the weapon, giving it extra force and momentum. It slammed into the tree just above Samuel’s blade with a loud thock. Then he made a quick beckoning gesture with his finger, and the knife was tugged free, returning quickly to his hand. Samuel whistled quietly.

“I’ll try that,” Tobi said. He directed his attention once more to the sword, and copied the beckoning gesture exactly. With a hiss of wood against metal, the sword slid free, and flew back. Halfway to his hand, however, the mana faded from it, and it fell to the sandy ground with a thump.

“Ah,” Tobi said, his face falling slightly. “Right. That will take quite a bit of practice.”

He trotted over to where the blade rested, and the talk turned to the chaotic mana currently wreaking havoc and absorbing the mana of the great lakes. Samuel shared his concern that it would drain all the energy there with the others, but they laughed it away. They assured him that there was too much energy there for any being to hold, even the most competent mages in history.

“It is Ahya’s Spring,” one of the elders said. “It is too powerful for the beast. But alas, that is our home, so we must return eventually.”

“I assume you tried to fight it,” Samuel guessed. “We did as well.”

“We know,” Sivarn replied. “Your apprentice told us so when he ran into our camp, carrying you on his back.”

“I… see,” Samuel said quietly. “Have you found anything that works?”

“Magic of the mind has no effect on it’s form,” One of the elders said. “We tried everything we could think of, but our attacks only made it stronger. Some of use magic of the body, but our strongest, Sivarn, was away when the beast came.”

Samuel glanced at Sivarn when this explanation was given, and saw the flash of anger present there. “That confirms our experience with it. Nothing I did had any effect upon it, but Tobi was able to cause some damage with a spell his father taught him.”

The wild mages looked curiously at Tobi as he said this, and asked him to demonstrate the magic. Tobi obliged, firing the War Strike high into the air. The elders leaned together and discussed something quietly for several minutes, then turned back to Tobi and Samuel.

“Would you be willing to teach this to some of our younger mages?” They asked. “They excel at controlling bursts of mana, and it would help us take back our home.”

Tobi deliberated for a moment or two, then nodded in agreement. The elders smiled fondly at him then, and Tobi went off to the side with several wild mages, and began instructing them in the theory of the magic. Samuel watched him for a while, until Sivarn cleared his throat pointedly, snagging his attention. Most of the younger mages had moved away now, either returning to their tents or practicing their magic beside the lake. It was now only Sivarn and the elders there, and they gestured for Samuel to move closer, to join them.

“We have thought long and hard about this creature that is plaguing us,” Sivarn said. “Our original plan was to gather our strongest members and hunt it down.”

Samuel nodded in understanding, not surprised. It was a good plan. He assumed that Sivarn would be the strongest, but the others looked capable enough. “That’s a sound idea. But why confide this in me?”

“The truth is, we were nearly successful in driving the beast out in our last encounter,” Sivarn explained. “But it used a unique magic in the end, and sacrificed itself to try and destroy us.”

“It sacrificed itself?” Samuel asked, staring blankly at the man. “But how was it still alive when I met it then?”

“It left a small part of itself behind. When the chaotic mana exploded and struck many of our younger mages, they were devoured in an instant. Then their mana was taken by the beast, making it stronger than ever before.”

Samuel imagined the effect in his mind. Just touching that creature’s essence immediately caused your mana to be devoured. It was this effect that had rendered him so weak, and why he’d lost so quickly. He understood this much. But he could not imagine why this information was important to share with him. What could he do about it? Then he understood.

“My counter,” he said simply. “It’s the key to killing it.”