“Don’t underestimate me because I’m quiet. I know more than I say, I think more than I speak and observe more than you know.”

Michaela Chung

I’ve become a little quiet at the moment. The problem was, it wasn’t by choice. Each milestone has come with a side effect or two. Long-Lived while fantastic in the long run seemed to mean that it was going to take me a little longer to grow up than most. Not to mention the high vitality has meant that when my body was not being pushed to its limits I struggled to sleep. This has not been a particularly upsetting problem. As I generally made the most of it building my mental fortress in my head or secretly practicing my magic at night. However, at the same time, it would be have been nice not to become an insomniac before the age of 1 on this world. Still, with many years to look forward to, and various ways to work around the problems created, it has been a huge net positive.

Super Senses, again an amazing trait, that has helped me to see so much more of the world. Aiding me in my growth of skills linked to my senses and letting me see further and deeper into the dark that is the unknown. It has allowed me to pretend that I am a super hero in the making but it was also painfully overwhelming to begin with. I sometimes wondered, whether, without my high mind stat, if I would have ever managed to reduce my hypersensitivity to somewhat manageable levels. As much as it filled my mind with extra information, it too added to my difficulty sleeping if limited to only my body and restricted from hiding out in my mind.

Once more, while Source of Mana was an irresistible source of power and a trait I couldn’t live without now, especially if I hoped to continue to build my financial empire. Despite my regular daily use of it, to boil of water and create more salt, I still woke up on occasion to find myself releasing uncontrolled mana, to the point that it wakes me up from my sleep. So far, I have not set anything on fire and the iridescent, green, emerald necklace, I was given by my family, on awakening, seemed to be absorbing any of my excess mana. Perhaps if I didn’t have it I would have incinerated, boiled or melted the bed in one form or another. A side effect I had been fortunate to have avoided. Still it made one wonder.

In fact, on further reflection, considering all of these causes and effects I suppose it should not have been a surprise that meeting the milestone for Clarity would have given me a new trait as well as a new hidden consequence.

I just, had not realised how debilitating it would be, to be reduced to a literal, as well as figurative, baby once more. I listened without understanding to the pondering speech of my family that had become to slow to understand. While I fought to move slow enough for my body to respond to the signals my brain was sending. Working out how to work around the side effect of this trait was going to take some time. I pondered on the success and failures of this morning’s final fling.

The jump itself had gone well, mother herself taking part and making the throw. Grandfather now sailed with Father and Aleera just in case any denizen of the deep decided to rise for a little nibble again. So far, so good but it was an added insurance and seemed to relieve Father and Aleera that he sailed with them on the dangerous deeps of the sea.

The glide went well angling out then in to ensure I was gliding down as shallowly and slowly as I could while approaching the sailboat that skipped across the sea ahead of me. Timing our intercept as carefully as possible meant that I could be caught out of the air as our speeds aligned. The sailboat powered by skills skipped along far faster than the wind along would have allowed.

It was not until I was plucked out of the air my control over my purple robes fading as I pulled my mana out. That I heard that fateful chime.

Ding!

Clarity reached 100 before age 1 awarded the trait quick witted

Level: 11 Name: Kai

Experience: 295,350/ 409,600

Age: 15 months, 2 weeks, 1 days, 12 hours

Health: 1180/1180 Stamina: 550/580 Mana: 1210/1210 Psi: 1210/1210

Trait: Long-Lived, Fast Learner, Super Senses, Source of Mana, Quick Witted

Vitality: 118

Endurance: 28

Strength: 28

Dexterity: 34

Senses: 121

Mind: 121

Clarity: 100

Magic: 121

Charisma: 22

Luck: 2

Free Points: 30

Skills:

Tier 1: Time sense (LV 30) Listening (LV 30) Meditation (LV 39) Swimming (LV 32) Humming (Lv 27)Sneak (Lv 22) Whistling (Lv 27) Singing (Lv 27) Drumming (Lv 25) Running (Lv 17) Acting (20) English (Lv 15) Spanish (Lv 15) Japanese (Lv 15) German (Lv 10) French (Lv 7) Dodge (Lv 11) Breath Control (Lv 12) Sight (Lv 15) Scent (Lv 15) Detect (Lv 15) Taste (Lv 15) Bussola (Lv 7) Draw (Lv 4) Climb (Lv 7) Calligraphy (Lv 5) Mathematics (Lv 10) Decoding (Lv 6) Lie (Lv 10) Knife Skills (Lv 5) Trading (Lv 14) Sailing (Lv 6)

Tier 2: Sense Mana (LV 38) Eavesdrop (LV 28) Memorisation (LV 22) Composition (Lv 22) Recall (Lv22) Pain tolerance (Lv 13) Piano (Lv 20) Violin (Lv 20) Trombone (Lv 20) Saxophone (Lv 20) Linguistics (Lv 16) Translation (Lv 16) Stealth (Lv 12) Quick reflexes (Lv 27) Haggling (Lv 5) Misdirection (Lv 5)

Tier 3: Echolocation (LV 26) Expel Mana (Lv 37) Absorb Mana (Lv 31) Mana Manipulation (Lv 29) Ignite (Lv 15) Freeze (Lv 10) Boil (Lv 11) Bargain (Lv 10) Gale (Lv 17) Deception (Lv 1) Melt (Lv 10)

Tier 4: Material Manipulation (Lv 15) Mana Drain (Lv 20) Parallel Processing (Lv 15)

Tier 5: Mind fortress (Lv 17)

Skill experience: 10200

Origin experience: 0

Combat experience: 0

Crafting experience: 1000

Trading experience: 1000

Popular experience: 1000

It all happened so quickly, I didn’t notice it at first. Lost as I was in the contemplation of my new trait and my status screen within my mental fortress I simply felt the warm embrace of my grandfather’s embrace.

What did quick-witted mean? That I could think fast? I already had fast learner this felt a little redundant. Although I knew it had to do something it was not immediately apparent from looking at my status.

Although a second look at the top of my status showed me something new . . .

Level: 11 Name: Kai

Experience: 292,350/ 409,600

Age: 15 months, 2 weeks, 1 days, 12 hours

Health: 1180/1180 Stamina: 549/580 Mana: 1210/1210 Psi: 1210/1210

My stamina was dropping.

This seemed odd. As although I always lost some stamina, from the holding my body in position, for the gliding. I tended to use as much or more magic than muscles to do so and did not lose too much after practicing it so many times. Now that I was held in my families arms though I was not doing anything.

So why was my stamina still dropping?

I returned to the world and my family only to notice that the world seemed to be standing still. The boat still moved through the water but slower. My grandfather still stood holding me but as he moved to pass me to Aleera I noticed that the world seemed to be moving incredibly slowly.

My senses since I gained the trait Super Senses had always seemed to be uncomfortably strong now seemed muted of their own accord. I could still see more, hear more, sense more in so many different ways but my mind had the time or clarity to process them all.

I had super speed. Is this what it meant to be quick witted? I tried to move which is when I found the hidden consequence to the trait.

I couldn’t.

Or at least it felt as if I couldn’t.

Held by my Grandfather, I would have been unable to change the trajectory of my movement, but I should have been able to look to the side, raise an arm or move a finger.

There might have been a twitch but it was gone and over without any managing any movement at all. Freaking out I panicked but there was no movement at all other than an eye twitch or miniscule movement of my hand. I listened in horror as my family slowly began to possibly congratulate me on my final fall.

I got to watch in slow motion as their faces shifted through a range of emotions from elation, to confusion, to concern before settling on worry as they questioned me about my most recent glide and I was unable to respond physically or verbally.

Oh dear.