Fore note~ This is the start of my writing journey. I was scared and unsure when I posted the prologue yesterday, but the few who read it were very kind and encouraging. Please bear with me, I will write this story for those who asked for it. Thank you, so much, for the comments and what not. They helped me muster the courage to write my first chapter. There will be a note at the bottom of the chapter explaining what was actually happening, it will be there in case someone didn't understand from my writing. If you did get the gist of it just ignore the note. Once again, thank you~

Computer Display –

Data entry: 400319 – Date: 19/3/2015 – History and Principles of Magic – CC: HPM101 – ID: 1084313 - Student: ‘Eran [Abdicatus] Magia’ - … Lecture Start? -

Narrator: “Our world began like any other, a molten mass of metal and rock. Scientists throughout the ages agreed that the quadrant of space our planet orbits was littered with celestial bodies, commonly known as asteroids. What they could not agree on, was what pulled the asteroids together, melted them, shaped them and then cooled the mass into a sphere. Some claimed that it was the gravitational pull of the cosmos, others that it was an omnipotent being, willing our world into existence.”

“The conflict that sparked from these two conflicting theories resulted in countless political and religious wars. For thousands of years the two sides fought each other and it wasn't until the year 64,319, now referred to as ‘The year of the Magi’ (Year 0, beginning of the modern calendar), that a man discovered the truth. The man’s name was Merwin and his new found knowledge would become the greatest scientific discovery the world has ever known. By gazing at the stars Merwin noted that the light coming from certain heavenly bodies was grey in color. Fascinated by the strange colored light Merwin conducted tests on the differences between light from the sun and the new strange grey light. His discoveries were astounding. Merwin found that unlike the ethereal light from the sun which brightens up the sky, the grey light had substance, it had weight. After even more tests Merwin found that with a certain level of concentration he could feel the light surrounding him, it was as if it was in the air…”

Audio File: HPM0001 – Excerpt: Study Journal – Author: Arch-mage, Merwin Magi – Year: 0 –

Would you like to play...?

‘Date: First day of spring - 64,318 - While my sanity is almost spent, my will remains strong. I fear without the promise of change I would have given up this folly long ago… I have made significant progress in the study of light and its properties, I hope with greater understanding I will discover the significance of the grey light…

Date: Ninth day of spring - 64,318 – The grey light has weight, it has substance. It weighs less than air but can feel as dense as water, I fear this discovery only leads to more questions…

Date: Thirteenth day of spring - 64,318 - It is frustrating to keep referring to the anomaly as grey light, note that from hence forth all mentioning of grey light will be referred as Mana. I came to call it as such as the unique color of the light reminds me of my grandfather Manathorns hair. I couldn’t go around calling it Manathorn so I have shortened it in that regard…

Date: First day of summer - 64,319 – After months of study I have finally found the answers I wanted. Note that my summary will be concise as the possibilities and results of my research could may well be boundless…

Date: First day of summer - 64,319 - As such – Grey light, or ‘Mana’ is a form of astral energy that permeates from the sun. Unlike regular sunlight, Mana does not give of warmth nor does it cause brightness. The reason we have never heard of 'Mana' is due to two factors. One it’s near weightlessness. And two its invisibility to the naked eye. Whilst mana does have weight and does have form, it seems that if one does not already know of its existence, they cannot perceive it. I only noticed it as I have a somewhat open mind, call it an affinity with Mana if you will. I have found that the strange grey light which I started investigating as a hobby, is the answer to the world’s problems. For as long as history is recorded, other science and religious quacks, have claimed their own piece about creation, but I know now three undeniable facts. One – Whilst normally grey in color, Mana will change to different shades when touching any of the elements, a bright red when surrounding flame, a deep blue when submerged in water, a light green when carried by the wind, and a murky brown when resting in the ground. Two – when taking into consideration the first fact, it is undeniable that the elements of this world both consist of, and are made of Mana. If the elements are made of Mana, then life too, must be made from Mana. Three – When taking into account the first two facts, I have deduced that the origin of our world, possibly all the worlds, is Mana. When it permeates from the sun, it flows through the open cosmos until it reaches a certain condition. Too what the condition is, I can only guess. Perhaps a certain temperature, or maybe a certain saturation of mana in the area. What I do know is that when Mana condenses it forms into a sphere, a sphere being its natural form. Our world is one such sphere, a super condensed ball of Mana that over millennia has formed elements and through these elements, life itself…’

Another Audio File has been detected – Would you like to play?

No-

Resuming Primary Lecture… –

Narrator: ‘At first the findings of Merwin were discarded as the ravings of a madman by the science faction and heresy by the religious faction. On the same day that Merwin released his findings to the world, he was killed in a city street. Murdered in cold blood. But the two powers could not stop the curiosity of the human mind, after hearing Merwins theory, others went out to test it. After many tribulations it became a known fact that the astral energy known as Mana, was the cause for life on Earth. What preceded was a thousand years of reconciliation and development.’

‘Merwin, was hailed as the progenitor of Mana, and through his findings a new art form was born, one which manipulated Mana, The Mana arts, which later came to be known as Magic. Those that practiced these arts were also called Magi, and to distinguish his greatness from the others, the practitioners of Magic named Merwin the Archaea-magi, the first of his kind. This term was modernised into what is more commonly known as ‘The Arch-Mage’. What Merwin had said about his findings were true. They were boundless, and like himself, many came after that would make many more discoveries such as, Aristople, Halileo Halilei, Isaac Mewton and Albert Eeinstye.’

‘From the ‘year of the Magi’ to the year 1,013 ADA (After the Death of the Arch-mage) the only way to manipulate Mana or what is now known as performing Magic, was to manipulate the Mana around the practitioner, but it was then found in the year 1,014 that human beings, through the constant use of Mana had developed a new pseudo-organ. This organ was not a physical organ such as lungs or a heart, but was entirely comprised of condensed mana. The Mana was in the shape of a sphere and had a hardened exterior. Humans were previously unable to see Mana, but through a new art (spell), it was possible to see mana and its varying colors. The Mana sphere looked like a well with two openings on either side. Scientists deduced that the left side was for absorbing Mana and the right was for releasing Mana. They worked out that whilst the size of the mana-well was fixed from birth, the density of the mana that can be stored, increases with either continual use or from an innate affinity with Mana.’

‘Fast forward three hundred years and Magic now consists of spells instead of Arts. The reason for this, is that whilst magic can be cast voicelessly, it is more potent when speaking an incantation as the words force the mind to focus on the directives of the spell. It is also found that Mana is unconsciously absorbed and released through the gates in a mana-well. The only exception being the period when a spell is cast. The gates will forcefully open or close as the spell requires.

Now in the present, a full 2,015 years since the birth of magic and the death of Merwin, magic is used in day to day life. The entire population of earth, some 7 billion humans, are now Magi, or more commonly called ‘Mages’.’ Through the constant use of magic over the generations, the mages of today are stronger than their predecessors, capable of great and powerful magic. A system of classification has been applied to magic. The system is a numerical scale ranging from the First-circle, which includes weak spells such as ‘Mana Flare’ or ‘Small Fireball’, the Second and third-circle which consists of weak spells that require more concentration than their counterparts such as the spells ‘Fireball’ and ‘Shock’. The strongest and most dangerous of spells are in the range of eighth, ninth and tenth-circle. There are a limited amount of tenth-circle spells and almost all of them cause havoc on a large scale. As well as ability levels another determining factor of magic is elemental affinities, for example, one can have an affinity with the element water, which would increase the potency of Water based spells, but would cause fire based spells to be weaker. Affinities als-…

‘ERAN MAGIA, ARE YOU PAYING ATTENTION?’ an old man with a very cross face charges through the class room passing several display desks to stand before a single boy. Everyone in the classroom turned to face the sudden commotion.

The boy in question raised his head to reveal a pair of grey eyes and an outstandingly handsome face. It was a face that one could stare at all day, and not feel the day was wasted. That would be the case, of course if it wasn't for the expression the boy was making. His beautiful green flecked, grey eyes, were cast down to avoid the teacher’s gaze. His full lips were pursed together pulling slightly down and his sculpted jaw line was as taut as a bow string. This was the look of some who was very afraid. This was the look of someone who was used to being yelled at. This was the look of someone who was fervently trying to make himself non-existent. This was the face of Eran Abdicatus Magia, the boy who could not use magic.

~Draft

~Chapter Guide~

Chapter 2~

Post note~ The format of this chapter may be strange to some. What essentially happened is there is a classroom of students who are sitting in front of futuristic computer displays. The Display showed a line of code and a command prompt. All the prompts were in bold. The 'Narrator' is an online pre-recorded voice giving a lecture. There is a teacher in the room but his purpose is to make sure that students are paying attention to the lecture on their displays.

Hope this helps clear up any confusion~