I always underestimate how much effort it takes to clean up after I make a mess. Maybe I should make fewer messes. I end up clearing a small space near the sun orb, and sit with my back to the bright light. I kind of want to attempt to steal it, but I'm not sure how to get it down, it's about 12 feet in the air if these zombies are an average human height. No idea how it works but if it's an endless floating light source... Towing it around on a leash might be fun!

But I digress. I need to do magic stuff now, magic stuff makes Brian stronk... Oh, and see my loot. What did I get! Ooh, I'm excited!

A gentle request has most of the bees come back while I begin fumbling at the clasp on my new bag. It hasn't been cared for in a while and definitely needs to be oiled, it's a bit stiff, kind of like its old owner. Poor... guy? Girl? I didn't exactly check. They aren't exactly human, so maybe... Poor person? No that just sounds like they're broke, not murdered in a hallway and left to rot. Ah, I know! Pitiful creature! I feel bad for whoever or whatever that pile of rotten bloody rags used to be. Not bad enough to keep me from looting the poor bugger, but bad enough I feel guilty about it. Man this knot is hard to open. I'd cut it but then how would I close the bag? I finally got the knot open, these fingers are not very dexterous.

Inside I find...

Several papers. I get excited and since I let Eliza go eat some delicious honey, I co-opt Gertrude to get closer to do some reading. Her vision isn't great but she's usually hanging around, it's harder for her to go do hive chores like cleaning, and building, since her joints aren't so good. After some time looking at the papers I learn I can't read whatever language this is. They look kind of like wanted posters with various monsters and plants pictured upon them though. I'm guessing these are pictures of valuable items, maybe I can learn a few things from the pictures.

Inside is also a small hand mirror, some rather fine rope, a few pitons, some twine, a small hammer, and some paper wrapped brown bricks that look kind of like protein bars. There's also a knife and a whetstone in here. A little bag has a few funky looking tiny stamped brass ingots in it, and I get a hunch. Comparing the writing on the ingots with the writing on the papers, I find that some of the symbols match. I think I have just found money.

I pack everything back in the bag, and check my power levels. They've not gone up much, so I decide to see if I can get some more magic while I wait. I can already do a little psionic magic and I know it uses mana, so lets see if paying really close attention grants me any insight.

I connect and disconnect with bees while analyzing the sensations involved. I get the feeling the actual connection with the bees is extremely complex, and the skill I was granted is doing a lot of the heavy lifting. I'm sorry for disparaging you before, system, this is actually kind of cool. I don't think I'm able to learn a different type of connection without more info though. When making a connection with a bee, the mana contorts in a very intricate pattern, after which it is changed somehow. After the mana is changed, a connection is formed, and the connection itself is complex with many functional parts. It reminds me of looking at a combustion engine, a little. There's at least 12 parts which feed back in to other parts while also feeding in to the main connection point, and I can barely understand what is going on. After looking for a while, I decide to call all the little parts spell constructs, since they're like little parts that come together to perform a function. That function being a spell.

Giving up a bit, I start analyzing the other end of the tether. This one is actually pretty simple. There's a fine connection from the mana crystal to me, and a thicker connection between the mana crystal and the bee, with only a few linear pieces along it's length. It's something I can easily replicate. I build a second connection from me to the mana crystal, build a line out and build a connection to a pebble in front of me, and open the connection. The rock vibrates a bit, then starts to glow red and melts. Nice! But that was pretty mana intensive, I discharged a quarter crystal just to melt a tiny pebble. Lets experiment and see if I can up the efficiency a bit.

A few dozen tests later I get a notification

You have learned Basic Mana Manipulation.

Hell yeah! With that little notification I suddenly understand what some of the little parts are. That one is a link, for chaining together two similar powers, that one is a link for chaining together two different things and... oh wait the rocks were melting because I was using the wrong kinds of links. I should use this one for physical objects, chain them together with this thing for backflow prevention and...

and...

It appears to be faintly glowing blue, but I'm not really sure. I might be a bit underwhelmed here, I liked melting rocks a bit more., I cut the connection and think for a while, going over all the new patterns and shapes I can flow mana into.

After a bit of pondering, I try something new. If I put a small cycler and a one way valve on the end of the line near a rock, and run a line around the edges of the rock, I can pump mana in to the line, and it spins around the rock really fast, and doesn't dissipate as rapidly. It takes a few seconds, but the rock still melts and it costs way less. Progress!

My mana crystals are almost full, so I decide to probe the brain crystals and those weird green marbles a bit to see what exactly is up with them before I go explore some more.

After my level up I understand a little more about the psionic spell I have, but it's still way beyond my ability to understand, it's a well oiled machine and I'm still playing with sticks. What I do know is that the spell first translates the regular mana into another type of mana it uses for the psionic spell. After probing the little brain crystals, I conclude these are tiny storages for typed mana, but I'm not really familiar with what kinds they are. I might have to play around a bit before I can figure that out.

When I try to probe the little green orbs, I get a weird feeling, almost like a suction, which keeps getting stronger. Then I notice it's draining my mana, and cut the connection. I need that, you dumb spheres! You can't sucker me so easily!

I'm still not quite sure what they are, but whatever they do they probably need to be charged. I'll deal with them later. After a little while longer, I stand up, fully powered and a bit more efficient and precise with my mana usage. Hefting the new axe with a dead hand, I notice it's easier to work the fingers now.

I'm recharged and it's time to go discover what's at the end of that hallway.

Mana manipulation levels up, and I step outside and head down the corridor. Passing my crumpled benefactor again, I give them a quick nod of respect, and pass around a corner out of sight. After a few more turns, I enter another room like the zombie room. This one has holes and tunnels in the walls and floor and it makes me way too uncomfortable. Suddenly one of the mounds of dirt shifts, and out pops something that looks like a cross between an armadillo and a rat. It stares right at me, then makes a yipping noise and runs right at me. I suddenly notice it has giant clawed paws like a mole, and feel a strong desire not to get raked over by them. It runs forward and rears up on its hind legs, bringing it to a height of about 70 cm, not including the big arms, and starts taking swipes at me, yipping all the while.

I back up, swinging the axe wildly and we both miss. More swings follow, and eventually after entirely too many attempts, I manage to hit it on the paw with a glancing strike. It squeals and runs back into the room, diving in one of the holes and disappearing from sight. I hear more yipping, but it's muffled. Some of the yipping definitely overlaps each other, there's more than one down there. Suddenly I hear a lot of yipping and it's getting louder. And louder. There's a lot of these things down there. I decide to take the better part of valor, and begin backing away from the room. A few moleratmadillows pop out of the ground and look right at me, yipping loudly and beginning a charge across the holey ground.

Oh shit...