Nico rested for two hours, and then spent another hour trading stories with the trio of mages. Vera healed everyone with the help of Nico's MP Regen Formation to replenish the power. Nico felt well rested.

It used to take a full night's sleep to replenish all of his MP. Now, a quick nap replenished his power with his beefed-up MP Regen. He explained the situation to them with most of what happened, but asked for their story first.

The trio said they had been here for three days and were low on stock. Three days in the Next Over was approximately one day on Earth, which was new information to Nico. It was a reminder that he knew so little about magic, mages, and the Next Over. Their intent was to find the treasure room of this ruin.

Chris was the party leader, and didn't want anyone else to get to the treasure room first. Their Hold was a part of the Mages Union for the West Coast region of the United States. They were a party that hunted specifically for powerful artifacts. Chris acquired his bow at one of the ruins.

The reason why the magic archer had been so paranoid about Nico was someone had tripped one of Vera’s barriers. That had given Nico the perfect opportunity to explain his situation, and how that person was most likely the one who framed him for murder. The segue helped him frame himself as just another victim of the intruder, which he was.

Vera had a spell that could roughly tell if he was lying or not. Nico didn’t have room to lie. He did find it wise to not talk about his encounter with and help from Balthazar. That man had a reputation spanning the globe.

"I'm just relieved you guys believe me," Nico said, finishing his story. He felt his shoulders relax from the tense story, wondering if they were going to kill him right then and there for being on the red-list.

Keith slapped him on the back and roughed up his hair playfully. “We like you too much to kill ya. And Vera’s truth spell aside, your story clears up the mystery of why an apprentice-class practitioner is in the Next Over by himself.”

"If the person who tripped our barriers is the same one who set up that citywide artificial lay line, then we’re dealing with a warlock," Chris noted with a grim expression. He was busy rubbing his bow with a fresh scented oil that hardened almost instantly. “They’ll be able to cast a class three spells the way you can with cantrips. It will take all of us to take him down."

"I don't know about that," Vera chimed in. "They somehow convinced four different apprentice class practitioners to use Nico’s sigil at the same time. That’s a ritual, which means they knew the killer long enough to trust them. That could take years of trust and, therefore, an equal amount of time to build the leylines. With that kind of time, a practitioner could create a leyline that large."

“You’re saying instead of being a warlock who casts class-three spells with ease, they can cast class-two spells instead?” Nico asked.

“Yeah,” Vera confirmed. She sighed. “But it’s still a warlock. I’m technically a mage, but I can’t cast class one spells quickly and effectively enough without formations. My brother and Chris can.”

This was the first time Nico had a good idea of what he was dealing with. Up until then, the person who framed him was an ambiguous figure. He hadn’t even considered their level of power. Well, it wasn’t like he could afford to. The decision he made weren’t intelligent, but felt like the right ones at the time.

Either way, it gave him a little hope. He wanted to believe Vera that they were only dealing with a low-level warlock. With the trio and Nico, they had more than a good chance to take them on.

Those who could cast cantrips frequently were considered apprentice-level practitioners. Anyone below that tier of power was just grouped in with every other practitioner. The next level were mages, those who could cast multiple class one spells without draining their power too much. Warlock could do the same with class two and three spells. They numbered in the thousands on Earth, scattered throughout different Holds.

After that...Well, it was something Nico had a difficult time imagining that level of power and mastery of magic. Anyone who could cast class four spells the way Nico threw around cantrips was given the title of a sorcerer. There were supposedly just under one hundred on Earth. Most of them were hearthome Holders, unable to leave their Holds but were practically gods within their territory.

Finally, there were wizards. According to Fu, only three were granted that title. They could practically fart class five spells. The head of the Mages Union was one. Nico didn’t know anything of the other two.

The Mages Union classified spells up to class nine. Spells beyond class six would either need a wizard or require a ritual with multiple, high level practitioners. According to public knowledge, the last time a class seven spell was cast, Atlantis was wiped off the face of the Earth.

Silence passed among the group. Everyone seemed to be lost in their own thoughts.

Nico’s Auto-Scan absorbed the contents of the room, updating his Map. Luckily, the Scan also picked up the contents of the weathered leather map which lay on the floor that belonged to Chris.

Good. That way, if Nico was separated from the trio, he wouldn't be running around completely blind.

For the first time since he'd woken up to this crazy day, Nico felt confident. He knew where he was going, and if he encountered his enemy, he wouldn't have to fight it alone. The trio weren’t exactly friends, but they were allies and good people. He munched on the last of the salted beef jerky given to him by Vera, and downed the last drops of his bottled water.

Nico broke the lull in conversation. "Why are you guys here?"

"We found the map of this ruin in a different ruin five years ago" Chris said, drying off the oil on his magical bow.

"Why didn't you go then?" Nico asked.

"We didn't know its exact location," Keith replied. "It took a year of our best diviners just to find this location in the Next Over."

The way the warrior spoke about divining geographical locations in this world made it seem incredibly difficult, even for Union mages. Nico wanted to know why, but he kept his mouth shut to listen to the rest of their story.

Vera added,. "After that, we had to wait until the proper stars and moons aligned to open a portal to this location."

Nico held back a frown. They were talking about the Next Over as if Nico knew as much as they did about the world. The books and scraps of information he gathered over the years had given him a false confidence in his own knowledge. He needed to reevaluate what he knew and what he thought he knew about the Next Over.

What Vera said was interesting. They used a completely different portal than the one Nico's enemy and Nico himself used. Obviously, they entered from outside the obelisk too, but just at a different location. That fact combined with the timing of the tampering of Vera’s barrier meant the killer had taken the Larkin Square portal within twenty four hours of Nico taking it.

At least, that was what Measure came up with. That removed a few suspects in his mind, and he didn’t those who remained.

Chris still seemed pretty skeptical of Nico, but the man’s paranoia seemed to come from wanting to keep his party members safe. He asked in an accusatory tone, "How exactly do your modifications work? I've never seen anyone make wildly accurate assumptions with a few scraps of magical theory, and then adapt that knowledge into formations even more efficient than the original."

Nico tensed, but forced himself to relax. This could either be a witch-hunt or an opportunity to gain their leader’s trust.

He explained his ability as vaguely possible. They weren’t hostile toward him, but were still a part of the Coalition of Holds. Any information he gave them would go to the Coalition if they were asked about him. He finished with, "What it comes down to, is that my own ability is a sort of divination."

“I'm not asking you for you to tell me all of your secrets, " Chris said, more patiently than Nico expected. "I know that it's taboo asking about a practitioner’s ability. I don’t even really care about your ability. If we’re going to babysit some apprentice-class kid--”

“I’m a year younger than Vera,” Nico shot back.

“Like I said, a kid,” Chris continued without pause. “I need to know that I can trust you a little. That means not just telling us about your ability, but showing us."

Was that it? The man wanted another show?

Fine. And what was with the kid comment anyways? Chris and Keith looked to be in their early thirties. That didn’t make them old men.

Nico was little miffed about having to show his skills with Measure again. And this time, it would be with everyone watching carefully. But...if it gained Chris’ trust, then that would help.

Luckily, when Nico had been asleep, Measure had been slowly analyzing the spells that he saw them use, including their vocal commands.

All practitioners of every school of magic were wary of revealing their school’s methods, spells, and theories. Any little insight gave other practitioners a way to counter their magic. So, Nico didn't blame them for wanting to see how his ability worked. If he was able to break down their magic completely, he would have more ammunition to counter their spells. To them, he was dangerous.

Nico shook his head. It was probably the first time in his history as a magician that someone saw him as a threat. He was half flattered and half annoyed.

“Come on man,” Keith pushed gently. “We gave you our last beef jerky.”

That made Nico grin. He chuckled. "Fine. Alright. We've already established that Vera follows the standard West Coast theory of magic, abandoning much of Gallahad’s Principles entirely," Nico began, ignoring the woman’s chuckle at the mention of Gallahad. "From what I gathered earlier, Keith, it seems like you have some kind of affinity with metal.”

Keith froze, like a deer in the headlights. That confirmed Nico’s suspicion. The way Keith moved the metal on his armor yesterday to change the formation hadn’t required a spell. It was probably his unique ability.

Nico continued, not wanting to lose momentum. “Uhh...Chris, your archery style and summoning of the string and bow suggest some kind of base within runic magic. You probably had a base in runic magic before you even got the bow. Your artifact only enhanced your abilities. But that's all just a guess."

The three magicians stared at Nico dumbly. They looked both alarmed and terrified. That was exactly the opposite of what Nico wanted. He tried to impress them, but instead they looked warier than before.

Chris instinctively grabbed for his bow, but Keith stopped him with a hand.

"Don't give me that look," Chris snarled. “He just stripped our methods naked with nothing insane leaps of logic. No one can divine knowledge like that. He’s hiding something!"

“Apparently he can,” Keith said gently, but his voice had edges of fear.

“How long will it take? How many spells do we need to show him before he has enough countermeasures to kill you?” Chris shot back.

Keith stepped between Chris and Nico, putting both of his gauntleted hands on the archer’s shoulders. He spoke calmly. “What happened three years ago wasn’t your fault. Vera and I aren’t going anywhere.”

Chris’ fury deflated into something more somber. The grip on his bow loosened. He looked down, blinking something away in his eyes.

Nico tensed. Trust was on the edge. He took that moment to chime in, "Let me remind you that you guys outnumbered me three to one, and are each a full mage class above me. I'm only bringing up my theories about how your magic works because I can make your spell formations more efficient. I swear to god it wasn’t a threat.”

He paused, and for good measure added. “Please don’t kill me. I’ve had a very rough day.”

"I’ll give you a spell." Vera said, stepping forward confidently. “Before you say anything Chris, this is my decision.”

Chris seemed to bite back whatever it is he wanted to say. Keith gave his sister an encouraging smile.

Nico sighed, thankful someone heard him. He was beginning to think he was speaking a different language. "Thank you. But you don’t have to give me the whole theory behind it. That way you’re not breaking any promises to your master. It can just be one spell or one spell formation. I’ll work out the rest."

Chris scoffed.

Nico tried to stop himself from looking annoyed. This was the exact kind of overprotection of knowledge that he fought for years.

Magicians all over the world were protective of their knowledge. Giving away a few spells or formations without the theory behind them would create openings and weaknesses, but it wouldn't render them useless since schools of magic were as different as the German language and a crustacean. On top of that, Nico wasn’t steal. He was improving their magic.

Nico really liked Vera. She was one who had given him a portion of her rations just so he could fill his stomach and quench his thirst. The magician explained a little bit of the theory for her formation and the invocations required for her spell, which she called Veins of the Green.

"Your theory combines a bit of Native American magic from the Seneca nations, infused with the more proactive elements of neo-druidic. That right?" Nico asked.

"That's the gist of it," Vera confirmed. "The fused elements came from cross-inheritance with my master’s ancestors."

"Ah, that explains the crossing of theories," Nico concluded. “Their roots were in using the earth as a catalyst and grounding for flow were similar.”

“Ha! Roots. Good one,” Vera chuckled. She immediately tried wiping away her smile to look like a professional magician who took her crafter very seriously, and not a twenty-two year old young woman who looked liked dorky puns.

Nico felt his ears warm a little. Now that he was close to her, he saw how cute she really was. He reminded himself to ask for her number if he ever survived this and found himself on the West Coast. Here you do the formation of that would be required to summon spell veins of the green. He sat for a full minute absorbing her knowledge before getting up with his black marker.

"Alright. I can increase the efficiency by 300%," Nico explained while drawing the new formation. "For me, it’ll cost around twenty six MP...I mean...Gallahad Thaumaturgic Units."

"GTUs?" Keith guffawed. "What are we, in elementary school?"

Nico shot him a glare. "I'm sorry, who was the one getting their ass kicked till I showed up?"

Vera hid a chuckle behind her hand. She stepped into the formation and waited for Nico to finish drawing the last line with his black marker. She chanted the incantation and summoned her spell. Green emerald light burst out of her skin and flooded everyone in the area, including Nico.

A notification screen appeared in this vision listing over a dozen little buffs to his status. It even affected how fast his hair would grow by one percent.

Holy shit.

"Wow," Vera exclaimed, stepping out of the formation.

Keith flexed his muscles and pumped a few fists. "Wow was right! My turn."

Nico beamed with pride. For years, his modifications were scoffed at like a bargain bin discount. Now, three qualified mages were completely impressed with him. Even Chris couldn't scowl at that marked improvement with Vera’s spell.

Keith patted Nico’s shoulder. He took off both his metal gauntlets, and revealed the pattern embedded on the inside. It was inscribed with a spell formation written.

“Huh. Interesting. At first look, it looks like it’s heavily rooted in runic inscriptions from the Vikings,” Nico said. “It has too much of a modern influence. Honestly, that seems to be as far as I can go with my theory.”

Keith’s eyebrows shot up, and he whistled an impressed note. “It’s crazy that you got that far. My magic is a pretty specific style. You were almost correct with the runic inscriptions, but were off by a couple hundred years. My school is a mix of postmodern barbarism…”

“Oh! That makes sense,” Nico cut in excitedly. “And the inner inscriptions alternating with the outside inscriptions are for stellar transformations.”

“Yeah... you gotta stop doing that. How the hell are you piecing these theories together so quickly? You told us earlier that your education mostly came from self-testing and scraps of second-hand theories over the years.”

Nico’s first instinct was to tell him what he told everyone, that he created a basic framework in his mind that he could constantly refer back to and alter. Gallahad’s Formations were taught to everyone because they were the most stable. However, every magician Nico met abandoned Gallahad in favor of learning their own specific school of magic.

Gallahad was all Nico had.

But...now that he had a spare moment in the day to think about it, that answer didn’t feel sufficient. Even before Measure, he formulated modifications with the barest hints of knowledge. It was painstaking work to adapt foreign theories to Gallahad. And sure, he’d been unable to test most of his ideas since a misplaced line in a formation could get him killed.

Now that he had his ability, he could feel it cross-analyzing Keith’s question with his own suspicions. He couldn’t think of any reason that made sense. Up until then, Nico chalked it up to countless hours of calculation just to achieve a few cantrip-class mods. Even so, someone with his level of education should not have been able to do what he did before his ability manifested. Right?

Not wanting to make things awkward, Nico faked a smile and said, “Duh. I’m a genius”

Keith guffawed, and that seemed to settle the matter.

The warrior spent the next fifteen minutes explaining the purpose of his formation and the spell that would go with it.

Unfortunately, Nico couldn’t summon the corresponding spell. He lacked the magical power and, more importantly, the physique to withstand it. The class one spell required a minimal bone and muscle density to use it without risk of injury. He didn’t complain since he received new knowledge with very little effort.

The formation and corresponding spell could be used for defense and offense, at least for Keith’s purposes. But since Nico lacked the physical capabilities to summon the spell, he would have to find a clever way to adapt it for himself.

It took Nico ten minutes of using Measure to calculate a more effective spell formation for Keith. Chris blathered on how Nico was wasting their time. Nico pointed out he didn’t know postmodern barbarism was even a thing until a half-hour earlier.

The main issue Nico faced was the formation’s catalyst. Keith’s spell relied on using stellar transformations, meaning the changes of specific heavenly bodies, to bolster his magic. Without the stars, moons, or planets Keith relied on existing in the Next Over, his power was effectively cut in half.

Nico had learned that there were stars in the Next Over, but none of them coincided with the constellations on Earth. Vera claimed she never saw a single night sky with the same set of stars in any of the ruins they delved. She wanted to chart them and possibly stitch a pattern together to help her brother, but Chris had denied her every time.

According to the party leader, leaving the immediate vicinity of a predestined ruin was forbidden among the Coalition of Holds. Nico tucked that odd bit of information for later. The more he learned about the Next Over and the Coalition’s relationship with them, the more he realized how much of his own knowledge was askew or downright wrong.

Finally, Nico dropped down to the floor and drew the new spell formation, which was about four inches wide. After putting a little MP into the spell formation, he picked up a piece of stone rubble, and he held it above the formation.

The other practitioners held their breath.

Nico used Measure to make sure the angle of the drop was safe. He didn’t want it to accidentally put a hole through him if his calculations were off. When he dropped the rubble on the array, it rocketed up and lodged itself into the ceiling.

[Effectiveness of Barbaric Burst Formation has increased by 150%.]

“There,” he said with a little pride. “There shouldn't be an increase in power output, but the cost of magic to power the spell should be greatly reduced. I’m sorry I couldn’t do anything about your actual spell since I don’t have the power to cast it and test it myself.”

“Do you see me complaining?” Keith said with glee. He held his hand over the formations embedded to different areas of his armor, shield, and mage. Keith turned his body, as if to hide what he was doing, but Nico caught a glimpse of the embedded metal shifting shape to match that of Nico’s new formation.

Oh. That’s why Keith looked so self-conscious. The warrior-mage’s special ability had to do with reworking metal on a small scale. It was like he was born to use this specific spell.

Keith pumped his shield as a test, and his grin grew into a wide smile. He patted Nico on the back again, but this time with a little more friendly force. “Dude, you’re the bomb. I’m actually glad you didn’t alter the magic output. It’s hard enough as it is to balance the timing and use of the spell without breaking my bones in the process.”

Nico smiled but was already lost in his own thoughts. He couldn’t help but imagine ways he could implement parts of the Barbaric Burst Formation for himself, at least on a cantrip level. Sensing his desires, Measure already went to work calculating ways to adjust the formation’s power output so his bones wouldn't break from the recoil.

A new notification reminded him Measure couldn’t solve everything on its own.

[Without knowing the associated heavenly bodies to act as the formation’s catalyst, no new formation can be created for your level of power and control.]

Great. Keith wasn’t willing to reveal that information. There were more stars, planets, and moons than grains of sands on Earth. If Nico spent a thousand lifetimes calculating them all with his ability, he still wouldn’t get close enough.

And yet… He did have a theory a couple years back regarding the replacement of third-party energy catalysts all together. Nico hadn’t even bothered doing the math to see if it was worth trying. It wasn’t. Catalysts like stellar formations or oceanic tides were too ambiguous and powerful to mess with. Messing with large catalysts was dangerous, and dangerous was an understatement. He might as well have teleported himself between two tectonic plates and try guiding their movement with his bare hands.

Even if he had that kind of mojo and the appropriate knowledge honed by several generations of master and apprentice, the math would take too long for the testing and retesting to be practical.

Worse yet, arrays that relied on stellar formations were always a little unreliable. It was one of the reasons why practitioners who used them as their core magic were so rare. Spells with stellar formations were powerful under a clear night sky. But if there were clouds out, their connection to whatever heavenly bodies they drew from, were reduced.

Why bother with the hassle? What if Nico replaced that catalyst from heavenly bodies to something closer more grounded?

“Restructure Barbaric Burst Formation by replacing stellar catalysts with kinetic momentum, Nico whispered to himself.

He took off his shoes and sat down on the floor as his ability went to work. He could already feel the bottleneck it reached earlier open up, letting his thoughts flow wider.

The other practitioners gave him a quizzical look but didn't bother asking what he was doing.

Measure completed the calculation and provided the formations, along with other formations he made since coming to the Next Over.

[Kinetic Burst Formation created. More powerful version of formation is available, but success rate will reduce from 100% to 57%.]

“Hide all formations with success rate of less than one hundred percent from my Spells list,” Nico muttered. There were countless things he wanted to test, but trying out spells and formations with even a one percent failure rate could get him and the others killed. It was better not to risk it.

He drew multiple arrays on the bottom of his shoes. At first, he was a little hesitant to apply them without knowing which areas would be the best place to draw them. Balance, momentum, and output of power were all real concerns.

Then he cast the doubt aside. He was an idiot. Measure could calculate that for him. He finished drawing the last of the formations while the others picked up their meager belongings.

Before Nico put the shoes back on and laced up, he had a quick sniff of the insides. He reminded himself that even though he showered that morning, he experienced a week's worth of exhaustion, stress, and sweat in the span of a day. Nico now had water and food in his belly, but he could not wait to take a hot bath.

The others came back, obviously ready to leave. Nico drew more formations on the knees of his pants and elbows of his sleeves. It was when he contorted his body awkwardly to draw on his elbows it occurred to him Measure just didn't calculate information, guided his body in the most efficient way it knew.

Huh. That was a nice benefit.

If he survived this entire thing, maybe he could explore ways to use his ability to become more athletic. He could learn to use his body as well as he used magic. But, it was all a pipe dream if he couldn’t accomplish his mission.

Finally, it seemed that whatever Nico was doing had caught enough curiosity out of Keith. He threw his hands up in the air and said, "Okay I really need to know what you're doing."

“He’s right,” Chris said. “You’ve proven yourself. We need to get going.”

Nico capped his marker and said, "I borrowed bits of your Barbaric Burst Formation and made my own version.”

“You what?” Keith blurted, incredulous.

Nico put up his hands in a placating gesture. “I didn’t steal it. It’s impossible for me to do that.”

Technically with this spell in particular, but might as well make it sound like his ability had limits.

He continued. “I adapted what I could to Gallahad’s Control Formation. My spell is a full class lso I don’t break my bones. By applying the formation only to my joints and the bottom of my shoes, I can limit potential harm to my body. Since I can’t summon the spell anyways,I can control the output of magical power through the formation itself."

Keith had to blink at him a few times for a few seconds before it finally dawned on him what Nico was saying. "Jesus Christ man. It took you a few minutes, and you're already adapting my spell formation. How the hell did you get around the heavenly catalyst issue?"

“I uhhh… I replaced the stellar formations with my own kinetic movements. All I’m doing is amplifying, really. It’s like a buff that lasts for the half-second I invest power into the array. I don’t think I can control an amplified movement past that one hundred twenty percent though. But, the more I get the hang of it, the percentage of risk goes down.”

"That's not only dangerous but stupid. This is why my master told me to avoid mixing schools of thought. If it wasn’t for your cheat ability, you’d be dead ten times over, I’d guess," Chris said, shaking his head.

Nico winced as if struck in the face. He didn’t bite back at the magic archer. Chris was right.

Vera joined, humming thoughtfully. "If you’re amplifying your movements, you would need to calculate the timing of your movements, the speed of your actions, and the power you input into the formations perfectly. That’s a common issue with enhancement magic. I should know.”

“That’s a lot of magic math,” Keith groaned, mimicking a headache at the supposed calculation involved. “I know you're smart, but the math to do that alone would take up a whole chalkboard."

Nico only nodded in response, not wanting to give away the finer details of his ability. It was better to look like a genius, albeit a reckless one, than it was to reveal all of the cards he had up his sleeve. He obviously gained Chris’ trust enough to join them on their party.

But was it enough to get a new spell and array? Nico tested the waters. He opened his mouth, but Chris sliced the air between them with a sharp hand and cold expression as if he knew what Nico was about to say.

"No way in hell,” Chris spat. “Keith and Vera can be cavalier about giving away a bit of their school’s secrets, but I made an oath to my master."

Nico nodded, and took a respectful step back. He expected the response

The reason why so many mages were against or were incapable of trading secrets with other schools was they were sworn by their masters or their teachers to not give away their knowledge. Unless they had a sworn apprentice who also made the same promise, there seemed to be few exceptions.

Maybe having a single master under a single school would have been a path Nico hated. Despite the scraps of knowledge afforded to him, he always loved experimenting with different schools of thought, always with Gallahad’s Theorems at the center.

Nico only had his mother to teach him what she knew about magic, which wasn’t much. He didn't know what the details of an apprentices’ promise was. It could be more intimate than he ever imagined. In the case of Vera and her brother, it seemed like they were able to give away some spells and array. But in the case of Chris, it looked like there were both ethical and magical consequences for willingly giving up his school’s traditions.

Chris stared at Nico in an awkward silence for a long moment as if making a decision. He shook his head and spat on the ground, hoisting his bow over her shoulder. He turned around and grumbled, "You can stick with us, and we will help you fight this murderer. If there’s a bad apple in the Coalition, it’s important to take them out when we can. But don't go thinking we're your friends."

Nico smiled. It was the best he could hope for. He flashed Vera grin and said, "Thanks for not killing me.”