Abigail was starting to worry. Not so much because of the reasons she had to worry, those hadn’t changed at all. It was because the calming effects of the Flow were wearing off.

The only reason she managed to keep her sanity was that she realised she had a presence again. It was subtle and non-reactive, but it was there.

She eventually figured out that what she was sensing was a body, of sorts. It felt incomplete, like it was only the title to a great work. That changed after some time. A sensation of sturdiness and protection spread ‘behind’ her. It then moved to a closed position around her, and then back again.

Next something filled in her front. It was empty, but full of potential at the same time.

She still wasn’t sure what she was, at least until she felt a tickling sensation from the solid part of her.

| The Comprehensive Basics of Aetherial Manipulation, 4th edition

By K’thern, Grand Archmage of the Wandering Tribes

‘Am I a book?’ She asked herself incredulously.

Indeed she was, and what happened next proved it:

Information was pressed into her, a page at a time. Her mind could even dart between any part of the text in herself.

She still had to process the information for it to be useful to her, but as long as something was written on her pages she could not forget it.

Unfortunately, she was unable to read any of the new information she was being given. The periodic sensation of each new page was just too jarring for her to focus properly.

So she waited for the process to be completed. Once it had, she was closed. Shortly thereafter, she felt a sensation of closeness and of belonging.

‘Am I on a shelf? I think I’m on a shelf, with other books. I think some of them might be copies of me. Or am I a copy of them?’

Deciding that it didn’t really matter, she turned her attention to the only thing she could: the words printed within herself.

Foreword by Archmagess K’thern.

When I and my colleagues first started writing this tome we were only writing it as a means for new initiates to gain their first stepping off point. However, we soon found that the methods and techniques we had were highly beneficial for even the most accomplished archmages, and thus The Comprehensive Basics of Aetherial Manipulation was born. So whether you are a complete novice, a returning archmage, or anything in between, I welcome you to this, the fourth edition of The Comprehensive Basics of Aetherial Manipulation. May its pages guide you to understanding.

-K.

True to the archmagess’ words, the text was useful, even to a book such as Abigail.

While it was true that any technique or method specific to humanoids was doomed to failure from the start, the underlying theory still held true.

The only requirement to manipulate Aether was to possess a soul, which Abigail did. Even more useful was that it turned out that her soul had linked to the magical spine of a book. The benefits were simple: she was far sturdier than a regular book, and even possessed a limited ability to repair herself. Although it turned out that the main reason books were made using a magic spine was to make book copying magic work better.

Abigail took the theory and put it into practice. It took days for her to perceive her own Aether. It was, predictably, concentrated in her spine, with her covers holding a moderate amount. Her pages held the least concentrated of her Aether.

Next she learned how to move her Aether within herself. It wasn’t easy, as all of the techniques described relied on being able to move or otherwise affect one’s own body, something that Abigail couldn’t do. But, slowly, she began to be able to make the flows change and move.

The third stage of Aetherial manipulation was to begin concentrating and purifying Aether within oneself. Pulling ambient Aether into oneself was only the first step. One had to decide how to enhance themselves:

The Path of Storage:

Used most often by Mages, this path focuses on concentrating as much power in one’s core as possible, and shaping the channels in one’s body to provide for the use of said power outside one’s body.

The Path of Flow:

Used by Warriors, and often referred to as Ki, this path focuses on looping pathways inside one’s body. This design robs the individual of most of their ability to project Aether, but in exchange grants them a very powerful body.

The Hybrid Path:

A rare and difficult path, it walks the middle ground between Storage and Flow. While practitioners will never achieve the great magics of Storage nor the incredible feats of physicality of Flow, versatility is a strength all its own

Even the path of storage required that one reinforce their body, but only enough to keep them from being destroyed from within by their own power as it rushes through them. Needless to say, with her new form lacking any physicality, Abigail chose to follow the path of storage. She still reinforced her form substantially, in accordance with the teachings, which impressed upon the reader that every person was unique and should tailor their growth to themselves.

Abigail also also focused her efforts on quality over quantity. Her form couldn’t hold huge amounts of Aether, nor could it grow very quickly. Improving the purity, which usually only became important later in one’s training, was her main focus. Purifying one’s core mana was far less efficient than simply expanding one’s capacity, and had been known to lead to control problems as well.

Abigail eventually gained the ability to sense the rough concentration and type of Aether in her surroundings. Though this she learned that she was part of a library. A library with a wide array of patrons. Some had weak auras, while some auras commanded all the Aether about them to rapt attention. There was even one patron who hid their aura almost perfectly, leaving a void in the ambient Aether.

But something had happened. A large surge of Aether washed over the entire library. Following that, the patrons began racing about. Several librarians rushed to grab specific books, then everyone rushed for the exit.

The library’s enchantments blazed to life, desperately trying to hold something back. One by one, they failed, burning out. An unfamiliar presence entered Abigail’s perception.

She didn’t know what it was, but she hated and feared it. It felt like it wanted nothing more than her total destruction. It only took a minute for her to learn what it was.

Fire. And not just any old fire, but magical fire.

The flames licked at her cover, and she felt like she was in a sauna. Soon the flames began to char her surface. It hurt. It hurt like nothing she’d ever felt before.

On instinct, she circulated mana through her covers, desperate for relief.

No relief came, and the fire even began pulling at her Aether, burning it up too.

If she could’ve snarled, she would’ve. That Aether was hers. She had worked for it, and she’d be damned before some uppity fire took it from her.

Her Aether shifted, and whatever the fire tried to take caused it to suffocate instead. Her covers hardened and became resilient. Still she had to endure the heat from the rest of the library.

And the heat grew. Soon even her hardened covers began to char and smoke.

With a push, Abigail’s Aether blasted forth, drowning the fire.

Then she lost consciousness for the first time since her reincarnation.