Now… my status. What else can I do with it? Change the way it shows the information? Alter the colour, or add more things? Shall I try? Yes.

I open my status, and look for any recent changes. Some skills upgraded and reached the level cap after making the fiery nail.

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[Stealth V] Upgraded!

[Mana Compression V] Upgraded!

[Mana Efficiency V] Upgraded!

[Fire Manipulation V] Upgraded!

-

-

The skills [Mana Manipulation], [Mana Control], [Mana Shaping], [Mana Efficiency] and [Mana Compression] meet the requirement for a fusion!

Accept? Y/N

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Mhn? A fusion? That’s certainly new… If what I think is right, then this fusion is joining all of these skills into one? Sounds good! I accept the prompt, and a new screen appears.

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Skill: [Mana Mastery I] Learned!

-

Now, what is the difference?

I use the skill and don’t notice anything that has changed. Maybe it is a passive skill? But the other ones weren’t passive… I conjure flames and shape them in any shape I want at the moment, and I finally can feel the difference. It is slight, but still noticeable. It feels easier to control the mana in my flames. If I level this more it shows more effects? I shrug. Far away in the future, that.

I check to see if there are any other notifications. There is none. So, only that? Ok then.

Now… let's see if I can change how my status looks.

I turn my mind into my status sheet and focus on small parts of it, willing it to change. It surprisingly works, and what I wanted to change were the numbers. They were… odd, at first. Roman numerals, is what they are called, I think? [Memories] had a different method to show numbers that I rather like, and so I decided to change it.

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Skills: [Dodge: 5], [Charge: 5], [Bash: 3], [Poison Resistance: 1], [Stealth: 5], [Meditation: 5], [Mana Resistance: 4], [Pain Resistance: 5],, [Danger Sense: 5], [Overcharge: 1], [Fire Manipulation: 1], [Mana Mastery: 1]

-

They are certainly better for me to read! Now, what more can I change?

I focus on random parts of my status, trying to see if I could change something more. I could feel it because of a… sensation? Something telling me that it could be changed, or similar.

I felt that the Resistance skills that I had could… change categories? Yeah, change categories. I did so, and a brand new category appeared, which then transferred all of the Resistances skills that I had to there.

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Resistances: [Poison Resistance: 1], [Mana Resistance: 4], [Pain Resistance: 5]

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They look neat! I can call on the information whenever I want in a more easy way now, good! I’ll keep it that way then, it feels really better to my eyes.

I test more things, and I learn that I can rename some categories. I chose to rename the ‘abilities’ category to ‘traits’ and the ‘stats’ category to ‘attributes’ after thinking for some time. I really don’t know why the first was like that since the start, but ‘traits’ explain what they really are way better. The second was because the word is too similar to ‘status’, so I decided to change it.

Now, the colour. It is currently transparent, but maybe I can change it? I concentrate on the status itself, the screen. Nothing happens. So, I can’t? Well, that's sad, but I don’t have a problem with the current colour.

In the end not much changed. It is more organized now, at least for me.

-

Status:

Name:

Race: [Starblaze Child Phoenix]

Level: 1

Attributes:

Strength: 10

Agility: 21

Recovery: 40

Mind: 20

Will: 20

Soul: 15

Attribute points: 0

Skills: [Dodge: 5], [Charge: 5], [Bash: 3], [Stealth: 5], [Meditation: 5], [Danger Sense: 5], [Overcharge: 1], [Fire Manipulation: 1], [Mana Mastery: 1]

Resistances: [Poison Resistance: 1], [Mana Resistance: 4], [Pain Resistance: 5]

Traits: [Phoenix Heart], [Starblaze], [Lesser Elemental], [Emotional Telepathy], [Memories], [Bound by the stars], [Blazing Will], [Lesser Shapeshifting].

-

Satisfied, I dismiss my status and ponder on what I’ll do now. I have some things to test, so now… time to experiment!

Firstly, the Stardust that I saw before. What is it? Some kind of byproduct of my flames? Or something else? Time to know it!

I conjure my flames again, and this time shape it into the shape of a disk. My goal is to make the dust fall as easily it can. I watch as the shimmering powder falls to the ground, lightly scorching the place it falls onto. Now, can I control this Stardust? Or shape it?

I try to move it only using my mind and will, but it doesn’t move. Wait, I can’t feel it with my mana. It isn’t connected to me like...my flames are. Wait, they are?! I never noticed it, but I can feel a sort of connection to my conjured flames and the disk of fire I made, something that is lacking in the dust. The connection is important, I can feel it.

I infuse my mana inside the clump of dust, and I feel something snapping inside of me, a connection being made. A circle made of mana, faintly glowing appears in front of me, its sides engraved with mystical and unknown words. I stare at it with recognition. It is a spell-circle. [Memories] has recollections of something similar to that, or descriptions of it.

And almost like an instinct, I understand what the words are meant to convey. Is it a spell formula? For the Stardust. I infuse more mana, and the light grows in intensity, the circle slightly growing in size, and suddenly I could control the [Stardust].

My eyes shine. This was certainly something new, a spell-circle! That is real magic, isn’t it?!

I quickly check my status, quite curious and excited to see the changes.

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Individual has discovered its first spell!

‘Spells’ category unlocked.

[Stardust] Learned!

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Another new category! So soon after discovering another one? I read the new category.,

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Spells: [Stardust]

-

So I did do something right! I cheer. Now, what can I do with it?

I move the [Stardust] one side, and it responds. The way I can control it is the same as my flames, and quite easy too. I shape the dust in some shapes, a ball, a lance, a disk, a square, and more. It is hard to make many details, however, the dust being a solid substance, different from my flames.

I put more mana into the spell-circle and create more [Stardust]. I compress it into a solid form, and swing it from one side to another, up and down. Good, it seems to be quite solid here. I know that I can control the temperature of it, like my own flames. I mold the solid form into a lance, and I make the tip of it hotter than the rest, the whips of dust there glowing.

Can I use it to attack? I look for a good spot to test it on and find a big mushroom a few steps away from me, its flesh being white while its cap has black dots. I levitate the lance of stardust, and hop near the mushroom.

I aim the lance to the mushroom, and with just a little bit of mana it flies through the air and hits its flesh. The dust that the lance is made of scatters a few moments after touching the mushroom, but some parts of it scorched its skin and flesh. The lance is unmade, and I’m left with a thinking expression.

I-I wasn’t expecting this. I can’t use it the same way as my flames then? But why? I pick the dust again, compressing it and forming it into a ball shape. Was it the shape? Or the temperature?

I decide to test it again, this time only the dust itself and no temperature. I throw it at the mushroom, the ball flying towards it, but the same thing as before happens. The dust scatters, and the ball is unmade.

I sigh. Not this, then… changing the temperature? I create another clump of [Stardust] and shape it the same way as before, as a ball. I bring the temperature as high as I can, and the dust starts to shine. I can feel the heat this close to it, and it is quite pleasant. The surroundings disagree, though. The ground is slightly melting, while the grass and other plants are burning.

I throw the scorching ball to the poor mushroom in front of me. The dust holds a bit better after hitting the burning mushroom, but it still scatters. The mushroom isn’t doing good however. A ball of heated [Stardust] doesn’t make you much good, who would have thought? But still, the dust was so hot that even when it scattered, it did a lot of damage to the surrounding.

I sigh again. This is better, but it wasn’t what I was expecting. I conjure another batch of stardust, shaping it into another ball, but this time I sap all the heat from it. It is as cold as the void of space now, and I can feel it from here. Oddly… It is not unpleasant, quite good, even.

I look at the fallen mushroom. This one won’t work anymore. I look for another mushroom, similar to the last one, and I find it a few moments away from me. I happily hop towards it while the ball of stardust follows me. I reach for the mushroom, its colour similar to the last one.

I throw the ball and it flies through the air again. This time it doesn’t scatter when it hits, and I can feel and hear the impact it made from here. The trunk of the mushroom breaks and its flesh is exposed, the ball embed deep inside of it.

I’m quite surprised! So it changed based on temperature? Hot temperatures will make it so hot that when the dust scatters, it will damage everything along its path, but it is fragile and will break with the slightest touch. Cold temperatures make it so cold that it solidifies and makes it harder, but how hard I cannot tell, and maybe it can freeze some things?

I smile, finally satisfied with my findings. I already have two effects to experiment more with the spell, and what else can I find in the future? But not now, I have other things to see.

I stop casting the spell, and the ball made of stardust disappears, the spell-circle going alongside it.

I glance at my surroundings while thinking about what I'll do now. I look over my skills again, but I can train anything there. I look at my traits, and remember I have three new ones. [Reflection of a Star] being related to the necklace, of which I should talk to soon. [Burning Will] and [Lesser Shapeshifting] being related to my evolution, and while I don’t have any idea on what the first could be, I know what the latter is.

I ponder and decide to use the [Lesser Shapeshifting] trait to see what it exactly is. I can only infer so much from the name, after all.

I use it and instinctively I know what it can do. I can make small changes to my body while using and trait actively, and they stay for some period of time if I focus on the changes. I can, as an example, extend parts of my body like my wings, talons, beak, and more; Change the colours of my flames, somewhat. I can’t go too far from the base colour, and the same is true for my body. The further away from my initial form, the more difficult it will become.

All in all, pretty simple.

I change my colours, from a bluish-black colour to a dark purple-ish colour. I extend my talons to make it bigger and sharper. I can do whatever I want with my body now, with limits of course.

Now… onto something I’ve been wanting to do for some time now. Flying.

But how? I look at my wings, at the length and shape of it. It is 140 centimetres, I think? Might be more as I don’t have something to compare it to. I know that I can fly, as my wings certainly have the required wingspan to do it, the question is: how?

[Memories] have something, some knowledge about what is behind flight? I study the memory for some time, trying to see what I could use here, right now. Oh? I see, I see. This position here, wind direction…

I think I can manage it.

…

I position myself and prepare to fly. I discovered some methods on how to fly and now I’m putting them to the test.

I angle my wings, position my body in the best way possible, and take aim. I beat my wings, and take off the ground, finally flying! I took it slowly, of course.

Slowly taking off the ground I fly through the air, floating when I reach high up in the cavern, basking on the brilliance of the crystal high above. I stop and float there, looking over the entire area. It didn’t change one bit, all the creatures and vegetation taking most of the space while the walls and ceiling littered with bright crystals.

I did it, I’m flying! I smile.Now that I did everything I had in mind for now, it is time to explore the forest and the dungeon again. I dive down to the ground, the wind rushes around me as I make my way to the entrance of this cavern.

Close to the ground, I prepare to land. It's the first time that I’m doing this, but I have a feeling that I won’t have many difficulties in doing that. Instincts, I say.

I land without any complications, and smile again. Flying is really nice, the feeling of the wind passing through my feathers, the slight cold I feel while diving, and the warmth of having landed right. It's intoxicating, and I don’t know if I ever am going to give it up.

Now… I look at the entrance, and how it is exactly the same as before. Now it is time to have a journey through the dungeon, as I know better my own powers and magic. And it is also time to level up, and hunt.

I stride through the first part of the entrance and make to the roots that guard this place. As always, nothing changed, the roots serving as a gate and the shining light beyond it the same as before.

I carefully make my way through the roots. I still don’t know if these are just normal roots, or something more, but caution never hurts, right?

And finally, after… some hours? Or a day? I exit the cave and take flight.

Now… It's time to explore and hunt.