Alba

Location: Gloria's Temple / High Priestess' Chamber

Time: Y1503 - 31st day of the Fire Moon

~And this is why I'm giving you command over the forces at Alba, old friend." (Lord Teoren)

"I swear upon my faith in Gloria that I will not fail you." (Leader Steffen)

"We want you to personally oversee the transportation arrangements as well. Liara and Serina must survive. At all costs." (High Priestess Amigarde)

"I understand." (Steffen)

"Do you? Serina is now the Head Healer. Liara is the True Daughter of Gloria. If they fall, the Church might as well follow. " (Amigarde)

*surprised* "I didn't know it was this bad." (Steffen)

"The High Priestess speaks the truth. Our enemies have cornered us. There will be no recovering from losing the two of them." (Teoren)

"Then, respectfully, I ask for the power to form my unit myself." (Steffen)

"Done." (Teoren)

"I am still waiting for your answer. Do you understand the importance of your duty?" (Amigarde)

"Yes. I understand." (Steffen)

"I trust in your abilities, Steffen. I know you will not fail us. Now go. The future of the church rests upon your shoulders." (Teoren)

[No pressure...] (Steffen)

Rivals

Location: Gloria's Temple / High Priestess' Chamber

Time: Y1503 - 31st day of the Fire Moon

"Preparation are underway, you will depart for the temple of Alba by the end of the next moon." (Amigarde)

"Blessed One. This is all so sudden. And I don't think I'm the right person for this duty." (Serina)

"Maybe not by yourself, Serina. But I will be there helping you." (Meridia)

*glare* "Sister Meridia. Remember that you are just Serina's advisor. You are not to make decisions in her place. You are not the High Priestess anymore." (Amigarde)

"Lucky break. For you. I wonder... Did you make Serina the Head Healer to secure your position as High Priestess? She has a right to it now that she is the most powerful mage." (Meridia)

Meridia and Amigarde had long been rivals. The rift between them only grew deeper when Meridia failed in her duties and Amigarde was made High Priestess in her place. So far the two of them kept their opinion for themselves, but the recent hardships took a great toll. Their patience is running thin. A wrong word was all that was needed to spark the flames.

"Sister Meridia! You are out of line! She might have been stronger than me during the rankings, but that's not true anymore! I'm capable of using Liara's Weaving Technique as well! " (Amigarde)

*meek voice* "Please, stop it." (Serina)

"I may be blind, but I can see magic. I know from your weaving during The Pyre that you still don't grasp the heart of Liara's Weaving Technique. Your skills and Serina's are worlds apart." (Meridia)

*angry* "I'm sick and tired of you! I was always the second choice! I never wanted to be High Priestess in the first place! I'm here because of your monumental mistakes!" (Amigarde)

*conceited* "Don't fight! Please!!" (Serina)

"You are right. I made many mistakes. I'll spend the rest of my days trying to atone for them. But you are just weak, Amigarde. I had no doubt the church would decline with you as High Priestess. This world is unforgiving. It does not excuse weakness!" (Meridia)

*angry* "HERESY!" (Amigarde)

*angry* "STOP!!! BOTH OF YOU" (Serina)

This was the first time either of them had seen Serina angry. Silence fell over the room.

*short breath* "Meridia. Amigarde. Did either of you ask for what I want before thrusting your responsibilities onto me?" (Serina)

*look down* (Meridia and Amigarde)

"I just want Liara to be safe. To be happy. I want to serve Gloria and I want for my sisters to be safe and happy as well." (Serina)

"Whatever the problem is between the two of you, handle it by yourselves. But leave me and Liara out of it!" (Serina)

Meridia and Amigarde looked into each other's eyes. Neither could excuse the other, but silently, they came to an agreement. To leave their divide aside. The last thing the Church needed, was for the two of them to fight.

"... I was out of line. Please, forgive my words, Blessed One." *bow* (Meridia)

"It was unbecoming of me to lose my temper here. Let us leave this discussion behind. We should focus on the matter at hand." (Amigarde)

[Why can't everyone just get along? Why can't the world be at peace?] *exhale* (Serina)

Sulking

Location: Gloria's Temple / Serina's Chamber

Time: Y1503 - 35th day of the Fire Moon

I'm in my room, staring at the ceiling of Mother's chamber. Many little things that were a given in our worlds, are a luxury here.

I can make out the individual stones of the walls. In our world everything was flat and neat.

There are wells from which the water has to be drawn. It's nothing like the convenience of a water tap. And the water is not clear. It's brown.

We do our needs in shared latrines that need to be emptied regularly. One of the many duties that need to be taken care of. In richer districts of the city there are carts that take away barrels filled with waste. But in poorer districts, they throw it in the street. Hoping for the rain to wash it away.

There are no showers. Every now and then, they prepare large wooden tubs filled with water. The water get colder and dirtier as it's used. They try to keep the two genders separated, but they make no effort to prevent one to see the other. The living standards are so different here.

Even life is cheaper. People die. A lot. The living quickly move on with their lives. How can they forget Bella and the others so quickly!

*sniff* (Liara)

[You are being gloomy. Try and think positive!] (Bookworm Me)

It's hard to come up with something good about this world. Twenty people died only days ago, and nobody seems to care.

[You know that for most of our history, only about half of all newborns survived to become children? It was an accepted fact. It's only changed when medicine advanced. Don't be too hard on them. We were like them.] (Explorer Me)

[And there is something we didn't have back there. Magic!!!] (Gamer Me)

[And the most important thing of all. A Mother that cares about you.] (Bookworm Me)

Yes, you are right. If I could, I would choose Arcania! If only for her.

*enter* "Good morning, my sweet child. Are you feeling better, today?] (Serina)

*run* *hug* "Mother! I thought I wouldn't see you until dusk!" (Liara)

"That's why I'm here. I have been given the duty of Head Healer. Today I give my first lesson to the trainees. Would you like to come with me?" (Serina)

[Yes. You should go. Better than staying here and feel sorry for yourself. Doctor's Orders.] (Doctor Me)

You sure like to be bossy. But you are right. I want to go.

"Alright! I'll come with you, Mother. I can't wait to learn healing magic!" (Liara)

"Actually, I want you to be my little assistant, today." *smile* (Serina)

Healing Magic

Location: Gloria's Temple / Seer's Tower

Time: Y1503 - 35th day of the Fire Moon

*freeze in place* *tremble* (Liara)

"Why did you stop? Is everything alright, my child?" (Serina)

The door to the Seer's tower. The last time I was here, an assassin tried to kill me. Many people I knew died that day.

*kneel down* "I know you are scared. But life goes on! I'm here for you." *hug* (Serina)

*cry* (Liara)

Mother's warmth is healing me. We stay like this a few long seconds.

Only now I notice that the guards are stealing glances at us. I don't care.

"Do you feel better? Do you think you can do this?" *extend hand* (Serina)

*nod* (Liara)

I take Mother's hand, and we enter the Seer's tower. Together.

--------------------------------

Here we are. The topmost floor of the Seer's tower. We leave our sandals and clothes near the large spiral stairs and walk in the pond in the middle of the large room. The water is shallow but cold. I asked, they call it . Apparently it makes healing magic easier to weave when both the patient and the healer are in it.

Many guards are carefully watching from the balcony above. Overall there are more guards around. They have strengthened security. About time I say...

There are about a dozen sisters already there, waiting. My young friend, Kara is there. She is the youngest. The oldest, is a sister probably about forty years in age. Meridia is there too. We take our place beside her in the centre of the room. All eyes are on us. It's a bit uncomfortable. I would rather watch from the sidelines.

[After what you did during the Rankings and after you dealt with the assassin?] (Doctor Me)

Alright. I get it.

"Greetings, Sisters. I.. *cough* Excuse me. I am Serina. Until not long ago, I was a trainee, just like you. The High Priestess gave me the duty of Head Healer. I can't compare to... Sister Carminia... But I promise I'll do my best." (Serina)

Not a great start. The Sisters look at Serina with an air of doubt.

"Head Healer Serina. I would like to see your fabled weaving technique that earned you fifty stones during the Yearly Rankings. Is it possible for you to show me?" (Meridia)

The dead eyes of the Sisters fill with life. They are paying attention now.

[Meridia knows her stuffs. She read the mood, and gave an indirect suggestion to Serina. Just like she advised us to show off our magic during the early Rankings. She is good at this.] (Doctor Me)

"Gladly! It's actually really easy. You dance in circles, and weave magic threads near your skin. Liara came up with the idea in the first place. Let me show you!" (Serina)

Mother loosened up. She dance, weaving lots of magic threads. The sisters are watching with a mix of awe and incredulity. They surely tried this by themselves, but probably can't do it well, yet. Not even Amigarde still grasp the technique.

[Baffling. The technique is really simple. Serina herself mastered it in no time under our guidance. The minds of those fanatics rally are inflexible...] (Science Me)

--------------------------------

We spent half an hour practicing my original collimating technique.

They call all of it weaving, but there are clearly two different phases to magic. I call the first phase collimating, because it requires to refine aether into usable magic threads. The second phase is the weaving itself in which magic from the threads flow in the caster's magic channels and is shaped into a spell.

[It just shows that they do not understand how magic works. Using a proper method to sift through the solution space, we discovered in a moon what they missed in maybe centuries. Troglodytes!] (Science Me)

It's funny how Science me gloat about applying Science to Magic. On Earth he would have been ridiculed for that!

[Liara, in this world there are law of physics that weren't there on Earth. Science is the discipline that tries to make sense of the Natural Laws. On Arcania, Magic IS a natural phenomenon. Like fire, like magnetism. On Earth, people that claimed to use magic, were all scammers. Charlatans. Magic wasn't real.] (Science Me)

I didn't think about it that way, but it makes sense.

"Very good! You all grasp the basics! Make sure to practice it every day. Now let us try healing magic." (Serina)

A guard brings an animal.

*Bheeeeee* (Goat)

It's a bit smaller than the goats I know and it's body has slightly different proportions. Still, it's similar enough that you can call it a goat.

*stomp* (Guard)

*leg breaks* *BHE HEEE HEEE* (Goat)

... Alright. That happened. They need injuries to practice healing magic. With life being so cheap, I doubt they have animal right groups here. Kara, my friend is covering her mouth and her eyes are teary. Older sisters are unfazed by what happened. It must be common for them.

"Please, remember that this is just an animal. The techniques you'll learn by healing it, will save the lives of many. Don't be sad." (Meridia)

She looks at me. Yes. I'm a bit shocked.

"Now, I'd like you to come one by one and try to heal it's leg. I need to know your current level. Kara, mind being the first?" (Serina)

Kara comes forward, she dance a little and weave some magic threads. Then she hover her hands over the goat, but her threads disperse.

"I'm sorry, Head Healer." (Kara)

"It's alright, Kara. You are just ten years old. It'll take many years for you to master healing magic. Patience is key." (Serina)

Serina pats Kara's head, then she returns to the group.

"Stefi. You are next." (Serina)

She glares at me than step forward. What was that about?

[Don't you remember? She was one of Thomen sidekicks.] (Bookworm Me)

You are right! I almost didn't recognize her. Her back bears many scars, I think she has been flogged. Her hands look rugged. Her right feet is missing a few toes. She looks five year older. I get why she seemed so scared to serve a moon in the northern mines.

[Don't feel sorry for her. You reap what you sow!] (Soldier Me)

Still that sounds harsh... Stefi dances and tries to collimate magic, but she can't hold on the threads. They dissipate as soon as she tries to form them.

"It's alright. Don't force yourself, Stefi. Try with the old technique." *smile* (Serina)

Now Stefi is still. She is collimating one small, flimsy magic thread. Then, she hovers her hands over the goat. But the thread disperse before she is able to weave anything.

*look down* (Stefi)

"As I said before, it's alright. You are here to learn" *Smile* (Serina)

This will take some time.

--------------------------------

"Milgrid. It's your turn." (Serina)

She is the oldest amongst the trainees, she is also the only Dark Skin in the group.

Milgrid stay still and weave a thin but stable magic thread. Than she hovers her hand over the suffering goat.

(Milgrid)

*creak* *crack* *BHEHHE HEEEE!!!* (Goat)

[Interesting. This spell is specialized in bone mending. It's forcefully realigning the bones before joining them. Crude but effective.] (Doctor Me)

[Be silent. I'm trying to decode the flow of magic with our magic sight.] (Science Me)

A few minutes passes. Finally, Milgrid rescind the spell. The goat passed out in the middle of the procedure. Serina closes in to the goat.

(Serina)

"The bone is now whole, but it's misaligned. There is an overgrowth where the fracture was. You need more practice, but it's a remarkable result! Well done!" (Serina)

*whisper* "I'd like to see you do better." (Milgrid)

She is not pleased that Serina criticized her... Serina is ignoring her comment.

[She probably resents Serina for being promoted in her place. Milgrid has obviously been an Healer for longer. You find people like this everywhere. They put age before skills.] (Doctor Me)

*stomp* (Guard)

*crack* (Goat leg)

Ouch. Warn me before you do it. It's painful to even look at. Good thing the goat is unconscious.

"Liara. Would you like to try?" *smile* (Serina)

I nod, and come near the goat. The Sisters are looking at me with a smug face. They want me to fail. Kara is the only one cheering at me with an hopeful smile.

Can I really help that poor goat?

[I'll direct you. I know how to properly align a bone and I know the biological processes behind the healing itself. I could help you doing it even without magic. The only difference is that it would take weeks instead of minutes.] (Doctor Me)

[I think I roughly understand what Milgrid did. Doctor Me and I can come up with a procedure. It won't be perfect, but it might do the trick. Worst case, Serina will heal the animal for us. Rest easy.] (Science Me)

I walk toward the goat. I weave threads while I walk. It's not like I need lots of magic for the procedure. It's going to require precision more than power. Unlucky for me. I'm much better at power.

(Liara)

This is my take on the Meridia taught me. Gamer Me would like this to become like the Appraisal spell in a video game. Just point and click and it gives you every information you want. Right now is just like TAC scan that allows me to see inside things.

By seeing inside the leg it's obvious something is broken, but it's only thanks to Doctor Me experiences that I understand the nuances of it. I can see blood vessel ruptured, nerves severed, muscle fibres torn. The bone is splintered and has several overgrowth. Result of the imperfect spells weaved by the others. It must be painful.

(Liara)

Now to the healing itself. More than a spell, it's Doctor Me, Science Me, Bookworm me, and I trying to fix whatever damage we have seen. Using magic. It's taking a lot out of me. So many details to take care of. I have to scrape the overgrowth off the bone, align the torn tissues, stimulate natural healing and stitch the tears... Everything is so small in there!

...

...

*exhale* (Liara)

I really focused like a madman! Let's see the results of my efforts!

(Liara)

[The bone is now in one piece, but it's slightly misaligned by a few millimetres. The mending was slightly uneven. The blood vessels are alright, but some nerves are dead and the leg will lose some sensitivity. The muscles will heal in time. Far from perfect, but the goat will be able to walk without any trouble. Don't do it on humans anytime soon, Ok?] (Doctor Me)

I just performed a surgery with magic! And it was mostly successful! I feel great!

[A word of advice. This was basically stitching together tears. Don't think healing bacterial or viral infections, mending organs or fixing genetic defects would be as easy...] (Science Me)

Basically don't let it get to my head. Got it.

*push Liara* (Serina)

(Serina)

? Mother moved me out of the way? She is weaving an apprisal magic on the leg.

"... It's perfect. Not even Carminia could mend bones this well! When did you learn?" (Serina)

"Uhm... Actually not everything healed perfectly. I could feel things off, but I couldn't fix them. think I can do better with more practice." (Liara)

I can't really talk about nerves and tissues with her without revealing the existence of Doctor Me, so I keep it simple.

I look around. Ah! Serina is astonished! Meridia is grinning ear to ear and the others are... Oh. I did it again. Didn't I?

[Yes! I love showing those backward fanatics their place! Good Job, Liara!] (Science Me)

Serina and the more skilled Healers will be on duty to heal the faithful after the lesson. Maybe I should talk with Meridia? I might be standing out too much.

[As long as you don't go around resurrecting people and levelling mountain it should be fine.] (Doctor Me)

Training Grounds

Location: Gloria's Temple / Training Grounds

Time: Y1503 - 38th day of the Fire Moon

A new day, a new duty. They let me off the hook for a short while after the assassination atempt, but today they assigned me a new duty. Helping out in the training grounds.

*pant* (Liara)

Passing arrows to the bowmen, filling the pit in the uneven ground, cleaning armors and swords. It's hard work. Honestly, it's not suited to a three years old. Do they think that because I have the highest aptitude in magic that I can do everything?

[I believe that's the point. They want you to experience hardship and failure.] (Doctor Me)

I sit down on a log that serves as a bench and look at the Knights training. Unlike the Healer, the trainees are all young. There is no trainee that is forty year in age. Well, it makes sense. The skilled ones become Knights. The average ones become foot soldiers and guards. uhm... Aren't those two of Thomen sidekicks? So they resumed their training to become soldiers.

"You have been working hard, Initiate Liara. You deserve a pause. Mind if I sit next to you?" *smile* (Mage Knight Stella)

A girl wants to sit next to me. Mother taught me the meaning of the various uniforms of the Order. She is a Mage Knight. She has short black hair, and her face is rather masculine. She is just a teenager. I make space for her.

"I heard you dealt with one of the assassins. Very impressive! I took one out too, you know? They were really tough." (Stella)

"There was more then one? Mine was invisible, how have you dealt with yours?" (Liara)

"Her invisibility was imperfect. I spotted her, and the archers immobilized her. She tried to weave a fire spell, but I dispelled it." (Stella)

So there is a guard that knows how to do her job after all!

[Magic cancel? That sounds useful! Ask her about that.] (Gamer Me)

"I didn't know magic could be dispelled. How does it work?" (Liara)

"It's easier to just show it. Feldris!" (Stella)

A young man that was training with a bow comes over to us. He has a small physique and is somewhat older then Stella. He has with short black hairs and brown eyes. I can tell by his uniform that he is a Scout. A pet crow is sitting on his shoulder. Just like a pirate!

"Did you call, Stella? And who is this young girl next to you?" (Feldris)

"She is Liara, an Initiate and an Healer trainee. We just became friends!" *smile* (Stella)

Friends? Well, I don't mind becoming friend with her. Stella seems like a nice girl. I wonder how she knows me.

[After what you did? I find it stranger that the young men doesn't know you. How common are three years old girls with red eyes capable of weaving magic?] (Bookworm Me)

"THAT Liara? I heard about you when I returned. Honestly, looking at you, it's hard to believe you are the one that did that assassin in." (Feldris)

"Feldris!" (Stella)

Finally! Someone with a bit of common sense.

"It's all thanks to Mother and Meridia's teachings." (Liara)

"I doubt you became that strong just by paying attention." (Feldris)

"... Feldris, can you weave some magic thread? She wanted to see " (Stella)

The young man stands still and weave a thin but stable magic thread. I have never seen a man weave magic before. I thought only females could do it.

[Maybe it's a cultural thing, or maybe women are naturally better at it. Possibly both.] (Science Me)

(Stella)

Uhm... It's like a thug of war. Feldris tries to hold on his magic thread, while Stella tries to unravel it. Stella quickly wins.

[Interesting. Decollimating magic. I think you can skip the weaving step altogether as long as the target is close enough to you. You just need your magic channels to collimate after all.] (Science Me)

"Can I try?" (Liara)

"Ah ah ah! Be my guest, little one!" *smirk* (Feldris)

Feldris collimate a new magic thread. He is trying harder, the thread is denser and more stable then before.

(Liara)

*gasp* *kneel* (Feldris)

Well, that was easy. I barely even tried and his magic thread forcefully dissipated in a moment. I just tried to agitate the aether in his magic thread a little. It's much easier than gathering aether. Range is the only real limitation.

"Do you believe the stories now, Feldris?" (Stella)

"I do! I'm glad you are an ally and not an enemy, Little One!" (Feldris)

"Uhm... Since you helped me learn a new spell, I can show you how you can collimate more magic if you like." (Liara)

"? I never heard that word." (Stella)

Damn! I slipped!

"You know. When you make aether come together." (Liara)

"Alright. Show us!" (Feldris)

--------------------------------

I'm beat! In the end all the soldier that had even a little bit of aptitude came over and it became a magic training session. They need practice, but most of them can collimate a lot more aether now. Meridia said that is alright to show my technique to others. It should be fine.