Scrapyard Angels Act 1 Chapter 9

Machines can often come as miraculous things when you take a look at them. You know why they work but the how is entirely lost to you. You might see a phone and knows it runs on computing and electricity but how does it exactly work. You can't simply take a device and replicate it if you havent studies about it

This was exactly what I felt when I looked down on the crystal before us. It glowed but that was all it could do for us.To own a Hextech crystal was one thing, but to use it was an entirely different matter. Much like Chemtech and various other arts, it's not exactly something you learn unless you're exposed to it.

"I don't think we can use this. Should we sell it?" Vi asked as she took one of the crystals from the box in front of us.

"Well… we can sell it… but just imagine the cool stuff we could make now that we have a crystal to work with!" Jinx was the ever optimist among us with it

"Do any of us know how to use this?" I asked. It was completely out of my depth. My plan was supposed to be to learn how to read and do magic in the elementary before shifting jobs to the university if a part time custodian job opens up and then learn some hextech from observation and maybe reading some of the books written in the Zaunite text. The Hextech crystal was supposed to come after that

"I just hand tools in the Chemtech shop I work in" and Chemtech was as similar to Hextech as Dieselpunk is to Atompunk. They might have the same concept but far different ways

"So… we can't make Zap guns?" As much as I want to Jinx…

"Well… we can't right now but I think I can learn how to do it. Teaching you would be the easy part afterwards"

"What can we do with it now then?"

I hummed for a bit, thinking of how the device used to measure my magic worked. I could feel some resistance around the shell while it felt like all my magic was going to the crystal inside it so…

Grabbing one of the gems, I pushed my magic into it. The effect was immediate when the crystal flared brightly, momentarily blinding us. All it did was shine brightly and there was the lack of ozone in the air to tell me that I didn't miss anything else

"Damn it Ark! Warn us next time!" Vi rubbed her eyes as she tried to blink the black spots in her vision

Jinx on the other hand blinked before looking at the crystal intently.

"Jinx, Vi, I was going to try and teach you how to do magic once I got the basics done but we could do the first step now" I was reluctant to teach them magic as it was akin to teaching someone how to use a gun while still learning how to use a gun. Feasible but irresponsible

Gently grabbing Jinx's hand, I placed the crystal on her palm before holding her hands between my own. Her hands felt warm to the touch. They no longer felt bon to the touch

"Your hands feels tingly" Jinx says as she held onto the crystal

"Now, I want you to feel what I'm about to do. If I'm correct, you should be able to feel this" Much more slowly this time around, I pushed my magic towards the crystal. Vi leaned closer as she watched her sister do something utterly magical

"Is it supposed to feel like something's flowing?" Jinx asked as the crystal glowed ever so softly, growing brighter and pulsing, as her eyes widened in wonder

"Yes, it's like something you always felt before right? Like you always know that's there like breathing or your heartbeat? Now, I want you to hold on to that feeling and let it flow. Just follow what I was doing with the crystal ok?"

Jinx nodded as she stuck out her tongue and concentrated at the crystal in her hands. Slowly I pulled away from her hand and the glow dimmed.

"No!" Jinx's face scrunched up as she tried to hold on to it. It pulsed, beating faster until it grew brightly once more. It wasn't blinding but the color changed ever slightly towards Jinx's color.

Vi pulled Jinx into a hug as she shouted "My sister's going to be a mage!"

"But I want to be a Hextech Mechanic!" Whined the girl as she now looked at the crystal in betrayal

"You can always be both you know" As much as Hextech can help those who didn't have the mana pool to fuel magical spells, it can still be used to enhance what's already there

Jinx was grinning ear to ear at that little fact. Now it was Vi's turn

"Now do me!"

"Gladly~"

"Not like that y-you dolt!" It was always fun to tease her now and then. She was making it too easy

"Fine. Now, let's do this"

Doing it a second time was a bit easier now. This time around however, it didnt grow that brightly. It barely blinked at all but at least it did have a pinkish tinge to it.

Vi looked a bit crestfallen that the crystal she held wasn't glowing as brightly as ours. "Well, it did felt like I didn't have any magic in me"

"You do have magic, albeit only a little. You can one use one spell though"

"One spell?"

Grabbing her hand, I lifted them up for all of us to see. "You can cast fist!"

That broke her out of her melancholy as she guffawed at my little joke. "I do cast a lot of fist alright"

"And break noses"

"And break noses" She rolled her eyes but smiled nonetheless

"And protect us with it"

"Off course it's going to protect both of you"

"And give me kisses"

"And give you-!" I winced as I got punched once again.

"Almost!" I snapped my fingers at the missed opportunity.

"Get a room, you two!" Jinx shouted as she covered her face. I laughed as we continued our banter with Jinx soon joining in as well. Life here down in the Sumps isn't that bad if you have something or someone to live for.

Learning a new language is always a pain, especially when it involves new letters. Thankfully it wasn't that different from English when it comes to writing it down. They do have some novel letters here and there like the thorn but they were few and far inbetween. Zaunite is quite removed from Piltovan so there were some quirks here and there

Reading had always been my passion and the few times I had the library to myself was always fun when I could read in peace.

Shaping mana with my left hand, I read one of the kids books inside the library. "Anivia grew annoyed at her brother Ornn for felling her favorite tree when he decided to make a house…" I wrote down as I read, using the chalk I bought on one of the slates in the library. The crooked lines I made as pressed down on the slate with my chalk was barely legible at best

I had a book on language that compared Zaunite to the New Piltovan, a script that was becoming more common, beside me while I read the Freljordian myth. Without it, I would have been lost. I was about to erase my slate clean when a hand grab my wrist

"Hmmm, whoever taught you how to read and write must either be the cruelest teacher there is or just simply a misguided fool" Spoke the Principal as she took my slate and inspected it.

"I thought it was strange you never touched the older books but now I see why" Sitting down, she returned the slate back to me. Her eyes locked on the wavering circle I was making with one hand.

"It seems that you're doing well enough in your magical practice so let's see if I can teach you how to read and write properly. Your wasting too much chalk with how you write right now"

I looked down, not really liking criticism yet it was something that was needed. I needed to improve, always.

It was a bit weird having the principal taught me personally but maybe it was because she was bored? Who knows what goes on in her mind. Don't look a gift horse in the mouth after all and what not.

"Tell me Mr Ark, Why do you insist on working? Why work yourself down to the bone?"

"I could probably lie to you Ms Irine"

"You could but I feel like you can be a bit candid at times"

I paused for a bit, wondering what I would say before speaking my mind. "It's all part of my stupid plan Ms Irine"

"Hmm?"

"Yes, an elaborate plan to climb up the ladder that is life. It probably wouldn't work but at least it's something Miss Irine"

"Humor me then Mr Ark. Tell me about this plan"

"Ehh sure…" and so there I sat telling my plan on how to succeed. I kept things short and sweet to make it easy for myself. It all boiled down to a list. First is learning how to read and do magic, then get hired in the College of Techmaturgy. Eavesdrop on lectures in the college and maybe read some of their books in secret before trying out on their entrance exam to one of their scholarship programs.

"It's not exactly a half bad plan, if a bit half baked. You can certainly learn enough from eavesdropping and reading but you just one have glaring problem" She had me erase my slate and had me write what she was to say down

"You don't have a sponsor. As much as the College tout their meritocracy, they're still inherently nepotistic like much of Zaun. You might pass but you can easily get bumped out of the list if someone with a sponsor needed a slot. Your simply not well connected" Isn't that quite a cold bath to remind me of reality.

"It's not exactly impossible but you really must excel to the point they simply can't ignore you" There was a slim chance then. I was pretty confident in my odds then

"Well it's time for the school to close for the night. You've been an adequate student as always. Now let's clean this place up"

Returning the books allowed me to think of another option to really get in. It was still a far off thing for the future. I still had plenty of time to catch the eye of someone. Who that maybe remains a mystery but that was for future me to decide.