《The Explorer's Guide》Chap. 4 - The growth of knowledge
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I wake up to the morning light shining through the windows, i try to turn my head to the side and feel my movements still stiff and laggy as always but there has been an improvement in that regard as i can now control my hand movement and my feet. I can also see better, my vision no longer a blur of shapes and colors, but normal eyesight.
I involuntarily begin to bawl and get the attention of my new mother who seems to have the features of what i saw in earth’s fantasy as elves, she has pointed ears and sharp but beautiful features, and is taller than the average human.
She approaches the crib that located at the feet of her bed and her face comes into focus, i concentrate on the marvelous mixtures of golds and greens that are her hair and eyes. She smiles and whispers reassuring words. " ___ child _______ hungry?" the language, to which I've deciphered to some minimal extent already because of my ‘mothers’ lullaby songs made me find parallelisms between English and this new language.
As i am picked up to be fed and cleaned. I feel truly embarrassed as a grown man, to rely on someone to this extent but it can’t be helped as i am still only two weeks old. I’ve absorbed every little detail that can bring me a bigger picture of this world and its inhabitants. Firstly i think about their features and agility, i’ve never seen such graceful movements from normal humans and their physical strength isn't weak either, perhaps a head and a half taller than normal humans from earth and carry themselves with imposing manners. And through those discoveries, i’ve also figured that there is actual magic in this world, it also seems that this world is not as medieval i though it to be in the first place, there is digital devices and other technological gadgets.
From what i see, magic does not work as one would expect, there is a need for some sort of amulet, something that my mother wears always in her neck. She uses some sculpture of a foreign bird with two tails as a magical amulet, it is made from some kind ebony and when she sings for me it lits bright jade, the mixture of colors making the amulet have a beautiful gleam.
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She moves me around the room and places me in her bosom for me to feed. Right after, she cleans me of my mess and after that is done she puts me on the floor to play with the toys. She looks out the window as though she knows something is there and exits the room as if something caught her eye. After such an odd action i think of my first time in this room, in the beginning, i felt as this was yet another world where all was to be routine, boring activities followed by the same old pattern i had lived until now, at least physically.
I recall my memory of five days ago were my mother laid me down in front of my baby toys. I stared harshly at the wooden blocks hoping they would implode until some rough and muffled sounds came from the big window on the room, such window had a full view of the yard and there two men fought as if with special effects. They threw each other magnificent sword strikes and precise and agile martial arts. The leaner man with the golden buzzcut on his head was later revealed to be my father. The other man was burlier, not much but there was an obvious muscular advantage to which he tried to exert.
The biggest surprise though was not the amazing clashes or the speed that occurred. But instead where the raw elements that flew from their fingers and arms acting as if they had minds of their own, seeking their target and being repelled by the enemy. I sat in the velveted floor gawking at this phenomenon like a total idiot.
From then onwards i tried to make any semblance of a spark appear on my fingers every day but to no avail.
"Pherhaps i need a talisman or a totem of sorts, like my mother." As i mumbled i felt, more than i heard a big tremor and i quickly deviated my attention to the fields outside and focus on the very same window with the view to the yard, and what i saw was the sight of nigh impossible.
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The two women were walking confidently towards each other and emanating physical auras of great strength. One of the auras was jade and the other yellow, the most impressive part was the magic that they were using. Throwing in times flames condensed in balls and other times massive walls of ice. After a while, i saw all kinds of spells done in succession, until a rumbling shadow of darkness descended on my mother, just as the other woman countered the bright warming light spell done by her opponent.
Using magic they dueled each other with brutal precision and murderous intent. I started to worry about the one i recognized as my mother in the jade-like aura. I had become somewhat attached to the woman that was now my progenitor, she had sung for me, lull me and even she played with me. How could i, a man who never had such attention's before resist with a cold heart to such affection, especially after the loneliness of the void?
"Th-this is a magic duel, right?" i though "My mother is holding her opponent back, but i feel like they are almost equal in power."
As i tried not to blink my mother launches several spikes through the ground up into the position of her foe, only to be countered by a small but thick wall of ice in an angular position to the ground thus deflecting them, but as her oponent focuses on the spikes my mother forms another spike of earthly color and throws it ending a few milimiters away from her oponents face as it is cought by the vines made from the mysterious girl, as they wrap arround her arms as an uncouncios set of armour, just as quick as the battle began, it ended with both mutually staring and the strange woman giving a resigned look at her feet signaling her defeat.
I fear the worst when they start to approach each other, but soon relax when i see them laugh and hug while holding what seems to be a polite conversation, making it seem as nothing really happened. My first pure magical duel ended and i start to understand how magic works, i realize they were drawing their power from their surroundings and interacting with the particles to be of use, some even mutating the elements. ‘To create fire, particles tend to bond with each other to form a physical reaction. So they must make them obey them and fuse them even possibly creating new types of particles’. I feel excited just thinking of the thousands of possibilities, like creating plutonium and splitting them to create a massive reaction, of course, i'm not that well versed in physics and certainly, i'm am not going to ‘nuke’ anybody, for now at least.
As my thoughts fly inside of me i try to close my eyes and clear my mind to focus on the spar between my mother and her opponent. Then i feel it, for the first time i feel more than the air wrapped around my body. I feel something ethereal, like a second skin, and i try to manipulate the particles forcefully making them obey me. Agitatedly i summon all my will and i feel it, it is nothing but a gentle sway, not even noteworthy, but to me is the true beginning of my journey.
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ROACH- rising pestilence
A weary mind awakens in an unfamiliar body, lost, confused, scared, and very far from home. He doesn't know where he is, he isn't sure what he may become, and his stomach growls hungrily. But he knows one thing. He must feed and he isn't too bothered on how, only when. Through his struggles to survive trying to take his place in this world. It, the world will be forever changed. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- My first story here so let's do it! hopefully with flying colors. (This story is not about an insect that goes on an edgelord, death rampage, so those who came for that, know now what you are reading and stop rating down thx, still, some murder and mayhem is involved) Feel free to critique, I will be checking on reviews and comments every now and then to see what others think of my writing and how I might adjust it in the future. (although I'm also doing this for fun so don't get your knickers in a twist if things don't change to your liking). (Know that even if you comment/review that doesn't mean I will respond or that I will take your advice, after all, I too have my own preferences). A chapter tends to come out every fortnight, however sometimes it may be sooner or later, It depends on how lazy I'm feeling or how busy I am. Ps. A friend of mine drew the cover art, appreciate its homebrew goodness. PPs. serious readers may want to read the author's notes as well. PPPs. If you rate down please say why, I want info, not merely ratings that don't tell me anything, preferably in comments, so I can try to best satisfy my audience, or at the very least understand their reasons.
8 110Journey of a Mage
Mantira, the world that never stands still and where the God's word is law. Milleniums have passed and every race living on Mantira have at one point broken this law and strode out into the unknown and either discovered things beyond their wildest dreams or faltered under the weight of heaven's decree. Even so, few dared to mess with the taboo which was the void. For no-one; even the God's, had come back from looking unto the void and learning the secrets that lay within. Except for one. Who's blind devotion to learning the secrets of the void, drew him farther and farther down the wheel of destiny and onto a path that would change the course of history. But unlike the events that were to ensue, the whole thing started with a small, unnoticeable grey cylinder.
8 182Reign
A man who has already lived his life, and felt happy with it, is pulled into another. He can't remember his death, but is sure it occured. Not content to simply begin another life, he instead curses the god that put him there, naming himself Asmodeus and swearing to force the Author to end the book before its completion. Who will win, the Author, or the Character? --- Warning: Main Character is objectively evil. This is no Anti-hero territory.
8 165Unique Fusion Magic Hex
World Essence. The mysterious energy coursing throughout the entire land of Vor'ten, and very possibly the entire world. This energy has allowed humanity to flourish, building great empires and vast kingdoms, conquering nature itself with just a sweep of their hand. Humans were the strongest existence, and with the help of channeling this World Essence, many were able to turn into Magic Knights, gaining magical abilities to combat the various fierce beasts throughout the lands.Alas... those glory days of old were long gone. Humanity has now been pushed to the brink of destruction, and now the remaining members of the human race are encased within giant domes known as 'Alkkras', made with the last remaining bits of the World Essence. It was said that those giant domes were the last gifts left by the remnants of the ancient human race, as a means to protect the future generation from the attacks of the many wild beasts roaming outside. Five Spiritualist Invokers, all combined together, used the last bit of the World Essence and sacrificed their lives to lay a gigantic, 1028-seal formation magic array to form these barriers, forever saving humanity, but also trapping humanity within these barriers.However, the humans were never completely helpless. No matter how little World Essence was left, the humans still had some remaining. Realizing the incoming crisis, the humans found a way to seal World Essence inside a special type of crystal. Soon, these crystals began to become implanted into weapons, turning them into World Essence Weapons, and they began to display properties of their own. Extreme heat. Bone chilling cold. Absurd sharpness. These normal weapons, after being imbued with the energy of the World Essence Crystals, began to form natural affinities to elements. Fire. Water. Earth. Wind. Darkness. Light. Using these weapons, one could become a Chevalier that wielded the power of the elements.However, if one wanted to reach a higher level of enlightenment and understanding, one could become an Invoker. Via the study of magic array formations, one could directly use the power of the World Essence to cast devastating magics upon the enemy. These people were Invokers, highly valued for their combat potential by the Army. These weapons and magical arrays were used in the great fight between the humans and the beasts long ago. They had long since been put away in storage, almost long forgotten...However, after ten-thousand years of suppression, the human race is beginning its counterattack against the Beasts... Synth was an Invoker in the Magecroft Academy. However, his talent was terrible, being only at the Spark Stage. This led to him being looked down upon and bullied. He was unable to cast any Calamity-rank or even Destruction rank spells, and was only able to cast Coalescing rank spells at the age of 17, a record low in the academy for cultivating these rare Invokers. Even though he put in more effort than anyone else, he was still unable to advance his Channeling Energy. But due to his constant research and study, Synth ended up creating a power that would go against the heavens - he had found how to Fuse spells together. After trying it out once, merging the magical array for the Small Fireball and the Mortal Judgement skills, he was able to create a mid-rank Destruction tier spell, Holy Judgement Flame. However, after this, no matter how hard he tried, he was unable to fuse more spells together or even cast them, and noticed a weird, pentagram shaped formation on his left arm. He would later call this mark the Fusion Magic Hex, a curse that prevented the wielder from casting magic that wasn't their own...This meant that with the exception of Synth's newly created skill, , he was going to have to create unique magic arrays if he ever wanted to step on the path of becoming an Invoker! This power that destroyed the laws of the Invoking System, and his unyielding persistence in testing and creating new spells, would later gain Synth the nickname the Unique Fusion Hex, and lead him to become one of the strongest beings in the entire World!
8 76Echoes of The Lost Age
Many gates are littered over the planet Gaia, These gates are connected to other worlds where long lost civilizations once flourished.The Individuals of the many races that exist on Gaia enter these gates with the hopes of acquiring power, fame and riches. These people are called explorers.Our main character Embarks on a journey to become on of those esteemed explorers, But in the process would discover the true nature and origins of what lay behind these gates.
8 145Witches Burn at Dawn ✔
9x AWARDS WINNING + 17x FEATURED + WATTYS 2021 SHORTLIST❝It all started in fire. But it never ended in flames.❞ Welcоme to St. Daktaliоn, the city where magic exists till these days. After burning alive for her crimes, Yarоslava Slavich, a witch once awed by everyоne, wakes up in a graveyard, in a stranger's body. Her cоnjurer, Mir Prаejis, offers her a chance to live anоther year, but in return, she must help him find a demon who hunts dоwn magic users.Witches are wicked, thоugh. And a witch raised frоm the dead is the most wicked of all. Now Yаra has a decision to make. Steal another girl's identity and run away to start her life anew? Or help Mir serve justice, redeem her sоul, but--die forever? The problem is, the girl whose body Yаra's now wearing seems to have feelings for Mir. And those feelings seem to slowly become Yаra's own. As Yаra gets to know Mir better, she learns that he keeps his own dark secret. Abоut the demоn they seek. About Yаra's own past. About the day she was betrayed and chose witchery over her humanity.Can she survive this time? A witch brоught back from the dead. A boy rоbbed of his heart. A demоn damned to wander in shadows till the end of times. They share a secret, they share a past. But only one of them can have a future. Tread carefully. For the dead of these lands dо not rest in peace.MATURE: sexual content, blood-shedding magical rituals, occasional strong language, mental health topics, and scenes of violence and abuse._________________________Featured on:✧@WattpadWitches✧@WattpadUrbanFantasy✧@WattpadESL✧@Ambassadors✧@fright✧@mythandlegend✧@Ghost✧@Fantasy✧@Paranormal✧@PsychologicalNovel✧@antiheroesgalore✧@TheWarriorGoddess✧@StoriesUndiscovered✧@lowfantasy✧@WattpadLitFic✧@WattStoryCenter✧@WattpadFusion↬Amby Awards 2022 Villains category Winner↬Speculative Awards 2021 Honorable Mention(full list of awards in my reading lists)
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