“Gather up everyone! That’s enough for morning warmup. Now what did we all learn yesterday?” the head instructor questions us. “We learnt that you are all sorry excuses for trainees and that your training hall instructors must be incompetent to only show this much progress! And you, what did you learn? You in the back!” he points into the back row of the trainees.

“Um, the animals also have passive skills and are too tough for most of us to handle?” the kid hesitates.

The rest of the trainees hold their breath after and answer like that. This is going be bad!

“I see, are you talking to your mother, I know this is a change of pace but how are you supposed to talk to your instructors?” the Head asks calmly. Everybody else is already cringing and praying this idiot gets his head out of his ass quick!

“Uhh… Oh! Sir! The animals also have passive skills and are too tough for most of us to handle, Sir!” he realised his mistake and tries to correct with enthusiasm.

“Good, that was your only chance,” the head sweeps his eyes across the rest of the trainees, “Understood?”

“SIR! YES SIR!” everyone shouts back.

Phew, crisis averted! I don’t think I could do anything more after that “warm up” earlier.

“Okay, so how many of you actually managed to grind down food yesterday?” the Head asks rhetorically. “Just 2 teams out of 5 that went out! And one of them only brought a single rabbit!”

“Now Team Deer, that will be your designation for the rest of the “camping trip”, remember it. How did you manage to bring down a deer?”

The “Deer” Team as they are called now exchange looks and Alex is nominated to respond, “Sir, we tired it out, immobilised it and then aimed for its vulnerabilities – the neck, and the eyes mostly.”

He looks at us with a knowing look, “You also used Active skills to take it down didn’t you? That arrow at the end for example?”

How did he know? Was someone watching? Damn can’t be so careless in the future or all my secrets will be revealed!

“Um… Sir I don’t kn…” Alex is suddenly interrupted by the Head. “Don’t lie to me, or everyone is doing that little warm up again. Now tell us the truth.”

“Sir! Yes… we used active skills Sir! They seemed to be the only way to penetrate the deer’s hide!” Alex replies with zeal after seeing the promise of punishment in everyone else’s eyes.

“Yes, the animals of our world are just as strong or some times even stronger than us. They absorb the ambient mana which leads to strengthened bones and tissues. It lets them run longer, fight harder and survive better.” The head continues pacing up and down the line of trainees.

“Now, if just animals are this powerful, what can we humans do to improve our selves to combat Beasts?” he asks. “You, your name was Andra right? You can answer”

“Sir, my name is indeed Andra M…” she is interrupted suddenly by the head “We don’t need last names here, no one is going to be using their family here, including you Vale. Please continue.”

“Sir! My name is Andra sir, I used an active skill at the end to finish off the deer. I saw no other way to end it quickly and smoothly, SIR!” she finishes.

“Did you hear her everyone? Active Skills! This is actually the reason we all came out here. You will be going into that forest every day in your team and forging your first Active skill, or refining it further if you already have one...” Head sweeps his eyes over everyone again.

“You will spend today creating your image, and tomorrow you will go back into your teams and continue hunting. You haven’t graduated from this until each person in your team has activated an Active Skill. That will help you take down the animals here.”

Head walks off and after ten steps shouts once more:

“DISMISSED”

The teams broke up after that, each person going to their own little area, trying to work out what they need, what kind of image they should use for their first skill or how to reinforce their current skills further. The only sound the trainers could hear was the rustling of the leaves and the grass from the wind, the water rushing in the stream and random shouts coming from the kids who think too highly of themselves

Alex separates from the rest of the kids and makes his way towards the river. Maybe he will find inspiration for himself from the nature around him.

I always knew I would need to create an image for my first skill but I always thought it will still be a while yet. That we would be training our passive skills and let me supplement them with my enchantments for that extra kick.

Now an image, what skills do I have now anyway?

“Status”

Skills Athletics Tier 5 Dot Sword Mastery Tier 4 Dot (+1) Shield Mastery Tier 3 Dot Close Quarters Combat Tier 1 Dot Combat Instincts Tier 1 Dot Studying Tier 6 Line Reading Tier 5 Line Language Comprehension Tier 0 Line Mathematics Tier 5 Line Mana Channelling Tier 0 Dot (+1) Talents

High Comprehension

Tier 1 Dot

Due to your intellect being so naturally high, you are able to understand and assimilate new concepts 10.1% faster Strong Mind

Tier 0 Dot Due to your past experiences, sudden changes in the environment will no longer freeze your senses Journals Journal of Manipulation 0/30 Journal of Constitution 0/30 Journey of the Tinkerer 0/25 Unused Points 35 (+2)

All my passive combat skills increase the effectiveness of my sword fighting. And my sword:

Short Sword of Minor Sharpness

A common sword made by a blacksmith of Rodium.

Enchantments done by apprentice Alexander Derroid

+1 Agility

+1 Sharpness

Active Effect: When 100 mana is supplied, a thin sheen of wind surrounds the weapon. This increases the reach of the sword by 5 cm. The extra reach acts in the same way as the base weapon.

Uncommon Tier 0 Line weapon

Uncommon Tier 1 enchantment

Iron

Binding expires in 6 hours 20 minutes

Basic Elemental Core charge: 180/250

I already have an active skill on it that can penetrate the hide of the deer here. The best choice would be a skill that increase my mana regeneration for a short time so I can activate it more often. Can I use a stamina skill that increases the regeneration of my mana? I would have to experiment…

Now what is mana and what is stamina? I guess stamina a source of energy from the muscles, the inherent internals of the body and regenerate through food and rest. Mana on the other hand seems to be more like an intruder that provides energy to the user in a symbiotic relationship. What does mana get out of this process or is it like air, it has no will of its own but will gain one through the images people give it? Do thought have power in this world? They must, otherwise images wouldn’t be required so much.

I need an image that I can use to increase my mana regeneration. It can’t be something I need to sit for, it has to be toggleable and can’t slow me down.

Can I use anything from my past world? How did they picture mana? What were those games? I believe it was blue and sometimes multicoloured motes in the air? Can I use that somehow? Maybe a breathing technique of some kind?

Didn’t martial artists all say that breathing was the most important aspect of their art. Maybe I can use that here, especially if the Mana is in the air. But what kind of image can I use. It can’t be anything too obvious or flashy. I know everyone makes theirs flashy to intimidate but this has to be hidden. Something I use every day and all the time to train with, to use in combat without the opponent realising what I am doing too. I can misdirect with enchantments for now.

Hmmm… Would a vacuum work as an image. If I imagine that my lungs are mana vacuums and each deep breath pull more and more mana out of the air. Yes… that should work well.

Now close your eyes and concentrate… The air around me is full of mana, I can feel its energising touch as it passes near me, just out of my reach.

There is a void in my lungs, as I open my mouth to breath in for a three count, the mana rushes down my throat and into my lungs to fill that space! I hold my breath for a three count to assimilate all that extra mana and breath out through my nose for a three count. The for mana to escape is too narrow and it all stays inside my lungs until its fully absorbed.

Good that is a good image. Now to make it into reality, I have to really concentrate on every action. The feeling of emptiness in my lungs, the need to breath in, that suffocating feeling. Concentrate on that feeling, hold my breath until I need to breath in and hold it still. Capture that feeling of almost passing out from the lack of air… Good now, slowly, very slowly open my mouth, squeeze my diaphragm down, expand my chest, concentrate on the muscles doing all that work to create the biggest space possible for your lungs to expand into.

Good, breath in slowly catching and dragging in as much mana as I can into those empty, mana starved lungs of mine. Now hold, hold it all in, don’t let any out, the concentration of mana inside my lungs is so high that it’s trying to push back out into the air around me but I don’t let it go anywhere. I hold my breath until all the mana is assimilated… slowly… slowly… just a little bit more… almost theeeeerrreeee…

Exhale slowly, let any excess air and mana escape, but do it slowly as while it passes out of my lungs it can still be absorbed as it passes. Breath out all the way and add that feeling of a vacuum in my lungs again ready for the next cycle.

Okay that is a good starting image. I will need to keep doing it until it becomes a skill. Now for the last skill.

“Oh ADMINISTRATORS! Grant me this skill!”

HEAD Instructor

Good all the kids are doing their best. I hate having to be the Demon around them but this world is not as safe as they probably think. Even now in this safe area, the other trainers keep having to go drive the stronger animals and even some beasts from the outskirts of the forest. The things we do for the next generation.

“Hey John, what do you know about that kid near the water? I hope someone is keeping the fish away from him. Has no one told them that being so close to water is dangerous? Ah children! Well he will learn.”

“Anyway, the other kids are doing their best to be as flashy as possible, and all that shouting, but he is sitting there and …. Breathing? Is that it? What could that possibly achieve?”

“Ah Head! I hear that’s the Blood Tyrant’s kid. He is supposed to be smart for his age so maybe he is trying to work out a good image. You know that the smart kids have the biggest trouble with these tasks. They always over think their image and make it too powerful.” John replies.

“Ah yeah you are right. Well keep an eye on him and we can leave him be for now. Maybe he will come up with something truly exciting for once and not another Power slash or Fortress defence” Head sighs.

“Keep up the good work” he calls as he walks away to supervise some of the other kids doing their best

Alexander:

Processing.. Accepted...

What do you wish to name this skill

“Please name it… ‘Breath of Mana’” Alex confirms.

Please set resource used to power skill

Currently available: Stamina, Mana

“Please use Stamina”

Processing... Calculating... Forming...

CREATED

CONGRATULATIONS!

Breath of Mana (Uncommon)

User uses the vacuum of their lunges to draw mana from the surroundings at an increased rate.

+0.1 mana Regeneration per minute

Used: 5 points of Stamina per minute

Each minute used, mana regeneration rises by 0.1 to a maximum of 0.5

At higher Tiers Stamina decreases, Stamina expenditure resets with each Rank. Each Rank increases the base Regeneration and the bonus Regeneration

Phew, finally! I thought I was going to pass out from that.

Alex looks around, the sun has set, the camp fires are all almost out, there are kids patrolling and acting as senties.

How long did that take? Can't believe its already so late!

“Hey Alex? Are you finally done?” Stefan comes from behind and pats Alex on the back. You took forever, I thought you would stay there for the rest of the night too. Go get something to eat and to bed with you! I will take your sentry duty this time but you owe me!”

Alex stands up and stumbles a little, “Sorry I didn’t realise it would take so long! Sorry for this, I will take your place tomorrow too. Thank you.”

Alex waves back at Stefan and stumbles off to bed.