Hump made it to the side passage of the House of Stone before the cold of essence overuse caught up with him. This wasn’t just a chill. It was flesh burning, bone freezing agony. He collapsed, curling into a ball as pain tore through every inch of him.

“Hump!” Celaine shouted.

All he could do was groan. He’d experienced essence overuse before, but never like this. Not even after using White Flame in Stonebark Forest.

“Dylan, we need you!” Bud called.

Hump opened his eyes to glimpse a blurry druid racing over from the custodian hall nearby, passing two bodies along the way. He knelt beside Hump, his Nature’s Spring blessing already active, pouring the healing essence of Krioc into Hump, but even that could not push back the burning cold.

“What’s going on?” Bud asked.

“He’s used too much essence,” Dylan said.

A warm hand pressed against his head and he gazed up at Emilia, who studied his face with worry. “Gods, this might be the worst case of essence overuse I’ve ever seen. We need to get him somewhere warm.”

“Take him to our estate.” It was Marcela’s voice. “We’ll be alright here. I’ll take care of Corvin.”

Bud stepped closer, armoured boots banging near Hump’s head. “I’ll carry him.”

“Let me.” Dylan took Hump under his chest and easily hauled him onto his shoulder. “You’ve got too much armour on, and this way I can keep my blessings going.”

Absently, Hump felt himself swaying as they moved, bumping along. A breeze caressed his face as they stepped outside, and he briefly opened his eyes. Light gleamed from the tower of Ordana, the priests of the temple illuminating the dark city as the fighting continued all around them.

The journey passed in a blur. It started to rain at some point, but it was the cries of pain that momentarily brought Hump out of his stupor, only for him to realise they were his own. The world spun again, and Hump’s whole body tensed. The cold was too much. Desperate for an escape, he delved inward, cycling his essence through the icy river of his body.

He did not sleep. He writhed in feverish darkness, his existence a constant agony, the River and Waves the only relief. Yet slowly, that agony faded to a throb, and then finally he could rest.

***

When Hump opened his eyes, he was in a bed that was far too large for any single person. Above him, the roof was eggshell white and lined with gold. Thick, heavy blankets buried him, and a raging fire cloaked the room in warmth. Large paintings of people he didn’t recognise filled the walls, and a lavish rug the floor.

There were a few bleary moments of confusion as he tried to figure out what was going on, and then the memories of the battle returned to him. He was alone, and he must have made it to the Daston Estate after all.

For a long time, he stared at the ceiling, too tired to do anything else. Even wrapped in blankets as he was, he was cold to the bone. It was inescapable. A burning itch beneath his skin. But as unpleasant as it was, it was a damn sight better than he’d been previously.

He wondered how the others were doing, whether Kesha had made it, and what became of Corvin after killing Abraxus. Some time had surely passed, but whether that was a few hours or a few days, he could not tell. His mind went to Eliana, and what she may have already said about him. Or perhaps the battle was ongoing, and the streets were still filled with warlocks and monsters.

Eventually, his curiosity won out. He couldn’t keep lying there.

He let out a deep sigh, then tentatively, he stood and limped to a curtained window. He pulled back the thick red drapes and peered out into the night. It was nearing night before, so either he’d hardly slept, or he’d slept far too long. Judging by his condition, he was leaning toward the latter.

There were no signs of an ongoing battle. The city was still illuminated by the tower of Ordana’s temple, shining its light upon the ruins. Smoke still filled the sky in places, but it wasn’t as bad as Hump remembered.

He turned back to his room, wondering if he should leave and try to find someone who could explain the situation, or wait here and rest. Spotting his pouch and spellbook on the nightstand beside his bed, he remembered the shudder he’d felt after the battle. After he’d manifested his soul.

Getting back beneath the covers, he took his dragon egg out first, marvelling at the light that shone between cracks in the scales. He ran a finger over them, a wave of emotion seeping out as the dragon became excited.

“You’re glowing,” Hump said. “That’s new.”

The dragon responded with happiness. It was far stronger than previous interactions. Hump wondered if that was because of his own growth or the dragon’s. Perhaps it was both. He placed the egg under the blankets with him and immediately felt warmer for it, then he took the spellbook and placed it in his lap.

Even in his exhausted state, Hump could hardly hold back his anticipation. Vivienne had told him it was when his master manifested his soul that he started acting strange. He’d refused to discuss it, but she suspected he’d uncovered something too dangerous to speak of.

That chat with her in the lighthouse of Fishers Lake felt so long ago to Hump. At the time, he’d been a warlock, still afraid of what the dragon imprint might have done to him. Now, he wasn’t quite sure what he was, but he wasn’t afraid. His soul was his own again. There was no imprint on him, no mark of the gorger, no foreign powers craving his core.

He smiled at that. For the first time in ages, he felt calm inside. Whole.

A glimmer seeped out from the pages of his spellbook, urging him to look inside. He opened it to swirling ink, and a familiar image took form on the page. Familiar, yet there was more to it now.

SPELLBOOK

Spirit Well

Enhancement | Internal Essence | Tier 4 | Range: Self

Description

Perfect mastery of the River and Waves technique results in the creation of a Spirit Well. This technique is a method of essence control that condenses essence within the soul and expands the volume that the core can contain. By incorporating it into the River and Waves circulation method, it will provide enhanced benefits to focus, essence control, and reduction to the effects of essence overuse.

Origin

The River and Waves

Notes

y.402 – Nithrand – This technique is a testament to my master’s ingenuity and knowledge of essence, and demonstrates the power and potential magic has when wielded by those that possess the knowledge and discipline to fully harness it.

As fascinating as the technique was, what struck Hump most was just how much his master had prepared him over the years. The old man’s teachings had at times confused him, particularly why he’d never mentioned what the spellbook truly was. Right now though, there was no doubt in his mind that the old man intended for the book to be his. All this time practicing the meditative technique had been building his foundation. The foundation upon which his Soul Manifestation was built on.

It was uplifting to think about. He wished he could speak with his master and know what he’d been thinking. To go all those years with a wounded soul when he had all this knowledge at his fingertips must have been hard. Harder still to teach someone else how to wield it. More than anything, Hump just wanted to tell him thanks.

He let out a sigh, turning his gaze on the drawing beneath the Spirit Well description. The lines of essence took the shape of the human body, showing the channels of essence that ran through the figure. They flowed from its core, identically to the page for River and Waves, but now there was a bright, gleaming light at the heart of it. The Spirit Well. An advanced form of River and Waves.

If he understood the description correctly, this was only one step of many. He would need to experiment with the technique before he knew for sure, but it sounded like his Spirit Well was something that would continue to advance. Perhaps this was what his master was killed for—a technique that wizards could use to manifest their soul.

Seemed unlikely. As of yet, Hump had encountered nobody that demonstrated the ability to read the book other than when he allowed it.

Deep down, he wondered if it went a step further than that. The strength possessed by Starick and Anthony was far beyond any Rank 6 wizard. It was the first time he’d truly contemplated that revaltation. There was no doubt about it, both of them must have broken through the barrier. That meant it was possible, and it made Hump wonder if perhaps this was a method to go beyond it too. A method to breach the seventh rank. He supposed he would find out eventually, or die somewhere along the way.

He turned to the next page, the paper gleaming with blue essence, gathering along the edge faintly like an ethereal mist.

THE BOOK OF INFINITE PAGES

Compact Formations 2

Description

Spell formations can now directly be cast from this book up to Tier 3.

Hump let out a breath. Tier 1 spells to Tier 3 was a big jump. He supposed that was due to his Soul Manifestation. It was a useful upgrade and would allow him to use the formations in his book to cast some of his most powerful spells. It seemed that as he advanced in his abilities as a wizard, the Compact Formations ability would develop too, enabling him to cast more complex spells with it. Combined with his increased soul strength, he wondered if it would be enough to make his lava magic viable in combat.

Across from it, another entry took form. An entirely new one.

THE BOOK OF INFINITE PAGES

Spell Storage

Description

Prepare a spell in advance of its use by storing essence within the spell formation. This can be used for spells up to Tier 5 with a current limit of one spell.

Notes

y.254 – Nithrand – I always remember the day my master raised his hand to the sky and manifested a flaming stone the size of a city in moments.

Nithrand’s note at the end left Hump in awe. The description alone sounded incredibly powerful, but he couldn’t imagine magic on that scale. He couldn’t even imagine how it might function. Anthony’s formation had encompassed much of Sheercliff, but it relied on a web of trees across the city and a huge amount of dungeon essence. This, however, relied only on the formation and essence stored within the book. Essence someone must have given it.

The world was feeling so much larger. He’d witnessed a battle between a wizard and martial that should have been impossible, and now he was reading of a spell that seemed beyond anyone other than a god.

Even the ability to cast a Tier 5 spell so quickly was invaluable, and superior even to a spellstone. Vivienne may have been correct in how the old man had got them out of the goblin ambush. If he’d stored a Tier 5 illusionary spell, it could have hidden their escape.

He wondered how one’s own capabilities impacted the spell in question. Could he store the Magma Pit spell and wield it successfully, or would he run the risk of it backfiring on him even with the help of the book? He’d need to test it out, likely with some lower tier spells first, and perhaps only spells that didn’t come with a risk of setting him on fire.

He flicked to the last of the glowing pages.

THE BOOK OF INFINITE PAGES

Soul Manifestation

Description

The first step for any practitioner, whether wizard or martial, is learning to manipulate the essence of the world with one’s will. Soul Manifestation is the act of imposing one’s being on the world itself, changing it, and bending it to one’s command.

Effects

Gain a dragon’s presence, instilling fear in any that look upon you, and granting you better control over spells and essence. While active, your stamina, speed, and strength, both magically and physically, are increased.

Communicate with people you are familiar with through wolf dragon telepathy. Requires full manifestation and intense concentration with non-wolf dragon entities.

He grinned at the sight of that. There was something special about seeing it inside the spellbook. It made it more real. He was a Rank 4 wizard, and reading through the effects of his Soul Manifestation, he felt like a powerful one at that. He’d experienced a part of that power after Eliana forced him to breathe in the warlock powder, but seeing it written out helped to quantify that feeling.

The last point, however, was entirely new to him. Even basic telepathy was a rare and powerful ability. It sounded limited, at least in terms of communicating with other people, but he wondered if he could contact his party members from where he was. Before he could think on it further, however, another note appeared on the page beside it. Letters scrawling along from left to right, as if he were watching someone write it.

As he read the first few words, Hump’s stomach twisted into a knot. His heart sank. His breathing quickened.

My Dear Hump,

I know my passing must have come as a great shock to you, but it was a fate I saw coming long ago. If you are reading this, you must have achieved Soul Manifestation. I wish I could have left something for you sooner, but this was the only way I could be sure it would not fall into the wrong hands. You have come so far since I found you with a hand in my pocket all those years ago. You have been my source of pride, and I have no doubt that you will turn into a fine wizard.

By now, you will have discovered some of the functions of the Book of Infinite Pages. I wish I had the answers I know you must seek, but this was as far as I ever made it on the search for its secrets. What I have is a warning: the book is alive, and as it grows with you, those that hunt it can see it more clearly. You must learn to guard your soul well or they shall come for it.

You possess a rare talent, and I have no doubt that you will master the mysteries contained in these pages. Trust in your abilities, trust in your judgement, and remember your shaping exercises (I know how much you hate them).

Farewell, my dear boy. Live well.

Sincerely,

Sethril

Tears were running down Hump’s cheeks by the time he reached the end, dripping off his chin onto the blankets. He read the letter again, hearing the old man’s voice. He wondered what he would think of Hump now, and how far he’d come. He snorted. Knowing the old man, he’d get a smack over the head for being idiot enough to put himself in so much danger. Hump laughed at that.

He wiped his eyes. It was stupid to be sad. This was a good thing—a final goodbye. The very thing he’d wanted. He took a deep breath and closed the Book of Infinite Pages.

There was only one thing to do now that made sense. He needed answers, and he was famished. Slowly, he attempted to manifest his soul. The cold worsened slightly, but he was careful not to expend his essence. If anything, it was a pleasant sensation. The essence of the world rushed in, and he absorbed it, feeling warmer. He focused, envisioning Bud somewhere out in the city. His blond hair, unfairly handsome face, and annoyingly righteous personality. For a long time, he didn’t think it was working. Minutes passed, and he was nearing the point of giving up, when finally, he felt a spark of connection.

“Bud of Blackthorne,” he said in his deepest voice. “You must go to Wizard Humphrey’s chambers at once. Bring food.”