I shouldn't have been surprised that elven architecture could be summed up with one word: treehouses.
But this was next-level compared to what one might picture in my world when we hear "treehouse." They were works of art, seemingly made with the trees.
Some of the trees I saw could not have bent and wound itself naturally and had to be a result of hundreds of years of tree shaping or done with magic—probably a combination of both.
The farther inward we went, the walkways changed. It kind of reminded me of tatami, which brought another point I noticed about the elves: they did not use wood outside of living trees. I mostly saw building material made from dried out plants (the ones that weren't still alive) and ceramic.
Note to self: if you want to piss off an elve, chop down a tree that wasn't dead.
My eyes took in the elaborate art this long-living race made of their homes (they had the time anyway) peripherally, more focused on the citizens I managed to catch glances of. They were predominantly on the younger end of the spectrum, curious to see a human (no doubt), which were herded away by older elves if they looked especially young. I saw leather and suede but was not really sure if that made them have an omnivorous diet; the animal skins and fur I saw could be from those antagonistic sounding magical beasts Ing mentioned.
Hair color ran the gamut though tones in the lighter-end of the spectrum seemed most prevalent. I had to tilt my head internally a few times when I saw some rather vibrant shades that I couldn't figure out was natural or not (tints of green in the blonds and browns. Pinks and magentas in the red and oranges. Platinum-white was honestly the most natural shade I saw).
And while I wasn't sure if it were just my not being used to elvenkind, but they all looked somewhat homogeneous in appearance. Facial features between the sexes were distinct, with the males having sharp angles while the females all had killer cheekbones; it was like being backstage at a fashion show.
Maybe that was why Captain Grine and Ing's looks caught my eyes. Their coloring was 'common' but their facial structure deviated with their lilting eyes and softer features.
The flooring shifted into ceramic tile and I started as some elves went around and lit the elaborate torches (how can trees not be a fire hazard?) with magic.
Fire. Magic.
Awesome.
I tried to listen to the words they murmured for the spell and recalled Ing saying I had mana. The question was, was that just the shield she saw—and if I could actually use magic myself.
[Magic Language is locked. Prerequisite required. A fundamental grounding is required before you can attempt this incantation.]
But that meant I can do magic, probably with my bond to the AI?
[Affirmative— Yes, limited access is granted with each… level up… giving a larger gross amount of energy to use.]
I wasn't expecting magic to be the answer to everything, especially when I lived all my life without it before, but being able to use magic might be helpful if all this went pear-shaped. My family and history have a record of discrimination; survival instincts are making me rather uneasy being under trial of a group which laws I was unfamiliar with.
'So, how do I unlock this Magic Language?'
With the "upgrade" in progress and the pounding headache lessened with a bit of drink and food, I seemed to be better able to sense Program-37. It was a kind of situational awareness, like being able to feel someone moving behind you. Only it was all in my head.
Yes, it was still a bit weird for me.
The AI seemed to become more 'present' as he replied.
[You cannot access magic until you are 'Level 3.' There will not be enough access for use outside the body until Level 5. You need to read magical texts to be able to unlock the file— the Magic Languages perks.]
I see the AI was assimilating what he got from my brain and tried to equate what our symbiotic relationship gave me through game terms. I was not sure how to feel about that.
If I extrapolated from his comparisons with evolution being leveling up…
[Yes, in order to Level Up, Nori must fight and/or break physical limits.]