Morning came, Hana had to wait for Master Lu Sha to take down the Barrier. when he dropped her back at the sect, he took a strange route. It was very clearly a detour. "Master, why aren't we headed directly to the Sect?" 'Grandmaster Lu Sha' She had never heard him called that until the day before and ever since then, he'd been gone. Only now was he in her presence, and only to take her to the Sect.
"I have matters to attend to, I would portal us there but its going to attract too much attention. I lost my temper yesterday and portaled Elder Antsani to the Tower City. The Emperor was not happy but Elder Antsani won't be coming back to Zao City for a while. There are things you don't understand, you will in time, but for now I just need you yo be a disciple. You've got to learn and you've got to learn fast." There was a seriousness in his voice, crisp and clear... cold and bitter. "When you learn of the outside world, you will have your own thoughts. For now, be innocent, learn. I'll bring dinner, here is a token. It will open the formation I set on the portal entrance. Don't bring anyone there, remember, you're different, you can tolerate it. Outsiders will only be harmed, your pets are doing strange things, I want you to keep a close eye on their development."
Hana nodded as they ripped through the woods. Branches occasionally swung in her face until they came to a stop right outside the city gates. "Master, Thank you." Hana looked over to Master Lu Sha, but he was already gone. A collapse of dirt, much like the ones her father frequently left followed behind his exit.
Sitting in class, Hana listened to Elder Kesra while she lectured about formations.
"Formation flags are talismans, usually hung from an object, that object tends to be stick like. The term formation flag actually comes from the old idea behind tying a white rag to a stick for surrender. Talismans can be a number of special things, usually something of power, to compensate for an action that the formation itself is suppose to enact." Her hands were waving wildly as she pointed toward a drawing on the wall.
"What you must first realize is that formations are fluidic, you can write subtext onto other subtext and layer it as much as you like. The more complex a formation, the easier it is to screw up, making it worthless. Much like programming, if anyone's familiar with it, one error in the code will corrupt the entire process and could even result in the destruction of all associated hardware. Yes, that includes you. Some totems, the items combined with talismans, the stick, the flag itself, maybe a monster core. All of them are important in the functionality of your formations. If one aspect works too hard, that can easily set your formations out of balance, resulting in.. well, an explosion. Watch." As Elder Kesra's dominant hand moved counter clockwise, her left hand laid the totem.
She began to manipulate her own materials for an example, gently and exaggerated for visual reference. "Now, its possible to put many different things into play during formation building, but formations are something you have to feel for, studying can only tell you what's already been accomplished, not what can be done. Only through experimentation can you find what you're truly looking for in a formation. The hardest part, is deciding. To Make a simple isolation formation, you're going to need a source of energy. Some barrier formations use monster cores but the cheapest are the formations that run on your own energies. The problems with running a formation on your own energy, is that it eventually runs out. No one had boundless energy, even the Emperor himself has to take a Nap on occasion."
"What I want everyone to do, is create three flags, the bare minimum for triangulation. Each formation flag has to be identical and you should try not to overdraw. In the middle of the room, i'll place a box of charged energy crystals. They are mostly blank, a few have had alternative energies put into them for each of your needs." She pointed as many things as possible out, details made or broke formations. "You'll need three for each flag, so that's nine a piece. The more flags you have, the more connecting energy sources you'll need and this is for each formation layer and action. Some formations have been recorded to require energy that's a thousand times more than what we're making now. Once you've drawn your formation flag, on the wall, there are several types of spirit herbs. They aren't high in power but they make excellent and cheap conduits when strung together. Use them to connect the formation lines then place the stones down."
Elder Kesra was on a roll but there were problems with connecting energy channels, "The formation you'll build doesn't need to be very large, this is for demonstration purposes and the grasses themselves are just that, cheap and abundant. When you make larger formations, it will require something a lot more gruesome, and blood is usually the easiest to find. Liquefied elemental essence is wonderful in permanent installations but blood will activate the majority of one time formations. Using the grass instead helps with visualization training, since it requires imagination."
Elder Kesra pulled out forty bottles from her storage while she was lecturing, "All sorts of blood can be used, we suggest you harvest as much as you can get from your hunting and to keep it separated if at all possible. Some blood is much stronger than others, bottling it is the best option. Bowls, pitchers, tubs, cauldrons, anything to carry the blood as a vessel is fine but you should be concerned with losing the bloods power or letting the power of the blood run rampant." She counted on her fingers and then pointed to a particular bottle. "There is such a thing as violent bloods. Vampire Blood, is particularly troublesome, I will remind you repeatedly to not get it on your skin or in your eyes. If you run into a vampire, you should be cautious and well prepared."
Stretching her hand out to gesture about expansion, she created a ring on the ground, "Formation size will always vary on the creator. Most people do not draw the same lines and formations, they constantly change how they lay their own custom formations. That's because there is always something more to learn. When you're done with this discipleship and become a full member of the Sect, you'll be responsible for your actions and failures. Its important that you all pay as close attention as possible, mistakes are rarely tolerated. Testing out the formations will take time, don't be worried if you're taking longer than others. Not everyone will draw at the same speed and its not a race, at least, not this time. Formation flags can be quite complex, the more you know about formations, the more you can put onto a single formation flag. For the time being, all formation flags that you'll be creating in class will be single purpose, single use flags and totems. When you're making your talismans, don't forget to feel the intent and purpose of your flag while inscribing it."
"Using different inks, oils, bloods and various materials to mark your formation flags can also strengthen them. Almost anything you use during its construction or activation should be the best quality you can put forth but learning to make formations with the cheapest materials is always better. Rare materials are nice, but if you're looking to make lots of the formation; Traps, perhaps. Then you need to be able to produce them. Readily available materials help make formations come together, both in planning and in action. The idea is the key. One of the most important things on a formation users mind must be their intent." Elder Kesra held up her hand, "Concentration, Aim, Strength, Timing. You'll hear a few versions of this but its all essentially the same. CAST. Whether you're casting magic, channeling an ability or construction of a formation.. focus is a big part of it."
After you've all made your flags and collected your crystal, I'm going to play an instrument. The instrument causes headaches and confusion. You will have thirty-five seconds to setup the formation. In a combat situation, you'd have zero seconds to spare. This is a test of your ability to handle stressful situations. We won't start until everyone has theirs completed, If you're already done please just cultivate or read until its time.
"Okay, who wants to tell me what a formation is generally formed with? Hmm? Anyone? Spellwork.. its filled with spellwork." Instructor Kesra kept pausing between her words like she was trying to make a sarcastic point. It worked, the student's although re-focused were paying attention.
"Spellwork, are magical or mystical inscriptions. They tend to be mysterious patterns but a number of the spellcrafting theory and magical assembly spells in our libraries are written incantations. Words spoken with or for a particular spell, when invoked beforehand, can manifest energy words. Those energy words can then be transcribed over to the spell formations by directing the energy itself as it flows. During our first year, we advise all of our new student's to not work on this aspect. It takes refinement and can be a distraction from the purpose of being a disciple, which is to do what the #### your told. Your spare time is just that, spare time, not mine but if you have time to spare and fail my expectations, you won't be sorry enough." She made a cutthroat gesture and walked around the room examining flags.
Elder Kesra was still pushing herself around the room, her tone changed to a more cheerful one and the mood got better. "The Masters of the Sect, all of us have duties. Duties we mostly likely would rather be performing. Passing a legacy.. tsk." She clicked her tongue a bit, "The Emperor commanded it, so every Elder has to train at least three with the first ten years, after that, they can choose to ignore the juniors. I actually like teaching, and so this is what I do. Its not so bad, I get access to materials that people outside of the Sect wouldn't. The trade off, is that I occasionally get bad students. Don't make me regret choosing you and work hard."
When she saw the progress of the class, she threw out more instructions. "Now. It looks like everyones' finished. Lets activate them one at a time, I'll talk each of you through it so that there is less confusion. These are plastic bottles. I know, I know.. what the hell am I using these for? When you squeeze them, it comes out in a line. If you chose to write with it, if you make a mess, you're the ones cleaning it up. These are not available to everyone, so use it sparingly."
'What is it?' Hana popped the top open and smelled it. The slurry smelled fantastic.
As she watched each student, Elder Kesra corrected their movements. Some were giving off balanced hand signals, other were trying too hard at vocalization during their chanting. The biggest issue were actually the grasses, despite the hype from the Instructor, the grass was wavy and the new students had some issue with visualization. Sighing heavily, she picked up the bottles that were filled with some sort of thick liquid, It smelled like Barbeque sauce.
"Teacher? Is that?" Phera licked the side of the bottle.
"Yup, Its BBQ sauce. There are some things in life that you can't get. Grandmaster Harris keeps this in his personal supply, he's perfected a sauce that he calls Barbeque. Since its made with materials from Shiyan instead of Earth, they carry lots of energy and can be used to write. Don't tell others, but I've perfected a formation that you write on a corpse. Its a disassembly formation." Nodding while she drooled, Elder Kesra got sidetracked in hunger dreams.
"Teacher?" Black lines seemed to come over their faces, she was gone, lost in her own fantasy about meat and ranting to herself inaudibly.
'Is this really that good?' Hana tasted it. 'Hmm, it is pretty good.' Hana pulled out roasted meat and dappled a little of the sauce onto the meat. There was an aroma, like a perfect pairing that wafted into the room. It was both unsettling and annoying when the teacher came running over.
"What sort of meat is that?" she asked.
Hana wasn't giving up her meat but it wasn't impossible for her to say so. "Spider.." Hana bit down and tore the rest of the meat from the roasted leg. It was an odd texture but the sauce made the taste an experience. Hana started to glow as she slurped it down, it was only for a moment. Her radiant skin got brighter like a bioluminescence and she could feel a sensation that didn't make sense.
"Can I?... Can I taste it?" Elder Kesra drooled.
Hana smiled and put out her hand. "There is no such thing as free lunch. What can teacher compensate me with?"
'I just gave her a bottle of sauce! Greedy disciple.' Elder Kesra kept her calm, she was a foodie and special meats were important, some would even bestow effects. Anti-toxins, strength boosts, healing or regenerative effects. Grandmaster Foodies had entire libraries devoted to medicinal foods. "What does Disciple have in mind??" Her face twitched while Hana sucked down some of the meat.
'This teacher, she's easier to tame than Qu.' Hana cleared her throat and pulled out a bottle. It was an energy drink, Hana didn't require energy but they tasted like fruit juice. She pulled another leg from storage, split the side open and poured a drizzle of the drink onto the spider meat. It sizzled for a second and then she set it down on the table. "I'd like access to your formation notes."
"Un. Un." Nodding and leaping like a house cat to a plate of food, Elder Kesra started to devour the Spider meat. She dunked some into the bottle of barbecue sauce and smiled like she was in heaven.
"Munder tu esk" the teacher mumbled while she ate. Clearing her throat, she spoke between bites. "Under the desk." 'Mhmm'
There was a compartment, Hana clicked it and a tablet landed in her palm.
"I keep them all on this memory tablet, its organized." She held up a finger and spoke word by word, "The price to see my book, is meat everyday! Beforehand, and it cannot leave this building. You've paid for today, tomorrow, I expect more." The Teacher knew she'd been played. 'Brat, I'll get even with you.. smart though, she saw right through me.'
There was a sense of mutual respect once Hana had chosen to accept the terms, she didn't expect her Teacher to make a counter during her negotiations, it was rather fun for her. Smiling back, Hana could only laugh. It was easy to hunt. She studied the notes and watched the last of the formations being setup. When it was time to go, she had memorized the first half of the notebook.
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It was the fourth day in a row, Hana had watched the Moles gathering materials. They used their own energies to produce rough stones. Piled high and sorted, they just kept making more. On the fifth day they were arranging them into shapes. Hana was getting excited, although she never really wanted the moles as pets, it was more or less an interesting thing to watch. The development of a species, even on a small level was particularly immersive.
'I wonder if they can produce materials with attributes?' Hana searched around the first island. There were clumps of crap scattered about, Hana kicked one and it glistened. The smell wasn't particularly friendly but that wasn't what caught her eye. Fragment like traces of crystal were present. They were uniform, 'Crystal shit? Its a new species..does that mean that moles like this have existed before?'
A thousand thoughts crossed Hana's mind all at once. 'Are crystals just petrified shit? How long does it take to petrify? Is this the same element that they consumed or is it processed with everything they eat and exhibit their own genetic affinity?'
The question's were not few, Hana kicked the shit piles over in the same area. Most of them were the same color. Hana had never been so excited to see shit. Looking around, the Moles had seen what she was doing. It bothered them a little, they huffed and then one of them dug a hole to bury the droppings.
'Uhh, wow. Okay, so this is normal for them?' Hana threw out her spiritual sense and could identify the gathered droppings in the hole. The crystal fragments inside were changing but it was very slow. Then, she realized she was focusing her attentions on animal droppings and shook from head to toe.
On the way back to the far side of the Rift, Hana saw the Bloodgrass from a distance. It had grown to over a meter in height and each blade was as sharp as a sword. Hana trimmed it down and dug out one of the roots. It was like it had a pulse, there was a rootball shaped like a heart at the base of each clump. Tendril like root feelers stretched outward, it held the root to the soil and was hard to remove. Hana just took the soil along with her. She wanted to see how the plant would grow in Elemental Essence.
Using a pitcher, she filled it part of the way with Elemental Water Essence, then slit her arm open to bleed the rest. When her blood hit the air, the energy in the atmosphere changed. 'I should probably be running this by Master but life requires risk.' When the pitcher was full, she put the heart shaped root into the pitcher. 'That looks nice.'
Her mother would always keep flowers, it use to aggravate Qu. He was use to storing away the herbs but The Empress loved to keep them as decoration from time to time, a habit from her Homeworld.
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