"Hey, you're awake?" I groaned when I heard someone's voice. My mind's still a mess due to being partially awake and I had to keep my eyes closed as I tried to remember what happened.
I was at the library, reading the book. When I flipped to the next page, I felt dizzy and fainted. I heard someone's voice calling for me, but who was that?
"Am I that easy to forget?" The same voice rang in my head. Damn it, it's annoying. My head's aching for some reason and I just want to sleep again.
"Damn it, don't sleep." I felt someone shaking me and I groaned out of frustration. I slapped the hand and opened my eyes. I sat up to scan my surroundings and glared at the person who interrupted my sleep. He smirked at me and I felt my blood boil.
"You scum, how dare you wake me?" I hissed angrily but his smirk grew wider. I messed my hair out of frustration and that was the time I noticed that this wasn't the library or my room. I looked at the place and it was pure white and blank. Where am I?
"You're in a space I own, Yllaria." I looked at the man and he was still smirking. His playful ocean-blue eyes were teasing me and I really wanted to yank his long, blonde hair from his head. He was sitting on the floor, but I immediately noticed that his stature was way bigger than mine. An adult around his 20s, I guess? Honestly, if he didn't interrupt my sleep or tease the hell out of me, I would have admitted that this man was incredibly gorgeous.
"Oh, you flatter me, lady Yllaria." My mouth gaped with what he said. Can he read my mind? And how did he know my name?
"You really can't recognize me, young lady?" My right eyebrow raised with what he said. I seriously stared at his features but can't think of anyone. Ocean-blue eyes, blonde hair, thin lips with a beauty mark near it. Wait...
"What the... Ambrose?" I asked him with a dumbfounded expression painted on my face. I just woke up and this scene would be the one to greet me! How? That charming boy turned out to be a gorgeous man? What in the world... I guess he was reading my mind since he laughed and answered my question.
"Ambrose Dashiell Vandestine. Yes, that's me." A blank silence ensued the place as I remained stunned with this revelation. He noticed that I have no words to tell him so he continued speaking. "This is the price to use space magic, Yllaria." What? Space magic? My mind was in haze as I tried to understand the scenes unfolding right now. Ambrose sighed and looked at me with serious eyes.
"Let's pick up to your last memory, shall we?" I nodded. "Honestly, I had a mistake." I stared at him, silently asking for the continuation. "I forgot to tell you that the book consumes your mana as you continue reading. In order to let the words appear, the books uses mana from the reader, but it should be someone who has the aptitude to wield magic. In this case, it was you." He said and I nodded. Before he could continue, I raised my hand like I was participating in a class. He gave me a nod, signaling me to continue.
"I already know that I have the talent to wield magic, but what's mana?" I asked him. "Mana is the measure of one's magic. It's also the power you have in order to wield magic." My forehead knotted with confusion. He seem to notice this and sighed. "Think of your magic as the cells in your body. Your cells, specifically the red blood cells, carry oxygen and nutrients in your body right? Your magic is your cells, it naturally flows in your body, while the nutrients and oxygen it carries is the mana. The mana fuels up your magic so you can use them. Once it's fully consumed, you can't use magic for the mean time." I started to get the gist of it, since I was familiar with science lessons.
But really, no five-year-old kid can easily understand that concept if you use cells as a comparison to mana and magic. Ambrose is a little dumb at times.
His left eyebrow raised and I almost slapped myself when I realized that he can read minds. I showed him a peace sign and he simply rolled his eyes before continuing.
"You have a potential to wield magic, but most of your mana is still sealed. Every living being has magic and mana flowing through them, though it's just limited since it adjusts to the size and strength of the body. The mana that the book consumed was the natural one that flows in your body, and you fainted because you lacked mana that is also essential for you, as a living being." I nodded a little.
"If you're saying that my mana is still sealed, then can I unseal it? And in the first place, where are we? Why is you're appearance like that?" I asked him and he just sighed again like I said something troublesome.
"Listen carefully, Yllaria. I'll be teaching you the basics of magic, which was in the second page of that book." I nodded and he continued speaking. "Like what you read on that book, only certain bloodlines or a rare person can wield magic. These people also have their mana sealed at first, but one can unseal it through two methods. The first one is meditation, while the second one is a bit harsher, which is to force magic to the person in order to open their mana core. Mana core is something like an organ in your body which contains most of your mana."
"In the process of opening your mana core, you could also find the magic elements you are compatible with. Yes, even though you have a potential to wield magic, it doesn't necessarily mean that you can use every magic present in this world." He paused for a while to take a deep breath. "The magic elements are fire, air, water, and earth. There are also rare and forbidden magic like light, dark, time and space magic. Once you find the elements that are compatible with you, you can start practicing of course."
"When you start practicing, the first thing you need to do is to improve your mana capacity. Mana capacity means the amount of mana you can spend when casting magic. The bigger your mana capacity, the more magic spells you can use and you have better control of your magic elements. To do that, you need to meditate or to practice controlling your element/s often. This way, you can expand your mana capacity and hone your magic spells better."
"Also, there is a ranking for the magic spells you use. The lowest is the D-Level. If I were to compare it with something, it would be like controlling a small fire in your finger. Next is C-Level. In this level, you should be able to control a fireball in your hand and shoot it to a certain direction. B-Level magic usually pertains to spells that can affect a small area, something like a bomb that can blow up a house. A-Level magic are large-scale magic spells that can cause a destruction of a town. There are also S-Level magic spells that can easily annihilate a whole empire. Of course, the higher level of a magic spell, the more mana it consumes and needs more concentration." I nodded again, though I felt like my brain was about to explode. Ambrose laughed a little.
"There are also magic weapons, but let's save that for another time. You look like you're about to faint because of too much information." He said and I smiled out of relief. I was processing the lesson when I remembered something.
"Shoot!" I suddenly stood up, which I immediately regretted because I felt dizzy and fell back to the floor. Ambrose was trying to hold back his laughter after he saw me fell. I glared at him but he didn't stop. "What's the problem, young lady?" He asked me between his laughs. I rolled my eyes and rolled my eyes.
"Where are we exactly, Ambrose? I remembered you said we are in your own space, but what the heck does that mean? Won't Daddy be looking for me if I disappeared in the library all of a sudden?" He stopped laughing and gave a me a smirk.
"Don't worry, Yllaria. We're in a safe place, I guarantee that. This dimension is different from the country we live in. A day here is equivalent to a second in the real world. You've been sleeping for eight hours, so probably some milliseconds just passed there." I was stunned with what he said. I clutched my dress and looked at him keenly.
"Who exactly are you? I thought you were a boy my age, but you're actually way older than me. What's your actual appearance and age? How did you know a lot about that magic book? You told me this is another dimension, so is it space magic? You also managed to alter the time here from the present, so is it also time magic? You told me it's a rare and forbidden magic, so no typical person could do this one. Ambrose, who are you?" I started shooting a lot of questions. This was actually bugging me ever since I woke up here and it added up when he started teaching me about the basics. I don't want to doubt him, so I want to know the answers directly. His expression turned serious and a long silence filled the place.
"I'm still Ambrose, Yllaria. I'm not an ordinary magician, that, I can guarantee. I wouldn't be able to tell you everything but please do note that I lived since two generations ago. Trust me, okay?" He said and I sighed. I already expected that he's someone powerful and mysterious, so I didn't ask for more. For now, I'll trust him because he's a kind person. If he wasn't, then he would have left me in the library.
I guess he read my mind because he gave me a gentle smile and nodded.
Wait, he lived since two generations ago? So he's technically an old man? Should I call him grandfather?
With these thoughts, I started laughing and I saw him frowned and shot me a glare. It took a minute before my laughter subsided and he simply rolled his eyes.
"Now, shall I teach you how to wield your magic?" My eyes widened with what he said.
"Are you sure?" I asked him. I really wanted to learn magic so that I can defend myself and Daddy. I might also be able to learn about that magic in the tea that was given to him in the original scene.
"Magic in the tea?" Ambrose asked me and I immediately regretted thinking about that scene. I shook my head at him, trying to tell that I can't say it and he just sighed.
"Okay. I won't force you, but make sure you'll tell me sometime. I might be able to help." He said and I nodded. Thank you, Ambrose.
"Let's start. Sit on the floor in this position." He sat in an Indian-like style and I copied him. "Now close your eyes." I followed his instruction. "Concentrate on every flow of life in your body. From your head, to your toes. Feel the magic that flows in your body." I took a deep breath as I tried to do what he instructed. It was all dark and silent at first, but I tried to concentrate well and then...
Huh? What are these lights?
There are 6 orbs in front of me, above them was a lock shaped light that was softly shining.
"A lock?" I muttered to myself. "That's your mana core. Can you open it?" I heard Ambrose's calm voice in my head. I tried to concentrate and reach for the lock. I hissed when I felt a static shock when I touched it. I immediately retracted my hand and stared at the lock intently.
"I can't touch it." I whispered. "What else do you see?" I heard him ask.
"Six orbs below the lock." I uttered. It took a moment before I heard Ambrose's voice. "Can you touch it?" I reached for the red orb and there wasn't any static, but I felt my body burning. It was like I was drowned in fire and I can't help but shout. It's too painful. Tears were forming in my eyes because of the pain.
"Hang in there, Yllaria." I heard Ambrose's voice and my tears started to fall. It took me a minute of shouting before the pain died down. The red orb was gone and there were remaining five. I took a deep breath and braced myself before reaching out for the blue orb.
The red orb was hot, but the blue orb was cold. In fact, it was too cold that my legs started shaking. My body was in numb and I can't think clearly anymore. The coldness was making me faint, but before I could lose my consciousness, I felt something warm embracing me. After a few seconds, I stopped freezing and my warmth was slowly returning. I took a deep breath and looked at the remaining orbs.
Four more to go.
"Yllaria, can you still go on?" Ambrose's voice was laced with worry, and it made me smile. "Yeah, don't worry Ambrose. Believe in me." I said and reached for the green orb.
Nothin happened for a while, but soon enough, I was slowly losing my breath. It was like oxygen slowly sucked out from my body. I tried breathing hard but I can't do it. My senses were starting to fade, and my mind was going blank. It wasn't painful, but I felt so empty. I closed my eyes as I slowly let the the void take me away.
"Yllaria, don't give in!" I immediately opened my eyes when I felt a shock on my brain. What was that? It was painful as hell, but it managed to bring back a little strength to me. I took deep breaths until oxygen filled my lungs again. When I looked at the remaining orbs, I sighed when there were three more left.
"I can do this." I tried to encourage myself as I slowly reached for the brown orb. As soon as I touched the orb, I felt gravity pulling me down. It was like a big rock was crushing me, and I was in so much pain. I kept standing, but my knees were starting to give up. I bit my lip to stay conscious. The taste of blood in my mouth distracted me enough and a few moments passed before I felt light. The force was gone and I felt better.
Two orbs remained and it took me a few seconds before I started reaching for the white orb. Right before my hand could touch it, I heard Ambrose's voice.
"Yllaria, what are the colors of the remaining orbs?" He asked me. It took me a while before I answered. "White... And violet." Then Ambrose went quiet. I tried to ask him what to do next but the two orbs suddenly approached me.
Before I could even speak, I was consumed by a blinding light and I heard a clock chime.