While they were waiting for their ship to arrive. Runemagi Vark had decided to give Infy and Null a crash course in rune magic. Lisa had also tagged along as she was interested in the scientific process behind this so-called 'magic'.
Vark only had 30 minutes to teach them the basics before he would need a rest. He had been working on learning the human language so he would be able to communicate without the need for the device. Once everyone had a good grasp on a common language communication would become easier but everything would take time.
"Let's start with an overview of rune magic. Rune magic has two kinds of spells. The first is the persistent passive spells. Some examples of these are our antigravity or our shielding. These spells are constantly running and require a constant supply of power. The level of power depends on the area of effect and the level of the spell."
Infy and Null were already familiar with the power requirements needed to affect the fields from their previous experiments. "so how much power does it require to run these spells?" asked Infy.
"As I said it depends on the level, a level A spell might take a planet-size reactor to fuel it while an F level spell can be run with portable batteries. These spells vary by a considerable margin. An A level spell might be used to defend a whole planet while the F level spell is used to keep your food fresh."
"If that is the first type, what is the second type?" Lisa was fascinated by the discussion, she couldn't imagine a spell that could protect a whole planet.
"The second type is the activation spells. They need to be activated every time and require a significant burst of power to cast and have exponential power draw so can only be used for a limited time." Vark using his staff activated a simple wind spell. The spell was an application of motion fields and is useful for clearing the air.
Null and Infy had been monitoring the Runemagi and detected more than he realised, The boys had watched as the stored energy in the crystals at the base of the staff travelled up and enter one of the small Zallium gems on the staff and they could see each of the engraved runes on the staff absorb the energy and change the field essence stored in the gem.
They had already developed methods for circumventing the field restriction device while in place, so they were also able to listen to the changes.'Having watched Vark and Zero use fields, I think I understand why we are different. They are getting the field to change the object while we are changing the object directly' Infy was communicating with Null over their private connection.
'is that why we don't use as much energy? what about when you used all your energy teleporting' Null still remember the first time they had used fields and Infy had passed out.
'we will have to experiment but I believe it has to do with if we are trying to replicate something that is naturally occurring or if we are breaking the natural laws.'
Null and Infy then try to replicate the spell they had just witnessed. Null waved his hand, he didn't need to do this but it made him feel more powerful and then they blew all the air away. Their spell had a major flaw. They had changed the state of every single air molecule to be moving away from them. This had left the boys momentarily in the middle of a vacuum.
"Opps" is all Null could say.
"Do not do that again! you are supposed to have your abilities suppressed, and you have to assume we are being monitored." Vark wasn't worried too much about the results of the spell but was worried other dwarves might realise that the twins could use true magic.
"Null and Infy how much power did that take?" asked Lisa who was curious why the boys magic was different to Zero and Vark's. Before the boys could answer Vark put up his hand and stopped them.
"This is not the time or place to be discussing how their magic works, I will explain more to all 3 of you once we are in a more secure location". That confirmed to all three of them that Vark not only knew more than he was saying but that Null and Infy were most likely unique. Vark moved on with the lesson.
"Since you could copy it, I guess you have some understanding just from watching. So what did you see".
"We saw it all, you store power in crystals in the base of the staff and then you transfer that power to runes that have been transferred to the Zallium crystal. The runes once they are energised overwrite the current field and then the new field interacts with the air". Null had a smug look on his face while communicating mentally with the others. He was happy to be showing off, even if he stole Infy thunder.
"So it is technology! The level of the spell you can cast depends on the amount of power you can store, transfer and control." Lisa was glad she tagged along, she believed that everything could be explained and there is no such thing as magic.
Vark was perturbed that his whole spell had been analysed and dissected so quickly. "Magic, Technology are just labels. Us Dwarves call anything that changes the natural laws magic, and anything that uses natural laws technology. So we see it as using technology to unlock magic. As you pointed out the level of technology used can greatly increase the level of magic you can use."
Vark then explained the basics of runes systems. The runes required for a spell would be engraved onto the Zallium crystal using a special material that was made from crushed Zallium and other materials. The dwarfs had a basic set of Runes that anyone could use, but that each Runemagi would have their own secret set, that they could pass onto an apprentice.
Each Runemagi was required to record their secret rune sets in the grand library. These runes set could be auctioned off, if a Runemagi died without a successor. This would ensure that minimal knowledge would be lost.
He taught both boys and Lisa the basic runes required for the wind spell he had cast earlier as these runes were part of the basic rune set After an hour of practising writing the runes out, Vark had allowed them to engrave them onto a Zallium Crystal. He was loathed to let go of a perfectly good crystal he had hoped to gain greater understanding by using the twin's unique abilities.
Much to Vark surprise, the boys let Lisa engrave the crystal. She had steady hands had been enjoying the lesson. Once the crystal was engraved she wanted to try it out but didn't know how to activate it. After some discussions, she asked Null and Infy to build her a wand.
"What's a wand? And what does it look like?" asked Null. He was sure he could build it if he knew what it was. Lisa had explained what a wand was and drew a quick sketch.
"It is possible to create this, but it won't have an integrated power supply so it would need to be charged each use. We can put in a power storage unit at the bottom of the wand and some capacitors in the handle to help it." Infy had already done a quick plan of how it should work and sent it to Null to build.
With Lisa and Vark consent, Null rapidly prototype and build the wand that Infy had designed. The wand had an interchangeable battery and wand head so that in the future it could be used for more than 1 type of spell.
Lisa charged the wand and pressed the button the boys had installed to activate the spell. A perfect replica of Vark's spell was cast. Lisa was giddy and as excited as a schoolgirl. "Yes this is definitely magic"