Xander is startled awake by a succession of loud knocking coming from his inn room's door. He yawns and sits up feeling both annoyed and concerned, "What does someone want at this early an hour." He notes that it's still dark outside. He checks his clock, 4:33 AM. He walks over to the door and opens it to see who it is.
"Rise and shine, Prolly. We're not going on our first mission until I know what you can do." Shanna stands at the door with her arms crossed tapping her foot impatiently.
"Can it wait 'till yawn I've actually woken up from my sleep?"
"Nope. There's no better time to train than before the rising sun. Now let's go."
"Fine…" Xander says while grumbling and walks over to haul his duffel bag over his shoulder. He starts walking toward the door but Shanna holds a hand up to stop him, "First put a shirt on."
About a half hour later, the two stand outside in the training grounds of the guild, giving Xander a clearer understanding of the guilds layout.
To the south of the building stands the private cemetary and, from then on, the forest. To the north, the guild overlooks the town from atop its hill. To the west there is the training grounds, an open space where multiple obstacles, magic training devices, and weapon racks line the field. And finally, to the east, there is the dormitory and, just beyond that, the beach and the ocean.
"Alright, show me what you can do," she says, waiting patiently with her arms folded behind her back. Xander nods while rubbing his eyes. Then he stretches his arms to get the blood flowing a bit. The biting cold breeze of the morning doesn't bother him in the slightest. In fact, it suits him quite nicely.
"My magic really comes down to two abilities, Crystal Manipulation." He holds a hand out and forms a crystal out of thin air. The miniature object spins around slowly in his hand. "And Crystal Storage."
"Is that what those things are?" she asks while pointing at the crystals hanging from his belt.
He nods his head with a smile. Then he looks down remembering the black liquid he had stored in one of the crystals. He unhooks it from his belt and shows it off to Shanna, "This is an Energy Crystal. With my Crystal Storage ability, I can create multiple crystals that can absorb any material made from elemental properties as well as energy. There are also different types of storage crystals that can each do a different job. Energy Crystals can absorb energy and convert that energy into magical power. Then there are Release Crystals, Absorption Crystals, and Analysis Crystals. Release Crystals can absorb and release any element. Of course, they shatter whenever they're used which is why I need multiple of them. Absorbtion Crystals can transform into the same element they absorb, sharing the same properties and composition. However, because it's still, in essence, a crystal I can still manipulate them. I keep more than one of these on hand as well. Analysis Crystals can absorb any element or source of energy and feed me information about it over a period of time. The longer the element and energy is dissected the more I can learn about it. But eventually the substance will disappear having been dissipated by the crystal. All in all, I can hold up to a dozen crystals on my belt. I always keep one Energy Crystal, one Analysis Crystal, three Absorption Crystals, and seven Release Crystals on hand at all times."
Shanna nods her head, taking all of the information in, "Is there a limit to how many storage crystals you can keep at a time?"
"No, but each crystal takes an extensive amount of time to form as opposed to my Crystal Manipulation ability. Just a single storage crystal takes six hours to create."
"I see, so you can't just use them haphhazardly, you have to keep a hefty enough inventory for a long period of time."
"Exactly."
"Alright. How are you in combat?"
"I'd say I'm pretty good. With my Crystal Manipulation I can create weapons out of my crystals. There is only one slight drawback."
"And what is that?"
Xander rubs the back of his head while wearing a stupid smile on his face, "I don't do well in hot places. It dampens my magical power significantly. I'm at my best in freezing weather and cold climate."
"Noted. I don't do so well in deserts either. There's no plant life."
"You use plant magic?" Xander asks.
"Yes, It may not be as destructive and flashy as Marlo and Melkhi's powers but that doesn't mean I can't hold my own. So how about it? Would you like to spar?"
"Like…now?" Xander asks.
Shanna rolls her eyes, "Of course, now. There's no time like the present."
"Alright," Xander replies while straightening up.
The two take a few steps back then face each other. Xander doesn't know how her magic works nor her fighting abilities, but a rush of excitement still catches in his stomach.
"Ready?" Shanna says.
"Ready," Xander replies with a determined look on his face.
"Begin."
Xander immediately falls to his knees and thrusts his hands into the ground, "Crystal Trap!" A path of crystals break forth from the ground and rapidly heads toward Shanna who leaps out of the way.
She pushes her hand out and suddenly the ground beneath Xander breaks apart as roots shoot up and wrap around his arms.
The roots pull his arms deep under the soil layer and holds him there as Shanna lands on the path of crystals laid by Xander. She leaps forward from one crystal to another and aims a kick at Xander's face.
Xander shouts, "Crystalline!" The roots grasping his hands immediately crystallizes and so does the rest of him.
Shanna smashes her leg against his crystal encased body and leaps back. She grits her teeth, feeling a pain shoot through her leg.
The crystal around Xander shatters and he struggles to stand back up and gain his footing. Admittedly, he used a lot of magic power in that one maneuver. He breaks out the Energy Crystal and it begins to glow. The black substance from within changes into a pool of pure energy which Xander then absorbs, replenishing his magic power.
He replaces the crystal on his belt and smiles at Shanna, "You're quick."
"You used a taxing technique to halt my strike, a very costly move."
"Maybe, but you also didn't walk away unscathe," he says eye-ing her leg.
Shanna stands upright and presses her hands together, "In that case. I summon thee, Great Arcane Tree: First Branch Genesis."
Xander feels a rushing of the wind and the ground starts trembling directly underneath him. He tries to dodge out of the way but a set of roots grab onto his ankles once again, holding him in place. Suddenly a tree grows instantaneously from the ground where he's standing and he's thrown into the air. He shouts out in pain as he's covered by a thicket of branches and leaves and roots. The magical tree rises high into the sky and eventually stops about 50 feet above the ground.
Shanna releases her hands, dispelling the magic and causing the tree to disappear. Xander falls from the sky and lands on the ground in an explosion of dust, grass, and soil.
"I would grade you a D-class at the rate you're fighting," she comments while panting a little. That spell took quite the hefty toll on her. But from the dust a hand grasps at the ground.
Xander pushes himself up and she watches in disbelief. That was the first time anybody took one of her Arcane spells and got back up again.
Xander is covered in a thick layer of crystals, though shattered in a few places and quickly falling apart, "Crystal Armor. Don't look down on me just because I'm new. I have more tricks up my sleeve."
A small grimace wears into Shanna's face, "Oh? Looks like this is going to get a whole lot more interesting."
She readies herself as Xander dispells the armor. He then forms two swords out of crystal. He lunges forward, swinging one of the swords at her head but she gracefully ducks while delivering a quick strike to his abdomen. He winces but continues with the onslaught. She then avoids a second strike aimed at her leg.
She somersaults into the air while also sending forth a magnitude of vines and roots. Xander cuts all of them down strike after strike with his two swords. She lands and sends forth even more roots and vines. Xander spins and swings in a flurry of attacks, cutting down every one of them. She tries to grab him from his blind spot but he quickly turns around slicing those vines too, as if sensing their approach.
A sharp paing rangs throughout her leg causing her to faulter for a second. This gives Xander perfect opportunity to lunge at her again with his two swords. He slices straight through her…but her body quickly changes into bundles of grass as they sprinkle down to the ground. A grass clone.
"What the-" She comes crashing down with her heel pressing into his back. Xander is crushed into the ground and cries out as his two swords fly off to the side.
She leaps back again, preparing for his next assault but Xander lays there defeated and groaning while holding his back.
Shanna walks over and helps him to his feet, "I admit. I underestimated you Prolly. Maybe…you're a C-class after all."
Xander turns a bit red, appreciating the compliment. "So what now?" he asks.
"We're going to train in sustaining your magic power. Even though you have your Energy Crystals, you should be able to use two or more techniques at the same time even without them."
Xander nods his head in understanding. He looks over the horizon, the sun will be rising soon enough.
Shanna instructs him to absorb an energy source so he can replenish his power. Xander sticks a crystal in the ground where she had summon the Arcane Tree and waits.
"What are you doing?" she asks.
"The last traces of the magic power from your tree should be still soaking in the ground so I'm giving the crystal time to absorb whatever it can."
Shanna nods her head in understanding then sits beside him.
Xander turns to her and asks curiously, "When you summoned the tree you mentioned the first branch…how many branches are there?"
"Seven," she replies, "Really eight. I've only mastered the first three branches though."
"Is that your most powerful spell?"
"No, but my most powerful spell has a far greater drawback that I never use because of it."
Xander nods his head, "I still have two or three powerful spells I haven't showed you that take a great amount of energy as well. Using just one of them takes all of my magic power which is why I never use them unless in an absolute emergency."
"My plight is far different from yours," she scoffs, "I cannot use my most powerful spell. You can simply choose not to."
Xander doesn't know what she means by this comment but for now he just ignores it.
There's a ringing in his ears. He spent quite a bit of magic power conjuring techniques so quickly. He brushes a bead of sweat from his forehead before finally pulling the crystal out of the ground. The crystal is full of dirt and other bits of sediment flowing with the magical trees energy. Once again, Xander absorbs the magical power and replenishes his own energy.
"Alright, I'm ready for the next session."
Both he and Shanna stand up and she forces him to sit down again, "You sit down. You're gonna need to for this training. One of your techniques, Crystalline. It takes up quite a lot of magic power, correct?"
Xander nods, "I'm basically solidifying the magical power leaking out of my body and turning it into crystals which is why it's so taxing."
"If you can master using that technique without depleting all of your magical power then you will become far stronger than what you currently are. For this session you will purposefully use Crystalline as far out as you can. The continuous flow of your magical power will eventually start to grow and become normal, sort of like stretching out and utilizing a muscle."
Xander answers, "I get it. Understood." He closes his eyes and starts to concentrate, "Crystalline!" This time he focuses his magic power outwards as far as he can.
As he does so, Shanna backs up to make sure she isn't caught in the spell. Crystals form all around Xander, across the ground, across his own body, across grass and flowers. He continues maintaining this spell until he nearly faints. Xander feels a rush of dizziness overcome him and he falls back panting. When he sits back up, he looks at the ground all around him. Although the crystals are about the size of flowers, the perimeter of crystals stretch outward about 10 or so feet in front of him.
"All of that magical power and I only got to 10 feet," he says, feeling a little disappointment.
"There's a thing called progress, Prolly. One day, you will be able to even cause the atmosphere around you to crystallize. I'll lend you some more of my magic power." Shanna presses a hand against Xander's back and he feels his energy resurge once again. "Now, do it again," she says. They continue going at it for the next hour or two until Shanna feels too beat to continue. She can only transfer so much of her magic power, after all. "I think we can call it for today. I'm tired. You can go grab lunch and look for a quest."
Xander sits in the lounge among the rest of the guild members eating his steak while staring up towards the quest board. About a dozen or so guild members are gathered around the board, searching for their next jobs. Xander takes note that the cheaper rewards are posted closer to the bottom of the board while the more difficult ones are posted near the top.
"Good morning, Xander!" Frizz comes bounding over, seeming as cheerful as ever, "How did the training session with Shanna go?"
"You know about that?" he asks curiously.
"Of course! She told me and Gridlock about it. After all, we need to be made aware of your adjustment to guild life. I hear you're going on your first quest soon. I wish you luck!"
"Thank you, Bunny," he replies with a smile. He stares at the lower half of the board where he will most likely grab his first quest from. He doesn't want to go for anything too difficult to handle. But he also doesn't want to go on a quest with very little reward either. Then he notices a poster that catches his eye.
He takes the last bite of his steak before getting up and looking it over. 'Easy job for 80,000 Aris! Local fishermen hiring mage to deal with some troublesome naiads!'
"The reward isn't half bad," Xander mumbles to himself while ripping it off the board.
"Found the quest you're looking for?"
Xander nearly hops out of his skin from surprise. He quickly turns around and looks up at… "Ma-Master Gridlock, hello. Yeah I was just gonna accept this quest right here."
Gridlock smiles, "There's no need to be nervous, young Prolly. Whenever you take a quest just inform the bar attendant who will then inform me. We don't want to lose track of our members activities or whereabouts."
Xander nods his head, "Thank you, Master. By the way, do you know where Shanna went?"
"Knowing her, she's probably snooping about the library. Or fell asleep reading down there."
"There's a library underneath the guild?"
"Of course, the basement is rather expansive. You will find the library on the first underground floor to the very end of the hall."
Xander nods. He grabs his duffelbag and heads downstairs.
Xander wanders down the first underground floor looking at each one of the doors. He eyes the room at the far left end of the hall where he had received his guild mark. Then he stops before the set of double doors at the end of the hallway.
He opens them and they reveal a huge library with multiple walls filled with books upon books. Xander starts to wonder what all of the books in the guild can contain, especially if the original library had been burned down long ago. He steps up to the balcony and looks down to the ground of the library and sees Shanna lounging back in a recliner chair.
He heads downstairs and quickly realizes she's snoozing. She lays there with a book hanging from her hand, her head laid back and her mouth slightly agape. Xander pokes at her shoulder before shaking it, "Shanna? You're not a deep sleeper are you?"
Shanna wakes up at the shaking of her shoulder and drops the book on the ground. She stares up at Xander with her cheeks flushing red, "W-what are you doing down here."
He holds up the poster and smiles at her, "I found my first quest."
She nods and yawns while stretching. She then stands up and picks the book up, setting it gently on the table next to the recliner. "We will leave for the quest tomorrow, early in the morning. For now we can continue with your training."
Xander turns a bit pale, "Already?"
"Although we'll be fighting naiads that doesn't mean to let your guard down. After all, they're nature spirits, a very mischeivious bunch." Shanna seems to say that last part begrudgingly, as if she has a past with nature spirits or something.
"I'm not worried, they're nowhere near as deadly as mermaids." Xander shudders at the thought of it. Of course, Xander never ran into any before, but he doesn't look forward to the day that he does. "Alright, fine, I'm ready to train some more," he says.
"Good, this time we're going to train your sword fighting ability."
By the end of the day, Xander practically staggers to the dormitory while carrying his duffel bag. Shanna got the guild's toughest swordsman to go up against Xander and he got an unforgiving beating.
"I can feel my entire body will be sore in the morning," he says to himself. He pulls out the key he had been given by the nymph at the front counter. He unlocks the door and enters the room. The empty bed in the corner is all too welcoming. He plops down in the bed while dropping his bag to the side. He falls asleep instantly.
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Note from Author: Still working out some formatting kinks. Will be updated with a more proper format soon.