Felix reviewed his kinetic spell, watching as the blue crackling wave of force washed outward from him before dissipating. Was the Skill automating the action? Is that why it's so easy to do this with Reign of Vellus? He looked closer, watching as the Mana flowed from Felix's body and out of his hands, the azure light sparking with electricity as it jumped away from him.
It seems like intent and momentum. Build up enough of both and it'll just...flow. I hope.
Felix tried again, gathering up his Mana and surging it down his right leg. He focused, willing his vision of reality to occur just as he pressed down with whatever mental muscle controlled his pathways. There was a build up of resistance that felt awful, and then suddenly WOOSH a cloud of blue and gold puffed into appearance at his feet. It disappeared in moments.
Fire Within is level 28!
New Skill Learned!Mana Manipulation (Uncommon), Level 1!You have learned to manipulate Mana itself! Good job! Don't kill yourself! Increase in precision and control with Skill Level.
"Holy shit I did it!" And he got a cool new Skill from it too. Felix wasn't sure what the difference between Fire Within and Mana Manipulation was, but he was eager to find out.
But first he had some stepping to do!
Surging his power, Felix forced out another cloud of blue-gold Mana but this time immediately placed his foot down on it...and stumbled forward.
"Gah! Shit."
The cloud sparked into a thousand bolts of static electricity as his foot just smooshed right through it.
"Do I need more Mana?"
Felix tried again, and again. Turned out, he had to put nearly five hundred Mana into the little cloud before it would even start to hold his weight. Finally, after entirely too long, he pushed his foot down onto the Mana cloud and felt it mush beneath him...but hold. For two seconds. Then it disappeared again, evaporating into the air itself.
Fire Within is level 29!
Mana Manipulation is level 2!...Mana Manipulation is level 4!
New Skill Learned!Cloudstep (Uncommon), Level 1!Like running, but very different! Step to the skies! Durability and duration increase with Skill Level.
"Hell yeah!" Felix pumped his fist into the air, savoring the victory. But he had wasted so much of his Mana and had nearly emptied himself out this time. Felix tottered toward the nearest wall, letting himself fall against it. His body felt overheated, as if he'd been working out, and the cool stone was a balm.
Can't believe that was so hard. Felix huffed, trying to slow his breathing. Why is that? Sometimes I feel like I gain a Skill without trying, and this I have to fight tooth and nail for.
Felix didn't let his mind wander down that path. It was useless to speculate without someone to teach him. Speaking of which, they should be back by now, right? I should go find them, at least to ensure that they don't leave me behind.
Felix stood up, pushing off the carved wall as he gained his feet. Then he heard a ringing sound; but ringing wasn't quite right. It was more felt than heard, a ringing chime that shook his bones and tingled against his skin.
What is that?
Felix turned toward the wall he was touching, feeling it strongest through the stone surface. The chime came from his left, toward the stairs, somewhere along the wall itself.
Cautiously Felix approached, one hand on the wall while the other was clenched, ready to summon a Corrosive Strike in an instant. But when he reached the center of the mural, he found the silent chiming was coming from the depiction of a waterfall arcing into a wide lake.
Something is...it's coming from under the blue inlay. The lapis lazuli was layered thickly on the mural, carved and altered to depict a stylistic water feature, and the vibrations were coming from...the waterfall itself. Felix flexed his Manasight, and instantly he noticed that the surface Mana of the mural was rippling.
Abruptly, the blue stone waters began to flow and shift, as if real. Drawing closer, Felix watched as the stone poured over the waterfall and splashed powerfully into the lake below. The mural was so detailed, so immaculately done, that he could even see the barest hint of a ledge beneath the waterfall, as if....
The stone parted, and revealed a small jagged piece of bronze metal inside the waterfall. Like a bronze fish surrounded by jeweled waters. The vibration grew more powerful as his hand neared, practically singing as he reached out and touched the metal.
The moment he touched it, the ringing multiplied a thousandfold. It coursed down his arm and between his ears and danced across his heart and guts. It was so strong, so omnipresent, that it took Felix several seconds to realize the sound was coming from behind him too.
He looked down and saw his sword, strapped to his pack, was nearly chiming along with the vibrations. With his left hand, Felix grabbed it and held it aloft.
Slowly the runes along its length ignited in a strange sequence, flashing out of order and in differing intensities. Then they quieted.
The vibrations stopped.
Felix was dumbfounded.
What is this?
He touched the waterfall again, the chime gone now. But then he stepped back and looked at the scene, hoping for more answers. There was a river coming from up on a distant mountain before dropping off the cliff, and pouring into a large lake that was surrounded by white and red trees. Odd. He focused on the bronze piece, shaped like a small hook almost. Kinda like...
Kinda like his sword.
Exploration is level 21!
"Holy shit," Felix stared down at the sword in his hand. "This is the Waterfall Temple."
He looked around at the other murals. "Then does that mean...?"
He rushed over to the other walls, peering at the silver forest and the split-peaked mountain. But despite his search, he could find no bronze inlaid into their designs. His Manavision found no spark of gold hidden beneath their depths.
Are there Temples hidden at all of these places? Why? The one I found only had a few mostly empty rooms and a big magic door that wanted to kill anyone who got close...Shit. Based on what he knew of this world, nothing good was behind that door. And Felix was willing to bet that each Temple had one...if there were other Temples.
I don't even know if these are even in the Foglands. But if his hours of watching the History channel meant anything, it was that no one carved elaborate scenes into walls without a purpose.
Questions, questions. They never end.
Another noise caught his ears, freshly acclimated to the lack of ringing or chiming. It was the sound of metal on stone, and the soft murmur of voices from below.
They're back. Good. Felix squared up his shoulders and moved toward the stairwell. It was past time they all had a chat.
Vvim gripped their cane with whitened knuckles, and though their hands were palsied with age it was not time that shook their limbs.
The youth ran off, dashing down the stairs to seek his companions and Vvim did not stop him. They dared not. Though others may be fooled, Vvim was untouched by the grand illusion erected Ages ago.
Little could be hidden from the Geist.
Still, they were not to be hurried. Things could be more complicated than it first seemed. Vvim's eyes shined a pale, robin's egg blue, their whites stained as if their irises had burst and overflowed. Their eyes were shrewd and powerful, but their nose...yes, their nose was much stronger.
Vvim hobbled forward, cane clacking against the stone. His nose wrinkled and twitched, and his bared his teeth slightly at the sour scent of vomit.
Salted meat? Hard tack? No...something else.
Vvim searched, until their finger found a small dab of red. They lifted it, bringing the wet to their nose and breathing deep.
Blood of a Human. Why? Their eyes fell upon the far wall, the blue water glistening in their senses, still radiating a faint heat from the boy's presence.
A sigh of wind, and Vvim held withered hands before the sculpture, feeling the texture of the warmth that stubbornly clung to the wall. Brows furrowed, Vvim clacked their teeth and gestured at the waterfall. The blue stone parted, revealing the jagged piece of bronze embedded deep within it.
The Herald's Hook.
Quick as a blink, Vvim checked the other two murals, running his senses across them.
Still there. Still unclaimed.
Vvim looked down, as if peering through the stone slab at their feet. Who are you, child?