To Apprentice then Journeyman (( Elementalist Training)) [Self-Moderating]

[Wadatsumi Tsunami]

Again Wadatsumi Tsunami had found herself in the wonderfully delightful halls of this magic emporium you could say. And as she stood around adamantly she could not help but wonder what todays lesson would be, the last few months had been rather exciting but unfortunately before the rise of an undead army she had left post haste taking with her that magic long sword she had received. She still did not know its primary ability, but she was confident she would be able to figure it out eventually.

When it was time, her new teacher Zinfandel had arrived precisely on time. Zinfandel seemed to be a rather wise studious individual despite being rather young, about the age of 23. Wadatsumi enjoyed her time here the first time around, and she imagined that going about this all over again wouldn't be so bad. All she really was just a little nudge in the right direction.

"Alright Wadatsumi" Zinfandel had softly spoken " It is time for us to start today’s lesson which is a fancy little trick called Blade of Fire, with this spell you will be able to create a scythe of flame to slash and burn your enemy. However such a move is to volatile to be practiced inside, so I will have to ask you to follow me outside where we can begin. Sorry if im rushing this, however I other students that need training after today’s session which will consist of around 5 or 6 spells." After speaking Zinfandel found himself walking outside to which Wadatsumi Tsunami would follow shortly behind him.

"Now watch closely Wadatsumi, this move will take concentration"

As Zinfandel and Wadatsumi were now both outside he lifted his hand and breathed in slowly allowing his mind to break free and enter a state of clara to which he manipulated his ara and vis to create mana and surround it around his hand, whipping his hand out to the side he had quickly launched a boomerang looking wave of fire which hurtled towards the ground where it kicked up some dirt and burst into a dazzling display of flames which scorched the grass.

"Now Wadatsumi its time for you to cast this spell, remember concentrate and free your mind, allow yourself to transcend from this plane to next."

Wadatsumi had nodded and complied with her teachers instructions, she closed her eyes and smiled warmly as she began to stimulate her mind into a state of clara, her hands her eyes her body and soul were reaching out to grasp the ara and vis which swam around her body. Slowly this ara and vis were compacted into mana, and her mana slowly began to encircle her hand. She concentrated long and hard, and then tried to unleash this spell. However unlike her teachers, the boomerang styled slashing wave of fire kind of connected turning it into a spinning heilo of sorts as it seared through the sky. When it hit the ground, it tore through it before dispersing into a burst of flames.

"why did my attack look different from yours?"Wadatsumi inquired.

In response Zinfandel responded "Evidently many times, many spells look different when cast by different people, sometimes its through personal customization but other times its something more. Magic reflects the casters mind and soul, remember this Wadatsumi."

Nodding in response Wadatsumi simply stood silent and awaited the next spell to be taught to her. She was feeling a little drained right now, evidently that spell took more out of her then most of her spells. But at the same time, it was reassuring, she was now lifting a little bit more weight, and she felt she could handle this no problem which might become a problem later on.

[Wadatsumi Tsunami]

"Ok Wadatsumi, I hope you remembered this spell well because its time for you to learn another. Again I must apologize for the quickness in which I must ask you to learn these spells, however today I am in sort of a rush. But remember when practicing these moves, to take great care and concentration. Being foolish with magic can be disastrous, and can only lead to harming yourself or someone else unintentionally. Magic is a great responsibility Wadatsumi, remember this also."

Thinking about what her teacher zinfandel had told her she wondered what to make of it. Magic was dangerous, but it was also rewarding. She enjoyed thinking about how fun it was to cast her initiate spells. But Wadatsumi found truth in her teachers soft spoken words, there was a certain degree of danger when dabbling with magic. An arcanic backlash was one of them, and she had heard stories of foolish mages losing there hands from being arrogant or cocky with there craft. But Wadatsumi vowed never to let such an indignation to strike her down, she would be careful and she would acknowledge what she learned from her teacher.

"Yes I understand Zinfandel, but Magic is not something to be feared either. It can be dangerous and even lethal, but there are so many other good uses for magic rather then battling. In fact, I learned to make ice for my beverages and learned to heat water for my baths. Both of which take knowledge on arcana to perform, and have a practicle use in everyday life." Wadatsumi ended her discussion quickly, as it appeared that Zinfandel wanted to say something.

"Yes Wadatsumi, you are very right about that. But you should learn how to use your arcanic abilities, to display your power is vulgar. To use it when necessary is chivalrous, and not using it when you need to is craven. Im sure you may not understand my words now, but in time im sure you will grasp it. Now its time for you my little poppet, to learn your next spell. This spell is called Column of Flame, and with it you will be able to summon forth a mass of fire and shape it into an immense rod, driving it through the ground and into the skies repeatedly for a duration at a specified target. Think of this bluntly as a hammer, going down, coming up then coming back down.

Now watch and learn Wadatsumi, watch and learn."

Zinfandel again closed his eyes, but he was already in a state of clara and had not broken from it even though he had completed his previous spell. He was able to enter and maintain his clara much easier and hold it much longer because he was so used to doing it. He probably entered a state of clara at least 30 times a day, almost always because he was training new students.

When Zinfandel achieved the mana he needed which had taken just a little time, from the sky it emerged it looked like a large fireball until it streaked downward from the sky with horrific effect, as the pillar slammed into the ground it incinerated the grass and some dirt before it retracted and came back down smothering the ground under it in a blanket of concentrated fire it continued doing this repeatedly until Zinfandel was sure Wadatsumi had watched the steps he had taken and was ready to apply them.

" Like a hammer" Zinfandel muttered " Like a hammer; now you try attempt to do some damage to that tree, yonder."

Wadatsumi nodded, she was baffled by the amount of fire spells that were available and even though she deeply detested fire spells she would comply and attempt to learn but another. Wadatsumi was also still locked in a state of clara and nothing had happened to break her from it, and thus just as Zinfandel before her a small crimson orb began to sparkle in orange and red within the sky. Wadatsumi remembered how to channel more mana into a spell to make it more powerful and thus she did, and by doing this she fattened the fireball that was above her. Concentrating heavily the floating orb streaked downward in a fearsome streak of fire that saturated the ground beneath it, consuming and enveloping the tree in intense heat. When the beam of flame retracted it revealed the tree and it was burned to a charcoal black, when the wave of fire came back down again it broke the small tree and caused it too disperse into ash and clumps of black charcoal.

Wadatsumi would then quickly stop, and take a quick break for now. That spell had taken allot of arcanic energy, and Wadatsumi needed to relax for a while and take a breather. The concept of this spell was intriguing, and she enjoyed destroying that small tree thoroughly.

It even appeared as though Zinfandel was impressed with her ability to learn her spells quickly and then apply them, but he put that on a lesser notion of; monkey see monkey do.

[Wadatsumi Tsunami]

"Now Wadatsumi, I think you need to sit down and relax for a while. You look tired, remember the first thing about learning any arcanic craft. And that is, its better if you don't die while training. The concept might be hard for you to understand, which is why you are probably going to here me tell you this more then once. If you feel as though you need a break take own, vis does not grow on trees and everytime you cast a spell you take a piece of yourself and put it into the spell figuratively speaking of course. But there is some truth to it, you can die from over exhausting your ara and vis reserves. " Zinfandel was very cautious when he tried to explain this for he did not exactly know how to explain it perfectly, he knew the dangers from exhaustion but sometimes teachers neglected to hand out that specific information. This sometimes led to a disaster in which a mage would keep going until they collapsed and were left to the mercy of there adversary, and unfortunetly more times then not there was no mercy.

Listening to his words, Wadatsumi nodded her head and decided to take a quick break. She stopped and sat on the plush green grass, and began to relax her arms, mind, and body. The stress of magic was intense in comparison to other arts, and a good breather was what she needed indefinetly.

[Wadatsumi Tsunami]

After a short duration of time Zinfandel would have smiled rather sheepishly at Wadatsumi. Before saying. " Now you must be asking yourself Wadatsumi, why you keep getting so drained after doing just one or two spells am I right? Well I have a little confession to make, but it was for your own good. I need to give you a promotion to apprentice, which is similiar to being unbound again. It helps give you more ara and vis to work with by unbinding your mind just a little bit more then you previously were. And I figured seeing as how your just laying on the grass like a lump, maybe it would be a good time to actually have you take your promotion right now. So im going to ask you to take a deep breath in and then close your eyes and exhale." Zinfandel seemed pleased with how fast Wadatsumi was learning her spells and advancing in her craft, but now he needed to take her up a notch.

Wadatsumi Tsunami at this point had closed her eyes, and breathed in. She felt relaxed, and then exhaled, her stress seemed to fade away as she drifted back into a state of clara. It was then that her teacher walked up to her, and touched her forhead subtly. And like it always did, when being unbound it wailed on her like a ton of bricks. But when it was all over, Wadatsumi Tsunami felt different, she felt energized and refreshed almost like her battery had been charged all over again.

"I feel different" Wadatsumi replied " I feel refreshed, almost as if I have the ability to actually cast these more potent spells your teaching me. Thank you, you taught me allot about exhausting mana reserves."

[Wadatsumi Tsunami]

"Now that you feel energized Wadatsumi, I would suggest you get back up and start learning your next spell. Remember I told you, today I am a little pressed for time. So I must ask you to procede to your next spell which you need to learn, its another column spell. Only this time it deals with Ice, to be perfectly honest I hardly see why I need to teach this one though. Because if you learned how to do it once with one element, as an elementalist I would hope you would be able to at least be capable of doing the same technique with another element. Thats the difference between a strong elementalist and a weak one, the strong ones rely on all the elements presented to them and a weak one relies upon only one. Using that one element type as a crutch, they may seem more powerful Wadatsumi, but there reliance on only one element leaves them weak and susesptable as they are nay but predictable." zinfandel stopped momentarily to look at the sky, and then back at Wadatsumi " This next spell is called Column of Frost. Basicaly you summon forth a mass of ice and shape it into a long, thick column, driving it from the sky and into the ground then back again, this continues repeatedly for a duration at the specified area. Basically the same hammer technique only a different element, im sure I wont need to even give you a demonstration on how to do this because I just taught you how to do this about 30 minutes ago." Zinfandel kind of rolled his eyes, he really hated teaching that column series of spells for some unknown reason.

Doing what she was told Wadatsumi Tsunami closed her eyes and tried to enter a state of clara, and much to her surprise she was able to tap into her arcanic abilities much faster then last time. She felt improvement and enjoyed it thoroughly. As she continued to concentrate up above in the sky so high, a large chunk of ice started to form and it sparkled and glistened in the suns rays like a diamond before its horrorific descent downward into the ground. When it landed, it did so with a thud, and a little tremor to ground on which she stood before it came back up and went back down again. Obviously she could crush a person with this, as if she could have with a boulder. When the spell was finished the ice seemed to evaporate into nothingness.

And looking back at her teacher Wadatsumi asked the question that was bothering her so much. " Why is it you hate the column series of spells so much? You seem aggravated when last you spoke of them, and that has left me with this desire to know, is there something that you know about these spells that I don't?" Wadatsumi quickly paused as Zinfandel was about to say something.

"Yes Wadatsumi, there is something I dislike about the column series of spells. There junk, and there only good when hitting a stationary object. Im sure you could feel the heat radiating off the fire spell, and im sure you noticed the glare from the ice spell, just garbage Wadatsumi... thats what it is... but I will show you something right now, something I dont often show my pupils. But first you need to answer a question for me, and that is. What is the difference between fire and ice? "

Wadatsumi contemplated his question carefully before responding " One is hot, and one is cold" She smiled cheerfully expecting the same type of positive feedback she had recieved from selene.

"No that is wrong" Zinfandel stated " There is more to ice and fire rather than it being cold and hot, there is an essence to them and that is temperature. The higher the temperature the hotter it is, the lower the temperature the colder it is. It may seem trivial now to know this, but when you advance to the next stage in your class I shall teach you that not all elementalist attacks consisting of heat or cold need to be based on fire and ice. Now I will demonstrate something to you, and I do not often do this to all of my students." He nodded to Wadatsumi and picked up a small rock that was laying on the ground, where it rested in his palm. " look at this and tell me what you see wadatsumi? a rock right? Merely a trivial element that almost nobody calls upon these days, am I correct? Now if I apply a certain degree of heat to this it will alter the rock into something else." As zinfandel was speaking the rock levitated a short distance form his open hand where it began to heat up until it started to lose its consistancy almost like a red and black soup that was being swirled into a sphere by the masters almost absolute control. " This wadatsumi is called magma, or lava, it is a combination of elements and I will warn you right now that this molten slug can smolder through even some of the strongest armors like a hot knife through butter, this is but one of my personal techniques. And, when I feel you are ready I will teach you why many of these preset arcanic spells are foolish."

[Wadatsumi Tsunami]

" Alright Wadatsumi its time for you to learn how to imbue elemental properties into a weapon. This next technique is probably something similiar to inner radiance, only instead of enveloping yourself with arcanic energy you will be enveloping your weapon instead. Please, unsheath your katana and give it a try. I have full confidence that you will be able to handle this technique as its not that difficult, simply surround the weapon in mana choose the element and after which we can carry on to the next spell. Now you might think that you are enchanting your weapon, however you are not, imbueing is different because after a short duration of time the arcanic essence you infused into your sword will dissipate. So go on now, give it a try."

Complying with her teachers wishes, Wadatsumi Tsunami unsheathed her elven steel katana and and began focusing. She was still in a state of clara and could see the ara and vis merging together forming this wondrous substance known as mana. When the time was right she concentrated long and hard, imbuing the sword with an arcanic property. Learning to channel her magic consistantly from selene's previous lessons she was able to do this, not that fast mind you but still was able to achieve the desired effect.

When she was completed her goal, the Katana's polished blade cackled feverishly as sparks and tendrils of electricity carrased the blade itself while it hummed and pulsed in a glowing ominous pale blue aura.

"I certainly like this spell" Wadatsumi blurted out, this was actually a refreshing change of pace. And she enjoyed this extensively, this could be figured out by the fact that Wadatsumi kept staring at her katana.

[Wadatsumi Tsunami]

Now its onto another trivial spell Wadatsumi, but please just grin and bare it. It is called project element, and in short a caster can conjure the essence of an element and shape it into an aura that surrounds the caster and is temporarily powered and sustained by his own physical energies. Its basically a hyped up version of Inner Radiance, so just go ahead and attempt this one on your own. Again these aura techniques are all the same, its just different ammounts of power that are applied." Zinfandel said, in an almost annoyed manner.

Wadatsumi kind of understood how to do this move, and like all the times before Wadatsumi closed her eyes and breathed in and out slowly, meditating almost beginning to enter a state of clara. Slowly like every other time before this she had reached this pinnacle of mental tranquility. Lifting her hands out she opened her eyes, and began to channel the Ice essence around her hands just like before she wrapped the mana around then summoned it forth. As the blue fire rippled across her hands cackling in there shimmering pale blue color with deep vibrant blue swirls, it was magnificent utter visual brilliance as she concentrated a great deal more, slowly having these chaotic frost fire flames wrap around her arms. Again slowly the flames began to consume her torso, and in the same creeping stride they began to roll down her legs in streams of roaring elegance. When her legs had finally been veiled by its intense wavering cold, her neck and face had become enveloped in its carnage.

Apparantly Wadatsumi Tsunami could do this, and had been practicing the the Inner Radiance technique allot which is why she was able to grasp this technique just a little bit better then the others. Wadatsumi Tsunami understood how to consume her body in mana and ignite with dazzling effect.

But she quickly withdrew her spell, and the flames died away, shortly after this her swords spell also depleted and thus she sheathed the katana. It had been fun while it lasted, but there were still other techniques that needed to be learned before she could be on her way. She didn't pay 1,250 crowns for nothing.

[Wadatsumi Tsunami]

" Now before I call it quits for today, im going to teach you one last move. This one is very simple, but never underestimate its lethality. You could easily impale someone with this magical technique formally known as Shard of Ice. With this spell you will alter water into its solid form, ice, then you will hastily shape the ice into a spear and launch it in the direction of your current foe. Now remember wadatsumi, this spell has many applications but its most effective I have learned for using when your adversary leaps at you. It increases your chances of impaling them marginally. Now I will demonstrate and you can attempt to do this, now follow my lead.

As Zinfandel was already in a state of Clara Wadatsumi Tsunami was also in this clarvoiyant state as well thus there was no reason to attempt to go back into this meditative trance. As Zinfandel breathed in, so did Wadatsumi, as she began to spiral his ara and vis so did she. Zinfandel continued to go ahead by mixing the ara and vis together to create mana, and while this was going on so did Wadatsumi. Each action second for second, was being done by both these individuals together. She felt at ease while she was creating a pointy stick of ice. And when Zinfandel lashed out his hand, Wadatsumi did the same. Zinfandels ice javeline found itself flying through the sky where it abruptly landed into his target. Which was in fact that burnt tree, however wadatsumi's spear missed the tree by inches.

" In time wadatsumi you will be able to get more accurate with it, there is afterall a difference between creating the spear and knowing how to use it properly and affectively. But im sure with a little practice and a little luck, you will be able to hit your targets."Zinfandel said, in an abrupt manner before also saying. Now its time to go back inside Wadatsumi, there are some things im going to give you and im going to expect you to read them over carefully. It is a guide, and I want you to practice these things that you read within them. You have proven yourself a very capable spell caster, and I see no reason as to why would not be able to do this on your own. Now come along, its time to go.

As zinfandel walked back inside, Wadatsumi followed a little curious when she finally got inside she saw zinfandel rummaging through a small collection of books. Handing her a specific book zinfandel spoke again. " there are certain things within this marked chapter that I want you to read and apply tonight, it is imperative that you do this because tommorow you are going to have to know what you are doing. In detail it will explain these three things. "

"Circle of Magic" - By drawing or carving a circle, the mage can invoke an arcane barrier which prevents the passage of both physical and metaphysical (i.e., magical) energy, objects and creatures through the circle. Each circle can only function in one direction - either a circle designed to imprison that which is inside, or a circle designed to prevent entry. It is not uncommon that during dangerous rituals, spellcasters will conjure two circles, one inside the other, to take advantage of both effects and make certain that the arcane environment is closed. While at first, circles are generally small with much time and practice, the size of the circle and the degree of concentration necessary to keep the circle's power activated will become more favorable.

"Activation" - Throughout the world, mages will discover (through meditation) that there are items, objects or environments imbued with the effects of a spell. The technique of activation allows the mage to in effect energize the nascent spell and initiate an arcalysis in order to obtain the results of the spell. The danger with this technique, however, is that if there is accidental activation of a talisman (an object which contains a large repository of magical energy), an amulet (an object which contains numerous charges of the same imbued spell), or similar objects, a tremendous explosion may occur. Interfacing with these magical objects is best done by channelling energy out of them, instead of activating them.

"Reshape Mana" - Though Initiates are lectured on the basics of Mana Shaping techniques, in order to be able to cast spells that they are taught, Apprentices can begin to experiment with spell creation by engaging in an activity called mana reshaping. Through this technique, an apprentice will try and decontsruct a current, existing spell and try and reconfigure it to suit his needs by using the basic principle essence(s) of his discipline/school. While only those skilled as journeyman and higher can actually create spells from disorganized energy, the apprentice can mana shape any organized energy spell that he already knows.

And I promise you; you will need to understand the circle of magic before I will even allow you to try and conjure forth an elemental. Remember this wadatsumi, it will be dangerous, and I do expect you to take the responcibility to read this stuff tonight and try to apply at the very least the circle of magic. Now run along, I will see bright and early tommorow. Zinfandel began rummaging around his room again, he seemed a bit rushed as he taken a little more time then he should have today teaching her things.

And as Zinfandel set about his tasks, Wadatsumi nodded in his direction and walked out of the university. She would be back again tommorow, and as she clentched her book she promised herself she would read into its pages and partake of the books knowledge.

[Wadatsumi Tsunami]

The next day Wadatsumi arrived right on time, her knowledge of the books had been read up on and she had practiced a few of those techniques. She had no real magical items in which to play or dabble around with so she could not mess around with ACTIVATION. However, with this new knowledge Wadatsumi Tsunami was certain that she would be able to complete that last tasks that her teacher zinfandel had in store for her today. This was of course, learning to conjure an elemental and learn the last few spells available to her.

At last she found her teacher Zinfandel sitting diligently in his chair thumbing through a chapter in a completely different book. It was merely a story, nothing fancy, but apparantly it kept him busy. But when Zinfandel noticed Wadatsumi he nodded to her before saying. "Serale" and then he went on to saying. now that you have studied up, like I had requested, I dont think it would be a big problem if we went outside for a while. getting up, he quickly went outside as Wadatsumi tagged along behind him curiously waiting in anticipation.

This next task I want you to summon forth an elemental, it wont be that hard. However, please attempt to use the circle of magic.

Wadatsumi had done what she was told and drew a circle into the ground, and then drew another circle into it. Then she closed her eyes and imbued the carved earth with her arcanic essence and thus created a dual barrier of sorts which would protect her. Her teacher zinfandel did not seem to concerned with doing this, as he could easily dismiss this elemental if it was to volatile for the student to manage.

Now wadatsumi, what I want you to do is take a calm deep breath and enter any plane you wish. And then create a gate, it will not be that difficult however it will take immense concentration on your part. Please do this now, and choose the element wisely.

Doing what she was told Wadatsumi Tsunami quickly closed her eyes and allowed herself to be nulled into a tranquil state by the crisp sounds that flourished around her, whether it be the birds, or the trickling water flowing from a nearby fountain each distinct sound brought her closer to that magical state of clara. Once in this state, she let her mind drift, the feeling was similiar if she had just been unbound. She quickly felt a chilling feeling as her mind drifted and parted from this plane to the next, it was an errie one. As if she did not belong, but she was searching looking for something and when she found it she summoned forth a tremendous ammount of ara and vis as she locked onto the location of this hidden being. When she accomplished her task, she created mana and pulled forward to which about 5 feet away from her a small portal open and from it a rather large and bulky rock elemental burst free. It looked clumsy, and it was a little bit frightening for Wadatsumi Tsunami however she sucked in her fear and looked towards zinfandel.

Very good wadatsumi zinfandel replied.

As the rock elemental moved around, Zinfandel took no time in simply dismissing the the beast from his and wadatsumis presence. It was easy for him, and he was again pressed for time which is why he did not spend as much time as he would have liked with this. However he was certain wadatsumi would know how to control an elemental of such small stature, in comparison to what she may eventually be able to conjure forth with a little practice.

[Wadatsumi Tsunami]

"Now the last spell I will need to teach you is called Wind Blast and by gathering the forces of air, an aspiring elementalist like yourself has the ability to launch forth a flurry of a sharp wind at an enemy dealing moderate damage and halting progression. I will tell you this from experience, wind is no laughing matter, I have seen strikes consisting of nay but air have the capacity to strike a target with devastating effect as though it were a cannon ball. This will probably be a cake walk compared to the last spell I had you learn, so just take a moment to get rid of that Circle of that Magic."

Wadatsumi quickly shook her head and broke her mental concentration on the dual circle. And then quickly went back into her ara and vis mode, she was very pleased with her progress and was so happy that she was almost finished and on her way to doing something that she felt would be a little more productive. As the ara and vis intertwined and locked itself within one another creating that delightful supernatural anomaly known as mana, she closed her eyes breathed in and then threw her hand down when the mana encircled her hand. Like a flash, and with a huge gust of wind a sharp flurry of air shot forward swirling around gyrating until it collided into a tree. When the tree was hit its bark was torn up in multiple places as if it had been attacked by an axe or hit with a sword. When her strike was completed, it was the end of the Apprentice level spells and thus she would await her teacher to do what needed to be done.

" Now your very lucky Wadatsumi Tsunami, not too many people are capable of showing the dedication to there craft as you have and for it I can promise you. You will be rewarded, you have now finally completed your task in accomplishing apprentice magic, however from what I can tell of our records you still have more to learn is this true?"

Being excited as she was, the only thing that Wadatsumi could do was nod and then smile brightly. She was thrilled that she was doing so well, and that she was soo close to making her dream a reality. Wadatsumi was well on her way to becoming a very accomplished elementalist, and she knew this as well as her current teacher Zinfandel.

"Now Wadatsumi, take a quick break, and when you come back I will teach you some of these journeyman spells and also some of my own personal spells. Im impressed, with your improvement."

[Wadatsumi Tsunami]

Silly me Wadatsumi I almost forgot to teach you a special little trick, one that not many other mages know about. One that will prove almost as a trump card, and I mean that literally. Activation is probably one of the most ignored abilities, as you have probably already decided not even to practice it. However I am going to give you something, knowledge, and then im going to have you tell me what you think about this. How would you feel if I told you that you are not restricted to casting any type of spell that you desire? Whether it Archmage, Master, or Journeyman without even tapping into your own mana reserves? This is a secret, one that I will trust with you, it was my masterpiece that got me promoted. Its almost a different type of magic class all of its own and it can be achieved by this simple technique called Activation."

Zinfandel had quickly snatched from his pocket, what appeared to be a deck of paper parchment with symbols written upon them. They were clearly not ikos runes, and they seemed to be indecipherable.

[b]" Now I know what your thinking Wadatsumi, what is this I have in my hand. And I will tell you, what’s in my hand right now is a vast power, one that you will soon come to appreciate. This technique, this ability, saved my life many times and it will be yours. I called this special little get up Valkrie Talismans, simple paper parchment channeled with large quantities of arcanic energy. These symbols that are written on the parchment, are not magical enhancements or restraints, they merely indicate to me what it is Im about to Activate. My own secret coding, to insert a sense of unknowing and panic. Now here, take one of these parchments from this deck."[b] Zinfandel spread out 5 different types of papper strips from his hand, and allowed Wadatsumi Tsunami to choose one. When Wadatsumi had selected the one that was most appealing to her, Zinfandel quickly pocket all but one.

"Now watch closely and be careful wadatsumi, because this spell could be dangerous."

Placing two fingers on the paper that was spread across his palm, he let himself slip into an arcanic and meditative trance. He was focusing on the paper, and as he did so he slowly began to unlock the power hidden within the paper talisman. As he did this the symbol on it began to glow and hum, and when the time was right to expel it from his hand he did just that. Using a short burst of air to make it cut through the air where it then abruptly exploded as it hit the ground, kicking up dirt and launching it into the sky, where it started to fall and rain down back to the ground.

Now Wadatsumi, I hope you are beginning to understand what I am talking about. Many people, have trouble with the concept that if you had a different type of mage channel there own energy into these types of talismans and then give them to you. You would in essence be capable of casting one of there spells, through activation. But remember, if you tried to for example Activate a talisman that is too powerful for you to handle then it will probably backfire and explode and potentially kill you. But if you use Talismans such as these sparingly, correctly and most importantly safely. And the spells you try to activate are at or below your level of casting capability and capacity, then you will soon discover that these Talismans will be able to give you that extra spell casting advantage. Imagine the potential if you will, while your adversary is depleting his mana reserves trying to combat energy and spells you channeled into paper parchment the night before. Who do you think will be able to outlast who when this is the case?.

Now come on Wadatsumi, dont make me wait all day, give it a go.

Nodding to Zinfandel, Wadatsumi opened her palm and looked down at the piece parchment before placing her two fingers on it like her teacher had done before her. As she slowly drifted into the meditative state known as clara, she soon realized, and could see and feel the mana that was imbued inside the paper. When she found it, she Activated it and then launched it in a similar manner like her teacher. She knew what it was almost it was a [Shard of Ice] spell. And when she threw the paper, the paper seemed to burn away while a javelin of ice emerged from it; whistling through the air where it landed and stuck into the ground.

Excellent Wadatsumi, now im going to go and check some stuff, in my rushed state I think I may have forgotten to teach you something. And then I will want to have you go over, Mana Reshaping, and I have a little trick with Reshape Mana that will allow you to the ability to cast apprentice equivalents to journeyman and master spells. Remember the dreaded column series spells, well with reshaping mana... you can basically create two other spells with reshaping mana. Pillars of Lightning, and Crushing Boulder, and those two are well within your grasp not as potentially dangerous as they would be if you were at the correct level, but its still nice to know that you have the capacity to rain lightning down upon your foe or perhaps a large boulder. I will let you think about the talismans some more, before I get started on teaching you how to cut corners with preset spells. It was obvious that Zinfandel was extremely knowledgeable on spells and how they worked, and how to find loopholes and exploit them to his advantage. But there was still something about him that Wadatsumi Tsunami could not put her finger on, but still she felt that she had definitely gotten her moneys worth for the training.

[Wadatsumi Tsunami]

ok I figured it out, the spell that I accidentally forgot to teach you is called sandstorm. Using this spell to cause the earth to rise up into countless minute particles, then command the forces of Earth and Air to conspire against your foe by creating a vicious storm wherein tiny blades of Earth threaten to impale themselves into the enemy.

Id imagine you would be capable of doing this on your own, so I will allow you to show me how you yourself would do this. Said zinfandel softly, and collectedly, he seemed a little preoccupied in trying to show Wadatsumi Tsunami something else after she finished with this. It was probably zinfandel trying to figure out the best possible method to show Wadatsumi ways around preset spells, how to manipulate her current ones into others.

Wadatsumi finished thinking about what her teacher may have been thinking about and started on this next and last spell. As she closed her eyes she once again dove into the meditative state known as clara and once again began to table with the ara and vis around her. Focusing on the ground now she conjured forth the earth element to lock onto the soil and then the air to tear it from the ground creating thin but sharp rock flechettes to which she began to spiral around in a mediocre cluster, as they gyrated around and around she watched the sharp rock shards in there frenzied formation batter the air relentlessly like a swarm of killer bees. This was an interesting technique for Wadatsumi Tsunami to have learned, as it was evidentally a very useful spell to have in her arsenal now.

Very good Wadatsumi, now stop that spell, and I can continue to teach you the very last techniques. By using mana reshaping techniques, these 2 variations will prove to not only disorganize your adversary but also confuse them as they will no longer be capable of distinguishing what level you really are.

[Wadatsumi Tsunami]

Wadatsumi had quickly halted the onslaught of the first spell, and then listened contently too Zinfandel as he was about to give her the dilly on a seemingly controversial technique that would allow her the ability to use any column series spell she desired.

Now I have told you once, I detest the column series spells because you can use any of those spells once you have become an apprentice spell caster. Do to the wonderful ability you have now. Which is called Reshape Mana, what this means is you can actually deconstruct a current existing spell and create the same spell only using a different essence. For example, you have learned how to use fire and ice with the column series spells. But because you can reshape mana into any essence you have learned, you can alter that spell into something similiar to Crushing Boulder, or Pillars of lightning now give it a try Wadatsumi try and deconstruct the preset spell and make a new one. Try using air, to conjure forth a repetive lightning strike go for it.

Wadatsumi Tsunami nodded her head and tapped into her ara and vis as she was still in a state of clara. As she started to pour her newly created mana into a swirlling mass above the sky, she concentrated long and hard to alter the spell. She was quickly deconstructing it, and callaborating the air element to replace the fire element. In short when she was finished instead of a vertical fireball pummeling the ground, she was rewarded by the refreshing sound of electrical humming as bolts of lightning began to streak down and hit the ground repetively. It was almost as if at that moment, Wadatsumi understood what Zinfandel was talking about.

When the spell was finished, Wadatsumi Tsunami tried to use the earth element. This one was rather disturbing as a large boulder began to form in the sky, before its mighty descent downward into the ground. It was not grotesquely large, but it would have proven to be a very extensive task trying to move it manually. On its descent downward, and when it collided into the ground it simply stayed there. As Wadatsumi Tsunami did not see the point, in coercing her elemental influence to continuesly bombard the area. If she hit someone with that rock, they would know about it, and chances are they wouldn't be getting back up.

I do believe your elementalist training is complete, and remember what I taught you about amperes and temperature. It will do you a great deal of good in the future.

[Minerva]

~Apprentice training approved~