Novaris: Adventure in the Shattered Fang Continent

“Alright, Tesilim. Now that you have learned to prevent things from overwhelming you, it's time to continue your lesson on sensing. So far, you have done the basics of overcoming some bug resistances. Congratulations.” Alyx noted with a bit of a mocking tone right at the end.

“Thanks,” Tesilim responded while rolling his eyes.

“What comes next is what you have done so far, but with some power behind it. Sadly, everything comes at the cost of mana. Mana is the ultimate fuel for everything and anything. With your presence, you are sending out your mana so you can use it as a conduit. With the addition of mana, your will can be sent through said conduit to make magic happen without needing words. You can have a strong will, but without mana, it is more intangible. So, you need to send another pulse now, but this time, empower it with mana. And remember to give it some instructions so you don’t get overwhelmed.”

Tesilim did so, pouring some mana into his will as it spread outwards. Like before, he felt the bugs on the ground, except this time, not only did he sense them, but he unintentionally scanned them. They were simply no match against his higher rank, and he knew if he hadn’t blocked everything except their location and strength from coming back, he would have gotten blasted with all sorts of information. He had just accidentally done a version of the identify spell.

Moving on from that, there were a few other differences that his pulse made him aware of. The first was that he was alerted to a D Rank entity nearby. Of course, this entity was Alyx, who hadn’t blocked the pulse entirely. The other big difference was that he now felt the leftover magic in the air. The pulse had been too brief to tell what the magic was, so he sent out another pulse with more mana. This time, he instructed his will to ignore the bugs entirely along with Alyx and focus solely on the magic around him. It worked, and Tesilim could tell there was a notable use of body enhancement, restoration, conjuration, and abjuration magic left over. There wasn’t much, and it had faded, but it was there. However, there was something else, except he didn’t know what. Something had rebuffed his will and refused to let him sense what it was.

“Uhm. There is something here. I can’t tell what it is, and my pulses are doing much.”

Alyx smiled, “Very good, glad you finally sensed it.”

“Sure, I am glad too, but what is it?”

“The bunnies, that strange thing use sense is theirs.” Lili threw in.

“Okay, that makes some sense. Please tell me there is more to it.”

“Yeah, there is. As you noticed, you sensed the guards just fine since they were slightly weaker than you and weren’t really trying to be stealthy. The problem is that the bunnies are about the same level of power as you, have magic you haven’t seen before, and are trying to be stealthy.” Alyx explained.

“Wait, so we just leave magic trails everywhere we go?”

“Yes. Using magic leaves behind a magical residue. Naturally, there are ways to hide it, prevent and remove it. Hiding the residue takes work or skill, and preventing it is even harder, though removing it can be simple yet complicated. The good thing is that most magical residue slowly dissipates over time.”

“Okay, that's good to hear. Am I right to assume that hiding it involves more manipulation of your mana and will?” Tesilim asked and saw how Alyx looked over at Lili with a proud smile as if saying, “Look at him. He is learning!” In turn, Lili just rolled her eyes at the gnome and gave her own explanation.

“Yes, Tesilim, the problem is that even if you hide it really well, someone else can come along and be fine as long as they are better at finding it than you are at hiding it. Removing it is the only real way to ensure it isn’t found. Whether you do it yourself or it dissipates on its own.”

“Yeah, what she said,” Alyx added, continuing his explanation, “Now, in terms of this bunny magic, well, as I am sure you have guessed, it is fey magic. You should be able to overcome the strength difference with sheer mana expenditure, though you will have to fully extend your will to overpower the will left behind by the bunnies.”

“Ah, so it's a case of constant power over the short pulses I have been using?”

“Exactly, you can even pinpoint a particular patch and burst it open, but it usually is best to be thorough in case a mystery is hiding somewhere. After all, it is possible to hide something from a pulse. Some things can only be spotted when you have a constant feed over a quick picture. Not that you will find anything like that here, but it's a good habit to have.”

Doing as Alyx had said, Tesilim released his will through his whole presence, ensuring it ignored everything but the blurry spots. Then, once it was extended, he began pumping mana into it and pressuring the magical residue. It took a few seconds, but the blurry spots quickly enhanced, and he felt the magic hidden from him. The problem was that it wasn’t magic, at least not in the way he knew it.

“Alyx, what's going on? This is new. Their magic is odd, and it feels wonky. I can’t tell what was used here.”

“Yeah, welcome to the club, pal. That's Realm magic for you. It’s all considered Innate Magic, which breaks the nice, neat rules we have come up with on this planet. At least the elementals stick to one damn thing. Anyways, if you’re brave, poke it with your will.” The gnome finished, having gone into a bit of an annoyed rant.

“That doesn’t sound like a good idea.”

“Well, then, live in mystery.”

“You suck! Just tell me!”

“No, it's part of the experience, trust me.”

“It's fine, Tesilim. Just do it. Nothing bad will happen.” Lili finally added, reassuring him.

Tesilim, with his eyes closed and focusing on the magic, missed the grin that quickly plastered on the faces of his two companions. So, he extended a tendril of his will in the splotch of silvery white magic.

His mind was instantly struck with images of a full moon crossing a dark sky, illuminating the lands below with its silver light while a cool wind blew against him. Next was the image of a black werewolf with bright silver eyes howling loudly at a full silver-colored moon. The sound of the wolf sent a chill down his spine as the cold from the wind intensified. Finally, it switched to white wolves traveling through a snow-filled forest, their eyes shining silver as they tracked their prey. The scene made him feel as if the wolves were hunting him. He was trying to escape through the freezing forest, and their cold eyes burrowed into his back, making him feel as if he would fall frozen any minute now. Thankfully, the scene ended, and Tesilim found himself back in reality, his presence, and will retracted as he stood still, shivering. It took him a second to register that he was fine, and then he got mad.

“What the fuck, guys!” He yelled, whirling around to meet Alyx and Lili, who were laughing their asses off.

“Ha! Can you believe he actually did it!? The mad elf!” Alyx chortle.

“Tesilim, you should know this by now, but don’t stick your thing into unknown things!” Lili commented, causing Alyx to catch another fit of laughter.

They laughed so loud that Rose and Jasmine ran out from Alyx’s door, throwing a questioning gaze around.

“What happened?” Jasmine asked the infectious laughter already getting to her.

“They!” Tesilim motioned with his hands at Lili and Alyx, “Told me to touch some residual fey magic with my will!”

“Please tell me you didn’t,” Rose asked, and seeing Tesilim's regretful face, she just shook her head. " That's messed up, guys.”

Meanwhile, Jasmine, hearing this, tried to hide a smile while attempting to give Tesilim some kind words, “Aww, you poor elf. Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I am fine now, thanks Jasmine. At least I know someone here isn’t a dick.” Tesilim said, still giving Alyx and Lili a dirty look.

“Still, do you know what the heck was that? I saw flashes of the moon, werewolves, and snow.”

“That was a taste of the type of fey we are dealing with. Their mana and magic are intertwined with the concepts they follow, and in this case, it seems we are dealing with beast fey that adore the moon and the cold.” Jasmine explained, Rose having gone back inside Alyx’s room.

“All right, yeah, that makes sense. Still, doesn’t that put them at a disadvantage since we know what their deal is?”

“Slightly, as in we know they might use ice magic. Otherwise, what magic does the moon have? Or does a beast represent? Sometimes, their concepts are just that, concepts, though be aware that they like to base the looks of their magic on said concept. So, we might get silver wolf-shaped projectiles thrown at us.”

“Huh, then it is pointless to check their magic?”

“Actually, no,” Alyx interjected, finally recovering from his laughing session, “Though sometimes it can show odd things like moons or wolves, which don’t really fall into a nice magical category. Sometimes, you will get things like blooming forests, earthquakes, or even a storm. These can often point to dealing with fey connected with trees, the earth, the wind, or even lightning. And since we fight them, it is essential to narrow down what exactly they might try to kill you with or what trap and other such things you need to watch out for.

“And even then, it's all still very tricky,” Lili added, also joining in. Then she pointed at Jasmine and continued, “Like Jasmine can tell you, Innate Magic can accomplish pretty much anything. So, though unlikely, the more tricky fey will set you on fire with flaming leaves or poison you with the very ground you stand on, among many other things.”

“The only good thing is that the rules of their own magic often bind most fey. So, when you figure that out, it is often game over for them.” Alyx said, adding to Jasmine’s earlier explanation.

Tesilim, still annoyed at the experience, pointed out something that was still bothering him, “Wait, so does that mean someone has to essentially sacrifice themselves to go through what I just went through every time we are dealing with the fey?”

“What? No. That was just for fun. There are ways to peak at their concepts without getting pulled in.” Alyx said matter of factly.

“What! So, I went through that for nothing!?” Teslim exclaimed, his anger rising.

“Well, not for nothing. It was to teach you a lesson and because it was hilarious!” Lili said with a smile on her face.

“Screw you!” Tesilim yelled while summoning a boatload of water above Lili and Alyx.

Alyx, as always, had his shield up, so nothing happened to him. On the other hand, Lili got soaked, and her smile faded. Right then and there, Tesilim thanked his lucky stars for her clothes being waterproof, thus lowering her wrath. Then he started his body enhancement at full blast and took off.