The Manaverse

North East Penthouse

Granite City

Jut shut the door to the penthouse, leaning his back against it and letting out a very large sigh. The Crusaders had relentlessly discussed the Dungeon for hours. From theories on how to defeat the boss to the "best strategy" for clearing the hallways. And after nearly two full days of conversations, even with the Dungeon run as a break, Jut was out of people energy.

Brick had walked out too, leaving Jut alone with the pets. Jut didn't want to know why the solider was grinning so widely as he left, or why he seemed to have a pep in his step.

Jut crossed to the couch and sat down. Both of the dogs were lying down in the ground nearby. They had received a lot affection throughout the meeting earlier that day and seemed as out of it as he did.

Sinking back into the cushions, he looked up and stretched out. He felt the last two days had moved a little too fast. He now had a new team and a fledgling crafters group to get off the ground. Either, or both, may have been a life altering choice that he had just rushed into. But, he had to make use of every possible advantage he could if he wanted to survive, so he had. Besides, Jut knew he needed to get his mind off of the Wave and if he could help even one other person do the same with his antics, he would gladly do so again. Getting people to work together to grow was never easy, but should do the trick.

A familiar vibrating sound made Jut smile as a small, furry head started bumping into his open hand. Lily wanted some attention and her purr was as loud as ever. Jut happily obliged.

Lilly eagerly pushed her head harder into his hand as Jut gave his cat a good scratching and chin rub, her eyes closed as she leaned into his touch. Instantly, his stress melted away. Well, his stress was put on the back burner for a little while at least.

"Where exactly were you before you came home? We were worried." Jut teased Lily. He wasn't the least bit shocked when she seemed to respond.

Lily looked up at him, her pupils a vertical slit in the bright lighting. She tipped her head to the right for a moment then she hopped down and went over to the table where the meeting had been held. She jumped into a seat on the far, long side and sat down. She looked at him again then pawed at the seat very softly, not even using her claws.

Jut was lost for the longest moment. Why that particular seat? Then he remembered who had sat there all night. Isabelle.

"So...you looked for Isabelle?"

Lily twirled in place at his words. Jut blinked. He wasn't sure if she was really understanding him or not, but he was starting to think she did. He decided to explore a conversation of sorts and see what he got.

"Did you find her?"

Lily twirled in a small circle again, purring loudly.

"So...you came back because you were hungry?" He cocked an eyebrow at the tabby.

Lily tipped her head again, twirled in place, then froze. She shook her head vigorously, her purring halting instantly. Then she jumped down and rubbed her cheek against a sleeping Gunther gently, who twitched but remained asleep before hopping up and nuzzling Jut's hand again. Then she sat on the cushion next to him, looking at his face.

Jut's eyes opened wide with surprise and happiness at the meaning he took from her actions. He didn't need Alex's message, but was glad they saw the same thing he had.

I believe she missed you and Gunther.

"So, you wanted to check on us, huh?"

Lily nodded and Jut smiled, rubbing her head some more. Lily purred louder than ever and curled up against Jut's thigh. The four of them relaxed for at least an hour before Nox made it clear he desired to go outside. He had nudged Jut's hand then walked over to the elevator and sat down.

Jut made the trip down the elevator with only Nox as neither Gunther nor Lily wanted to go. Jut stood silently with the German Shepard for a long moment, looking over the grounds after Nox did his business. The dog hadn't seemed ready to go back up right away.

"Take all the time you need, bud," Jut said aloud.

Nox laid his ears flat and sunk into himself for a brief moment. Then acted like he hadn't heard Jut at all. After a few more long minutes, Nox looked at Jut's face then tipped his head towards the front door of the Tower.

Jut nodded and walked to the elevator door, leading Nox upstairs.

Alex. Do we have any lore on why the animals are able to process my words and react to me like this?

No. However, it seems like they are advancing like you, me, and the others. Mana has to be doing something to them too.

True. It must be. I wonder why they didn't become Monsters. It can't be because they had owners. Brick seems like he was a good dog dad and his little buddy still changed into one... Jut's thoughts skittered to a halt. That happening to any dog or cat hurt him just to consider.

There must be some reason. I am curious to know what it is....

Me too.

They left the conversation there. Jut tried to examine Nox like he did with an item. It only made a small window appear with the dog's name and nothing else. When they returned to the penthouse, Jut spoke to Nox.

"Go ahead and lay down or something. I think I'm gonna try some Smithing. If the others need to go out, I am sure they will come get me. Brick loaded me up with some supplies I didn't even think about until now, so I might as well get to it." The other two animals were cuddled up together on the floor by the couch, sleeping soundly.

Normally, Jut wouldn't expect a response or reaction from the Shepard. He, instead, waited for Nox, just to see what the dog would do.

Nox looked up at him and tilted his head in curiosity. He edged closer to Jut, seeming a little shy.

"Did you want to watch? It might be a little loud."

Nox only looked at Jut.

"Let's go then."

Jut went back to the crafting room. Nox followed him into the room and sat by the open door, looking at the furnace and anvil as Jut approached his set.

The forge was a hallow dome shape with thick walls and a grate a little over half way down. It came with a stone cylinder to melt the ore in, an ingot mold, and tongs. The fuel went under the grate in hearth. There was an anvil that was just high enough that Jut would be able to work on it comfortably.

When Jut moved in front of the forge with the intention to craft, he understood what he needed to do. It was still strange for him to remember information that he never learned, but at the same time he knew he could look into his Lore Book and find the information spelled out for him if he wanted to.

Every Smithing project had four steps. Preparation, Shaping, Empowerment, And Finalization. Jut imagined each type of crafting skill, whether it be Smithing or Alchemy or Cooking, would have similar but unique steps like that as well.

Jut started with the Stone Smithing Hammer recipe as he would need one and it only called for Stone Ore. It didn't require a System registered tool either, so he could use any blunt object.

"Alex. Could you walk me through this with the Lore? I think I get it, but would like your help just to make sure."

Sure. :)

Jut was a little surprised by the emoticon in the text. Alex had put a smiley face at the end. He left it alone, even if his curiosity was piqued, and watched as the first step was outlined.

We need to activate the Furnace and get it up to temperature. Put some of that wood you got earlier inside then touch the runes by the opening.

Jut pulled a few logs from his inventory. He had placed them in there after Brick had pulled a huge stack from his inventory and gave half to him. Jut would have forgotten he needed fuel and would have had to run to the shop. Once again, the soldier had his back and hooked him up.

As Jut removed the wood and placed each piece into the furnace one by one, Jut was still surprised and amazed. His inventory pouch had no weight to it, despite having thousands of pounds of wood, stone ore, and other items inside. It seemed the only limit to amount was the spaces on the grid. Every item came out in the exact same condition it was in when it was placed inside. Hot things stayed hot and cold things cold. He hadn't found a size limit for the objects he placed inside it either. Large and small items each only took up one space on the grid. He hadn't really tried to store anything the size of a car yet, the largest item so far being a Minotaur's cub. He really needed to experiment with it sometime.

After the fuel area of the forge was full, Jut examined the opening of the dome shaped furnace. It turned out that there were two engravings on the outside of the rim of the opening, one on each side. They were palm sized, ritual circles. Each contained a stylized flame engraved inside them.

Jut placed a hand on each circle gently, focusing inwardly. He remembered back to the feeling he experienced whenever mana moved within his body. The sensation had only become stronger after his Ascension.

His mana flowed from his center, down his arms and poured from his hands into the circles. As he did so, a fire sprang up under the wood stack within. His MP bar dropped to around eighty percent before he could feel that the circles were fully charged. It was a certainty he felt but couldn't explain why. Like he just knew. He also felt like he knew how long the charge would last, which was at least two hours.

Jut felt his Smithing skill activate a moment later, the certainty sprang forward in his mind and realized that was were it had came from. His Skill was guiding him by letting him know when the heat was just high enough for what he was doing. He also activated his Dragon's Eyes. He wanted to know exactly what the temperature looked like.

Jut expected to flinch at the sight, but he didn't. It was like he was truly seeing the fire for the first time. The different colors of red to white that denoted the range of temperature was deeper and more rich than anything he had seen before. He almost forgot what he was doing for a long moment. Alex returned him to conscious thought by making their chat window pop forward, covering the colors.

Now heat the ore. This is the last step of the first main phase of Smithing. Preparation. Once they are hot enough, we will move to Shaping.

Jut pulled three Stone Ores the size of softballs out of his inventory and set them into the forge. He watched them until they started to change colors. His Skill let him know when the time was right to pull them out again. He used the tongs provided with forge to set the glowing hunks of metal onto the anvil.

Jut then pulled a regular, hardware store hammer from his inventory. He could have used Jony's Smithing hammer. It was sitting next to the stack of seven regular hammers the one in his hand had just come from. However, he wanted to make sure he knew what he was doing before using his teammates hammer. He wouldn't risk damaging it unnecessarily.

Jut felt his skill encourage him to channel his mana into the hammer. He did so. However, unlike the circles on the forge, which were meant to absorb mana, this pre-system hammer was not made to do the same.

When mana was moving through his body, it felt like when air was moving down his throat as he took a long, deep breath. It was smooth and felt natural. When it left his body and was poured into the ritual circles, or was consumed by the activation of a skill, that too felt natural. The hammer, likely made on an assembly line in China, felt like a wall the mana couldn't pass through. Some did trickle into the object, but it wasn't much. So, he forced it. He concentrated his thoughts on his desire to imbue the hammer with his mana.

The wood and metal of the item started to glow faintly as more of his mana surged into that metaphorical wall. Then, it felt like something broke and his mana flooded into the tool. The glow intensified and the handle began to vibrate.

Jut immediately cut off his mana flow but it was too late. He tossed the glowing, vibrating hammer into the forge and ducked away from the opening. He thought to grab Nox, but the dog had ran out of the room.

Before he could make it all the way around the forge, he heard a small pop. Jut had to lean against Brick's cold forge as his heart thundered. He made a mental note to not push his mana into stuff like that again. Or, to look into making mana bombs.

Peeking into the forge, Jut saw the damage the overcharged hammer made. It was minimal. The forge was unscathed and the wooden handle was burning gently in the fire. The pop had been the head of the hammer cracking and hitting the walls. It seemed the mana really only damaged the tool itself.

When he was sure nothing else was going to happen, Jut turned back to his three ore which were now too cool to be used. He grumbled as he sat the hunks of rock into the fire once more and pulled out another hammer.

Once the three hunks of ore were back to the right temperature, Jut tried again. This time, he didn't force his mana into the tool. He just kept the pressure up until his Skill gave him the feeling it was time. The hammer glittered softly with a faint feeling of magic. He had to keep his mana actively flowing into his palm to keep the glittering effect going and the feeling he got from his skill active.

Now strike the Ore in the designated location and keep your intentions clear in your thoughts. The mana should help guide the second phase. or Shaping.

Jut kept his thoughts on the procedure and that he was making a Smithing hammer as Alex's box faded away. Then he saw something that told him the feeling of rightness from his skill and Alex's direction were correct. A green circle the size of the hammer's flat nose appeared on one of the ore chunks. Jut shrugged and swung the hammer down.

When the tool hit the spot, the ore changed shape slightly. Jut scowled, knowing it had to be magical nonsense as he was pretty sure that's not how smithing worked. But, he carried on, hitting the green circle that appeared after each swing he made. It changed which ore he struck each time. Soon the three started melding together into one piece.

When they cooled off too much, losing some of the orange color of heat and their malleability, he would stick the clump of ore back into the forge. He had to reheat the project three times. After the forth round of hammering, the ore no longer looked like three solid rocks melding together. They had slowly taken on the shape of Smith's hammer, flat on both edges with a sturdy handle.

Jut smiled as he had successfully moved into the empowerment phase of the craft. He felt a strange certainty that he could do a lot during this phase if he had the materials. This is where he, or an enchanter, could add items and magic to the craft to influence the final creation a bit. However, this recipe called for something specific.

Alex kept walking him through the craft.

Now, acknowledge you are moving into the Empowerment phase in your mind and place three red mana chips onto the hammer once it is back up to heat. Tap the chips only once. Then we will move into Finishing.

Jut nodded to the words and carefully did just that. He set the glowing, incomplete hammer down on the anvil. He fished out the chips and placed them on the hammer's head in a small stack. Very carefully, using his tongs and normal hammer, he tapped the chips once.

The three square coins vibrated and melted into the Smithing hammer.

Jut was left staring in wonder as red, intricate engravings appeared on every surface of the hammer. Alex's window appeared and gave him the start of the next step.

The recipe calls for any Normal ranked leather or hide and a brown mana chip. Move to the finishing step, repeat the tap and the magic should do the rest.

Following those instructions, Jut used the hide from a cat monster with grey coloring, placing it onto the handle. He was surprised it didn't start to smoke and catch in fire. When he tapped the brown mana chip with the basic hammer, he instantly knew he had to drop the hammer he was crafting into the water barrel nearby. Doing so, the hammer hissed loudly and he received a notification.

Congratulations. You have completed your very first Craft.

There are more routes to power than just through fighting. Even if they are not as fast nor as flashy. Without Crafters, the Heroes would not have their mythical weapons with which to fight Monsters. Follow your path and reach for more power.

You have successfully created a Stone Smithing Hammer.

You gain Smithing Exp.

You gain extra Smithing Exp for creating something for the first time.

Attention: Because your Smithing Skill is Normal rank. All Experience is lost.

Jut pulled the hammer out of the barrel and looked at it. It was about the size of the store stolen hammer, but instead of a split end used to yank out nails, it was flat on both ends. The handle was soft and grey, much like the hide he had draped over it. Yet, the feeling was similar to rubber or plastic instead of fur. Jut examined the hammer's information and a window popped open.

Item: Stone Smithing Hammer

Type: Crafting Tool

Slot: Main Hand

Rank: Normal

Durability: 100%

Rarity: Common

Quality: Inferior

Affinity Power: Fire: Reduces a craft's temperature loss during Smithing by 5%

Description: A Stone Smithing hammer empowered with the fire affinity. May be used to craft up to Stone Ranked items.

Creator: Jut Kylos Zoak

Jut was a mixture of emotions. He felt delighted at completing his first craft. At the same same time, he felt underwhelmed. Sure, it was his first attempt, but Inferior quality? Not to mention the experience loss.

It didn't make him feel any better when he looked at his skills. The only one with experience showing as earned was Magical Strikes. The bar under it was half full. None of his other skills were Stone Rank, so they too lost any experience earned. He had dismissed the window declaring the lost Smithing Experience just a quickly as he had the notifications after the dungeon run telling him the same for Consequence and Gusty Steps. He vowed to change that as soon as he could.

Jut let out a sigh as he placed the Pre-System hammer back into his inventory. It was battered, scratched, and dented. Clearly, the pre-system item could not tolerate the mana he had channeled into it. Then he equipped his new hammer, hoisting it to his side, and realized the truth. He couldn't craft anymore because his mana was below thirty percent. The channeling had zapped him pretty good and he didn't want to use chips to restore it if he didn't need to.

Jut turned to Nox. "I guess I need to wait for a bit. I need more Mana. Wanna get some food?"

Nox stood and waited by the door. Jut had been impressed when the dog hadn't flinched nor fled when he was crafting. He had slunk back into the room after the little explosion scare and just watched Jut work. Now, he followed Jut out to the kitchen area.

While the rest of the dog's body language said he was still sad, the slight tail wagging told Jut that Nox was coming around. He knew it would take a very long time, but he hoped his new friend wouldn't suffer forever.

They were greeted by stretching and yawning animals as Gunther and Lily both rose. It was likely they had heard him mentioning food. He grinned.

"Yeah. Let's all eat dinner."

Gunther's little nub shook so fast with excitement, it seemed like it was holding still.