VB Side Chapter 1: On magic.

AN: So, here I bring you something I had in mind for quite some time! A series of side chapters and overall interesting and different info about my alternate version of Valoran! Basically, in this story I'll post things that happen in the world of Valoran Bleeding that aren't important to the stories.

Feel free to ask for something you wanted to know. Maybe, if your question is interesting AND I find the time to write it, I'll do a chapter about that question, hopefully answering it.

On this first chapter, I'll show you my view on how magic works.

Hint: I know that magic is impossible, but I can explain it scientifically: It's MAGIC! :p

"Welcome, dear students, to a lecture offered to you by this rambling ex-summoner that I am.

Today, I, your new teacher, shall explain to all of you something in which you definitely are interested: Magic.

I know, you're thinking: 'HOW COULD HE GUESS THAT?'

After all, that's really unexpected, seeing how you all are in a Magic school.

But enough of my rambling, I say. It's time for you to actually learn something.

So, Magic is a way to control basically anything in the universe. How and what you shall control will depend only on which magical school you specialize. Those schools, however, are very different from this school we're in. I shall explain those to you later.

Now on with the basics of Magic:

Magic is useable by any living sentient being. Literally ANYTHING that has a mind could become some sort of mage.

Magic can differ greatly in its effects. You can either hurt and heal, create and destroy, or even just fool people depending on how you use it.

Magic is the strongest skill one can have. Because of that, however, Magic also is the skill with most research on, and the skill with the most developed countermeasures. The way to deal with such countermeasures shall also have its explanation later on. Probably on a later lecture, to be honest.

However, from where Magic comes?

That one is an interesting question. Magic is basically a bunch of energy redirected through an arcane realm. The energy used for this is originated from the minds of magicians. This energy that all sentient being have is commonly referred to as Mana.

On most cases, humans don't have large innate amounts of Mana, having to instead develop through mental exercises. Those exercises are very important for magicians, even to the ones born with huge amounts of Mana, as they are both the most basic form of magic and the best way to develop towards larger spells. Increasing the amout of Mana you have allows you to cast larger and stronger spells, and also gives you a bit more of an understanding about the spells you've been studying. I will pass a few of those to you as homework. Don't even try to wing it; it's easy to know who actually did it.

There it are other important factors in how will a spell work, though.

Mana availability is one, of course, but two magicians, both using the same amount of Mana, can get two very different results from the same spell. Why would such a thing happen?

Firstly, because the skill of the two magicians might be different. The skill of a magician is somewhat hard to measure, but we can safely say that, the faster a mage can learn new spells, of course considering that this mage is actually working as hard as he or she can, the higher is his or hers skill level. The skill level affects not only the speed of learning, but also the finesse of the spell and the mana efficiency of it.

Secondly, because the magic one can produce always is different from what the others can. Be it a change on the color or on the range of the spell, there it always are slight differences.

And last, but not least, because a spell you cast, no matter from which school of magic it is, will always be influenced by your main school, by the school you practice with the most. However, what does that mean? It means that, as an example, a Cryomancer will get results after using a healing spell that will be different from the results of a Pyromancer.

Again with the schools of Magic, am not I? Well, that's because the schools are very important. The schools of magic are many, but they can be divided in three main groups: Illusion, Destruction and Alteration. There it are a few unique magical schools that don't quite fit these groups, however. They are the "Unfitting". Those usually are very unusual, and, for that reason, mastering one of those is very hard. It surely will give you enourmous power, as very few know how to fight those.

These "Unfitting" are Chronomancy, or time-control, Umbromancy, or shadow control, Necromancy, the magic of the summoning of undead or the control of lifeless objects and Summoning Magic, a school that has basically been abandoned since the fall of the Institute. You should read about this soon in your History class.

Alteration is the group of schools that are based on subtle changes of reality, usually affecting positively its target.

The three main schools inside that group are Healing, which is self-explanatory; Polymorphing, which is changing the body size, the parts and such. This is the only that can have a negative effect, which would be turning targets into harmless animals or something along those lines; and Revigoration, which is a school based on "buffs", or on generating positive auras and magical effects to the caster and/or his target. This one has a great variety, being subdivided in Single-target, Self-Buff and Area power-up.

Illusion is the group of schools that focus on the manipulation of the sensible world. The main difference between Illusion and Alteration is the fact that Illusion doesn't actually change things, just the way people see and understand things.

The Illusion group has only two schools, Mind Control and Illusionism. The first is the takeover of a target's brain, turning that target effectively into a puppet. It was banned long ago by the Council of Magic of the First after the Fall of the Institute. Illusionism is a more subtle take on the control, in which the brain isn't really controlled, but it is just fooled by the magic.

Both of the Illusion-based schools are overally weak, based in the fact that they need huge amounts of mana to control. To control the mind of someone, for an example, one would probably need to use a huge source of power. The only known way to make Mind Control work is trhough blood-based magic. It needs a large source of human blood as a constant source of Mana. That is the main reason this school was banned.

Illusionism can actually be used by a common magician, but just very powerful mages would be able to rely only on it while in combat. The only known example of mage that used only Illusionism was Le Blanc, the Matron of the Rose. Although the Black Rose still has constant activity here in our city, she hasn't been seen in years. She was an illusionist so powerful she could actually trick people into believing they were dying, and that information, so overwhelming to the brain, would be enough to hurt or even kill whoever was her target.

And now we come to the group of magical schools favored by most: Destruction. As the name of the school already says, it is mainly based on causing damage to whatever you're attacking. However, it can also be used in defensive ways, like by forming barriers or shields to protect something for a short time.

The two most famous schools are Pyromancy and Cryomancy. They are basically polar opposites, Ice being focused on defense over all else and Fire taking its consuming form and being focused in causing as much damage as possible. There it are many other schools, though, like Elektromancy, Geomancy, or, long story short, all elemental schools, and even some less developed magics, like arcane manipulation, which revolves on using Mana as the weapon, without making it change in the slightest bit from its original form.

The best example of a Destruction Mage at its finest is Annie Hastur, our beloved Arch-mage. She uses Pyromancy, and she is the idol of basically any Noxian future mage. You don't need to hide it, I know you all want to be just like her. Even 'em boiz."

That last comment, done in a mimicking of the noxian 'Gangsta' dialet, or the way street thugs speak, earned a lot of laughter from the classroom.

When the class became silent again, the teacher, a charismatic old man in a black, long sleeved and hoodless robe, went back to his lecture:

"Well, back to the subject, those are the three main groups, but there it are a few other schools that are hybrids between those groups, like Ghastly-Spellcasting, wich is magic fueled both by the destructive and the illusionistic magics, or the Spellweaving, a mix of all three ways to create the most wonderful and mysterious spells known.

I believe this wraps it up. Does any of you have any questions?"

As no reply came, the teacher supposed the students had no doubts and gave his last warning:

"Well, before any of you get out of the room, the Arch-Mage wants to have a talk with you all."

Seeing how the class went from quiet and calm to extremely nervous, he also said:

"Don't worry, all of you. She probably is just going to help you choose which schools you'll be following. After all, one can't just try to use any magic they want. Everyone has its specialty: You all have one way that suits you the best. She's just gonna show you which is yours. And don't think that that choice will be enough to stop you from choosing your on path; anyone can learn any spell, after all.

And you'll choose what you'll be. We here in the Noxian College of Magic are just going to help you during your development as a mage."

AN: So, this one was done based off a concept of a school for magicians located in Noxus, and also based on something I always wanted to talk about: the theories of Magic. I know it isn't very deep or detailed, but if you want more of this, just tell me and i might follow this timeline where Annie has become some sort of director of this college.

Also, I'm going to open a poll in my profile. I want YOU to vote what you want me to do as a second project other than the Valoran Bleeding.

And don't worry, it won't really affect much my main story, or rather, the frequency of uploads in it. This side project will just be something to the times I want to chill out and change subject of my writing.

So, I'll go farm top. CYA L8R NER- er... BROS!