The piercing rays of the sun were far from the biggest annoyance in the Arc family car as it made its way through the weekend traffic to the coast. The constant stop-and-go traffic especially was enough to drive anyone mad. Aslan almost had leapt out to confront a driver who had brake-checked him over the bridge into Northern Industrial.
Every lurch sent shivers down Jaune's spine and his head to a paper bag. The hot summer day did nothing to help his motion sickness, creating a veritable oven inside the car. The air conditioning only made matters worse since they had to close the outside vents to prevent the pollution from the Industrial District from getting in.
Rouge, as usual, was bouncing in the middle seat of their minivan and talking Jade's ears off, who was staring out the window and ignoring every single word. Jaune's mother, Jewel, was typing out an email on her phone and talking with Aslan. No one was paying attention to Jaune, creating the perfect situation to practice Wizardry in.
Except I get the exquisite pleasure of being motion sick! Whoooooo.
Jaune glanced longingly at the unassuming book next to him, wondering if there was a cure for motion sickness in there.
Hold up. Am I a Wizard or not? Jaune clamped his eyes shut to concentrate and reached out with his veil to his Manual and brushed against it cautiously.
Manual?
Yes, Jaune?
Relief flooded through Jaune. He managed to begin a smile before a jolt in the road sent his head back into the paper bag.
If you like you can completely include me in your veil. I am your Manual after all. It will be easier to communicate that way.
Ok. There.
Oh dear. The manual seemed to take a deep breath. You really aren't feeling well, are you?
No, I just look like death because I enjoy the look. Jaune would've rolled his eyes were they not shut tight.
No need to get snappy, I'm trying to find a solution suitable for your skill level.
Jaune creaked one eye open at the statement. How many solutions are there?
Just like the rest of wizardry, innumerable. However, just like the rest of Wizardry, they depend on your familiarity with the Speech and the energy available to you, amongst other variables.
Jaune wasn't in a mood to learn right now, which was understandable given the state of mutiny his guts were in. He simply grunted.
There is also the fact that given your distressed mental state, any wizardry you cast would have the side effect of being tainted with residual wants. You would run the possibility of interfering with critical natural processes or drawing too much energy as you inadvertently try to solve every problem that goes through your mind. However, you do not have the familiarity with the Speech to even attempt a wizardry of that magnitude, so it would be an instinctive casting, in which case who knows what might happen. In fact…
"Oh, just shut up already." Jaune grit out. His eyes slammed open in shock. That was out loud wasn't it.
Good luck Jaune. You'll need it.
"What was that Jaune?" His mom turned around and glared at him. Jade was staring at him in shock.
Oh boy that's not good. Jaune licked his lips trying to think of an excuse. He definitely couldn't say he'd been talking to his easily distracted childhood book that doubled as his guide to Wizardry. He'd be in a psychiatrist's office faster than he could say 'Great Big Grimm Baddies.'
"Sorry, I didn't mean too…"
His mother interrupted him immediately. "Apologize to your sister Jaune."
"I wasn't talking…"
"Jaune. Apologize. Now." If voices were weapons hers would be the Grimm Reaper's scythe. There was no arguing with her.
"I'm sorry Rouge. I didn't mean that." He said in a quiet voice.
"It's ok Jaune, I know you're not feeling good. I should be quiet."
Jaune's heart melted as he saw how she withdrew into herself. She'd been the one excited for this trip and it was his inability to separate thoughts from speech that was at fault. He glanced back at the death glare his mother was giving him and gave up trying to resolve the situation, preferring instead to go back to his regularly scheduled close encounters with vomit.
The rest of the trip was spent in silence, with the occasional quiet words exchanged between Jewel and Aslan. Both Rogue and Jade were staring at the city outside disinterestedly. Jaune was doing some breathing exercised the Manual had recommended soon after the incident. They worked well.
According to the Manual, they were exercises meant to help a Wizard focus during Wizardries that were attempted at high speeds, like repair of atmospheric currents. Jaune ignored most of the Manual's ramblings after that point, preferring to internalize the complex patterns to ease the infernal motion sickness. His fingers danced along points on his nose, neck, and chest while he breathed deeply and evenly.
Surprisingly (or rather not so surprisingly given that he had learned it mentally from a talking children's book), the technique worked. It worked astonishingly well. Jaune hadn't even noticed the ferry ride that took them across the bay to Patch.
His concentration finally broke when his father shook his shoulder. He jerked in surprise. His father's eyes flicked down to where Jaune's hand was resting on his Manual and a quick expression fluttered across his face before a teasing smile took over.
"Hey champ, we're here." His dad chuckled. "Bring the chairs."
Jaune took a few deep breaths to calm himself from the fright. He shoved his manual inside his hoodie and picked up the folding chairs as well as a spare blanket, just in case.
Jaune…
"Can we not talk right now?" Jaune muttered. "I'm kind of in the middle of a public area."
You do realize I'm your Manual, right?
"Yeah, I'm not stupid."
A Wizard's Manual.
"So?"
Your manual. You're a Wizard. I'm your Manual.
Jaune's mouth rounded into an O.
You're an idiot, Jaune.
Cut it out, it's not even been a day. Jaune mentally cringed at his stupidity. He had lapsed back to vocalizing his thoughts out loud rather than simply saying it in his head. It simply would not do. He'd already hurt his sister in the car ride. What if he accidentally cast a Wizardry out loud without focusing?
And yet… His manual sighed. Jaune, there are some things about you we need to talk about. In depth. How soon can you find a secluded area?
I don't like the sound of that. Good news or bad news?
Both. Neither. I don't know!
Jaune could hear the frustration in its thoughts flowing through their mental connection. Well, feel, rather. It was complicated. Their mental connection had been deepening ever since he had intersected his Veil with the Manual's, evolving from simply a communication link to something deeper.
Jaune on one hand felt that it was unnatural to be able to share his feelings and thoughts with another seemingly sentient being this easily. On the other hand, it was his Manual. Manuals were as much a Wizard's guide as they were a companion, someone to trust when all else fails.
Alright, we'll set up the picnic spot and then I'll sneak off. There's this clearing I know nearby. Jaune decided to try something. He imagined the clearing as best as he could and sent the mental picture through the link.
That seems private enough. Let's go.
Jewel watched Jaune stalk off quietly from beneath her sunglasses with a small smile. The kid was never any good at sneaking anywhere. She turned to Aslan who was also watching him, albeit with a frown.
"He still has his book with him." Aslan mumbled, half to himself.
Jewel looked back at Jaune who glanced around then slipped into a thicket and disappeared from their sight.
"Have you talked to Lan yet? How's little Jazzie doing?"
"Heartbroken, as expected. She wanted to stay with her friends, but she barely missed the Senior cut-off." Aslan leaned back into his chair and went back to staring at the sky. "Why have there been so many cut this year? They didn't fail these many kids back in our day."
"Yeah, well they needed as many of us back then. Remember back when we were kids? Huntsmen seemed a dime a dozen."
"Died at the same rate too." Aslan's voice was slightly rough.
Jewel set her mouth. Aslan was thinking about his parents' deaths again. "Hey."
"I'm fine."
"I know you are, but we're getting off topic."
"Yeah." He paused for a moment. "When's your meeting with the Dean?"
"Friday evening, 6 PM. Said we had to be quick, there are about 4 other families asking for meetings as well."
"Hmm."
They sat in the warm sunlight, a comfortable silence between them. They both knew what the other was thinking at that moment but was finding it hard to put it into words.
"Where did we go wrong with Jaune?"
Aslan turned his head to look her in the eyes. "What do you mean?
"It's just…" Jewel shrugged. "He's got natural talent, we've all seen that. He's always been able to think on his feet, come up with new ways to make our lives hell. Remember his thirteenth birthday?"
Aslan grinned at the fond memory. There had been a lot of clean-up, apologizing, and all-around yelling after Jaune and a couple of his friends had taken the family car for a spin. Their plan had almost worked, but Jaune hadn't known about the garage sensor Aslan had put in a week earlier. They met a sleep-deprived Aslan at 3 in the morning in front of the garage and had collectively we themselves, almost not metaphorically. Jaune had been on extra chores for about a year after that. His friends hadn't gotten off lightly either.
"He's always been good at theory. It's just his combat…" Jewel trailed off.
"We both tried our best with him. The older 4 never had this much trouble but Jaune is a different soul."
"He seemed so determined to be a Huntsman. Stayed up all night during his exams."
"I remember you had to resort to emotional blackmail to get him to sleep."
A smile crept onto her face at the memory but dropped quickly. "He gave up almost overnight. Ever since that party…" She sat up slightly. "Do you think someone said something to him there?"
"You mean bullying?" He frowned.
"No, well, maybe. It never seemed like he was being bullied, just…I don't know. Maybe someone said something about his grades."
"That doesn't seem like it would affect him that much though. He's a strong boy."
She paused for a moment, deciding how she was going to phrase her thoughts. "I agree he's strong, but do you think he's been forthcoming with details of his social life? I mean, we basically have to interrogate him about school nowadays and he never tells us what he does or where he hangs out with his friends."
"Mixing with the wrong crowd?" Aslan raised an eyebrow.
"No, nothing of the sort. I'm just confused. His behavior today has been extremely out of character. It's something to do with that book. I'm sure of it."
"That seems logical, but why would he cling to that book while giving up on being a Huntsman?"
"Do you think we should talk to the psychologist?"
Aslan guffawed. "That quack? Never."
"He's not a quack." Jewel insisted. "He helped with Celeste and her…difficulties."
Aslan's scowl returned. "That was mostly us."
She just stared at him pointedly. He stared back for a while then blinked.
"Fine, ok, he helped. Do you want to make an appointment?"
"Let's see more. Maybe it's just a temporary thing. Jaune's always been sensitive and he still has time before the registration deadline. He can change his mind anytime."
"Fair enough."
The two nodded, silent once more as they sunk into their thoughts. Far away, wide forest green eyes stared at them, before she was distracted by the shouts of her younger sister and returned to play.
Jaune pushed his way through the thick trees of the forest ignoring his jacket snagging on every branch. His attention was entirely devoted to the text on his page and his eyes moved rapidly across the archaic symbols.
If I'm understanding this right, simply trying to read the symbols of the Speech allow me to learn it faster?
Correct. It is part of the workings of the Speech. It creates a positive feedback look, where the mere attempt at understanding the language of the universe gives you a greater affinity to it. Of course, there's a drawback to this approach. The more familiar you are with the language, the harder it is to progress your knowledge.
Isn't that the case with all languages?
I'm not talking about the diminishing returns of fluency, Jaune. I'm talking about a deeper understanding. Normal language resides within your mind, fluency brings it to your subconsciousness. The concept of a 'mother tongue' approaches this; a language you have internalized to an extent you dream in it. The Speech on the other hand, resides not only in your mind and subconscious, but within your Soul.
My Soul? Something clicked in his head. Does the Speech have something to do with Aura?
The manual blinked mentally. I…I do not know. That is an interesting question. Give me time to research. Anyways, the Speech resonates with your very soul. Just like your mind and body are your connections to the physical world, your Soul is your connection to the energies of the universe.
Right, but how does that make it harder to learn the Speech?
It's a matter of saturation. As you immerse yourself in the Speech, it is easier to internalize the Speech but harder to make it resonate with your Soul. You can understand the Speech with increasing ease as you expose yourself to it, but eventually your ability to use it will start to taper off.
Jaune chewed his lip. So that means I effectively have a limit to the scope of my Wizardries?
In a way. It simply limits how much you can do by yourself. Larger Wizardries require more participants or catalysts to execute some of the Speech. Furthermore, catalysts and pre-compiled modular segments of your Wizardries are both good Wizarding practices. Catalysts reduce the risk of you overextending yourself, and having modular code will help in formulation, casting, and optimization.
Jaune's head was starting to spin at the sheer amount of information pouring into his head from both the Manual's text and voice, but he persevered. That makes sense. So the Speech is like the programming language of the Universe.
Yes.
Objects in the Universe are, well, objects. They're well defined and have their own properties that set them apart from others of the same Class.
Indeed.
Jaune was starting to get more confident. Programming was one area he used to be good at before he had transferred to Signal, after which he never had the time to really pursue it. There was no room for computer science when you're breathing down the mouth of an Ultra Leviathan. Who knew?
Alright, so to cast Wizardries I write my own code, in the Speech, compile, and execute it? Which makes pre-compiled strings easier and more efficient to use. There are analogues of libraries in Wizardry, I'm guessing?
Libraries?
A collection of pre-written code, subroutines, templates, methods, functions, etc.
Ah yes, many such Spellbooks are in my records. It pleases me that you are familiar with the basic structure of Wizardry!
Jaune grinned. In all this metaphysical madness of Wizardry (half of which was going over his head), there was at least something that he could do off the bat. Plus, apparently having good practices made you a better Wizard! Take that Mr. Xiao-Long! Programming wasn't useless for a potential Huntsman after all.
Are you done with the first section of the lesson Jaune?
The Manual's voice snapped him back to reality. Yeah, yeah just finishing the last row of symbols. I'm starting to see what you meant by the positive feedback loop, the row before this took half the time of the first! And look, we're at the clearing, just in time.
He pushed through the last bit of bush and into a large open space surrounded by large deciduous trees, all bearing large green leaves. A hole in the canopy let sunlight into the middle of the circular clearing and set the whole place ablaze with a golden glow.
Jaune unconsciously relaxed with every step into the clearing. It was his favorite location to be in in the park and as far as he knew no one knew about it. He dropped onto the patch of sunlight, eyes closed as he sat. The warmth of the light worked wonders on the tension in his back and he sighed in contentment, feeling all the built-up tension leave him.
Jaune, since you are done with familiarizing yourself with the basics of the Speech, I believe we can begin constructing a very basic Wizardry.
Already? I thought you said I'd have to learn for a few days before attempting one. It's only been what, 6 hours since we started!
This was part of what I wished to discuss with you. You have shown remarkable progress in the Speech, more than I had been led to ex…I mean expecting.
Er, thanks?
Part of that may be due to your skill in programming, but I am not sure. I was hoping there was some information you could shed on it.
I mean, other than being a complete failure at fighting, I'm pretty good at thinking things out. I can make friends pretty easily, though I doubt that has anything to do with Wizardry.
Hmm. A topic for another time then. First, let us begin building your first Wizardry, and if it is completely correct, we shall attempt it.
Agreed. Absolutely agreed! Let's get this started.
The manual grinned. Do you even know what Wizardry we're going to cast?
Nope! Came his enthusiastic reply.
The manual laughed at that. Alright, here is a spell rated as among the easiest to cast. To begin…
As the Manual began to describe the Wizardry, Jaune opened his eyes and refocused on the Manual in front of him. His Wizarding Manual. He was a Wizard. He was going to cast his first Wizardry today! He grinned in anticipation. Then winced in pain as his Manual mentally slapped him.
"Ow! Yes, I'm paying attention."
…
"Repeat that please."
Saphie was not in a good mood.
Not that it was a rare occasion. What was rare was that she had the free time to work off the aggression, which caused her no end of satisfaction. And she knew the perfect place to do so.
She had just been yelled at by three customers in a row for mixing up orders. Never mind she had been distracted by her boss yelling at her to serve orders, despite only being paid to be a cashier and not a Dust-damned waitress! That outburst had earned an official warning from the manager, her second. The next one was going to get her fired.
She changed out of the uniform as quickly as she could and exited the restaurant from the rear entrance. The smell of a miscellany of spices clung to her skin as she hurried to the waterfront. She had been dismissed early from her shift to 'go cool off' and she wasn't going to waste the few precious free hours she had gotten before she needed to go pick her younger brother up from school.
She made her way through the crowd of tourists come to see Vale's famous waterfront, cursing them thoroughly. The slack-jawed, glassy-eyed, camera-wearing, entitled rich prats were her biggest menace and she genuinely loathed them. They came through, acted like they deserved being waited on hand and foot because they were tourists, got mad over the smallest mistakes, and left next to no tips.
She growled as she shouldered past the bulk of two quite overweight couples, even their size managing to annoy her. She ignored their offended looks and continued to the ferry port.
She practically abused the ticket machine in her rush to board the leaving ferry and leapt over the closing gate to get on. She didn't want to waste a single minute of her two hours. The simple matter of a safety hazard didn't scare her.
She spent he rest of the voyage clinging to her book bag, casting suspicious looks at the handful of pickpockets that haunted the ferry. She'd fallen victim to their schemes twice before, and she had no intention to be parted with her money (or more precious belongings).
Most people avoided the 16-year-old girl with the fearsome scowl and glare that promised pain. All, except one middle-aged man who kept stealing glances at her and frowning, looking back and forth between her and a small pocketbook he held in his hand. He was subtle enough for most people to not notice, but she wasn't most people. Half her life had been spent reading people.
Her scowl deepened when he nodded once and stopped looking in her direction. That was generally when the perpetrator had made up their mind one way or the other. He hid his body language, but there was an air of professional confidence to it that just screamed of malicious intent. He was going to try something for sure. She wasn't going to stick around to see what he wanted. The next time his brown eyes looked at her over his small mirror glasses, she would bolt, blend into the crowd.
Her paranoia kept her on edge the entire way to her destination where she practically flew into the anonymity of the crowd and away from the piercing gaze of the man. All she could see were his eyes peering into hers, tearing her apart and seeing exactly what she was made of.
HE KNOWS
The phrase pounded in her head as she ran down the gangplank and to the bus stop. It shoved every other thought out of her mind as the bus left the station. It took every breathing exercise she knew to get her mind back in control. This wouldn't do. She couldn't break down like this anyone looked at her funny. Her fists clenched, unclenched. Her breathing slowed. Her back straightened. The bus reached its stop and she hopped off, almost sprinting through the gate and to the tree line where her haven lay. She would be safe there. No one about it, as far as she knew.
"Alright, so I'm done with the name string. Where do I put it?"
Jaune clutched a light, almost silky, ethereal chain between his hands. In it was a short phrase in the Speech describing him to all entities relevant to the Wizardry. Currently, it was short and uncomplex, unsurprising given how basic his Wizardry was.
Good, you didn't add any frivolous terms to it.
"Yeah, I'm not going to doubt the instructions of the almighty Manual now am I?" Jaune grinned and set his name down onto the grass, careful not to break it apart. The chain was basically that; Speech in written form. The only difference was that it was written out onto the universe itself, requiring no medium to carry it.
Jaune had used a branch from a nearby tree to carve the symbols into the ground. It was a simple matter of pushing intent into the crude scratchings to make them something important, something worth the universe's attention.
He took one end and connected it to another arc of Speech that his manual had dictated to him. It was a template, designed to help new Wizards avoid the headaches that came with Spell design and structuring. Most of it was gibberish to Jaune, but from what he could decipher it dealt with the collection, storage, and subsequent distribution of energy from the surrounding universe. His Manual summarized it as a humble request of his local bulk to donate some energy to assist a Wizard. Most life was delighted to participate, and their contributions would be more than enough to power the Wizardry.
Of course, his Manual had said. Larger Wizardries will require you to engage in the process yourself. You might have to persuade even the Powers That Be themselves to assist you, but, as usual…
"That is far beyond my current capabilities. Yes I know, you've said it enough times already."
Hmph.
Jaune smiled at that and had continued writing his name, checking and double checking every letter and word. It was painstaking, but it was important to get in the habit of being sure about who you're describing in the Wizardry. Who knows how an inaccurate description could read to a plant or a solar flare? A small change in your height could lead to the air trying to press you down into that size for all you knew.
He finished 'sewing' one end of his name into the template's name section and began on the next. He brought the two disjoint pieces together and lay them onto the dirt a few inches apart. Using his branch, he drew the symbol for joining between them that looped through both the pieces and met itself at a point.
Once he was finished with the name, the intent came next. His intent was basic, clear, and he had written it out before he had even begun his name.
It was a plea to his star's photons to perhaps reconsider their dedication to travel the shortest distance and instead traverse the slightly longer path that curved around his person. They could rejoin their path once they were clear of
"I shall recompense you for the change in your energy and I wish you a happy journey." Jaune read the final portion of his plea out loud. Satisfied, he stood up. "Everything checks out."
You checked all the connections?
"Every single one is great."
Syntax is good?
"I don't know, you tell me. You wrote it."
Alright, great. Now, first you…Wait.
"What is it this ti…Oh."
Staring at him from the entrance to his private clearing, staring at his Wizardry was a girl, looking as surprised as he was at finding her there.
"What are you doing here?!" They both shouted incredulously. Jaune's eyes narrowed at that. He tried to think of something to say, something appropriate to the equivalent to someone opening the bathroom door when you're still conducting your business.
"Are you a Wizard too?" Her brown eyes, previously narrowed in suspicion, now widened in recognition.
Jaune gaped, speechless. He was not prepared for this.
AN: Hey guys, hope you liked the chapter! Sorry, this chapter took a bit longer than I anticipated, surprise classes are a pain to plan around. Anyways, please let me know how you felt about this chapter! Reviews, PMs, favorites, follows, any and all are appreciated. Interacting with readers is a huge part of writing!
