The Tomes: Section VI: Reconfiguration Spells: Swap
To the experienced practitioner in the magickal arts,
Amongst many a discrepancies on what wizards can and cannot accomplish with magick has been the debate for years at Mysidia, however the main problem lies with being able to understand the difference between what cannot be achieved and what has not yet been able to be achieved with magick. One such idea refers to the ability to move one's consciousness into another vessel, or if the very notion is even possible.
Suffice it to say, we have not yet discovered a spell that has those exact results. Instead the labors of magickal research led to the discovery of a different spell. It began with the proposition between myself and Ebon wanting to experiment with the concept of moving one's consciousness to another person or even a properly enchanted object. The reason such a spell was even met with our investigation was due to the ever tempting possibility of cheating death, but there were those who thought of other more temporary uses such as the event that one would ever need to speak with a person that may have been incapacitated into a deep sleep or state of unconsciousness if only to give a final will and testament. With such prospects from a theoretical spell, I embarked.
First we began with experiments on lesser creatures attempting transfer states of minds into the other. The problem laid with the ability to observe any noticeable effects There was not any clear means of discovering whether what we wanted to accomplish had actually taken place. We had even used two different species of animals to see if we could see any changes of behavior. When we did include a dog and a cat into our experiment, the result was the same, but we were still not certain if the consciousness had adapted to the body of the recipient or if all the magickal energies were even affecting the targets. Because of the inability to accurately know what was happening with the spells we sought permission of the Arch Mage of Mysidia to volunteer ourselves as part of the experiments. Because of the many events that had taken place with mind and matter spells between students at Mysidia, rules and sanctions had been implemented to avoid any further death or injury of mages at Mysidia.
I first focused my energies into my mind in order to fully understand every fiber of my being, in a sense, grasp my existence in one large essence. I then diverted my mind simultaneously to Ebon and did the same with his mind. Then I attempted to use the mana around me to exchange these energies between the two of us. When I opened my eyes, I was still looking at Ebon as I did before and it appeared that nothing had actually happened; Ebon indeed noted that he felt transference of energy between the two of us, but noted no obvious change in either of our mental states. After hours of attempting to transfer consciousness between the two of us, we both felt magickally exhausted even though I was the only one of us who was using mana.
The next day, Ebon arrived later to our experiment's session after staying with another pupil and demonstrating various black magick spells. I then proceeded to move the energies between us as I did before and alas nothing had happened. Just as I was attempting to use my magick I noticed that I was somewhat magically exhausted as if I had been casting spells all day. I didn't mind the distraction much as at the time I believed it was the result of me putting too much energy into the spell the first time. I then proceeded to attempt the mental exchange once more but again there was no success for the results I was seeking. As I readied my energies again for further casting of this experimental spell I noted that on every other attempt I felt as if the mana around me had been depleted substantially. It then became apparent to Ebon and I that we were exchanging magickal auras with the spell I was using.
I then conjectured if any other properties were transferred between Ebon and I. I certainly didn't feel any changes to my temperament or personality those dozens of times that I experimented with the spell prior. Before the next session or experiments, I decided to see if the spell transferred any vitality properties between targets. I decided to spend much of the day exerting myself physically as to make a difference between myself and Ebon in the same manner that he has magickally exhausted the day before. When we began our experiments, I made certain not to appear tired as to not let Ebon know what I was testing for during the session. Continuing, I casted the spell with relative ease and after the "transference" Ebon was taken aback with fatigue that I accumulated throughout the day and asked what I had done to the spell. I informed him of what I had done differently to see if the spell would reflect such a change.
Subsequent tests involved the unpleasantness of sustaining physical harm from physical and magickal sources. To our surprise, the spell not only transferred the pain, but also similar wounds from respective sources of spells. One thing that Ebon noted was that Basunic and Esunic status changes, as well as aura enhancements did not get transferred. Only directly associated traits with target's own natural being are affected by the spell.
Normally, white magick is not an area one would consider to have offensive capabilities, especially considering that black magick has been stated before as to be designated for offensive properties of magick. However, there are few spells that fall under this category in the domain of white magick. While black magick has spells such as Drain and Osmose to replenish lost energy, physical or mana respectfully. Thanks to the spell being crafted by this white mage, the Swap spell has been categorized and attributed to white magick. True to white magick, this spell cannot kill but still used as a means of incapacitating an opponent.
The engergies between us are not secure, what is yours is mine and mine now yours. Swap!"
This spell is very situational; what energy that is swapped cannot be contained beyond the capacity of the recipient. In a way, a person with a low capacity for vitality or endurance can never retain the energy of a target with a high capacity, instead the maximum energy retainable by the recipient is held onto. However, the excess energy is dispersed and therefore removed from potential foes. Because of this, it is sometimes advisable to use it on the strongest of foes to quickly diminish their health, due to the fact that those types of opponents will not fair with the amount of vitality you exchanged with them. This strategy comes at a cost because the contrary holds true with spellcasters such as us. If one does choose to use Swap on warrior type opponents, one must be prepared for a significantly diminished mana supply.
This spell certainly is not an opening action against magickal foes. However, I have found it to be more useful for mages in in another specific scenario in which the caster is running low on mana. Though it is a desperate gambit to attempt on enemy mages, it can turn the tide in a clash of the elements.
Though the spells that have been covered throughout this series are indeed exceptional, there are some spells that are beyond the types of spells in books up until this point. These spells are for the masterful practitioners of magick.
Iv, High White Mage
(Well, it has certainly been a long time now hasn't it? Readers old and new alike, I hope you enjoy my return to complete this work. Less than 10 chapters/spells remain.)