4E 201, 9 Evening Star

The next day found Ako's expectations unpleasantly validated. They packed up camp while it was raining gently, but as soon as they got going and left the protection of the cleft, the rain and sleet intensified. Descending through the clouds as they were, along with occasional gusts of icy wind that cut to the bone despite thick clothing, the Khajiit had to resort to a flame cloak spell to keep warm.

While the flames kept him warm, it couldn't keep him properly dry – it was raining too heavily for that. He would have to increase the flames' power to a degree that was hazardous for his clothing and luggage if he wanted to remain dry in this weather.

The Arch-Mage also offered Lydia a similar spell, which she declined. He proceeded to demonstrate the maturity as befit his position by grumbling loudly about the unfairness of Nordic constitutions. While he was mostly exaggerating, his complaints brought a smile to Lydia's face, which made it worth it for Ako.

They reached the treeline not long after what Ako would guess to be noon – the grey, miserable weather prevented any clue to the sun's location from being visible. He was pleased with their progress despite how treacherous the steps became. The rain had mostly let up as they got below the clouds.

The Khajiit was surprised to note quite a few deer and elk huddling under trees near the path, and even more surprised when they didn't move as they drew closer. Despite being covered in billowing flames, the animals didn't show any fear of him and Lydia while they passed. Some were even within touching distance of him and still remained still. Even rabbits, notoriously skittish, calmly hopped across the path, ignoring their presence.

Lydia seemed just as baffled, and despite discussing it for some time, they couldn't figure out a reason for the animals' calmness. They gave up after an hour, just as a fox ambled past them, equally unconcerned about the human and Khajiit as its prey was.

Soon after, it felt like the wind gained extra teeth and the air grew colder. Ako presumed this meant that the sun had disappeared behind the peak. Ivarstead was still a good three hours away, not that they were intending to stay there.

He remembered a cave marked on his map called Pinepeak Cavern, which was about thirty minutes southwest of the town. While it wasn't their original destination, on account of being a known bear lair, Ako was curious to see if the strange nonchalance animals had towards him and Lydia also extended to apex predators like bears. If not, the Arch-Mage was more than happy to evict any bears if needed.

In the end, no eviction was necessary, the Khajiit leaving Vokrenkun stowed with an odd note of regret. The bears (three of them) were hibernating when they arrived and didn't stir a muscle as they set up camp. Usually, even hibernating bears would wake up if someone entered their lair, but these ones didn't care. Seemingly, even bears were ignoring them like other animals.

He still set a few traps when he went to bed, just in case, but didn't expect anything to trigger them.

4E 201, 10 Evening Star

As expected, the traps were undisturbed the next morning. The weather had worsened somewhat, the main brunt of the storm arriving over the valley, with heavy rain continuing without abating. They ducked past Ivarstead's northern outskirts, not noticing anyone braving the weather, and turned north to follow the river.

After around three hours of following the river on its eastern bank, a rancid stench assaulted Ako's nose. Lydia wasn't as affected, but she could smell it as well. Creeping closer revealed a troll nest under an overhang next to the river, several corpses and skeletons strewn about. Its owner was sleeping or possibly hibernating, tucked against the back wall of the nest.

Unfortunately, it was soon woken by Lydia's hiss of anger when she saw the Riften Guards' armour that clad some of the corpses. It quickly made clear that whatever blessing made animals docile did not extend to trolls, or perhaps not to maneaters. Ako initially thought the aggression might be because they were at its lair, but that was clearly false given the previous night's lodgings at Pikepeak Cavern. There was no smell of human blood at or near the cave, which left the maneater theory still plausible.

Thankfully, the troll was apparently still somewhat affected by its sleep, giving Ako more than enough time to charge and focus a powerful thunderbolt before it could take more than a few steps. The Khajiit would have killed it anyway due to its predilection for long pork. As the lightning hit and hissed its path through the troll, it collapsed with muscles quivering.

It was likely dead already, but Lydia made sure by removing its head, giving it a few kicks as the head rolled to the bottom of the nest. Ako merely shook his head and ordered her to start preparing the various guards for a more respectful end. He investigated the troll body for alchemy ingredients, but most of the blubber had been crackled and boiled by the lightning, rendering it useless for alchemy.

Moving on to the more human bodies, he was surprised to find a body covered by enchanted robes. A deeper investigation revealed a Dark Elf with only a dagger as armament, as well as some spell books on necromancy. This was clearly a mage, likely an aspiring necromancer. Securing the books and divesting the mage of his enchanted robes, he turned to help Lydia with the guards and apparent civilians'.

Soon enough, the bodies were stacked on a makeshift pyre which Ako lit with a fierce fire spell. The little wood they could find was quickly consumed despite being soaked by the rain, and Ako continued channelling some magic to ensure the bodies burned cleanly as well. The troll's head was stuck on a rough pike that Lydia had quickly whittled, leaving a message that any search party would be able to understand once spring rolled around and they were sent out.

He offered a short prayer as the flames died down. "May Arkay guide you to Sovngarde."

Lydia looked much calmer when they set out again, enough that Ako felt the need to comment. "Feeling better?"

She was surprised to hear him speak – most of their journey had been in an easy silence – but responded quickly. "Yes, thank you, my Thane. Thank you for allowing me to treat my comrades' bodies with the honour they deserved."

Ako nodded. "It was the right thing to do."

They continued north for a while before fording the river at some rapids. The western bank was guarded by a pair of sabre cats, just as docile as the animals of the day before. They would serve as an excellent way to throw potential pursuers off their trail, assuming the likelihood that the blessing was confined to him and Lydia only. Not that any normal pursuer would go out in this weather, if there even were any on their trail.

He was fairly sure that the blessing was the aegis that appeared when they read the last tablet on their way up to High Hrothgar, which meant that it was almost certainly Kyne who blessed them. He offered a quick thank you prayer to Her. Despite not being a follower, the blessing had proved useful, and he had no desire to antagonise a goddess that had helped him. Who knows what misfortune would befall him if he took it for granted? Better to never find out.

They made camp in a ruined farmhouse about an hour away from the river, a track winding north where the river headed more east. There was still an hour or two before dusk, but they were all too grateful to get out of the rain that hadn't let up at all through the day. Once the tent had been erected, Ako dug the mage's robe and hood from his pack and called Lydia over.

"Once we get to the main road, I want you to wear this robe and hood. It will help with the disguise, and I'll also teach you some of the basics for healing as we travel tomorrow," he said.

Lydia accepted the enchanted clothes, but held back a bit before hesitantly asking a question. "My Thane…? Won't it be suspicious to carry my armour while wearing robes?"

The Khajiit looked confused for a second before realising what she meant. "Ah, yes. Just wear it over your armour. Many battlemages do something similar, and your sword can be explained with the same reasoning. They tend to also be proficient in Restoration, so that fits as well."

The Nord nodded at his explanation. "Thank you, my Thane. If I may ask, where did you get the robes?" she asked with a curious note.

"From the necromancer at the troll's lair. Wasn't a skilled one, given the troll killed him. Might even be yet another instance of the age-old tale of an overconfident wizard being killed by the monster they supposedly had under control." The Arch-Mage looked up from his dismissive comments to see Lydia holding the robes at arm's length, a look of disgust on her face.

"What is it? I cleaned it thoroughly after I took it. The enchantment is garbage, yes, but it'll do until we get to Winterhold and I can enchant something properly for you." He was confused by her sudden change in demeanour.

"My Thane! You can't ask me to wear a necromancer's robes!" she hissed in response.

This didn't help Ako understand at all. "Why not? It isn't tainted by the dead, and it isn't decorated with the Necromancer's Hand. Oblivion, the enchantment is a basic magicka regenerating one, it isn't even specifically useful for necromancy."

"My Thane! I would dishonour you and myself if I wore this, it would declare that I aim to be a necromancer myself!" The housecarl was clearly worried about this.

The Khajiit sighed. "Forgive me if I seem inconsiderate, I didn't grow up with Skyrim's particular neuroses about magic. Let me ask you, if you were to fight a bandit with a particularly high-quality sword, would you take their sword as a trophy and use it? Or would you discard it the same as you do their body? These robes are a trophy as well, poor though it may be."

Lydia seemed largely placated and calmer, but Ako went on regardless. "The only reason I call that Dunmer a necromancer is because of the spellbooks he had on him – it was only necromantic spells. He might well be completely innocent and just carried them around to sell, or some other reason. I'm carrying the books to secure them in the College's library. Am I a necromancer now? Besides, it's not as if necromancy is illegal."

The Nord was clearly shocked at this. "But! It's… not?"

The Arch-Mage quirked a small smile. "To the best of my knowledge, nowhere in Skyrim is necromancy forbidden. Murder is, as it should be, and people tend to get reasonably upset if you disturb their family's graves, but necromancy itself is perfectly allowed. Due to the shortage of subject materials, you need to get special permission to study it at the college, but it is perfectly legal.

"I do not condone fiddling with sentient souls, not that most necromancy ever touches the soul, but I can think of occasions where the knowledge is needed, and that knowledge can only be gained through experience and study. Winterhold does not have many bandits, but the unrepentant monsters tend to end in an experiment of one kind or another."

Ako had been forced to reconsider his strict stance on experimentation with black souls after he agreed to help the Companions with their lycanthropy. The theory might be sound, but it was useless without testing it in practice to confirm its validity. He hadn't applied any of his knowledge on the topic yet, but it was looking likely that he would have to in order to cure the warriors.

He'd have to see if he could get in touch with Falion over in Morthal, as the preeminent expert on souls in Skyrim. He made a mental note to visit the conjurer when they went to Ustengrav. Hopefully he wouldn't be too annoyed at the College rather than at Savos.

"I hope that alleviates your worries?"

Lydia didn't look fully satisfied but answered nonetheless, a stoic expression plastered on her face. "Yes, my Thane. I apologise for my insolence. I await your judgement."

The Khajiit waved it off. "I accept your apology and offer my own; I apologise for tripping over a taboo. I did not grow up in Skyrim and I am not aware of all the subjects that are stigmatised." He smirked as he added, "If I do cause offence, it is usually not malicious. Usually." They shared a chuckle at the thought of certain characters that tended to be on the receiving end of sharper barbs.

4E 201, 11 Evening Star

The next day passed without much to take notice of. They made their way north while the rain continued with no end in sight. At one point, they cross a deep ravine carved out by a roaring river cascading down the slopes of the Throat of the World. The rain had swollen the river to make any ford utterly suicidal to use, but luckily for the travellers, a massive pine had ended up wedged across the chasm.

Ako couldn't recall ever seeing a tree of comparable size, though the trees of Valenwood were known to be larger. He was curious how it ended up where it was, since it was too high above the water to have been carried down in some flood, and far too big to be dragged up the mountain if someone wanted to use it as a bridge.

The Khajiit crossed easily – the pine was wide and despite being wet, he had no difficulties at all in maintaining his balance. Lydia was more circumspect, and only crossed after Ako had assured her that he'd catch her with a telekinesis spell if she started to fall for some reason. He punctuated the promise by lifting her into the air with the same spell, prompting a rather undignified squeal from the housecarl. Ako apologised immediately but couldn't help snickering.

Reaching the northern side of the gorge answered the question about the log's origin: it had grown on the edge of the chasm and fell over at some point. The roots were still visible, apparently healthy, while a substantial outcropping prevented the tree from rolling down the valley. Without being covered in tar or the like, the log would eventually decay, though it was high enough that the cold would ensure it took a long time and remain a safe crossing until then.

They made camp under the awning of an old Nordic tomb, named Hillgrund's Tomb according to Ako's maps. The morning came with a pleasant surprise: the clouds had largely cleared, and the sun was visible for the first time since they had left High Hrothgar. Today they would join the main road from Whiterun to Eastmarch and the Rift, with one more night on the road before they reached Whiterun.

4E 201, 12 Evening Star

Lydia reflected how her life had changed as she helped to pack up the camp: from being appointed housecarl to the Dragonborn to speaking with the Greybeards, from feeling incensed at her Thane's refusal to attack the vampire lair to feeling hopeless as his housecarl, from reluctantly following orders to receiving his praise as the best possible choice for the role. From lying broken on the snow from one careless word to being promised training to stand firm and contribute against dragons with magic.

Cultural icons, mythical creatures, personal strife, confronting taboos, personal growth. And it hadn't even been two weeks. Somehow, she knew this was but the beginning of her journey and her transformation was far from complete. And while the prospects of change were daunting, she felt assured and confident that it was the correct path for her. Speaking of.

As they got under way, she spoke up. "My Thane? Could you tell me more about the strengthening magics you mentioned?"

The Arch-Mage visibly perked up despite the hood obscuring his face. "By all means! Now, before we can get you to understand and use PHEW, I first need to know how much you know of magic and magicka. Can you cast any spells?"

"I know nothing except to recognize when a mage might be casting a spell, my Thane. I cannot cast any spells." Her Thane let out a keening whine of pain, so clearly acting that she couldn't help giggling.

After giving a great heaving mock sigh of despair, he continued cheerily. "Well, in that case, we'll just start from scratch. It's been a while since I taught basic magic theory, always good to get practice in.

"Firstly, when I talk about magic, I speak of someone using magicka to bring about some effect in the world, such as a ball of fire, healing, or calling forth an atronach. Magicka is energy that its users spend to have some effect. This energy comes from Aetherius and the fabric of Materia, where the Divines dwell, and flows to Nirn through the holes left by Magnus and the Magna-Ge as they fled Lorkhan's Betrayal.

"You don't really have to know all the details, as long as you know roughly where it comes from and how it behaves. I must also add that magicka is not the only method of achieving something like magic. You've seen me use the Thu'um, which uses something else to power it. There is Shadow Magic, which I don't understand, very, very few people do, and then there is also Tonal Magic, which no one understands and is what the Dwemer used before they disappeared. You don't need to worry about the others, though I won't stop you if you want to learn. I'm sure you'll learn enough of the Thu'um from me as I learn more of it.

"Anyway, magicka flows to Nirn from the holes in the sky, and then what? This energy is now here, how can we do anything with it? As it turns out, any soul can manipulate it and spend the energy to obtain some effect. This is part of the reason why soul gems are used for enchantments. You have a soul, and with it you can manipulate magicka. Helpfully, magicka seems to be attracted to souls as well, meaning it tends to congregate in and around where souls are, that is, our bodies."

Lydia didn't grasp everything from the explanation of magicka, but the basics made sense. She was confused by the idea of magicka being attracted to souls. Some of her confusion must have shown on her face as her Thane fell silent for a minute before waving at the river on their right and continuing.

"Let's explain it with this handy prop we have here. Let's imagine that magicka is like water. Water will flow from high ground to low ground until it reaches the ocean. To do this, it will follow the easiest path it can. I'm sure you've noticed it is easier to walk downhill than uphill? Water is the same, that's why there are no waterfalls that go upwards. If we place a rock in the stream, the water will try and go around the rock rather than over.

"With this understanding of water, we can look at magicka and see it flow from Aetherius to somewhere else, Oblivion perhaps, and the easiest path for it is to go past or through souls. If you cast a spell, it is akin to using your hands to scoop up some of the water and throw it somewhere else. Skilled mages use a bucket, and the really powerful mages use a water wheel. As you learn more, you can use more magicka for spells."

The Khajiit darted off the road and stopped at the river's edge, picking up a big branch that had washed down. She followed, enthralled by his instruction. Her Thane clearly enjoyed teaching and got her engaged with the topic without her notice.

He continued. "Let's pretend this branch is a soul. If I stick it in the water, notice how the water clings to it, how the water wants to flow along the branch? Also, notice that the water that went past the branch flows slower than the water that is unimpeded? Magicka does that with souls. Bigger branches affect more water, just like bigger souls can draw more magicka. And because the magicka lingers with the soul for a while, moving slower, it is easier to use the slowed magicka than the direct flow.

"If I try to scoop some water straight from the flow, it's difficult to get a full hand, it just spills out with the residual speed or pushes my hands back. In contrast, the slower water is easy to scoop up." He demonstrated by scooping up a few handfuls of water. "So it is easier to use your own reserve of magicka for spells than the magicka in the environment around you, but that is not impossible – you just need skill."

They moved back to the road and continued travelling north while her Thane carried on his lecture. "We've established that souls inherently slow down and collect magicka. And there's not much you can do about your inherent talent for magic – you have it, or you don't. But there are other ways to improve the magicka pool you have access to.

"Let's say you had a natural pool in the river, and you decided to dig it deeper, perhaps during the dry season. More water will collect, and it will move slower. Applied to magicka, by exhausting your magicka pool and practicing and meditating, you will almost certainly increase the magicka you have access to.

"Of course, the converse is true as well. Like a channel in the river, if you don't use it, it can silt up and become clogged with sediment. This reduces the water flow and can completely cut it off in bad cases. This is not permanent, but it does make it difficult to recover, and the longer you go without using magic, the more difficult it is to start using it.

"This is a common problem for Nords given the cultural bias against magic. Luckily for you, you have me here to help you overcome this problem. We'll be flooding your system to wash it out, creating a flood to clear out the silt and sediment. Please hold onto the head of Vokrenkun while I channel some magicka through you."

Her Thane had removed his strange weapon from his back and held the hammer end in her direction. She duly grabbed hold of the malachite hammer, marvelling at the weapon's construction. Didn't he say something about having made it himself?

"Vokrenkun is enchanted to collect and focus magicka in addition to my own – a canal if we continue our analogy from before. Now, the first step to using any magicka is to learn to feel it. So, once I start channelling, concentrate and see if you can feel anything different. It should hopefully be obvious, since I'll be forcing a lot of magicka through you. I'll start channelling in three, two, one, now!"

Lydia closed her eyes and focused on her hands, feeling for anything out of place. She felt a tickle on her hands that disappeared with a faint trail leading up her arms. She frowned and tried to follow the trail without success. This went on for some time before she became aware of an itch on her lower back.

Once she focused on it, the itch gained texture and became… more. It was as if someone had taken a feather made of flames and tickled her kidneys from the inside. It burned and itched and tickled without pain, a distinctly disconcerting feeling. As if waking from a daze, she noticed the itch moving about inside her, joined by innumerable identical itches all over her ribs, all moving about with a slow, infinitely fast pace as they tickled.

As the concerted assault on her ribs and sanity gained pace, she felt bloated, swelling up with something flowing up through her arms. Instinctively, she let go of the hammer and ripped her hands away. This stopped her from blowing up even more, but it did nothing about the existing fullness. She opened her mouth to belch but giggled instead, floundering as the tickling increased in intensity.

Out of options, she resorted to forcing the itch out, clawing, scooping, shovelling, and throwing it back the way it came. As some of the itch reached her fingers and thankfully escaped, she heard an alarmed yelp and a fwoosh sound coming from somewhere in that direction. That didn't matter, she had to get rid of the itch!

She cracked open her eyes as she forced the last of the itch out and stared in astonishment. Billowing red flames tinged white and gold were splashing off a shimmering blue-white distortion emanating from Vokrenkun's hammer end. Tracing the flames back led to her outstretched arms pointing at her Thane. Was she responsible for the flames?

Her thoughts were interrupted by her Thane breaking out into a deep belly laugh. She couldn't muster the energy to be annoyed as she usually would, the relief from the tickling leaving her blissfully relaxed. She ambled over to a big rock at the side of the road and lay down on its flat top, sprawling out in the sun.

Eventually, her Thane managed to compose himself. "Bravo Lydia, bravo! That was excellent, even if rather unexpected." He pulled out a notebook, still grinning widely. "Would you mind describing what you felt?"

She slowly explained what had happened, struggling to find words to describe the itch. Her Thane was nodding along and making notes. He closed the notebook as she finished speaking and they started walking again.

"Right, you'll be glad to hear that you clearly don't suffer from stagnant magicka, so we don't have to do this specific exercise again."

Lydia couldn't help the shudder at the thought, making her Thane chuckle before he continued.

"The magicka I pushed through you was, for lack of a better word, 'flavoured' by my soul. When you forced it out, you thought of it as a flame, and thus it turned into flames, albeit horrendously inefficiently. But that is a matter of practice.

"Anyway. The way you feel magicka is unique to you, no two people perceive it exactly the same. But the way you describe it as fast and slow and everything in between is fairly common in descriptions. You've felt magicka flavoured by me. I now want you to look for magicka that is flavoured by you.

"It will have some similarity with what mine felt like, and given that you're not constantly being tickled, it's probably the fast and slow part. Let me know when you find it and we'll move on to the next exercise in harnessing magicka. This might take a while, but given how easy you found it to expel mine, I suspect it won't take long. Oh, and if you have any questions, by all means, ask them."

They walked in comfortable silence while Lydia tried to feel for the magicka collected by her soul. Noon came and went, and two stone towers rose on the horizon, looming above a great waterfall. Lydia knew these towers to be Valtheim, an old watchtower and fort at the narrowest point of the pass. It was the gateway from Whiterun to the west to Eastmarch and Riften in the east, and of great strategic value.

Unfortunately, the war had forced the Jarl to move guards away from this post and focus on the vastly more open plains northeast of the city. Whitewatch Tower served as the central point for roaming patrols, and she'd been posted there for much of the year. The lack of guards at Valtheim, however, meant that it was a prime target for bandits, highly defensible and on a central road.

There were reports of merchant attacks, but very few merchants travelled this late in the year, so Lydia didn't know if the towers were home to a bandit group at the moment. It was still a good hour's travel away, so she refocused on finding magicka collecting around her soul.

By the time they reached Valtheim, she was getting frustrated. She'd had a few glimpses of something that might be her magicka, but couldn't grasp it. The glimpses felt like they were getting easier, so hopefully that was progress. She would have to ask her Thane about it.

A Redguard woman walked out of the shadow of the tower and stopped in the middle of the road. Lydia cautiously put her hand on her sword, pulling it slightly out of its sheath. Her Thane just continued walking, apparently completely unconcerned about it. What was he planning? Surely he knew that the Redguard was a bandit?

Just as the probable bandit opened her mouth, her Thane spoke, his voice ringing light and airy. "Do you really think it is wise to try and rob me? Why don't you let me through, or do I need to show that I have right of passage?"

The bandit had paled rather dramatically and couldn't get out of the way fast enough. "Uh, now that you mention it, that does sound like a good idea. No toll, have a good day."

Lydia couldn't hide her surprise – very few bandits ever decided against attacking their targets, no matter who they were targeting. Walking faster to catch up with her Thane, she looked behind to see that the bandit had disappeared into the tower. They'd have to make sure that the bandit group didn't come after them with more members. Looking over at her Thane, she asked, "My Thane, did you cast a spell on the bandit to make her give up?"

He chuckled. "Nope, not a thing. She probably just realised that attacking two mages who were as confident as we were is not the greatest idea. If she didn't back off, I had spells ready to take her down and I probably would've left a Dremora or two to clear out the tower. Speaking of two mages, how's it going with finding your magicka?"

Lydia blinked slightly as she was reminded of the robes she wore over her armour. It had quickly become unnoticeable, so she could see why battlemages would wear their robes over their armour. Hearing her Thane's question, Lydia shamefully admitted, "I've only managed to get a few glimpses, my Thane, I have not managed to grasp it yet."

"Pah!" her Thane responded. "Don't be ashamed, that's excellent work! I am pleasantly surprised you managed to get this far already! For someone who has never touched magicka until today, you're making remarkable progress."

Fighting down a blush, she muttered, "Thank you, my Thane," and walked faster to get away from the grin she could hear in her Thane's voice.

They continued following the road north and made camp as the sun disappeared behind the Throat of the World. They were back in Whiterun Hold now, and Lydia knew the area well enough to know that they were about halfway between Valtheim Towers and the Ritual Stone.

She'd continued to try and find her magicka as they walked, the docility of predator and prey alike allowing her to largely ignore her surroundings. Her Thane had explained that he thought Kyne had blessed them when they ascended High Hrothgar. Lydia made sure to give thanks whenever she saw an elk grazing calmly next to the road, or when they had to walk around a sabre cat sleeping off its meal of deer in the middle of the road.

She was starting to get a feel for magicka flavoured by her soul – a tiny trickle of sturdy rock covered in a thin layer of ice, slowly speeding down her spine. Unfortunately, any touches she managed were few and fleeting, every attempt causing the trickle to evaporate like mist in the noon sun.

She was relieved to note that the magicka felt completely natural. The housecarl couldn't imagine living the rest of her life if her magicka was anything like her Thane's – she'd go mad in seconds! She flinched when her Thane lit the fire with magic, phantom itches teasing down her arms. The reminder came as she was contemplating her previous exposure, forcing her to shiver.

Her Thane looked over at her, apparently ignorant of her plight. "How's it going? Any luck with finding your magicka?"

The Nord explained her results and was rewarded with a contemplative hum from her Thane.

"Hmm… say, you mentioned shovelling and clawing earlier when you got rid of my magicka? Yet you describe your magicka as being a tiny trickle. Maybe try a gentler approach? I mean, you don't use a bucket to try and empty a thimble. I have no idea if it'll work, manipulating magicka is very personal and specific to each person. But I think it's worth a try."

Her Thane shrugged. "Anyway, once you manage to control some of your magicka, I want you to try and move it around your body. It doesn't have to be a lot of magicka, just a bit to get you used to it. Just keep it moving around your body for as long as you can. It will eventually dissipate, but it is a great exercise to both get you used to manipulating magicka and practising control – no matter how skilled or old you are, controlling your magicka is of paramount importance if you want to make the most of your potential."

The rest of the evening passed in a contented silence. Her Thane was writing something in a notebook, interspersed with periods of deep meditation. A magelight was floating over his shoulder, giving a pleasant soft yellow glow to their camp. Lydia focused on her magicka, trying to gently scoop or ladle it around her body. While she hadn't had any great success by the time they went to sleep, she felt she was getting close.

AN: Great thanks to AshesToDusts for providing his betaing services again. I trust everyone had a merry festive season, and since this is going out about 3 hours before local midnight on New Year's Eve, I wish everyone a happy and prosperous 2023!

It's been a hot minute since the last chapter, and for that I apologise. But my postgrad studies have been putting me through the wringer, eating up just about all my time and energy. Another part of the delay was that the AN in chapter 11 was a complete lie – this is but the middle part of what was supposed to be chapter 10. Blame Ako, he likes to ramble and lecture. Chapters 13 and 14 are off to Ashes for proofreading, so they'll probably drop in a week and two weeks from now. Chapter 14 finally brings Arc 1 to an end (where Arc 0 finished in chapter 4). Arc 2 is planned out, though given how Arc 1 went, I have no idea how long it'll take me to write that. I'm hoping to have chapter 15 done in a month at most (since I still have a week or so of holiday before getting back to the grindstone), but who knows how long that will take in the end.

This chapter went into a bit of a dive about how (one of) the magic system in my interpretation of Nirn works. Feel free to post questions in reviews if you want to know more, or if something is unclear, or pop over to SV under the same name and username if you want to discuss it in a more forum format. I'll also post my cheat sheet I've sketched out for all the magic (that I'm aware of) in this Aurbis over there if there is demand for it.

Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed it.