Soul of a Human

As Mor and Snow were just about to sit down to continue the magic training, they were both surprised by voices shouting.

"What was that?!" The first voice shouted.

"That was incredible!" The second one added.

"Are you stupid?" The third one finished.

Mor and Snow were so occupied with their little bout that they didn't notice the arrival of the intruders. Mor looked surprised at the three figures.

"Orth, Clare and Saphine?" Mor asked, surprised. "Since when are you all here?"

"Since you tried beating up the ice-kin," Orth answered for them all.

°Seems that we offered quite a show.° The human said, and Mor had to agree. °Look at the girls!° The human teased, and Mor realized only then he was still bare-chested.

"Are you alright?" Clare asked, not looking Mor in the eyes.

"Yes, Clare, I'm fine. I wanted to test myself against Snow. I needed to get my frustration about the magic training out." Mor answered, walking over to pick up the top part of his robe, wincing as he bent down.

"You're not fine, I saw that," Clare exclaimed and rushed over to Mor. "Let me heal you!"

"You don't need to, nothing to worry about." Mor tried to calm her down after putting his clothes back on.

"Shut up and sit down. No complaining." Clare said sternly, while Snow smiled and the human giggled.

Mor let out a sigh but decided to not resist the medical attention. After he sat down, Clare put her hands on his back and let her healing magic flow into him. The warmth spread through Mor's body, slowly relieving his pain.

"Where did you learn to move like that?" Orth asked, and Snow perked up, also interested in the answer.

Mor shrugged and got a light slap from Clare on the back of his head. "Don't move." She chided him.

"Sorry, Clare," Mor said before answering Orth's question. "I just made it up. I saw how Snow moved while she beat Ranbor and just emulated it with some imaginations of my own." He lied.

Snow and Orth looked skeptical at that explanation, and Snow was the first to speak again.

"Then you are a real genius in unarmed combat." She said, still not fully trusting his explanation.

"Something is strange. Tell us the truth, commoner!" Saphine added, and Mor fixed her with an intense stare.

"I told you the truth. It was all made up in my mind," Mor said, deciding to add a piece of the truth but keeping his tone insistent that even Orth and Snow had to grudgingly accept this. For now...

Saphine looked away, and Mor could swear she was turning slightly red. He then sighed.

"Listen, Saphine." He began and was interrupted by Saphine. "I let it slide once, but you will address me properly as Lady Sapphire."

Mor raised an eyebrow at that declaration, while Orth sighed and Clare also let out a breath.

"As you wish, my lady," Mor said. "I just wanted to apologize for the last time I acted very rudely. You didn't deserve this for being concerned with Lord Obsidian." Mor could just barely hold out the sarcasm he felt.

"Good, I will be so gracious to forgive you." Saphine said, "Was this all you wanted me here for, Orth?" She asked the other boy, who nodded in surprise.

"Yes, that was it. I think." Orth said.

"Good, then I will take my leave." Saphine glanced at Mor quickly and unintelligibly before huffing and leaving.

She just turned a corner and wanted to scream. Why was she reacting like that? She almost couldn't keep a straight face looking at the commoner, but now she gets what Clare had told her.

Seeing a body like this up close is nothing like seeing it from the distance of the tournament stands. Trying to get the picture out of her head, she decided to go to the library and read.

"Well, that was something," Orth said after Saphine had left.

"Yes." Mor said, "I think I made it worse."

"Don't worry, she is a nice girl but a bit stiff," Clare said. "Also, I'm done. All damage to your body is fixed."

"What?" Mor asked, surprised.

"What do you mean, "what?" I fixed whatever you did to damage your body like that. There is no damage left," Clare said.

°Well, so much to a good, exhausting training session...° The human complained.

°She only ment well.° Mor answered.

"Thanks, Clare," Mor said. "You are really talented. I felt almost nothing of your magic working. That's very impressive."

°WE ARE STUPID!° The human suddenly shouted.

°What, why?° Mor asked.

°Healing magic!° The human stated as if it was obvious.

°I don´t get it?° Mor was confused.

°We also can use healing magic, well you can, but still!° The human went on.

°So?° Mor still not getting what the human went on.

°Clare used subtle slow magic! Like we also do while reducing pain... How can you be so dense!° The human complained, and finally, it clicked with Mor.

Clare, Snow, and Orth flinched when Mor suddenly cried out.

"I got it! Snow a crystal, please!" Mor asked excitedly and got handed one by the woman.

And Snow handed over another crystal piece. Mor closed his eyes, imagining the crystal as not a strange stone but a magical being. Using the magic regenerating spell he learned from Amber, remembering that if someone is suffering from magic deficiency, you need to start giving them only a small amount of magic, and he slowly lets the magic flow from him.

He couldn't gather the magic around him, so he used his reservoir. This time, the crystal didn't shatter. Instead, it started to hum slightly, getting stronger with every passing moment.

Snow watched in amazement as the humm got sharper and sharper until she could not hear it anymore. Instead, a glow built inside the crystal piece.

"Amazing." She said, Clare and Orth nodding in amazement.

Mor felt a resistance building in the crystal and decided to stop, opening his eyes.

"Wow, this thing took about half my energy," Mor said as he held up the crystal, looking at it from every angle. He then smiled at Snow. "I did it!"

Snow nodded, "Indeed, but you should have used the surrounding energy." She half chided the excited boy.

"Right... But now I think I have a good idea of what to do. The only thing left is to use another source," Mor said, then asked his next question, "How do I get the energy out of that crystal again?"

Snow looked at him, surprised. "You don't? Once the magic is in there, it can't be pulled out again. It's only possible to "transform" the emitting aura. Otherwise, the energy will dissipate slowly on its own. By using the crystal for attacks or by transforming the energy, it just gets empty faster. But this transformation technique is unique to the stone-kin. I don't know it." She explained, and Mor sighed.

°Fuck! Why is this magic shit so full of limitations!° The human cursed. °We make a single step forward, and then always end up in a dead end!°

°Well, at least we know how to feel the surrounding energy.° Mor tried to calm the human.

°True enough, and maybe this thing with the crystal comes in handy sometimes.° The human said, calming a bit.

°I already have an idea for this.° Mor said. °Crystals are also a kind of stone, right? So if we "fill" one, it gets this aura, which can penetrate the defenses of a monstrosity. This means that we are more effective than any other soul-kin against monstrosities.°

°You are right! And if it works against those things, it probably is very hard for other mages to defend against!° The human went on.

°Good thinking, meaning the next step, is getting the energy around to the crystal and, after that, modifying the technique to fill your reservoir faster!°

"What did you just do, Mor?" Orth asked.

"I just filled this crystal with energy," Mor answered proudly.

"And that does?" Orth went on while Clare listened interestedly.

"Well, Snow explained it gives the Crystal a magic penetrating aura, making it more lethal against monstrosities," Mor explained, and Orth let out a whistle after Snow confirmed Mors's tale with a nod.

"Might I try it?" asked Orth, and Mor looked questioning at Snow, who shrugged.

"I told you. It's your decision." She said.

"Then Orth, just slowly let your magic flow into the crystal. Like you want to heal it," Mor explained, and just as with him, Orth's first crystal instantly shattered.

"Too much energy." Mor joked, and Orth looked annoyed at the tone.

"I want to try, too!" Clare said and got herself a crystal from Snow. Then she began concentrating on "healing" the stone, and to the surprise of everyone, she succeeded on her first try.

"It's not that hard." She said, and both boys groaned at that.