Elody

Elody wasn't happy at the presence of a weaver mother within Alexandria, still, even if it had been a pocket universe owned by Timon. The fact that she was now gone, back off to her own world with whatever bits of fate she had gleaned from Dave, made it all the worse. She would have a long talk with Timon about this one day, even if she had to wait until Mel returned.

But right now, she needed to focus on something else that she had unexpectantly unlocked. Her body-modification mana orb had evolved. She suspected the energies of the pseudo-dungeon had something to do with it, and it would explain why the idea of mana orb evolution was still somewhat of a mystery. Most people, at least those who studied the field or those who had used one for a long enough time without turning it into a core pearl, were aware of the existence of the phenomenon, but not much beyond that.

That discussion was what had brought her to Karlinovo's lab today. She had been unwilling to resocket the orb until she learned more about what had changed. And while normally that would have forced her to take the risk and learn from returning it to her core, she had access to an expert that most people did not.

"I'm sorry, I didn't realize you had company," Elody said as she entered the lab, interrupting a bit of small talk Karlinovo was in with an older man. Wait, she knew that man. She had met him before at a conference and had read at least a hundred of his books.

"Henjen?" she asked, surprised.

"Ah, so it's true. One of the brightest new paladins in even my long memory has joined up with this faction. You've certainly found yourself in the thick of strange alliances since your resurrection," Henjen said, standing up and nodding his head slightly toward Elody as he spoke.

"Ivan, I thought we agreed to keep that silent," Elody said, worried about what the man had told Henjen, respected expert or not. When had he even arrived? Elody was shocked. She hadn't known he was coming.

"Henjen knows what not to say out loud. Plus, the room is mostly shielded right now. It only let you in because your core signature is on the all-clear list. But let's also try to keep his visit a bit quiet as well. Apparently, certain things have changed in the academic world in my absence. But we can discuss that later. What brings you to the lab today, Elody?" Karlinovo's look told Elody enough.

He obviously didn't want her to press anything about Henjen being here yet. Considering these two had a long and not altogether peaceful past, she thought she understood at least part of it. But considering how much the Spiral had become openly hostile to knowledge institutions as of late, she suspected there was more to this visit.

For now, though, she would settle for just learning more about her mana orb evolution. After all, she now had two of the biggest experts in the field to ask about it. That was a fortuitous turn of events, no matter the reason, and she wasn't about to waste it.

"Well, I was hoping to discuss mana orb evolution with you. My body-modification orb has recently evolved into a mutation orb. While this is how I had specialized it, I hadn't expected it to happen, especially considering anything I have read on the topic says it can take centuries," she answered.

"Hmm, yes, how long have you had it?" Henjen asked.

"About ten years," she answered.

"That is rather quick for an evolution. Not that we fully understand what prompts them. I've heard chaotic space can help speed things up. Have you spent much time there recently?" Henjen continued his questions.

"No, she hasn't. And the mana flow here certainly isn't strong enough to start randomly evolving mana orbs, assuming that even does anything. You haven't been in the soul realm either, so that's out. It could be that pseudo-dungeon. Those energies are rare enough that they might explain something," Karlinovo added, cutting off Henjen's questions.

"Pseudo-dungeon? What's that?" Henjen asked.

"A soul mana orb formed inside a mana beast, or a mana beast grew around a soul mana orb. Hard to say which came first at this point, but as it was a fungus, somehow the network it was connected to caused something similar to a dungeon to form. Not a lot else we can tell you here, other than that the experience was rather unique for those involved in it," Karlinovo answered.

"Yes, I've found very few references to anything like it. We aren't the first to encounter such a location, but we are among the very few, at least of those who have lived through it," Elody added.

"Hmm, that could explain something here. The soul-core reaction is important for a mana orb to grow, not just the mana flow. Otherwise, they would grow without our bodies. And yes, before you contradict me, Karlinovo, or do you prefer Ivan these days? I'm fully aware of natural mana orbs, but we both know they stop growing once removed from their environment," Henjen said, narrowing his eyes at Karlinovo as he spoke.

"I suppose my only real question here before I test it for myself is, do the two of you think it's safe?" Elody asked, deciding she wanted to escape any of their bickering before it got on her nerves.

"Entirely. I assume you just got a System notification of a mana orb evolution and haven't looked at it since?" Henjen asked.

"Yes, I removed it immediately and have been putting off doing anything with it, but as this competition grows closer, I shouldn't continue to do that," she answered.

"Henjen's right. It will be fine. You might have some weird ranks in tiers that shouldn't have ranks before their previous tier. Or even mana skills unlocked that have requirements you haven't met anymore, but that sometimes happens with evolution. It's very similar to what can happen with a core fortification," Karlinovo added.

"Okay, well, thank you both. I suppose I'll go explore the mana orb then. Good luck with your work." Elody quickly left the room after her words. She could see the fight brewing between those two and wanted no part of it.

How had Karlinovo even managed to make contact with his old teacher? She had thought they hated each other. That was how the books seemed anyway. Perhaps, it was a much more complicated relationship than she understood, that of mentor and pupil often was.

Once she was back in the safety of her personal quarters within the top floor of the northern tower of the school, she did what she had been avoiding and placed the mana orb over her core, pushing it back into her mana channels. Instantly, the annoying pain of the mutations took effect. Several of them she had only taken due to that annoying pseudo-dungeon and was now stuck with.

After the pain passed, she pulled up the orb and took a look at the new mana skills it had.

Mana Orb Mutation (0) -First Tier- Minor Mutation (0) Requirements: N/A Minor Mutation allows the host to apply a small change to their body. While generally cosmetic in their use, some effects, such as sharper fingernails, can be useful for other applications. These changes are permanent as long as the mana orb is socketed. Further ranks allow for a new mutation with a maximum of 5. -Second Tier- Lesser Mutation (4) Requirements: Minor Mutation (1) Mutation allows the host to mutate their body in a permanent way. The amount of mana used directly impacts the strength of the mutation. Each rank in this allows for a new mutation with a maximum of 10. Neural Plasticity (0) Lesser Mutation: Cell Regeneration Mutation (10) Neural Plasticity mutates the host's brain to better allow for the growth of neural pathways. Over time, this will continue to build on itself, increasing knowledge retention and unlocking new paths toward skill mastery. This mana skill requires ten ranks to fully activate. No more beyond that may be invested. Lesser Mutations Unlocked (4) Lesser Mutation\Feathery Wings (35) Requirements: Lesser Mutation (1) Feathery Wings causes the host to sprout something similar to a bird's wings from their shoulders. Further ranks increase the maximum potential strength of the wings. Lesser Mutation\Cell Regeneration (25) Requirements: Lesser Mutation (1) Cell Regeneration functions similar to minor regeneration, without the mana draw. It is constantly active as long as the mana orb is within the host's system. Further ranks increase the effectiveness of the regeneration. Lesser Mutation\Lung Recirculation (10) Requirements: Lesser Mutation (1) The Lung Recirculation mutation allows the host to hold their breath much longer, as the oxygen is carefully filtered and recycled for longer use. Core energy will begin to rapidly drain the longer the attempt to go without oxygen. Further ranks increase the time the breath may be held without core drain. Lesser Mutation\Vibratory Voice (10) Requirements: Lesser Mutation (1) Vibratory Voice mutates the host in a way that allows for them to communicate vocally without the use of internal air. The new vibratory organs on the face are able to mimic sound patterns similar, but not perfectly, to the host's normal voice. Further ranks allow an increase in the volume of the communication. -Third Tier- Adjustable Mutation (0) Requirements: Lesser Mutation (5) Adjustable Mutation allows for the host's minor and lesser mutations to be turned on and off as the host requires. It will do nothing about the pain that may be associated with a mutation's activation. Each rank that is invested in this skill, is associated with a single mutation of the host's choice.

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A quick read through them made her happy to see the third tier. She would need to unlock it, though, which annoyingly meant keeping the orb socketed. There was no sense doing so here, though, perhaps a trip into the Traveler's Gate at some point. She was getting worried about the paladins who left through it. Even if they were stronger than she was, she still felt she should try to check on them. She had expected to have heard something by now.

That was something to discuss with Dave and Pryte in the future. It could likely wait until after the paladin gathering. It was always possible they would show up there alive, and there would be nothing to worry about after all. Her gut doubted it, though.

She would need a fifth lesser mutation to fully unlock the new ability as well. That was something else to think about. Perhaps there was something that would synergize well with neural plasticity. As that was something she was unlocking now. It was far too powerful not to, and the biggest argument to get the adjustable mutation unlocked sooner rather than later.

What she found most interesting about this evolution, though, was that she now had mana skills tied to mutations themselves. Did that mean certain mutations would unlock new skills within the orb? She knew mana orbs tended to restructure themselves slightly for their host, usually more toward the differences in biology. She had also read the theories on how new mana orb pathways worked, but it was still something else to personally witness them.

Opening her large window, she decided not to waste the pain of growing the wings. And as Dave had already seen her mutations, there wasn't much reason to hide them anymore. She smiled as she leaped from her window, taking to the air. Even a Paladin of Knowledge needed mindless fun sometimes.

Karlinovo

He was lucky Pryte had been near the gate when Henjen arrived. The man hadn't given them an exact time he was planning to be there, and Karlinovo wanted his meeting to stay mostly secret. The fact that Elody had managed to interrupt minutes after Pryte left made his frustrations all the more annoying. But that was how his life always worked here.

He was the resident mad scientist. Everyone always had questions for him. Even if they were geniuses all on their own. He was a genius from legends and old books. One who was missing a lot of modern developments, and they really should realize that when they ask their questions. He needed to catch up, and the first annoying step to that was here.

"Now, how exactly did this little group hook up with that up-and-coming Paladin of Knowledge?" Henjen asked once Elody had left the room.

"Not entirely sure. It was before I was here, and honestly, I don't care," Karlinovo answered, annoyed at the question.

"Still not one for the personal relationships, eh? You know you really should take some time to actually get to know people. It might have kept you alive before. How you didn't see Gastronil for the clout chaser they were, I honestly never knew," Henjen replied

"He did what I asked, without question, and was smart enough to actually handle the basic tasks without interrupting my own activities."

"Yes, and I wonder just how long he was planning to kill you. If it's any consolation, I never believed you had caused your own death. Arrogant jackass that you were, you weren't suicidal. Plus, any attempt I made to see your true research after the event didn't go anywhere. So it was somewhat obvious there was a cover-up," Henjen replied

"I will admit, I am a bit surprised Dave was able to recreate any of my research, given what was left of my notes. Though the System seems to have helped somewhat there, which is its own mystery I'll get to in time. But you came here for a reason. Why couldn't we discuss Thykle over your communication nodes?" Karlinovo had been pondering that question for a while.

There were just far too many potential answers to know which one was correct. He doubted someone had managed to break into Henjen's secure systems, so then why did he need to come in person?

"Yes, well, what I learned when I visited Thykle was a bit beyond anything I expected at the time. He was convinced he had found some of the building blocks of the Spiral itself. What I had thought would only be a discussion on some of the strangeness tied to awakening mana orbs turned into a talk about reality itself. And if I'm going to have that talk again, I'm going to follow the same protocol he did at the time. I have no real idea if it's needed, but considering I haven't seen the man since that day, I'm not about to risk it."

Henjen's hands started moving as he spoke. All around the room, a flickering rainbow of color erupted for a split second before melting away in a grayish shadow. The room felt somewhat less real to Karlinovo. It was an impressive display of magic as he wasn't even sure what the full source of the effect was.

"That should keep us entirely safe for this conversation. I doubt even the System itself could get through this. Though I do wonder what it would see if it tried. But I digress. Thykle had found a way to access the old Spiral. I have no idea how, he wouldn't tell me that. But before he left, he gifted me the entirety of his personal diaries. Since we last talked, I made copies of every one of them because you were also supposed to get a copy," Henjen explained, surprising Karlinovo.

That was far more than he had expected the man to give him. "Wait, you said the old Spiral. How in the hell had he found his way there? I tried to find a way in for years during some of my research. Most people won't even admit it exists out loud."

"As I said, I have no idea. I haven't been able to discover that. And if it was in his diaries, he didn't give those to me. My best guess at this point is it's tied to a mana orb he had that was formed somewhere in chaotic space."

"You can't create mana orbs in chaotic space. Natural mana orbs don't even grow unless you shield the area," Karlinovo replied, confused. He was sure Henjen knew that, so what the hell had Thykle found?

"Yes, I'm very aware of that basic fact. But his diaries make it clear that an energy source deep within chaotic space was once used to make seven such orbs, and he held one. I assume he took it with him, and it's my best guess for how he found his way into the old Spiral."

"…You're going after him, aren't you?" Karlinovo asked, suddenly realizing why Henjen was so willing to give him all this information.

"Maybe. As I said, I don't know how he got in. But I have questions only he can answer, and I don't like where things are going in the current Spiral. There's clearly a faction war brewing. Our knowledge breakthroughs are radically decreasing. There's an actual organization out there against places of learning now," Henjen answered.

"If you mean the Triox, I've heard of them. Didn't like what I heard either. But I kind of figured some bigger factions were financing that," Karlinovo said.

"Oh, I'm sure they are, but I have no idea who. Things have gotten magnitudes worse since your near-death experience, and I think with your resurrection that's the final sign that it's time for me to stop waiting around hoping something might change. You can handle this knowledge front. I'm going in search of my mentor." Henjen sounded more serious than Karlinovo had ever heard the man before.

Gone was the usual air of a slow plodding teacher. Instead, it had been replaced by the confidence of one of the most expert mages in the Spiral. It was almost too bad he couldn't join him on this trip. Plus, there was the fact that he didn't expect Henjen to survive it, powerful or not. That meant he'd milk the man for every bit of information he could before he left.

Sometimes you must hold your fish high above your head, daring your enemy to strike. It is in that moment that all people truly know what they are made of.

Author Unknown

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