EFate: An MMO Story

As the familiar streets of Tonbura came into view once more, Eric's eyes narrowed, squinting as the afternoon sun hit his eyes. The militia barracks behind him was now completely devoid of people, likely inhabited only by Alistair, still shut inside his office as he had been when Eric had left two hours before.

Not wasting a second, Eric set off for Lucy's manor at a brisk jog. His first task in order to create new spells was to brush up on the theory of runes. While he'd read a few books on the topic since becoming Lucy's student, he hadn't paid them as much attention as he had the books on mana manipulation and theory. Skimming over them now would save him a lot of headaches later as he tried to recall half remembered rules and laws.

Reaching Lucy's, Eric attempted to open the door only to find it locked. Raising his hand, he carefully drew a series of runes in the air just in front of the door handle. With a soft click, the lock released, his runes disappearing into the door as it swung open to let him in.

Lucy's library was empty as it always was at this time. Lucy refused to teach villagers magic between noon and suppertime which meant that Eric often had the place to himself. Making his way over to one of the bookshelves that lined the walls of the room, Eric perused the books, looking for a title that he remembered for going fairly indepth upon the topic of spellcrafting. Spying the book, Eric hooked the spine with his finger, drawing it from its place on the shelf. Runes and Their Applications: A Comprehensive Study.

Perfect, Eric thought, retreating to the chair he'd been sitting in when Lucy had found him earlier that morning. Opening the book, he quickly found the chapter he was looking for. With rapt attention, Eric engrossed himself in the book, committing the contents within to memory as the afternoon dragged on. Finishing the relevant chapters, he returned the book, grabbing another title that he remembered having a chapter on the topic.

Several hours later, the sun was just beginning to set when Eric returned the final book. Newly armed with knowledge for what he was about to attempt, Eric left Lucy's manor, failing to notice the bright pair of eyes watching him from atop one of the bookcases as he did so.

Tonbura was now noticeably darker than before, the houses casting long shadows as the sun shimmered brightly just above the walls of the village. Seeing this, Eric set off at a quick pace for the northern gate.

As he walked, Eric began to think. Now that he'd brushed up on how to create new spells, the time had come to actually begin the process. Not wanting Lucy to dissuade him from his task, Eric had left the manor, aiming for a glade he frequented in Stillwood Forest. Seeing as he had time to think, what type of spell did he really need right now?

Power? Speed? Control? Which element am I lacking right now? Eric wondered, pondering the question as he waved to Harak, who returned the wave with a sleepy nod of his own. Power was probably out right now. Multi-linked Wind Dart had so far proven more than sufficient to take down any enemies he encountered. Those who were unfazed by it would most likely be overwhelming opponents at his current level no matter what new spell he created.

A combination of the three then, eh? Eric thought as he strolled past rolling fields of wheat. Come to think of it. My biggest weakness so far seems to be against large, armoured opponents. Grimarok, Hydrus, the Swordclaw Lynx. All of them have forced me to use Multi-linked Wind Dart or be defeated. Or and be defeated in Hydrus' case, Eric thought begrudgingly. If he hadn't been given time in those fights to get off a Multi-linked Wind Dart, he'd have been doomed. But in each scenario, that had been the only way for him to break through the defenses and deal enough damage to secure victory. Wind Dart alone simply hadn't been enough to outpace their insane damage outputs. With that in mind, would a spell with more power than Wind Dart, but less casting time than Multi-linked Wind Dart be the solution to that weakness? Eric wondered, pondering the pros and cons of his new idea.

If he could combine the piercing power of Wind Dart with the damage potential of Wind Blade or Multi-linked Wind Dart, then his ability to deal with armoured foes would soar. It would also remove his over-reliance on Multi-linked Wind Dart as a method for dealing with these opponents, allowing him more flexibility in battle. Linear strategies were fine for dealing with weak opponents, but against enemies just as strong as oneself, having only one plan of attack was a death sentence.

I need a spell that can deal high damage to armoured foes, but with a casting time closer to that of the simpler Wind Dart or Wind Blade, Eric decided, already thinking of how to go about creating this spell. Engrossed in his thoughts, he almost didn't realize that he'd reached his destination, a small clearing in the woods, cut in half by a winding stream that sn.a.k.e.d, serpentine through the trees.

"It's our spot!" Eleanor shouted happily, appearing above Eric as she soared over towards the river.

Eric smiled. This was Eleanor's favourite place near Tonbura Village and as a result, he spent a lot of time here, quietly studying magic by the brook as she flitted between the trees or hovered over the quietly flowing waters. It was also fairly close by to where he had first attempted to create a new spell, the comically disastrous Arcane Blob that had been immediately consigned to oblivion after its creation. Now that he was ready to make a real attempt at creating a new spell, Eric thought it only fitting to return to the scene of his past mistake.

"You're going to create a new spell?" Eleanor asked after a minute, flying back from the brook.

"You were watching earlier?" Eric asked mildly. "I would have thought that me studying in Lucy's library was too boring for you."

"It's not like I can help it. I'm bound to watch you wherever you go. The faerie realms are so boring compared to here," she complained, flipping around dramatically in midair and throwing her arm over her face.

Eric smiled at this. "Well I suppose it doesn't hurt to allow you your fun every once in a while. Yes, I'm planning on making a new spell. I've come to the realization that my current list of skills is rather lacking."

"I considered it. But I felt that it was better to focus on my magic first. Sword skills are important, but magic is still the basis of my combat style," Eric explained.

"Sounds good then! Need any help?"

"I'm fine, feel free to fly around. I'll call you if I need someone to bounce ideas off of."

"Will do!" Eleanor responded, flitting off once more as Eric sat with his back against an old tree trunk that had fallen on its side. Removing his sabre, he placed it beside him as he prepared to create his first original spell.

Actually, Eric paused. Perhaps it would be best to first attempt a spell that he'd seen before, but never cast himself. He'd been itching to try the Arrow spell that Calyn had demonstrated back in the tutorial the moment he'd witnessed it. However, the subsequent events of that day which had resulted in him being dragged unceremoniously from the tower by an aged wizard had driven the idea from his mind, and his acquisition of the Wind Blade and Wind Dart spells a few days later had reduced his need for a new spell. It was only now that he was preparing to create his own spell that the need to learn the Arrow spell had finally arisen.

Closing his eyes, Eric pictured the rune that Calyn had drawn in his mind. From what he could remember, the rune had been teardrop shaped, with the point at the top leading down to the half circle that comprised the bottom half. Had there been any other runes? Eric wondered, straining his memory as he did his best to picture the rune. Coming to the conclusion that there hadn't been any other runes involved, Eric set to work, summoning the mana from his mana vessel as he drew a teardrop shaped rune in midair. The Quickwind Dagger remained sheathed at his side for this task. While it did increase his casting speed, it also made casting spells more difficult, which was not an effect he wanted while trying to cast new spells.

Attempting to infuse mana into the rune, Eric watched impassively as the rune dissolved into motes of violet light that sparkled softly in the late afternoon air. Pausing for a moment, he mentally reviewed what had gone wrong before making his second attempt.

Much like the first attempt, the second attempt also failed, the motes of violet light dancing as they dissipated. Undaunted, Eric continued. This was not the first time he had failed to cast a spell. In practice with Lucy, he often failed to cast the spells she taught him several times before he finally got them right, and that was with a genius mage personally instructing him and correcting any errors he made. Magic was a process of experimentation and review, which culminated in the casting of a successful spell. Even the best mages failed when casting spells, or at least that's what Lucy assured him whenever he got discouraged. Though whether or not that was true or just something Lucy said to make him feel better, Eric still did not know.

Ignoring the veracity of his teacher's claims, Eric soldiered on, drawing teardrop shaped rune after teardrop shaped rune in the air of the glade. After each failure, he took a moment to identify where he'd gone wrong before attempting the spell once more. Finally, on the fifty-fourth try, the rune flared, indicating that the spell had been cast successfully. With mounting excitement, Eric aimed towards a nearby tree and loosed the spell.

[Congratulations! You have learned: Arcane Bullet!]

Arcane Bullet: Journeyman Arcane Magic

Mana Cost: 3 Mana

Casting Time: 1 Second

An upgraded version of the basic Strike spell. The result of improving both the mana density and the form of the Strike spell, Arcane Bullet sends out a bolt of magical energy that travels quickly and does moderate damage. Useful in all situations, the Bullet spell is a staple of many mages.

Seeing the notification, Eric smiled. However, his smile quickly stiffened as he beheld the name of the spell. Arcane Bullet… Didn't Calyn say that she was casting a Mana Arrow? Eric wondered in confusion, doing his best to recall the events of that day. Although it was possible he was wrong, he distinctly remembered Calyn telling them that she was casting a Mana Arrow spell. If it had been the etiquette lesson that he misremembered, Eric could have believed it, but the magic lesson? He had hung onto every word Arthal and Calyn had spoken during their short lesson within the mage's tower, and thinking back, the spell that Calyn had cast had looked different from the one Eric had just produced.

Experimentally, Eric attempted to cast Arcane Bullet once more, only to fail his cast. Sighing, he cleared his head, doing his best to remain calm as he replicated the spell he had cast a minute before. Succeeding on his second attempt, Eric made sure to observe carefully this time, watching closely as the spell flew from his hand into the sky above. As the spell vanished, Eric nodded. It appeared that his observations were correct, the spell he'd just cast had been different from the one Calyn had produced several weeks ago, despite using the same runes. Unable to deduce the reason for this, Eric was forced to lay the issue aside for now. Resolving to ask Lucy the next time he saw her, Eric sat back. The night was still young, and there was lots of work to be done if he wanted to create his own spell!

As the sun's light disappeared, the young mage's face was lit only by the soft light of arcane creations, twinkling brightly in the dusk air of the glade as the moon began its slow climb across the sky.