Seed Of Speed

The over-zealous Moonfall practically dragged Diego by the arm to the Great Library. The entire way, she talked constantly, pointing out the different master's homes they passed and then about the different places within the sect. She was far more detailed than the adapt who had originally shown them around, pointing out the spots where people met up or some of the better shops to visit within the inner court. From start to finish, she never stopped talking which made Diego wonder if they would even be allowed inside the library, but she did go silent once they stepped inside.

The inside of the Great Library was breath-taking. The red sandstone floor and walls had been polished to such a degree that they seemed to be marble. The layout of the circular first floor was set up like a wagon wheel with long rows of shelves that seemed to be made from pure energy instead of anything physical, laden with scrolls and books, acting as the spokes of the wheel and a large seating area was placed in the center, with tables arranged in the very middle and cushions placed around so they would not impede anyone from walking around. Around fifty people could be seen in the seating area and, when they finished whatever book or scroll they were reading, they would toss it above their heads then it would zoom back to where it belonged.

Moonfall took him down one row and started pulling out different scrolls and books. As soon as she handed them to Diego, his system automatically scanned the content and stored it within his 'Lore' window, but without the ability to tell her such, Diego found himself loaded down with a small mountain that he was expected to study.

"Senior-disciple sister, I think this is enough to get started. Any more and I won't be able to see," Diego said as he had to catch the new scroll she set on the pile in his arms with his chin.

"Oh," she said with a giggle. "Let's find a place for you to sit then."

Diego resisted the urge to shake his head and chuckle as the action would likely end with him losing everything in his arms. He followed Moonfall over to the seating area and let her help him set everything down on the table she chose.

"I'll go get the rest while you get started on this," Moonfall said happily.

Diego let out a sigh as he smiled and walked her skip off. If it was not for the system, he would likely have to dedicate the next two or three days solely to reading if he wanted to finish everything she had already pulled. He pulled out his chair and sat down, grabbing the book labeled "The Fundamentals of Light Magic" and opened it. Although he could read it more comfortably from within the system's window while sprawled out across a pillow, to everyone else, he would just be staring off into space and no one would believe that he was actually reading.

The book read much like his old college textbooks with overly long, drawn out explanations. Light magic, like all magic, worked through a system of runic sigils created within the caster's mind. What made magic so complex was that there were so many different runes for the word 'light' alone, and each one would have a slightly different effect. For example, when he gathered the light mana from the air, he used the 'light' rune, poyonga, which represented the bursting brightness of the element. Simply substituting one light rune for another could create drastic different result, if the spell did not backfire from the change.

Moonfall reappeared a few minutes later, carrying a few more books and scrolls, then added them to Diego's collection. "These should give you a solid foundation if Master is asking you to learn the basics. You should read through them all before Master assigns you your schedule, or you'll likely be lost when the teacher is talking about more complex magics," she said, with an attempt at a serious expression that just made Diego want to pinch her cheeks like he would with his sister.

"How quickly do you think it will take Master to arrange my classes?" Diego asked.

"It could be done today if she wanted to, but she is likely going to give you a few days to study before she summons you back to the tower," Moonfall replied.

"Okay, I'll try to finish them all before she calls me. Am I able to take the texts with me?"

Moonfall shook her head, "The formation around the Great Library won't allow any books stored within to leave the building."

Diego sighed looking at the mountain of books and scrolls. He might have all of the information stored away in his mind with a simple touch of the text, but he still had to make an act of reading everything and it truly would take days. He reached into his robe and pulled out his token. As long as he and his target were inside the sect, the tokens could rely messages, much like leaving a voicemail if the token was a phone. He had exchanged token numbers with Rainshower and Tovao before they parted, so he just had to channel some energy into the token and say a command to send a message.

"Message Token 87735… Tovao, I've got work to do in the Great Library tonight. Grab me dinner and bring it over here," Diego said, holding his token near his mouth.

"Who's Tovao?" Moonfall asked.

"My brother, he was able to enter the sect under the martial wing," Diego replied.

"Oh, you are lucky to have family here. I didn't know anyone when I entered the sect. If my mother had not been one of Master's disciples, I would have had a much harder time here."

Diego nodded, "Yeah, it's also a great chance for him. Our clan has a number of hostile forces around us, so this could be a turning point for the clan with both of us studying at the sect."

"Being Master's disciple alone will be the turning point for your clan, but you can worry about that stuff later. I'll let you read," Moonfall said with a smile then turned away and left.

Diego stretched then reopened his book to use as a cover while talking to Katalina.

(So, my wonderful, all-knowing sister-in-law, care to give me a crash course on all of this?)

::Ha ha, my you are the smooth-talker. The true crash course will come when you have the chance to meditate and I can pull you into your mental plane, but for now, ask me your questions::

(Okay, how many runes are there for 'light'?)

::Recorded in these books, thirty-one. I personally know one hundred eight-five and that number could increase by the time you ascend::

(But how? How can there be that many symbols for the exact same word?)

::Because magic, true magic, comes from how well the caster can harmonize with the element they are trying to control. Every person's understanding of the elements is different, but that doesn't make any one person wrong. The reason why a custom spell is more powerful and uses less mana to perform when the creator uses it versus another is because the 'logic' behind spell is in tune with the caster::

(That's another thing! Why did Shadowbolt tell me not to talk about my affinities when, literally, everyone goes by their custom spell?)

::As to why that particular tradition was started, I can not tell you, but the danger comes from knowing just how strong you are with each element. If both you and Shadowbolt were on the same level and used the same thunder spell, your spell would likely be stronger since you have a prefect affinity with thunder. That also means that when someone uses a thunder spell against you, you will be able to negate a portion of the attack just because of your affinity. This also works in the opposite way as you are very vulnerable to both shadow and earth magics. Both will take you considerably more effort to train in and use more mana as well::

(But still, Shadowbolt breaks down into shadow and thunder, right? So, her weaknesses should be light and earth.)

::While yes, you thought process follows a certain logic, nature does not always follow logic. Your affinities are so skewed because of your perfect-grade affinities with thunder and light which actually weaken your shadow and earth. Most people's affinities average between four and five stars while one element will be seven or eight. You only have your perfect-affinities because of the 'Seed of Speed' otherwise there would be no way Ishu could have them with his lineage::

(Then am I in danger of being exposed?)

::Not likely. I don't think they have the knowledge about lineages since prearranged marries are rare in shaman families by what information you have gathered so far. Although your perfect affinities would normally draw a lot of attention, your 'Soul Singer' abilities will be a much greater draw for focus::

With his most pressing questions answered, he returned to actually reading the book in his hands. Although the information was already stored within his mind, he did not have much else to do, so he 'reread' the book. After a few hours, Tovao showed up with dinner and stared in shock at the amount of reading Diego had. Diego could only shrug since he really did not have any room to argue. Before he scanned everything, aside from the twelve spell Firesand had been able to teach him, he knew absolutely nothing about magic since Great Archmage inside his head had refused to teach him anything before he enter the sect. Tovao ate with him, but left shortly after to return to his rooms. Unlike Diego, he would have to pay for all of his classes, so he had already taken a job and he wanted to get a full night's sleep.