Seras little snippet thread

Under the blankets and using an amulet that glowed when worn I stared at my contraband.

A spell book.

It wasn’t a rare, or powerful spell, but I was an elfling. Magical spells and children are not something many want to mix.

Sav’Kinara as a teenager didn’t care and would just laugh at any fireworks.

But that wasn’t going to happen because this was a very simple spell. ‘The Precepts and Foibles of Conjuration by Illas Soven.’

Basically it was a guide for young mages, and rangers on how to conjure something so incredibly important, it was almost considered the standard for any elf leaving Silvermoon, or Eversong Forest.

Conjure Food, and Conjure Water.

It was the basics, but very important, and also I’d get in so much trouble if I got caught with an actual spell book!

But none of that mattered, because magic spell book!

“Hehehe!” I giggled as I read along, the writing was dry. Illas was a terrible author, but it didn’t matter. I just needed to understand enough to get it right once.

If I could do that, I’d get the spell and it would be good!

Sure I could just wait. I considered just waiting until I was a teenager to learn this spell, I mean I’d definitely be given a copy of this crappy book without having to clear out the Dragonhawk stables.

But that was like… A decade away! Think of all the grinding I could do in that time!

Wouldn’t it be terrible if by the time I can conjure water, I have so much mana the water doesn’t restore anything? No better to spend the time now on a spell that I could easily hide to get more experience.

So I laid under my blanket and read through the stuffy book following the motions with my hands when it finally got to the description on how to actually cast the spell. It was extremely lucky that I was used to reading dry texts from my past life, because holy cow was this obtuse.

Thankfully I think I got it.

Deciding on food first, since if I made a mess crumbs were easier to clean up than a big spill.

I sat up and brought my Mana to my hands.

There were no words. Just motion and will. The mana moved easily. I’d done tons of practice with moving my Mana around while learning Holy Light.

I shifted, the Mana formed it to my will. It came naturally, an artifact of being a High Elf, and yet, it wanted to slip away. My mana shifted and tried to spoil the forming spell.

I fought it back, grabbed it mentally and guided it back along the proper path and then, with a cute little tink, which was actually air escaping as the conjured item forced itself into reality I stared at what was undoubtedly a Muffin.

[Spell Learned: Conjure Refreshment]

I hissed out through my teeth as all I wanted to do was scream and shout.

No more sitting on the ground without mana, all that time could now be spent drinking some conjured water and regaining the most glorious of all things! Mana!

[Conjure Refreshment Lv 1. 1/10]

Alright. Now to just. I started casting, the spell felt so much easier now that I had the spell on my list. The mana shifted as I wanted. After just a few minutes I finished casting, and a small strange, not quite glass, bottle appeared.

I touched it and realized it felt kind of like stone, but was sort of see through.

Huh.

I popped the cork which disappeared into nothing and drank to fill up my mana, only to instantly choke and sputter. Spilling water all over my pillow.

What the fuck was that!?

Eugh!

I wanted to scrape my tongue. Did that water taste soapy!? Why!?

I did feel my mana return from that little bit I drank, but eurgh! I’d never drink that again! Ever! Never ever!

I pulled off my blanket and put the half empty bottle of ‘water’ if you could call it that! To the side and grabbed the muffin. I just needed something to wipe this taste out of my mouth-

Mistake.

This was all a mistake.

I understand now. Why a fool playing with magic might be burned. Why an apprentice should be quiet and listen to the lessons taught them in order.

I coughed, wet half chewed gritty nasty dust muffin fell out of my mouth and onto my hand. What do I do? It was late, Mama was going to kill me!

I looked around. Climbing out of bed I headed for the window and just chucked what I had in my hands right out. It would land in the backyard and some squirrels could die eating that trash.

Now to slip out to the kitchen and drink some water to clean my mouth.

Easier said than done, but I sneaked out, carefully shifting my feet not to touch the creaky floor board, or to make even the smallest of noises.

Mama would not be happy to see me up so late. Quiet. Quiet.

I made it just into the kitchen when I got an alert I wasn’t expecting.

[Ability Learned: Stealth]

“Oh!” I couldn’t stop my gasp of delight, and then stilled at the noise. I’d snuck around before. Never got an ability for it, and from what I’d learned that I didn’t tend to level without the force acting against me.

I hadn’t learned Shields, until I had Kimmi wail on me. And I’d never learned Stealth before because… No one had been there when I snuck around.

“Oh, what?” Was asked from directly behind me.

Fission Mailed.

“Oh… I really hope there is some water so I can go back to bed?” I offered, turning around to see Mama literally right behind me, arms crossed.

“Is that so?”

“I got a yucky taste in my mouth.” I offered pointedly keeping my hand closed so she couldn’t see the nasty muffin mess I still had all over my hands.

“Mhmm.” I swallowed, which was a mistake, and she seemed to notice that. Then she did something I really didn't want to see.

“You know I was out back, cooling off under the moon, when suddenly, this nearly smacked into my head.”

Oh fuck.

“T-those dang squirrels…” I stuttered, the only excuse I could think of, and Mama despite her stern look. I could see the hitch in her breathing as she wanted to laugh.

But she didn’t.

“I’ve never known squirrels to throw around Conjured muffins. In fact they refuse to eat these ones. You know what they call these in the guard?”

I shook my head but not because I didn’t know, but because I was really hoping she’d let me off.

“Recruit killers. Because the first time a new recruit is forced to eat Conjured food on a march they usually puke.”

“Yeah, I get that.” I said because I was totally boned and nothing I could do would change that. “I regret everything.” I told her, with a whimper, and that only made her fight back laughter again.

“Let’s get you cleaned up.”

“Okay.”

“Then you're grounded.”

“Okay.”

—--

Conjure food was super disgusting until you got really good at it, and I was stuck slowly leveling it up.

Mama had in fact been proud of me for learning the spell so young, but she had not been proud of me for sneaking it past her and not telling her.

In the end, I was in trouble, but my own punishment was enough.

Level 1 Conjure Food.

Not even once.

Luckily it did dematerialize after a while, so I’d taken to heading into the backyard and just burning Mana conjuring what I could until I was out, and then pointedly leaving the water and muffins out for the squirrels to choke on-I mean. For the animals to enjoy if they were hungry.

Then I went inside and drank nice lemon water that tasted great.

It also restored my Mana, but it was a bit harder to excuse drinking an entire pitcher of Lemon water than it was to just conjure stuff.

It turned out that I did in fact restore myself from a snack and drink, and could continue to eat basically indefinitely.

Which wasn’t the norm.

Just another gamer quirk, that I wasn’t going to second guess, because I wanted to grind, and it let me grind more…

Or it would. Once I got better snacks and drinks.

What that meant was that I was stuck once more slowly grinding up either physical stuff. Which wasn’t going well. Or Enchanting which thankfully didn’t have a mana requirement, but did need reagents.

The pretty rocks around the back yard had surprisingly vanished, those damn squirrels again I was sure. So I had to go a bit farther out of the back yard to drag back a backpack full of rocks I could leave in the sun and the moonlight to get more enchanting powder.

Papa thought it was hilarious how much I was storing.

Mama not so much.

Thankfully the Enchanting Coalition of the household succeeded over the Stop Making a Mess of my Kitchen, Uni-party.

Mostly because the Enchanting Coalition had agreed to a list of demands, but that was just minor details.

But it meant that once again Enchanting continued to be my highest skill.

[Enchanting Lv. 7 30/70]

I had some actual enchantments, but almost none of the cool combat ones. Papa mostly did cosmetics and stuff still so I learned those at his knee, but I wanted stats.

Intelligence was a priority for more Mana, but an actual Mana enchantment would be even better but papa refused to teach me that one still.

So that left the slow grind. Enchant, disenchant, enchant.

Thankfully I did get some Reagents back when I disenchanted, but I went through a lot of home made amulets.

So much so that I was actually cut off.

I’d already run through three balls of thread Mama had bought from the store for me, and since I could only explain to her that I destroyed the thread while enchanting…

Well that was that.

I’d need to make my own.

“Hmm! Mhmmm! Mhmm!” I hummed to some tuneless song as I walked through the forest. Mama was working, Papa was distracted, and I had both a sword, an actual wooden sword Mama had let me pick out from the store, and a wooden shield, which was just my training shield made from bark.

But I was on an adventure!

Swiping the sword back and forth looked like any kid just swinging around a sword, but I had skill granted knowledge on how to swing a sword, and was actively practicing my side swings.

Left and right, shifting with my hips, keeping my shield up and ready to block any attacks, all while I wandered into the forest around home.

I needed something, but I wasn’t sure what. So instead I was just exploring.

Walking around a big bush I stopped as I wasn’t alone.

“Oh is that little Alah’Dorah?”

“Hello.” I greeted with a little bow. El’Tela was… Well the leader of the village. Not quite a governor, it was closer to say she was the noble who owned the land.

She was powerful, but also…

She smiled, the wrinkles curled around her lips, and the crow feat around her eyes made her skin seem ancient.

Old.

Very very old.

I smiled in turn, and approached sheathing my wooden blade as was appropriate into my little shield, and shifting both until my shield and sword were strapped over my shoulder.

“Out having a little adventure young one?”

“Mhmm!” I settled in beside the old woman, as she knelt in the dirt, uncaring for her very expensive dress as she was working her hands in the dirt.

A Garden?

“What are you doing Magistrix?”

“Hah, just some minor gardening young one.” She offered and I smiled in turn as I looked at the dirt she’d trowled up.

Such an oddly simple method for a woman that was probably able to wipe this entire village off the map in an hour if she wished.

“Do you need any help?”

“Oh no. I do this for myself, help would rather ruin the purpose, but thank you though. Tell me, how is your father?”

“Oh! Papa is doing great. He’s just enchanting like always.” She smiled and laughed.

“Yes that fits the man. Good. The boy was talented, I’m glad he’s kept his spark. And you? Your adventure going well?”

“Sort of. I’m doing enchanting stuff too!” I explained but sighed. “Unfortunately, Disenchanting the little amulets I make as I practice destroys them, and the thread Mama bought me. So I’m trying to find something else to make that I can keep practicing my enchantment.”

“Oh? Enchanting work already?” She asked me and I nodded happily.

“Yep! I want to master it so I can make all the equipment I need when I go on my adventure.” I explained and the ancient elves' eyes glittered a bit in arcane magic as her smile grew.

“And what will this adventure be? Defeating some great monster?”

“Uh-uh.” I responded, shaking my head, smiling as my pony tail wiggled back and forth. “I’m going to explore the entire continent. I want to go everywhere, meet everyone. If I have to fight I’ll fight, and if I can trade, or learn about whoever I meet, I’ll do that! Then, when that’s done, I want to go even further. I’ll get a boat and set sail West. Or maybe North. Maybe I’ll dive into the ocean with some water breathing spells. Or I’ll get something so I can fly and explore the clouds.” I gushed about my idea honestly.

I was scared of Azeroth, but the only way to not be scared of something was to understand it. So that’s what I would do.

Every race and kingdom would know of Alah’Dorah, as I traveled the world.

And maybe I could help, maybe a single adventurer could help fix things before the bad things happen.

“What a delightful idea. To see the whole world.” She whispered, holding out her trowel to point at me. “It’s rare to see a child of the Quel’dorei seek more than what is beyond their own nose. Don’t lose that little one. It’s a rare trait.” She wagged the trowel at me for a moment and I nodded.

“I won’t!”

“Good. With you swinging that sword around, I suppose you’ll make a fine ranger as well.”

“I want to do magic more.” I admit, then brought my hands together and in a moment and a chiming sound of mana, a muffin appeared… “It’s gross though.”

The ancient elf let out a breathy little chuckle. “Oh, my memory is long, and I’ve forgotten more things than most will ever know, but I still bitterly remember the taste of those.” She assured me and I nodded, as I put the muffin in my satchel.

It would disappear and take all the crumbs along with it later, but at least I wouldn’t have to look at it.

“You’re quite young for that spell. Not even your tenth year? Correct?”

“I’m six.” I told her, and that got another reaction as if it all fell into place.

“Six, truly? So young. Enchanting, magic, and a desire to explore.” She hummed at that, and I just grinned.

“Mama calls me eager.”

“Yes. I believe your mother has the right of it. You said you were exploring to find something to enchant?” She asked suddenly and I nodded, and she smiled. “Why don’t you go over and pull some of that grass. I’ll show you something useful.”

I didn’t hesitate and jumped up and rushed over to the small patches of long grass that sometimes grew around. I pulled a few handfuls before happily wiggling back to her.

El’Tela had wiped her hands and was sitting comfortably as I approached, and she patted beside her.

“Now, this is an old skill. Something my own mother taught me. Something… Well, it simply isn’t done anymore, watch.” She swiftly started with two strands of the grass weaving them together, and then slowly adding in more. It didn’t take more than a few of the strands and she had a band of the grass weaved together tightly.

Then she spoke words that made my ears wiggle.

“Elune-Adore.” And then with a twist the band tightened, and all the grass seemed to slide together and tighten more and more as she twisted until the band became a bracelet, that looked quite nice.

The grass an almost golden color shimmered in the sun thanks to the different strands. The band as she handed it to me, to look at, felt almost smooth to the touch.

“A whisper band. You offer a prayer and seal it. And the prayer will stay within it. We used to offer them to those going into danger, and when you return you would release it, and the prayer would be free to be reality.”

I looked into the very old elves' eyes and wondered if she had been alive before the Sunwell. If she had been one of the Highborn that had arrived on these shores exiled from the Night Elves.

“It’s very pretty.” I said instead. No one spoke of what had been before the sunwell. I didn’t even know if any elf outside of the truly ancient knew, or acknowledged it.

“Now you try.” She prompted, and I nodded, having watched how she did it, I grabbed two strands of the golden grass… And promptly failed completely. Her warm laughter urged me to try again, but it wasn’t like I was going to quit.

So I tried again, and again, until I got the basics, and then.

[Profession Learned: Tailoring]

I smiled, the instinct was suddenly there. The confusion about how to weave, and the slowness of my hands disappeared as I finished my first Whisper Band without any further issue, but just before I finished, before I sealed it shut like she had, I took a moment.

“Elune-Adore.” I spoke that same prayer. And sealed it up.

I looked up and the ancient elf looked a little embarrassed as she realized I had heard her.

“A fine job. You seem to have the knack for it, and I’ve seen Whisper Bands enchanted before. You should have no issue. The Prayer you speak is one for yourself, no need to listen to this old woman's words.”

“I like them. I’ll remember them, in thanks for teaching me.” I said instead. Elune was a Goddess of my people even if we didn’t worship her.

El’Tela smiled gently at my words and nodded. “I believe Elune would like that. But enough about this old woman's ramblings. I believe that marks your adventure complete?”

“Yep! I’ll need to gather a whole bunch and make a bunch of them. Thank you!” I rose up as the woman turned back to her gardening.

She seemed like she wanted to be left alone, so I gathered up the grass I’d collected so far and started jogging home.

A part of me wanted to ask so many questions, but… I’d have to do some research first.

—--

Of course another useful thing about the Whisper Bands were they weren’t amulets. That might seem a little confusing, but enchantments on different sections of the body needed different forms to work right.

You can’t take an amulet enchantment and wrap it around your wrist and expect it to work right.

It had to do with the way the body pulled in mana, even if you weren’t a mage, everyone pulled mana around them, and different places impacted mana differently.

So, it let me learn some new enchantments from Papa once I showed him my new material.

Instead of Stamina Papa actually taught me something different.

Minor Spirit.

Such a simple enchantment, but… Spirit was how fast your mana restored itself, for a Gamer like me, the faster my Mana restored the more I could grind.

I looked at the two Whisper Bands around my wrists and smiled. In one, I’d given a prayer to Elune, and the other?

“Anu belore dela’na.” The sun guides us.

I don’t agree with pushing away Elune, but I wouldn’t deny that the Sun and the Sunwell as a manifestation of that was important to my people.

What a weird situation the sun and the moon both were venerated. Not that the High Elves really worshipped as such.

We were… A bit too arrogant for that.

Either way, I settled in after school a few days later with a pile of golden grass beside me, and started weaving. Letting my Tailoring skill increase while setting aside the completed Whisper Bands, for later enchanting, and then disenchanting, and then I would take that dust and use it to enchant the next batch, all of it cycling into itself.

Cycles. Cycles…

My bands shifted on my wrists and I remembered that Spirit was the connection, the understanding of the world…

I understood the world a little better. And through that understanding I came to understand, that Enchanting was part of the cycle of magic. I’d made glyphs to speed up the effect, but objects naturally took in magic from Azeroth and then changed, became reagents, but reagents were just things that were already gathering magic to make enchanting easier…

Ambient mana into objects, then take those objects and break it down… Cycles.

Almost like fish and mercury. What was it, Bio-magnification. Since fish ate lots of things with mercury in it they stored more and more of it, making them dangerous to eat in turn because they’d basically concentrated so much of it.

Then wasn’t enchanting just Mana-Magnification going through the cycle of materials storing mana. Glyphs let objects absorb mana faster, but the only ones I knew only drew in ambient mana and didn’t let it escape so it would store itself in the object inside…

Why not increase that?

If enchanting was a natural part of the world then… There was something interesting there. I grinned as I looked at the finished Whisper Band.

I’d finish these, do my enchantments, and keep thinking about how to make even more enchanting reagents. Maybe I could find some way to gather more mana, or create a method to make Mana-Magnification happen.

Hehe! Magical Mad Science!

But it was almost dinner, so I’d better finish this and make sure Papa knew to eat something otherwise he’d forget since Mama wasn’t here.

I hummed happily as I continued to work on my task.