Kyra had managed to find her way back out of Honeyhome, and into the woodlands that made up Eastern Brisshal. It wasn't necessarily hard, if she was being entirely honest. The woodlands were rather large, and obvious, once one looked anywhere beyond the small village's edge. Still, she felt a measure of pride for not only having made it back to the woodlands, but also to the spot in which she had entered the world of TerraSphere only a day ago.
She stared up towards the broken branches, all of them angled downwards in response to her fall from the sky, which were the most obvious indicator of her arrival. She could see a few markings in the grass where she had stumbled at first, slowly popping back into place now that so much time had passed. There's an amazing detail there, when you stop and think about it. The way in which the grass slowly returns to normal...not like most games, where it's fine the instant you leave and come back. As if nothing ever happened. Not here, though...here things happen, and it remembers.
She shifted in place, looking between the branches and the grass, and seeing a spot not too far away that reminded her of the first person she'd met here. Fina. The girl had been kind enough to not only escort Kyra to the nearby village of Honeyhome, but also to introduce her to some of the more basic concepts - as well as some vital details - about the game itself. Although sometimes, like now, Kyra found herself forgetting that it was a game. Too realistic. It all seems too real to be a game...like I've been transported to another world entirely. She chuckled at the thought, realising that it was relatively accurate, all things considered.
It's just...it feels so real.
Her voice was soft on the air, as if it were swallowed by the very forest around her. Kyra could see, in a way, how that might feel ominous. How it might feel ever-pressing and overwhelming, for some. To her, however, she found the feeling all too real, all too welcoming. It reminded her, again, that this game was more than just a game. That it was a world in and of itself. A world with it's own rules, it's own capabilities. Capabilities that she had only just begun to explore.
Speaking of which...it's time to learn some spellweaving.
Kyra takes herself back to her first appearance, a location engrained into her mind, possibly forever...
She'd had limited experience with the spellweaving system within TerraSphere - a few castings here and there, most of which had been circumstantial and reactive at the time. As she brought her menu up once more, she looked over the few various entries within. Aside from the listing of the masteries, and a few common spells and abilities that each had, there wasn't much information to be found within the menu itself. Kyra gave a sigh of frustration as she closed the piece once more, deciding that she would simply have to try things for herself.
Alright...well, I guess there's nothing more than just...trying. I mean, it's not like I haven't been able to use them before. I just need to...figure out how.
She stood there, silently staring into the forest as she tried to remember what had allowed her to cast the previous spells. Each time it had been reactionary, an action in the moment that had simply felt right, somehow. She'd never, to date, willingly attempted to weave a spell into life.
That's gotta be the first step, then. I need to weave a spell into life. On purpose, not through some asinine reaction, or pure luck second of action. I need to be the one who brings it to life, nourishes it and releases it. I mean, that's what they do in...books and stuff...
She shifted on the spot, a small amount of colour reaching her cheeks as she realised how romanticised the idea sounded aloud. It felt foolish, in a manner of speaking, and she couldn't help but try and forget immediately that she had ever said it.
Ohkay...what should we start with...?
She opened her menu once more, glancing over the masteries she had at her disposal. Pierce weapons seems...fairly straight forward...maybe a few flashing attacks that I can do there, but otherwise probably not much to practice right now... She flicked over to the next mastery, reading the small description that came with it. Beast Arts...taming companions, basically. That might be useful, but... She remember the fox that she had summoned on her first day, and realised that it must have been more luck than actual spell that had brought it forth.
My first ever spellweave...
Kyra reminisces about her first day in TerraSphere, and the fun she had...
Kyra broke away from the memory after a time, shaking her head as she forced herself to refocus on the menu before her. She wanted to try something new, something that she hadn't tested before nearly as much as the others - and as her eyes passed over the remaining masteries, she decided she wanted to tempt nature itself.
Nature magic...seems easy enough. And less likely to cause some sort of catastrophic failure that ends up absolutely obliterating myself...
At least, she hoped that would be the case. The last thing she wanted was to accidentally cause a death - something she'd been working hard to avoid - in this world. Especially if that could lead to my death in the real world. It would...not be ideal. She'd also made a promise. A promise to Fina that she'd avoid doing anything that would lead to her untimely demise; so long as she could avoid it.
Right. Nature magic it is. I...wonder what I can do with it.
She glanced around the woods for some sort of inspiration, before realising that the answer likely wouldn't be provided in the nearby vicinity.
No mysteriously easy answer in the woods...that really shouldn't be much of a surprise. Just going to have to figure this out myself, I guess...
What little she knew of nature magic was simply that it provided a natural boost to the environment that it was to effect - speeding up the natural healing, strength, resilience or any other number of means of a target. Usually, it was used to boost the skills and capabilities of Starcalled when it was called for such a means.
No other Starcalled here though...maybe I can use it to boost a piece of nature itself?
Her eyes moved towards a nearby sapling that had been growing out of the ground. Her head cocked as she considered the possibility, wondering if her spellweaving could effect the environment as much as the people in it.
Kyra prepares herself to test out her newfound abilities...
She'd turned her attention inwards for a time, focusing on her feelings, her thoughts, and everything else she could possibly feel within herself. After some time - she'd no idea how long she stood there with her eyes closed and nothing but her ears listening to the area around her for danger, but it had felt like forever - she shook herself and opened her eyes, glancing about and realising little had changed.
Well, there goes the idea that it'll all just magically come to me and I'll be weaving spells left and right...was worth a shot, I guess. Even if it was entirely unlikely. So...now I guess I need to figure out how to call up the...power? Ability?...magic? Myself.
She still had little idea how she'd managed it in the first place. Everyone she'd spoken to - at least, the few other Starcalled who'd taken the time to explain things to her - had said that it was different for each individual, as if the system realised how you wanted your weaving to be completed, and adjusted itself based upon that.
Great and wonderful, but what about those of us who don't know how we want to weave. It would be somewhat easier if there was just a predetermined way of doing it...
Kyra knew that would've been too easy, however - and easy wasn't something that TerraSphere offered it's players. Sometimes she swore it found the most difficult way of doing things on purpose, as if making it a challenge for the visitors from another world.
Still...I've done it before. I just need to figure out how to do it. What was the one thing that was common among all those incidents? Aside from...spur of the moment reactions.
If she could figure that out, she'd at least be a step ahead. She thought back to the few occurrences she'd had, replaying each incident in her mind as she tried to dissect them and determine what had allowed her the ability to weave energy into motion. Her mind played back the very first situation, remembering how she'd simply gotten the urge to call out to the woods, and said the first thing that had come to mind when she'd had the feeling.
Meditation fails, and Kyra's left with nothing more than memories as she tries to solve her greatest puzzlement to date...
Incantations...I'm always using incantations. I mean, maybe they're not incantations, maybe they're just...phrases...although isn't that what an incantation is?
She mumbled to herself as she considered the steps she'd taken previously. There'd always been some sort of phrasing, something that would activate the feeling within her. Somehow, it didn't seem like the only thing that would make the weave work - it's not like I just speak the magic words and it works - and she found herself pondering what other media always said about magic and how it connected with the user.
Usually...it's a feeling within you. Like a flowing of...water? Or energy, I guess? It's definitely different depending on the media...I wonder if it's the same in TerraSphere. Different, depending on how the user normally correlates with it...
It was the best idea she had, and as she stood up, she felt like she could at least consider that. Moving to the centre of the clearing she was in, she closed her eyes and tried to imagine the magic flowing through her like a river, picturing herself floating in a river. She wasn't sure how long she stood there, but after a while she opened her eyes, shaking her head and giving a moan of frustration.
Not water, alright...what else-
Her sudden gasp of realisation caused her to shift in place. Her tail lashed out in annoyance as she silently cursed herself for not realising it early. If the game focuses on the user's interpretation...then it's not going to be water.
She closed her eyes again, turning her attention in on herself and trying to feel the magic once more. Almost immediately, she found something. A feeling that reminded her of...softness. The feeling wasn't wet, or electrifying, but rather warm and welcoming. It almost reminded Kyra of the softness of being near a warm fire on a cold day; not burning in any way, but warm and relaxing. It felt entirely familiar to Kyra as she reached inwards towards it, letting it embrace her.
Alright...now what...
Managing to locate the feeling of her weave, Kyra tries to figure out how to harness it...
Focusing on the past is getting me nowhere, I just need to...try something, I guess? She considered her available masteries, the types of magic and capabilities that she had within her reach. She'd already decided against anything related to the weapons, which left her with animalistic, nature and illusions based spells.
If I were to be careful...I would say illusions would have the least dangerous impact on someone trying this out for the first time. At the absolute worst, I create a stunning display which appears real, but can't actually harm me.
She hoped her assumptions were correct, at least. She figured there wasn't much danger in creating an image - unless that image had the capability to take form and somehow harm her. Still, she needed to figure out what she was going to create.
Well...if I'm worried about it possibly hurting me, choose something that simply...can't. I could just...make an image of a dog? Wait, no. That could bite...hmm...okay maybe an image of...no, that could...
Kyra rocked back slightly as she forced herself to think. It quickly became apparent that she was listing off a collection of animals, all of which could be dangerous if the image somehow came to life and could cause harm. Sighing, she refocused her attention, trying to think of anything that could be inanimate and entirely safe to make appear.
Oh...a shoe, duh.
The idea came to her suddenly as she looked down and around her. There was little harm that a shoe could do - at least, not without a lot going wrong. She was at least confident that she shouldn't be able to kill herself by summoning an image of a shoe.
Alright...focus the image into my mind, and...
She focused on the picture of a pair of shoes she had a home - nothing fancy, a pair of simple black running shoes with purple laces. Her hands rose slightly in response, the fingers tracing a pattern in the area, as if drawing the general shape of the shoe itself.
The exclamation of excitement that erupted from Kyra as the image shifted into view far exceeded the success that she saw before her - and yet she felt elation at having managed much of anything. The image was, undoubtably, the outline of a shoe of black form - except that the central image shifted and blurred like an old television screen. Far from accurate in it's essence, but clearly a creation nonetheless.
Ohkay...ohkay! That's...that's a start! I need to...practice, for sure...but I did it!
Kyra's first real attempt at summoning magic is less than explosive, but successful in it's minutiae way...
The success had her feeling elation, and as she stared at the spot where the image she'd created had been, Kyra couldn't help but grin. It wasn't much - if she were being honest, it probably was pretty pathetic compared to what a number of other players were capable of doing, let alone any of the local NPCs that could weave spells - but it made her feel successful, capable and most importantly, like she had a chance to grow.
If I can do this without any help, without any guidance, then I can learn to use the more powerful spells in my repertoire...once I grow it out, that is. But I need to start somewhere.
She crossed her arms as she considered what she'd managed so far. The spell had been simple enough; a focus on the energy inside her, and then focusing on the image of what she pictured happening, and it'd come to life. It confirmed that she didn't require complex incantations, or patterns, or any real special actions. Perhaps those add to the power of the spell, though? Maybe the way that you weave, changes how successful or powerful the outcome is? It made sense, when she thought about it. Being able to create a basic image that was barely visible without any real action was one thing, but perhaps a specific incantation, a specific movement of her hands...maybe that could effect how well the spell came out?
Well, when an idea presents itself...
She raised her hands in front of her, holding the palms outwards in a relaxed pose that looked like she was getting ready to fight someone in a martial arts manner. She focused inwards again, grasping the energy inside of her a bit faster than she had before, and began tracing an outline of the shoe in the air with her left hand.
Ha!
She called out in excitement as the image began to appear in the same spot, this time far more defined. She finished the tracing, taking a second before the black shoe had fully appeared in a format that resembled the actual piece, before releasing the energy and letting it sink away. The image hovered for a few moments before disappearing, fading slowly into non-existence after she'd released the magic itself.
So...it does make a difference...
She wasn't entirely shocked - it made sense, truly, once she compared it to everything else she knew about how this game worked. It did make her wonder if incantations and the spoken word would add anything, but figured for the time being she should just practice on being able to trace the image into existence. Maybe if I combine all three, it comes out even more powerful? She shrugged at the thought, figuring that it would be something for another day. For the time being, she felt content, considering she'd managed as much as she did. She felt ready. Ready to face a world that was, as of this moment, starting to make more sense...
Kyra's attempts, trials and errors seem to be paying off...if only in small, growing amounts...
