Chapter 5 Hidden Truths & Discoveries (Part 4/9)

"Well, now that breakfast is over, I plan to bring you to the Mages guild to get your affinity tested and started on the path of learning magic." I frowned a little at that. As much as it might be interesting to experience, I had little intention to learn magic when I was already gaining so much. Just the reading itself from her apothecary book was enough to satisfy my intent in coming her. I also had the incredible added bonus of assimilating the teachings and hidden effects of the translation amulet. Seeing my passive attitude towards the trip and idea of getting magic, Victoria was surprised and commented on such. "It is incredibly odd that you aren't interested in magic. Is my work as an apothecary that much more interesting to you?" The truth of the matter, was that I had played several fantasy genre games before in VR. It was done both out of boredom and in an attempt to see if there could be any cross over between the use of my ability, which appeared to have no physical effect in real life. I was disappointed to find no correlation between the two and thus my interest in utilizing magic began to flag. In real life, I could hike mountains to feel the winds on my fingertips, delve into green forests to arrive at great rushing rivers, and hear soul stirring music. With each of those, I could reach out for the feelings of rushing energy and power within me, as if stirred to life by such beauty and majesty. Yet that's where it stopped. I had tried for so long to reach beyond that amazing feeling, yet I couldn't find out where to start. I certainly would not blame the feelings themselves, as they had brought me through such terrible times in my life, with their frequent emotional support and invigorating presence. Eventually, I had decided to be satisfied with what I had, and build up my life with the support of the gift I was already given. That was my reason for being so passive about magic. I wasn't sure I could put that into words that Victoria could understand. Finally in response to her I answered as best I could with incomplete truth. "In my world, I do not have access to magic. As such, I would not want to exercise abilities and waste time on pursuits that have little if any positive feedback in my personal goals." Victoria froze for a moment at that. Then she began to smile gently before responding. "Do you believe that all there is to magic is casting spells and wielding the powers of nature?" I gave a skeptical nod at that, since it was pretty much what was made available in other virtual realities. Shaking her head, she lightly rebuked me. "Magic is far more pervasive and useful than just that." She paused in thought before continuing. "As my apprentice, you will be sent out into the wilds many times, likely to be faced with various beasts and deadly plants, as you collect specimens for me and yourself. Learning to be an apothecary is not just book learning and creating potions in a shop. There is so much more to be learned, as exercised application of knowledge allows for so much more. It allows you to work out the kinks and build neural pathways in your very thoughts and body to better apply your knowledge." Reaching over to a nearby light shade which held a light stone, she pulled it out of the contraption. "This simple light stone, when assimilated, increases the life expectancy and overall health of the consumer. Admittedly, this little thing would likely give you no more than a couple of years of extra life and a slightly better resistance to the common cold. It is also limited in that you cannot gain any more notable benefit in consuming more of the same tier. For further boosts, you need to consolidate your gains and strengthen your understanding of the element of light. With enough time, exposure, and experience, you may be able to assimilate higher tier mage stones. Each compatible element, provides various benefits that would aid you in your work as an apothecary." With her explanation, I was admittedly intrigued by the possibilities, and was now on the fence about it. "Are there any elemental stones that boost cognitive development or improve recollection and learning speed?" Her response was measured and careful, as if treading risky ground. "There are. . .. The most well-known of them is the lightning stone. Assimilating it, increases the speed at which the synapses fire and improves your reflexes and overall agility. Not only do you become faster with better reflexes, but your mind also becomes quicker at learning and processing information." While curios about what other examples she might be hiding, I was still sold. "That sounds great!" I exclaimed in response to her reveal. Nodding at my acceptance, she appeared relieved. "Then let us head over to the Mages Guild. Would you go gather up the stamped notaries that you were given to use at the mages guild, and then meet me at the front of the shop?" I nodded at her request and dashed to my room. Arriving promptly at the store entrance with the notaries in hand, we set out to the streets and towards the center of the marketplace. Along the way, Victoria was able to hail a carriage that was just coming back empty from a delivery. With a quick exchange of coinage and settling into place, we set off in companionable silence on the cobbled stone pathway to the mage guild. Stopping in front of the grandiose and colorful building, I gazed up in awe at the vibrant hues and shifting shades that appeared to move over the entire structure. Victoria gently bumped into me from behind, breaking me from my wide-eyed stupor. It couldn't match up to Gertrude's exquisite and detailed storefront in the micro sense, but it certainly beat it in the grandiose self-confidence it portrayed. Exiting the carriage, we entered through the double door entryway into the large building. Inside, it looked like a reserved entryway for a high-end hotel. Everything was polished stone walls, precious metal guardrails between you and the various unique displays, with ornate tile floors below a vaulted ceiling. A long marble desk occupied by several young men and women wearing mage robes separated the entryway from another passage deeper into the building. Some of them appeared to be studying books or scrolls while others were discussing various topics with each other. Victoria and my entrance appeared to be an undesirable interruption to their activities, as none spoke or even looked up to greet or address us. *Snort* "Too cute." Victoria spoke gently but heavily with derision. From the small twitch that a few of them gave, it was apparent that they heard her, but continued to disregard our presence. Turning to me, she held out her hand. "Andrew, may I have those papers that they gave you at the council?" I readily complied, extremely curious about what she was going to do with them among this tough crowd. Thinking back to when I first had ridden past this place, Monroe was apparently being very generous in his evaluation of their temperament. My thoughts were disrupted by the sudden crackling sound that issued from Victoria. My eyes widened at what she was doing, as I focused wholly upon her actions. A cloud of mist condensed around her hands in less than a second. Small dust-like ice particles swam about in glittering shimmers, which then drew to the two papers in her hands, forming an icy sheen over the both of them. Then with a wave of her hand, as if lightly tossing a Frisbee, the two solid pages rushed out of her hands and slammed onto the counter top, which the various young mages were lounging along. The mage that had appeared the most disdainful of our appearance appeared to be the primary target as the frozen pages missed hitting his fingertips by less than a mere centimeter. He certainly flinched at that, but still ignored our presence and continued to remain where he was. Based on the vicious smile that Victoria was exhibiting, it wasn't over yet. Another wave of her hand, and the icy sheen covering the two pages, that now lay on the counter top, dispersed from the pages and instead rushed to cover the entirety of the front counter across its several meter length. "Aaaaah!" . . . *Shreak!!* . . . "What the . . ..!?" Various explosive reactions now issued forth from the previously recalcitrant attendants. If it was possible, my jaw would have hit the floor as I saw the chaos that ensued from the truly incredible, yet seemingly casual display of magic from Victoria. Barely a few seconds had passed before the pounding of several shoes could be heard, coming from the passageway behind the desk. 3 mature looking mages with staffs alight with various elements, they rushed to stand between the panicked younger mages and Victoria and me. They appeared ready to throw down, but then one of them gave a startled *squeek* and the light atop his staff instantly snuffed out. The other two seeing this gave a more careful look at Victoria, before they too quickly doused their staffs and flaring power. It was the first older mage that had apparently recognized Victoria that addressed us. "Greetings honored Apothecary." He gave a deep respectful bow to her. "We did not know of your prestigious coming or else we would have prepared a much more amenable welcome." He turned upward from his bow while twisting his head to glare at the cowering and pained young mages, apparently trapped behind the desk. Till this moment, I had not really had the opportunity to fully admire Victoria's handiwork with her magic. Apparently, anything that had been in contact with the desk at the time she worked her magic, was now stuck to it, be it books, robes and to the great dismay and pain of a couple of the young mages, fingers and hands. Only the exact place where the 2 pages she had sent out initially were devoid of ice. Seeing the icy tableau behind them, the other two mages also quickly gave deep bows and respectful greetings to Victoria. Appearing fine with letting the younger mages suffer for a bit, the first of the older mages to speak to us further addressed Victoria. "I am Adept Mcgonell, and these are Acolytes Tatum and Greasman. I don't expect you to remember our insignificant names." He paused, glancing back at the now wailing younger student mages. "However, we would be very appreciative if you would release your hold on this group of miscreants." Victoria, appearing not the slightest bit moved by their appeal began peering at her finger tips, as if looking for some stray dirt to clean out. Only after a few moments of seemingly unfruitful searching did she give up and answer Adept Mcgonell. "How might you show your appreciation, if I were to release them?" With the ball back in his court, Adept Mcgonell appeared more than a little frazzled. Casting his gaze about as if to seek out some form of acceptable restitution, his eyes fell upon the 2 pages nicely outlined on the counter of glittering ice. *Gulp* A notable swallow made his throat shake before he spoke up. "Those are the elemental affinity and mage stone requisition forms from the council?" At Victoria's nod, he continued. "We the guild are prepared to increase the variety of the 2 basic elemental stones to 1 of them also being from the advanced elemental selection, . . with the obvious exception of the, . . well you know. Victoria gave another nod of acquiescence, eliciting a sigh of relief from the now shivering Adept. "And. . .?" She left that word standing alone while giving a more firm look at the poor man. Catching the hint quite quickly, he responded. "And, and we will give a free upgrade to the affinity evaluation to cover advanced elements up to tier 2. . ." Another glare from Victoria made his voice ratchet up an octave. "3! I mean tier 3!" He looked like she was spitting him on a fork and roasting him over a fire with the fright he was exhibiting. "That is amenable." Victoria replied, appearing both smug and satisfied.