8 Just a Little Bit 'o' Time Skipping, All It 'Tis
[===== Two Months Later =====]
Troy had been studying diligently these past couple of months and was quickly beginning to understand the fundamentals of controlling Chaos. He always did well in his practical exercises and thus Nazad had made it a point to discontinue offering him any sort of praises or support.
Nazad, although equally at a loss as the other mages to explain Troy's unusual status, knew that Troy's maturity and knowledge were well beyond his years. He had even taken to actively criticizing Troy's performance even when it was well above expectations.
Although it was completely unheard of for someone of The Witcher Brood, as they called themselves, to train a new mage, it was either that or hand Troy over to the Brotherhood, where his future would be much less certain. Nazad recognized Troy, as having more potential than any Witcher they had ever graduated, and took his role as Troy's mentor very seriously.
He wanted to make sure that the boy didn't let his exceptional talent and abilities lead him to believe that he didn't have to work hard. He wanted to make sure that Troy was able to extract every single bit of his potential.
Troy didn't mind this, however, and simply continued to study and train diligently as he always had. He never had any intention of slacking off or letting any of his accomplishments go to his head. Even so, he knew that Nazad had his best interest at heart and didn't mind his recent treatment.
Troy had made it a point to get back to his room tonight early enough to catch Jorgen or Patrov, before they went to sleep.
Patrov witnessed Troy coming into the room and was surprised. They normally wouldn't see him, until the morning.
"Hey, Troy! What are you doing here? Aren't you usually doing your Wizard training or whatever, at this time?" Patrov asked.
Jorgen then sat up on his cot and also noticed Troy's presence after hearing Patrov's question.
"Yeah, I decided to make a little detour. I should be able to make it to Nazad's room, if I hurry. Although, first, I wanted to ask you guys about something? Do you guys have a trainee named Geralt in your class?"
"Geralt? Yeah, he's in our class. Why, what did you want with him?" Jorgen answered.
"Well, I just had heard he was a pretty good trainee and thought it might be a good idea to befriend him. Does his ability stand out at all? How would you say he stacks up against the three of us?"
"Umm...yeah, I'd say he's probably about as good as us. Whenever he noticed how much better we were getting, he started getting motivated himself. If he isn't at our level, he probably isn't too far behind us either." Jorgen responded.
"In that case, I was wondering if you guys might be able to introduce us at some point? Maybe bring him to our room for a few minutes, during this down time? If he only started to get motivated after witnessing you two, then perhaps sticking together would be a good idea. That way we can help each other to become our best selves."
"Hmmm…yeah, you know what? I like the sound of that!" Stated Patrov. "I'll speak to him the next time I see him."
"Awesome! Thanks, guys! I'll catch up with you later. I've got to get going." Troy said, as he spun on a dime and bolted out of the room at top speed.
[===== Five Months Later =====]
Troy knelt on the floor of his sleeping quarters. He was deep into his meditative state and he was attempting to summon those irrational emotions that had helped him through his Trial of Grasses.
He knew Nazad had mentioned that Sources were rare and that being able to replicate a conduit moment wasn't something that many mages ever experienced twice. Yet, Troy also knew that control was his strongest attribute. If he could simply cultivate those emotions to a level where they manifested as Chaos, he had no doubt his prospects as a mage would increase drastically.
Nazad had, after all, specifically mentioned that talent was also an alternative way of becoming a source and Troy seemed to have plenty of it.
The very first night, after having awoken from his trial, he had begun this special meditation. The majority of the time he spent practicing this meditation was on the rare few days of rest they received. The rest of the time he had to eat even further, into his already meager sleeping hours.
It only took him a little over a month to finally manifest those emotions. Even now though, after so much practice, it still wasn't easy. He was simply too rational and calm most of the time. Being highly emotional wasn't really his style. Of course, he knew that he needed those emotions, if he wanted to be a powerful source, and so he continued chasing them.
Even though he was training to manifest his emotions, he didn't dare attempt to finish the process by causing them to manifest as Chaos. While he had divulged the matter concerning the attack to the mages, he had only done so to ensure his own safety.
He didn't want them to know all of his secrets and, so even if he could create his own Chaos, he wouldn't do so, until the time was right. The mages were able to tell when someone was having a conduit moment and thus he needed to be discreet.
Whenever his Trial of Dreams takes place, he would of course have to try. If he was successful, hopefully he could pass it off, as simply one more abnormality in a long list of abnormalities.
Despite the fact that Jorgen's class had just recently gone through their first trial and Patrov hadn't made it through, he still found it difficult to conjure any form of emotion over the event. He certainly wasn't happy about Patrov's death, it's just that emotions in general came from a place of irrationality and his extensive meditative practice had made him numb to such things.
Of course, Geralt had passed, as well, but Troy was certain that Geralt was supposed to be the only one from his class to pass. 'I suppose Jorgen's increased motivation and thus increased benefits from his training could've potentially altered the original results. Although, it's still a shame that Patrov couldn't make it, as well.'
Having successfully conjured the emotions that would hopefully one day manifest his own Chaos and successfully controlled them, Troy ended his meditation, climbed into his cot, and went to sleep.
[===== Five Months Later =====]
Troy had, once again, resumed his previous existence as pain. The mages had injected yet another accursed/blessed concoction into his veins and he knew only what he was and he was pain.
He couldn't be certain how long it had taken for him to locate his calm this time but here it was. He simply needed to get himself inside. Fighting against the pain that was himself as well as the surge of familiar emotions that were also himself, he began the final battle of this war.
It took him a while longer, yet, to drag himself into his calm and receive the benefits of its serenity. However, now that he was here, he calmly assessed his environment and mentally smiled, as he noticed the raving ravaging emotions fighting for supremacy over his mind and body.
Their presence here was, in Troy's mind, a sign that he would, once again, not only survive his trial but also perfectly integrate his mutagens.
The first time these emotions had appeared, during his first trial, it nearly sent him into a panic. He had no idea why such irrational existences would rear their heads.
Now, however, he was well aware that these emotions were his very own power. His calm may have been his salvation but all it could do is allow him to wait out the pain. These emotions, on the other hand, held the keys to a future more prosperous and bountiful than any other. They were his road map to being able to rise and thrive in this world.
With this knowledge firmly in mind, Troy began his work on the specific enchantment he had prepared for this moment.
He wasn't yet at a level where he could actually perform enchantments the proper way but the trial he was currently undergoing, he knew, would make him completely infertile. He actually hadn't even begun studying enchantments at all but he had certain organs that would become almost completely useless if not properly modified.
Thus, Troy had thought long and hard about the forced sterilization procedure that the Brotherhood utilized, the inevitable loss of his sirehood, and all of the possible ways he might turn this inevitable loss into a win.
The culmination of these mental efforts resulted in a mad plan to transform his testicles into psuedo-brains that would generate emotions.
Troy knew that the testicles played a major role in producing testosterone and so he would try his best to preserve that function but the rest would have to go. In place of the usual sperm production glands he would instead attempt to form a three segment psuedo-brain.
After many hours of searching his memories for the information he needed, he had managed to remember the three centers of the brain most responsible for emotional responses. His new psuedo-brains would be composed of a miniature amygdala, a miniature thalamus, and a miniature hypothalamus.
Troy was certain that he could smooth over the mutation process using the same method as last time. However, he had become quite familiar with all of the different mutations and their related mutagens and knew that accomplishing that task wouldn't require very much of his Chaos.
After all, he wasn't really trying to accomplish much, since the concoctions did most of the work themselves. Making sure the mutations occurred correctly and efficiently was not that difficult for something as potent as Chaos.
Thus, Troy had decided that assisting the mutation process would come last. First, he needed to block the mutagens from acting on his testicles and then instead sacrifice them in exchange for new, hopefully, Chaos producing ones.
The blocking part would be the most difficult, considering it was something beyond his level and it wasn't a simple sacrificial exchange nor a simple assist in already developing events. He would have to actively intervene in the mutation process, while allowing it to continue elsewhere. He was certain he could do it, he would simply need quite a bit of time to get it right.
This wasn't a problem, though, given his current strapped to a table condition. He had several days to work this out. Ultimately, while this task was above his level, every attempt would be successful to some degree; he would simply need to try and retry to create a permanent block in that area for the mutagens.
Troy knew that dying things were less saturated with Chaos and he suspected that improperly functioning or damaged living things would have a similar reduction in Chaos saturation. This might seem counterintuitive to some but, because Chaos is primarily derived from the elements and living things are composed of multiple elements, the elements in dying things are actively being dispersed back into their individual existences.
Thus, Troy needed to enact his enchantment attempt as soon as possible. His testicles had surely already suffered some damage but there was nothing to be done about that.
After about thirty failed attempts which he recognized by still being pain outside his calm, he finally managed to set up a magical filter inside his testicular artery that would eliminate any mutagens passing through.
Upon successful implementation of the filter, he could, from inside his calm, barely distinguish a place that wasn't pain. Commanding those familiar emotions still futilely attempting to overcome Troy's control and dominate him, he sent them into that non pain space and began his first ever enchantment.
Going to great lengths to ensure he had organized every single bit of information regarding the effects he wanted to manifest from start to finish, Troy controlled his power and initiated the sacrifice.
PAIN! PAIN! PAIN! ITCHING! SCRATCHING! BURNING! SLICING! IMPACTING! PIERCING! BLEEDING! PAIN! PAIN! PAIN!
Immediately, upon activating his spell, he was violently ripped from his calm and became pain, once more.
----------
Once again, Nazad found himself on a multiple days long stresscapade, as soon as Troy had been injected for his second trial. It was currently the fifth day of this trial and, as much as he wanted to believe the boy would pull through, he was still overflowing with anxiety.
Troy was, of course, still hanging in there but that didn't guarantee his survival. Just this morning another one of the other candidates had died, which only served to stress him even further.
The only thought that gave Nazad any comfort was that, if Troy survived this, he was absolutely certain he would survive the Trial of the Mountain. Troy was already top of his new class the way he had been top of his old class. 'All he has to do is survive this trial and he undoubtedly will be able to face anything that comes afterwards.' Thought Nazad, as he paced back and forth near the room's entrance.
Suddenly, a familiar fluctuation within the surrounding Chaos originating from Troy's body alerted him and the other mages. Before they even had time to be amazed at this fact, Troy's unconscious body began convulsing and he began screaming maddeningly.
The mages were all confused as to what was going on. They initially wanted to be shocked by the fact that Troy had managed to have a second conduit moment and so close to his last one. However, the last time this seemed to coincide with him successfully completing his trials in an unprecedented fashion.
With this incident however, for reasons they had no way of discerning, Troy's condition seemed to have degenerated immediately afterwards.
As confused and concerned as they all were, there was little they could do other than wait patiently for the boy's fate to be revealed.
----------
Much like his previous journey to his land of calm, Troy couldn't discern how long it had taken him to work his way back to his calm but it felt much longer than the previous attempt.
He wouldn't have guessed that he could feel more pain than being pain. However, once he had been forced out of his calm, he had felt as if he were six pains all at once.
It was a nearly unbearable experience and he wasn't entirely sure how he had managed to make it back but here he was. His calm was no longer the refuge it had once been. It was infinitely preferable to being pain much less six pains but even his calm was now completely clouded over with a thin black fog of pain that would only grow thicker, if he didn't put an end to this.
Summoning every ounce of his control he could muster and every ounce of Chaos from his immediate environment, he set to work on completing his mutations.
----------
Nazad and the other mages had been completely stumped, stunned, and surprised, by what they thought was a degeneration of Troy's condition. His new condition, however, had lasted for several hours and even continued on into the next day.
The sixth day of this trial was now quickly coming to a close and they couldn't simply ignore their duties to watch yet another trainee die.
Ever since his initial degeneration, Troy's body had seemingly remained unconscious while also screaming like a man being tortured to death. His back remained mostly arched and his arms and legs fought desperately against the bonds that held him.
Nazad was currently standing next to Troy's table and monitoring his condition with a number of spells. He was just getting ready to leave Troy to his own devices and turn in for the night, when he suddenly felt it.
Nazad's eyes widened immediately and shock was evident on his face. Even if he hadn't been monitoring him with spells, a mage as experienced as he was wasn't about to miss such a blatant use of magic right in front of his face.
This wasn't another conduit moment, either. If it had been it probably would have sent Nazad straight into a coma. Three conduit moments in the space of a year was simply too much. No, this was a normal spell, like any he would expect himself or the other mages to cast.
Taking advantage of the fact that he was already monitoring the boy, Nazad quickly shifted all of the spells attention onto the mutations taking place inside of Troy's body.
"It's happening! The mutations are no longer being forced! They're being actively integrated as if they were supposed to have been there all along!" Nazad said aloud, drawing the attention of the two other mages who were walking out the door.
The other two mages rushed over to Troy's table to confirm Nazad's findings. "My God! You're right! But I didn't sense another conduit moment. Surely, this isn't a natural reaction?"
Nazad looked at the mage and smiled. "No, it wasn't a conduit moment...but it was magic. I have no idea how he did it but Troy just cast a spell, as his body was thrashing about, which resulted in what you're seeing now."
As Nazad was explaining the situation, Troy's body slowly began to relax and only a few minutes later he was sleeping peacefully, upon the table as if none of the events of the past six days had ever occurred.
Seeing that Troy had successfully passed his Trial of Dreams, Nazad once again took the initiative to dismiss himself and Troy, so that the both of them could receive some much needed recovery sleep.
