Chapter 48 : How the world works

Good day everyone ! Indeed it is a good day… to die ! Never mind that, I had a flash back of… I think it was Braveheart ? Anyways… let's move on.

Today's series is The Wolf Gift by Anne Rice. You probably know her better for Interview with a Vampire. It's a pretty cool series about werewolves. No hormone filled teenagers or sparkly fantastic monsters, here. Only immortal shapeshifters, living together. It's been a while since I've read it but I remember I enjoyed it greatly.

And now let's talk about how awesome, cool and handsome I am !… You can read ahead or some of my other stories on my Patréon page. Look up Cathbel on the website. Also, you know the song : stones, comments and reviews. Pretty crappy song, isn't it ?

Hope you enjoy and have a good week ! 'Til next time !

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The light of the candle flickers with each movements of my hand brushing against the paper. I'm a little dissatisfied with the lighting but there's nothing I can do about it…

« Wait ! Of course, I can do something ! »

Sometimes, I can't help but feel shame because of how dumb I can be. Here I sit, inside a magnificent stone castle carved out of a mountain, both of which were my creations, and I don't think to create a better light source than… a candle !

I sigh and ponder while I grab another sheet of paper and start working on a light spell. I wonder if my mindset is limited by the fantasy world I'm trying to create. But even so, the word fantasy is often, if not always, synonymous with one thing : magic ! And my power can literally shape reality in a more direct and easier way than the mystic arts. Maybe it's just the fact that I have too much on my mind, these days…

I'm still waiting for the Ancient One's response, for one. Not that it prevents me from working on my dimension. Even if I don't invite people, I can still make use of it… And actually, it might be the best thing possible for a creator like me. After all, how many authors can actually see with their own eyes, the world they're laying on paper becoming real ? None, that's how many !

I can actually see what works and what doesn't. What looks awesome, and what feels wrong. Watch the scenery I describe form as I write them. See and even interact if I want to, with the people and the places I create.

The Ancient One was write to say I'm playing God. That's basically what I'm doing… Though, at this point, I don't think my creations, even the humanoids have any sentience. Which is good, actually. I don't think I'd bear the thought of having them go through trials and ordeals if they did… In time, however, I still hope to achieve a semblance of sentience, at least. If people are to visit and interact with this world, it has to draw people's interest, after all. Like a video game, a good movie or… well, a good book !

The light rises in the air after I finish writing. I smile contentedly and look back to what I am writing. These are actually notes I'm trying to organize in my head and on paper to figure out how to make the physical and magical laws of this dimension work. I'm thinking… something similar to Chinese cultivation novels, RPGs, and mangas like Dragon Ball : powers you can slowly and carefully train in to become ever more powerful. Like Ki, but with the flexibility of Nen and variety of Black Clover's grimoires.

At this point, I've decided there'll be 3 energy sources to train and cultivate : Physical energy, Mental energy, Universal energy. Simple, perhaps too simple, but at least, I won't confuse them easily… I hope. The people, animals and other living beings of this dimension will use one, several or combinations of these three energies to grow stronger.

In my head, Physical energy is basically Ki with how it is portrayed in Dragon Ball. In addition, it will also comprises all preternatural abilities related to manipulating parts of the body or the whole body in unusual ways : like willingly generating chemicals in the body, manipulate a fluid like blood, move or strengthen hair, grow bones, etc…

Mental energy is basically… Psionics and everything associated with it. Telekinesis, telepathy, precognition, psychometry, but also astral projection and a lot more. Smart people will naturally have more mental energy than others but might not be able to manifest such abilities. They'll require to be trained and honed. In addition, spending this mental energy will make someone temporarily lose some intellect or attentiveness. Like a muscle, it will be possible to train it.

Finally, Universal energy. Yeah, that's basically a watered down version of the Extra-dimensional energies that we practitioners of the Mystic Arts use. Unlike us however, it's not an energy we can simply wield like this. It needs to infused. Into an object, a weapon, a person or animal. This energy is multi-faceted and can take on any form my mind can think off. Shadows, or flames, the laws of physics, the essence of transmutation… That's just the top of my head.

Personally, once these energies and the rules behind them are set in stone, and don't risk to blow in my face, I'll probably cultivate Physical Energy. Especially that of my mutant body. I… still don't like my other form. But, I've decided that it'll be the face I'll have as a hero. So, I have to get used to it. Simple as that !

And if I have to get used to it, I might as well make use of it. Squids and octopi are strong, intelligent and dangerous predators. Some also grow to gigantic proportions ! There's a reason why the kraken is a thing… While it might not have crushed whole boat, or rather not big ones, sailors have probably seen some of those old specimens…

I shake my head of the delusions currently plaguing it. All this is just theoretical at this point, nothing more. As long as I haven't finished writing the laws, it's useless to think about it more. Actually, that's why I need the Ancient One's help. Or rather, why I need beta testers. They'll help me figure out if there are problems with them.

As a plus point, the more people are aware of these laws, understand them and believe in how they work, the more power I'll be able to get out of it in the real world. At least, that's how I want it to work. Kind of like Religion in Terry Pratchett's Discworld book : The more people believe in a god, the more powerful he is, and inversely, the god dies when nobody knows about him anymore.

Well, that's the idea behind the power of my dimension and how I want it to affect the real world… Who knows, maybe in time, the people of my dimension will gain sentience and even, sapience ? If enough people of this world believe them to be real, life-like and sapient, why not ?