Perfecting Waterball

The mage training grounds seemed particularly empty the next day. Vorinth was absent, as well, which seemed to lighten the atmosphere. The gathered mages were abuzz with rumors, and I couldn't help but listen in.

"Have you heard about the War Hero?" a dark-cloaked man in his early thirties asked. He had a long, curved mustache that brushed the faint flush of his cheeks.

"Yeah," a younger woman said, enthusiasm marking her tone. "To think he'd be here a full week early!"

"Didn't he challenge our hero to a duel? I can't wait to see who's stronger. It's already been a few months, and they say hero's grow extraordinarily fast."

"Watch it there, lass. Don't speak like the Sun Hero is everyone's hero. I'll be supporting the War hero. He's my brother's god, after all," the girl said, flicking her hair behind her shoulder.

"I guess that's true," the man said, stroking his mustache.

I stared after them as they walked away, but the topic changed to a more mundane subject. The War Hero sounded formidable, but I couldn't recall anything about him. The War God wasn't widely worshiped in Enusia, nor even considered a major part of the pantheon. I guess he summoned a hero as a part of the gods' game without any personal stakes.

"You ready to cast a few more Waterballs?" Selena asked, coming up beside me.

I nodded, still thinking about what I'd heard. If Soltair was going to be fighting, I definitely didn't want to miss it, but it had been difficult to meet up with him recently. I hoped he wasn't getting along too well with Trishe….

"Hey, something up?"

"Sorry," I said, "Just a bit distracted." That girl was way too seductive! Once, she walked in on us one morning wearing nothing but a sheer robe! If I hadn't been there, who knows what might have happened.

"If it's about the fight, don't worry about it. No way Soltair loses against someone like him."

"You know the war hero?" I asked, trying to keep the red from my cheeks. The fight. That was what I was thinking about. Of course.

"I met all of them when they arrived at the Divine Throne. As soon as a hero was found, they were shipped here until everyone assembled. I even got to train a few of them, the ones who decided to become mages that is. It was- oh, sorry. Except for you, of course."

"It doesn't matter, I'm here now. Have you made any progress on your evaluation?" I asked.

She hesitated for a time, avoiding meeting my eyes. "Let's not talk about that right now," she finally said. I nodded, as it was obviously a sore spot. Chosen to oversee the newly summoned heroes' magic, but unable to qualify as an instructor. "Why don't you show me the Waterball spell now?"

"Very well, Waterball." I slowly chanted the words, making sure to pronounce each of them cleanly. Selena followed along, her expression morphing to surprise as I finished.

"Is that it?" She asked, "Shouldn't the chant be longer?"

I shook my head and finished the spell, manifesting a ball of water. Selena reached out and touched it, dipping her fingers into the softly gyrating liquid.

"Everything seems to be in order," she said.

"Feel free to try it out for yourself. Do you remember the chant?"

"Who do you think I am? It's only a first-circle spell."

Closing her eyes, Selena repeated the spell. I felt no small amount of pride that her speed was slower than even my demonstration. To be fair, it was her first time, but still! Muttering the last word, she looked up in wonder as the Waterball formed in her palm.

"Remarkable," she said, letting out a sigh. "It truly is twice as efficient."

"Did you find anything wrong with it? The books mentioned that spells sometimes seemed correct, but could unexpectedly go wrong if the circumstances weren't exactly right."

"I can't see mana as well as you, but the runes felt strong and stable. I don't think we have anything to worry about," she said with a smile.

I sighed, relieved at her words. The lack of practical experience was a huge flaw in my efforts, so it was great to have someone experienced at my side.

"Say, how long do you think it would take you to revise another first circle spell?" she asked, idly playing with the Sphere of water. I caught her watching me from the corner of her eye, looking almost hungry.

I thought about it for a moment. "Depends on the spell. If it's similar to Waterball, it wouldn't take more than a few days. Did you have something in mind?"

"Yeah, but don't let anyone know. It can be our little secret."

"If you say so. What spell were you thinking of?"

"It's called Life Dew. I specialize in Life magic, which focuses on healing and protecting. Life Dew condenses life energy together into a drop, which can be added to holy water to make a potion, or even consumed directly for healing effects."

Selena gave me the chant and demonstrated the spell several times. I repeated it several times until I had it memorized. The spell was essentially the same as Waterball, except it used life energy instead of the water element. As both were created with magic, a few keywords were all that was different.

As I left the fields a few hours later, ideas spun around my head. Life Dew was already a much more complete spell than Waterball, but there were a few places for improvement. As Life Mages were rather rare, the overall caliber was lower. Unlike Waterball, which formed nearly instantly, Life Dew took almost a minute. If a situation came up where many potions would need to be created, the rate was simply too slow.

We arrived at the slaves quarters all too soon, and the bustle of the returning slaves distracted me from my thoughts.

"I have important matters to attend to, so we'll leave it here," Father Ithris said.

I nodded and stopped by the mess hall. Casting always made me hungry. It was a wide room with a low ceiling, capable of seating several hundred slaves at once. Food was served cafeteria style, with seating provided at round tables, which were jammed so tightly together it was difficult to squeeze through.

Finding my regular place, I leaned back in a heavy oak chair and looked around, cup of water in hand. Generally, the majority of slaves avoided me like insects a fire. I was used to the loneliness, and I always got my own table, which were meant for eight, so it wasn't a bad thing. If anything, I rather enjoyed the solitude, finding it gave me more time to think.

The normal crowd of slaves was absent at this time, as Father Ithris left early. Combined with the rumors of the hero, and sparse turnout at the training grounds, it wasn't hard to see what was happening.

The wide double-doors swung upon, banging against the walls on either side. I looked up curiously as a trio of unfamiliar faces entered, swaggering gracefully between the tables. They were all gorgeous young women, with pointed ears and long, flowing hair. Their silken dresses clung to their seductive curves, with necklines that plunged down to reveal scarlet slave crests pinned between their cleavage. While elf slaves weren't uncommon, any with their beauty and age were snapped up by the nobles. That, and their haughty bearing, made it clear they were from out of town.

I ducked my head as they looked around the room, wishing I had a cloak to hide my horn. Elves were notorious for hating Demonkin, even more than humans. The cordial relationship I had with Selena was an oddity, all things considered.

"If it isn't the Slave Hero." I looked up as a melodious voice, tainted with scorn, floated through the air. "I heard we'd find you here."

The trio approached quickly, displaying the agility of the elves as they wound around tables. I took a sip of water, pretending to ignore them, but cautiously reached for my mana. They were wearing weapons, something absolutely banned in the slave quarters.

"Hey, I'm talking to you," the one in front said. She had glossy black hair and eyes that glowed like the winter moon. She held a gnarled wooden staff, made of dozens of entwined strips of bark and bearing a large emerald.

I sighed and looked up, staring them in the eye. "What do you want?"

She laughed, a sound like twinkling bells, which only made me more irritated. No woman deserved a laugh like that.

"Our masters are meeting up above. Isn't it right we do the same down here?" she said, taking a seat and striking a relaxed pose. The other elves did the same. I noted the sword on the redhead's back, and the bow on the brunette. I considered leaving, but if Soltair was involved, I had to know about it.

"Take a seat," I said sarcastically, but placed my cup down. "Just what exactly do you want to say?"