Chapter 9 – Mental Fortitude

  Jack waited for the door to close before setting about his new task. Opening his first Node would be great, but after talking with Elizabeth, he realized that there was something else he could do that could be more important right now. His Akashic Champion class was one level away from reaching level five. If it followed the trend of other classes, then it would unlock a new ability or grant an item once that happened, and he could level it by learning new abilities. Something he was certain he could do right now. He only needed to figure out what to make.

  Jack needed something to expand his combat abilities, but more importantly he needed skills or spells that could also be use when working on his Professions. He wasn’t confident in making anything highly specialized but even if he could, it would only help him a little. No, he needed something generalized and basic right now. A spell that could offer both combat and utility would be ideal.

  With that thought in mind, Jack scanned over his list of spells. He immediately went to his spells as he had several he had barely used. He was looking for something that could act as the basis of a new spell. So far, he has only ever manipulated those he already had to make new spells. His skills had changed and upgraded through his use, but Jack had never tried to forcibly change one of those yet.

  Almost immediately, Jack’s eyes fell on a spell he had gotten a while back but had never used once. Instant Thread was a spell he had gotten when he had received the Weaver class but hadn’t tried it as he had nothing to make thread with. But perhaps he could use that along with his Mana Manipulation skill to make threads out of his Mana and into a web-like structure. He wasn’t sure if it would work, but if it did, then it would allow him to create a net or web spell of some kind. It was worth a try at least.

  Jack started by summoning a small piece of his Mana at the tip of his finger. He wasn’t using a spell for this. Instead, he was trying to will his Mana to take shape outside his body. It was a struggle as he never tried to move his Mana in this way without casting a spell to do it. The closest he had come to this was when he was refining Aethyr.

  He could have used one of his other spells to help him here. Simple Flame would have accomplished the task in seconds, but it would have applied the traits of that spell to the new one that Jack was trying to create. He didn’t want this new spell to have any added elements or traits. No, just a simple net made of Mana was the goal, so Jack had to start from scratch this time.

  A large glob of Mana started to appear as Jack worked. At first, it was easy for Jack to maintain its shape, but as Jack continued to add more Mana to it, maintaining its shape started to prove difficult. It warped and bent, moving around and falling apart wherever Jack’s concentration failed. The moment the whole structure of the Mana started to fall apart, Jack stopped, pulling his Mana back until it was stable once again.

  In front of him now was a small ball of Mana hovering at the tip of his finger. It sat patiently as though waiting for instructions and Jack gave it to it. First, he tried stretching the Mana, making it as long and thin as possible. He only managed to pull it like this for half-a-foot before the structure started failing again. Jack continued like this, slowly stretching the Mana out. He was trying to make it as long as possible while still maintaining the structure. He was able to create a thin line of Mana a foot long between his hands.

  Once Jack was certain the Mana wasn’t going to break apart on him again, he used his Instant Thread spell. He directed the spell at the formation of Mana between his hands hoping it would work. As the spell activated, he watched as more Mana flowed into the string he had already formed, and it began to twist and condense until only a light-blue braided string of Mana was left between his hands.

  Jack still had a connection to the thread. He knew that if he stopped concentrating on it, then spell or not, it would disappear. Instead, Jack played with the string. He tried moving the thread around, making shapes and loops with it and even tried to tangle the string, but unlike normal thread, the Mana string would merge and separate when it encountered itself. Jack was able to get it to touch without merging, but it took added concentration to give it a more physical structure.

  Jack wasn’t sure how long he worked with the string. It felt like it had been hours since Jack started but he wasn’t in any rush, so he took his time experimenting. When Jack was finally confident in his ability to control it, he moved on to the next step.

  Visualization has always been the key to making and using his new spells, and there was no reason to think this would be any different. Jack already knew what he wanted. The only thing left was to give his Mana a form to imitate.

  Jack closed his eyes as he focused. Maintaining the thread between his hands, Jack focused on the image in his head. A net. Something that can be held or thrown, able to hold something Jack wanted but also capable of letting other things pass through it. An image formed in his head and Jack slowly added Mana to the string, willing it to take the shape of the image he concentrated on.

  The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

  Jack could feel more threads start to form. Helped along with his Instant Thread spell, they formed solid strings of Mana between his fingers. They started to interconnect with each other as he worked at supplying the design with Mana until finally a System Window appeared.

  *Spell gained: Conjure Net (Beginner)*

  Creates a net of Mana between two fixed points that can hold objects larger than the holes from passing through. Mana cost increases as length and number of holes increases. Strength of Net is determined by skill level.

  +1 Perc. +3 Wis.

  *Level Up! Akashic Champion (Level 5)*

  +1 Str./Dex./Con./Wis. +2 Int.

  *Spell gained: Summon Shield (Beginner)*

  Conjure a basic shield within eyesight of the caster. Shield will act as an unmovable object regardless of location created. Strength of shield is determined by caster’s Charisma and Skill level.

  “Wait, why would it be Charisma?” Jack asked aloud. “I’ll have to ask someone about that. Still, it worked. Two new spells, and a level. That wasn’t so bad, and I should still have time to work on my Mana Node. But first food. Can’t believe how hungry I am right now.”

  Jack exited his room. Everyone was in the community room already and Jack could smell food cooking as he entered.

  “Was wondering when you show up,” Teresa said as Jack entered.

  “You’re already done?” Jack asked, thrown off at the sight of Teresa. “That was fast.”

  “It’s been a day,” Teresa said. “You been stuck in your room the whole time unresponsive. People were starting to get worried. Why didn’t you mention….” Teresa started to say something, but her words came to an abrupt and unintended halt. She tried in vain a few more times before giving up. “Well shit, that is going to be annoying to deal with.”

  “Wait,” Jack said. “A whole day already? Why did no one get me?”

  “We tried,” Elaine said. “Can’t open the door and you never responded to our banging. We didn’t think there was anything that could have happened to you, but we were starting to wonder.”

  “Sorry,” Jack said. “I was trying to work on a new spell. Guess I lost track of time.”

  “You are starting to make that a habit,” Savgar grunted, biting into a hunch of meat as he spoke. “Mind, it isn’t a bad habit for a crafter, but you should still try and be more aware of your surroundings.”

  “I’ll work on it,” Jack said.

  “Any success,” Daniel asked.

  Jack nodded. “Got two new spells. Conjure Net and Summon Shield.”

  “What do they do?” Daniel asked.

  Instead of answering, Jack cast his Net spell. He hadn’t tried casting either spell yet, and now was as good a time as any. A light blue net formed in his hand and with a thought Jack could change the network of the mesh. He could make it look like a fishing net or closer to cloth. Jack settled on something in the middle and focused on attaching it to the doorframe of the room. It flew from his hands, changing to fill the doorway acting as a passive barrier as Jack continued to maintain the spell.

  “Neat,” Teresa said. “What are you going to use that for?”

  “Not sure exactly,” Jack said. “Traps maybe. It’s adaptable so I might be able to use it for a bunch of different things.”

  “How strong is it?” Daniel asked, inspecting the net.

  “It’s only a beginner rank spell,” Jack said. “So probably not very. I’ll have to test the strength…”

  A Warhammer went flying between Jack and Daniel hitting the center of the net. The net bent as though it was going to stop the hammer’s momentum for an instant before the hammer broke through it on its path out of the room. Jack glanced over at Savgar still eating and looking bored.

  “Saved you some time,” Savgar said. “It is really the only way to know. It’s not bad, but you will need to make it stronger than that if you wish to use it in combat.”

  “Noted,” Jack sighed.

  “What about the other one?” Reuf asked. “What does it do?”

  “Lets me summon a shield anywhere I can see,” Jack said. “It’s a bit strange though. The spell calls it an unmovable object but also says the strength of the shield is determined partly by my Charisma. Not sure why that is.”

  “Must be using your mental fortitude, your willpower in another sense, as the strength for the shield,” Daniels said.

  “Is that not Wisdom?” Elaine asked. “I thought Wisdom helped to strengthen your mind.”

  “All the mental stats help a little in all areas of the mind and Mana control,” Daniel explained. “But Intelligence mostly helps with memory and learning. While Wisdom mostly helps with understanding, Mana control, and cultivation. And while many think of Charisma as the stat that helps you get along with others, it is actually all about mental fortitude and manipulation. Convincing others to like or believe you, or protecting yourself from being influenced by others is the core aspect of the stat. It is mostly unintentional and harmless under normal situations but almost all who specialize in manipulating others focus on that stat.”

  “How do you protect yourself from someone with higher charisma?” Elizabeth asked.

  “Charisma protects against Charisma,” Sylvian answered. “And there are skills you can get as well.”

  “So, Clayton?” Jack asked.

  Daniel nodded. “Has a lot of Charisma. It is a core stat for Beastmasters.”

  “It is not only those looking to control that specialize in the stat,” Reuf said. “Most leaders and diplomats often specialize in Charisma. Helps when they are trying to inspire people.”

  Daniel nodded. “But that is also a form of manipulation. Not with the intent to harm, but still with the intent to change people’s perspective. Leading them away from being demoralized and rousing their spirits.”

  “Speaking of rousing spirits,” Jack said. “Where is Victor?”

  “Undergoing the challenge,” Teresa said. “He went in right after me. Zajowle is keeping watch right now. He called next.”