Do you think it would even be beneficial? Compared to expensive steel? I have plenty of that as well, she said.
You shouldnt underestimate bone. Especially procured from a monster like yourself. It might additionally be able to hold more powerful enchantnts. Naturally, bone is better suited against many schools of magic, mana intrusion being one of them, he explained.
Great we can test both I suppose, she said with a smile.
Ilea continued to explain the need for a lesser blood manipulation agent as well as blood magic resistance training for herself.
The man agreed on both and followed her down to Ianas stronghold.
Ilea decided to give him the benefit of the doubt and to trust him this far. He had seed sincere in all their talks and his loyalty to Trian and his family was unquestionable.
The gates opened after she had knocked hard enough on the steel gates to send a pulse of mana through one of the enchantnts.
The enchanters waited on the other side.
Oh no, Ilea said with a sigh.
Stop it with the pity, Iana said. The runes you brought are fascinating as are the machines a marvel. Its like a whole new world has been opened to us truly. We fail to understand most of it quite yet but I am sure your discovery will lead to advancents in technology that will revolutionize the settled world, she said, babbling out the words in quick succession with what seed like a single breath.
Lost a rapper in you, Ilea thought and sent healing mana into the both of them. Its good to hear you can use the information, she said. Ready for the testing? We can do it tomorrow as well if you need to sleep a little before.
Iana shook her head. Weve been planning for hours no. Now is perfect. We can sleep later. I promise that we will, later today.
Ilea looked at her with suspicion but nodded nonetheless. Lead the way then. Also, Orthan will be experinting with the blood manipulation agent I encountered in the north. Can you provide a secure environnt within the Core?
Of course. Christopher, can you start with the first gate tests? Iana said.
The man nodded as they entered the Core, both of them imdiately activating a variety of enchantnts.
Ilea dripped so of the corruption into a small glass container placed within a variety of enchantnts she didnt understand.
Orthan began his work imdiately, occasionally asking for tools or resources, all of which Iana could provide.
Now, just relax and tell what you see and feel, both with your eyes and magic perception. Signal verbally or with a lifted hand if the strain is too much, Christopher explained carefully.
Ilea nodded and relaxed, her ashen armor covering her bone set. She was ready for whatever ca.
The whole core sprung to life, magic lighting up in the sphere around her as it rushed through the enchantnts and finally into the two platforms in the center.
A light thrumming noise was audible and even Orthan looked up from his work for a mont before he focused back onto the corruption.
Ilea felt the space around her fill with power, the area distorting. A heavy pressure started to form, pushing into her from all directions. Not enough to be a concern. The mana density kept increasing, focused on the center of the platform where she stood.
Sothing pulled on her left side, her arm lifting slightly without her intention. And then the magic faded.
Are you ok!? Iana shouted.
You dont have to be so loud, Ilea said and quickly told them what she had seen and felt.
They gave it another shot with Ileas resistances deactivated, both arcane and space.
This ti her arm was ripped out entirely.
Iana scread and Christopher looked away.
Its fine, calm down, Ilea said as she regenerated her arm and spit out so blood. The arcane pressure was rather powerful without her resistance. Her ripped out arm spoke itself for the space magic that happened. Might be a way to train those resistances, she thought.
Enchantnts might not be sentient but neither was the blight or poison for that matter.
Do it again and watch, she said and once more retold what she herself had experienced.
The two modified a bunch of enchantnts after five more tests.
Hows it going? Ilea asked Orthan as she joined him while the others worked.
The man looked up with slightly shaking hands. Do you have any idea what this is? he asked in a carefully controlled voice.
An incredibly deadly agent that could wipe out all of humanity if it infects soone? she asked casually.
He nodded. Exactly why did you bring it here?!
To get a weaker version so that if sothing similarly powerful ever spreads, at least the Sentinels will be immune, she explained.
I see. I see. Yes it makes sense. Still this is outrageous I have never seen or heard of anything this potent, he murmured.
Its from a dungeon in the north, made by a being more powerful and ancient than I dared imagine. Even more important to prepare ourselves. Just in case, she said.
Orthan just nodded in silence, continuing his examination as he took notes. I will need blood potent blood and a variety of ingredients that I doubt you have available, he murmured.
Would my own blood be potent enough? she asked and held out a severed arm.
The man blinked before he hesitantly grabbed the limb, examining the blood. It is, he said, as if he admitted sothing he regretted.
Talk to Trian for the ingredients. Im sure we can procure whatever you need, she added.
The man nodded and thanked her.
Ready? she asked and looked at Iana.
The girl swallowed hard and nodded weakly, her face a mask of uncertainty.
Im alright, dont worry, Ilea said and appeared on the platform again.
Number six enchantnts version two point six, sequence start, Christopher said before the pressure resud.
Ilea felt a pulling again, this ti more central. As if she had issues with digesting. It was a little difficult to breathe as well. Nothing major.
She reported the findings and they resud the test, once again with her resistances deactivated.
I wonder if soone with a third tier space resistance can even use teleportation like this, if it prevents from being moved, she wondered before her innards vanished.
Oh? she exclaid with the air that was left.
Her body recovered near instantly before she smiled. Eh my whole rib cage and stomach as well as nearly all my organs just straight up vanished. Im not sure if thats the intention.
The enchanters both paled and looked at each other.
An hour passed, the enchantnts modified several tis in that span.
Ileas suggestion to weaponize the space gun was dismissed by Iana, her explanation as to why that wouldnt work going above Ileas understanding.
Dismbernt guns or maybe Portal? she thought with a smirk. Johnson could do it with a box of scraps, in a cave. Or how did that go? Surely Iana could live up to the task.
Christopher once again read out the next test sequence, by now looking visibly aged.
The magic activated and Ilea instantly felt the pressure built.
It climaxed and ripped out a section of her chest.
She reford it and imdiately looked over to the other platform where an unidentifiable sludge of red appeared and slapped to the ground, splashing blood and bone over the surface with a wet sound.
YES!! Iana exclaid before she covered her mouth in sha, looking at the ground.
Ilea laughed out loud and waved at her. Its fine. A marvelous success. The disembowelnt gun will be quite the shocker!
I told you its not possible to make it portable! Nor do we understand why this happens! Stop with the horrific suggestions! Iana exclaid, her sha imdiately forgotten before she smiled. Co on, we have a lot to do. The connection was established successfully this ti, lets work on the next version, she said to her companion.
I have a class to attend soon but Ill be back again tomorrow, Ilea said.
Of course thank you for the assistance. It would be impossible for us to do all this without you, I hope that is clear, Iana said.
Christopher nodded next to her, a hand moving through his disheveled hair.
I dont know many people that can easily recover from a ripped out chest either. Thats why Im here. And why you two work for , Ilea said with a smile. Glad we already made progress today.
Orthan sighed and stepped away from the cube holding the corruption. I will need more ti. I dont think it impossible however. It has been a while since I last worked on Blood Manipulation.
Ilea gave him a thumbs up and stored the glass container in her necklace. Then youll join us tomorrow again. If you dont mind?
He nodded. Of course. Dont mistake my terror for a lack of interest. I believe I should join you resistance training as well what happens when soone dies to this substance?
What do you think? she asked.
They turn into a monstrous beast? Losing all sanity? he suggested.
Bingo, she said and pointed at him with both hands.
Whats bingo? he asked, confusion apparent on his face, his gaze focused on the empty cube where the corruption had sat previously.
A dangerous monster that feeds on the boredom of n. Hope you never encounter it, Ilea said and ushered him out. See you two tomorrow!
They waved and continued their work.
Also sleep, or I will make you, Ilea added as the gates closed behind them.
You are relentless, Orthan said with a smile. And here I thought I was a strict instructor.
I dont want them to be consud by their work doesnt seem healthy, she said.
It is their passion, their joy. What else is there in life? he said.
Doesnt help if they die of exhaustion, she murmured. You can join the class if you want. Trian agreed as well. The Faculty is free to participate. If they can stomach the pain.
Orthan considered it for a mont before he nodded. I will join but I might not be able to go through with it.
Ilea shrugged and entered the unfinished training hall on the sixth floor.
She was a little early, or only a fraction of the students showed up for todays lesson. Are we early?
I believe so, Orthan said and stood with so of the students.
They looked at him and each other but nobody dared to murmur. Too few of them were there to reasonably hide it. Not that it would make a difference to Ileas ears.
Perhaps to Orthans but she had a suspicion that the old man was quite perceptive.
So close to level two hundred but he didnt push through. Either he leveled when he was already quite old or he chose to not increase his lifespan any further.
Ilea decided that she didnt care enough to risk a complicated talk. He was free to do whatever he wanted in those regards.
Hmm dont plan to just stand here today and watch them train, she thought and blinked to the farthest walls. It looked more like a cavern, unfinished and barely resembling sothing man carved.
She used a single ashen limb to scratch a variety of targets into the most even surfaces, using her wings to reach the higher up parts of the wall. That should do it, she thought and glanced back to find most of the students had arrived by now.
There were about as many as the day before. Doesnt seem like a steady decline at least. Thats good.
Ilea landed and greeted everyone, quickly comncing with where they had left off on their previous day.
She used her heavy bow to fire so arrows at the targets she had set up. Her enhanced Eyes of Ash only added the benefit of knowing just how inaccurate her shots were. With ti it would surely turn into a benefit too.
She added spears and arrows of ash that were shot from where they ca into existence into the mix, finding them a little more accurate as she didnt have to manually aim them with her bow. The lack of string helped too.
The students in the anti endured her ash attacks, blood manipulation and the occasional shock from Trian.
Ilea finished with a session of ditation and literal soul searching. She could tell there was sothing, her essence. It proved a massive struggle to even grasp its edges however.Practice and ti, she told herself and aid another arrow at one of the targets.
A few of the students reported both levels in ntal and Fear Resistance. The strain on their minds must have been palpable.
She assud it had to do with students overcoming their previous fear of the training, joining again when they stayed away on the previous day. The ntal Resistance was welco but a little worrying too. The strain she put them under was so much as to evoke it as a necessary growth.
Its the first hurdle theyre only getting stronger, she tried to steady herself, her healing continuously flowing into all of them.
Ilea watched them grit their teeth, fighting against the corruption that ate into their bodies, against the ash that sliced into their flesh.
She could feel the fear, the distress, and the pain. Each expression was a little different. Furious for so, determined for others, fearful and resilient or even joyous. Whatever it was that drove them, it kept them here. Made them endure. And she was proud. Of each and everyone of them.
You will grow to beco Sentinels yourself, able to protect and heal those you call your own.
The training ended without a major incident, the students leaving exhausted but not quite as terrified as they had been the previous days.
She watched them leave through her sphere and aid yet another arrow.
ding Heavy Archery reaches lvl 6
The ssage made her miss the target, appearing in her mind as she aid. An eyebrow quirked up when another ssage appeared.
ding You have learned the General skill: Sage of Tornt lvl 1
Sage of Tornt lvl 1
You have reached strength through pain and struggle. With ti they have beco companions on your way to power. As long as you train those willing, they shall find comfort and resilience in your presence. You are an example of what is possible, through sheer tenacity.Also, you inflict a lot of pain.
Ilea sighed at the ssage before she shook her head. I have beco a torturer, havent I?
She wondered if her actions were any different from the Dark Ones she stopped back in Lisburg. The subjects were willing and the benefits were obvious. She wasnt looking for information out of an already defeated foe. She wasnt inflicting pain for the sheer sake of it.
Well, to an extent she was but only to ultimately make them immune to its effects.
The existence of skills really fuckswith ethics, doesnt it?
She sighed again and reminded herself that the students were here by choice. That she was in fact helping them acquire necessary skills in a safe manner.
Doubting yourself? Trian asked as he joined her. For what its worth I focused on it today. The reaction of my mind was soothed by your healing. I am almost certain. Its different with you here. Your magic provides both warmth and security.
Dont want to know what kind of skill that will grant , she thought with a smirk.
Im okay. Its not a forever thing either. As soon as they have Pain Tolerance in the second tier, we can really start, she said.
A few are already above level ten. I doubt sobody could normally take that without heavy damage to their brain. Not without the kind of healing your provide, he said.
Ti and therapy can heal so wounds, Ilea said.
Neither of which is usually provided, Trian said and winked. How did the testing go?
Ilea walked towards the exit. Managed to teleport so of my innards. An absolute win, Id say.
Sounds unpleasant, Trian said and glanced back at the hall. Not as unpleasant as the chamber of agony.
That the official na? Ilea asked.
The man chuckled lightly. I overheard it. Testing grounds is another one. A little more positive. Hall of tears might be my favorite but I admit it is less fitting.
Huh, didnt take you for a poet, she said.
Trian glanced at her with an unreadable expression. If you take that as poetry, I pity your reading habits.
She just waved him off. I like fun stories. Im not much for the finer arts of reading.
You should try. It is rather enlightening. Makes you truly appreciate the wording and hidden implications in contracts. The terrifying power of Claire will only reveal itself through such a lens, he explained.
I prefer to stay ignorant. She is capable enough as it is, Ilea said. Do you know if Dagon is in Viscera?
Planning to visit? He should be. They barely ever leave their library these days. Not that I know much about his ti managent before the demons, he said with a smile.
At least Elise didnt change much, Ilea said and grinned. Did we ever get any trouble because of that by the way?
Not so far. The Empire is busy as is. I am sure the Library of Souls is shouldering a part of the work. With our independence, it will be difficult for them to demand anything. Especially people, he said.
Ilea nodded. Lets hope they never try. For their sake.
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