Ayana sat on the edge of her bed, the tome open to Chapter 3: The Beginnings of Magic Circles. She focused on the tattoo on her shoulder, and like always the translucent screen materialized, displaying:

  “Can you display the Spirit cost for copying the 3rd chapter, please?” she asked, her minds voice soft but firm. The screen obliged, the text shifting to reveal:

  She frowned. “That’s more than I have.” Her current Spirit reserves were already low, and she couldn’t afford to drain them completely. “Maybe I can copy it in pieces, like I did with Chapter 2,” she thought, her mind racing through the possibilities.

  The screen flickered, responding to her unspoken question:

  Ayana bit her lip, weighing her options. Copying 15 pages would leave her with enough Spirit to function, but it was a risk. If she pushed herself too far by trying to copy another set of 15 or more, she could black out—or worse. Still, the thought of falling further behind was unbearable. “I can’t afford to wait,” she decided. “Proceed.”

  The screen shimmered, and text began scrolling:

  As the screen finished, Ayana felt a faint wave of dizziness, a familiar side effect of using Spirit. She steadied herself, gripping the edge of the bed until the sensation passed. “That’s it,” she thought, glancing at the tome. “Fifteen pages. Better than nothing.”

  She closed the tome and set it aside, her mind already turning to her next task. With her Spirit reserves still low, she’d need to replenish them soon, by resting , but for now, she had work to do.

  Ayana adjusted her position to laying on her bed, her head resting on the pillow and her hands folded over her stomach. The room was quiet, the faint hum of the tower’s magic a steady backdrop to her thoughts. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, trying to push aside the frustration that had been gnawing at her since her failed attempts in the practice room.

  “Focus,” she told herself, her voice firm in her mind. “Just focus.”

  She started with her heartbeat, slow and steady, just as she had practiced before. In her mind’s eye, she pictured the energy within her as a small, stream—a trickle of water winding its way through her body, only this time it resembled an almost dark colour, “must be the recent practise with forming the shadow orb” and she went back to focussing again. It started at her heart, a faint pulse of shadow that she guided down through her chest and into her stomach.

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  But the stream was weak, its flow uneven. It splintered and faltered, slipping through her grasp like smoke. Ayana clenched her fists, her frustration bubbling up again. “Why can’t I hold it?” she thought, her jaw tightening. “I’ve done this before. I know I can.”

  She took another deep breath, forcing herself to relax. “Start small,” she reminded herself. “You’re still an apprentice. You don’t need a river yet—just a stream.”

  This time, she focused on the stream itself, imagining it as a cool, dark thread winding its way through her body. She started at her heart again, guiding the energy down through her stomach and into her pelvis. The stream grew stronger, its flow more steady, and she felt a faint pulse of shadow in her hips.

  “Good,” she thought, her excitement growing. “Keep going.”

  She guided the stream further, down through her thighs and into her knees. The energy flickered, threatening to dissipate, but she held on, her focus unwavering. The stream reached her calves, a faint, cool sensation that made her toes twitch.

  “Almost there,” she whispered, her voice barely audible. She guided the stream into her feet, one by one, until the energy reached the very tips of her toes. For the first time, she felt the connection—a faint but unmistakable pulse of darkness that linked her heart to her toes.

  But she wasn’t done yet. To form a complete body pattern, she needed to establish a connection through her arms as well. She took another deep breath and redirected the stream, guiding it back up through her torso and into her shoulders. The energy flowed more easily now, as if her body was remembering the path.

  She guided the stream down through her upper arms, her elbows, and into her forearms. The cool, dark energy pulsed faintly in her wrists, and she focused on maintaining the flow. Finally, she guided the stream into her palms and fingers, one by one, until the energy reached the very tips.

  Ayana opened her eyes and held out her hands, palms up. The shadows in the room seemed to respond, swirling around her fingers like a living thing. She smiled faintly, a sense of accomplishment washing over her. “I did it,” she thought. “I finally reached my fingers.”

  But this time, she didn’t stop there. Drawing on her progress with [Shadow Bolt], she focused on the energy flowing through her body, visualizing it as a complete circuit—a loop that connected her heart to her toes and back up through her arms to her fingers. The cool, dark stream became a river, its flow steady and unbroken.

  For the first time, she felt the complete body pattern—a network of shadow energy that linked every part of her. The sensation was exhilarating, like a current of cool water flowing through her veins. She could feel the dark element within her, alive and responsive, waiting for her command.

  “This is it,” she thought, her heart racing. “This is what I’ve been missing.”

  Her progress with [Shadow Bolt] had taught her to focus the energy into a single point, but now she understood the dark element on a deeper level. It wasn’t just about control—it was about connection. The shadows weren’t just a tool; they were a part of her.

  As she lay there, the complete body pattern humming faintly within her, Ayana felt a flicker of something new—confidence. She wasn’t just an apprentice fumbling in the dark anymore. She was beginning to understand the shadows, and with that understanding came power.

  Her progress with [Shadow Bolt] had taught her to focus the energy into a single point, but now she understood the dark element on a deeper level. It wasn’t just about control—it was about connection. The shadows weren’t just a tool; they were a part of her.

  As she lay there, the complete body pattern humming faintly within her, Ayana felt a flicker of something new—confidence. She wasn’t just an apprentice fumbling in the dark anymore. She was beginning to understand the shadows, and with that understanding came power.

  But as she focused on the energy within her, something shifted. The darkness around her seemed to come alive, not just as a force she could control, but as something she could see. Faint, translucent orbs of light began to appear in her mind’s eye, scattered throughout the room like fireflies. They glowed softly, their light muted and hazy, as if seen through a veil.

  Ayana’s breath caught in her throat. “What is this?” she thought, her heart racing. She reached out with her senses, trying to understand what she was seeing. The orbs weren’t just random—they were clusters of mana, the raw energy that fuelled all magic. Each orb represented a different element, their colours and intensities varying slightly.

  She focused on one of the orbs, a faint, silvery light hovering near the foot of her bed. As she concentrated, she realized it was water mana, its energy cool and fluid. There were more of them than she expected—dozens of silvery orbs scattered throughout the room, their light shimmering like moonlight on a still lake. “Master Wilson’s influence,” she thought, remembering his mastery of water magic. His presence in the tower must have saturated the area with water mana, making it more abundant than the other elements.

  Another orb, a warm golden glow near the window, was fire mana, its light flickering like a tiny flame. It was smaller and less numerous than the water orbs, but its energy felt vibrant and alive. And then there were the shadows—dark, shimmering orbs that seemed to pulse with a life of their own. They were fewer in number than the water orbs, but their presence was unmistakable, weaving through the room like threads of night.

  “This is incredible,” she thought, her excitement growing. “I can see the elements.”

  Her progress with [Shadow Bolt] had taught her to focus the dark element into a single point, but this was something entirely new. She wasn’t just controlling the shadows anymore—she was perceiving them, understanding their place in the world around her. The dark element wasn’t just a tool; it was a part of the fabric of reality, intertwined with all the other elements.

  Ayana reached out with her hand, not physically but with her mind, and brushed against one of the shadow orbs. It responded immediately, its energy flowing into her like a cool breeze. She guided it into the complete body pattern, feeling the connection strengthen as the dark mana merged with her own.

  The water orbs seemed to react to her presence, their light flickering faintly as if acknowledging her. Ayana smiled, a sense of wonder washing over her. She had always thought of magic as something separate, something she had to force into submission. But now, she realized, it was all around her, waiting to be understood.

  As the mana orbs flickered and faded from her mind’s eye, Ayana slowly brought herself out of the meditative state. The complete body pattern still hummed faintly within her, a steady reminder of her progress. She took a deep breath, feeling the cool, dark energy settle into her core like a quiet ember.

  “I need to check my status,” she thought, her mind already turning to the screen. The meditation had been intense, and she could feel the toll it had taken on her mind. She focused on the tattoo on her shoulder, and the translucent screen materialized, displaying her current status.