Rays of light filtered through closed shutters, casting patterns on the floor of the shed. David sat cross-legged across from Aura, his eyes wide with innocent eagerness that masked the calculating mind beneath.

  She knelt beside a simple wooden table. The alchemical supplies, dusts and vials, were neatly arranged on it, creating a vibrant, if odd, sight.

  She adjusted some stray strands of blonde hair, brushing it back behind her ears, and smiled faintly. “Alright, Marco, let’s start with something simple. Alchemy isn’t just about mixing things together; Like all magic, it’s about using mana to change reality. Like cooking, but…” she hesitated, “...with a lot more ways to mess up.”

  David nodded quickly, his small hands folded in his lap, the picture of an obedient student. “I understand, Mommy!” he chirped, the word now slipping from his lips effortlessly.

  Aura seemed to soften at the term, her posture relaxing. “Good. First, let’s talk about mana then. Without learning to harness it, you won’t get anywhere.”

  She handed him a vial containing a glowing, faintly blue liquid. “This is a basic sensory potion. Think of it like medicine that lets you feel mana.”

  David tilted his head in confusion. He was analyzing, but something didn’t add up. He sniffed the potion and pretended to be disgusted at the slightly sour smell. “Do I have to drink it?”

  Aura chuckled lightly. “Only a few times. Once if you’re as talented as your mommy.” She said “Like with many things, once you get a good feel for it, you never forget it.”

  David, feigning reluctance, drank the potion slowly, in sips. He wanted to gradually experience its effects, and he didn’t have to wait long – the potion worked as soon as he swallowed.

  Every bit of liquid that went through his throat made him more and more aware of the prickling on his skin. But it wasn’t the feeling of mana that got stronger – More like every other sensation growing weaker.

  Is that some kind of a numbing agent? David mused. “Mommy, I feel prickling on my skin. Is that it?”

  Aura blinked, startled by the question. “Yes that’s it…” She said surprised. “It took only half the potion on your first time? You might be talented in sensing!” she said, her voice tinged with pride.

  It’s not my first time, I’m sorry to disappoint. Nonetheles, he nodded energetically.

  “Okay, that prickling? That’s ambient mana that gathers in the air. It’s there if you wanted to use it, but your body is also full of it!” She softly bopped his nose. “You must be careful to never take in more than you can handle.”

  A little pretentious, considering her ritual. David shook his head. Time spent judging was time not spent learning.

  “What would happen if I did?” David asked, pretending to be scared.

  “Well, it will try very hard to leave – and do very bad things to you along the way.” Aura paused her explanation and stood up.

  She grabbed some frothy greenery from the table and placed it in a bowl. “See that voel leaf? To make healing draughts, you have to slowly imbue it with mana while working it with other ingredients, but if you give it more than it can handle….”

  Aura held the bowl from the bottom and focused, knitting her brows.

  The leaf quickly turned from green to blue, then to purple and finally to black before melting into a goo. “It will overload.”

  David stared from her to the leaf, now actually getting rattled. This happened in my body?

  Seeing his expression, she laughed. “It’s okay, that won’t happen to you because you’ll be a good boy who listens to everything I say, right?” She said teasingly.

  Touché Aura. Touché.

  Once Aura cleaned up, she led David through some breathing trainings and visualizations to cement his sense for mana before the potion ran out.

  “I think that’s enough for today, Marco” she said, hands on her hips.

  David looked up to her with wide, pleading eyes. “But what do you do with the mana? Is it just there? Please, I want to know!” So far, the lesson only covered what he has already experienced firsthand, ending now wouldn’t be satisfactory.

  Aura hesitated, her eyes drifting to the vial in her hand. She twirled it absently, her thoughts visible on her face. “You’re so curious,” she said, half to herself. “But this isn’t just a game, Marco. Mana can be dangerous, even deadly.” She paused, studying his wide, eager eyes, then sighed. “Be patient. We'll get there in time.” She said sternly.

  David tried to act as dejected as possible “I thought I’m going to be more amazing, like m-mommy”. He sniffled, as if trying as hard as possible not to cry.

  Surprisingly enough, it seemed to work brilliantly on Aura, her face gradually turning to remorse.

  Bert was right, she really was quite na?ve - Though, in her defense, who would expect their 8-year-old to try and wring sensitive information out of them.

  “We should be taking things slow, but…” She paused, a finger playfully on her lips, trying to cheer him up “I’ll tell you a tiny part of it now if you help me cook lunch tonight.”

  This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.

  David looked at her, as if distracted from his sadness – a child unsure whether he should continue or not.

  “So, what will it be?” She asked.

  “Yay! Of course, mommy!” David shouted, raising his hands. He ran to hug her “You’re the best mom ever!” And it was probably the best trade of his life.

  “Okay, okay, I’ll tell you” She responded, laughing a bit, her pride flaring. “You move the mana through your body, like a commander moves his soldiers around. Mostly, you push it through set patterns, or sometimes you do it freeform, like I did with the leaf. The more you do it, the better you get at it.”

  David stared in wonder and awe at the saint of knowledge in front of him. This 'tiny part' was exactly what he wanted to know. It was universal and you could practice it by repetition. His mind was completely focused on how to use that golden nugget of information.

  “There, you have it. Happy?”

  He enthusiastically nodded his head. A completely honest reaction.

  “With mana, you can do anything and everything, but it’s dangerous. Marco, don’t play around with it when I’m not around, even after you eventually learn how, alright?”

  “Of course, mommy!” He lied through his teeth.

  Satisfied, she caressed his head, took his hand and they went home to cook lunch together.

  Later that day, as the village settled into its quiet rhythm, David slipped away. His ‘parents’ thought he was off playing with other children, but he had no time for games.

  Armed with newfound knowledge, he looked for a secluded spot near the forest’s edge.

  He was at the gates when he noticed the pink haired girl. He often saw her near his home… lingering, hesitating.

  Why?

  As he slipped by her, he tried again to search his locked memories.

  This time, his head instantly filled with visions.

  Sally.

  His friend from before he awakened his old self.

  A curious girl who often ran away from work to play all day.

  He used to seek her out all the time.

  David’s chest tightened. I one day forgot her…

  That must have been hurtful. Maybe I’ll go apologize?

  But what would he even say? And more importantly, did he want to spend time with her? Not really.

  He wasn’t that person anymore.

  He kept moving, past the palisade and into the forest. His shoulders felt heavy, though he wasn't sure why. The girl would be better off without him faking friendship.

  Various bushes made it harder to move around. One stringy plant was particularly unpleasant – Though it didn’t sting or hurt, its thin stalks weaved around, coiling around anything that touched them.

  It slowed him down significantly.

  He finally found a proper place, with rather uniform and short grass, hidden away behind a layer of trees, but still close enough to the village.

  As he entered the clearing, a rustling startled him. A two-tailed fox jumped out from a short bush and immediately disappeared into the forest.

  Not wishing to waste any more time, David pushed the fantastical animal out of his mind and began his self-imposed regimen.

  He practiced circulating the mana around his body, as he did previously - but this time, he started small. He tried to keep moving it in circles.

  Too little, and the charge fizzled out, too much and it started to hurt just by passing.

  There seemed to be an optimal amount of mana that he could sustain without hurting himself.

  He kept at it, either breathing in or out the mana - increasing, or dialing back the amounts until it was barely not hurting him.

  Once he knew what to look for, it was surprisingly easy. In isolation, with no distractions.

  Soon he could take a charge, circle it for minutes, and release it without harm.

  He felt proud, if slightly disappointed at how easy it turned out to be… But why stop there?

  With the base rhythm down, he decided to combine it with simple exercises - anything that he thought his body could handle. Multitasking.

  He dropped to the ground and started slowly doing a push up, circling the mana through the working muscles.

  As soon as his elbows straightened, he lost control of the charge, which erupted into a violent bruise on his bicep.

  David smashed face first into the ground and started rolling around in pain. After the pain subsided, he sat back up.

  Now this is going to be hard. He smiled.

  He needed a simpler exercise; one using only a single muscle group - a curl up.

  David found a small rock in the grass, gripped it tight and adopted a stable position, only starting to take in the mana once he had a stable rhythm.

  The effects of mana on his physical prowess were immediate: His arm shot back and forth with unnatural strength and speed—each repetition bringing a sharp sting of overexertion.

  Once his bicep was done, he kept training with different exercises, often messing up and acquiring new bruises.

  The setting sun found David sprung out in the grass, his body was trembling and full of blotches. His breathing was ragged, but his eyes burned with determination. This is it.

  He had already found his first application for mana: muscle infusion. It was fickle and difficult to get right, though.

  Too little mana, and nothing changed. Too much, and his body colored with another bruise. But get it right? Strength. Speed... Power.

  Through repetition it already became just the tiniest bit more manageable. Well, mostly he just got used to the pain of failure.

  But he would keep training just like that until it became second nature.

  Invigorated despite his exhaustion, he stood up.

  Avoiding the clingy ivy plants and on the lookout for more animals, he slowly made his way back.

  When David finally returned home, his clothes scuffed, his hands expertly covering a visibly swelling bruise on his arm, Bert raised an eyebrow from the spearhead he was sharpening. “Rough day playing?”

  David forced a sheepish smile. “Yeah…”

  Aura glanced at him, her brow furrowing. She opened her mouth slightly, but ultimately said nothing.

  She couldn’t have imagined the truth if she tried – From her perspective it would have been truly absurd.

  He quickly walked past them. As he sank into the straw bedding, every muscle in his body screamed. And yet, he couldn’t suppress a smile. It wasn’t just pain—it was progress.

  But was it fast enough to outrun the encroaching darkness?