Chapter 217: Gate-Breaking_Millennial Mage

Chapter 217: Gate-Breaking

 T and Thorn tried not to stare up at the new fake star in the sanctums sky.

 Well, how fake is it really? It shines, it gives off heat, it seems to burn

 -Not a real star, so fake is correct, but it is more real than I expected from a cursory examination of the House of Bloods hold. My understanding is that without magic, stars have to have a sufficient mass to maintain coherence. Miniature? Artificial? One of those might be more urate?-

 I suppose so.

 Thorn cleared his throat. As fascinating as all of this is, we should get to our training.

 Terry nced at T from her shoulder, then hopped down and ran off to do Terry things. Probably exploring the sanctum. Definitely not killing workers and eating their bodies.

 -Yeah, that doesnt sound like Terry.-

 T decided to ignore the hints of sarcasm in ts voice and trust Terrys discretion, regardless of his chosen tasks.

 Be-thric gave a nod to Thorn. Very well. But one more thing before that.

 He walked over to T and pulled out a metal rod. The city lord has granted our request to modify your saorsa-cor. It cannot be removed asmonw requires all gated humans to wear one, but yours will be modified to only be actionable by illegal conduct on your part, the Pirs of the House of Blood, or the city lord himself.

 T gave a shallow bow. Thank you, Pir.

 Of course. We couldnt leave you in a state where a mere bribe to a city guard could kill my Eskau, could we? He pressed the rod through her cor, pushing it in so far that it should havee out the other side to skewer her neck.

 Instead, it seemed to sink into the cor, fully melding with it, and T felt the magics shift.

 There we have it.

 T had investigated the magic of the cor innumerable times, even not counting the times that Tali had investigated the thing. There was no way out.

 Kit couldnt remove it.

 Even if she could convince him to help her, Thorn couldnt erect a disintegrating force between the cor and her neck to intercept the dasganachs.

 The list went on and on. She and t were constantly brainstorming for possibilities, but the ne wasid bare to them, and they could easily see how each of their ns would end.

 Two dasganchs injected into her.

 There was no way around it.

 T was brought back to the present moment when Be-thric turned to go.

 By all means, proceed with your training now, my Eskau. I wish to examine the sanctum a bit more before I depart. I am working to set up anappointment, which should be very profitable. Ill want you to attend me whenever I am able to get it established. It should be in less than two months, though I hope it will be much sooner. We must keep pushing forward, after all. He smiled along with thest words.

 T nodded. As you wish.

 The Pir turned and walked away without another word

 Thorn cleared his throat to garner her attention. Alright then, Eskau Tali. Can you ce a stone block somewhere you can hit it with your weapon?

 T frowned but shrugged in resignation. She hopped off the tform, then sent the desire to Kit.

 A two-foot cube block of stone appeared on the edge of the tform, the center of the stone being about as high as Ts sternum.

 What now?

 Strike it with your weapon in the form of a sword. Dont do anything else, no mirroring, no enhancing, no nothing.

 T quirked a smile. No nothing?

 I dont understand all your strange fount powers.

 She shook her head. Okay.

 The stone was heavily magically saturated granite. She drew Flow and pushed it into the form of a sword.

 T took a deep breath and exhaled with her swing, keeping proper edge alignment.

 Her de passed cleanly through the stone at a downward angle.

 With a soft grating, the upper piece slid off the lower.

 Thorn blinked at her. Huh.

 What was that test for?

 II expected you to fail to cut the whole way through, and I wanted to establish a baseline.

 T rolled her eyes and jabbed at him, verbally, That was ignorant of you.

 My old sword, formed from my protian weapon, wouldnt have been able to.

 She grinned. Well, that might be one reason I won then, eh?

 Thorn groused, but she could see a small smile tugging at his lips. Yeah, that may well be.

 So what now?

 Thorn sighed. Get rid of that stone.

 T silently requested, and Kit made it happen.

 Thank you. Now, there should be something in your storage called striking wood. ce it here, where the stone was.

 T shrugged and sent the desire to Kit.

 A thin piece of wood appeared in front of T.

 It was a three-by-three foot square and one inch thick. The broad side was facing her, and it was on a stand of sorts.

 There, cut that.

 T could see magics of endurance and resistance to cutting flowing through every fiber of the wood.

 She took a deep breath and struck again.

 This time, Flow caught in the material after cutting about a quarter of the way through, the wood charring above and below the cut until she withdrew her weapon.

 Good! Good. Thank you. Now, doing your aspect mirroring thing. Give your sword your entire magical weight.

 T shrugged and did as he asked, striking at a different ce on the wood.

 Flow cut halfway through before being caught up in the material once again.

 Thats the baseline, then. We need to increase your flowrate before we see what progress you make.

 She frowned. My flowrate wont affect my density directly.

 No, but it will affect it over the long run.

 Thats fair.

 The wood vanished since she no longer wanted it there. This might just make me a bitzy

 That was a hurdle forter, however.

 So, how are we going to do this? How are founts normally expanded, enhanced, and improved?

 Thorn looked a little sheepish. Well, to my understanding, this is only really done with founts.

 Yes, that is what I was asking. Now, what will we be doing?

 Gate-breaking.

 -That sounds painful.-

 That sounds painful.

 -Copy cat.-

 Were literally the same person. I cant copy myself.

 -Only marginally these days.-

 T huffed augh.

 Whats funny?

 Nothing, just arguing with myself.

 Thorn grunted, seeming to decide to ignore the oddity. So, the way this works

 Gate-breaking. T interrupted.

 what?

 The way gate-breaking works.

 Yes, of course thats what Im talking about. He sounded a bit exasperated.

 T grinned back at him. Good. Just checking.

 He gave her a suspicious re. As I was saying: the way that gate-breaking works is there are two devices we attach to a fount or, in this case, to you. One stabilizes the gate, while the other

 T gestured for him to continue, then helpfully supplied. breaks it?

 Not precisely, no. Though, my understanding is that that would be the result, without the reinforcement.

 Ah, so what does it do?

 The dwarf sighed. The other device will forcibly pull power through your gate as fast as possible, while forcing the power to flow normally. No tricks, nopression, no Ways if Im remembering the term correctly. Founts apparently asionally maintain them, and it messes with the process, so safeguards are put in ce to suppress them. Thus, in the end, it is just raw, unrefined power. That power wears away at the edges of the gate, expanding its base flowrate.

 Ts eyes widened, but he continued before she could interject.

 The two devices are linked, so the more power that is pulled, the stronger the reinforcement of your gate will be.

 Her eyes narrowed. What is the sess rate?

 When properly monitored? It never fails.

 What does that mean?

 Generally, an expert in maintaining founts is present and regtes the rate of expansion to prevent catastrophic failure. In this case, you will be letting me know how to adjust the flow.

 Why cant I do it myself?

 He seemed hesitant. Well I mean we can do that, but I was thinking I could rein you in a bit.

 Tughed. Whats that supposed to mean?

 You can be a bit brash, Tali. Never stupid, but youre willing to take risks if its what Pir Be-thric wants. We both know he wants this for you. Thorn snorted. At this point its practically required if you dont want to spend all of every day keeping this sanctum full of power.

 Ill be careful, but I do want this. Until I Refine, this is my best path to greater power, and I will need that in gold if Im to make good my escape.

 He looked skeptical, but finally nodded. Theres something more. If it ever stops, your gate will beresistant to this means of expansion. Slow it down as much as you want, but dont stop unless you really cant take it anymore.

 I can understand that. How long?

 Its settings are numerical, and we need at least one-hundred-unit-hours worth, meaning one hundred hours at setting one, ten hours at setting ten, etc. Any less will have been a waste of everyones time. Ideally, well get closer to a thousand-unit-hours. Unfortunately, the returns diminish significantly as the unit-hours increase.

 She nodded, moving back up on the tform. But more is better?

 In theory.

 In theory? She paused, looking back towards him.

 Well, founts are expanded to meet a specific need. They arent generally broken as wide open as they can be, just because they can be. I dont know that anyone has simply kept expanding a gate. If my limited understanding in integral theory is urate that could rip a hole into the next world and kill us all, though that would probably not happen for close to a hundred-thousand-unit-hours worth.

 Ahh, so I shouldnt let it run for ten hours on setting ten thousand? She quirked a smile.

 It doesnt go that high, but no. No, you should not.

 She shook her head and sat down in the throne. Even so, more power is better, right? Why not open each fount as wide as possible? Run the device until the increase is inconsequential?

 Thorns voice returned to its professional tone, Because the process never fails, only when properly monitored.

 She cocked her head to one side. Exin.

 Thorn gave a shallow bow. Each fount seems to have a certain threshold, after which it will slowly degrade. Not in a day, or a week, but soon. The way Ive heard it described, the founts cease working for their own existence.

 I dont understand.

 He sighed. Founts devote arge chunk of the powering through themselves to stabilize their existence, to keep themselves in the physical world. If a fount is pushed too far? It just stops keeping itself here.

 He shrugged. I dont know that anyone really knows why, but the experts have learned to notice the signs and stop gate-breaking before it gets there. Thus, founts are opened as wide as they will go, then sold or traded to those who can use them at that level.

 T was nodding. Therger flowrate costing more.

 Precisely.

 Thank you for the exnation.

 Of course. He smiled, then cleared his throat. I need your diaphragm and keystone clear.

 T obliged, flexing her power within her elk-leathers to clear those patches of her skin.

 Thorn pulled out two round magical items. They were linked by a braided metal cable of various materials.

 The dwarf looked at the exposed area and cleared his throat. Completely clear, Tali.

 T looked down. Right, the iron paint. With a precise aspect mirroring, she pushed the elk-leathers self-cleaning onto the exposed skin, freeing the paint.

 With quick motions, she broke the areas free with a finger and tossed the dark circles aside.

 Magic rushed out through the openings, and the echoes that her magic had been generating in reality around her began to fade, vanishing entirely in a handful of seconds.

 Thank you. Thorn seemed to rx a bit as the obvious evidence of her power bled away.

 T just shrugged.

 She lifted one arm briefly, allowing Thorn to ce the devices on her keystone and diaphragm, the cable running under that arm.

 As soon as they were both connected, T felt something seize her gate, reinforcing it, but not right at the edge. The feeling was like the reinforcement was set back, just away from the edges. Then, the other device kicked on, and she felt a pull on her power like she had never experienced.

 It was all she could do not to scream at the oddity of it.

 It wasnt pain, just like a limb falling asleep wasnt precisely painful, but it felt wrong.

 Thorn was speaking to her, and she did her utmost to focus on the words.

 As of now, it is on its lowest setting: one, as we discussed. He then handed her a small disk that was connected to the two devices by another twisted cable.

 How did I not see that thing before? She was forcing her mind to focus on that, rather than the abrasion in her soul.

 -Thats not really important, T.-

 She heartily agreed, which is why she was trying to focus on it.

 It didnt work.

 Thorn exined how to adjust the pace and then stepped back.

 T was already feeling off, even not ounting for the devices direct results.

 The magic in her body was in a turmoil, her spell-forms starved of new power.

 About half of the power being sucked from her was being directed around and into the strategic reinforcement of the edges of her gate via the second device.

 The remainder was being spilled into the air around her, where it was being quickly consumed by Kit.

 Even so, that consumption wasnt instant.

 T grit her teeth and seized some of the power as it came out and forced it back into her spell-forms.

 She felt a wave of relief as her magic stopped screaming at her.

 She was working at very low powerpared to normal, let alone her pressure cooker state, but her inscriptions were still working.

 -That was unpleasantly close. I dont particrly want to die.-

 Me either

 The feeling of power being ripped through her was deeply ufortable in an utterly non-physical way.

 It felt like someone was insulting her friends orughing at her most cherished beliefs.

 It was an ache, an agony, that was so much deeper than mere physical pain.

 And she needed to increase it. Or endure this for at least one hundred hours.

 That wasnt really an option, if she were being honest.

 How many settings does it have?

 Thorn was giving her a worried look but answered without hesitation. One hundred. Just remember, what youre feeling? This is currently on one.

 Great. Lets try two.

 She activated the increase.

 There were no words for the change in sensation, and she threw her head back and let out an involuntary, weeping scream.

 Thorn was almost to her when she mastered herself, closing her mouth and cutting off the wail.

 Oh bleed me dry that is awful. Her teeth were grinding against each other. How long do I need to do this?

 The dwarf looked a bit pale. To say he was green would have been ridiculous. He was always green, but the green of his skin was a lighter shade than she was used to seeing. As long as you are able, Tali. Ideally, just more than two days at this setting. Can I get you anything?

 Do I have to be conscious?

 I think so, unfortunately. At least for now. If you can manage to sleep with it,ter, I think that should work.

 I hate you a little bit.

 I know, Tali, but that cant be helped, Im afraid.

 Tughed at that, and theughter seemed to help. Is that becauseughter helps the soul heal?

 -Thats very conceptual thinking, but maybe?-

 Seemed to work. Maybe, do we have any goodedies? I thinkughing might help me endure this.

 Ill see what I can find. Then, Ill see what I can dig up in the city.

 Thank you, Thorn.

 As the dwarf stepped back, watching carefully, T ticked the device up to three, and felt her entire body sh cold at the strain. This is the worst.

 T was mistaken.

 The next week was vastly worse than that first half-hour had been.

 Honestly, she couldnt really say why she kept going. It was awful, and she was sure she could bring a halt to it at any time, but she found that she didnt want to stop, either.

 With long practice and careful ramp-ups, T was able to push the device up to fifty for up to ten minutes at a time, before she had to drop it back down to the twenties.

 She felt like her whole family had died before her eyes.

 A thousand other descriptors rolled through her mind as she sunk deeper into a depressive state.

 She barely ate,constantly fidgeted, and nothing felt right.

 Her soul was raw, but the results were unquestionable.

 Well, she didnt know exactly by how much her flowrate had increased, but she knew it had.

 -Well test it when were finished with this stupidity.-

 That was another thing that had surprised T, back when she could be surprised.

 t felt agony too. Shed hidden that fact for the first day or so, but as the alternate interface became noticeably more irritable, T had wormed a confession out of her.

 Theyd almost quit the second night, after not sleeping at all the first.

 Blessedly, they found a way to sleep. Though, it was hardly restful, and every second had been filled with nightmares.

 I wouldnt wish this on my worst enemies.

 She actually meant that.

 Be-thric had visited her a few times to check on her progress, and she hadnt been able to muster up the energy to wish he was suffering alongside her. Even when she felt like she could wish it on him, she realized that that would be too cruel.

 What is wrong with me? If its that bad, lets stop.

 -Yes, please stop.-

 Okay. Well stop. T checked the time. Just one more hour, I think I can take it on thirty-five for another hour, if were going to be done after that.

 -If youre sure, I can endure with you.-

 And so it went.

 One week became two and the sanctum was finished around T.

 nts began to sprout and grow, and thest of the workers departed.

 Still T couldnt quite make herself bring the process to an end. If I stop, what will have been the point? I can never do this again. I need to make it worth something.

 Thorn remained, always nearby. Though as the days went on, he looked more and more concerned. T had even woken to him trying to take the control from her once.

 Shed screamed herself hoarse at him for that, though she couldnt remember why shed been so angry.

 In the end, T had utterly lost count of the days when Be-thric came to her. Your dedication is admirable, my Eskau, but you are needed.

 T sat in her throne, slumped to the side, and barely acknowledged the man.

 Shed tried letting Tali be inmand, but the womans internal monologues about doing this for her Master were somehow worse than the agony of the device. Or maybe it was that their repetitions had been in exact cadence with the pulsing pull, amplifying the awful?

 In either case, it hadnt been a true solution.

 When T didnt respond, Be-thric stepped forward, gripped the two devices, and simply ripped them off of her in one, quick motion.

 T screamed, her throat so hoarse that it came out more like a harsh breath. Her gate had briefly spasmed, the flow seeming to stutter.

 Then, the torrent rushed through the new gaping maw, power mming into her scripts, suffusing her flesh, and burning its way free of her aura control.

 Be-thric had taken a step back, a look of undisguised greed briefly flickering over his features.

 After the brief slip, the Pir snapped at her. Master your power, Eskau.

 T had strained to pull her power, her aura, back in, and by slow degrees she seeded. It was harder than the first time shed ever attempted aura control despite the skill being deeply ingrained in her subconscious. It was supposedly something she did without thought.

 That wasnt true anymore.

 Clean yourself up. I need you in three hours. Will you be able to contain yourself by then?

 But I could have kept going for another three hours With such a time limit, I probably could have endured up into the seventies.

 Her self was shaking.

 That device had be all she focused on, and now it was gone. Gone. GONE!

 T stared at it as ity on the ground. I could reattach it. Its probably not been too long. I can keep going at least for a little bit.

 Be-thric seemed to see where she was looking, and he sighed. Thorn, was there any mention of addictive properties?

 The Pir nced to Thorn and the dwarf shrugged, his worried eyes fixed on T. Im sorry, my Pir, but I dont know. I dont think anyones ever used it on a gated human before. That would exin how shes been acting, though.

 -Depression is addicting, in its own way.- t had kept a clearer line of thought through the whole process, and that seemed to be holding true even now. -This is better. We needed to be done.-

 II guess thats true. She took a deep, shuddering breath. The power within her had settled, though it still moved like the tide itself. Her throat was already fully healed. It likely had been in the first wash of power, but T hadnt noticed.

 T groaned, pulling herself back together in an almost literal sense.

 The power was ripping her apart as it activated her magics more powerfully than they had ever been before. That same power was also flowing through her regenerative inscriptions, repairing the damage it caused before it could truly register.

 The truly physical pain was actually steadying to her, like vigorous exercise. It helped her focus on the present. Ill be ready.

 T vaguely heard Thorn add in his own affirmation. Ill make sure of it.

MillionNovel

Chapter 217: Gate-Breaking