“It's not nearly as hard as it looks,” he adds, blowing the smoke off his red-hot horn.
The roll of paper drops out of your jaw. Oh, no. Nonononono. The universe has got to be kidding. That kind of innuendo is an atrocity against all things decent.
“I'm sure it's not,” you say, feeling your muscles bunch up as an overwhelming urge to back away takes hold of you. “Not hard, I mean. I mean, if you're talking about the spell.”
He raises an eyebrow in honest curiosity, his horn still glowing like a hot poker. “What else would I be talking about?”
It takes you a moment to come up with a suitable answer. “I...never mind.”
Fairweather shrugs and levitates a glass of iced tea to you. “Care for a drink before we get started? This kind of thing gets you thirsty fast.”
“No thanks,” you blurt. “Wait, actually, uh, sure! Why not?”
Fairweather nods nonchalantly. “I think you'll like it,” he says before the magical glow leaves the glass. It falls to the ground and shatters in a spray of glass and tea. You flinch back in alarm.
His deep blue eyes regard you with confusion.
His deep blue eyes...
Nergh! What's he saying now? Something about “why didn't you catch it?”
“I'm sorry?” you ask, baffled.
“Eh, it was my fault. Should've told you before I let go,” he sighed.
“But I couldn't have caught it,” you protest. “I was too far away.”
He looks even more confused now. “You...do realize there's something called 'telekinesis,' right?”
Oh, no.
“I...” you manage, “can't do that.”
It had to come sooner or later, but that doesn't make the hot blush leave your cheeks. For a second Fairweather looks at you like a man discovering his date never got potty trained. You shift your gaze to the rickety wooden floor, vainly hoping it will suddenly split open and swallow you.
“It's the heat!” you ejaculate, blushing even harder when you realize how wrong that sounded. “I mean...it's this weird thing I've developed. All that time in the desert...I think it did something to me. I try to use magic, but nothing comes. I can't remember any spells...I can't do anything!”
The story is fake, but the tears you try to blink back are quite real.
You hear the soft creak of wood as Fairweather slowly trots up to you. You can't bear to bring your head up to look at him.
You feel his hoof press against your chin, gently lifting it up until you're gazing into his eyes.
There's something captivating about his expression. It's a strange mixture of sternness and tenderness; something that seems unique to him.
“Never say that again,” he says. “There's no such thing as a pony who can't do anything.”
As you stare into his eyes, you wonder what he's thinking. Is this the part where you both break out into some smarmy musical number? Judging by the lack of a soundtrack, it seems you might be safe from that possibility but that doesn't change the fact that he's looking into your eyes and it's really hard to turn away because you don't want to look awkward because then that would make you look like a--
At that moment he turns away, and you feel like a steam boiler that was fixed just before it could blow itself apart. The unicorn plods over to a small stack of dog-eared books resting on a stool, carefully pulling a hefty black tome from it.
“I figure it would be best to start with the simple things,” Fairweather explains as he levitates the book in front of you. He opens it, but not before you can read its cover:
Everything You Wanted to Know About Magic
(Also the Things You Didn't Want to Know, Too)
A Comprehensive Guide
by Timothy Hay, The Enchanter
He flips to a page labeled “Lesson One: Levitation.”
Although most unicorn foals are capable of basic levitation skills, every now and then an adult “unicorn” comes up and tells me, “Durr, I don't know how to make stuff go floaty-floaty. Can you teach me?” At this point I want to throw something at them, but given my already questionable reputation, I have little choice other than to humor them. If you are one of these ponies, you should feel sad before continuing to read. Do you feel sad now? Good. Now let's begin.
You give Fairweather a skeptical look.
“He's a bit obnoxious at times, but his methods make it worthwhile.”
You look back at the book, only to find that the rest of the page consists of strange symbols.
“What language is this?” you ask, perplexed.
“It's not a language. Those little symbols are to help you focus your magic.”
You regard him with an even more confused look. “How?”
“Think about each symbol on that page. Try to memorize each one of them. Magic is all about focus and concentration: sometimes, it helps to have visual cues.”
Returning to the book, you set to work on committing each symbol to memory. One of them is a line connecting two x-marks. Another is a simple arrow pointing upward. Another still looks like a box with four arrows radiating from it.
Soon you can clearly visualize each exact symbol in your head. “What now?” you ask.
“Look at the object you want to pick up. Then start thinking about the symbols, and about how much you want it to start floating into the air.”
You focus your gaze on a small rock lying next to the porch. “Okay...”
Okay, rock, you think. You are going to fucking move. I want you to move so much that I'm going to start thinking about lines and arrows and boxes. What do you think of that, punk?
The rock remains undisturbed. You grit your teeth and give it another try, but still no luck. You gather all of your will for the third try, which you know is always the charm. And then...
Absolutely nothing happens. If that rock had a face, it would be giving you a pretty smartass smirk right now.
“It isn't working,” you sigh.
“Probably because you're overthinking it,” suggests Fairweather, leaning casually against the porch's railing. “Keep in mind the symbols are just a way to help you focus. They aren't the source of the magic itself; that part comes from inside. Think about what the symbols mean to you. 'To you' is the important part.”
You think about the first symbol, the line connecting the two crosses. It makes you think of connections, and from there you get the image of a network cable linking two computers together. The second one is simple enough: upward momentum. You imagine an elevator shooting up to the top of a skyscraper, from the basement to the top floor in the blink of an eye. The third one reminds you of a car at an intersection, its engine revving up just as the driver decides where he wants to go. The car has no control; only the driver does.
You look back at the rock and screw your eyes shut. You think about how much you want your magic to connect with it, just like setting up a computer network. You want it to shoot up into the air, just like a high-speed elevator. And you want to move it where you want it—over to you, you decide. Just like a driver making a u-turn at an intersection to go back home.
You feel something peculiar deep inside your bones, radiating from your core and flowing to your horn. Subtle vibrations tickle your nerves, like you're a living tuning fork. The feeling isn't unpleasant, but it's shockingly unfamiliar—in fact, you've never felt anything even remotely like it. A small gasp escapes your lips, and your eyes flutter open.
The feeling fades while your eyes adjust to the harsh desert light. You look for the rock, but it's gone. What the--
“Look in front of you,” says Fairweather.
The book is now sporting a new granite paperweight. Your face lights up.
“Did I...” you start breathlessly, unable to hide your excitement.
“Now, what was that about not being able to do anything?” Fairweather asks, a wry smile on his muzzle.
You know how pitiful your achievement was compared to the magic other unicorns could perform--hell, even unicorn foals--but that doesn't dampen your elation in the slightest. For a moment you feel like a kid again, finally learning how to ride a bike.
But soon your smile fades. You're not supposed to be happy, damn it! You're supposed to get this over with as soon as possible. Returning home is priority numero uno. Right?
Fine, so maybe—just maybe—it might be okay to enjoy a few things about your change. It's not like you're becoming any less human for taking a little pleasure in the thrill of magic.
Are you?
It occurs to that you might actually miss the ability to use magic once you get back to normal. As brief as your little foray into the mystical arts has been, you're startled by how much you want to learn more. It's tantalizing, like taking a tiny sip of the best wine in the world.
“You still with me? You look a little dazed,” Fairweather remarks, a concerned look in his deep blue eyes. Yet again you blush. Damn it, why did you have to end up with him? Why couldn't you have been saddled up with one of those old, wizened teachers instead?
He's starting to look even more confused as you struggle to respond.
“I'm fine, just...lost my train of thought, that's all,” you offer with a forced smile. You need an emergency escape from this, fast. Salvation comes when your eyes fall on the scroll of paper you'd dropped on the floor earlier. “Hey, I just remembered. I think you forgot to check my paperwork—you know, the stuff Silverstar had me fill out?”
He looks confused for a second more before recognition dawns on his face. “Ah, yes. The Sheriff's been acting pretty strangely about that stuff.”
“I figured something was wrong,” you murmur.
He nods and leans closer, lowering his voice conspiratorially. “Just before the town started having...problems, he was caught up in a fight about plans for a new railroad. An express line, directly connecting Appleloosa with Las Pegasus. They thought it would be the boost Appleloosa needed to stop being a town and start being a city. So there was a big push to make the town more 'civilized,' and supposedly that meant more rules, more laws...and much, much more paperwork for people like Sheriff Silverstar. Trouble is, the plan fell through. Silverstar ended up taking most of the blame: he got accused of not taking the paperwork seriously enough. He took the whole thing quite personally.”
He sighs. “So now he does paperwork at the slightest provocation. He's terrified of being seen as a slacker in case they start talking about 'civilizing' Appleloosa again.”
“So this has become some sort of compulsion?” you ask.
“You could call it that. He used to be the kind of sheriff who always went charging into action, but now? Now I barely ever see him outside his office. And do you know what the worst part of it is? Nopony actually wants him to do paperwork anymore. But he can't seem to get that one day out of his mind, when the town paper called him a 'good fer-nuthin' bumblin' basket of fritter crumbs.'”
You're about to comment on how stupid it is that he'd go so nuts over an insult like that, but on some level you can empathize with him. As you've discovered in the past few days, humiliation leaves the slowest-healing wounds.
Glad to see another update
There are some who call me...
2460933
Yes! YESSSS! Someone got the reference!
2460905
Sorry it took so long.
How intriguing, learning magic sure sounds like fun, it'd be nice if I had a Wizard friend, then he could teach me magic and we could do Wizardy things! Looking forward to more BTW.
2464230
"Wizardy"...that word is too awesome for me to complain about it not being real.
2467805
i.qkme.me/3qy833.jpg
2473077
I noticed a lot of GB stories don't go for this style of romance.
Dang, finally got around to reading it - I liked this one, especially the beginning of some magic and some redemption from all that humiliation.
The idea of the symbols being universal but their meaning being unique to each individual is pretty cool.
2499272
Hey, don't sweat it. Anyway though, good to hear you like the magic system--I saw the way you handled it in P-theory and I was like, "Damn, I need something interesting, too."
2467805 2464230 ....I know some chi gong, and a few shamanic rituals...Is that enough? Wizardy, is a rather in-inclusive word though, Don't you mean 'Magicy'? You'd learn a whole hell of a lot more asking that question instead.
2560762 Hey! What're you doing here.....You're supposed to be elsewhere!....Oh well...Anyways, I seriously could provide my theories with you, author, but only if you want them.
2561091
Feel free to share them.
2561865 hmn...well chi gong is moving energy by diverting through limbs or a type of focus, such as a stone or *snerk* wand... (staves work better) that has a particular attribute to what you are trying to accomplish. It accomplishes a variety of effects, all by the intention of the user, combined with specific movements for elemental attributes...*this actually works, I caused a storm with it* ...Anyways...onto the next...which are the three classes of magic... Enhancement, Offense, and Defense.
Offensive spells, requiring the largest amount of energy, cannot be blocked, only diverted elsewhere, and even though Offensive magic tends to be powerful, It usually is VERY specific in the effects it causes, making it almost entirely useless, considering it takes less energy to just stab someone.
Defensive magic, however, tends to be low-cost, low-result magic, that wear down over time, However, This type has some of the most variety among spell types, and can be stacked repeatedly depending on how much energy goes in. The downside of this magic, is that a good Defense spell always has a fatal breaking spot, that takes the shield down. You can make it extremely difficult to find and layer traps in it, so Its still pretty damn useful.
Enhancement magic, the last type, can be used on anything and in any way. Unlike the above mentioned types, this one has a rather serious downside. If used on self, to increase any aptitude, skill, or trait, Will cause debilitation to an organ of choice...If you happen to use a lot of physical enhancement magic, that effects strength, It will turn you crazy.
It is suggested that you only use magic on other objects, and that you make a self-refilling energy store outside the body, for those who have a low mana-pool, Which results in a shared mana-store. You can link your mana to another and leach off them, or create an empathy-bond which adds as well. For those used to being in pain, an empathy-bond absorbs a percent of the suffering that your bonded feels, and turns it into energy, with the backlash being that the pain is mirrored in your own body...
How is this for a theory? This is how I see most magic in stories being used, with the exceptions of most shamanic rituals so, do with this what you will...just be sure to credit my thesis, because it IS MINE.
Thank you,
ISA
2561944
Rather interesting.
It sorta reminds me of the magic system in Shadowrun. I already have my own system worked out for this story, but cool nonetheless.
2562919 Its traditional eur-eastern magic theory.....
Oh....this means.... Hey if you have a Q/A Moment in your story....
My question is.... How does the magic in this story work?
2564357
I tried to base it as closely on the show as possible, but seeing as how vague it is in the source material, I had to come up with a far amount of my own stuff.
The basic idea is that the goal of magic is to serve as a pure manifestation of the will of the user. It doesn't tap into "mana fields" like in other settings, but instead comes from the user themselves. In this system, learning a spell isn't learning an incantation or a magical word; it's developing a "feel" for the spell by concentrating on what it means and what you want to do with it.
The more powerful a spell is, the more complicated it tends to be, and the more challenging it is to learn and apply it.
Trask, however, uses his own system that is very different from the one used by citizens of Equestria. I'll save the details on it for later--it's rather important to his ugly backstory.
2564752 ...awww...I wished you'd chose to do something funny with my question... Oh well...but you know that mana-fields are outside the body right, such as pulling energy (or water) from living organisms in order to accomplish an effect... I'm just Saiyan.... You need to develop the application for your magic theory, and how it applies, or what you can do with it.
(This reference filled pun-agraph is brought to you by Crazy Inx. And ISA Manufacturing Along with a heaping helping of
)
Thanks!,
ISA
I think i could be best friends with this guy
I bet that some call the author.... Tim?
2460905
Who are you to call yourself king? I certainly didn't vote for you.
10# humm
4479836 Why do you keep posting comments like these?
Good story btw