Return of the Runebound Professor

“Ah, yes. That,” Noah said, clearing his throat. “I was working on some Body Imbuement.”

“You’ve got a Fire Rune?” Todd asked, blinking.

“Not exactly, but my Rank 2 Rune has some heat aspects. Hot ash, you know?”

“Huh,” Todd said, rubbing his chin. “Well, it certainly doesn’t look very comfortable. I was really careful to limit the power of my Body Imbuements that used Heat or Fire Runes to make sure I didn’t overheat. You might want to tone yours down a little.”

He sounds so confident talking about this stuff, and it doesn’t even come off as overconfident. It’s more like he’s just stating facts. Did Todd really only just learn about Body Imbuements?

“I’ll keep that in mind,” Noah said. “You know a lot about Body Imbuements, Todd. Is Lee really that great of a teacher?”

Todd’s gaze shifted, and it was his turn to look uncomfortable. The expression only lasted for a few moments, but it was enough time for Noah to catch it.

“Yeah. It just came to me, I guess. Makes sense, you know? Like when you do something and you know you’re just great at it. But what was that question you wanted to ask me?”

Hm.

“I was going to ask about how you did your Body Imbuement on your eyes,” Noah said, rubbing his chin. “It had to be something temporary or fast to apply, right? Since you didn’t actually know how to do Body Imbuements yet.”

Todd gave him a one-shouldered shrug and responded immediately, his eyes shifting away from Noah once more. “Honestly, it was a bit of a mistake. I just envisioned the Rune overlaid over my eyes. I’ve since properly Imbued them to rectify all the issues that doing it like that could cause. It’s not something that I’d try to replicate, it was probably really dangerous and I got lucky that it worked right.”

That was a really fast response. Flat tone, too. Did he rehearse it? Now might not be the right time to push the matter. We’re too close to camp.

“Gotcha. Figured it was worth asking.” Noah chuckled. “No need to worry about it, then.”

The rest of their walk to the camp was silent, and the group set off once again with Brayden at the lead shortly afterward.

Most of the day passed much as the others had. They traveled through long, sloping hills, continuing to follow the dirt path. The grass grew shorter and darkened to a ruddier, burnt orange color. There were fewer Snuffler bushes the deeper they traveled, though they seemed to get progressively larger and less kept.

As the evening grew closer, a sharp wind picked up, carrying with it a strong chill that did little to effect Noah. A blanket of clouds crawled in front of the sun, turning what remained of the daylight into muted shades.

“We’ll be stopping earlier today,” Brayden announced. “We’re getting closer to the Deadlands, and I’d prefer to get through it in one day. Sleeping there isn’t ideal when I have all of you to protect. No training tomorrow morning.”

“Why not?” Lee asked. “We aren’t in this Deadlands place yet, are we?”

Brayden grunted. “Getting through the Deadlands will take basically all day, but we should be able to make it if we keep a good pace. That hour will mean the difference between getting out of it in the evening and getting out after nightfall.”

“What kind of monsters can we expect in the Deadlands?” Emily asked while Noah was still trying to figure out a way to ask that very same question without coming off as an idiot.

“Dead ones,” Brayden replied, a flicker of a smirk playing across his lips. “Unfortunately, the type that won’t stay dead. Most of them aren’t too problematic, but there are a few that are a bit faster than I’d prefer. Nothing that’s a threat to me, but it’s a different story for you lot.”

“I can handle myself, thank you very much,” Allen said, crossing his arms. “Don’t group me in with the rest of this lot.”

“Allen, you know I’ve got no issue with your capabilities, but we both know you haven’t been in a real fight in years before that Root Fiend attack,” Brayden said, looking down the bridge of his large nose at Allen. “The family sent you to Arbitage because of your exceptional research and dedication, not because of your spry limbs or powerful magic. You’re a good Rank 4. Be happy with that. Nobody should try to be someone they aren’t.”

Allen pressed his lips together and looked away, acquiescing the point and falling silent. Brayden shook his head and stepped off the road. Noah couldn’t help but notice that there wasn’t a camp ground this time around.

“Isabel, mind doing that stone trick again?” Brayden asked, glancing over at her. Isabel blinked in surprise at Brayden addressing her by name.

She nodded, then set about doing just that. While she worked, Brayden pulled his basket of travel supplies out of a purple rift and set out dinner for all of them.

About an hour later, everyone had eaten and camp had been set up. Everyone retired to their stone tents while Brayden took first watch, and roughly half of them were waiting for all the others to fall asleep so they could sneak out.

***

Noah slipped through the cover of darkness, picking up speed as he put the camp behind him and strode into the night moving in the direction that they’d come from. He wasn’t sure how close they all were to the Deadlands, but he didn’t want to mistakenly stumble into it and end up in a fight.

He wouldn’t need as much distance as he had the previous night. If everything went according to plan, this would be fairly silent. He probably could have even done it all in his tent, but there was always the off chance he blew himself up in the process, which would have been mildly inconvenient.

Noah pulled his grimoire out and flipped to the few empty pages at the back, sitting down in a small valley between two short hills. He leaned against the cold grass, chewing his lower lip in thought.

My Greater Wind Rune was filled from killing the Root Fiend, so I can try modifying the combination using Sunder. I think replacing one of the Ash Runes would be the best move here – the ash is just being moved around by the wind, after all. But, if I swap the Greater Wind Rune in, that means I’ll lose the ability to move my flying sword around. I should probably Imbue a copy of it first so I can replace it.

Hm. Making a copy will mean I’ll have to kill some monsters to fill it back up.

Noah tapped his fingers on his chin and thought for a few moments. Finding a few more Snufflers to kill wouldn’t be that difficult, though it would mean he’d have to travel a bit farther from camp to make sure nobody spotted the fight.

I wonder… the Pyroclastic Resonance Rune has filled a lot since I initially got it. When I Sunder it, all that energy be wasted. But, if I Imbue a good portion of it and just leave a bit left, I can save most of that energy. If I then Sunder the partially filled Rune, I wonder what will happen. Would I get seven partially filled Rank 1 Runes?

Moxie did warn me that you need better Catchpaper for a Rank 2 Rune, though. I wonder if Vermil’s book was made out of the good stuff. If it isn’t, I’m going to end up wasting a good bit of energy. Then again, I’m sure it won’t fail instantly. I’ll probably have a moment to react if things start going badly. Might as well find out. It’s for science.

Noah pressed his hand to his grimoire and called on Pyroclastic Resonance. The Rune thrummed to life, filling him with energy as he pulled at the power within it, separating off a little more than fifty percent of it. It was the largest Imbuement he’d ever attempted, and the Rune resisted his efforts for several seconds.

Finally, it gave in. The energy peeled away with a pop, flowing through his fingertips and onto the Catchpaper. A sizzle rose up from the book as the Pyroclastic Resonance Rune burned into it.

Almost immediately, the corners of the page started to wrinkle and burn. Noah cursed under his breath. The paper was most certainly not the high quality stuff – but it wasn’t burning too fast either. But, If he moved quickly, he could probably pull the Rune out of the Catchpaper before it burned away.

Noah quickly flipped the page and Imbued a sliver of the energy from his Rank 1 Greater Wind Rune. It took to the paper easily. Noah didn’t waste any time reveling in his success. He closed his eyes and slipped into his mindspace without delay.

Even as the runes sprung to life around Noah, blooming from the encroaching darkness, he called on Sunder. Cold energy rushed through Noah’s veins, turning them a dark grey. He gritted his teeth, and his other Runes all lit as they helped him push back against the Master Rune’s immense pressure.

Noah extended a hand, not daring to channel Sunder for any longer than he needed to, and touched his finger to Pyroclastic Resonance. The energy rushed out of his body. Noah swallowed as a black line carved down the center of the rune, splitting it clean in two.

At the same time, a flash of pain lit in Noah’s lungs. He hissed as the Pyroclastic Resonance Rune he’d imbued on them burned away, its connection to him severed completely. Noah ignored the pain – he couldn’t risk delaying any longer.

This is it. Please work.

Magic poured out of the Rank 2 Rune, turning into twisting arcs of light. They swirled out, warping into familiar shapes. The energy seeping out of the Rune slithered into them and seven Rank 1 Runes formed in the air before Noah – but they weren’t complete. The Runes flickered faintly, losing luster with every second.

Strangely, the Runic energy coming off the seven Runes still felt like it belonged to Pyroclastic Resonance rather than multiple individual ones. A frown crossed Noah’s lips.

They’re not going to hold together. Guess that’s what happens when you don’t have enough energy. But, when I saw the vision of Sunder being used, it looked like he chose one Rune out of all the others. There’s a chance it they were all full already, but if all the Runes are pulling magic from the same Rank 2 source…

Noah willed the energy to focus on one of his old Greater Wind Runes, disregarding the others. Almost instantly, he felt the flow of magic in his mindspace shift. The Greater Wind Rune he was concentrating on brightened, the cracks covering it starting to fade. At the same time, all of the other runes quickly started to deteriorate.

Yes!

There was a loud snap. The other six Runes shattered, their energy fading into the ether and leaving Noah with a half full Greater Wind Rune for his efforts. It floated next to the mostly filled Greater Wind Rune he’d had before Sundering Pyroclastic Resonance.

Perfect. I can focus the energy from a Rune I sunder into one of its components, keeping that one at the cost of the others. I think it’s still better to Sunder a full Rune so I can keep all seven, but this is still very useful. Now I just need to fully fill one of my Greater Wind Runes, then Imbue the other one and claim the Pyroclastic Resonance Rune I put in my grimoire.

Noah willed energy out of the half full Wind Rune and into the other, much like a combination. To his delight, the magic flowed freely, and a few moments later, he had a completely full Greater Wind Rune.

He quickly opened his eyes, leaving his mindspace and looking down at his grimoire. The page bearing the Pyroclastic Resonance Rune was burning at an alarming rate – the smoldering edges had nearly reached the Rune itself.

Noah quickly flipped the page and slammed his hand into the book, shoving the partially filled Greater Wind Rune into it in the fastest Imbuement he’d ever done. Not even waiting to see how it went, Noah flipped the page back and pressed his hand to the Pyroclastic Resonance Rune, drinking it in greedily and entering his mindspace to properly form it.

Energy flooded Noah’s body as the Rune poured in through his hand. He knew it well enough to easily form the image in his mind. Energy flooded through the complicated set of lines, burning so brightly that he had to avert his eyes for a moment.

Then, with a brilliant flash, the Rune snapped into being. A small amount of its energy had burned away in the process, likely due to the Catchpaper’s failure, but there was still over fifty percent of it.

A relieved grin stretched across Noah’s face and he flopped to the ground in the darkness of his mind, letting out a slightly hysterical laugh.

It worked. Ha! And, on top of that, it looks like I didn’t suffer any soul damage from Sundering the rune. Probably because I undid the combination rather than removing it.

Now all I have to do is Sunder this, swap one of the Ash Runes for the full Wind Rune, and re-combine it. I’ve gotten this far, and I’ve still got a good bit of energy to hold Sunder’s pressure back.

Let’s do this.

Despite his words, Noah waited a few moments for his hands to stop trembling from the mixture of excitement and anxiety running through him. When he got complete control of himself again, he clambered to his feet and called on Sunder.

He knew exactly what he needed to do – and he did it.

Sunder flooded through Noah’s veins. He reached out, carving Pyroclastic Resonance in twain for the second time that day.

Energy flashed. Seven runes peeled out from within it, each one completely full. Noah flicked his fingers, pushing one of the Ash Runes out of the way and calling the Wind over in its place.

Three Vibration. Three Wind. One Ash. His new combination waited eagerly for him to bring it together, and Noah wasn’t one to keep others standing around.

He brought his hands together, gathering the energy swirling in the Runes and pressing it into one. A vision of what he wanted was so clear in his mind that it might as well have already been reality.

Lines carved through the darkness, each one drawn exactly as Noah had envisioned it. After getting to use the Rune and see how it interacted with Combustion, he understood it far better than when he’d first formed it. And, from the energy, Pyroclastic Resonance bloomed forth once more – but, this time, it was more.

The pressure coming off the rune was uniform, and the light in it was dim. After all, it was only ten percent full.

He’d formed a perfect Rune.