Shades of the New World

Chapter 117: Somaturgy

Since the Blood's will became clearer and more sophisticated because of a name, it meant that names gave a certain advantage. Well, the uses of names was very obvious, anyway. Just like how society can't function without words to define objects, names were used to define people. 

Evin looked at the fox's head again, deep in thought. He thought more about one topic that has been on his mind since ages.

'What is my personal Darkness?'

He himself said that it was something adaptive, but was it really? If Evin could describe his own life, he would perhaps call it enduring, or self-finding. Or if he was a bit more negative, he would call it pointless or unfulfilled, to say the least. 

Then what about darkness? Evin didn't dislike darkness. Even if he was afraid of it, he saw hope in it. Evin used to think that if even he, who was a spirit, was afraid of the darkness, then there must be something even more or equally scary in it. Evin liked to delude himself and pretend there was a spirit in the Dark and then strike a one-sided conversation with it.

'I suppose it represents hope for me in this case The Darkness of Hope' Evin thought but it seemed a bit off to him when he worded it out.

'Do I want friends from the dark?' Evin thought and although a bit weird, this new train of thought seemed a bit more likely.

"The Darkness of Unknown and Mysterious Allies?" Evin muttered out.

Confused, he started gathered up the stray thoughts in his mind and concluded that he should find friends that dwelled in darkness. Oh, and also, those friends have to be a bit terrifying, or at least mysterious.

'What the fuck?' Evin thought, but somehow, this bizarre conclusion seemed awfully fitting. He then glanced at the fox's head on his hand and the surrounding World Sprites. To be fair, they were quite scary in most people's eyes. Especially if they were stuck inside the Darkness. But even if Evin named all the World Sprites, will they all turn into foxes?

'Or maybe I have to create beings out of darkness? Am I going to get a pack of foxes in my shadow soon?'

'Wait, it doesn't have to be a fox, judging from what happened with Runa. It could be anything, as long as it was living. Wait, could it be non-living as well? '

Evin briefly thought about getting Karan to give birth 98 times, but that seemed a bit implausible for the time being. 

Perhaps he could capture mana-beasts and have the World Sprites take over them?

Many different thoughts appeared inside Evin's mind. 

In the end, he decided to consult others. What was the point of coming to the Ekhri Tribe if he was going to mull over every little subject by himself?

He explained to Rith about his thoughts and received a mocking laugh, but she did tell him afterwards that it was possible to have World Sprites take over mana beasts, though she wasn't that knowledgeable on this matter.

"Enri, by the way, what do you think the World Sprites here would like to do?" Evin asked.

The fox head resting on his hands looked up with a gaze that seemed to show amusement and then responded.

[ Maybe like me] Enri's thought appeared.

[Strong]

[Dark]

[Mother] 

[Play] 

[Safe]

[] 

Various thoughts entered Evin's head, as the World Sprites started fussing about. The World Sprites' thoughts coincided with his thoughts of letting them receive bodies to play around in the real World with a bit more freedom. Or at least that's what Evin guessed.

Even if Evin's guess was wrong he would chalk it up to unclear communication and go on with his plans. He thanked Enri and got out of his shadow. 

"Well? What happened?" Nasst asked, his hands writing on a sheet of paper.

Evin explained what happened with the Blood's will and what he thought about his own specialty. He hid the part about Karan and Runa, since he wasn't yet comfortable about revealing their existence.

Hearing Evin's thoughts Nasst pondered deeply.

"Hmm, what forms do the World Sprites inside you take?" 

"Little children," Evin replied curtly.

"Hmm? Why does the Blood's will inside you take on the form of a maw?"

"The Beast Lord that gave it to me was a Vulpine," Evin said.

"Oh, that's quite interesting" Nasst trailed off again. 

Evin patiently waited for the man to finish his ruminating.

"I think I have a solution for you. What do you know about Somaturgy?" Nasst asked.

"Golems, right?" Evin thought and realized that it fit his needs quite well.

"Yes It is slightly taboo, though, so I will have to appeal to the higher ups so you can study it," Nasst said.

"Taboo?"

"Most of the 'golems' that circulate the market currently are just glorified magical tools. It can't perform actions autonomously, and it is only used to perform one or two specified tasks. But real golems, ones that I'm trying to get you to study, are a bit different. They can work autonomously and they're also extremely intelligent. Obviously, as you can guess, most of that intelligence comes from the spirit or spell that guides it," Nasst explained.

"So these real golems are piloted by World Sprites or something similar?" Evin asked. 

"See, there's the problem. As you know, World Sprites can't survive alone in this World. Even if the perfect environment is created for them, if there are no other World Sprites around them, they will simply turn into energy and dissipate. And besides, there aren't that many mages who actually possess World Sprites in their bodies. Not to mention ones with physical bodies like the Dark World Sprites"

"What do you mean?" Evin asked.

"Your World Sprites reside in your shadows. Where do you think, let's say, a Life World Sprite would stay?" Nasst asked.

"The blood? Or the flesh" Evin asked in wonder.

"Yes, Life World Sprites directly enter someone's flesh and organs, instantly making their host's bodies stronger and their lives longer. They no longer have the ability to turn into something material anymore. Water World Sprites would enter someone's bloodstream, also strengthening your body, which is made mostly out of liquids. Anyway, you get the point. Aside from the Dark World, the World of Thoughts and the World of Space; every other World's Sprite would enter your body and strengthen it in some way permanently. Though obviously, there are exceptions to this"

Evin heard Nasst's words and wondered where Fire World Sprites would reside in someone's body.

"Anyway, we're getting off topic. As I've explained, World Sprites aren't that popular for piloting golems. So people started doing experimentations on how to use human or animal brains, or even spirits to pilot golems, giving the field of Somaturgy a terrible name," Nasst said.

"If that is so, why isn't it banned yet?" Evin asked.

"Well, later on, they started using World of Thought spells specifically designed to pilot golems. Unfortunately, these spells are disgustingly complex and requires a ton of materials and runes and whatnot to simply keep the spell active, let alone controlling a golem," Nasst explained. 

"So the field is a bit stuck, I suppose," Evin muttered and then remember about the panther-like magical device that Aran had in his house. How did that work?

"Definitely. But perhaps I can pull some strings and find you the proper specialists," Nasst said with a smile.

"Those enthusiastic about Somaturgy would definitely be happy to experiment with World Sprites I think this will be a great opportunity," Evin agreed.

"Well, expect some news in the near future. Now, you will need to explain to your World Sprites about this procedure in detail. Dark Sprites are usually quite enigmatic, so I can't be sure if they'll agree completely," Nasst reminded.

Evin promised to explain it in detail to the Shadow-dwellers.

"Well, now that we're done with the most impending problem, let's talk about other magic," Nasst said and brought out a rather thick book.

Glancing at the book's cover, Evin realized that it was a book about illusions. Instantly, his eyes lit up. Evin really liked playing around with illusions and the whole topic just fit his playful personality greatly. The various methods and intricacies that he could create or invent were truly numerous.

He joyfully grabbed the book and started reading but gradually his expression lost its interest and his eyes turned dull. The whole book was basically a question and answer sheet. Where the question described an illusory method and the answer described how to recognize or deal with it. 

Obviously, the first method described was the one everyone used. To create an object made of Thought energy.

Solution: To fill one's eyes with Thought energy and discern which object was made out of Thought energy.

Counter-Solution: Fill the entire area with a thin layer of Thought energy, effectively blinding the person who used the previous method.

On and on, the book described various illusory tricks. After Evin read a few paragraphs, he pleadingly looked at Nasst.