The Druid Office

Althea and Bryce left the orphanage to head to the Druid's office in downtown Kauven. The two take the MagLev train to Main street. From there, it was a short walk along high-rises that line the financial district. At the end of the road is the tallest building in all of Kauven, the Druid Building. Everyone in town knew that Althea was mentored by the head druid. Thus, they had to problem getting to his office located at the top floor. The elevator doors open to a near 360 degree view of the city. The two walked towards a huge supercomputer where the druid is running some experiments. "I'm glad you both came," Wentlas said as he smiled. "I have been researching for any potential explanation on what happened during the granting. I need to run some tests and scans on both of you."

"The both of us? Why?" Althea queried.

"Because something unexpected also happened during Bryce's granting, albeit on a smaller scale. You see, I have checked the surveillance cameras during the ritual. Mana pooled all throughout Kauven during both of your granting. The only difference is that you somehow absorbed the whole mana ball. Still, Bryce received a significant amount of mana that would have also been fatal to any other grant. I have double checked the mana sensor readings on the crystal embedding machine. I had to clear out the data from all the machines and the cameras to hide this event." Wentlas continues as he takes blood and tissue samples and scans from the new grants.

He enters the samples into a machine across the room. Within minutes, the machine spits out sheets of paper full of data. Wentlas skims the results and sighs. His theory was confirmed. Althea's cells have mutated. The part of the cell that stores mana is significantly larger when compared to that of an average cell. Her skin is also tougher and more resistant to magic and physical attacks even though it appears to be normal in every other way. The results also indicate that her crystal has a mana capacity 10 times more than the normal amount. And this is before the multiplier effect of ranking and leveling up.

Althea tells her mentor that she has somehow acquired the elements of Wind, Fire, Water, and Earth. They both agreed that it made sense since the mana ball she absorbed held mana of all sorts of elements. But normally, the body would reject mana that it is not naturally blessed with. This was something they still had to look into. Wentlas looks at Bryce and begins explaining his results. It seems that Bryce has absorbed five times the normal amount of mana during his granting. His cells have also changed to adapt to the increased mana in his system. The mana bank in his crystal can store about 5 times the normal amount. This is good news since he didn't want to be completely left behind by Althea.

Wentlas takes out an ancient looking book from the library in his office. Flipping to a page where the early heroes are depicted in large tapestry, he points to the crystal in their heads. "Back in the day… Long before we developed all the technology we have now, we used to wear items and armor that buffed our magical capabilities. Notice the metal headband the heroes of old wore. They are embedded with crystals. But not just any crystal, Clear crystals that were said to be legendary stones capable of extraordinary feats. I theorize that your crystal has turned into such a stone."

"But I thought those stones were only in legend. Historians and archeologist have been searching for them for hundreds of years to no avail!" Althea weakly protested.

"You are right. The thing you have going for you is that most people wouldn't really notice that you have a Clear crystal. It looks very similar to a Light element crystal even in close inspection. But just to be safe I created this gauntlet for you. It is made from Sphynx leather which has protective properties allowing you to hide the true color of your crystal. With the glove keeping others from knowing the true nature of your crystal, you should be relatively safe. Though, I recommend that you rank up as quickly as you can."

The druid continues to explain, "If you have received the blessing of this many elements, it is your responsibility to nurture them. The spirits give them as gifts for a reason. Just like the heroes of old, it seems that you have been granted a great blessing. Do the good I know you are capable of."

Bryce and Althea give Wentlas a bow before leaving. He waves as they leave his office. When the elevator door closes, he returns to the sheets of data and burns them in the incinerator. He looks towards the sea. His smile fades and a concerned look replaces it. What he didn't have the heart to tell Althea was that the Clear crystal was said to be the strongest buff item in history. They appear during times of war as a divine weapon to be wielded by heroes to face the darkest of times. In some way, you can view the appearance of the Clear crystals as an omen that a world-ending event is in the horizon.

He must warn the Council of Elders.

Moments later, a white dove can be seen leaving the penthouse of the Druid's Office. The dove flies at near sonic speed and disappears into the horizon.