[Tellphone Network]

[unbreakable_king]

Hello my lovelies! I can hear again, in case those who learned of my last issues were curious. What a horrible thing not to have when it happens so suddenly. So scary.

But there is a thing to be said of course. I had plenty of time to read while I was isolated, and I have become resolved. I shall be acquiring a lovely sweet fluffy rabbit for myself. Perhaps a second one later too. One of those with fur suited to thread, but it's not about that.

I've been looking at so many books to research what I need, but I realize there are not a lot of places in town where they have the things I would need. I know I need to commission the work for a hutch, but where in the world am I to find suitable toys for the thingS? I hear they like tunnels to snuggle in too, and I don't know how I'd achieve that.

Oh dear, I at least understood dogs, I was ready for one of those in theory. But this is so much to learn!

Comments

[unbreakable_king]

Indeed. I don't know how much more happened because of my isolation, but I feel for those who suffered as I did.

[ask_whydunit]

From what I can tell, it varied from one person to the next. I ended up with some unexpected company due to it.

[ And lost another shirt… His wardrobe selection is becoming abysmal. Better than losing one of one’s senses, though. ]

Sounds like you used your time on quite a bit of research, though. Always a good way to pass the time in my own experience.

[unbreakable_king]

[Well, good thing he knows someone who can make shirts now, right?]

I had been thinking of a rabbit for a while now. It's nice to consider it instead.

[ask_whydunit]

[ A very good thing. Rhy could expect a lot of business in the not-so-distant future. ]

I’m sure it would be. It’s nice to keep the mind occupied. I don’t know much about rabbit care; I admit. They seem like they would be quiet company.

[unbreakable_king]

I am not certain they are all quiet, but I'm excited to learn.

[ask_whydunit]

A new experience, then… I take it you’ve never had the companionship of an animal before? Or I suppose you did mention a dog, though.

[unbreakable_king]

Llewellyn and I keep a dog, and my teacher had a larger rabbit named Lancelot.

[ask_whydunit]

Ah, so some experience with pets, then. But your first rabbit. Never really had pets myself, I admit. The odd rat was a familiar, but that would be the extent outside abnormal circumstances.

[ And frankly, he’s developed something of a negative association with rats after last month… ]

[unbreakable_king]

Oh pets you are familiar with are very nice.

[No, his world doesn't have the concept of a familiar, could you tell?]

[ask_whydunit]

[ Waver’s curious again. Rhy was clearly from a place with magic based on their last conversation. But familiars were an unknown concept? ]

Ah… No, a ‘familiar’ a mage’s companion? Commonly for assisting with being one’s eyes and ears over a distance or small jobs.

[unbreakable_king]

How would that even work?

[ask_whydunit]

That depends on the method one uses and the chosen familiar. For most animal familiars, a mage would connect their consciousness to the creature. It’s easier done with an animal you’ve developed a connection with over time.

[ Just because you were riding along mentally didn’t mean you were the boss, they might listen or they might do what they want instead. There were other kinds, of course. Some mages preferred their familiars to be dolls, other constructs, or dead things… but this was the most common kind. ]

Would I be correct in guessing that means it’s not something done by mages in your world?

[unbreakable_king]

No. We work only elemental magics, and only those we are born with.

[Sure there are some other rare skills like Alucard's magical sight, and of course Antari magic, but it was very rare.]

[ask_whydunit]

So you can only wield or manipulate specific elements you were born with access to…? I suppose I can see why you hadn’t heard of a familiar, then.

[ Another different system of magic. He’d come across a few since arriving here, and it was interesting to think about. It meant there was so much more to learn about the subject… Yes; he was a nerd. ]

Everyone is tested for an element they have an affinity for in my own world along with a few other things, but we can work with other elements in spells. Just not as well as we would with the one or two we have a connection to.

[unbreakable_king]

Yes. Magic is inborne. Someone cannot perform wind magic if they are not born with that ability. One must be born to any skill they have. And from there they must train in proper use.

So you've a lot more multi-talented people.

[ask_whydunit]

I see, different and yet similar in some ways.

[ If one thing held true, all magic needed to be learned and trained to use properly. ]

To be able to use magecraft of any kind, mages are born with magic circuits in my world… It’s a system tied to the nerves. [ But the point stands, Rhy would be correct. ] Each mage has their strengths, elements and kinds of magic that are easier to work with, and that which was handed down to them through their family, but can use the others to a lesser extent when called for.

Many of my students are quite talented in their pursuits, both in their family’s craft and utilizing what they’ve learned outside that.

[unbreakable_king]

That is quite lucky for them to have then. Near every person is born with magic in my world.

[He's actually starting to get almost okay with it being 'near every person' at this point.]

[ask_whydunit]

[ Waver suppresses a gloomy ‘Yes, they’re very lucky,’ because they were in some ways. Being born into powerful families, with impressive circuits and magic crests compared to his third-rate mediocrity. But he’s made peace with it. Mostly. He’s proud of his students, even if he does still get jealous sometimes. ]

Perhaps, compared to those born with less potential… but they’ve also worked very hard over the years.

[ Near every… Sounded like magic was an even bigger part of Rhy’s world. ]

So magic is a more common occurrence in people in your world, but not everyone. I suppose that means there’s less need for secrecy, though I imagine that’s not easy for those without it.

[unbreakable_king]

There is no secrecy with magic. That would be silly.

[ask_whydunit]

With magic that common in everyone there, that would make sense. [ In this world as well, it seemed rather pointless to hide magic in general, even if you might not share the specifics of what you could do for other reason. ] In my own world, though, the concealment of magic is the law. There are entire departments of the mage association concerning it.

[unbreakable_king]

Concealment of magic being the law? That is a horrid thing to consider. Though I suppose maybe you are in a world where magic is dying away.

[ask_whydunit]

I don’t know that I would use the term dying, exactly… [ But it would be a lie to say magic during the age of gods hadn’t been easier or more potent. ] I would say it’s more diminished compared to ages gone by. Sure, some magics have been lost, but it can’t be said to be dying as new magics are developed or the lost one rediscovered and introduced to the modern age.

[unbreakable_king]

But if magic is less common, if it is not shared by most everyone, it's fading, isn't it?

[ask_whydunit]

Compared to where you're from, I’m sure that’s a reasonable way to look at it. And it’s been made clear since I arrived that a lot of worlds have very different systems than that of my own.

But just because something is changed, or less than it once was, doesn’t mean that it’s disappearing entirely. That’s not to say it wont one day, especially if the modern world makes advancements that endanger the preservation of the mysteries of magic. [ He shrugs lightly. Things aren’t so simple. It might stay as it is, or it might drop off and actually move towards an end, like Rhy suggested. ] A long time ago, mages heavily relied on the gods for power. That age ended when mages of the past decided that they didn’t want to rely on them anymore. Instead, magecraft now relies heavily on preserving the mysteries of it. The more unknown something remains, the more potent it is. So mages focus on their own family’s magecraft, and improving their Crest over generations in the hopes that one day someone in their family will reach the root of magic.

So things change, and we develop and create new forms of magecraft in the world, or recover those lost from past ages. The department I run at the school I work at is dedicated to modern mage craft theories.

[unbreakable_king]

That all sounds... strange to my ears. I cannot imagine how rarity of magic could make it stronger, save for the inherent fact that Antari are more powerful and they are rare. But one does not lead to the other.