Chapter 19: Campus Life

         After everyone unfreezes Rowan is given a chance to say his well wishes to everyone, then is once again ushered by the Magi. Leaving the infirmary Alphis wishes to take Rowan to one of the boutiques near the markets, Vashti not objecting they head off. After more concerning stares from the townsfolk they reached their destination. This clothes store has a verity of styles and fashions to pick from. While being measured to see what clothes they have in stock, much to the disdain of one of the employees. Vashti meets their gaze, "Careful with this one, they show enough promise to rival our position." Vashti then glares down on the man measuring Rowan's feet, "So you better gain their favor while they'll young."

Rowan puts a hand Vashti's shoulder and gives a pained smile, Vashti sucks air through their teeth and walks away. After being measured, Rowan picks out a simple outfit, buckled long boots, with long socks to prevent chaffing. Brown trousers, with a leather sash belt, over a long sleeve green tunic. Feeling pleased with the look, Rowan shows his sign of approval. Alphis completing the purchase, the group heads out of the boutique and go deeper into town. Alphis and Vashti show Rowan a tour of the stores and markets that Ta'law has to offer, from personal favorite food stalls, to the direction of entertainment districts.

At the end of their tour they reached their destination, the academy of the Magi. This campus Rowan could relate to it as an in college boarding school with a series of buildings for different functions. Alphis ushers Rowan to the housing dorm where he will be staying, Vashti opens the door to Rowan's new bedroom. Inside this room there is a simple twin mattress bed, a three drawer dresser, and a desk with chair that already has a tower of books. Vashti explains, "In here you will be spending most of your time reading and formulating your spells, please, only put them to parchment then wait till you are on the practice grounds to use them."

Alphis with an air of caution in his voice, "And make sure anything destructive is used at a longer distance, we don't want to have to use you to mend the other personal." He remembers another detail, "Another aspect to remember, any signs of breaking free from these grounds, unless instructed by a Magi, or to be within their presence. Will cause you to be held in place to be collected later." Vashti chuckles from a memory, "Ahh, that time we had someone who got dressed as a bush. They managed to hop the walls to the other side then were frozen in place." They shake their head and sinker, "They were stuck in that spot for a week, would have been longer if the grounds keeper didn't find them."

Rowan understanding that while he is out of the prison, he is still not free. "So just to make sure, what is my task after I rest up?" Vashti smirks, "For now, just keep reading, and don't blow the place up." Alphis adds, "Use these books and formulate a means to improve your quality of life, there will be other instructions headed your way in due time." The Magi leave the room and close the door, room goes dark, Rowan now standing in the middle of his new bedroom, in a new world, having to live a new life. He sits down on the bed and stares at his new enclosed room, his natural dark vision settling in its new environment.

"It's even more quiet than the cells" Rowan thinks about it almost missing the quiet breathing of other people in the shard space. He stands up and feels for the desk on the other side of the room, looking for the candle saucer he grabs the lip of it then stares in the dark for a means to light it... "Where are the matches?" There is a long pause where he understands the first step about "improving his quality of life". Rowan sighs, places the saucer down, and walks out the door, to then head towards the practice grounds.

The practice grounds is a large open grass field that is on the back end of the campus, the blue sky with a series of clouds paint the landscape's distance. Rowan walks to the middle of the field and picks up a small pebble to test something out. If he was to treat his mana and magic similar to that from his table top game, the spell he envisions would be one of the most simplest spells in the game. Light, a spell so simple it is categorized as a zero level spell slot, meaning it should not cost him anything at all. All one needs is a verbal component and an object to touch, it could also in theory work on a person.

Rowan thinks deep to recall what he had done last night, "Zero level." He thinks about a rune he read that could illuminate the dark, then breathes deep and closes his eyes as he grips the pebble. "Light." a florescent glow pierces through the fingers in Rowan's hand as the pebble shines a blinding light. He drops the pebble and it stays lit, Rowan shocked to his core starts celebrating, punching the air, running around the "enlighten" pebble.

He returns to his bedroom, triumphant he places his new pet rock on top of the dresser, it is far too bright in the room. Unsure how to solve this new problem, Rowan takes the top sheet from his bed and places it on top of the rock. The light still blinding bright on its own, but under the sheet it turns from blinding to just bright. With enough lighting to brighten up a living room, this will just have to do till the spell wears off. As he recalls the original spell attributes state that it should be up for ten minutes per caster level...

"What is my caster to this world? Does this world, with my understanding and foundation of magic, even have caster levels?" Rowan's head spins the possibilities, "Or em I always operating at as a max level caster?" Staring at the desk he thinks back to when he snapped his fingers at the specimen. Rowan runs out the door, and out the dorm, to once again reach the middle of the field of the practice grounds. Calming down he looks to the sky and raises his hand, he visually aims for one cloud in the sky. "3rd level spell slot", he whispers "Fireball." With a snap of his fingers a magnificent explosion detonates the cloud in the sky, the once cloud is a replaced with a ball of fire shortly followed with an echoing boom that sweeps the grounds.

"So that's what I used in that chamber?" He mumbles before blacking out and collapsing on the ground.