The factory was staffed by professionals. People who wanted to support the city's economy, as well as craftsmen who were not afraid of monstrous working conditions and the high risk of becoming crippled. It was thanks to them that the entire city was self-sufficient, living off the natural resources extracted from the vast expanses beneath the mountains. All this was told to me by a bureaucrat who had managed to recruit a few more magicians on his way to the lowest level of the city. Just a couple of them, from different smithies. Down there, a guy trembling at my gaze handed the papers to a stern soldier, and under his escort, we got into an elevator powered by earth magic. Several people took stones from under the base of the elevator and began pushing us all down... for a very long time. A very, very long time.
If it had been a simple rope, I would hardly have got in. I never ride lifts.
"Your special uniforms are here," at the same time, the man who had formed a group of magicians approached the wall of the lift and took comfortable suits with protective masks from there, "These are respirators, which are needed to protect you from dust. I hope there are no idiots here who need to be told that any cloud will instantly clog the filters? It will protect you from even the smallest particles.
We all threw the clothes on top of our own. It was a simple vest, thick trousers and goggles.
"You will live here, downstairs. There is plenty of space in the caves, so everyone has been allocated a large apartment. If you want to decorate it, twice a week a lift goes to the surface and takes anyone who wants to go up. And I should ask in advance... is there anyone here who is afraid of being in narrow mines without sunlight?
The man looked closely at the group of people and saw doubt in their eyes. Some raised their hands, signalling their weakness, or rather their unsuitability, while others wondered how long they would have to suffer without sunlight. Its absence could have a serious impact on both their health and their mental state. In the end, I was the only one standing there with a calm expression on my face, shaking my head in response. I could spend a week or even months here — I was willing to bet that it wasn't as dangerous as the desert mountains. The only difference was that I would have to develop more than just sand magic. Perhaps that was why it was so easy to predict Anubis' next words:
"Choose:
1 - Develop earth magic (Cave life is difficult, and being a miner is even harder. Due to the time invested in developing this industry, it will become easier for you to control large amounts of matter, and breaking large and durable rocks will become second nature. Higher earnings, improved combat potential)
2 - Discover crystal magic (This new industry requires serious effort. It will be easier for you thanks to your open chakra, but you can only achieve mastery by focusing completely on this path. Your combat potential will increase many times over)
3 - Mud magic (Even caves have their own underground waters. When mixed with water, mud forms a suspension that is impossible for most earth mages to control. You will learn to control a more unyielding and complex material. You will be able to greatly improve your water mage techniques).
And yet, I couldn't hide my surprise. Anubis presented two new, profound and demanding areas of study. The same mud that I said I couldn't control in the swamp, it was difficult to grasp such a mixed element, but there I learned something completely different. Now, probably because I had come to hone my magic, a purposeful direction had emerged. It was difficult to decide, because what if, for example, I found a way to create healing mud? I already understood how to influence qi, so would it be possible in that case to fully copy the healing magic that was inaccessible to anyone but water mages?
Anubis? He was silent, as if deliberately making me drool over so many different directions, teasing my expectations. This is my most difficult decision in recent times.
I thought silently, tapping my foot on the floor, until the walls of the lift began to glow. Frowning in confusion, I turned back, along with the other surprised people. Then everyone froze in shock and awe — through the lattice walls of the lift, a giant cave appeared, covered with countless crystals growing from the walls, ceiling and floor. Giant stalactites seemed to blend with the crystals, and light coming from somewhere reflected off the multicoloured lenses, casting a rainbow onto the walls.
Groups of earth mages worked on the large tiers of this cave, extracting numerous useful minerals. In some areas, muddy rivers could be seen, carrying away the worked-out earth, flowing somewhere deep underground, apparently beyond the limits of the cave. In some places, there were large clouds of dust, and people ran out of such places, shouting something about collapses.
"You will have your own schedule," said the soldier, looking at his papers. "This week we need to dig a new tunnel to the jennomite mine and prepare it for King Boomi.
As we descended, we were briefed on our work, where we would be paid, and what safety precautions we had to follow. The soldier pointed to the dust from the collapsed section and said that one of the forges had been buried. This was a full-fledged factory for the production of strategically important components. The earth mages were so efficient that they managed to dig and forge at the same time, although they usually tried not to overload the same mages with so many tasks.
As soon as we arrived and the exit from the lift greeted us with a path of crystal bushes, we looked around our new surroundings like tourists. Everything around us was surrounded by stone fortresses; mages dragged heavy carts loaded with resources to the forges, from which the loud sound of stone striking metal could be heard. Smoke rose high from the furnaces through stone pipes. From the more distant parts of the cave came the same means of transport as in the city.
The soldier led us to a large stone board with current orders. A light from an unknown source illuminated the various tasks.
"The week has just begun, so everyone has just started their missions. You can decide for yourselves what to do, unless you receive direct orders to focus on a specific task, as is the case now. The simplest missions, such as washing stones, are usually already taken, so you newbies won't get any easy jobs," he said. The tasks included helping in the smithy, digging new tunnels and washing away dirt, which, we were told, was already taken. Another man arrived and posted a task to clear out the cluttered smithy. The newbies who came with me immediately approached the sheet. I stayed behind, thinking.
My choice of direction for developing my magic would determine what I would be doing here in the future. Unfortunately, without details, it was difficult to understand what each branch would be capable of, and there were no books on any of the branches that were open to me.
"Hmm, why do they give extra credit for the genomite task?" the guys standing at the board asked at that moment.
"Didn't you hear me? The king has ordered that the place be thoroughly cleaned up. Besides, there will be growing quartz along the way, so you'll have to make abrasives on the spot. Double the benefit, you see? If so, get to work.
I immediately frowned at this wording.
"I want to ask you something," I said. The answer to this question could completely determine what kind of magic I would study.
"What do you want?" the soldier turned to me.
"What is growing quartz?
"... A lollipop," he replied with a smirk and turned away. I finally remembered — a sweet mineral that could grow monstrously fast and even trap a person in a cage. King Boomer showed it in the canon.
I wondered where I could get crystals if I learned the new branch of magic — obviously, they were much rarer than sand or simple earth. Even if this magic was dangerous, what was the point if I could only carry a couple of crystals at most most of the time? But if it could be reproduced, that would change everything.
All that remained was to find out if it was suitable for combat. I quickly found out where to look for it and, after walking a couple of kilometres, came across a dug-out tunnel with a few miners inside. This place was covered with multicoloured crystals, which the miners were breaking off and showing me how they began to grow along their arms.
It looked fragile. But when I touched the purple growth coming out of the neighbouring wall, I couldn't break it off, even using all my strength. And it, in turn, began to calmly wrap itself around my arm and climb upwards.
"So that's how it is," I began to realise. I could feel its magic, like a crystal lattice splitting apart. It's hard to say exactly how it grew, but it was in close contact with my body. But separating it wasn't so easy... I tried to pour magic into it to knock it off or break it, but because of its unfamiliar composition, I only succeeded on the third try. And even then, only thanks to my developed control.
"Ha, we usually save newbies from it," someone chuckled from the side. Looking up, I saw an old man with only one eye. "Jennomite is difficult to control, and if you eat it... well, underdeveloped magicians usually end their lives that way.
"Is it really that serious?" I tensed up. It sounded like I was in a cave with... bear traps. Man traps at every turn, and what if I breathe in their dust? Scary! But then the old man broke off a piece, put it in his mouth, and chewed it calmly.
"You need experience to work with it, because it's not only harder than any stone, but also significantly different from them. If you're afraid it will envelop you in crystal, stay close to people.
"A-a-a! Help! - someone shouted from the side at that moment. I quickly recognised the man - it was the newcomer who had come with me. His arm was already up to his elbow in crystal. The guy fell to the floor and started spinning. At that moment, other workers ran up to him and, with a couple of blows to the crystal, removed the dangerous mineral. Then they took it and turned it into dust, which they collected in a small container. Real crushed quartz sand...
"Heh, it takes a special character to subdue a crystal; newbies are too weak for that," the echolocators picked up the advice of an experienced mage. The eyepieces focused on the one-eyed old man. Their legs instantly settled in front of him in a lotus position.
"Teach me. I want to learn the principles of behaviour of magicians who work with crystals," he said, bringing his hands together and bowing respectfully.
"Get lost, you mole! What are you digging for?" But, struck by my boldness, the old man turned his head away from my intense, piercing gaze, frowned, and quickly shuffled away.
They kicked me out... and yet, Anubis, I choose crystal magic. I'll have time to study dirt and everything else later.
***
Advanced chapters:
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