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As far as magic circles went, the one to control blood was relatively simple. However, with a time limit Erkan still made a few mistakes. That meant he had to use the provided sponge to sop up some of the blood and draw again. At least the blood didn’t strongly stick to the surface below.
Then he finished the circle, activating it as he concentrated on his blood in the shot glass. At first it didn’t do anything, but then Erkan realized he had to make it do something. Thus, he willed it to float. Most of it got left behind, and he had to will all of it to float. It didn’t form into a smooth sphere like Nico’s had. In fact, it was more of a wobbly mess.
It bounced up and down continuously until Erkan got the hang of holding it instead of just moving it. At that point it more or less settled into a sphere… then it started to tremble once more. Erkan wasn’t sure what was causing it at first… but then he noticed the magic circle was almost faded, and the energy was gone. At that point he was supposed to… concentrate on using his blood as the source? The blood outside him, specifically.
Erkan did that. It took more effort, but he managed to keep the sphere afloat for a bit longer. It started shrinking slightly, and then he lost control. It splashed down into the area below, no longer centered on the shot glass but instead washing over the remnants of the pig’s blood.
His head hurt. It was like concentrating on a difficult puzzle for a long time, but it couldn’t have been more than a few minutes. He felt his forehead. Sweat? He hadn’t even noticed, but he was dripping all over. Then he turned to Nico.
Nico Nervetti nodded, “Not bad. It will become easier with practice, such that you can continue controlling the blood until its own energy ceases. More than just that much, with sufficient practice. Try to remember that feeling. You won’t need such a circle eventually.”
“How long?”
Nico shrugged, “It’s hard to say. It depends how much you practice. If you only work at it one day a week, it could be quite some time. Months, even. As for the short end… that would depend on your amount of practice.”
“What about talent?”
“Without practice, no amount of talent is sufficient. Anyone who tells you that someone has done something perfectly on their first attempt or two is lying, or just mistaken. Practicing in a similar field still counts.”
“Is there anything similar to blood magic?”
“Other magic.” Nico spread out his hands, “Though I can’t say much about them. However, that mental fatigue you feel would happen while controlling any magic. Other skills might be less transferable. That said, you’re unlikely to find anyone to teach you anything else. The people who can do so are rare, and they like to keep themselves secret and their magic more so. At least blood magic can be practiced by all vampires- though of course that doesn’t mean all vampires actually know blood magic. It’s not that easy.”
“I’ve noticed,” Erkan sighed, “I’ve barely learned anything in two weeks. It’s hard to last through an all day session…”
“Unfortunately, I don’t have any other days free. Savina does though.”
“Ah… could she teach me? I don’t actually know what she can do.”
“She has no experience in teaching, but she has significant experience. Not enough to be considered any sort of master yet, but she’s still young. Perhaps it might be good practice for her to teach you. You might pick up some bad habits though. However, you would certainly learn more per week.”
“In that case, I’ll ask if she will.”
—–
Erkan didn’t want to wait until he next was sent on a coffee run, and talking about blood magic there wasn’t a good idea anyway. Thus, he texted Savina as soon as he could. He was mentally fatigued, so Nico had cut off the session early.
|
Hey Can *you* teach me blood magic ? Things not going well with uncle? Oh, no Things are great However a lot of work one day a week is kinda… Not great I didn’t get a degree just by going to school one day a week, you know? I see Well, I’m not sure… |
Erkan wanted to ask what she wasn’t sure of. He’d seen her use blood magic- even if he was mostly unconscious- but she’d been quick and effective. So she was definitely capable. Maybe she just wasn’t sure she wanted to do it with him. He couldn’t think of anything to say for the next few minutes.
| Uncle Nico says it should be fine
I’ve never taught anyone before But I could certainly help you with the basics and practice Great! You sure you want to? Absolutely! Alright… when is good for you? Anytime after work. I was thinking a couple hours maybe one or two days a week. Maybe Monday and Wednesday then That would give you time to rest up between sessions Uncle Nico says we can use his training facilities So, what time? |
—–
Erkan cursed. Maybe he should wear gloves. He looked at the blood on the slide. He didn’t consider himself clumsy, but he often got small nicks and cuts that nobody else seemed to. His skin seemed just a bit weak… but even that couldn’t explain why he always bled so easily. Haemophilia couldn’t account for that, either, since that only made the bleeding harder to stop.
He wished he could just flick the blood away. At least that way he wouldn’t have to go get a new slide. As he imagined it, about half of the drop flew away from the slide. He concentrated, specifically remembering what it had felt like. Then he intentionally slid the rest of the blood away. It got onto the floor, but nobody would care about a half drop of blood.
There was a bit more pooling up on his finger, however. Erkan considered trying to make it clot, but also considered that he had no idea how. After a few minutes of glaring angrily at his finger, he realized he should have probably gone and put a bandage on it long before. At least it was easy to clean off. He even held the blood inside for a few moments as he placed the bandage on. That wasn’t actually any more effective than just pressing down, but it felt cool.
Then Erkan looked around, and pulled out the slide. He removed the bandage and intentionally let his finger drip onto the slide, coaxing out more so he could get a full drop. Then he took it over to a microscope. He had to see what happened up close…