The Pale Princess Vol. 1 Harmony Cycle

"So you're the one who saved me?" Harmony asked as she eyed Balkan on the throne. Balkan glared at her.

"Are you seriously talking about me like I'm not here?" he asked in a low growl.

Zenith was quiet for a moment before answering. "No. You saved yourself." he said. "You tapped into a power that was rare in my time: Shamanism."

"What is shamanism?" she asked.

"I answer your question with a question of my own: What are the paths of magic?"

Harmony thought before answering. "Well, the first path is the wizard. They use their own mana within them to effect the world. The second is the path of the warrior. Warriors bring out the inherent magic. The third is the cleric. We channel the mana of a God to bring about his wishes. And I guess the fourth is the Monk. They use the power of Aura, a mysterious energy that is a secret within their path."

"Okay. Is that all?" Zenith asked. Harmony thought about it and shook her head.

"No. There's a couple more out there, like Druids who use the mana of nature, but I can't remember them. They aren't recognized paths by the Albion Senate, so they aren't taught in the academy."

"What if I told you there were thousands of paths? Not just four or five, but many. Shaman's make spirits serve them, unlike the witch who serves spirits. Your strange sensitivity to others seems to have given you a knack for Shamanism, just as it made you weak to influence. It is a strength and a weakness."

Harmony nodded. "How can this help me?" she asked.

"It can let you draw on the power of a spirit and their authority without being subject to their influence. But you don't use their mana like a witch would, and it takes a lot of training. I can teach you this, as it is required to be an Archmage, something I was before advancing to Awakened Mage."

Harmony despaired. She couldn't use that now, but something else piqued her curiosity.

"What do you mean advanced?" she asked. Zenith actually looked surprised.

"You don't know? Advancement is the entire purpose behind magic. You start as a wizard, and reach mage, then Archmage, and finally Awakened Mage."

"What do you do? I mean how do you just 'become' a mage? What changes?" she asked.

"After bringing a path to completion, it changes you spiritually, which brings physical changes. Mastering wizardry requires fully aspecting yourself and growing your source to a required level. This triggers the transformation, and your spirit follows through, improving your source further and giving you some power over your aspect."

"Wait. There's more after you master a path?" Harmony asked. She felt completely overwhelmed.

"Mastering one path is brings a benefit. Why would you stop at one? It may take years to master a path but with a path comes a benefit and usually a physical sign."

Harmony nodded, thinking about the Master Clerics in her church. All of their hair was white like hers and had the lavender colored eyes associated with Lunos. The Headmaster of the First Path, Suvin Thalia, had those white markings on her body. Even Zenith had his startling blue eyes.

"I think I get it. But how do you grow your source? I've always been told that you couldn't increase what you have?"

Zenith nodded, seeming to enjoy the volley of questions.

"It seems that the understanding that I have of magic and what is known to your people is much different. I don't know how much knowledge was lost in this new age." he said more to himself then her, "But yes, its possible to grow your source but it takes a long time a hard work."