Shara relished her first days at the keep. They had been spent amidst the books of the library, first learning of warding, and then as her strength came back, experimenting with her own magicks and applying some of the basics of what she'd read. The library had been her home as much as, if not more than, the room she had claimed. There were plenty of them, the fortress having been designed for a whole host of people, not a couple hundred or so mages. Many of the books assumed the reader had a basic knowledge of magical theory, and were competent mages themselves. It was like constructing a building with weak foundations, forcing her to rush back to the stacks, searching for other texts in order to shore her knowledge. Often times those other texts would yield even further questions. It was somewhat frustrating. Here, there was all this knowledge, preserved from the age of magic, and she was unable to reach out and grab it because she lacked so much of the basics. There were other mages who often frequented the library, and they had been a great help in deciphering the basics. Some of them had been impatient with her more mundane questions, yet the answers were there to be found somewhere.
The call to gather in caught Shara while studying a method of connecting wards. The subject was truly fascinating, and she was finally understanding how that worked. It would be worth testing soon. Marking her page, she grabbed the book and rushed after the other mages. The layout of most of the fortress was still a mystery to her, as she had only bothered to learn the way from the library to the kitchens, her room, and the infirmary. As the mages gathered in the courtyard, she resumed her reading, standing with the book resting in her arms. She paid the speaker little attention, until another voice joined in. "So, you're the infamous Azure Sorcerer, am I right?" At the name, Shara's head snapped up. The Azure Sorcerer, the Ravager of the civilized world, the most recent source of magical destruction, was to be their teacher? Shara listened as he went on. She had read similar lessons in her books. The training seemed like training for soldiers. And wasn't that what they were supposed to be? Soldiers? They were going to overthrow the Paladins, of course the mages were training to be soldiers. It didn't sit right with her though. The power, the knowledge, called out to her, yet the means of getting there left her feeling uneasy.
Still, practicing did make sense, Shara had to give that to Rivain. And practicing under the direction of another made it much easier to push oneself. But as she walked to the dummy, she wondered what exactly she was supposed to do to it. Just attack it, he'd instructed. Great. Wonderful idea. Assuming you knew what you were doing in the first place. She glanced to her right, where the one who had spoken earlier - William - was creating sparks between himself and the dummy. Evidently she wasn't the only one who hadn't much experience with offensive spells, but she'd be damned if she had to go to Rivain. She would figure out...something. She conjured a clone, and pondered with it. The doppelganger was one of her more recent achievements - an exact replica of Shara. She could create illusions, but they couldn't do much to real things. They could scare people, but that was about it. Hardly offensive. Shara dispelled herself and conjured a massive rock, then sent it flying towards the dummy, and watched in frustration as it simply passed through. She would be more useful simply walking up and punching somebody, rather than throwing things that didn't exist at them. But there had to be some way.
So for the next few hours she threw all she had at the damned dummy. Illusion after illusion was hurled at it, and passed through, and each time she tried adding more power to it, more will, trying to give it actual force. She had read some about manipulating air with wards, and tried to apply those same principles to her spells, but the magic was different somehow. Likely one of those basic principles she'd never learned. Some of the other mages were leaving their dummies now, tired looks on their faces. She could feel the beginnings of exhaustion creeping near, but still had her reserves - perhaps it was something to do with exhausting herself in the battle. It only served to hone Shara's focus. She shut out the others and focused on her spells and the dummy. The threshold of her abilities was nearing, tiredness setting in. She remembered Lucas' warnings about channeling too much magic and the dangers associated with it. Shara doubted she could force herself over that limit again without believing her life was in danger. Finally, she noticed small breezes were accompanying her projectiles, and while it was hardly damage suitable for a boulder, it was a lot closer than she had been at the beginning of practice. She let out an excited laugh. It was enough of an accomplishment for one day.
Shara's illusions can now carry a small amount of force.
