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nTo answer Ceph's question, Eldrian had to truly think it through. 'I might not be able to make as stable a one as you, but I should definitely be able to at least send a message telepathically. Forming a bridge for communication I believe will be too hard.'

n'Oh? Why do you think so?' Zamia asked, surprised that Eldrian would realize the difficulty before attempting it.

nKeeping a communication connection was indeed far more complex than simply sending a quick message. To do so you had to constantly match as close as possible your and the other's mental frequencies, or mental states as the Alicorns thought of it.

nThis was made easier if the participant had some knowledge on the subject and was open to the connection. Being calm also helped greatly, in fact, if someone became too agitated the connection could be broken simply due to that. Depending on the creator's skill in navigating things, of course.

nHowever, between Alicorns who all had an innate talent for magic, it was easier to form a connection than trying to learn how to communicate through wind manipulation.

n'Something I have come to learn. Knowing how is not the same as being able to. I understand the basics on the subject, but I have no grasp on the practical aspect outside of being a receiver of the communication.'

nThe two older Alicorns nodded in approval, while Ceph wondered just what the problem was. To him knowing and practical were the same thing, as soon as he understood he could do it.

nHis mother had quickly and privately told him that it was not the same for other races before he could bring this up.

nWith the magic discussion coming to an end, Eldrian wanted to dive into getting a feel for both the mental connection and ether. Thus he shelved his other questions for now and decided to practice.

nHe decided to stay for the rest of the day to see if Akarui finished and he could meet Erik without disturbing him. It also gave Ceph a bit more time to catch up with the few Alicorns who were still in Avgi.

nNear the end of the day, Zamia joined Eldrian who was now comfortable with the feel of ether. He was now slowly trying to form the mana internally as he had started with elemental.

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"I see you took our home as your household name,

" Zamia said with a proud smile, she appreciated the sentiment behind it. She hoped Ceph would also understand the meaning behind such an act once he was older.

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"Yeah, I appreciate all you've done for me. I don't quite know what I did to earn your trust so much that you would bond me with Cephaphyr.

" He admitted.

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"At the start, it was not so much of trust, it was more a means to secure our son's survival,

" Zamia admitted, in fact, if Eldrian had proven untrustworthy they would certainly have done something to ensure things went smoothly for them. Luckily, that was not necessary.

nIn fact, it seemed Ceph was having the best time of his life in the city. With Eldrian's generously giving him a couple of silver pocket change every day, Ceph could do whatever he wanted.

nThis mostly involved buying sweets and treats for himself and his friends, who he has made plenty of. Ceph naturally did not have any notion of a living hierarchal structure.

nIn Avgi his parents might be the ruler, but things had worked more in the form of a family. Agamemas and Zamia were simply responsible for making sure nothing went wrong. They didn't order people around.

nDue to this, Cephaphyr had no notion of poor and rich and the division it brought society. Whoever he met, if they were willing to play he welcomed them. This had also quickly spread through the area of the city and now nearly all the young poor kids were coming there for food.

nCeph didn't quite realize that they were using him, but he didn't mind and if they shared their situation he might even try to help instead. He just enjoyed being part of a group. For once.

nNodding, Eldrian moved on and continued to narrow in on ether. He hoped learning how to alter his raw mana into it would also bring him a step closer to casting spells in any form he willed.

nHe did not want to need to learn all the mathematics to derive the modules, knowing it would take at least a year or more. Though, for most, it would take them the entire duration of their degree.

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"I do have one question that has been bothering me,

" Eldrian said after losing his grasp on how ether felt for the tenth time while trying to alter his mana. The feeling was far harder than that of elemental where he simply had needed to envision heat for fire, cold-smooth for water, and so forth.

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"Oh, and what might that be?

"

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"Why did you evacuate the forest, so far nothing has happened.

"

nHearing this Zamia chuckled,

"Plenty of things have happened, luckily thus far we have been able to handle it discreetly. Right, you might not be aware thanks to Ceph bringing you here. The chaos lands have started living up to their names again.

"

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"What do you mean?

" Eldrian asked.

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"The natural energy of the lands are slowly waking-

" Zamia paused and pondered it a bit,

"You might not know why the invasions happen. Not all places have the same causes, and as such not all places experience the same amount of pressure.

"

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"It would be insane to think it is an organized attack from the chaotic creatures, monsters as you call them.

" Zamia let Eldrian think on this for a while.

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"I understand, this world is far too large for it to be controlled by one person or group. However, the gods are involved, aren't they?

"

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"They might be, but they aren't involved as you might be thinking. They aren't ordering their subjects to attack and subjugate the other races.

"

n

"Instead, what happens is the energy in their homelands slowly becomes more and more chaotic. From what we have managed to gather through the ages is that it is partly due to their way of using magic, and it is also partly natural phenomena.

"

n

"The chaos lands are the latter, and such lands are spread throughout the world. You also know just how large it is. If you take a normal Agima, it would take them three to four days at full gallop to cross it.

"

nEldrian nodded, recalling how it had taken the army over a week to traverse the chaos lands.

"It is large enough to hold an entire kingdom.

" He offered.

n

"Indeed, yet no one dares to try and settle in the chaos lands. Our forest is an exception, it is protected from the chaotic energies, but the creatures of the chaos lands are drawn to its stability.

"

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"What do you mean by chaotic energies?

" Eldrian questioned before Zamia could continue on.

nSomewhere in a different world, a certain person was watching Eldrian's conversation filled with astonishment. Moving closer to the screen, she prayed that the answer would not be close to the truth.

nAN: Might move my release to earlier the day (like today's).. Will see, but tomorrow will likely also be around this time.

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