Nico was in his happy place.

He and Carmen had pushed together two tables. Fu had gathered as many writing utensils and paper that he could find and put them on the tables.

A half hour had already passed and over half the papers had drawings or doodles on them. Next to each of the drawings were detailed notes with various percentages.

Carmen hovered over him. “So, studying is supposed to make you more powerful in preparation to fight Pullman.”

Nico's eyes glanced at the modification that he wanted to test. Luckily Measure was in the back of his mind, calculating the percentages of the success rate.

A new window appeared, revealing that the modification that would give him the ability to double jump in the air like he had seen in so many games had a four percent success rate with the current knowledge and ideas he currently possessed. That was a shame because he really wanted that ability.

“Sort of,” Nico replied. “But honestly, half of these formations are me trying to figure out what it is that I'm missing about the tower.”

“Why are you still going on about the tower? You're not in the NextOver anymore. None of that should be affecting you here.”

He tapped his mechanical pencil and drew a circle around another formation. “I think it's important. I have a theory but I have no way to prove it unless I figure out what the hell Gallahad’s last notes were trying to say.”

Nico groaned, and set those papers aside. “But you’re right. Preparing to fight Pullman takes first priority.”

He traced a line between three adjacent papers. Each paper had a spell formation from different countries. One was a Czech derivative that was focused on war and battle. It gave a ‘waking energy’ to soldiers, similar to that of drinking strong coffee laced with cocaine.

A magician had created it during World War Two inspired by the German blitzkrieg. Unfortunately, the spell wasn’t applicable to a wide base of soldiers because it required drawing upon very strong memories of emotional trauma. Since not everyone had the prerequisite memories to link to the spell, it was considered a failure.

The other two arrays were from Vietnam and South Korea.

They were also war-based formations. Nico explained, “There's a connection between these three, and I'm certain I can make a modification for it to Gallahad control formation.”

He pulled out a blank piece of paper and drew in a perfect circle with almost mechanical precision. A new formation window appeared telling him that the success rate of the formation was now at ninety seven percent. Ten minutes earlier, it had been at a measly forty three percent.

Carmen eyebrows knitted together. “Wait, didn’t it used to take you months to come up with a new modification that didn’t cause an explosion in your basement.”

Nico nodded. “Yeah. I’m just glad my landlady doesn’t come by often to check up on the apartment. Anyway, I have a new array that I can use.”

Carmen’s eyes widened. “Tell me you can blast people with a kamehameha wave or something.”

“No,” Nico said, rolling his eyes. “Chi blasts like that belong to schools of magic I don’t have access to. Besides, magic like that doesn’t fit my fighting style.”

“You mean getting your ass kicked?”

Nico shot her a patient look. He knew she was just trying to joke with him to lighten the mood. From her perspective, the most he’d fought were low level grey dead. Even after telling her his story, it would have been hard to believe he now operated at a completely different level than he had the day before.

“I can’t compete with other magicians in terms of raw power,” Nico explained. “Up until now, I’ve had to focus on energy redirection and energy conversion. Even before I had Measure, if I was set up properly, I could channel and convert incoming spells back to my aggressor at nearly twice the power output.”

Carmen nodded. “I know.”

She had tagged along with him on some of the missions against the neighborhood haunts, stamping spell arrays in various areas of the house for him in preparation for the fights.

“But now,” Nico said, pulling off his shoots, and drawing some modifications over the kinetic-burst formation. “I can fight differently. As long as I have the theoretical backing and knowledge, I can create all kinds of spell arrays that suit my power.”

Carmen blinked. “That’s…broken. That’s broken, right? You just think of a cool ability that you want, and you have it?”

Nico nodded. “Sort of. But remember, I don’t have a lot of magic to spare. And most of the theory that I use as a basis for the creation of new arrays is self-developed. There's about thirty abilities that I want to have, but I don't have the magical power to fuel them all. So I have to go for spell arrays that I can maintain at a minimal level.”

“Ahh, I get it,” Carmen said. “You’re focusing on arrays that give you the most bang for buck. And in games, most of those are passive abilities.”

“Exactly,” Nico confirmed, putting his shoes back on. He started drawing more arrays on his arms and clothes, imbuing them with a small amount of magic to make sure they were solidified against abrasion.

The problem with how he’d approached his magic was that he had believed that having more spell formations and options were a good thing. It wasn’t. Doing so had separated his focus and magic. So, he focused on efficiency by streamlining his arrays into a few very effective spell formations.

A few windows appeared confirming the new arrays were working.

[Passive stamina regeneration +2% of max per minute when activated.]

[Passive magic regeneration +1% of max per minute when activated.]

[Passive divination efficiency +20%]

“Wise decision.” Fu’s voice echoed from the stairs. He carried several sleeves of paper coffee cups. “Victory is in the preparation, especially with battles of magic.”

Nico nodded. “Yeah, I lost last time because I let my emotions get the best of me. Pullman clearly has more experience than I do when it comes to fighting. On top of that, he probably thinks he understands the extent of my abilities. But, I have the element of surprise on my side.”

Fu said, “A longer fight will favor Pullman because his reserves are deeper than yours.”

“He can believe that if he wants,” Nico countered. “But my stamina can recover to its max within an hour, and my magic can recover in an hour an a half.”

Fu gave him a knowing look. “Fights, magical or otherwise, rarely last more than a few minutes. You should know that.”

Carmen frowned. “Okay, what about active abilities? Are you going to rely on spells at all?”

This was where the risk truly was. The more he thought about how he had approached his fights, the more he realized how he still relied on spells, even thought they were incredibly inefficient compared to using only arrays.

“No,” Nico admitted.

Fu had a disapproving expression, but was silent.

Carmen’s mouth hung open. “So…how are you going to take him down?”

Nico grinned. “Don’t worry, I have a couple aces up my sleeve.”

He got up and spread his arms wide. “Try to hit me.”

Without hesitation, Carmen lunged forward, faked a jab, and threw a right hook to his lower ribs. Nico reminded himself to train with her in boxing if he survived all of this.

Carmen’s fist missed.

Without any indication of moving his body, Nico burst-slid away from her attack by a narrow margin, calculated with perfect precision by Measure. He had modified the kinetic-burst formation, adding options for sliding on top of his already useful burst-jump.

The amount of magical power each burst-slide required was significantly lower than his burst-jumps, while also not trashing his knees.

She did not wait for Nico’s prompting to throw two more combinations, all of which missed by a narrow margin. Finally, she sucked in some air and stated, “You’re cheating.”

Nico gave her a thumbs up. “Damn right.”

“Anything else you wanna show off?” She asked, genuinely curious.

Nico shook his head. “Even though I can recover my magic passively, I still don’t want to waste the time or effort. I still have time to figure out other abilities I can give myself.”

Carmen frowned. “I can’t shit talk you for how useful that super slide is. It’s like I’m fighting a ghost. But please tell me you have something in your arsenal that can bring Pullman down.”

Nico gave her a reassuring smile. “Don’t worry. I’ve got the goods.”

He sat back down, pouring over his notes, and scrapping most of the ideas to tackle another day.

Fu walked over, and sat down. “I know you have a game plan, Nico, and that you’ve proven yourself competent in fights. However, you’re insisting on beating Pullman without killing him. Do you really understand what that means?”

Nico nodded. “I can’t just fight him. I have to dominate him on every level.”

Fu sighed. “Right. It’s been decades since my last fight. It gets my blood boiling just thinking about it.”

Carmen laughed. “I can’t see you getting into a lot of fights. No offense.”

Fu tilted his head to the side, and patted his belly. “Don’t let my fit figure fool you, youngin’. I had quite the punch back in the day, though not nearly as the head of your Hold.”

“Yeah,” Carmen agreed. “Israel is the nice guy you do not want to piss off.”

Nico was curious about Fu’s past, too, but he set the questions aside. ruit pointed to a couple pages is several neat tight scribbles.

Fu tapped one of the papers Nico had scribbled on. “What’s this about? True magic?”

Ah. That. Nico pulled the paper between them, reorienting it for Fu too see better. “This phrase, “true magic”, kept popping up in the journal five times, at points that don’t seem to have any similarities with each other.”

Fu’s face grew serious. “You must be careful with this ‘true magic’ business. Every magician of note in history has either claimed to know the true source of magic or have gone made searching for it. I thought Gallahad to have been too reasonable to make such claims.”

Nico pursed his lips. “The thing is, I don’t think he meant ‘true magic’ as in the source of magic, but as an alternate form of magic. Within the context of the journal, he makes it seem like the magic we tap into are..extraneous.”

Carmen sat down as well. “There’s different kinds of magic, right?”

Nico nodded. “Yeah. There are the elemental magics like fire, water, and air. Some of the Chinese schools of magic frame metal and wood as separate elements.”

“The primal schools don’t treat fire as an element,” Fu elaborated. “They see it as a vital force, something as integral to life as our souls. It is more sacred than mere elements.”

“Right,” Nico agreed, but he honestly didn’t know too much about primal magical schools. “Pullman relies heavily on converting power into water magic and occasionally earth. A magician’s preference is usually linked to their memories. Magicians don’t just summon a random appropriate memory. They call on the same memory for years, reliving it to the point it becomes more real to them than waking life. It requires deep discipline to not become a slave to those memories and emotions.”

“This, young Carmen, is why every magician focuses on honing their spellcraft over their knowledge and understanding of arrays,” Fu explained. “Emotions give power to spells. With a simple fire array, you could summon a candle flame. But with the right emotions and memory and intent? You could burn down a house.”

“Depending on your school of magic,” Nico corrected. “There’s a load of factors per spell, depending on the school. Some use the celestial bodies to catalyze the spell or limit the shape. Other factors could even be how many bears your forefathers have eaten. It’s too unreliable compared to arrays.”

“Don’t you like force magic? That’s your go-to, right?” Carmen asked.

Nico smiled, glad to know his friend was so observant about his abilities. “Yeah. Gallahad preferred force out of all the other magic types as well. Regardless of school, it’s the hardest to control. But, I use it because converting other magic into force has a huge output. In the case of elemental magic, I can usually convert fire into force at a one to two ratio.”

“So, like boxing, it’s a counter,” Carmen observed. “The timing is risky, but the reward is a knockout.”

“But only if you can control it,” Fu educated. “It’s damn hard to control and requires a lot of preparation.”

“Which Gallahad’s theories and arrays specialize in,” Nico added. “But I don’t think force magic is what Gallahad believes is the ‘true magic’. Again, I think he sees it as some sort of alternate energy.”

“Why would you be fixated on this?” Fu asked.

“I’m not. But it’s important.” Nico said, confidently.

Fu stared at him as if trying to understand what he was looking at. Finally, after an awkward for seconds, he stated flatly. “You’ve figured something out.”

Nico kept his as impassive as a stone. With Measure, he was able to manage not showing any trace of emotion. He spoke as evenly as he could. “I need to play this one close to the chest. There’s too many factors at play.”

They locked eyes for a long moment until Fu gave him an approving nod. He smiled warmly. “You’re finally getting it. Good. That alone gives me confidence you’re not walking into this half-minded..”

Carmen had the sense to not press him about this. Instead, she asked Fu, “What do you mean by control? If you’re not summoning a spell with emotions, but just using an array, shouldn’t the array do all of the work for you?”

Nico wondered where all this sudden interest in magic came from. Over the years, whenever he tried to nerd out about magical theories with her, she simply glossed over it or dismissed the topic altogether. Maybe it was because he had relinquished her power to the Friends of the Night People, a Hold of faith.

The moment the power left her, it became irrelevant to her. But now that her best friend’s life was at stake, her curiosity spiked. That thought alone gave Nico comfort.

Fu leaned back. “Guiding the magic still requires the will of the magician. Nico has the most efficient arrays I’ve ever seen, to be able to convert elemental magic to force by twice the output. The will is what matters. It must match the type of magic. A strong will is a benefit to all other types of magic. But to force? It requires a delicate touch.”

“It’s the same with mind and soul-assisting magic,” Nico confirmed. “I think divination benefits more from a delicate touch, but it’s something I still need to hash out.”

Fu gave Nico a smile while still talking to Carmen. “Even before he had his ability, Nico was exceptional with his control. Control like that requires not just mental discipline, but emotional, reflective of someone who would not give in to their emotions too easily. It was one of two reasons why I assigned him the task of assisting the local hedge mages in fighting haunts.”

“What was the other?” Nico asked, honestly curious.

“Because you are a good boy,” Fu answered plainly, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

The phone rang behind the counter.

Everyone stopped talking, and stared at it.

Fu’s face went slack, impossible for Nico to read. He walked to behind the counter and picked up the phone. “Fu’s cafe.”

Carmen stood up, car keys in hand, and ready to bolt to the door in case it was someone from the Coalition of Holds. Nico reread the notes sprawled on the table to make sure he kep the theories stored with Measure, and quickly drew Gallahad’s fire formation on one in case he needed to burn potential evidence. If the Sentinels came, he did not want them to figure out Fu had helped them.

Even though Fu was one of the few Holders in Buffalo, New York, he was still a small figure compared to the entirety of the Coalition.

Nico imbued the fire formation with a minimal amount of power, ready to ignite the papers on command.

Fu had not spoken since he greeted whomever was on the other line. He calmly set down the phone.

Nico’s gut twisted as he tried to read the expression on Fu’s face. It was weary and tired. But a hint of anger burn in his eyes.

Fu nodded to him, but Nico already knew who it was. “It’s Pullman.”