Nina seems to sense my rising trepidation, and I see a concerned look from her.
[Mizuki, what's the matter? You seem troubled.] (Nina)
[Well, Yona and all other Greater Spirits understand magic in a way that seems like a violation of Azazel's rules. So, I'm just trying to figure out how much of a problem this may be for us.] (Mizuki)
Nina gives a surprised look, then nods slightly. I turn my attention back to Yona…I need more information to figure out how aware of them Azazel may be.
"Yona, earlier you said something that made me wonder…were you born on a different planet? I don't know how long Greater Spirits live, or when the first ones were brought to Azura." (Mizuki)
Yona nods politely.
"Yes, your deduction is correct. None of us were 'born' here, as you say. Instead, we were brought from another planet long ago, even before the Elder Dragons. Greater Spirits live an indefinite amount of time." (Yona)
So, Azazel clearly brought them here knowing full well what their magical abilities are…why did he do it? It doesn't make any sense.
"Uhm…this may seem like a strange question Yona, but what was it like when Azazel brought you here? Did he ask you any questions first? Did he give you any warnings? Did he mention why he was bringing you here?" (Mizuki)
Yona turns thoughtful for several moments, then looks back to me and nods.
"Hmm…actually, he asked us strange questions like you did. All the different ways we knew how to use our magic, and how we learned to use our magic. He even showed us some strange demonstrations and asked us to replicate them, but none of us could. The only warnings I remember were to not destroy too much life on the planet, and to not tell any other races about how we use magic. All he said about why he wanted us here was that we were anomalies." (Yona)
I nod at Yona appreciatively…I might know what Azazel was thinking. Those questions sound like he was gauging how extensive their knowledge of natural theory is, and how prone to expanding it is.
I'm guessing that he determined that their knowledge was rudimentary enough to not be a danger, and that they lacked the capacity to sufficiently improve it on their own. So, even though they have a clearer understanding of magic, they can't ever use it on a catastrophic scale.
He must have also trusted that they wouldn't spread their knowledge of magic fundamentals. Given that they still seem minimally destructive, and Azazel's preferred magic theory prevails amongst the other races, I'd say his assessment was spot-on in both cases.
The part I find most interesting is why he was willing to risk it at all. He called them anomalies, but that could mean anything. Still, I wonder…Azazel said that all carbon-based life in the universe is some god-modified variation of a single long-lost natural ancestor. But the Greater Spirits aren't carbon-based lifeforms – the fact that Yona passed through my forcefield means she's not composed of matter.
Could they have evolved naturally? That certainly sounds like something Azazel would take a risk over. I look back at Yona and smile encouragingly, and she seems relieved.
"Thanks, Yona, that's a huge help. If it's not too personal, do you mind telling me how Greater Spirits are born?" (Mizuki)
Yona's face turns bitter for a moment, then she nods reluctantly. Is that…too personal? I said she didn't have to answer, so I don't get the attitude.
"On our home planet, there were special large crystals – Origin Shards. There were only ever five found, and as far as we know they'd been around since the beginning of that world. Over very long periods of time, intense magic would accumulate in them. If a Greater Spirit focused their will on a sufficient level of magic inside an Origin Shard, another Greater Spirit could take form." (Yona)
Origin Shards, huh? The fact that they could concentrate magic at all is remarkable. As far as I have been able to tell, magic doesn't intrinsically interact with anything else, not even itself, until you will its properties to change.
I suspect that magic might still be influenced by spacetime curvature, the same way light is, but I'm not sure. The effects would be very hard to test on a small scale, so I can't really confirm my suspicion.
Magic theory aside, doesn't her description of how Greater Spirits are born create a chicken and egg problem?
"Yona, you say that a Greater Spirit has to focus their will on the magic inside these Origin Shards to create another Greater Spirit. If that's the case, though, then how was the first Greater Spirit born?" (Mizuki)
"There were also humans on our home planet. The first ever Greater Spirit, Nierdu, told us that he saw a human man staring at the Origin Shard when he came into existence. We believe that the human stumbled across the Origin Shard, and he unknowingly influenced the magic inside it with his will." (Yona)
That sure as hell sounds like a naturally evolving race to me…no wonder Azazel was interested in them. Why did they agree to come here, though? I don't think there are Origin Shards on Azura, and the fact that no new Greater Spirits have been born here is consistent with that. If they can't reproduce, isn't that a huge issue for them?
"That's remarkable…I can see why Azazel was so interested in your people. Although, I can't help but wonder…why would you agree to come to this planet, Yona? I'm guessing there are no Origin Shards here, so your people can't ever grow in number. I can't imagine anything on your home planet being enough of a danger to you to warrant fleeing either." (Mizuki)
A bitter expression returns to Yona's face, more intense than before. This time, it doesn't go away. She nods her acknowledgement, then speaks with a tone that's a mix of anguish and rage.
"The Origin Shards were defiled by the humans of our planet. It seems that they learned of their ability to store large amounts of magic, and eventually they began breaking them into pieces to use for their own purposes. After we realized what they were doing, we tried our best to stop them, but our superior magical abilities couldn't overcome their numbers. Eventually…all five Origin Shards…" (Yona)
Yona trails off emotionally and remains silent for a moment. So, that's how it is…they lost their ability to reproduce on their home planet.
Yona seems to collect herself and continues with her story.
"We spent millennia searching our home planet for another Origin Shard to no avail. When Azazel eventually visited our planet and made his offer to come here, our people were divided. Some felt that we could still find one if we kept looking, and they couldn't overcome their attachment to our home world. Others, like me, felt that there could be Origin Shards on Azura that Azazel didn't know about, and that we'd at least be away from the humans who destroyed our people's future if there weren't. So, some of us came here." (Yona)
That's devastating. For any other race…they'd have gone extinct by now. Fortunately, they don't age, get sick, or take damage from normal attacks. Still, it can't feel good knowing that you'll never meet new members of your own race.
Speaking of which, there are supposed to be unintelligent spirits on Azura – I think Azazel called them minor spirits. Yona makes it sound like the Origin Shards only produced the Greater Spirits, so where did the minor spirits come from? Maybe the Greater Spirits could reproduce that way.
"I'm sorry about that Yona…I can only imagine how your people must feel. I'm under the impression that there are similar entities on Azura called minor spirits. I haven't heard you mention them, so how are you related? Would it be possible to create Greater Spirits the same way that minor spirits come into existence?" (Mizuki)
Yona shakes her head sadly.
"Minor spirits are our…failures. Some of us thought that if we could accumulate enough magic like the Origin Shards did, and focus our will on it, that we could create new Greater Spirits that way. Unfortunately, making intense enough accumulations of magic is so taxing that they only have a tiny fraction of our magic power. So, the spirits formed from these accumulations – minor spirits – lack enough total magic to be intelligent. They are also...unstable." (Yona)
Jeez…the Greater Spirits went full mad scientist to solve their reproduction issue, huh? Wait a second, though, she just dropped an interesting piece of information casually.
I give Yona a puzzled expression.
"What do you mean by that? That they don't have enough magic to be intelligent?" (Mizuki)
Yona looks surprised that I'm asking.
"A spirit's intelligence also increases with its magic power level. That's why the strongest Greater Spirits are also our leaders. It's also why we worship Goddess Nedonera. We are aware that, for other races, wisdom is not related to magic power. Still, magic is so fundamental to our being that we revere those with as much as yourselves." (Yona)
Holy shit…that description…it makes spirits seem like magic-based neural networks – magic A.I. That would explain the other things I've heard. The more magic, i.e. the larger the neural network, the smarter the spirit.
It also sounds like, for a spirit to form, the magic needs to accumulate at a minimum density before being activated by someone's will…whatever that means. Maybe the density requirement is so that the individual particles of magic are in enough proximity to communicate effectively? Since magic doesn't interact with itself naturally, perhaps the 'will activation' just initializes the magic's communication network?
If so, all they need is more magic! Even if I can only accumulate less than a percent of my magic power to those specifications, the resulting spirit should have at least as much magic as Yona here. It's worth a shot, right?
I smile at Yona excitedly, and she gives me a look that's a mix of confusion and nervousness.
"Well, Yona, it sounds like all you need is more magic. I have plenty to spare, so how about I make this large, dense magic accumulation that you need. Then, you can handle the will focusing part, and we may be able to create a new Greater Spirit! What do you say?" (Mizuki)
After my offer, I give Yona a confident smile to let my point sink in. However, she doesn't react how I expect…she just smiles sadly and shakes her head.
"I'm thankful for your generosity, Tchar'jee, but that won't work." (Yona)
Uhm…what? Why wouldn't it? It seems consistent with everything I've heard so far.