Elemental Cats

Toz woke up. He was a little surprised himself since it felt like he had overexerted himself a little more than he should have while finishing his clone. His headache wasn't completely gone, and when he opened his eyes and tried to sit up, Toz felt like someone had smashed his head against the floor a couple of hundred times. It also felt like his body didn't quite fit him, but Toz didn't know what to make of that sensation, and before he could do anything, he was overwhelmed by what greeted his open eyes.

The headache threatening to split his skull apart had been so bad Toz thought the colors he saw were due to that, especially when he moved his head around. But when he sat still for an extended period of time and let the headache settle enough for him to use his brain again, Toz realized that the colors weren't due to a concussion or an injury. It was due to the mana filling the air.

Toz hadn't been able to actually see mana with his naked eyes before, except during Taienra's breakthrough when she used the trees to draw in all the nearby star mana to her. But that had been one attribute and only for a limited time. Aside from that, Toz had only been able to sense mana using his perception and sixth sense while supported by his own mana.

The sight of all the different attributes and elements filling the air dazzled and entranced Toz so much that it took several minutes for him to even think about doing anything. And it took several more minutes for him to actually do something since he was afraid his actions would interfere with the magical sight of all the different elements existing in harmony.

Eventually, Toz snapped himself out of the daze by realizing that if he could experience it once, he would most likely be able to experience it again. The view also began fading from his eyes, so Toz decided to try and figure out why he saw it while he still could. Unfortunately, that meant he had to close his eyes and inspect his consciousness since that was the most likely reason.

As soon as he did that, Toz noticed the source of his headache. The fractures in the blank emptiness that was his mind were still repairing themselves. No wonder his head hurt. After inspecting the state of his mind and confirming that it probably wasn't his injured mind that let him see the mana, Toz shifted his gaze to the center.

After looking at it once, Toz's eyes snapped open, and he almost jumped back in fright. The only thing that stopped him from getting up and running was the chains binding him to the floor.

After realizing he tried to run away from something that was within himself, Toz tried to calm his galloping heart and take another look. Considering what he had been doing up until he collapsed, Toz was pretty sure he knew what it was he had seen within his mind. But the other times when he condensed the hands and body, he had been forced to redo it from the beginning with each new attempt.

Toz knew, rationally, that what he had seen had a logical explanation, but even after convincing himself, the sight of a translucent humanoid figure still startled him.

The figure was so faint its features were barely discernable, and it looked like a textbook example of a ghost. But after reining in his heart and controlling himself, Toz took a more thorough look at the figure. It helped that the figure looked like it was on the verge of dissipating and was as still as a rock.

Toz eventually managed to push down his fears and confirm that the figure wasn't a ghost. It was the miniature clone of himself that he had condensed from his consciousness in an attempt to use the outside mana and break free from the restriction on his mana pool. Toz realized it wasn't such a good thing that the clone was about to dissipate. He was about to do something about it when he realized that he didn't know what to do.

The clone was different from the other body parts since it remained intact even within his mind.

Toz had tried to condense the hands inside his mind before but without success. He eventually realized that the pressure of the outside world didn't only wear away at his consciousness. It also helped Toz control it and shape it as he wanted. Without the help of the outside world's pressure, Toz could only move around his consciousness without actually being able to affect its shape.

However, the clone was obviously different from the shapes and body parts he created before he finished the entire body. Toz couldn't be sure his active interference wouldn't actively dispel the clone instead of helping it recover.

He could probably create another one as soon as his mind recovered, but something told Toz that it wasn't as simple as just creating another body in his image with his consciousness. He didn't even know if there would be any negative effects of the clone dissipating.

Since the clone was most likely the source of him being able to see mana, Toz didn't dare make any rash movements, and he watched the clone as carefully as he could, lest he disturbs it with his mere attention.

Toz shifted his consciousness between the insides of his mind and his body so that he could look at the clone and the mana alternatingly. He wanted to try using magic while he could still see mana, but unfortunately, his mana pool was still sealed.

At least he figured out that the mana sight and the clone were related. The more Toz tried to focus and look at the mana and its movements, the closer the clone got to dissipating.

Satisfied at knowing the clone would probably recover as soon as he stopped looking, which would allow him to look as much as he wanted, Toz closed his eyes and let the mana fade from his vision.