≈Dirk≈
"Cadets! Front and center!", barked a gruff looking Giff, "Your time here on Braal is almost over! Today's training will consist of attuning to the Helm of a Hammerhead class spelljammer. These are the most basic ships in the fleet, aside from the Galleons, and as such the easiest to attune to."
Dirk stood at attention listening to the instruction being spoken. These types of training lessons were always the worst, full of useless jargon and by the book routines. In his opinion the best way to learn is by taking the hands-on approach, nothing beats being in the field and running mock missions and learning tactics.
His wandering mind was suddenly brought back to reality when he noticed his squad beginning to make their way toward the shipyard. Finally, he thought as he began to follow.
The term shipyard was kind of a misnomer, this shipyard was a gaping maw carved into the side of this asteroid that held the Federations' Astral fleet. Over 500 crewed Spelljammers are moored in this cavern, and all maintain their position using the magical and mysterious machinations of the Helm. Dirk marveled at the thought of crewing a Galleon class Spelljammer one day as he marched towards a ship called The Quillon. The Hammerhead class vessel was one of the many unique vessels the fleet had to offer. It specialized in ramming enemy vessels and creating the perfect boarding opportunities for the allied crew to wreak havoc on the enemy ship. Dirk had always wondered what it would be like to be a part of the boarding parties. He imagined going toe to toe with one of the Aberrant generals and capturing one of the Nautiloids to serve as his trophy of the battle.
The captain continued his lecture as Dirk's mind dreamed of larger things, "One important factor to keep in mind when crewing one of these vessels is that you as a crew must protect the Helmsman at all costs. If they go down the ship is dead in the water, so to speak. The Helmsman provides the magical link between the Helm and the ship, only they can maneuver and operate the main functions of the vessel due to the magical nature of the device."
Dirk snapped back to reality upon hearing that, "So what happens if the Helmsman does fall in battle? Could someone else take their spot and continue operating the ship?"
"Fantastic question Cadet Dirk!", yelled the overly enthusiastic instructor, "It is possible for someone else with knowledge and practice in the magical arts to attune to and operate the Helm. It is however incredibly unlikely due to the fact that it takes roughly fifteen minutes to attune to the Helm itself. So, unless you and your crew were perfectly coordinated in battle, I'd say the chances are slim to none."
"But it is possible!", a small voice from among the Cadets said, "And that's all I need!"
The instructor looked quizzically at the small figure that had spoken up. He rifled through his documents and once he had placed a name with the face then spoke, "Cadet Ainsel, optimism will only get you so far when in the heat of battle. Learn to rely on instinct and the knowledge we here at the academy teach you and you'll be just fine."
Dirk laughed inwardly. He liked Ainsel, the Warlock had always done his best and could back up his words with action. Granted, the small folk were a tad strange, but wasn't everyone in their own way? The squad moved onto the deck of the Quillon where more lecturing took place, and Dirks mind went over his combat drills.
≈Ainsel≈
Knowledge is information gathered by experiences, skills, and facts, and in Ainsels opinion its the most important tool in the star system. His patron found him that way, digging through ancient tomes in a long-abandoned monastery back on Aruun. The thought of the memory brought a smile to his face. His patron had always been kind to him and even gifted him many abilities. One of Ainsels favorite gifts was his familiar, Bycol the miniature dragon. The two had formed an inseparable bond over the years and Bycol always had Ainsel's back; however, being at the academy Ainsel had to sign a document stating that no outside help would be allowed once training had started, that included any help from familiars which meant no Bycol. It had been a rough six months without his friend being there, but Ainsel had picked up a few friends along the way. Dirk, for example, had always helped him out with the principles on combat related subjects and his other friend, Helion, had taught him many things regarding lore about the ships and how they work magically. There was also one of the Sergeants that seemed to aid and guide him just a little more than the others, though Ainsel didn't know his name.
The squad Ainsel was in was considered to be those that were scoring top marks in all their studies and were projected to be some of the best cadets to graduate from the academy to date. Ainsels gaze shifted over to Dirk briefly, who seemed to be studiously listening to the lectures being given, and then over to Helion, who was scribing the information in a book that floated in front of him. They were slotted to crew one of the Federations most elite vessels, The Golden Day, once they graduated.
Not much longer now. I figure that we only have three days, at most, left of ourtraining. Ainsel thought as the nerves began to creep in suddenly. He was no coward by any means, but the thought of sailing into battle in the middle of the Astral Sea to fight an enemy no one knew hardly anything about would make anyone a bit weak in the knees.
"Now then!", barked the instructor, "we will be taking the Quillon on a mock journey through the Sea. I need one of you to attune to the Helm and the others will take up positions around ..."
"I'll do it sir!", Ainsel yelled, before the instructor could finish the thought, "I'll attune to the Helm."
"Make your way to the Helm, Instructor Kilp will instruct you how to use it. The rest of you make to a station of your choosing then you will be briefed on how to perform your tasks. Cadet Helion, accompany Cadet Ainsel to the Helm. Seeing as you're the only other mage you'll need to know its functions as well."
"Yes sir!", said the thin Yuan-ti mage, "I'll make my way there now."
~Helion~
"A cookbook is very similar to a wizards spellbook!" explained Helion to Ainsel as they made their way to the Helm, "just think about it, all of the ingredients can be combined into one big dish similar to when we use spell components to cast a larger spell. For example the other night when I made that Shepherd's Pie I used ground bulette meat, some Astral peas, and some Arrun potatoes, sprinkled with the cheese made from kindori milk, and for when we cast a simple fireball spell we use a bag of bat feces and some incense. Do you see the similarities Ainsel?"
"I suppose that makes sense in a weird sort of way, though unlike food recipes you can't substitute let's say neogi feces in place of the bat feces to get the same result of a fireball.", Ainsel deliberated while waving his hands in front of him simulating a somatic component to the fireball spell.
"Fair enough, but it's an interesting concept nonetheless!", Helion replied cheerily.
The remainder of the walk to the Helm was spent in quiet consideration between the duo. The possibilities began whirring through Helion's mind, Is it possible to cast food magic? Culinariomancy perhaps? I will make a note of that and store it for a later date. Upon reaching the Helm the duo was greeted by Instructor Kilp, a Thri-Kreen mage who hails from the Rock of Braal.
"Greetings Cadets! My name is Instructor Kilp and I'll be showing you both how to attune to and transfer attunement from the Helm.", she said between a mixture of chirps and clacks from her mandibles, "first one of you please take a seat on the Helm then we'll continue from there."
Helion watched Ainsel make his way to the large throne-like seat that was the Spelljammer Helm. He could see the magic energy flowing from the base of the seat and realized that beneath the Helm was a large crystal embedded into the floorboards that seemed to resonate with the energy from the Helm. Wires and tubes ran from the crystal in all directions and he could only guess that they were responsible for the distribution of the Helmsmans magical energy throughout the vessel, and as such powered the ship through the Sea.
Such a curious contraption. What great mind brought about its creation and what reason were they created? pondered Helion while waiting for further instructions.
Everyone that went through the academy were taught the basic history of Spelljamming. Early historians suggest that a group of humans found a derelict Psurlon vessel known as a Star-Moth and were able to rebuild what remained. Once the vessel had been rebuilt they managed to leave their planet and make their way into the Astral Sea, and once there they were met by an ancient cosmic dragon who explained to them the mysteries of the universe.
Fifteen minutes later...
"I've done it! Attunement succesful!", cheered Ainsel
"Fantastic Cadet!" chirped Kilp, "now the next step may be slightly confusing so please, both of you, give me your undivided attention."
"Yes Ma'am!", they both called in unison.
"Attuning is the easy part", Kilp explained," the difficult part is the Attunement Transfer Process or ATP for short. ATP is the method we Helmsman use to transfer attunement, in an instant, to another qualified Helmsman without losing control. If the process is interrupted in any way the Spelljammer and its crew will be dead in the water, so to speak. The mind of the current attunee MUST be in sync with that of the person it's being transfered to, any deviation will result in an incomplete attunement which can cause devastating consequences to both the user's minds as well as the Spelljammer itself."
Attunement is a strange procedure in which a magically capable individual creates a magical bond with an item, thus allowing that individual to access its full range of capabilities. Helion had been accustomed to this process for several years now ever since his time at Strixhaven but it had always fascinated him to no end when someone underwent an attunement. He could see the magical energy flowing around Ainsel and these thin web-like threads of pure energy tethering him to the Helm. The wiring and tubing along the floor began to glow slightly and hum with a very quiet and melodic tune.
The Quillon jolted slightly as the attunement took hold and it began to rise slightly from its docking station, awaiting further commands from the Helmsman. He watched as Ainsel focused intently on the connection between himself and the Quillon, making sure not to maneuver to quickly or to erratically.
The ship stuttered once more but then quickly stabilized, "Now that Cadet Ainsel is fully attuned we can now begin the ATP. Cadet Helion, attempt to attune to the Helm.", Kilp ordered.
"Yes Ma'am!", said Helion as he began to send his magical energy towards the Helm.
The moment Helions tendrils of magical energy touched the Helm his mind was flooded with information. He could see above deck and the rest of the crew working at their stations, and could sense everything within a large radius of the Quillon as if he was there himself. In a brief moment he felt a surge of energy and could hear a different voice inside his head.
"Helion is that you?", a concerned voice asked him via the psychic link.
"Yes it's me. Is that you Ainsel? This is all very fascinating and surreal. I feel like I'm everywhere all at once. I can see the crew shifting about and the instructors barking orders. I'm having the time of my life!" ,thought a gleeful Helion.
"I'm glad you're enjoying yourself. I'm doing my utmost to not wreck a Spelljammer on my first day."
"Just relax Ainsel, being tense will more than likely make it worse. Just focus on the flow of the ship if that makes sense."
"Right. I'll try."
"Cadets this is Instructor Kilp. To begin the process of transferring attunement Ainsel needs to grant Helion permission to access the Helm. Once he has access, Ainsel, you need to relinquish your attunement in the same instant Helion is granted it. This must be done simultaneously or else we could lose control of the Quillon and crash into the shipyard."
"Yes Ma'am!" , they both though in unison
"Are you ready Helion?" , asked a nervous Ainsel
"As ready as I'll ever be! Let's do this! On my mark."
"Three."
"Two."
"One."
In that instant Helion's mind fully linked to the Spelljammer and with that the Quillon lurched forward but almost immediately stabilized. Ainsel stood from the Helm and made his way over to Kilp.
Kilp spoke up after the transition was completed, "Congratulations Cadets! That was a successful ATP, albeit rough, but successful nonetheless. Now we can begin by making our way out into the Astral Sea and the real training can begin."