Examine the Refined Time. Determine what the ratio between Future, Past and Present aspects is, and whether this ratio is changing over time.
I could make a few guesses about the nature of the temporal aspects, but the precision needed to perform a true analysis is, unfortunately, a bit beyond me. Still, my theory is thus: 'Aspects' are fundamental forces of nature, referring not to anything concrete, but to abstract concepts. Elemental time therefore comes in three varieties: The sort that represents 'now', 'before now' and 'after now'. If so, the effects would vary more based on the quantity used than the time of creation.
Hmm, his is probably above our ability now, but might make a good long term goal: trying to make a pair of goggles infused with Future, that lets you constantly see half a second into the future - very useful in a fight, giving you essentially *negative reflexes* by letting you dodge stuff that wont be in front of your eyes until half a second later and might not even have been set in motion yet, which means we can probably sell them for quite a bit.
Hmm. Possible, I think, but while useful, I suspect such a device would be worth less than you might imagine. Precognitive magic of that sort is almost always very draining the keep working, either on your energy or your wallet.
Store the mixed Time Aspects in a place that they won't get infused with the container.
Go chat with some alchemists for odd jobs we can do to get use of their centrifuges to separate the Time Aspects.
Well... While I've heard it's possible to enchant glass to be completely immune to any and all magic (though of course, it doesn't help with the
results of magic - a fireball melts it just fine) I don't have any of that at the moment. Still, the crucible will keep the raw aspects safe enough for now.
As for the alchemist? A short trip into town reveals exactly what I'd feared: The only one I know of in the area has somewhat higher standards for help than I can meet. I could probably rent the use of some of the man's tools with about half my savings, but working for him? He wants real dungeon-divers. People who can prove they'll actually come back from a trip for reagents.
...I should probably elaborate a bit more on the process of spell-casting, shouldn't I? As good a time as any I suppose - though you'll have to forgive me if some bits of this are inaccurate:
I've already written about what magic is, so next up are the basics of actually working it. This stuff is a lot more complex though, and I don't understand all of it - hey, if this were easy, everyone and their grandmother would be doing it.
- As I've explained already, the core of all magic is the aspects it draws on. No matter what you do, no matter how you cast, you'll need something to power it. Some magi can draw aspects out of objects on their own, but since I've yet to master spells of that kind, I'll need to rely on my crucible for this step.
- Once the aspects are gathered, they must be directed. So far, I've relied on the simplest way of doing this: Pour them into a focus, then pour them out again. This works, but as I said, it isn't good for much past flashes of light. My observations have shown me two primary methods of directing aspects used by most, but not all, magi.
- The first is used by those varieties of mage who use wands and staves and the like. As best I can tell, these instruments function somewhat like a crucible: Holding aspects, but not interacting with them. Once filled thus, a practiced flourish can weave the aspects into whatever pattern the wizard might desire. How these patterns work is, thus far, a mystery to me. Perhaps it is only a mnemonic, easing the will-driven shaping that is actually at play?
- The second sort is more physical, relying on things like rune and symbols. Watching these things in action, it appears that each part of the magical diagram represents some sort of logic or word, and together it strings together a 'sentence' of sorts that guides the aspects' use. I believe I could replicate this, though it would take many days of trial and error to discern the meaning of each symbol.