Diary of an 8-bit Warrior: Shadow Over Aetheria

**Diary Of An 8-Bit Warrior: Shadows Over Aetheria** is the seventh book of the Diary of An 8-Bit Warrior series.

[Editors Note: This article contains an excerpt obtained from an Amazon page preview. If you want to read the story spoiler-free, please abstain from this page for the time being.]

## Diary of an 8-bit Warrior: Shadow over Aetheria

### Published on

18 January, 2024 (Elsewhere)\*30 January, 2024 (U.S.)\*

* 𝘋𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘮𝘢𝘺 𝘥𝘪𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳 𝘥𝘦𝘱𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘯 𝘭𝘰𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯

### Publisher

Andrews McMeels Publihsing (English)404 Éditions (French)

## Characters

* Runt
* Breeze (Alyss)
* Emerald
* Stump
* Max
* Lola
* Cogboggle
* Ophelia
* Brio
* Aery
* Alvard
* Aurasoph
* Staavi

## Excerpt:

A short summary of the 6 previous books are shown. Their cover art is also displayed.

### **Thursday**:

That morning, I was **so** tired, waking up felt like using **an ultimate ability.** The only reason I managed was the sound of a door opening. At last, I summoned all of my inner strength to use the **legendary** move known as...

"Open Your Eyes"

Suddenly, my eyes, imbued with **supernatural** energy from this ancient technique, opened. What I saw first was **Emerald**. Instead of explaining why she was in my room, or wishing me good morning - you know, something **normal** like that - she simply said:

"**Mana"**

It took me a second. I really was that tired. "Mana," I finally mumbled. **"A magical energy,** invisible to most, that flows throughout Aetheria, much like the wind.

"Is that it?"

"... Umm, it also exists inside of us, inside of us, in the form of **MP**, or **mana points**."

**"Great."** She smiled. "How about Magic Skill?"

"With higher Magic skill, stronger 'magic' abilities can be learned, and said **abilities** can be used more **successfully.**"

"Oom"

I gave her a funny look. "You're... messing with me, right?"

"**OOM** stands for ***out of mana.***" she said. "Whenever you use an ability, some of your MP is consumed. When you run out completely, it's called **going OOM.** At this point, you'll collapse due to extreme fatigue."

"Oh."

I'd never heard of that before. Or maybe I had? I sighed. She started this last night - quizzing me on random gibberish like this. Soon, we'll be setting out for the **Academy**, and she doesn't want us showing up looking like total novices. Or in he words, "Listen, we happen to be going to the most **prestigious** school in **all of Aetheria**. It's not going to be easy. And if you show up not even knowing what **OOM** means, how is that going to look?"

"... I think I'm about to go **OOM, just listening** to you..."

She was right though. The Academy is the only remaining school in the kingdom that offers **"proper Aetherian education."** Which means being versed in everything from swordsmanship to magic use, the use of abilities and spells. There, you can learn the basics of almost any class. The best students might even end up qualifying for a **"heroic class"** like **Holy Knight** or **Sage**, where they receive further training. And maybe someday, these lucky few might go on to serve the kingdom as **actual heroes.** Still, it's said that for every three who register, two end up dropping out... Emerald's so worked up about it, she's been compiling info in her own journal. I'll share one of her journal entries on the following page.

Fire Spells. Water Spells. Redstone Engineering. It seems so **complicated.** One spell I heard about is called **Telekinesis.** It lets you move things using only **your mind.** Obviously, a little spell like that would come in **handy** in so many different situations. For one, I'd be able to **clean my room** and make my bed just by thinking about it. I could also **make pancakes levitate** off my plate and fly directly into my mouth. One can only assume this is why the ancient magicians made such a spell in the **first place**. Even thousands of years ago, wizards probably didn't like using silverware. I know I don't.

Well, Emerald head about that spell, and I heard about it from her. That's why I consider her such a **valuable** friend. She's always 'hearing about things.' Which means I don't have to. This allows me to spend more time on other, more important activities. Like sleeping in.

(Pages 6 and 7 of the Amazon preview are missing, so we skip from page 5 to page 8.)

"...?!"

I almost couldn't **believe** what he was saying. *Food cooked with...* **fire magic**...?

(????!?????!!????#)

**\/**

**0■0**

*(That's my face with a thought bubble full of question marks and exclamation points, and a # symbol. I have no idea what that symbol is called, but here I'm using it to represent a waffle. To indicate **extreme** confusion*.*)*

I'd read my share of fairy tales **over the years,** but never had any of them mentioned cooking with actual magic.

"Almost makes you **wish** we were leaving tonight, huh?"

It was **Max** who said this. He'd entered moments ago, near the end of Stump's ramblings, along with Ophelia and Lola. Now, our whole 'party' was here, **all seven of us.**

Lola was **beaming.**

"I suppose searing a steak with **magical fire** would be faster than traditional methods," she said. "Although, one must wonder how well one can cook using spells? Why, I imagine there'd be a risk of charring a meal to a crisp."

"Also, what happens if the spell somehow hits the table?" Ophelia asked. "Almost sounds **dangerous."**

"I bet the tables are made of stone or even obsidian." Stump said, and his eyes grew **wider.** "Or what if they're ***enchanted with fire resistance?"***

Max shrugged. "I'm sure **it's safe.** From what I've read, an experienced caster can control their spells adequately enough. Also, such a magical preparation is said to add a very unique and delicious flavor, while..."

Emerald **sighed** hungrily. "All right, **that's it**. Can we get breakfast now?"

And we did get breakfast, at our favorite inn - **Snarks',** newly renovated. We were supposed to meet up with more than a few familiar faces there. A kind of reunion I guess. And as we took off through the streets, I was reminded that, as amazing as the capital sounds... the village we were leaving was just as great.

It was **hard** to say goodbye.