Magic: Tipping the Scales

You walk into a room that hums and crackles with magical activity, not threatening, but still a bit unsettling. As you calm down, you survey the room, which is filled with glowing orbs that are as tall as you are. Each one glows a different color, and numerous images are inside each one: waterfalls, lightning, fire, etc. A short but neatly posted note to the side reads:

The designation of this room is to educate those who come here in magical enchantments, and their nature. Armed with this knowledge, hopefully one will be able to recognize and utilize those spells, extending their lifespan.

You then turn to those Orbs, each one with a scroll next to it, similar to the Portal room, and begin to watch..... and learn.

You walk over to an orb that......

.... emits a bluish fog which dampens your skin and clothes as you get closer. Some darker patches of mist chill your skin, and also freeze the condensing water on a glass orb. Inside the orb is a glimmering chaos of liquid, whirling and crashing around. The twisting jets suddenly freeze into ice, forming the symbol of Water before melting back again.

..... is partially shrouded in dense clouds of white smoke. Coming closer, the smoke is occasionally tinted red and orange , illuminated by dancing sparks inside the sphere and a central blaze of flame. Suddenly, the sparks coalesce into a glowing rune, set ablaze by a flare from the center, only to separate again. An afterimage of the rune remains in your eyes, and you recognize it as the rune of Fire.

..... has a network of leafy vines halfway encircling it, as well as roots extending from the bottom of an enormous tree which you assume extends above ground. More plantlife-- Dwarven trees the color of gold and fire, exquisite blooms of various shades, as well as others-- glows inside the orb, surrounding a growth of muticolored crystal. Carved into the tallest crystal is the symbol of Earth.

.....crackles with blue and white bolts of energy. Spinning around the orb are dark ominous clouds that reminds you of the ones you see before a severe storm. Past the clouds, the inside of the orb is relatively clear, but as you try to see through to the other side, you realize that the inside is spinning and distorting the air. Several bolts of energy form the symbol of Air which is fragmented after a few seconds and spun back into the clouds.

..... you would have thought of as a Portal Eye if it were not for the glass. Looking into the sphere, you see superheated clouds of gas framed against blackness- space- and then the scene shifts, moving rapidly past both planets of gas and those of just rock, to stop and focus on a star. The star, emitting bursts of flame and superheated dust, seems to be floundering, and you get a feeling like you are watching something die. Suddenly, there is a brilliant flash, and waves of heat pass out from the orb. You wait for them to subside, and see that the orb is refocusing, going through dusty clouds to show a symbol- the glittering black symbol of the sky.

.....seems not to give off light, but is drawing it in to a spinning item in the center of the orb. Visible streams of light are pulled in around you, passing through the glass to be what you think is absorbed by the whirling thing. The item flashes with a purplish light with each absorption, allowing you to see it as the rune of Darkness.

Back to the Main Cavern