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The Cage: Part One
Posted: Tue Jun 09, 2020 3:51 am
by Taelian Edevane
6th of Searing, Year 120
The woman hummed. He could hear it from somewhat far away -- that soft, melodic voice, muffled through the barrier of her lips. He felt himself, stepping endlessly towards the upward slope of the hill, beginning to feel the sorrow in her song. And that sorrow reverberated through him. He remembered the words to that song, and that she used to sing it to him all the time. Whenever he was unhappy, like now. And... whenever she was. Whenever she was afraid, which was often.
It was his mother beyond the sea of grass, and it was her tune that he absently followed. It was the tune that she sung to him as she absently wailed, harrowed by fear, lain on the mold-covered bed of their Bedlam hovel. It was on the night of her death, as she perhaps finally realized that the day had come and the sickness had become too much to bear. She invited him to her side, and together they cried, because even as a little boy Taelian finally knew.
He missed her. Even as cold as she had often been, staring malignantly towards the distance, regretting the choices of her life. Even... regretting him. There was something within her beyond the dread; a feeling of guilt that perhaps he had only mistaken for love. And then, reminiscence of her earlier life, living near the interior portions of Sil-Elaine away from the vile undercity. He couldn't have imagined what her life had been like before marrying his father, at least not at first. Having wealth. As laughable as 'wealth' was in Sil-Elaine.
"Mother," he whispered beneath his breath. He'd been partially awake for a while, and only now would he acknowledge it. Of course, the word was said only as emotion overwhelmed him; tears were already in his eyes. Lately, contrary to how he normally was, he couldn't stop feeling. He was burgeoning with emotions all the time -- and he didn't always want to be. Strangely enough, a part of Taelian longed for the simplicity that was being Famished. He had never fully been that way... but, he'd almost mastered that null feeling, like flicking on a lantern. Right now... he wondered if he could...
"Ah," he sighed. That was it.
It was dark in his room. The lantern quickly turned on, the small fire glowing through the glass and brimming out against the walls.
The Siltori's lips settled into what looked like a half-frown. He supposed it was good a time as any to practice magic; he needed to learn portalwork better than he knew, certainly to become a Thespian and even just to manage the travel required of him. Taelian had decided recently that he would stay as an Ebon Knight. That meant, unfortunately, involvement with Eleanor's dangerous game in Kamdin, and the continued fight against the Huntsmen and their ilk.
There was only one of him, though, and all of these ideals. All of these goals. He scarcely knew how to manage them -- and his involvement with the two groups had been somewhat minimal. It did weigh on his mind, whether or not he would be able to sustain his tenure in the Covenant. Fighting the Court of Dusk would be so tiring, and so endangering. It was a long game.
Re: The Cage: Part One
Posted: Tue Jun 09, 2020 4:07 am
by Taelian Edevane
Piping. He remembered Eloise's words on it; well enough that he could recreate her posh voice in his mind. It was a simple one: the Transposer only needed to learn how to break one of their portal's restrictions, allowing for inanimate matter to pass through. It was one of the boundaries of portals being crossed; the next after it was organic matter, which effectively allowed for what was called the 'perfect' portal. Piping didn't cost much, either, and from his notes he'd already vaguely understood how to break the barrier already set in place. It was a matter of learning how to translate physical density through portals; complex objects far more pronounced than simple things such as light and sound. It really was a matter of mastery.
Taelian began to focus his aether. As he so often did when learning Transposition, he closed his eyes, and allowed the vision of space and its layers to consume his mind. He slightly waved his hand before him, and envisioned as if through his motions he were parting the spatial folds. Transposition manipulated matter more clearly than most magics, he had always felt; partly because it seemed to break physical boundaries in order to do so, learning to fold distances and force objects or individuals to intersect between them.
He formed the first node. His Lychgate was already brimming; the node began to collect aether from around it, small flickers of energy forming towards the center. A stream followed, and so clearly now could he envision the link. Each step had become far more seamless, more efficient and more readily done. Creating one portal now was a matter of simple ease, unlike before.
Taelian crafted the Lychgate. With no natural terrain influencing its borders, it formed seamlessly in the air as a teal vortex, encircled by twisting sparks that almost appeared to escape the bounds of the portal as they flared like fireworks. He then held his hand forward, towards the Lychgate, and began to focus his aether once more. It was a matter of overlaying onto it at first, and then imbuing Piping into its frame. He focused more, melding his aether into the basic structure of the portal. The basic aether of the Node twisted alongside his addition, a small pronouncement of sorts that he wished to alter the portal's structure.
And, it appeared that his attempt may have worked. Taelian reopened his eyes and looked to the shape of the portal. He softly encircled his fingers around the Lychgate's edges, before exhaling softly. A silver dagger rose from his bedside, manipulated by Gallow Warrior. It began to venture towards the portal, and before long it met with the construct, diving through. The other side of the Lychgate - beyond the wall of his room - did in fact receive his silver dagger, which he now manipulated remotely from beyond the wall. He let go, and heard it clatter against the wooden floor from the other side of the room.
He could near-perfectly hear Eloise's voice in his mind, again. Good, but sloppy. And of course: Try again. And so he did.
Re: The Cage: Part One
Posted: Tue Jun 09, 2020 4:36 am
by Taelian Edevane
Before long, he felt practiced enough. The mage understood -- the basics, at least, and he knew that more refinement would come later. When his training was done, he began to step down the wooden stairs of his cabin, wholly expecting to find Riven seated in the dining hall with a few slices of bread before him. Instead, he saw an Irothar; a gleaming shape of glass, with cinders and small fires brimming from within. Taelian confusedly blinked. He'd seen the shape before, but . . .
Taelian continued to step down the stairs. He turned to glance to his left; there was another Irothar. This one was so tall that it had to crouch forward not to hit the wall. There was a soft blue glow from behind the glass portion of his front door, and finally he heard a few knocks. "Taelian!" he heard a woman's voice yell. It was unfamiliar.
The man felt his body slightly shaking. The Irothar surrounding him, the blue glow, the unfamiliar voice... it felt dream-like. It was so strange. Still, he had to answer. This person couldn't have been an enemy; there was no way the Dranoch had found him here. It had to have been someone who was privy to know where he lived, and there was only one organization with that knowledge.
He stepped to the door, and his palm began to lock around and twist the knob. He felt his heart thrumming with worry.
The door opened. Behind it was a woman he had never seen, but one he'd heard of. Iridith. It took no time at all to connect her face to her description.
"Uh--yes?" he finally replied. She must have been the one to summon the Irothar into his home. He wondered why; why she was here, why in the middle of the night, why so urgently...
"Wylen's let loose a creature halfway between here and Raellon. A beast of Necromancy; a powerful one, difficult to control. It needs to be hunted before it is traced back to the Covenant -- it could cause serious repercussions for our public perception in this country. Particularly if it kills anyone, as it may have already done."
The Ebon Knight's brows rose. It was a strange reason to visit him, so far away, or so he thought.
"The Thespians are all preoccupied playing their political games. Wylen's not a fighter. I'm the one who offered to hunt the beast -- but I'm not sure I'll be able to do it alone. Eloise said you're a Dranoch hunter, correct?" she questioned. Taelian nodded his head. "Good," the woman replied. "The creature was made using a great deal of a Dranoch's biological material. Wylen... I think, he--"
"He used the Joseph's, didn't he?" Taelian asked.
"Yes," Iridith nodded. "It's no Dranoch, I assure you, but it does appear to have some of their abilities. I... do not know. For as much as we try to learn, the Thespians are no experts on creatures from a world away. These beings are very new to Atinaw. But they are not new to you."
The silver-haired man shook his head, and exhaled. It wasn't the news he wanted to hear, but . . . "Okay," he said in reply. "I'll help you hunt the beast. How are we going to get there?"
"Portal, of course. Get ready for battle, mage. We don't have much time."
"Okay," he whispered again. "I lost my armor in the fight against the Joseph's, and I haven't bought another set. So . . . let me just get my satchel and blade, and I'll be ready."
Re: The Cage: Part One
Posted: Mon Jun 15, 2020 1:17 am
by Etro
♅ The Cage: Part One ♅
XP:
- 5xp {Can be used for Transposition}
Pieces of knowledge:
- Transposition: Piping
Transposition: Overlaying a portal
Transposition: Advanced portals
Hunting: Hunting a non-descript beast
Non-skill Lores
Necromancy: Forging abominations
Necromancy: Borrowing the characteristics of a race
Comments:
- How is it you can make simple magical practice solos so interesting? I was not disappointed while reading this and as I stated in an earlier review, the way you write Transposition and learning the abilities makes me like the magic even more. This was great to read and mentally envision.
Note: I moved the two Necromancy lores to non-skill as Taelian didn't practice the magic himself, so if you wish for two more lores to replace those, let me know so I can award them to you as soon as possible.