Sparks of magic were a source of tremendous power. In the hands of the disciplined they could be used to bring about great miracles, or terrifying curses. Cities could be raised from nothing but sand, made strong and prosperous, and reduced back to nothing but ashes all by the hands of a single master. The responsibility that came with wielding a scrap of a nigh-godly power was similarly enormous, meant for the wisest and most mature of people.
Not for people like Tio.
"Don't you think this is perhaps a little childish?" Fred asked, tilting his head to the side curiously as he watched the scene unfolding before them.
"Nonsense. This is very important training I'll have you know. Any enjoyment I get out of this is purely coincidental." Tio replied with a chuckle, a sly grin behind his mask as he made a small hand gesture. On the other side of the dingy, uncouth tavern a ball of watered-down beer shot out of a glass while nobody was looking, sailed through the air with all the grace of a drunken ostrich, and slapped into the back of the head of a rather burly looking mercenary seated on the next table. With a deceptively calm expression the mercenary stood up, shot a glance over at the owner of the drink, then socked the man square in the nose without a word. Within a matter of seconds the tavern had erupted into a full scale brawl, and Tio took a swing from his goblet of rum, sat back in his seat tucked away in the corner of the room, and watched the chaos around him unfold with a self-satisfied smirk.
Fred raised an eyebrow, a gesture that looked oddly out of place on an animal's face. "I still don't get what the point of this is."
"It's to practice using magic subtly of course. Master Oz always warned me to never go beyond my limits, and to use creativity rather than sheer force. This way I'm killing to birds with one stone. Why waste all my ether taking out a room full of people when a gentle nudge can make turn them against themselves?"
"And you expect you'll find yourself needing to battle a horde of drunkards on a regular basis?" When Tio pointedly didn't reply Fred shook his head. "You little liar. You're just doing this for kicks."
Tio took a sip from his goblet guiltily and scanned over the room, searching for anything interesting going on. One of the best things about Yaralon was that pretty much everyone seemed to know how to fight, so even simple brawls like this looked like pretty amazing spectacles to outsiders like him.
Last edited by Tio Silver on Fri Feb 01, 2019 7:04 pm, edited 1 time in total. word count: 466
Fast Facts
Noticeable quirks your character can see when threading with Tio.
Floats
Tio floats in the air, usually just a foot off the ground.
Explodeibur
Tio wears a scary looking gauntlet on his right hand that is clearly magical. It creates explosions.
Aetu wasn’t here to drink and she certainly wasn’t here to have fun. She was looking for someone, someone with information. She was dressed in all black which included her tank top, high cut shorts, and her boots that came up just to her knees. Her perfectly white hair was down, draped over the back of her seat and dangerously close to touching the dirty floor. Her most distinguishing characteristic were the black marks around her eyes which most people would assume was just a blindfold. Her eyes were closed, but she could still see. In fact, she could see much better than the average Joe.
Aetu had taken an inconspicuous seat near a gentleman and a fox who were piqued her interest. She hadn’t seen what Tio had done but based on what she was hearing, she was quite certain that Tio had done something. As the bar fight ensued, the rune wright stood up and walked over to those two individuals and tilted her head.
“You wouldn’t happen to be a mage would you,” she asked openly, “or is there some divine power that allows you to start a brawl on a whim?” Her questions came from an honest curiosity. She was eager to learn what magics there were in the world. She had actually fought a couple of earth defiers in her past and she had always been impressed with the sheer amount of power they commanded. Definitely more impressive than hurling a tiny ball of water at someone’s head.
Tio paused with his goblet at his lips, startled by the blunt question from the woman who'd just walked up out of nowhere. Had he been spotted? Oh that wasn't good, not good at all! If the crowd of fighters knew that it was him who orchestrated this little fight it would be painfully easy to turn them on him! Was this girl the type of person who'd do that? Some sort of mage-hunter perhaps? He gave her a quick look over, noting the distinguishable white hair and blindfold. She'd certainly stand out from the crowd with an appearance like that, but there was nothing to suggest what her motives were. At the very least she didn't look like she was about to attack him, but he couldn't exactly say that she looked harmless either.
Perhaps he needed to dig a little deeper? The spark of attunement inside of him hummed to life as Tio fed a trickle of ether into it, focusing on the white-haired woman. It would take a little while, but eventually he'd find out what this was all about. It the mean time it seemed like his best bet was to play along.
"Hey now, don't go shouting that out to everyone! It's not exactly the kind of thing you blurt out in public." He sputtered, quickly putting his drink down and looking around sharply to make sure nobody has overheard. Thankfully everyone else seemed to be too captivated by the fight to notice the conversation happening at their little table. Breathing out a short sigh of relief, Tio made a gesture towards the seat on the other side of the table. "Do you want to sit down? I'd offer you a drink but I'm pretty sure the bar staff are otherwise occupied."
Whether she did or not, Tio took another long sip from his goblet while he composed himself. When he brought it back down again his body language had become entirely welcoming, although it didn't seem entirely genuine. "Sorry, I didn't catch your name miss..." He left a pause for her to speak. "I'm Tio. To answer your earlier question yes, I might dabble in it a little bit. Enough to make a nuisance of myself. Now since I answered your question I reckon it's only fair that you answer mine."
From behind his masks eye hole he raised an eyebrow at Aetu curiously. "Most people tend to run in the opposite direction when they come across a suspected magician, but you instead walk up and confront them. Why?"
Last edited by Tio Silver on Fri Feb 01, 2019 7:05 pm, edited 1 time in total. word count: 442
Fast Facts
Noticeable quirks your character can see when threading with Tio.
Floats
Tio floats in the air, usually just a foot off the ground.
Explodeibur
Tio wears a scary looking gauntlet on his right hand that is clearly magical. It creates explosions.
Aetu’s face somehow turned even whiter when she was scolded. She had never once been cautious about telling people she was a mage. In fact, it was something she was quite proud to advertise. She offered a quick “sorry” and pulled her chair over. After letting Tio finish with what he had to say, Aetu replied, “I’m Aetu, and I’m also a mage. Runes and healing are what I can do. I’m always on the lookout for other mages so I can learn more about what kind of magic is out there.”
While she talked she absent mindedly scratched a fingernail on the table’s surface, inscribing a rune. Over the next several seconds the runes would spread out with intricate lines and patterns until it covered the whole surface of the table. The tabletop shone a murky black color signifying that this was indeed an umbral trap. A weak one, but it was just for show.
“What is it that you can do? Do you convince a spirit to start the fight? Or did you create an illusion? I’d really like to know, if you don’t mind me asking.” She felt a strange power come over her when she asked the question, like she had done something that she didn’t quite understand.
Aetu was trying to be sweet, but she’d spent much of the last season getting into fights and learning how to frighten people. This was in addition to her mutated hair and skin that was probably off-putting to some. She was slowly starting to edge away from the innocence of her early teens.
NOTE: I’m trying to use the “Hand of Truth” ability. I have no knowledge in it so it doesn’t really affect anything. Just have your character’s hand twitch if he’s lying over the next five minutes or so.
Tio's one good eye glinted with interest as Aetu revealed herself to be a mage, and hidden behind his mask the corners of his lips curled up into a little smile, which in turn grew into a grin as she inscribed a rune across the top of the table. How extraordinary! He'd come across the concept of runes during his training as a Seeker on Scalvoris, though that had only been the most basic of descriptions. He'd known that those who possessed a certain spark, runewrights he thought they were called, could paint symbols on their bodies in order to make themselves physically stronger, but this dark rune on the table clearly didn't follow that particular rule. Curiously he prodded the trap, watching with fascination as it shimmered a darker black and drained the strength away from his finger. Oh he had to learn more about this!
His eye flicked back up to Aetu. Now that his attunement spark was beginning to focus in on her a bit more he could begin to hear an interesting noise originating from within her. In some ways it was like his own three sparks, and yet it was a richer, more drum-like beat than any of his. It must be the frequency of her spark. He filed the sound away in his memory, then turned his thoughts back to the situation at hand. Whilst an inherently simple power, unnatural might would be incredibly useful in helping him to free Avacer. The ability to weaken opponents was just icing on the cake. He wanted this power; the greedy aspect of his soul craved it. Perhaps he could get Aetu to pass the spark on to him? Yes, that idea had merit. He wasn't exactly a poor man, nor an unresourceful one. Surely there must be something he could offer her in exchange for it?
"What can I do?" Tio leaned back in his seat and rested his hands behind his head, exuding an aura of confidence, or perhaps arrogance. "Well I don't mean to brag... his hand twitched, "but there's an awful lot of things that I can do these days. The one I used earlier lets me create and commune with the four elements. My second one however lets me listen to the true nature of the world: discover secrets about people that they'd rather stayed hidden, or find things nobody else was meant to find." He considered telling her about his necromancy, but decided against it at the last second. It was wise to keep your trump card hidden after all.
"But you know, there's another ability I'd love to add to my repertoire." He leaned forwards, looking Aetu directly in the eye. "This power of yours is fascinating. Tell me, would you be willing to pass this spark of yours on to me? I'd grant you any wish you would ask for in return."
word count: 495
Fast Facts
Noticeable quirks your character can see when threading with Tio.
Floats
Tio floats in the air, usually just a foot off the ground.
Explodeibur
Tio wears a scary looking gauntlet on his right hand that is clearly magical. It creates explosions.
Aetu couldn’t have been more interested in what Tio had to say if he was telling her the location of buried treasure. Behind her blindfold scar her eyes were focused so intently on the man that she could see every crevice in his skin. She wasn’t all too impressed with finding out he was a defier, as she had never met one that had done anything interesting. The other ability though, the one to listen to the nature of the world, was something she had never even heard of before. It was a power that she very much wanted, and a power that she was willing to bargain for. That’s why she was happy to hear that Tio was interested in Hone.
“Oh really,” Aetu said with a blush, “maybe you would be so kind as to pass that mystical nature spark onto me then.” She knew nothing of what was required to pass on a spark, only that one had to already have the spark. There was only one problem in her mind, and that was who was supposed to ‘go first’. See, if she was initiated first then she’d have more leverage afterwards. Perhaps she could extort a little extra out of him before holding up her end of the bargain.
“Let’s have a little duel of the spear. Winner gets initiated first, sound fair? How does a duel to first blood sound?” She wasn’t that confident in her physical abilities, but if this was a battle against another mage there was a chance she would have the upper hand.
A duel? Now that was an interesting idea. Dueling was the custom here in Yaralon after all, and it certainly would be helpful to determine who would initiate who first beforehand. After all it would be a pain if he passed an attunement spark on to Aetu only for her to disappear on him before giving him the hone spark. The question was then if he could realistically win such a duel. His opponent would definitely outclass him in terms of raw strength with her spark, so if he wanted to win he'd need to keep his distance and make liberal use of the few da'riya techniques he knew. Still it was definitely possible.
"Madam, you have yourself a deal." He declared, reaching out to shake her hand. He slipped his goblet away in his domain bag, then slowly pushed himself onto his feet. "Well, no time like the present is there? Let's get this show on the road shall we?"
He led the way outside, slipping casually around the side of the brawl still raging, onto the middle of the street. It was pretty clear at this time today, and there was enough space that anyone using it would be able to see them fighting a mile away and know not to get involved. It was as good a place as any for a battle.
"So, a battle to the spear you said? Does that mean we have to fight with spears or something?" He asked, settling into a fighting stance. "Well I hope you don't mind if I take this fight barehanded? Come at me when you're ready."
word count: 275
Fast Facts
Noticeable quirks your character can see when threading with Tio.
Floats
Tio floats in the air, usually just a foot off the ground.
Explodeibur
Tio wears a scary looking gauntlet on his right hand that is clearly magical. It creates explosions.
As soon as they started talking about a duel, several others started to listen in. They would need witnesses and a darstrion to make this official, as a duel without those components was a duel to the death. Luckily there was never a shortage of darstrions to officially confirm the duel. “Hey Fred, come oversee this duel,” called one of the eavesdroppers. It was the witnesses’ duty to find one after all.
When they arrived in the middle of the street Aetu explained, “whoever draws first blood wins. But unarmed you say? In these lands walking around unarmed is asking or a marriage proposal,” she finished with a blush.
The rune wright took her position some 20 feet away from her opponent and placed strength runes on her blade. What she was doing would be obvious as the runes gave off a noticeable black glow that contrasted with the blade’s silvery color. This was one of the few duels she had ever had that felt like there was something significant at stake and she wasn’t going to hold back. She put more ether than she ever had into the umbral trap and put a pressure trigger on it. As soon as that blade collided with something, anything, the rune would go off and cause crippling weakness. Fortunately for Tio, Aetu had put all her eggs in one basket for this fight and hadn't the ether to physically boost her abilities. She could, if she needed to, but the numbness in her limbs was telling her she was pretty close to moderately overstepping.
When it was clear that both of them were ready, Aetu ran as fast as she could towards Tio (which wasn’t very fast) and did a horizontal slash aimed at his stomach.
It seemed their duel had attracted a small crowd, and Tio frowned a little behind his mask as the onlookers gathered around them in a loose circle. He'd decided that he wasn't going to hide his magic here in Yaralon the way he had done in Scalvoris, but that didn't mean he wanted to hang a metaphorical target on his back by making it common knowledge. He was a newcomer here, and a fairly conspicuous one at that; any overt displays of magic he made would be tied to his reputation forever. He needed to exercise a little subtlety here.
"Is that so? I'm sorry, I didn't realise. I hope you don't mind me saying that that custom seems a little unusual. Fun, but unusual." He replied jovially when Aetu told him what walking around unarmed meant. It was an intriguing tradition, and one he imagined must have lead to quite a few funny stories, but one that he had no desire to get wrapped up in. Marriage was a fools game. "Well don't worry, I don't mean to proposition you or anything. I am armed," he drew the machete hidden down the back of his trousers and waved it at her, "I just prefer fighting without it is all. I have a slight distaste of weapons." If Aetu was still watching for it, she might notice that at that moment his hand twitched just a little.
His eye narrowed curiously as he spotted the black runes spreading across Aetu's sword, recognizing them across the silver blade after seeing them on the table earlier. Would being touched by her sword drain his strength away again, or would it do something worse this time? Either way he didn't plan on finding out. When Aetu charged and slashed wildly at his stomach he hopped diagonally backwards in the same direction as the blade, avoiding it by a few centimeters, and took a couple more steps backwards so that he had room to continue evading but not give her enough space to charge again. And yet he made to move to attack. Proper dodging was still the only Da'riya technique he'd learnt how to use, and so that was what he would rely on in this fight. He would watch and wait; continue to dodge and predict her attacks until he'd gotten a basic idea of how she moved, and only strike when he saw an opening he was sure he could draw blood from.
word count: 425
Fast Facts
Noticeable quirks your character can see when threading with Tio.
Floats
Tio floats in the air, usually just a foot off the ground.
Explodeibur
Tio wears a scary looking gauntlet on his right hand that is clearly magical. It creates explosions.
Knowledge:
Deception: I didn't start this fight...
Deception: Playing tricks with magic.
Defiance: Spilling drinks on people.
Defiance: Magical pranks.
Defiance: Using defiance subtly.
Persuasion: Let's go start a fight.
Persuasion: Duel me.
Unarmed Combat: Da'riya - Already be ready to dodge
Unarmed Combat: Da'riya - Dodging sword swings
Unarmed Combat: Da'riya - Dodging attacks to the stomach
Loot: N/A
Injuries: N/A
Renown: N/A
Points: 15 May be used for Magic
Sad to see a thread die when it starts to get good. Though the outcome was obvious, Tio was more then likely going to win. Though Aetu had guts, to bad she retired. The opening scene was funny as well, it takes simple things to start a fight, and one should not just walk up to a mage. I enjoyed how Tio reacted in the situation, just wish there was a conclusion.
Any injures are based on a 1d100 roll using applicable skills
