[IC] TotMV:G2: Val Habar and the Terrible Tigrex

[Chevaleresse]

Servant's Quarters

 

"Well, I don't use a whip, but yes. I, along with a few other people I gathered along the way, got paid to solve various problems. Like I said, it was mostly clearing ruins and such, but we also dealt with bandit raids, monster hunts, caravan escorts, that kind of thing. Got offered a couple infiltration missions and the like, but that's never been the kind of thing I wanted to get involved with. Anyway, you asked about magic; it's mostly flinging thunder and lightning around, or enhancing my own strength further." He quieted down, however, as Mar started his demonstration/test. He was intrigued to see how the old orc did things in his world.

[kj1225]

Andre looks rather annoyed at being ignored but takes out his phone to film the orc anyways. He silently wonders when Lexiel would be back. She could put up a fight without trying to murder him at least...

[Sutoratosu]

There was silence, for a moment. Finally the woman looked over her shoulder.

     "How ironic, that you might accuse me of hungering for power. A reasonable enough presumption perhaps, given the general situation, but still presumptuous nonetheless. Not that I'm not used to being accused of much worse." 

     She stood, turning to face the alien fully "and you can tell the spider to save her breath with the petty little threats; I've faced monsters far bigger, tougher, and much more ruthless than her- there's little she can do that stronger beings than have already tried and failed to. But I'll keep what she said in mind, later..."

 

"Do tell me though, if power was what I really wanted, would I have gone about it like this? Tyrants seldom go about their plots so openly and recklessly as to outright inquire and show interest about control, I should know, I spent most of my old life being the agent responsible for keeping such plans running smoothly and with none the wiser. Things aren't always so black and white though, regardless which world one resides in, perhaps you haven't lived long enough or seen enough conflicts and intrigue to learn that, but I have. Think of me whatever you like, opinion is the right of all sapient beings, but know that power is the furthest from what I want here. No, what I want here is simple: to get home as soon as I can. It's all well and good what they're trying to do here, but frankly, I am needed much back on my homeworld than I am here, and the sooner I can get back there and stop it from being torn apart by wolves dressing as sheep, the better. But therein lies my problem. From what I can gather, no one here can apparently go home until the larger mission is done, myself included... ergo, if I've any chance of getting back in time, I had better do everything I can to try and help this whole situation along. If that includes trying to get some sort of orderly process going if it turns out it really is needed to prevent people wasting time snapping at each other's throats like so many of the greedy fucks I've had to fight back home, then fine, and if one isn't even needed because the spider was lying and it turns out everyone already works fine together, even better. If it requires fighting myself, again, fine... I've spent my entire life at war as it is, what does it matter if my enemy has just changed? Anything that helps improve things so I can return sooner, I will try to. 

     I'm not as formidable a defender as I once was, admittedly, but... even still, there are precious few people in my world with the strength to oppose the storm that's coming, and even fewer with such power who will actually have a conscience rather than bending the knee to save there own skins... all the more reason I have to go back and try again, put an end to it this time...Before everyone has been made into a bitch, a slave, or a corpse."

[Strider]

Liliya-Servants' Quarters

 

"Sort of mercenary type work, sounds like. That's cool. Anyway," she said, turning back to Mar, "I just need to will it to move? I guess going sideways will be easier than going up..." Liliya reached out, and gingerly took the glowing orb from Mar. She lifted it carefully, viewing it from all sides, trying to trace the patterns and memorize the color exactly. It was odd, like nothing she'd seen before. She tried to imagine it as it appeared to her, hoping to gain enough knowledge of it before she began. Then she hit the stumbling block. She was memorizing surface attributes and appearances, sensations, all the effects that the magic made. But she didn't understand the magic itself enough, only its surface. There wasn't a way she could think of around  that for now though. Maybe knowledge of it would come when she attempted to exert her will on it?

 

Liliya placed sphere of crimson onto the floor. "I'm ready, I think." She didn't quite know what to do, so she placed her hand a few inches over it, and concentrated. Imagine moving the ball. Rolling it. Perhaps a small circle? No too complicated. Take the pure form of magic and bend it to your will. And so Liliya thought. She watched carefully, aching for it to move--and it did. A little. The ball of mana quivered, and rolled a few inches before stopping. "I-I did it, sort of. Not impressive, I guess, but that was really cool," she said somewhat shakily. She wasn't too tired, simply a bit surprised and fascinated.

[Hal Henderics]

"You might be surprised to hear this."

 

Mar places his own hand over the crimson sphere, and it passes through his hand as he closes it, changing color.

 

"But you did better than you think."

 

He says, demonstrating that the magic was not physical at all, and the act of moving it to the ground by hand would have been an instance of manipulating it, judging from how his own passed through it like it were a spectre.

 

He looks very pleased.

 

"I hope everyone learned something useful today."

 

"I have a grindwheel to attend to."

 

Mar says, nodding to the group and starting to stalk off to the Smithy.

Edited April 17, 2017 by Hal Henderics

[kj1225]

Andre blinks at the display. He was surprised by the adeptness of the woman who clearly wasn't used to doing such things. He hits stop on the video since he got the needed film of the expert. He'll ask for more demonstration later if he wants to further his understanding. He looks at the ball then to Mar.

"May I attempt to try as well Mar? I think I understand it."

[Hal Henderics]

Mar pauses.

 

"Oh, Sure, My apologies."

 

Mar summons another sphere of the crimson magic, tied closely to the heart, and by extension, willpower and intention itself.

[kj1225]

Andre looks at it intently. After a moment he concentrates and the ball moves towards him. He raises an eyebrow and it raises likewise. Andre smiles and holds out his hands to cradle the ball slightly. Really it was more to focus his idea of the ball's movements with a visualization. He's surprisingly adept at it for someone who isn't magic according to himself. He looks to Mar for approval at his attempt.

[Strider]

Liliya-Servants' Quarters

 

"Wait-It wasn't--...I mean...huh." Liliya spluttered. Thinking back, she hadn't actually felt any weight on her hand. So she couldn't have actually been holding it, she supposed. She had expected it to move, and it had done so. She had believed the magic would do something, rather than ordering it to do so, and waiting to see if it complied. A true conqueror does not order his subject, and then wait in suspense to know if they will comply. No, a real conqueror who has complete power will give his orders, and the thing will be done and this will not surprise him. It was about confidence and belief and certainty. With a small smile, Liliya, leaned back against the wall, a little giddy, and turned to watch Andre. He would succeed of course, and she did not begrudge him the ease with which he had controlled the mana.

[Hal Henderics]

"Very good, one's own mind is the source of control, so methods like that make controlling magic easier in spades."

 

"I know not how it works for others, but for my own magic, That is an excellent attempt."

 

Mar summons up a third sphere, this one is for himself, and it falls to the ground like a rock.

 

"It does what you think it is supposed to, and thus is tangled in rules from observations."

 

"Lilya believes it solid, and so it is thus, Andre observes her, and believes it further."

 

"In my own world, Ignorance can lead to such things as people who hold magic in their own two hands, or Magic being as heavy as a rock when you think it aught to."

 

Mar says, pointing at the mana on the ground, and the mana in Andre's hands, both of them acting completely differently, but being exactly the same.

 

"For magic from oneself, it is even stronger, My own magic is mine, I don't control it, because it does not even possess that level of resistance."

 

"It's no more difficult to wield my magic than it is to wield my hands."

 

Mar pauses.

 

"While I am on the topic, if any of you come across any substances, I would appreciate a sample of them, Gems, Pure Substances, Chemical Compounds, all of them allow me to do more with my magical power through attunement."

Edited April 17, 2017 by Hal Henderics

[kj1225]

Andre nods. He practices a bit more, throwing it up in the air and dribbling it like a basketball. He scratches his chin before turning to Mar.

"So if I think it's got a dough like texture then I could shape it like that?"

[Hal Henderics]

"Do you think that, or are you TRYING to think that?"

 

"That is how you nudge it a short ways on the ground, if I might be blunt."

 

"The method by which I would do such a thing, is find a method that I believe makes it act like that."

 

"Like the layer of magic that I have coating my skin.  It is able to interact with magic, and thus, I can shape it by hand, or use my willpower to have a hand of magic do it for me."

 

"It's complicated, and underthinking it is usually the solution."

Edited April 17, 2017 by Hal Henderics

[kj1225]

Andre frowns. He might not be an expert but he didn't like the tone Mar was using with him. He's seen enough magic that a simple yes or no would work. All he needed to do was think of what shape the ball should take and make it do so, no childish manipulation needed. Andre folds his arms as he glares at his ball, willing it silently to do what he says. And it does, shaping itself into an angry frowny face. Both the face and Andre look to Mar, their expression shared.

[Hal Henderics]

They turn to face a thumbs up from Mar.

 

"Just like I had said.  Underthinking it is usually the solution."

 

It is by this point that the mana slowly begins to fade, like ink in a pool of water, it dissolves into the air over time.

 

 

[kj1225]

Oddly enough, Andre still seems rather annoyed. He unfolds his arms.

"A simple yes or no would have sufficed rather than talking down to me. I was asking if it was possible, nothing else."

[Hal Henderics]

Mar shrugs.

 

"You would be more upset if I told you a generalization and it was wrong."

 

"Anything is possible, I just wanted you to know what was probable."

Edited April 17, 2017 by Hal Henderics

[Astrorious]

Vora looked at the woman stunned. She was now trying to comprehend why the muliverse had chosen this being. one who had no care in the world about the mission at had, but was more concerned with her own universes petty problems to worry about the fate of all reality. "That is greed. I guess I misjudged what the greed was toward, but I did get that part right. Your selfish thoughts are the problem. Rather than trying to do this job correctly and becoming at least somewhat attached to the cause, you want to do it swiftly and without actually taking the time to get to know those around you and how they can work as a team even without a leader. You would rather go back home and deal with the small problem of your peoples than deal with the fate of reality. I first thought that too; however, the more I look at it, the more I realize that staying here and fighting for this gives the people of my universe the best chance of never having to face these 'trespassers'. If you want to help your people, then staying here and helping rather than rushing seems like the best option."

Vora let out a sigh, "I'm sorry that things in your universe are not going well, but with any luck, we can get you back before things get too bad... Also, give Aurora some credit. She not only saved your life but she has also been here longer than either of us and seems to know a lot more about who everyone is and what is going on..."

Vora paused to think, "... well, apparently you have never met the leader of the Izerics. He got to power by demanding it, then started bullying everyone around him into submission. when I was taken from my universe, I had just escaped an attack against a peaceful moon by the bastard. in fact, he decided to destroy the entire thing just because he could." She paused again to collect herself, obviously having trouble keeping it together remembering the friends she was sure were now dead, "So... I was wrong, but you can see how I might have assumed that you wanted power over the group..."

[Sutoratosu]

Ghost scowls, eyes flaring like miniature beacons of ruby at the accusation of greed. She takes a breath as the girl goes on, but by the time she finishes, Ghost is already seething as her entire form shakes; it's nigh damnably certain she didn't process even a single thing after that initial accusation. She'd... heard many things over the years. Been called even more things, some good, a lot of them spiteful and jealous. But ironically... greedy was still a new one.

 

One that she could not help but feel the fires of her heart roar in protest to, regardless how thick she thought her skin had always been. Her voice seems to resound through the hall like thunder when she finally opens her mouth, eyes burning even brighter as she glares at the Grey being "Greedy? You think I'm fucking greedy? You little shit, you think I don't realize how fucked my own world is if these things aren't stopped!? that I don't know how crucial it is to get this right? Or did you just ignore the part where I mentioned if people here were already working together fine, that would be an even better outcome, or the part where I already told you I'd stay and do whatever I can to help? No, no... it must be my mistake, surely, simply because I expressed my wish to help organize shit if it wasn't already, so that this threat can be either destroyed or otherwise neutralized in as timely a manner as realistically possible, given the circumstances, all so that I can get back to tending my own world afterwards. Of course, to you it apparently fucking means that I intend to go cutting corners and making a sloppy mess of this like some child.

      I've already went on about how the barren ruin of a realm I call a home can barely handle it's own monsters, so why for fucks sake would I knowingly half-ass my contribution the only defense effort there seems to be against even bigger monstrosities who are capable of threatening every god damn world at once? I'm just trying to juggle both responsibilities here, gods damn it: if I don't help you all, my world is fucked, if I do help you all, but it takes too long to kill these damn things, my world is still fucked then- alot of others are saved, perhaps, but mines not one of them. So don't sit here and try to call that selfish greed when I'm still agreeing to stay here and fight in this battle despite the possibility it won't even matter for the people I've spent so long-"

     

"Enough."

 

It was a simple word. But one that carried with the weight of thunder as the very room around them seemed to quake as the deep, foreboding resonance emanated from the ball of stormclouds, his voice as audible as thunder. Ghost turns her sights on Tama instead.

     "You stay out of this, you fucking shell of a god! Hell, it's because of the petty war your kind waged for all those years that it's in such a sorry state to begin with-"

     "Who is currently in control now, Alba? You, or the Rage? You're warranted to some frustration, given all we've been through, seen, and heard in not even the past day, but you're trying to take it out on the wrong person."

     "..."

     "Hells, if I were still capable of caring a bit more about, I would probably be raging with you right now: finding out everything we worked on for months was for naught because someone already beat us to the emperor's throat, losing the men Jehenna so generously trusted you with, getting beat to a half-dead pulp by the very wretch you tried so hard to save, having said pulp also rob you of what you worked decades to build up and master, and see basically spit upon everything you have worked to fix before getting cast out into a world we've never known and told that we've been apparently called to fight yet again in another war... aaaaaah yes.

     But here's the thing, Alba... what does giving into your rage and frustration now change? It's happened, we're stuck here, and we can't undo that now. Getting angry is pointless, our fate will remain the same now regardless. So save your rage... it does you no good right now. Only at the end will it truly become... useful. But as it is, you do nothing but try to fight against the currents of fate."

    Ghost glares at the orb a bit longer, but eventually sighs in what seems to be defeat, dropping herself back down on the ruined stone facade she had been sitting on before, turning away from both the other beings present. 

 

Tama floats his presence in-between the two meanwhile, turning his attention to the grey being...

 

"And a bit quick to draw up final conclusions about people, don't you think? Afterall, we all barely met not even a full hour ago. Regardless, your concerns about attempting to 'rush' and half ass anything due to selfish desire are unfounded, I can assure you. My Caller here may be... rough about the edges, but short-sighted she is most definitely not, nor is she a slacker."

     Then, floating a bit closer to Vora, his voice falling into a hushed whisper as if he didn't wish Ghost to overhear. The air seems to grow denser in the area, weighing down upon anyone near the orb as the oppressive aura permeating the place grew further yet still. 

 

"Look, enough of this farce, I'll make this simple: bottom line is, We will stay however long it takes to take care of this mess and make sure it is proper over, but do not DARE attribute her eagerness to eventually get home to some callous apathy or go throwing around your damn accusations any longer, Vampiern. 

     You see that shell of a woman sitting just over yonder? She's grown far more attached to our home and the people than you know... and to just put it aside now for practicalities sake so she can do the job properly here, it's a bit difficult t to swallow, even when she knows full well she has to. You accusing her of being some greedy wretch only makes it that much more worse for her to deal with. And frankly, having  myself once been a paragon of what true greed and domination looks like, your words just now have roused the first bit of genuine disgust I've felt it centuries; How long have you known this woman? Not even a full hour. You know nothing of what she has sacrificed in the effort to put things to rights where we came from: reputation, rank, security, lovers, friends, kin.... you know nothing of how this woman has risked herself time and time again against tyrants and the scheming, cowardly swine who serve them. Yet you stand there and fucking lecture on and on as if you've somehow gained a moral high ground here.

      You know nothing of this woman, do you hear me? Nothing. Nothing of how many times she has rode into battle, hoping that this time will be the last, but knowing full well it won't be, and not allowing herself to stop regardless, because there are still folks in our world who don't have the strength to defend themselves and what meager, but honest lives they have managed to scrap together over the generations from the barren wastes and the ruins. Nothing of how she does what so many would balk at and tries to teach those  folks how to grow the strength they need to remain free and keep everything they have built up and earned through their own endeavors from becoming forfeit to the scum of our world who raid and pillage and rape to their heart's content like us Old Gods used to.

      Alba is many things, from all I have seen of her over the many decades. But Greedy is most defintiely not one of them, nor hungering for Domination either. She has lost the ability to care about herself long ago, you judgmental fool. Our world and those in it she has devoted herself to teaching are all she has left... and to think that now, she has been taken away from the realm when it was as close to it's brink as it could get, even if it was to fight a much larger and more crucial battle that threatens many worlds and not just ours, still burns her worse than the fires of the sun.

     but regardless... we're here now. And no matter how she feels about it, I know Alba will fight on, prepared to face whatever stands in our way; She would not dare further jeopardize the fate of our already beleaguered world, or others similar to it, by botching this new task and leaving what could well be the greatest enemies imaginable free to run rampant as they wish. And I will be by her side, every step of the way.

     She believed in something, gave herself a reason to live again when all others had been stolen from her, and she devoted every ounce of determination and willpower towards that purpose and refused to give in to nihilistic whispers of the Void. Such resolve was more than I saw from many I've seen come and go, and even now, she sat here and tried to speak civilly up till a minute ago, simply from how accustomed she's grown from dealing with this horse shit over time, But I, my friend,  am not so tolerant of disrespect, or baseless accusations- call it a thinner skin, a quicker temper, or perhaps simply hailing from a different time when such offenses were grounds for duels between the Gods Themselves....

 

Either way, I strongly suggest you leave my Caller be now. Any further discussion to be had here will ONLY make things worse for both parties, and I've already had to do damage control after the first incident... and even then, it was one too many. I will not attempt damage control if this situation further escalates... far from it in fact... now go, enough has been said here already. I don't want to hear another fucking word."

[Chevaleresse]

Masaru watches the proceedings with interest. "Hm. As I said, your magic is quite interesting. It seems to be a bit easier to pick up than wizardry or something like bladeforms, if not quite as powerful as them. At least to start. I suppose I haven't seen anyone but you do this variety of magic." Magic influenced simply by how people thought it should work? It seemed strange, to him, but then again magic had always more or less just done what he wanted it to do. 

[Hal Henderics]

"The challenge indeed lies in making them powerful.  When even a humble farmer can draw lightning from a platinum coin, the standard is measured in strength and novelty."

 

"What do you mean by Bladeforms, Might I ask?"

 

Mar looks intrigued, the word Blade implies weapons, while the topic is about magic.

[Chevaleresse]

"Bladeforms - though they can be used with any kind of weapon - are a type of, how would I put it? A magical martial art. Certain stances and poses can help you channel energy to strike harder and faster; it's a large part of my combat style. I've seen people replicate the kinds of effects sorcery can produce with them before. It's hard to generalize it more than that; much like other kinds of magic, there are dozens of schools."

[Hal Henderics]

"Intriguing, so it is a form of Skill.  Actions in my world are divided into Spells, which use one's Mana, Skills, which use one's Bodily Energy, Strategies, which use one's Mental Power, and Actions, which use all, some or none of the previous ones."

 

"What specific techniques do you possess? Some of these Bladeforms?"

 

Mar looks curious himself.

 

"To be fair, Magic is my weak area, My place in life as the Elder Hunter of my tribe has me learning the Stonerist Arts, a series of techniques which allow one to detect the exact point in an object, which, when struck, creates an exact fracture of any imaginable shape."

 

"For Example, once, as a parlour trick, I smashed a piece of glass with my fist, cracking it so that it fall apart into an interwoven rose."

 

 

Edited April 18, 2017 by Hal Henderics

[Strider]

Liliya-Servants' Quarters

 

"Can we see a demonstration? I think I get what bladeforms are, but I'd like to see." Some sort of magical martial art? Besides simply the obvious of wanting to see more magic, Liiiya was curious whether it resembled any other styles of fighting that she knew. Could very similar techniques be born on completely different worlds, in the presence or absence of magic?

"So, I guess that's much harder than gem cutting." Mar's magic intrigued her too, though it didn't seem like much of a fighting art. Perhaps he made weapons for people?

[Hal Henderics]

"It might surprise you, but the Stonerist Arts are actually entirely non-magical.  They are commonly referred to as 'Anomalous' by some, but techniques such as that fall under a catagory called "Mundanus Extremus", Which is any mundane skill which has been trained past what is physically possible."

 

"I suppose it makes sense, another example is when I struck a Steel plate once, and caused a single fracture which turned it into a single length of chain, and metal chips."

 

"So yes, it is much more difficult than Gem Cutting, and is actually a much more advanced version of Flintknapping, a skill involving a similar process."

 

"The Stonerist Arts were actually developed so that we can compete with modern technology. So many foolish mercenaries fail to realize the impressiveness of being able to create a Hardened Monomolecular edge in burnt sticks and rocks, and achieve carved tolerances higher than their guns."

 

"I would also love to see a Demonstration."

 

 

Edited April 18, 2017 by Hal Henderics

[kj1225]

"It would be interesting to see. Although I have a feeling that I've seen something like it back home already. Probably... I'm probably thinking of Matt. He uh... he's a bit of a sword nut. Kind of scary..."

Andre cringes as he considers Matt's collection. Though he wouldn't ever say it, Andre's always been a little worried about Matt going nuts. And not just because he'd probably be near the top of his hit list.