Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[F.O.E.]

Charles did his best to adress the discontent villagers.

The response among the dozen or so villagers in the crowd outside is a hodgepodge of anger, cheering, and confusion. Some of it was negative...

A plain girl nearing adulthood shouted a question "What'd you do with Bob? He's a mule's arse but he didn't do no harm to nobody!"

"Bob is dead. I would've liked to avoid killing him but, due to unfortunate circumstances, he was killed."

An elderly gentleman cries out "About damn time! Why is Molvonia's army out there and fighting some stupid foreigners instead of protecting us!"

Heston didn't really want to go into the technicalities of: 'if they protect the country they protect you'.

"I can't answer that, but I will do my best to protect all of you." Regardless how you feel about me.

A gentleman with a lamed leg nearly toppled over as he threw his arms in the air. "Praise the King! That weasel has been stealing our crops with his corpse-soldiers for months!" Apparently news of succession didn't travel well out here, or their minds remained in the past.

A woman with child screamed "Damn right! Death to Bob! Death to the enemies of the Kingdom! Glory to Molvonia!"

And a young girl with a chipped tooth and red-brown pigtails stood there clapping at the spectacle of seeing what her parents' had called a "Noble", even if she didn't understand a thing that was happening.

The citizens that gave their approval releashed some of the tension Charles had built up and he did his best to smile back at them.

[UXLZ]

Hearing Charles' mentioning of 'unfortunate circumstances', Lilie shuffles awkwardly.

[Swordstar]

Vara chuckled and quietly muttered,

"I suppose the fact that he was too idiotic to give up could be considered unfortunate circumstances."

[Glowcat]

The old man murmurs discontentedly but walks away with his gripes. The woman gasps at the news of Bob's death and seems to become lost in sad thoughts.

The rest of the peasants cheered at Charles and his retinue. Many of them eagerly went back to their huts to tell friends and family, while others excitedly conversed among themselves about the future prospects for their forgotten community.

[UXLZ]

Lilie entertained herself by doing random things. Snapping twigs (she was asked to stop), trying to sneak up on Tirena (it never worked), drawing pictures on the ground (they were bad).

Eventually she made her way over to where Vara was.

"Sorry Ms. Swordswoman, um, I don't know your name, but would you like to spar at some point?
Not with real blades of course, wooden ones. I think I saw some while I was wandering around the keep."

[Swordstar]

"My name's Vara, and sure, some time when we have free time. Now's probably not the best since we just finished actually fighting, but some other time."

[Sirus]

Mordecai scoffed at the idea of not killing the necromancer. When the Crown-Princess herself ordered a man killed, especially one that had been as bothersome as this one, he had to die. He assumed that Charles was simply fibbing about that part.

[GiglameshDespair]

"You could say being stabbed is indeed an unfortunate circumstance for the guy getting stabbed."

[Glowcat]

The celebration at the keep's entrance wrapped up and without much further fanfare besides a sparse feast down at the village. Two days passed and the Royal Architects appeared as promised with wagons full of building materials despite the hardships of the untended valley paths and their forests. The architects erected a pavilion tent along the keep's side and begun surveying its structural integrity, clearing the corpses, and preparing to knock down cracked walls or failing supports. There was an issue with one of the men going missing in the night but a full scale search of the keep's interior turned up nothing and it was assumed that he might have found a treasure of some kind in the walls and absconded.

Meanwhile, a wooden chair had been provided in the Court to service as a seat of the Baron's authority until a more suitable replacement could be imported or constructed by the carpenters, and futons were provided for his personal guard. The next morning brought with the chair a use, for the first of what may become many supplicants seeking his input as arbitrator to redress community wrongs or receive requests from people local and from other parts of the kingdom. Others present seemed to be visitors, who had come out of curiosity or a desire to introduce themselves to the new lord of Throneshadow.


"Lady Bribush of Co- Klessen forced himself to stop upon remembering the sad affair of the Bribush family's fall.

"Lady Bribush. It seemed a lot shorter than it should be, but would have to serve as an announcement for the former noble to make her request of the Baron.

// Acacia Bribush and Teagan Leigh are in!

[Furtuka]

Acacia strolled into the audience chamber, a soft rattling from her armor following her. Reaching the center she kneeled in front of the chair.

"I thank you for allowing me this audience Lord Heston."

She rose.

  "It's been a long time since we last met. Do you remember me?"

She wouldn't have been surprised if he didn't. Acacia had only briefly encountered him at a party many years ago, before her parents had brought the wrath of the King upon them. The now-Duke had grown up quite nicely since then, she had to say.

[Sirus]

- MEANWHILE, IN THE COURTYARD -

Mordecai decided to hold his first lesson outside since the interior of the manor was filled with the sounds of architects and builders hard at work. He had commandeered a small table on which rested several tomes, including the Necromancer's former possessions.

: "Okay, let's get started. This first lesson will deal with the different sources and schools of magic. Mostly theory, but if we have time you can try some of these to see if you can produce any magical effects. Are you ready?"

[UXLZ]

Lilie was sitting opposite him, nervous but excited, and had decided to forgo her bandanna... She didn't really like it anymore. It was still stained with blood.

"As ready as I'll ever be..."

[Sirus]

Mordecai nodded.

: "Very well. First, the different sources of magic. There is anima magic, which draws on the spirits found in the world around us. There is light magic, which draws on one's self-confidence and is frequently, though not always, used by those of a religious nature. Staffs are an unusual class of magical implements in that they only amplify one's already-existing magical potential."

: "And then finally, there is ancient magic, more commonly referred to as dark magic. This is, as the name might suggest, the oldest form of magic humanity was able to master. It draws on the innate power lurking within us, and is capable of doing great good or great evil. Sadly, most nowadays pursue ancient magic for evil purposes. Due to its power source this form of magic can also be used in rituals and more esoteric schools of magic, such as necromancy."

: "But I digress. You wanted to learn more about my brand of magic, didn't you? There are three main schools of dark magic, and all are slightly different: dread, druidic, and ancient. Dread magic is what most people think of when they imagine dark magic; stripping flesh from bones, boiling blood, destroying souls, etc. It is among the most powerful schools of magic but also lacking in subtlety.

Druidic magic is a very strange school. It essentially turns one's "essence" against oneself in order to deal devastating damage. However, each spell is tuned against a different sort of essence and thus does poorly when facing something else; a tome designed to combat the mindset of a man wielding an axe would fare poorly against the same man wielding a sword, as it would not be the exact same essence. I do not claim to hold much fondness for this school of magic but in the right hands it can be very powerful."

: "And finally, there is ancient magic. This school evolved from the ancient - and very unreliable - hexes and curses that our earliest ancestors would place upon each other, and according to my research was the very first magic to be properly identified and defined. Ancient magic lacks the sheer power of the other schools, but it makes up for it in being able to confound and disrupt the enemy, like the swarms of insects I summoned to throw off the necromancer's aim in yesterday's battle. It is my preferred variety of magic."

The vampire hoped that the young girl had been paying attention, since it was a long-winded speech and he was not going to waste time repeating himself. He gestured to the small pile of books on the table.

: "Why don't you try a few of these out? You should know right away if you have the potential to use magic, though do not be surprised if you cannot make anything happen just yet. It takes time and practice to be able to create even a simple ball of light."

[UXLZ]

Lilie had indeed been paying attention. She had a few questions, too. Mordecai had given her useful information but she was still quite confused.

"So 'Ancient Magic' is both a subcategory and the name of the magic itself. Wouldn't that make 'Dark Magic' a more correct term, or at least a less confusing one?

Secondly, you've explained the properties and applications of magic, but you haven't explained how to actually use it. There are three tomes in front of me but they seem pointless since I don't know their purpose. Do I touch them, do I read them, do I look at them and try to will something into existence really really hard?
What do I do?"

[Sirus]

Mordecai paused. That was actually a good question.

: "...to be honest, calling it ancient magic is mostly a quirk of mine. "Dark" tends to have negative connotations in most people's minds, especially since the invention of the dread school, so I try to term it as something else when speaking with strangers. In more rural parts of the world, admitting to being a dark mage can lead to one being chased with pitchforks and torches. I would rather call the entire branch Ancient magic and find a different name for my chosen school, but most other dark mages simply don't care enough to make the effort of changing commonly-accepted terminology."

: "As for actually using the tomes, yes you must hold them. You can read them if you wish; in fact you should read at least the first page as it will tell you how the spell the tome contains will function." Mordecai opened his Swarm tome and flipped through the pages, holding it so that Lilie could see. "As you can see, the text repeats itself after a few pages. Each of these sequences is a single "charge" of magic; the ink itself contains the tome's power, and as you cast magic in battle the pages turn blank. When the tome is completely blank, it is utterly drained of magic and therefore useless. Now, simply reading the text will not trigger any effect - you must concentrate your own latent energy and channel it through the tome to activate the magic contained within the pages. I'm afraid I cannot easily describe how this is done; it is instinctive to those who possess the ability. If I were to hand this tome over to Lord Heston he would not feel a thing. Which is why I want you to pick up one of these tomes and see if there is any reaction at all. It doesn't have to be a powerful reaction - just enough to give you an idea of how magic feels in your hands."