The Golden Age. Act 1: Discoveries.

[Xinnidy]

"Ah..." To Raz's luck, she had gotten Telmara to talk after all. "Jotun, huh..." Raz knew of the place, but she didn't get around to talking to proper mages before. With how little her path crossed with ecperienced mages, she thought good magic was a bit of a luxury.

The topic changed very quickly, Raz raised her eyebrows in surprise. She didn't interject, hesitant of misinterpreting or jumping the gun, but at moments her eyes shifted around as if trying to process quickly. So she's into Kaya, that way. And... they argue because, she's... afraid? Afraid of rejection. Okay, okay. I think I get it. Honestly, Raz was even less understanding of romantic relationships, and a demihuman woman with a human woman to boot? Telmara already struggles with her body, right? Ouch... Her lips tightened, should she just tell her to go for it? Even I'm pretty sure that's a bit delicate...

"Uh, okay." Raz took a deep breath, a quick shake of the head to clear her thoughfs and bring back awareness of her surroundings. "I'm going to keep this a secret, unless you don't want me to. Sorry about being nosy..." She scratched the back of her head, "But... isn't, uh, giving up before trying a bad thing?" That was close to a saying Raz remembered from her childhood. "I mean, it's complicated, probably? All these things that are going on, but..." An idea sprouted in her mind, "Oh, how about, uh, let's try baby steps, maybe?" That probably needed elaborating... "Maybe ask her if she's into, romance in general? I mean," Raz held her own chin with a hand, pensive. "She's a priestess, so I don't know her stance... and then ask if she's interested in girls. If she says yes, then there's some hope, right? Uh, I could ask her if you want, to make up for being nosy?" That still was stuck in her mind, for whatever reason.

Edited December 13, 2016 by Xinnidy

[Nanami Touko]

"No... No, that's fine, Raz. Just, keep it to yourself, and I'll do my best to move on. I don't have the stamina, or the patience, to deal with this body and with all of the nonsense that comes with trying to make something like that work. Perhaps in another life, as they say. You're free to talk to Kaya about whatever you like, but... I think it would be best if I left her alone. I'll just make things worse if I don't. Thank you for listening..." With Telmara's complete refusal of Raz' offer to help, she slithered past the woman and found herself a nice tree to rest against.

Ahhhhh, now you've gone and done it. That wasn't supposed to leave your mind, foolish, foolish girl~ And now Raz knows, and soon Kaya will know, and they'll aaaaaaall hate you for it. It's a vicious cycle, but you couldn't keep yourself in check, once again. Pretty girl, and you fall apart. Curses, anyway, they're all pretty... I'm not sure how much longer I'd even be able to deal with Raz. It's only working out because I keep treating her like a girl, not a woman, hah~ Ahhhh... What a mess, what a mess...

Telmara closed her eyes and leaned back against the tree, sighing and trying to hold onto this calm that had managed to find its way to her. It wouldn't last long, but she wanted it for as long as it did.

[Bluedoom]

Joviana blinked at the questions that Raz was asking her. It felt awkward to hear someone who was much younger than her, and still an acquaintance, call her 'Jovi.' Furthermore, she was asking questions about the Greatforger. It took Joviana a while to come up with an answer, but by the time a word could escape out of her lips, Raz had already run off, towards Telmara and Kaya.

Not again! Why can't these people get along with each other? H-have I made the wrong choice? I hope that Telmara doesn't sling another spell at her, I don't think I can get used to watching that.

Noticing that Aaron was nearby, Joviana thought of distracting herself by talking to him. I'd rather talk to him that watch this, even if he's delusional.

"Hey, how are you holding up? The last battle was kind of rough, don't you think?"

[riariadne]

"Aww, thanks. Well, I do my best to help. But if that sort of technique is common among your family... you must have a pretty spectacular family then!" Aria gushed. "I've never seen anything like it, anyway. I went to school in Jotun, and we learn a lot about tome magic there, but other kinds of magic are so different that it's hard to learn about all of them! Did you know there's a lady who can use dark magic to transform herself into different animals? A full transformation, too, so it's different to demihuman changes! I even got to meet Duke Reid from Trine when he came for a guest presentation. Whenever he cast a spell, his other spells got more intricate! The world we live in is so interesting with all the different ways that magic can influence us." She sighed a bit before shaking her head. "Sorry, I got a little distracted. That was a bit rude of me."

[Percivalé]

"Ehhh, it's not your fault. I haven't exactly... been the most talkative." He paused. "I wanted to know... well, I'm curious. Your reason for being here... for gathering a group together." He had a hand on one side of his face as he spoke; he was sorting out his thoughts and it was... hard. Harder than it usually was. "For leading us?" He paused again. "The rest of them, and me, I know, we're all looking for something out of this, but until now I never stopped to think why." His personal goals were starting to seem superficial. He'd never admit that, either. "And I suppose a proper chance to speak..."

[eclipse]

Kolmar half-listened to the conversations around him. After seeing his life flash before his eyes, he wasn't in the mood for idle chatter. They're getting along nicely. But it was only my own weakness that kept me alive. The knight had cast his weapon just as Kolmar had collapsed to one knee. He dimly remembered it flying over his head, wondering whether or not he'd be able to apologize to his family. He'd thank Kaya later, when she wasn't surrounded by everyone.

On one hand, I don't fancy dying just yet. On the other hand, I'd be dead if I did this solo. Bah, why am I thinking so hard about this? This ain't the first time that I nearly ate it. Loathe as he was to admit it, this was the first time he'd worried about whether or not everyone else would be alright without him. I don't have time to worry 'bout other people. But who'd cook for 'em?

[scorri]

Kaya was slightly confused at the question, since she thought she had explained all that before, but maybe the man simply had been busy with other things when she had. "I seek the Emblem. My powers, my visions, all of them have been preparing me for this. I seek the Emblem to try and help prevent some great tragedy. I do not know what that tragedy is, but I simply know that a great darkness is seeking the Emblem as well. Given I am only one person and I knew there would be obstacles along the way, it was deemed the best path for me to seek assistance. As for leading, I simply volunteered since I had a specific goal in mind. The best way to achieve a goal is to be leading the group trying to accomplish the task, no?"

She stopped talking for a few seconds, well aware that she had been rambling on a bit. Taking a breath, she smiled, and turned the question back on him. "How about you? What reasons do you have for joining such a group? I'm sure that with your skills you could have found an easier way of making money. Guarding merchants or being a guard in a noble's entourage. What has you seeking treasure?"

[Ether]

"I don't think it's all that special... unique to be certain, but magic falls under such a wide spectrum, it's difficult to say more than that." Mikhaila replied, smiling a bit as Aria went off on her tangent.

"I hadn't heard of those things, no. I'm not well versed in the different types of spells there are out there... it's fascinating, really."

[Xinnidy]

"Oh..." She messed it up, didn't she? Raz felt wrong for pressing, now that Telmara had completely refused it. She watched the demihuman slither away, troubled eyes following her tail. "O-okay! I'll keep it safe!" She waved a final time, letting Telmara go her way. Oh dear, what do I do...

That was a predicament. Would Raz be fine just letting Telmara be? Most definitely not, but telling her interest in Kaya to others would feel just as horrible. I can still talk to Kaya about who she's interested in... These things weren't all that complicated once you got to it, right?

Figuring her mission over, standing up from her position, Raz slowly made it out of those bushes and back to the others. Returning to the group, she quickly caught Joviana talking to Aaron.

"Oh, hey!" She approached the two, "Sorry about leaving like that, Jovi--ana!" Raz hadn't actually received a word from the mage on whether it was okay or not to call her the nickname, so she quickly corrected herself. "Thought something was going to happen... it was nothing like last time though, thankfully." She glanced behind her, seeing that Telm had isolated herself from the group again. Should I really let her be...? For the time being, considering what she was dropped... maybe she should've kept her company, but Raz had already hesitated.

"Oh, how about you, Aaron?" She realized she hadn't greeted him at all, oops. "That mage guy sure was something, huh? I have a feeling we might find more weird people like him if we keep going..." Honestly, that was thrilling, dangerous. Raz was all for that, but they had to make sure the group wouldn't falter and get themselves killed. "Maybe I should've picked a better bow before we left..." She scratched the back of her head.

[riariadne]

"What's the difference between unique and special?" Aria asked, tilting her head a bit. "If you ask me they're the same! You're really cool too, Mikhaila, so you should be more proud of yourself!" She leaned onto her staff a bit, pausing to think. "You probably wouldn't have heard that much about traditional magic if you learned from your family. But even within the three normal divisions of magic, there are different ways of going about it! Some anima mages specialize in fire, and others work hand in hand with nature instead. And dark magic is usually known for crippling curses, but some people use it for more defensive purposes as well. Magic has so many different ways of going about that you should never feel like yours isn't special enough!"

[Ether]

"Heh... I suppose that's true, huh? Thanks, Aria. I suppose I always saw normal mages as being capable of so much... as distinct as my talismans are, they don't serve much of a purpose aside from attacking foes and exercising spirits." Mikhaila replied, looking over the camp. Despite what seemed to have been a small bit of commotion earlier, Telmara was off on her own again... she really did seem to have a spot of trouble with the whole social business, didn't she?

"I think I'm going to see if I can't help Telmara... she seems to be having it a bit rough. Why don't you see if anyone needs to be healed, Aria?"

[riariadne]

"But that's useful! They're super good at fighting against people who are stopping our journey," Aria praised. "Even if they have less application, it's a narrow but powerful one." She smiled widely. "So just think of it that way! You're right, though, some others might need help. Thanks for talking with me, Mikhaila."

Aria shuffled past the swordswoman, holding up her staff. "Does anyone still need help?"

[Ether]

"No problem, and thanks again yourself as well." Mikhaila replied as the healer walked off, turning towards the tree where Telmara had gone to rest... how best to approach this...? Perhaps head on was best... walking up to Telmara, Mikhaila stopped just a bit in front of her.

"Hey Telmara, you alright?"

[eclipse]

Guess I'd better do something about myself. Even if I ain't in the mood for chatter. Kolmar walked up to Aria, hoping the other girl wouldn't bolt. "You busy?"

[SB.]

Aaron sighed as Telmara and Kaya left, hoping that things wouldn't become too heated between the pair. It was probably in vain, he realised, although the appearance of Joviana took his immediate attention. "I'm fine." he answered, stiffly. "The battle itself was a non-issue. Whatever Timaeus did to create those fighters, he still needs to work on it." They'd crumbled back into sand easily enough, even if his other magic had been much more impressive.

Raz had joined them as well by this point, which he acknowledged with a curt nod. "There are people from all walks of life going after the Gifts. But it's no matter." A small smile was back on his face now, confidence swelling as he spoke. "Strong opponents and testing trials are just proof that we're on the right track, no? Only the strongest party will win in the end, so if we continue to run into them..." The man trailed off, feeling as if he'd made his point. Things were going well, despite all of the strangeness.

[Nanami Touko]

"Huh?" Telmara's apathy had worn off in minutes, her regular meek self returning and jumping slightly as Mihkaila intruded upon her solitude. "N-No," she responded, without thinking, quickly regretting it. "I... What did you want?" The woman didn't bother her, much like Raz. Both of them had spoken to Telmara as an equal, even gone as far as to explain facets about themselves and share magic. They weren't intimidating, no, so Telmara felt she needed less of a guard around them.

Though she still held somewhat of one.

"Is it about... Your, er, your magic? If you wanted to talk about it more, o-or show me the proper steps to try for myself... W-Well, I, I suppose that would be fine. We seem to be stalled on moving, for the moment." It would be something to do, something to distract with. Perhaps worthwhile if she could figure out these talismans.

[Ether]

"Well, that wasn't why I came over, no. I already showed you all of the steps to make them, after all... I wanted to talk to you about the battle." Mikhaila replied, pausing for a moment, before sitting herself down next to Telmara and leaning her back against the tree as well.

"I was worried for you. You seemed so dogged to push yourself well further than you had any need to... if things had gone worse, you might have met your end, pressing forward with wounds like those... I don't want to pry, or seem overbearing, just... I don't want to see you badly hurt, or worse, over... whatever it is that's causing you to act in such a manner." Mikhaila paused, considering it for a moment.

"I can't quite place it. Is it pride, ego? Usually I can tell, but with you... I can't say. It feels like you can't trust us, yet at the same time you place far higher confidence in your abilities than most would expect."

[Nanami Touko]

"Ah... Right." Still too used to casting as I used to... That must be reflecting itself. That also explains ignoring wounds... Hahhhhh, what a bother. "You remember my... Childish outburst, from before... Where I mentioned I was from the past. Considering what just happened with Timaeus, it's as true as I can make it. I... Left to explore the Grunan region, and... I fell ill one night. I awoke and... My robes, my tomes, were all in tattered, aged beyond their years... And... I had this," she mumbled, gesturing weakly to her tail.

"I used to be an incredibly... Incredibly powerful mage. But, I, I've lost all of that, now. I can barely cast this Gust spell without overexerting myself... This body seems tough against magic, but not as a good catalyst for using it. How unfortunate..." Now she felt she was going to cry, reminiscing over what she used to have. "Bender of the elements... Hah. Wh-What a good joke," she said, choking out a sob, and wiping her eyes on her sleeve.

"I'm not used to fighting like this. Just... K-Keep me in line, and I'll get used to it eventually. Sorry..." What a mess... You can't handle yourself in or out of a fight around these people, ugh...

[Ether]

"Hey, hey, It's all right. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to open old wounds." Mikhaila replied, hesitating for a moment, worrying that she might be too forward, but eventually deciding that the benefits outweighed the risks of appearing too cozy, gently pulling Telmara closer, and allowing the woman to rest her head on Mikhaila's shoulder as she cried.

"I'm sure you'll make it back to where you were. You proved you have the potential once already... and if your belongings had aged that much, you must have been there for quite a long time. I don't think I would be able to swing a sword properly, let alone use my talismans, if I had found myself asleep and out of practice for months or years." The exorcist noted, in an attempt to comfort the mage and ease her situation.

"For what it's worth, I don't find it a bother or a burden... I just wanted to understand, is all. As I said, i don't want to see you hurt."

[Nanami Touko]

"What... What are you... G-Get, get off of me...!" Telmara shrank up against the tree as Mihkaila came in to hug her, desperate to push her off. Humans, we're all the same, she just wants to use me, t-to get close, and... A-And... Nothing. Just a comfortable shoulder to rest against. Telmara felt something well up in her, that she hadn't wanted to face.

Her humanity.

As much as she fought herself to not cry, the tears started to slip out, albeit quietly. Stop crying. Stop crying you've cried enough. You don't need to cry anymore! This fate, this body, none of it deserves more of your tears, Telmara, come... Come on... It was too late, as quiet as she was being. "It's fine..." she muttered, weakly resting against Mihkaila's shoulder, rubbing her eyes against the cloth resting atop her armor.

"I guess so... It's not at all the same, though... As it used to be." She kept mumbling and trying not to make her tears worse, wondering why Mihkaila was so intent on keeping her alive. Why not ask?

"Why is that, then?" she managed to whisper up, sniffling away her emotions.

[Ether]

"I mean, I suppose you're the expert on how those changes might or might not effect your casting on their own... I can't really say, after all. But you can still wield a tome, there's still something there... what use is it not to try and return to your former prowess?" Mikhaila noted, allowing Telmara to simply lay there, after her short outburst receded. Then Telmara asked a question of her own, one that Mikhaila found rather odd, to be honest.

"Why wouldn't I? You've not wronged me, we've gotten along amicably so far. I know you're rather solitary, so I won't call you a friend yet, in the case I might offend, but I feel as though the potential is there. Despite the changes to your body, and how you've a tendency to present yourself like a monster, no doubt due in part, if not in whole, to what horrid things people must have said to you... but on the inside, you're just as human as you ever were. Just as much as me, or Aria, or Kaya... or anyone else here." Mikhaila replied, pausing for a moment with a sigh.

"In my line of work, Telmara, I've seen real monsters. Vengeful specters and spirits, hellbent on wreaking havoc and sowing chaos. I exorcised a man once... village folk told me that he had been a long rival to another farm... took out his vengeance by possessing the old man's grandson... made the kid commit suicide. Took his whole family by the time I got there. For nothing but to see his old rival suffer, so long as his spirit lingered. You still gonna tell me you're a monster, over what, a snake's tail? The heart that beats in your chest is human, Telmara. Just as it always was."

[Xinnidy]

"Haa... you're probably right. You're really confident, you know that?" It was really unlike what she'd probably hear from others in the group. Guess it's really all about fate with him... "Hey," That reminded Raz of something, "Is that axe you have really the Lionheart? Can I see it?" She'd never taken a proper look at the thing, which was dumb. Something that important shows up, and she doesn't even commit its image to memory!

Edited December 15, 2016 by Xinnidy

[Percivalé]

Itzal chuckled in a partially nervous manner while still keeping his stance straight. But he thought about it for a moment. "Some kind of prophecy?" It does definitely seem like there's something about all of this. But how could he have known if this would merely be the start of another out of many wars? What would be special... this time.

"Are you used to leading people like this?" He stopped and began considering his answer. "I ran away... from a lot of things." He'd die before he'd have to work for a merchant, of all people. That would have been even worse than the late Queen. "There's an intuition guiding me that seeking this treasure would bring me to a place I would want to be." He thought again. "I considered leaving by myself. I knew following my instinct to wait for others was the better choice now." Another shadow in his vision again, fainter this time.

[Nanami Touko]

All of Mihkaila's talk of real monsters and her reasoning only made Telmara wonder, had she truly seen real monsters? Or just those beasts and creatures that fight on instinct. Real monsters were that woman, Haley. Humans that would turn on you because of your body, things that happened to you outside of your control. Those were the real monsters. Those are what Telmara truly feared. She called herself a monster to keep these humans away; how feeble her barrier had been, Mihkaila had pierced it with simple motions. I'm not at one hundred percent, so it's not like I could've just shoved her off... And I don't have a knife in my back yet, so I can't say I hate this...

She was apprehensive, but her claws slowly reached behind Mihkaila and hugged her back, despite feeling incredibly awkward doing so. "Y-You can let me go, whenever..." Though, she didn't let go as she said it.

"Do... Do you, er... I've... Never been good at this. Uh..." How do you even ask something like this? Is it that easy? You just say, 'Hey, you wanna be friends?' That seems so stupid and mundane... It sounds crap. Is there really no other way to go about this? Ugh...

"Do you w-want... T-To be friends? Then? Since you're so... Keen, to get along." There, that was fine, right? Right? Whatever, I feel like garbage, but I said it. It's a step forward from trembling over your feet in front of Kaya-- you don't have feet anymore, idiot... With a small groan, Telmara relieved herself of the hug, letting Mihkaila take a step back.

She tried to smile, realizing it would show her fangs, but-- she tried anyway, as she wiped her eye again, trying to rid herself of whatever was left of her weakness. "I guess I can... Try to lean on you all some more. Heh. Just didn't want to be baggage... But I don't have, to be how I used to be, t-to be helpful, huh. She took a second, to stare at her claw. "If I can... If I can still cast magic I can get back there... Sorry, Mihkaila. I know all of this. It's probably stupid t-to need to remind myself of it, every time I breakdown..."

Edited December 15, 2016 by Nanami Touko

[Juliette]

(It's me! post collaborated with mr. GM, as evidenced by Aria stuff! Sometimes this will come up as with Camellia stuff as well, but this is my first post that's mostly me so I get to make it.)

--

"Oh... it's you," Aria noted at Kolmar, evdidently not thrilled at the prospect of interacting with him. "No, I'm not. I'll heal you." She raised her staff, channeling the spell to ease his injuries, but looked to be distracted, pointing at a cluster of trees behind Kolmar when she finished. "What's that, over there?"

A hooded head poked out from behind the threes. "Well, you got me... sorry. I don't mean any harm. I'm not very strong, anyway... it's not as if I could do very much even if I wanted to," the young woman beneath the hood spoke in a singsongy, if slightly haughty, voice. When she stepped out, the rest of her body was just as covered in purple, only a few locks of blue hair and yellow eyes being very visible beneath the hood. "We heard some of the battle, that's all, so it seemed worth looking around, but when you were stuck for a few minutes being quiet about it made more sense to stay hidden a bit. Oh, I say we... I'm traveling with someone else, but I'm a little quicker. I'm sure he'll be along soon enough, so it's no real matter. We're looking for the hidden treasure, and a group of your size around here means you're probably looking for it too, right?"

"Mhm. That's true," Aria spoke carefully. "Who are you? It's hard to tell much in that cloak."

"It's better this way... it can be a bit hard to trust people too much in these parts and times. Sorry, I'm just cautious," the woman spoke. "My name's Velvet, vee ee ell vee ee tee. I'm a merchant, and not terribly much of a fighter, though Ulysses is good enough on that front, I suppose. We have no hostility towards any of you so far as we can tell, anyway. Perhaps an agreement between us all can be reached?" Her eyes turned towards each member of the group, pausing on Telmara and Kaya slightly longer than the others.

Aria looked towards the rest of the group gathered near, seeming somewhat confused. "Well, I'm just a healer... I'm glad they let me come along in the first place, so it's not really up to me to decide."

"Well, that's not a very conclusive answer. Who would be more leadership-inclined members among you, then? What do you say? I can assuuure you that we'd both be quite helpful," she insisted.