Completed Solitude In Secrecy

[Ricky Maze]

Solitude in Secrecy
Winter 26th 513 AV; 9th Bell
Location: Mathew's Bay, Outskirts of Zeltiva

The bitter cold settled in and didn't seem to relent in providing a sweet frigid kiss within the day as Winter proved to settle in the bay, Ricky had taken to wear his longsleeve short underneath his shortsleeve as both whites seem to hold in the body he produced. Even though he may felt some slight warmth from the extra layer of clothing that hardly withstood the harsh brush of the chilled breeze that cloaked the air around him, which brought an occasional shiver as the fisherman would release a caged breath whilst he walked further along the shore. Even if the cold would be enough to drive one back indoors he felt determined to be elsewhere for what he was about to practice, as he no doubt needed to focus more on control and the grasp of his gift if he were to master it eventually. With the white puff of moisture easily spotted as if flowed out from between his lips, Ricky looked elsewhere almost nervously as though someone may have decided to follow him here. He felt sure no one did such a thing after all, but knowing how plans and insecurities usually went his luck... well it certainly proved rather sour in the past.

"Shud be gran' roun' 'ere, doubt anyone ever travels dis far..." He thought to himself as he came about a small cove that rounded around with a twist of boulders and arches. He honestly doubted anyone else had found this place as the land seemed untouched, and even thought himself crazy to trek this far out just to find such a solitary place. However the scenery was perfect for his start in the trials of magic, certainly a spot where no one could see or hear his magic quite so easily compared to how close he would've remained. It seemed as though the teaching Ignotus handed down to him also came with a few of the same habits, as far as secrecy goes for Ricky with magic and whatnot. Really it was such a good habit to hold onto though, and it reduced the chances of being discovered. Should such a risky situation occur Ricky definitely had no idea what he'd do, as his secret may easily pose a threat to whoever found out about his magic. "Aight den, guess it's time t' git started."

There was a bit of debating as to which Ricky should practice first, with such small grasp at what he knew with both Reimancy and Shielding he found it difficult to decide. He knew the risks and knew good and well Shielding had little compared to Reimancy, however there didn't seem to be much he could do with shields at the moment other than weave them over rocks. "Mm. Dere is wan t'ing..." As Ricky recalled shields in general absorb Djed, be it foreign or his own, or so he learned from Anna back in fall. However he needed to also learn better control over water if he were to begin casting Reimancy as an apprentice would, to gain such experience meant he would have to experiment a little just as he was told. "I'd suggest you focus on control at your stage, that is really the most important thing you need to get down. Early on utilize attraction to avoid wasting too much res, later you should then practice your transmutations." Her words swam through his ears once more as he recalled the lesson she gave him, the lesson well remembered as well as the definite change she went through compared to the first time they met. "You will change if you continue to use magic. Its inevitable, but know that change is not a bad thing. The purest truths are often carried upon the tides of chaos. Don't fight it, accept it."

So very true did those words ring out as they settled in, but compared to the first time Ricky felt all the more aware of the reality to them. "Oi'll definitely change... but Oi'll also become stronger." He thought with a smirk as he shook off the fear that he'll undergo some drastic horrid alteration upon his first cast, even if he knew such risk came at casting he knew good and well he had to reach that limit first before losing control. "Ricky, allow me to leave you with this thought. Magic is a tool, a dangerous tool and one that tempts you every time you use it, but a tool nonetheless. Control it, never let it control you or shape you. Curiosity and interest are healthy, obsession is not." The reminder that interest and curiosity were rather healthy in this endeavour helped made this attempt to practice all the more easier, where as the worry of obsessing about it also took a small root as he gained his bearings. Still rather nervous about doing this his anxiety no doubt settled in his stomach as the insides rolled, Ricky found semi-flat rock to sit on to relax and find the sense of ease he still needed.

"Magic often can be fueled and manipulated by strong emotions or thoughts, anger, hatred, fear, and love being the stronger ones. However, in contrast, this makes things more dangerous as emotions can quickly get out of hand. Logical thinking needs to balance out the passion, otherwise you could give in to your desires." If that was the case then there was no room for fear or doubt in this practice session, Ricky had to hold himself with cool confidence while his curiosity allowed him to explore. Such would be the case for his reimancy, as he knew good and well how to make his shields. "In any event, as you progress on the path of reimancy you will gain command over more elements. I, for instance, command three. Only the greatest among us can claim mastery over the four primal elements, and they are less wizards so much as forces of nature. I suggest focusing on mastering one element at a time, getting comfortable with them as they come. Once you do, there is plenty of room for experimentation." Interesting to think that he too could learn how to control more than one element, but the way Anna spoke at the time showed that she held much confidence in her ability. Where he found water already a handfull to control she seemed to know three, the main one being fire like Ignotus was. "Funny 'ow dat works. De man dat initiates me is a fire user, yet Oi'm de one t' use water." He figured it had something to do with human nature or something of the sort, considering he always had some small affinity to water it came as no surprise.

"Roi den, Oi guess Oi best start wi' somethin' t' boot." Considering his idea could work after demonstrating how his shield "worked" to his family, he thought maybe it could also serve as a way to improve both disciplines. Thus he searched out the much needed peace in mind he needed within the levels of his inner self, the deep reaches of his spirit quivered as he felt the cold from the air and the rock soak into his very bone. There was no wonder why the winds earned their Bonesapper name from, as the weather made it clear during the season that stretched on. Determined to focus on the state of mind he needed to be in to concentrate, Ricky kept the thought that he was warm in a repetitive statement within his mind. That helped him get started in finding the intellectual balance he needed to stimulate his curiousity, and begin the experimentation with his magic abilities.

[Ricky Maze]

With the genuine sound of waves crashing along the coastline and the headstrong thought that he no longer felt the cold wind biting him, Ricky started to find the sense of tranquility he needed before he could finally start off his practice with magic. With his eyes shut softly by their own accord, rather than forced as one would do when they start meditation, Ricky kept his breathing slow and steady as he felt the pressure in his lungs build then ease. There was nothing forced in this manner of meditation; not this time by any means, as Ricky found the comfort already settled in much quicker in just relaxing. Letting the mind and body clear itself of doubt or worry felt pleasing to the old fisherman, and with the sea so close to him the very sound of the waves brought an even better sense of clearing. As if the very ocean itself were carrying all his burdens away.

"Relief. No need t' feel worried, Oi'm safe an' Oi'm alone. Nothin's gonna threaten me the-day." The words rippled in his mind with nothing but repose as he felt another exhale leave his chest, eyes finally opened as he felt his mind sharpened on the task he set for himself. First was the shield in which he would weave over a large rock for simple protection, while the intent behind it was for more trial and error purposes. Finally on his feet once more Ricky approached the center of his focus, that being the rock he would weave a shield over in a few moments. Upon observation he knew good and well the rock was half his size and pretty huge in girth too, it's rugged look actually held a smooth feel to it after the fisherman rubbed his rough palm along the surface. "Oi'm de shield dat protects ya. Oi'm de dividin' line between safety an' danger." He found that before when he meditated on the words to create shields they weren't as powerful to him as they needed, not until he actually got the idea of putting him as those incantations. The feelings associated with being a sort of protector made his magic feel stronger somehow, maybe more potent compared to before.

It could've been his imagination at work too, Ricky didn't really know off hand if it truly worked. He just found it a little bit easier to create shields with this mindset he adopted. "Oi'm yer guardian in de time o' need." With a slight rush felt through his face and spine Ricky held his hand over the surface of the rock, the flow of his Djed in a more direct flow he required for this to work. With the ability to barely alter the fabrication of what he perceived as reality, Ricky willed his Djed to take shape in the form he was well familiar with by now. One slight pulsation toward the surface of the rock Ricky's Djed weaved out onto it as smooth as water, its flow ever so slow in its lazy strive to cover the whole surface. Of course Ricky still had much to learn as far as his Shielding capabilites went, as the royal blue shimmer seem to continue to stretch itself thinner and thinner as it continued it's venture. It was the same situation where butter felt itself spread too thin on bread alone, and the shield definitely held the quality of it once Ricky covered the majority of the rock's upper half.

His stamina hardly felt drained compared to before when he first started casting these shields, but still his small practice easily showed even to the unobservative once he pulled his hand away. Hardly a sweat broke off his brow but nevertheless the intense amount of concentration brought on by his work left him with a tad bit of a dry mouth, luckily for him the next part of his practice session wouldn't have him feeling so parched. "Time t' see 'ow much dis shield can take wi' some aquamancy." He figured by the term "Aquamancer" as he was called by Anna it pertained to his usage of water, thus the word aquamancy pertained to the idea of it as well in his book.

[Ricky Maze]

After the shield had been weaved and his confidence still remained unwavered he stood next to the rock he sat on moments before, eyes still inspected the royal blue sheen that dimly glowed over the rock it rested upon. Even if the next part of his practice would make him uneasy he still had to overcome those feelings and allow his curiosity to take over from there, which in turn would allow him to expand his knowledge of Reimancy in general and likely discover where his limits were. After some small amount of use he had a decent grasp at how his ability worked, the Djed that became Res could change form too if he recalled the lesson Anna gave last season.

"Roi den, guess Oi better git started." Ricky rubbed his hands together and then looked at his palms, a sigh as he recalled the words he was told once more. "Curiosity is 'ealthy, obsession is not..." He started to repeat the words in his head over and over, and replaced what fear he held in Reimancy with confidence. He could only be cautious for so long before ever getting anywhere with learning, thus he felt that it was time to at least leave his comfort zone and let curiosity take over. Finally after several chimes had passed he looked from his hands to the water that washed ashore, the gentle waves lapped smoothly over the wet sand whilst he contemplated on where to begin. Attraction wasn't hard to do and it reserved what Djed it could for further casting, and he had already grasped at how the "mechanics" of it work.

No. Today he would go further, be bold and explorative. He would see just where his limits were, and become stronger in doing so during the process. Fit with the challenge he made for himself Ricky brought his hand forward with the palm in sight, concentration put on the reserves of the Djed inside him as he felt the flow of it all inside. He breathed slowly and felt every breath in doing so, the chill within the air felt cold enough to freeze the lungs after a while. After what few moments had passed in his ease of mind Ricky finally tapped into his reserves and used his will to call upon the power they granted. There was nothing really present at first but with concentration solely on his palm he created Res the size of a water droplet, until finally it grew to the size of a plum just a couple inches above the center of his right hand. The royal blue ooze held a sort of transparancy compared to its full liquid form it took, which meant he could no doubt change the substance itself with enough effort.

Ricky thought of gas and how one couldn't normally see it at first, contemplated further on how the form of gas was for about a chime or so, until he held a firm grasp over the idea in his head. With that he tested the ability to change the form of his Res, and used the idea he had in his head as a blueprint of some sort while he focused on transitioning the very form. To his surprise the effort didn't take as much as he thought it would, as the ooze slowly became a small cloud of transparent royal blue above his palm. "Oh shyke! Dat actually worked!" He exclaimed with a chuckle in surprise, a small sense of accomplishment found in discovering he had the ability after all.

[Ricky Maze]

It amazed him at how such a thing could happen at will, the very form of his Res no longer held the gooy look it had once before. Now it merely took the shape of a deep royal blue fog of a sort as it floated above his hand, with the way his mind wrapped around its transformation he felt he had a grasp at how such a thing was possible now. With that he noted the words Anna told him before, where he could use this tactic where one inhaled this gaseous substance, then literally drown upon transmuting it into water afterwards. With such a tactic to hold onto Ricky knew of a lethal way to put an end to anothers life, painfully too considering he knew what it felt like to nearly drown once. Of course that was thanks to his bright and friendly Konti Nira'lia when they first met, which the memory of it occuring now brought a smile to Ricky as he stared intently into the blue fog.

"T'ose were de days." He sighed with content as he remembered how easy and innocent his childhood was, he could never forget the wonderful face that first taught him how to swim in water. "Aight now it's time t' focus! Oi know Oi can do more den change Res int' form." He knew now how to change its form and how to transmute it to water at will, now he had to focus on something he needed work on. Attraction wasn't easy but he had enough grasp to attemp it later, for now though he needed work on more personal things... ""Slow generation, shaky control, an' sloppy execution." Those were the three words Ricky recalled from Anna's lesson, the issues he faced as of right now with his Reimancy. "Roi' den!" His focus returned as he willed the form of the Res to shift once more, it took a moment for it to finally happen but the royal blue fog held its gooey form once more. Ricky found that the process had a sort of second nature feel to it, after his discovery in it's process during the experiment.

Now of course he had to focus on the main thing: performance in using Reimancy. Such a skill was not taken to be a hobby and Ricky knew this well, in order to truly understand it he had to first seriously practice. That was when one idea that came to mind seem to intrigue Ricky, as he wondered on the fact whether or not it could work. "Take control of the remaining res and will it back into your body, it will help with the fatigue." If that was the case then sure enough if he willed it back now, no fatigue should later come as swiftly as it would upon casting. So... why not use that to his advantage. Upon thought Ricky concentrated and willed the Res back into his palm, the ooze calm as it soaked into the pores of his skin and returned to underneath his outer flesh. He felt a sense of relief fill him now that the Res returned to its original place, but that was only half of the idea he worked with. With focus solely on generating that same Res he willed for it to take form once again, eyes squinted a little as he put more concentration into it.

This time the generation of the Res' size took half the amount of time as before, and it still held the small size of a plum as the outer layer of the ooze rippled from the will put into the effort. Ricky finally allowed himself to breath again after he made the size grow to his fist, and then the sensations filled his mind as he stared at his work. Temptation, pleasure, power... they were all things that echoed within his head, but he didn't allow them to remain very long as he focused on the task. With the same repitition to follow Ricky willed for the Res to return back to its origin, and in turn waited while the small doses of ease and fatigue came and went before doing the same thing again.

[Ricky Maze]

"One... Two... T'ree!" Upon the final number in the count Ricky produced Res as quick as he could with much effort, the process slightly faster compared to before as he felt his brow start to break in a sweat. The globule that formed grew to be the size of an apple as the ooze rotated around swiftly, with a release of his caged air he exhaled loudly with several pants from the exertion he put into the work. He had started to feel slightly tired in this process and the feelings of pleasure from before began to grow stronger, almost to the point where they actually were tempting to him now. This definitely wasn't a good sign in this case but he needed to find his limit, somewhere there had to be a borderline he had to reach before calling quits for the day. The globule remained in place above his right palm as he looked from it to the shield he molded earlier, it's transparent hue still present to his eyes before he looked back to the Res he held in place.

"Me shields absorb Djed dat be foreign o' not, seein' as 'ow me spells don't effect it much." He then remembered his need to better control, and came to the conclusion that before any "execution" was do be performed he would need to concentrate on just that. Control would serve him well in the event he had to actually fight with his magic, thus Ricky focused on the glob and locked his attention solely on that for the time being. If he wanted to be able to better his control, then he had to first learn how not to drop it. Thus with his mind Ricky pictured the globule to remain in its position while he moved his hand from underneath slowly, and then imitated his imagination just as he portrayed it in his head. The act caused the glob to jiggle a little while his hand no longer gave support to it's gravity, now his focus became the lock that held his Res in place as he found himself able to "mentally grip" the glob.

"Roi' den, next step..." Though his Res still seemed hard to control at first Ricky willed for his Res to move upward, and of course after a moment the royal blue glob did so in a dervish manner. There was a bit more experimentation to follow afterwards, and Ricky found that the ability to control his Res started to grow a bit easier in the process too. He tested how high he could go before he felt his control nearly lost it's grasp, then the distance until at last he found the foot where his zone of control failed him. "That ain't very far in terms o' distance..." He noted as he leaned forward slightly exhausted from the work, he felt his mind had developed a slight headache from the amount of concentration he put into the experimentation. "Guess Oi' gotta work 'ard t' get better, f'r now..." Ricky looked back to the shield one final time and back to the small puddle of royal blue that laid on the ground several feet away.

[Ricky Maze]

After he took a couple of steps towards the puddle Ricky held his hand out as though he reached for the Res, a mental grasp stuck on the liquid that rested on the sand for the short duration of his small break. It took a moment before his Res reacted to his will and stirred off the ground and into the air once again, but when it levitated above his palm Ricky shot one last look to the shield and thought about how his Res would resemble water. With this thought in process he transmuted the outer layer of his Res into a ball of rippling water that spun around slowly as he focused on the intended target. With his mind he released the globule of water cloaked Res and sent it forth with some mental work behind it, as the glob flung out ward away from its original position with a splash against the shield.

Of course the shield being magic it would absorb almost all types of Djed from what Ricky gathered, even if it were his own the shield would just soak it in like sunlight with the leaves. That was the reaction that then occurred after the splash from the ball happened, as the center of the shield glowed from the impact and outward to its round corners within ticks of the Djeds contact. Ricky felt himself at a need to try again but not just out of curiosity, he found himself rather entranced with the feeling of power then. He could likely break through his shield… maybe. Although that didn’t seem possible considering he wasn’t aware of the fact his shield was stronger now that he fueled it with more Djed, but he felt confident he could break it with a couple more casts. The fisherman repeated the practice he did earlier when he generated the Res repeatedly to try gaining some speed, yet this time the Res he produced was a fresh batch compared to the same one he reproduced over and over. That led to him being enticed to the power he had, a sweet and gratifying sensation filled his mind after a globule the size of his palm had been generated. Again he transmuted only the outer layer of the Res into a swirling ball of water as its core remained a royal blue color, and with aim at the shield once more Ricky sent the ball off with only the thought to try again. He wanted to try again. Again, and again until he felt himself exhausted. Furthermore he was already in a sweat that covered his brow and soaked the collar of his shirt even in the blasted cold.

Ricky found bitter amusement in the fact that his shield held only the same reaction as the first time, his focus had been better with the second time but the shield still held true against his magic. If such were the case then that could mean his shields were either getting stronger, or he was getting weaker, or even maybe his shields were used for the purpose of mainly absorbing magic. He hadn’t the slightest idea, all he knew was that he had to go for it again. "Oi’ll get it dis time!" As he willed for more Res his mind felt all the more elevated while the royal blue ball started to form below his palm, Ricky could’ve sworn a metallic taste had started to develop inside his mouth as he continued to do this, and only one thing snapped him back into reality before he strayed too far.

"If you start to feel tremors, or pain in the eyes, or taste copper in your mouth, or begin feeling a sense of euphoria or the urge to cast more- don't. It means you're overgiving," He recalled the warnings Ignotus gave him upon the night of his initiation, "and if you give in to that urge your body will start involuntarily transmuting itself from the inside out, after you've killed anyone near you. Then your organs fail. It's an extremely painful way to die. That's if you’re lucky. You could just become insane and permanently disfigured. Of course, then you'd probably be executed out of pity." The taste of copper, the euphoria he felt… it was all connected to his need to cast more. He had to be reaching that state of mind Ignotus warned him of, he must’ve gone near his limit to start overgiving. "Petch me damn luck!" Ricky swore as he concentrated on regaining his control, the struggle to shrug off his senseless need to cast more was difficult but when Ricky regained control of his mind the Res he generated soaked it’s way back into his palm to return to him, and then the fisherman took a seat on the rock once again with heavy breaths as he felt his hands shake in a cold sweat. He was close. So close to losing himself, but then again he’d caught the signs before it was too late. He’d done it. He was successful in learning his limits as far as generation and execution went, now all he needed was to practice and further develop the skill to better his grasp. That way he could use it, and better defend the people around him he cared about most.

"Guess de only t’ing t’ do now is go back ‘ome and rest." He felt rather light headed and woozy, and definitely in a hungry mood now that he’d taken the time to rest and think upon his work out. He wasn’t proud of going as far as he did but he did please himself in the fact that he did attempt to learn, there was no knowing his boundaries without first discovering them to begin with, and with that he felt sure that in just a matter of time he would soon feel confident enough to wield the water element with ease.

[Matthew]

Ricky

Experience Points:

• 2 Meditation
• 4 Reimancy
• 1 Shielding
• XP

Lores:

• Shielding: Painting A Shield Over Small Shapes
• Magic: Spreading Out Spellcasting to Prevent Overgiving
• Magic: Returning Unused Res to Self
• Magic: Minor Res Transformation
• Magic: How to Hover and Levitate Res
• Overgiving: Dangerous Cravings of Power

Additional Notes :

Small note, Shields are totally invisible most of the time. They sometimes shimmer briefly when impacted by something they are tasked to stop. Also, a more experienced Shielder can see certain ones. They was a certain point where you mentioned just staring at the shimmering Shield. I may be incorrect about this and missed something in the Lore, and if so, please let me know. Otherwise, solid thread.

If you have any questions or concerns relevant to your grade, don't be afraid to send me a private message so that we can work it all out! Please remember to mark your Grading Request as Graded.

A shout-out to Ollic Rimesage, who was kind enough to make this template for me.