To Be Crimson; Flames and Bloodied Palms (Antar & Eryss)

[Shai]

Slinking along behind Antar as she was, Shai noticed when he slowed. Promptly stepping besides him to see what the holdup the spider went a little beyond him. Her hand unknowingly brushed the edge of the shield and jerked back seemingly of its own accord. Shai jumped back in surprise and caught just a glance of the shield’s receding visibility before it was gone again. Lovely, more magic. If Antar hadn’t already shown her this strange breed of magic twice before she would never have guessed it was somehow related. Since it was not fire or hypnotism, of the magics she had heard of, the only remaining option was this third category. She knew it could silence noise and restrain movement, so her best guess this was some diversion of the second ability.

She wasn’t entirely sure what precisely this barrier meant for their meeting only that her hand was not getting through under any circumstances. Shai put her hand up again, where she estimated the barrier began with her hooks extended trying to grasp whatever it was. Unfortunately that was also repelled, leaving the spider a bit confused her hands should be able to stick to almost anything. Perhaps there were exceptions? Picking up a small pebble she tossed it through the barrier and it went through just fine, landing a few feet behind the invisible wall.

So the rock is ok, but no hands? Shai pulled out her fan, and without opening it, she prodded the shield. The barrier seemed to accept the shield seemed to accept the weapon until it reached her claw and then once again it was pushed back. As ominous as the meeting had been made out to be and even being able to see the man by the fire, Shai was somehow calmed by the fact that there was a mystery to solve. She knew she shouldn’t focus too hard on it, it wasn’t at all why she was here, but it seemed like a logical challenge and she wanted to crack it. In the end, the spider decided to let the meeting commence from a distance, she didn’t really need to be close to this man to converse with him and she actually rather preferred the range. Not to say by any means was she done testing the barrier but she needed a moment to think of more creative ways to try and pierce it. For now, the magic seemed benign and that made it more of a curiosity than a threat.

“So is this the man I have been told absolutely nothing about?” She let her voice carry so the stranger could hear as well, although the question was really aimed at Antar.

[Antar]

Antar smiled a little when he halted his approach to let Shai continue towards the seated man. His Aura Sight was active after the last time he had run into a wall of Shielded energy and the rogue was adamant in his resolve to not to let anyone fool him the same way twice. But now that Shai was here , he seemed content to let her probe the defenses on her own.

Sadly though, his eye caught a bit of interest, as Shai's attempts to penetrate the shield met with failure. Eryss had a few tricks up his sleeve, tricks which Antar seemed to appreciate. That was true at least... he did appreciate a good challenge. Wondering about the shield and how it would form Noth began to consider his options when Shai asked her question. "Yep, the man of mystery himself."

Thinking about the possible ways of circumventing or destroying the shield he tried to let a forward punch with his fist suffice to break the construction. Sadly... the shield flickered a moment before hardening itself towards such attacks. The damn things was definitely tasked against biologics.

At that moment, he knew he'd never be able to break it down. Not while it was still absorbing djed from the surrounding area to power itself. He could see the tendrils of lines of power absorbing it slowly from the environment. Besides the normal tasking of their functions to a specific item all shields would take the either block or absorb djed. But he couldn't tell if this one was set to either.

How was it holding itself then? Was Eryss content to simply let it stay in one place and deteriorate? Perhaps he did... though it did allow the prospect of someone attacking him if weapons could go through... the he imagined the only effect that would have would be to be met with a secondary shield or a wall of fire and earth.

Walking along the edge of the shield until he came directly in front of Eryss' sight, Noth considered a possibility to try.

Summoning his djed, his hands began to exude the Res, and he drove his palms into the ground of the earth. Concentrating, he let the Res seep into the soil, working it's way towards and under the shield for a good five yards before he began to exert his own will upon it.

Simultaneously attracting the element of Earth, he began to dig a a small tunnel, making sure to harden a 'lip' of rock to keep the edge of the shield in contact with the ground as something akin to a rabbits burrow formed while his ferreted through the earth like a snake to form a geyser of soil and sediment which sprayed towards the other mage from the exit on the other side of the shield.

Smiling to himself, Antar extended a hand towards the lip of the burrow, and was gratified to see it pass through to the area within the boundary. Crawling along on his stomach Antar would soon be smiling towards the mage as his head popped out on the far side of the giant stone blocks which had been forged from Eryss' Res the last time he had been here.

Standing up to brush the dirt from his pants, the rogue would begin to whistle slightly as he walked towards his present Master of the Arcane. All while attempting to bring the djed together to shield his gauntlets before he stopped to sigh a little. "Hello Boss, I brought someone to see you... she's kind of "Shy" though..." Smiling at the inane joke, the rogue would gesture back towards the shield where Shai stood, wondering if she'd dare to follow him inside its boundaries.

[Eryss Waldu]

[Naturally Eryss was aware when a disruption in the Shield occurred though whether this was due because he had been observant of his surroundings or somehow sensitive to anything disruptive of the shield itself was never revealed. Aside from a brief look back over his shoulder he did little though as he had been engrossed in his own thoughts and retained his own counsel for the moment. That wasn’t to say that Eryss hadn’t done anything though, he was active and working even though he never moved to stand from where he sat near the fire he’d created, by the time anyone actually knew what the Mage was about he’d likely have been finished though.] [As Antar came around to stand in front of Eryss at the boundaries of the shield he’d see the Mage bend down briefly, his hands reaching out as he did so, before removing his shoes so that he could place his feet barefoot on the soil of the ground and wait. Unless extenuating circumstances prevailed Antar would be successful when he burrowed beneath the Shield that had been created. Eryss didn’t mind, it was an inventive solution to say the least, and as his head revealed itself from behind the large blocks that had been created on their previous meeting the Mage had a thought that he kept to himself for the moment. He’d need to experiment at a later did.] [All around them too was a thin smoke, a gaseous res, that emanated from Eryss feet and had begun to spread at height with the grass to make it harder to detect. It was especially thin and Eryss moved it outwards from himself as though he were the epicentre, controlling the res mentally, until it began to converge at the exterior shell of the Shield. Indeed the res moved no further but all around the edge of the Shield only barely higher than the grass itself as the res grew slightly more condensed it would hover as though waiting for some cue as to what its move was to be. Whatever that was only Eryss himself knew though.] [Only then, when Antar had finished talking, would Eryss finally speak up by saying...”Is she? What a pity.”...it seemed as though he was bereaved by the way he had said these things though hidden beneath the hood of his cloak a devious smile had begun to spread across his mouth. “I’m hurt. You told her nothing about me. My heart is wreathed in sorrow Antar.”...he continued addressing the Rogue from where he sat while tilting his head higher so that he could look at him before tsk’ing once as though it were a mistake to have done that. Adjusting himself Eryss would have eventually stood straight from where he sat near the fire before turning away from it, moving several feet out of its reach as he did this, and looking towards Shai when he said...”You should be trying to climb down your friends rabbit hole by now my dear.”...indicating the tunnel that Antar had created as surely Shai would have a hard time penetrating the Shield otherwise.] [Of course Eryss couldn’t just make it easy for her.] [A moment later and Eryss transmuted the majority of his gaseous res into fire which ignited quite thoroughly. As for the rest he would make a stiff gust of air out of it to spread his flames. Already at height with the grass the flames that Eryss had created would spread outwards quickly and engulf more of the ground in a sudden spark, flash flame, as though it were a wave upon the tides. Unless Shai thought quickly she might find herself up to her ankles in the fire which wouldn’t spare her of its vicious kiss. Knowing that such a small amount of fire wouldn’t harm her to badly Eryss looked at this as a moment to test Shai from the beginning. He wanted to see how she’d react.] [Taking his eyes off her momentarily he’d look back at Antar before remarking...”You only wanted me to meet her or is there something else?”...then as his eyes slowly turned themselves back towards her he’d have added...”She doesn’t appear to be extremely remarkable though I have been wrong in the past.”...probably the best admission anyone could hope for when it came to Eryss agreeing to give them a chance. Before Shai could truly have this meeting though she’d need to cross the threshold of the Shield or, if she preferred, she could remain outside and stay a target for Eryss who wasn’t above hurling more deadly applications of his magic in her direction. He did have quite the affinity with fire and lightning after all.]

[Shai]

I’m starting to see a pattern here . . . Shai didn’t wait for the fire, she’d seen this trick in a different color only a handful of days ago. Shai took off, purposefully letting the slippers slide off her feet and feed the flames in her place. Lunged for a tree, Shai grasped onto the trunk with her claws and microscopic hooks clinging onto the bark. It would scrap up her hands but it was better than getting to the tunnel by fire covered ground. Keeping low on the tress she leapt between the sturdier branches until she was close as the trees could get her to the magically excavated passage. Skittering down the tree’s trunk head first Shai positioned herself carefully for the jump. With her four primary points of contact with the tree all in close proximity and her estimations seemed correct, the spider dove. Forcing herself to supply most of the power in her maneuver she pushed off and landed with her two arms already into the hole. Scampering down the tunnel the spider evaded the majority of the fire.

Crawling through the tunnel wasn’t a feat for the spider really, it had been constructed with Antar in mind and her figure was much more petite. Emerging from the other side into the interior of the shield, Shai paused a moment crouched on all fours. Symenestra’s elongated arms made the posture considerably less awkward than when a human attempted it. Idly she noted that the only thing missing from this greeting was blades, otherwise the two men had met her in much the same fashion. “If you two where the only members of this . . . organization, that I had met I would have to assume you purposely chose flame as a greeting.” Shai felt the need to comment as she stamped out a bit of flame that had bit onto the hem of cloak. Annoying. Antar was almost too much mage to tolerate and now there’s another one.

While closing the distance between herself and the men the little woman patted off the dirt. At least it was dirt and some other indefinable human filth that littered Sunberth’s streets. “So then the burden on me is to prove interesting? How odd usually humans find my kind strange enough to want nothing to do with us.” Shai looked over the new man. He seemed. . . like a stiff wind might crush him which coming from a Symenestra was impressive. “Well I cannot erect invisible walls or command fire. And the only way I can silence my steps is through careful practice and placement. If you are looking for the kind of ‘remarkable’ that both of you gentlemen possess, I am not it.” She kept her footsteps quiet, the dry ground accepted bare feet easily, she only made noise to crush leaves beneath her toes. Purposely she timed each crunch of foliage to the gentle breeze wracking the trees. Shai had intended to prove her point, she could keep quiet without unnatural abilities.

Stopping her advanced next to Antar Shai waited quietly, unsure if it was appropriate to introduce herself or if the mysterious man preferred to remain that way.

[Antar]

Noth nodded and smiled with his hands crossed behind his back as Eryss spoke. Politely deferring to his words, as a sign of the loyalty he owed the man. Eryss was one of the few Noth had even hinted about his past to and the mage was ironclad in his assistance to train Noth's abilities to their fullest. The matter of how he trained was harsher then most though."Indeed, Shai, her name S-h-a-i, is an excellent thief, and with a bit of practice a more accomplished assassin I think she could become. Her abilities are only in potential though, and that potential is what I asked you here to assess. It's a pity she's a symenestra , they are such weak boned individuals so I thought if she..."

He paused a moment to look sideways at the symenestra woman for a moment, if she knew anything about him at all by now ; it was the fact that there would be no mercy from him in any form of training, or professional application. The rogue would watch any comrade's back at any form of time, in that odd sense of loyalty he had, no questions asked, nor replies given. But that didn't mean any form of training wouldn't be harsh.

In fact, it meant he thought such training with him would be ten times harsher. It was said one would only be prepared for what they were trained for. That meant: if Antar was to ever train someone then he would train them for the possibility that they were alone, outnumbered ten to one, wounded, and weaponless... and then go further then that.

That's why Antar held a deep respect for Eryss, no matter if one day the student might surpass the teacher, the respect and loyalty gained from that experience would remain. He think Eryss sensed that as well, even if Antar knew it would be a long road to earn the mage's trust like Cade had. But for Shai, that meant in this circle; Eryss was the leader. "The only things I could think of helping improve that , should she join us, is training her more and in many things. Shielding would be appropriate. However, her acceptance amongst the group, and as a potential student, is up to you. Even if she does not learn any other magic,"

With a bit of a sideways step and simple motion he would slide behind Shai, putting her between Eryss and himself as he grabbed her gently by one arm. Inside Eryss' presence, there was only one certainty: she would have to prove herself capable to him, and that he would take what measures necessary to ensure the Crimson Edge's leadership was not to be harmed in case she had any thoughts. Putting one hand to the spiders shoulder , his gentle touch nudged her forwards as he finished."Shielding, might be an excellent addition to her safety."

With those words he began to put his own words into practice. Exuding bits of his djed further from his body, not only covering his own gauntlets but as he never had done before he began to push the protective layer of sparkling djed filaments out wider and over the spider woman's cloak, letting the djed take form as he pushed the magic to his limits before the light flickered out.

The shield which formed over the woman's body covered all but the gloves of her arm and her face, and in a dispassionate tone, he assessed such things in a report by looking at her with auristics. A colored rainbow of conflicting hesitations and emotions at his closeness, combined with a bit of reticence towards the figure by the fire. He told Eryss of his ability to see the working, told him how it's edges had frayed and were possessing gaps over Shai's hooded cloak. Dispassionately rambled off a sordid critique of his poor technique. Including how the shield did not cover her face or arms, but was only tasked to block djed. He then asked the leader of the crimson edge his thoughts on the matter at hand, almost dismissive of the woman's closeness , yet his tones were filled with a subtle caress of suaveness towards her as he lauded her thieving skills.

His last words to Eryss were, "She has strengths, like all of us: whether her potential can be developed more falls on both you and her to decide here and now."

Leaning close to Shai's ear, he wrapped an arm about her waist, holding his hand about a foot from her chest as his djed kindled his pores to release a small bit of Res, tasking it to hover and come alight above his hand even if he held her in an embrace that some would mistake as passionate, but the truly wise would know as carrying the promise of a threat should she prove herself wrong.

Whispering his last words loud enough for Eryss to hear, though they were directed at her alone. "There is no place for timidness here, Shai, even if I've seen you play the best roles of a docile nature to lure a creature into your webs of intrigue. You must decide, to ask for knowledge to passed upon you tonight, and whether you will strive to stand upon the numbers of the Crimson Edge, only if you can prove yourself. Eryss has the knowledge, the drive, and the wisdom to see if you are capable enough to begin what may decide the course of your entire life. I've seen that in him, it's why I respect him, and why he has my loyalty. With his blessing you might be given a chance to find some place you belong, a coven, or potentially a family you might join. Choose your words carefully. I implore you. If he were to teach you shielding tonight, it would mean your eventual ability to deflect that which kills your race so quickly in a fight. But only with time, and practice. So speak my little spider. Speak and let him judge whether you are right to be here. All it takes: is a willingness to learn."

Letting the fire disipate as he held the woman close to him, (unless Eryss bade him to release her, Shai would be allowed to voice her words again. To crystallize their focus, and express her purposes for being here tonight. Making what could be one of the most influential decisions of her young life: a testament to the fact of wanting to grow, and become useful to others, to add to their strengths and yet have their strengths added to her own. What would Shai, or even Eryss decide?

Perhaps shai's first lesson would start, with the shielding of her gloved hands? Or perhaps with a bit of banther between the leader and herself. Whatever the decisions, Antar had no place in this meeting other then as Eryss's guard, or to practice upon the sidelines as he could, watching the pair of them test each other and be tested in return. Though he figured Eryss would throw a few tricks at him, it was just one of the things he loved about the cruel nature of the mage.

[Eryss Waldu]

[Intriguing. The Spider could climb a tree and cross the threshold of the Shield without getting burnt. It was a nice trick to be sure but not one that she should depend on if she thought she could escape the Mage unscathed. Observing her as she lunged for the tree and up over its branches Eryss would be all eyes on her and all ears on Antar as the man spoke about the young woman, informing the Mage that she was an excellent thief and one day might become an adequate assassin, though Eryss kept his thoughts to himself for the time being as it was prudent to do such. Disappearing down into the tunnel that Antar had created Eryss would turn back towards the Rogue and wait for Shai to appear the same as he had though the thought to collapse the tunnel on her and announce that she had cheated using another’s method instead of her own did cross his mind quite vividly.] [Looking at Antar he turned his eyes towards Shai briefly when she appeared as he had predicted, ignoring her comment about fire as he wasn’t known for his sense of humour, before remarking quite blatantly...”Then she is a Symenestra. I’ve never seen one until now though I’ve heard stories.”...it sounded like Eryss was speaking to Antar, referring to Shai rather than speaking to her even though she was present, however his eyes were on her soon enough. Taking all of her in while Antar went on Eryss would interrupt long enough to point out...”I’ve heard race is very frail. I should like to test that myself.”...which was ambiguous at best and left purposely in the open so that Shai would need to interpret it herself.] [While Eryss was willing to hear what Antar had to say it came to the fact that he knew nothing about this girl and that she had yet to prove herself in any way. “How long have you known this girl Antar? Less than a season? What makes you think that she will be a benefit to us?”...there was a mild amount of disdain now present in his words and then he went on as though he had been insulted by saying...”You cannot expect me to teach a girl I have only met once anything at all. Magic is something there cannot be too much of in the world and we cannot go around teaching it to strangers.”...it was true after all, magic was rare and feared by many, and the thought that it might be taught to someone Eryss did not even know was almost unthinkable. Antar had bled for Eryss but Shai had done none of this and so she was undeserving in the opinion of the Mage.] [With his right hand Eryss would motion for Antar to release Shai. Nodding his head then he would look at her and say...”You wish to join us? Yes.”...there was a brief pause that allowed Shai to drink in the question before Eryss added...”Then tonight you will become a prospect. You are his responsibility.”...which Eryss would punctuate by pointing his finger at Antar so that the Rogue also knew what he was talking about. Eyes moving between both Shai and Antar then Eryss would smile venomously beneath the hood of his cloak and then add...”You will be the fly in his web now as he is in mine.”...as he said that Antar would feel Eryss eyes turn to him before the Mage averted his attention back towards Shai whom he had been speaking to.] [Awaiting her answer Eryss craned his head to one side and exhaled a thin cloud of gaseous res, it was a sickly emerald in color, and as he took more breathes more of the res began to appear and hover in the air around his head and over his shoulders. The Res would surround Eryss, hanging in place under his mental command, as he gathered it in greater amount with every slow exhale that breathed the substance he had created out of him. As the res grew it stretched further from Eryss, the Mage standing at what seemed to be its epicentre, and rose higher until it appeared similar to be a cloud above all of their heads though he had ceased producing it and now merely outstretched it himself making it thinner, the gaseous res malleable beneath his imposing will which bore down over his creation.] [Amongst the three standing now Eryss was secure in the knowledge that he would go unharmed though he posed a question to both of the individuals standing across from him when he said...”Which is stronger? The Wall or the Will?”...whatever he might have meant Eryss explained no further though he listened intently for the next answer as surely that might determine what he did.]

[Shai]

She practically cooed at Antar, “Never assume docility is a mark of inaction. Especially in a woman. I am almost disappointed, but then again your . . . condition does provide you such allowances.“ The condition she referred to was his humanity. She titled her head away from the rogue and continued in a more annoyed tone, “Do you mean to imply that without your wizardry I lack use to your ‘Edge? It would be extremely disheartening to learn you are so narrow minded. “

Having less than no desire to learn this unnatural art made Eryss’s rebuke more comfort than insult. She kept her stance on her toes, if one of them decided to aim it at her she was ready to evade or run. Survival first, always. She had assumed Antar wouldn’t kill her but she had no such illusions about this man.

It took enormous restraint for Shai to keep from laughing though. Who do these humans think they are? Or maybe they’re trying to be clever? No azo could ever command a Symenestra in her web. And as sure as the night was dark all webs belonged to her delicate race. Perhaps, this was a hand to keep to herself; hidden and woven in her own claws. Let the men believe they had her under their control, let them assume she wouldn’t supplant their feeble authority. She was no one’s supplicant. Shai had no true designs on running a gang or even having power over these men, but this idea of her being prey would be dispelled. If she played properly their notions would vanish long before they realized it.

Cautiously watching the noxious looking mist spew from the mage was unsettling. This was more or less exactly why she wanted nothing to do with magic. But she managed to drag her attention away from the spectacle as he asked her a question. It was almost a riddle, the spider sharpened her mind on such things since she was young. Her eyes focused on the man again, running the length of his figure in quick calculating jerks before resting on his face. The purple gaze began to glaze and roam far out from the current situation as her mind raced through the presented question.

‘Wall or will? Who’s will? What kind of wall? Mortal will seems the most relevant. Does he mean a magical wall or a physical wall? I cannot counter a magic wall but there are weaknesses in all things and a physical wall is no real barrier to me.

Does he imply to break? A will is simple to break with finesse and a wall is simple to break with brute force. Each is more difficult when tactics are switched. I could break a will more surely than I would stand a chance against a wall. But I could also bypass a wall with ease where a will might stand a firm obstacle.'

The answer hit her after only a few heartbeats. Shai gave her answer to the mage with clear ring of confidence. “Neither is the most appropriate answer. To resign one to higher strength implies a distinct lack of regard for the other. Underestimation almost inevitably leads to failure. I do not fail. ” Taking a beat the spider continued, “I can shatter a will but not a wall. A wall in my path will not slow me where a will could. Both are equally difficult to different people.”

[Antar]

Shai's body language in his arms told of her attentions to his and Eryss' words, "Good, you've realized the first test of mine at least though Shai, I'll tell you now: I hate a woman who is supplicative to another's needs . Though if Eyris accepts your answer remains to be seen."


Letting Shai go to stalk a few paces from them both, he spoke as he began to summon his djed again. This time directing the strands of fabric to wield a shield around himself. He had set his strongest shield about shai's cloak, the one thing he could do to protect her bones if her frail body was to be pummelled, though in truth he knew Eryss would be able to tear through the protective wards as easily as an child tore through tissue paper which wrapped their gifts. "I think you will understand though, our purposes of what I meant are beyond the races we come from. No, I at least have no illusion that you are not deadly in your own right Shai.You've proven that to me when you helped me kill an assassin of the highest caliber. You helped me hunt him down, despite the various problems we faced. That is what the Crimson Edge is, at least to me, all of us are hunters in our own way. Hungry for something better, striving to perfect ourselves along our own course, but it will be up to you my dear to prove you are a hunter in your own method. My comments about shielding are simply a way I see you could improve, as well as myself. Did you know that shielding allows one to block dangerous magic, or in better practicioners can stop the strike of a heavy mace or weapon if set up right. Don't consider my suggestion to Eryss about what you might learn based on my say - so. Test him yourself. Try to strike him with your fans, cut him with your claws, and see the results."

Bending his will, filament strands of pure djed began to weave themselves about both his guantlets as drivulets of Res weeped from the cuff links to form another sphere beneath his hands. Pressing his palms to the earth, he began to infuse the soil with Res, creating a leaping snake or tractored earth about a hand and a half thick, his mind concentrated upon the inner core of Res to set it alight as he had seen a vanthan woman due so long ago.

From inside the earthen snake as he kept layers of padded Res between the core and the drug sand which formed against its making, small lines of magma could be seen dancing between the cracks in the earthen shell as he moved it about himself like he was playing with a pet. Bits of molten rock dripped to the ground as he would keep it there, plunging in and out of the earth like a leaping dolphin until he spared a glance up towards Eryss.

Looking at his master, Antar nodded to the man, and continued, "This woman assisted me in dealing with a threat from my old life yesterday Eryss. A threat which may have me depart next season, or the season after for some time before my eventual return. Hopefully by then I will have gathered enough skill and a war chest to begin forming the Guild we all seemed to have desired. Shai shows promise, judge her for yourself. She seems to only accept the merits of that which she cannot overcome. But," He paused a moment to stress his next words." I ask that you do not break her. She is far too valuable for her mind then her physical form. If she does not align with us, then others would soon attempt to take her for their own."

[Eryss Waldu]

[Apparently Shai thought hard on how to answer the question that Eryss had posed to her when the reality of the situation was that she should not have spared it a second thought. Ironic that so many looked for some hidden meaning behind questions posed to them as though they were some riddle when the truth of the matter was often that the simplest solution was most often the correct. No matter though. While Shai considered her answer Eryss would have intentionally remained tight lipped as to the implications of what he had told. Listening to Antar too the Mage would have let his head tilt in the direction of the Rogue so that he knew he had more of his attention while he described how Shai had assisted him in overcoming a threat.] [Nodding his head once Eryss would have replied to Antar by saying...”Then she must have some merit. I doubt any threat to you would be something inconsequential Antar. You are quite talented after all. Skilled. A quick learner.”...the Mage didn’t mind offering praise to the Rogue it appeared though Antar should know by now too that it didn’t come for free. Indeed Eryss was sizing Antar up, his display combining both fire and earth having not been unnoticed, and though he understood the man was still his lesser in the magical arts he did admit that Antar might one day surpass him though when that time came it would be in the far future.] [Eyes wandered towards Shai once more when she finally gave her answer and Eryss, unimpressed, would have said...”Pathetic.”...before glancing back towards Antar and conceding, or at least compromising, with his wishes when he said...”I will not break her. If she does as she is told.”...then he was looking back at Shai who, even though she was likely unable to see his face, would feel his malicious gaze on her. “You considered the question wrong. Will is always the most powerful of the two because without it you cannot build a wall or break one.”...a small piece of rhetoric that the Mage decided to impart on Shai before the lesson began as it seemed he would take the request of Antar under advisement tonight.] [With control over the cloud of res still hovering overhead maintained Eryss would quietly command it to flow back towards him where he would combine it with the other discipline he was schooled in. Shielding and Reimancy. It’s not a stretch to believe that a man might combine the two to potent effects though it wasn’t a topic of open discussion most of the time. Eryss himself had done so only on rare occasion seeing as how it took time to reach a level sufficient enough to be able to wield both magic’s to such a degree.] [As the res flowed back towards Eryss he would begin to erect a Shield. It could have been done instantaneously now but the Mage took longer due to the fact that he was incorporating more elements into his Shield and thereby tasking it differently then he would have otherwise. Weaving the basics into a Shield was not an issue, Eryss could defend himself against weapons, men and magic but if he wanted to make a larger impression on his foes he needed to add a little extra, it became a tad more difficult when he designed his Shield to act in a specific way though. Threading the res that flowed back towards him into the Shield built of translucent djed Eryss would move his hands subtly as though he were working with a needle and thread only an Aurist of sufficient level could comprehend as he worked to stitch and suture the res into the Shield itself. Making one design of two different disciplines that would compliment one another. Tasking the Shield against biologics and to react when disturbed by those biologics in a manner appropriate to the situation if circumstances were considered hostile which in this case meant the Shield would react if anything disturbed it at all.] [Once it was finished the Shield, translucent save for the threads of res woven throughout it like thin veins that pulsed with energy, would fade from sight and be all but invisible to the naked eye until they were disturbed.] [When he completed his Shield Eryss, standing across from Shai and Antar, would look at the Symenestra and tell her...”Your skills are useless against me. You cannot even touch me girl. Not from any angle or any place.”...listening to the Mage one might consider him quite egotistical but Eryss was confident in his abilities due to having tested them successfully in other venues, at other times. Adding to his previous statement the Mage would then say...”Now I want you to touch me. If you can.”...and then he waited, knowing Antar would prompt her to do as she was told if she had any second thoughts.]

[Shai]

This was getting annoying, quickly. Somehow the rogue had come up with yet another disposition to put on display; somehow he complimented her and made her into a token to be stolen or claimed in the same breath. And now the shady mage wanted her to touch him? Absolutely ludicrous, Shai wasn’t stupid. There was no reason for her to want to come in contact with the man; he had just oozed green gas and hinted that he might break her. Such characteristics put him high on the list of things she didn’t want physical contact with.

He could call her pathetic if he wanted, she wasn’t getting inside the bubble. Both because she had no desire to and because she realistically hadn’t the abilities required. The spider would, although, remember that he had a logical blind spot which he had revealed in his rebuttal of her answer. Such blind spots might come in handy.

Exhaling sharply through her nose Shai turned away from the mage. The spider stalked right away to the nearest tree. Scampering up it and hiding herself within the foliage. A few rustles followed by a loud crack heralded her return to the ground, wielding a large stick. She had only guessed but it seemed long enough to penetrate from the outside of the shield to the mage.

Shai’s reasoning in this regard was simple; of her knowledge of this shielding ability she knew only two aspects. It could enforce silence and since the mage had spoken it was not that kind of shield. Which made this barrier the other kind of shield, that which repelled flesh. She’d learned in her last encounter with Eryss’s shields though that unliving objects could pass through it. Giving the mage a less than amused glance the spider lifted the stick right through his shield. Offering him a quick jab at his chest she made her point and dropped the dead limb. “I honestly do not wish to be any closer to you than is required. But there you are now I have touched you.”

Stepping back away from the shield and consequently the mage, the spider continued to speak. “As you stated before, I cannot get through your barrier. It would be an exercise in futility to force the physical against the magical. I do not see a reason to waste your time or mine.”