[The Bronze Wood] The Hunters Meet. (Miharu)

[Sturlin]

Pulling both his hands and the Res away from her he cursed and pulled all that remained in toward him. Most of what she had inhaled trickled out of her nose and returned to his hand, having remained within his precise area of influence. The sensation was sure to be a strange one. What remained inside her lungs he converted to harmless air, modeled after the Syliran spring air around them, so that she would not be harmed. "That was foolish, do not do that again."

"This substance is a part of my essence. I must use it to create whatever effects I desire." He allowed a moment to pass while he gathered his thoughts. Honestly he had no idea what could have happened to her from inhaling his Res. Hopefully he had acted properly and she would suffer no long-term difficulties. Several calm breaths later he attempted to clear the incident from his mind for now. He began to speak in a measured, practiced voice. Speaking the mantra which he associated with his Reimancy, he formed the image of what he wished to create within his mind. The black Res within his palms filled up slightly as he replaced the few precious ounces she had destroyed.

"The key to power is focus. The key to focus is calm. The key to calm is peace. The key to peace is power." As he spoke these words the gas cupped in his palms began to thicken and congeal. It was beginning.

[Miharu Mindi]

Miharu immediately snort the black stuff back into his hand and started pawing at her nose as if it itched. She sneezed once, then again, and began rubbing it in the dirt at his feet.

It was as if the entirety of her had been filled with some tangible scent, encompassing and overshadowing everything else. She'd encountered a skunk once, and it was similar to that except it wasn't... unpleasant. The bulk of it faded almost instantly as Sturlin converted it to air, but some part of it lingered in her nostrils. It took her a few moments of blinking and rubbing at it to realize she wouldn't ever get it completely out - she'd inhaled some bit of his soul, and it would linger on the back of her tongue forever.

That's what he meant. Using a piece of himself, she thought, dumbfounded as she watched him prepare himself again, repeating his mantra. Well. At least I don't have to worry about tracking him when I return. I think I could smell him from a hundred miles away now. She snorted once more, then settled her head on her paws and watched him work, dozing a little as exhaustion caught up with her.

[Sturlin]

He repeated his mantra under his breath, allowing it to fill his mind and push out all thoughts but the item he wished to create. In his past he had done things like this for training. The creation of the raw materials of your Reimancy is a rudimentary task which is far safer to learn than throwing firebolts or launching lightning from the palm of your hand. The only way in which this was different was that he wished to create it in a specific shape, which would require a more concentrated mind and a more focused force of will.

He began by working the Res with his hands. Pinching and pulling it he molded it like a baker manipulates dough while preparing it for the oven. The gas slowly became more tangible as his mind and his body worked upon it. Strings of it stretched between his fingers as he clenched them and pulled his hands apart before pushing them back together again. He would roll it into a ball, further thickening it with his will, before pulling and stretching it once more.

Once it had reached a consistency he found satisfactory he rolled it into a smooth ball roughly the size of a grapefruit. His palms did the greatest amount of work, but once they had reached their limit he used his own spiritual connection with the rest to smooth the most minute angles until it was a perfect sphere. Then he gripped it part way between the top and the middle, and squeezed. A neck appeared between the bottom half of the sphere and the top quarter.

The color and slight translucent quality of the Res had not changed, but it was now the solidity of clay as he gripped and pinched it. Molding it with his fingers he soon had two spheres, one small and one large, connected by a neck of Res. Then he began pulling at the smaller sphere until two flaps appeared on either side. The little figure was beginning to take the shape of some strange animal, or perhaps a monster.

He had great experience with mentally manipulating his Res while in gaseous form. The magician could stretch it to extreme thinness or shrink it to powerful compressions as he had done when creating his most recent spell. Altering a more solid form of Res was a different kind of challenge, but one which he welcomed greatly. The tension behind his eyes was visible as the magician bent his might upon the object of his power.

The flaps became pointed and more ear-like as the smaller sphere changed into a crude approximation of an animal. The body, all one piece, took the shape of a seated four legged animal with a tail curled about its feet. Whatever it was, it still resembled some unfinished sculpture than any true creature. Using his fingers to aid where his mind could not and his mind to accomplish what his fingers could not, he continued. "The key to power is focus. The key to focus is calm. The key to calm is peace. The key to peace is power."

Mr. Pickles and Francis had taken keen interest in what was going on. Animals have a way of sensing the emotions of their companions with a keen intensity that is often unmatched by their human counterparts. They sensed that whatever was occurring was important. A stillness fell upon the glen as Sturlin delved the mysteries of his art. Who could have predicted that creation was so much more difficult than destruction. This revelation fell upon the magician like a wave upon the sand, and yet he was not beyond his skill. A difficult task lay before him, but not one which was beyond his power and endurance.

The finest features began to form themselves. While Sturlin had no knowledge of sculpture or of engineering, he did have a deep and loving knowledge of cats. Having chosen such a personal subject he had insight into the curve of the jaw and the set of the ears on Mr. Pickles that a casual pet owner may not. This cat had seen him through the loss of his mother, the death of his father, and the destruction of his uncle. He could no more fail to create a replica of Mr. Pickles than he could fail to breathe.

Res, now the consistency of thick unbaked clay, rested within his palms in the shape of a small and hairless cat. Its head was cocked to the side in a whimsical expression of curiosity. Its ears were perked and attentive. The back was straight and the paws were all visible as it sat comfortably on its haunches, pointed and bald tail wrapped around the side and resting in the front as if paralyzed mid-twitch. A drop of sweat fell from Sturlin's hand into the fur of the wolf laying beside him.

Now he closed his eyes in concentration and focused upon the rock. Of all the rocks he had encountered, a faint pink marble would do his companion the most justice. He worked the image firmly in his mind, recalling the consistency and texture of the thing as he prepared to convert his Res into the physical manifestation of earth. The veins would be just so, the color would compliment it in such a way, that he hoped in the right light one might just mistake the copy for the original.

As he opened his eyes the transformation began. It was not a gradual thing, as was the creation of the Res or the manipulation of it into this sculpture, it was sudden and startling. Something had gone wrong. Perhaps it was the distractions which took place during the formation or the complexity of the rock to which he tried to transform it, but it was not as it should be. Rather than a pink marble which would be the perfect marriage between earth and cat, it had instead turned to black marble.

Among the long list of unexpected results among Reimancers, creating the wrong color of marble was far from a tragedy of epic proportions. After all he could have turned himself inside out or destroyed his mind and turned his magic upon his newly met kelvic friend. Far worse things had happened to be sure. Still, as he looked upon the black statuette of his friend and companion, he could not help but feel a pang of disappointment. What if she did not like it? What if he did not like it?

Sturlin looked toward the wolf to see what her reaction might be, but something obscured his vision. His eyes stung and his breathing was labored. Blinking lazily for a moment he tried to realize what was wrong. Was this overgiving? Had he pushed his boundaries too far? These questions were frantic inside of his now jumbled mind, but he need not have worried. Exhaustion after a difficult casting was not uncommon, and it was not overgiving.

His shoulders heaved as he tried to pull in more air as a man who lived a sedentary lifestyle would after having been forced to sprint. Sweat gathered on his brow, and was running into his eyes causing the discomfort he had noticed. It truly felt as if he had been stacking rocks back in that clearing for five, perhaps six hours. Slumping forward and resting his arms on his legs he carefully sat the black marble statuette of Mr. Pickles between Miharu's paws, and then rested his head in his hand. In a shaky voice he said, "Surprise."

[Miharu Mindi]

With his eyes closed he might not have seen the quick flash of light that heralded her change, but it was cool human fingers that wrapped around his wrist, and a woman's face that peeked up at him from between his knees.

"Are you all right?" she asked, the little statue clutched in her free hand while golden eyes remained on him. "You're sweating, and you smell funny. Like you're about to faint. I mean, thank you, for the gift," she added hurredly, but more as if she expected he wanted to hear it than because she was more concerned about the gift than him. "Do you need to lie down?

[Sturlin]

Wiping at his face with his hands he shook his head slightly, his mouth working for a while he tried to remember what he wanted to say. "No, I just, It's just that I have not done something like that before. More difficult than I thought." His hand groped on the log next to him for some water. Grabbing the skin he poured several swallows into his mouth and then splashed some on his face and rubbed it into his scalp.

It felt very nice to have someone gripping him, someone who was concerned about him. With his left hand he gently patted her hand on his wrist. "I will be fine with food and rest. Funny, the things that turn out to be difficult," he said as he turned toward her and smiled, "It did not come out the correct color." Reaching out he gripped his pack and pulled it toward him, suddenly hungry. Rather than wolfing down more jerky he pulled some fruit from the bag and ate it slowly. It would not do to fill himself up with more salt at the moment.

[Miharu Mindi]

She sat back on her heels, releasing his wrist once he was done patting his hand. Concern still dented the middle of her brow, but she nodded and let him refresh himself as he would.

Luckily for him, perhaps, the way she was kneeling meant that most of her nakedness was covered by honey-colored curls. It made it less awkward, after all.

Now that she trusted him to be all right, she examined the statue more closely. "Oh!" she said, a grin blossoming. "You made Mr. Pickles for me! Now I can keep him with me, too," she said. As if she already had a piece of Sturlin to take with her on her journeys.

Her chin tilted up again, and she narrowed her eyes. "You should sleep, though," she said again. A Kelvic always did make the best nursemaid.

[Sturlin]

The best thing to look at after a difficult piece of magic is a beautiful woman. Sturlin made a mental note to include that in his teachings were he to ever take on an apprentice. Taking deep breaths he flashed her another smile. "Rest will do fine for now. A bit of company, some dinner, and then perhaps sleep."

It did bolster him to hear that she liked it. Little imperfections like that in his work were not something he normally tolerated. In this case he would make an exception. The sweetness of the fruit and the freshness of the water were reviving him quickly. It would be some time before he attempted Reimancy again, but it seemed as though no damage had been done.

[Miharu Mindi]

She nodded, glad to see him reviving, and then rolled up to her feet to go gather up her dress and sling it back over her shoulder. "I'll put away the dried meat, and you can start frying up what's left of the fresh," she said, doing just that. "And then sleep - you may feel a little better after the fruit, but you'll pass out on that log if you don't get to bed soon," she admonished with a smile.

[Sturlin]

They spent the evening with the Horse enjoying the grass while the man, the woman, and the cat all enjoyed the meat. It was a little overdone, but it was not burned. Sturlin was not a good cook but he managed to boil some vegetables for them as well. It was important after an expenditure of energy that he be sure to eat well balanced and nourishing foods to help replenish himself. When dinner was finished they made one final trek to the stream so that he could do dishes and bathe himself of the exertion and the sweat of his work.

With water skins full once again they set back toward the camp and tidied everything up. The utensils and dishes were put away, the ravenous appetites of both were satisfied, and the new friends were able to bid each other good night. Sturlin slipped into his tent after making sure that she had everything she needed, and the moment he was comfortably within his bedroll he was fast asleep. It had been a good day. It had been an eventful day.

As the last light died on the horizon and the world of day had settled into sleep, two flashing eyes observed the campsite with a clinical detachment. Mr. Pickles was pleased.

Thread Finished

[Tarot]

Sturlin +3 Reimancy +3 Cooking +2 Wilderness Survival Lore of Kelvic outlook Miharu +2 Interrogation +2 Hunting +2 Wilderness Survival +2 Medicine Lore of Reimancy Notes: Helping Goss out with XP awards.