Closed Chasing Puddles (Aoren)

[Taurina]

Gas like the breath in her lungs. Liquid like the blood in her veins. Solid like the bones that held her together. It was all about connection, Aoren had told the Ethaefal, finding where the magic had meaning to her and drawing from it. The connection would help her on her journey of learning this magic. This Personal Discipline, as Aoren told her it was called. Taurina had never heard of that before, but she just nodded in acceptance like she had for many of the other things he had shared with her this day. He was the one who was knowing, she was but a student glad for the chance to grow in her knowledge.

Taurina stared at the little blob of res that she had been able to conjure up. It floated just above her fingertips as if it was waiting for her to do something with it. She was almost memorized by just this little bit of magic she had been able to come up with. Though her head throbbed and her mind was tired, she wanted to learn control. If she could just shift it from one state to the next by the time her and the male before her parted, she told herself that she would be happy. That would be enough for her in this day.

Patience was the key. That was what Aoren told her. Seeking mastery of this power blindly, hastily, would destroy her as it likely had many before her. Taurina did not question, she just nodded and accepted. Patience. A breath was sucked in and slowly released. That was a trait that did not always come easy, but she could make herself do it. There was no true rush. Just curiosity and desire drove her to figure out how to better wield the ability she had been given.

“Be patient.. I can do that,” the Ethaefal murmured, more to herself than to anyone else.

Another breath was drawn in as brown eyes once more focused in on the opalescent res floating above fingertips. She wished to shift the res to a liquid, like the blood in her veins. The breath was released and Taurina allowed her eyes to close so that she might focus in on herself. She was quiet for what felt like many upon many chimes as she simply listened to herself. To the steady beat of her heart; the slow in and out of air moving through her lungs. In her mind she pictured her blood moving through her. Usually the thought of blood brought the thought of blood spilling and life ending, but not this time. Taurina thought of it as life instead. A river of life, like Aoren had earlier described it.

The Ethaefal allowed her eyes to open and land upon the site of her res once more. Slowly, she attempted to shift the gel like substance to water. The sound of her own heartbeat continued to fill her mind as she pushed thoughts towards the magic in her hand. It was hard to be patient. To not grow frustrated when things did not immediately respond to her in the way she desired. Taurina did not back down, however, and she did not allow herself to grow overly impatient. She just persisted in willing gel to turn to liquid.

Though it took her many chimes, success was eventually achieved. The sphere of res had gone flat and become like a puddle suspended in the air. Taurina stared at it with nothing short of amazement painted across her face. The index finger of her other hand reached over and she poked it, finding the res to be wet and fluid. A smile broke across her face. One of those rare, full faced smiles that lit up the Ethaefal’s entire being. Her gaze lifted to Aoren as she continued to beam.

“I actually did it!” she told him excitedly, her words containing the same amazement that was set in her gaze.

Taurina released a breath, her smile toning down some as she looked at the puddle she had turned her res into. Neither the amazement nor the excitement faded, but her head was throbbing worse than before. There was a tiredness that she did not expect so early in the day and yet, there was also a desire for more. To create more, to learn more. To shift this res into every form. For those shifts to come as easy to her as breathing was. The Ethaefal sucked in a breathed out yet another breath to calm herself down. Patience, she reminded herself. To be hasty would be to bring about her undoing.

“I am fortunate to have met you today,” Taurina told Aoren as she lifted his gaze to his, “learning more about this.. it is a gift that I do not wish to waste. But my mind is tired from this and from the struggle I had before you came across me. If patience is best, than perhaps my desire to do more should be ignored.”

The Ethaefal sighed and turned her little puddle of res to water that trickled through her fingers to the grass below her. She looked down to her wet hand almost sadly, yearning to recreate what she had just let slip away. Taurina shook her head and focused on something else, the little quartz cube Aoren had created and let her study. She plucked it up off her knee and focused on it again. How she yearned to one day create something so easily as he had created this. That day was not this day, however, and she knew it was time to give herself a break for now.

“May I keep this?” she asked the male before her, her eyes only lifting from the cube she once more held between her fingers after she had finished asking her question, “my wish is to someday practice this magic with as much ease as you have shown me, but I fear that day is long away. So perhaps this would serve as a good reminder. Keep going, but with patience and clarity instead of blind haste.”

There was a tick long pause before Taurina spoke anymore. She was just thinking, wondering, longing. There was much to long for when it came to this. It was hard to resisted the call to just continue on and forget the consequences.

“Is there anything else I should know before we part ways? Before I am pursuing this on my own again?" She asked softly, near desperate to learn whatever she could before they left each other and potentially never saw each other again.

Common | Pavi | 'Thoughts'

[Aoren]

Aoren watched Taurina carefully. Patiently he observed his momentary student for what she was doing. With her brow furrowed in concentration little by little the essence of her magic took shape in the form of res. A small smirk touched his lips as the minutes ticked by and she muttered to herself about patience and focus. He did not interrupt her train of thought nor did he make any outward movement beyond simply following her motions with his eyes. When finally the res took a more fluid form becoming a true liquid. As their gazes met he simply gave her a slight nod of his head.

“Well done. The effort might be difficult for the moment but it will become easier with time.” Waving away her compliment he shook his head. “I was once where you are now. Harnessing the powers at your disposal is no different than learning how to weave a tapestry or how to forge a sword. It takes time. It takes study and practice before mastery comes. You cannot rush it. You must take care with the details.”

Using the butt of his staff to help him get leverage, Aoren pushing himself up to his feet in one fluid motion.

“You may keep the cube. Use it as a means of reminding yourself of the things you’ve learned here.” When Taurina posed her question, Aoren thought carefully for a few moments. There was a great deal more that he could teach her such that it was difficult to condense everything into a single lesson. Be that as it were, there were some things he could still impart to her. They were bits of advice that he wished someone had imparted to him long before he had to struggle through hard learned lessons to know them.

“Be creative. Reimancy is a path of magic that will yield surprising results when you think beyond the basic elements. When you have grown strong enough, you will unlock power over more than just water. As you gain control over the four basic elements you can combine them to create new ones. Earth with fire can yield molten rock. Air with fire can create lightning. Water with air can create ice and so on. Explore, you are only as limited as the limits you place on yourself in that regard.” Conjuring a bit of res, Aoren formed it into a ring with a simple gesture of his hand in a twisting motion. Narrowing his eyes ever so slightly he compelled the res to attract dirt and earth as opposed to simply transmuting it into the element. In short order, dirt and rocks began trickling upward to cover the ring completely. The dirt caked around it and from within the ring Aoren willed spike to jut out from within the dirt.

“Your res can also attract the elements in the world around you. Sometimes this can be easier than performing a transmutation. You must compel your res to do this however.” Flicking his wrist to the left of the both of them, Aoren threw the ring of dirt off into the distance then transmuted the res to earth whereupon the dirt fell to the ground unmoving.

“That is, all for now, I believe. If you ever wish to continue your education in the ways of magic, I shall be in Endrykas for some time. If not there then perhaps you will find me in Riverfall.” Extending a hand to Taurina he helped her to her feet.

“Before I leave…” Reaching out, Aoren moved to place the tips of his fingers on Taurina’s forehead gently. The gift of Rak’keli whispered to him of her fatigue and while he could not rid the young woman of all of it, he could push some of it back. With a smile he opened himself to the gnosis of the goddess focusing on Taurina’s weariness and willing it to fade. The mark on the side of his face shimmered slightly before returning to normal.

“There.” Dropping his hand, Aoren gripped his staff lightly. Giving Taurina a nod he turned and began making his way away from the young woman back toward Endrykas. “Farewell, Taurina. Until our paths cross again.”

With a light wave of his hand, Aoren bade the woman goodbye and made his way back to the Tent City.

.

[Taurina]

The smile that touched the Ethaefal’s lips was light and shy as her work was complimented by the male before her. Aoren was kind as he reminded her that with time it would all become easier. Learning this magic was like learning any new thing according to him. With time she would get better, it would come easier, and someday she would be as brilliant at it as she desired to be. As long as she let the passion to learn it continue to burn within her, she would get there in time. It would just take some patience and practice. Patience because all good things came to those who waited. Patience because haste was a young mage’s undoing. Practice because the mastery was found in the details. No city had been built in a day. No skill was learned in a day either.

Fingertips ran over the surface of the cube she had been gifted. It would be just what he said for it to be. A reminder of the things she had learned and of all she wished to accomplish when it came to her magic. Someday she would be making cubes of her own, but not this day. This day she had to just be happy that she had been able to turn her res from the consistency of gel to the consistency of liquid. The battle would be won in the small victories. One thing had been learned this day and with time she would perfect it as well as learn new thing. New thing by new thing, baby step by baby step, she would get there. It was just going to take time.

Taurina felt like there was much Aoren could tell her before they parted. Much he had to share, many lessons he had to give. Their time was drawing to a close, however, and she did not know when -if ever- she would see him again. The last words he spoke to her were words she hung onto. Words she swore that she would take care to remember for when the time came that she would need to know them. The Ethaefal pressed her hands into the ground and hoisted herself up to a standing position. The cube of quartz was protected by the fist of one of her hands, held tight for safe keeping. Another thing she would take care to hold onto.

Be creative. Do not get trapped in a box. Let the elements learned mix and mingle to create new elements. That was the first bit of parting knowledge Aoren imparted to the Ethaefal. Taurina took it in and she nodded. Creativity was something she had. Well, it was something she believed herself to have. She was an aspiring tattoo artist after all. She dreamed of the day when her works would be on the bodies of the Drykas people. That day felt like it was a long day coming, but someday. With patience, practice, and attention to the details. All the same things that it was going to take to gain mastery with this magic known as Reimancy.

“Explore. Be creative. These things I can do,” Taurina murmured, assuring both herself and her latest mentor that these were things she was capable of.

Curiosity would drive her past the point that fear tried to intervene. She knew that she would be able to do it, someday. Hopefully she would not get in her own way. She had to make sure that she did not let herself get in her own way. Having decided that, Taurina focused on the second bit of knowing that Aoren had to impart to her.

It was sort of like a trick really. The Ethaefal had no idea their magic could do that. She realized that she needed to stop being surprised by what Aoren showed her by this point. He obviously knew better what he was doing than she did. So she was silent as she watched him attract the elements around them with his res and listened as he told her of how it could sometimes be easier to do this than create the elements herself. The Eth’s eyes were as wide as the moon as she just watched him. She found it to be so amazing what he could do. The talent he had was so unbelievable. How she longed for that day when she was at the level he was. That truly was a day to look forward to. She just hoped that she got there. That she did not give up before the day came.

“I will always be willing to learn more to do with this skill,” Taurina admitted, her voice sounding far off as she stared at the spot where Aoren’s res had met with the ground.

Taurina hoped she would meet him again while he was in Endrykas, but she was not sure that it would happen. Life had a funny way of turning plans up on their head. So she did not make plans with him. She just hoped and wished that their paths would cross again. Whether it be here in Endrykas or some place far off in the future. Maybe then she would have more to show him. Maybe she would simply need to learn from him again. Whatever it was, she did hope that fate brought them together again in one way or another.

There was surprise and relief as the Ethaefal felt the pain in her head began to lesson. His touch was gentle as his healing gnosis shimmered while doing the work required of it. When his hand drew back, Taurina still felt an echo of what was left, but the majority was gone. There was only relief to be had and a smile to be given. How could she ever thank him for all he had given her this day?

“Thank you. For everything,” Taurina spoke soft, but truthful, though words would never be enough, “until we meet again, Aoren.”

A smile was given and a parting sign of farewell before the Ethaefal just simply watched him go. Their time together had come to an end for now, but she was determined to make sure the lessons he had gifted her were never forgotten.

Common | Pavi | 'Thoughts'

[Ashka Windrunner]

Your grades have been found !

Taurina

Skills :

• Reimancy +3
• Observation +1
• Socialization +1

Lores :

• Reimancy : Res is an extension of yourself
• Reimancy : Res can be made into different states
• Reimancy : Easier to transmute res into an element when it is in a state similar to that element
• Reimancy : Discipline of Personal Magic
• Reimancy : Shifting res from gel to liquid
• Reimancy : Elements can be mixed to create new elements
• Reimancy : Res can attract the elements
• Aoren : Skilled and knowing mage
• Patience is the path to power
• Mastery is found in the detail
• Taurina : Longs for more control of her magic

Penalties/Rewards :

• Slight weariness that will last for the rest of the evening
• +1 small quartz cube

Aoren

Skills :

• Botany +1
• Auristics +2
• Rhetoric +1
• Philosophy +1
• Reimancy +3
• Teaching +3

Lores :

• Reimancy : Attracting an element instead of creating it
• Taurina : Initiated into Reimancy by a negligent mage
• Taurina : Eager to learn about her magic
• Teaching : Begin with what the student knows
• Teaching : Patience is the path to power
• Teaching : Mastery is found in the details

Don't hesitate to PM me if you think I miss something, and please edit your request to show it's been graded !

- Thanks to Aladari Coolwater for the boxcode