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Epine de Rose Vice Captain
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 Posted: Mon Sep 19, 2005 1:33 pm
INTRODUCTION
I have only heard of these in Legends, on many occasions I have often sought to uncover their secrets without attempting to find them but as of yet I have been unable to do so. The only being that I know who has the ability to perform such a task is renowned for her magical skills and hides deep within the impenetrable forests - I suppose one might also assume that the mages within the conclave would share in her skills but I have yet to stumble upon a being who has such a skill.
If you find one please be sure to notify me!
- Wandering Scholar, "Pudge" THE EXTERIOR
The Abyssal Pathways are the 'stuff' of legends, supreme and elite adventurers speak of them and yet those who have truly entered return with scarred minds. The Abyss itself is said to have seven layers, some are deathly warm while others are incredibly cold - they are said to be torture to all those who walk within them and yet life is still said to dwell there in the form of the unfortunate planar victims that have stumbled upon it and become trapped.
The Abyssal pathways are said to have been created by 'Mephistopheles' but even he is a thing of legend...
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Posted: Mon Sep 19, 2005 1:43 pm
The rather exagerated light show came to a dramatic conclusion as the bright tendrils of energy appeared to be engulfed by the darkness. Absolutely silence enveloped the Elysian as she entered the void, a dark and yet undoubtably empty region of existance in which nothing except that which the creator desired to exist...
Nevertheless, a light pressure was applied to the young Elysians shoulders and she was very gently directed downwards through the writhing darkness and towards the awaiting pits below where a single figure waited, the black robes fluttering within the heat enduced winds generated from the lava and fire pits surrounding the platform of ice in which she stood upon.
Her shrouded head gazed upwards expectantly while her gloved hand toyed with the delicate staff that lurked within it, the orb upon the top seeming to pulse with the exact light that had previously beckoned to the petite Elysian herself.
"I have been waiting for you." The woman called towards the descending Elysian in a soft tone, one of welcoming and yet weariness, "One of the first born and the third I will instruct." She continued, lifting her free hand to release the pressure upon the Elysian to that she might descend the rest of the way downwards herself.
"Welcome, Fiore..."
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Posted: Mon Sep 19, 2005 2:00 pm
Fiore hesitated, taking in the sights around her with a vague dread simmering in her mind. This was not Gaia, it couldn't have been; there was unnatural darkness here, something that slithered over the senses unpleasantly and left the Elysian feeling tainted. She let her inner light pulse over the various bits of strange decor as she floated downward, hovering just above a precarious shelf of ice.
The heat from the flaming pits made a light sweat break over her pale brow, but she maintained her stern expression, inclining her head politely toward the shrouded female while her mind raced fretfully. So others had come here before her, two other Elysians who had not been named. She was the third, but was she the only one still existing?
The Elysian kept the confrontation she felt swirling through her limbs from her voice, staring at the peculiar dress of the woman before her. "I thank you for your welcome." Her voice was sweet and melodious with the barest hint of accent. "However, I find myself questioning my judgment in coming to this place. I will listen gladly to what you have to say, but know that I am already wary of this darkness and, by default, of you. Who are you, to have taken me from my summoner and my familiar? What would you ask of me?"
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Posted: Mon Sep 19, 2005 2:14 pm
Beneath her shroud, the pale lips of the women could be seen creeping into a small smile for she had been aware that such paranoia would have emerged in light of the current events upon the 'surface world' that many referred to fondly as 'Gaia', yet for a time she was silent as she became accustomed to the presence of the petite being and assessed her potential, taking into account what the young one had endured so far.
"I ask nothing of you, you have come here in light of my offer to you." She replied at last, lifting her free hand to lower the hood so that she might reveal herself to the Elysian in the hope that it might eleviate any of the suspicions held by the beings.
The smile still lingered upon her lips and now that her eyes were visile it was evident that they showed equal warmth regardless of their steel like appearance. She was youthful, barely passed her mid-twenties and yet her hair was of the purest whites, evidently long and yet clasped back at the nape of her neck in a rather ornate and yet otherwise unseen clamp - needless to say her true appearance was in striking contrast to the black robes in which she bore.
"As I said before, it is my duty to instruct you in your arts upon this world, to ensure that you grow and mature accordingly - " She paused abruptly, taking a brief moment to glimpse into the pulsing staff head as though calmly observing the proceedings within it.
"Yet I feel it is my duty to explain to you exactly who I am," She fixed her gaze upon the young Elysian again, her features manipulating themselves into an expression of stoism, "Those who come under my instruction and rule know me as the Highlord and Head of the Conclave, Lord and Master of the Arts. A mouthful I am aware however it is adamant that my true name remains hidden to those outside."
"It has been the duty of the Conclave to await the revival of the Crystal and the return of the Entities from another world, upon their arrival to this plane in which they will otherwise be weak for a time...it is our duty to instruct them in their arts and to introduce them to the magics once lost to them." She fell silent for a brief moment to allow this information to sink in before clearing her throat and completing her introduction.
"Do you understand, or is there something further you would wish to know?"
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Posted: Mon Sep 19, 2005 2:35 pm
Fiore's face displayed a small amount of surprise at the speech, but it quickly warped back into an impassive porcelain mask at the final question. So she was to be instructed by this woman to recover her powers? All very good and well, the Head of the Conclave seemed well qualified if a bit intriguing...
"What is this place in which you plan to train me?" She questioned, gesturing to the lava pits and sentient-seeming shadows. "It feels... decidedly unattractive."
She also wished to know who else the woman had instructed, but thought it best to save that particular query until later.
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Posted: Mon Sep 19, 2005 2:47 pm
The stoic expression shifted at the Highlord released a warm chuckle, it seemed that the observation (regardless of how simple they may have been) amused the sorceress. Nevertheless, she eventually grew silent once more and stepped forward, her robes billowing outwards as she approached the petite being until at last she was close enough to touch her, yet refrained from doing so.
"This area in which you now stand is one of the birthplaces of magic," She explained softly, "The second is much less forgiving and significantly more dangerous, only when you are ready will I allow you to enter it." She continued before motioning with her gloved hand towards the roaring flames beneath her feet and then to the peculiar crystals against the darkened wall that pulsated with a similar light to that of her staff head.
"Everything you see here was born of wild magic and of the minds of those that have dared to walk the Way of Perdition." She cleared her throat and lowered her hand to press it to her stomach once more, evidently one of the more traditional and 'polite' poses taken by her kind.
"As unappealing as it may be at first sight, you will learn to love and appreciate it for the beauty of which it holds within it - I appeal to your better nature therefore to close your eyes and listen..." She drifted into silence as she fixed her gaze upon the tiny being once more.
"Only when you have felt the caress of that which we know as 'wild magic' will you be ready to undergo your training, for in feeling and hearing it you will reveal to me that you have the skills necessary to harness and control it's power to the extent that you may wield it to your benefit." She finished, lowering her head in a brief nod before stepping back once more and towards the opposite edge of the icy platform where she remained with her back turned to the young Elysian...
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Epine de Rose Vice Captain
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Posted: Mon Sep 19, 2005 3:06 pm
Fiore stiffened when the female approached, but gradually relaxed when the sorceress showed no interest in initiating contact. She frowned delicately at the suggestion to close her eyes, disliking the wild feel of the cavernous space even when she could watch attentively what was going on around her.
The Elysian released a pent up breath, willing her eyelids to slip closed in a gesture of good faith. She felt her nervousness increase slightly when sounds became more apparent and the feeling of heat wound through her skirts and paid attention to her usually cooled flesh.
There was danger here, thrashing in the back of her mind like a wounded bird with sharpened beak and claws. Still, she knew that the woman was serious in her request and so kept her eyes shut against the heat and the glow, letting her aura bank to allow interaction.
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Posted: Mon Sep 19, 2005 3:19 pm
"Open your mind, allow that which is your birth right to embrace you!" Swinging round, she planted her gaze upon the now still Elysian, her eyes narrowing as she observed the winds that were slowly rising to ruffle the delicate skirts about the young Elysians legs - the wild magic seemingly attracted to the new blood that had now surrendered itself.
"Grasp it with all your might and do not let go," She ordered, gripping her staff more firmly as her lips pursed into a thin line and she disregarded the angry hisses of the flames below as they licked against the base of the icey platform, "Most importantly of all, listen and understand it's words for only then will you understand where you come from!"
An expression of hunger flashed across the sorceress' delicate features, her steely eyes filled with lust as the wild magic within the air congregated upon the platform and around the petite Elysian - the scent and whisper intoxicating to the high powered being as she waited the rebirth of the magics with her newly acquired student.
Extending a gloved hand, she almost seemed to reach for the magics now tearing through the air, her smile growing more fevered by the moment.
"Savour it, my child - for it is yours for the taking!"
These calls soon drifted into silence as the Highlord herself took the opportunity to extend her grasp upon the wild magic and to savour it's warmth as it lingered outside the sphere of power now surrounding the Elysian - the sphere that would feed the young Elysian with the power she sought provided that she was prepared to embrace it herself...
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Epine de Rose Vice Captain
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Posted: Mon Sep 19, 2005 3:30 pm
She felt it there, against her skin, flowing into her ears and nostrils and even through her closed eyes, overwhelming her. Fiore's brow furrowed as she attempted a brief hold, her own, weaker magics fizzling at the contact with this untamed breed.
The Elysian was drowning, heart hammering as she was swamped by the utter force of such powerful magics. She couldn't seem to find a way to grasp it, to make it still and conform to her wishes. Every attempt was like trying to cup water in hands with splayed fingers. It was going to eat her alive...
She physically reached out and caught the swirling magics with her hands, listening to its hissings and flailings. Fiore would not bow down to it, she refused to, she needed it, required to become equal to it.
Please... she wished internally. Don't forsake me.
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Posted: Mon Sep 19, 2005 3:35 pm
The magics continued to swirl around their newly acquired object of affection, caressing the soft skin while intertwining itself around her delicate limbs - in this manner it was both seeking to show it's love and appreciation for her and yet it was unaware of the direct harm it would call her, perhaps this was why it was often referred to as "wild" and "untamed" for it came in no moderation and when it came...it had no preference on whether to kill or heal.
"It is your choice as to what this magic does..." The Highlord's voice mingled with the whispers of the energies around the being, breaking through the sphere of power that seemed to have encased the petite being, "Only you can decide how it must behave in your presence..."
It was an ambiguous statement, but perhaps she was referring to the manner in which other mages controlled their powers - pyromancers, geomancers, hydromancers, aeromancers...they all sought to control the energies in an elemental form. They used their will to manipulate it into a form they most desired...
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Epine de Rose Vice Captain
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Posted: Mon Sep 19, 2005 3:45 pm
Her choice, always hers. Fiore calmed, maintaining a tenuous hold on herself so as not to be swept away in the magical current, and began to mold the magic at her fingertips into something she could use. The Elysian knew little of offensive magics, and so decided instead on something she was used to, something she could understand.
Fiore smoothed and warped it accordingly, hoping that it would not decide to become suddenly less loving and explode in her face, consume her completely. She kept her eyes closed as she worked, listening for any changes and giving the tiniest of smiles while she began to hum in an effort to soothe the torrential forces at work even as she changed them.
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Posted: Mon Sep 19, 2005 3:53 pm
Unwilling at first, the magics fought again her ultimate desire and yet, with each caress of her small hands it began to bend to her will, obediently crafting itself into the form in which she prefered it to take. No longer restrictive in nature, it released it's grip upon the young summon as each tendril of the sacred energies sought her touch...
"Welcome to the Conclave, my apprentice." The woman murmured from outside the sphere of now shifting magics, her expression one of satisfaction and pride at the youthful creature that had taken so little time to grasp her birthright - now it was simply a case of mastering and focusing her art into something of significant use to her.
"Open your eyes and tell me, what is thy desire - for what purpose do you claim your birthright?" She enquired, orbiting the sphere slowly as the base of her staff clicked against the icey platform, the staff head pulsing with each impact against the solid and frozen ground beneath her feet.
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Epine de Rose Vice Captain
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Posted: Mon Sep 19, 2005 4:07 pm
Fiore did as she was bid, opening her eyes to glance briefly at the simple spell of mending she had been working. The Elysian was amazed at how the ambiance of the area had shifted from something distasteful to an almost friendly appeal.
Slightly giddy with the magics' caresses and unerring tenderness, she replied quietly. "I would seek to help those who cannot help themselves; bring the light of enchantment and healing back into a world which has forgotten it ever existed."
Fiore could hardly believe that she had fallen so utterly in love with the magic she had seconds before been afraid of, reluctant to move from its warm embrace. The acceptance she felt was complete and intense, foreign and yet familiar to her.
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Posted: Tue Sep 20, 2005 9:02 am
"Your words have assured me that it is of appropriate timing to bring to fruition this meeting and the initial induction to the arts of magic." The Highlord murmured, evidently satisfied by the reply she had received from the young Elysian as she continued to observe her small form amidst the now semi-tamed energies.
"Needless to say you are inquisitive by nature and this will help you to excel in the field that you seek to specialise in." She cleared her throat and motioned towards the orb upon her staff, the orb that continued to pulsate with the same light that had beckoned for the young summon to come to the strange woman in the first place.
"However to continue to study under my wing you must first return to your summoner and navigate your way towards the Conclave." She continued, "It is for you to decide when you are ready to find us, I understand if you have matters of greater import to consider at present but rest assured we will await for your coming." With that she gave a bow, offering a light smile as she reached towards her hood to draw it up and around her regal head once more.
"When you are ready to return to your summoner, touch my staff."
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Epine de Rose Vice Captain
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Posted: Tue Sep 20, 2005 5:02 pm
Fiore nodded, remembering suddenly why she had been in the cafe at all: They still needed to regroup and recover the lost Elysian. Fury fell over her in a wave at the thought of the fiery crystal shard being removed from the Temple without it's appropriate summoner. "I will rejoin Ourania and Basape now, but I will not come to the Conclave until my quest has been completed. I assume you are already aware of the incident that occured in Gaia, so I will not recount needlessly..."
The light Elysian pulled away from the sentient magic with a sigh, knowing that it would follow her to a point when she returned to the surface world. "... Would you consider lending aid? We know only tentatively what we must do, and I... am not as strong as I could be."
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