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 Posted: Tue Apr 24, 2012 11:34 am
Dio had never before experienced something so... disorienting, or disturbing, really. The Athan man had grabbed his stone. It wasn't something that he'd ever had happen to him before, and if he was totally honest, it wasn't something he wanted to have happen again. Having someone reach out and grab the center of your being was freakishly unsettling. Couple that with the fact that reality warped around him for a moment or two and he was pretty sure that he was glad he didn't have to deal with magic on a regular basis.
It wasn't long, however, until Dio's natural curiosity took over. His multicolored head swiveled around and his visible eye was round as he took in his surroundings quickly. He'd never seen anything quite like it before. The comforting chatter of his constant companions was still in the background. He might not want to admit it, but that was probably what calmed him down the most. The black fiend never wanted to lose them again.
He instinctively moved back over to Red and moved to wrap an arm around his waist. Dio was terrified for him, and listening to the Athan man it sounded like there was more magic in the making. He tilted his head toward his best friend before fixing his gaze on the man in front of them. 'I can help him wherever he needs to go. I'm not that tired yet.' He was exhausted from dragging Red halfway across the city, but he didn't care. Dio would drive himself into the ground if it meant Red would be okay.
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Posted: Tue Apr 24, 2012 6:00 pm
Red really did not care much enough current conditions - but then, when had he ever ? But before he could manage to form some sort of witty (or not) retort, well...
The world turned highly, highly uncomfortable, and had he actually had a stomach, he could have sworn that it had just tried to switch places with his brain. The feeling of someone grapping his stone was... not something he wanted to feel ever again, for once.
Had it been in a better condition, and had it not been Athan doing it, someone might be missing a wall. Or an arm. Or whatever he managed to grap first. Red could be as much of a smartass as he wanted, but it was evident that he trusted the spellcaster greatly.
Ence why no one was missing fingers or limbs.
While Dio seemed to recover his spirits quickly, Red was a bit slower on the uptake. Which was just as good, really. Made him easier to cart around.
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Posted: Thu Apr 26, 2012 10:32 am
Holicinesh and Athan both helped the two Fiends as best as they could given that one of them was very nearly intangible. Getting down the stairs to the basement was tricky. It was steep, and it was clearly not meant for more than one individual to go down the stairs at once.
Much like the rest of his house, everything within the study appeared to be extremely old, if not ancient. While the rest of the house was meticulously neat in a way that almost made it appear like a museum, the study looked much more lived in. It was obvious that this was where Athan spent the majority of his time.
Stacks of papers and scrolls littered nearly every flat surface available. Shelves and little drawers lined every inch of wall space, including the ceiling. Several of the shelves were sagging with the weight of ancient tomes. Even more books were stacked in piles as tall as Dio.
Athan stopped and glanced around as they made it to the bottom of the stairs. He turned to face the group of people that were now gathered at the foot of the stairway, and suddenly he felt quite stifled. His study was by no means small, but it was his space..
"I will only tell you this once," he told all of them, including his nephew who was staring wide eyed in amazement at all the bits and baubles in the room. The sheer presence of magic everywhere emanating from everything was very nearly overwhelming. "Do. Not. Touch. Anything," Athan warned.
He took a steadying breath as he moved away to face the Seer who was sitting calmly in the middle of a circle he had drawn on the slate floor. The large, perfectly square space was also the only uncluttered part of the room, but for good reason. That was where spells were to be cast.
Hawk stood and drifted towards Athan, instinctively wrapping his arms about the man's shoulders to peer sightlessly at the remaining group. 'Red needs to be placed within the circle,' he said in a calm, quiet voice.
Athan simply frowned and waved his hand towards the circle to indicate that they ought to comply with what the Seer said.
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Posted: Sat Apr 28, 2012 10:01 am
The teenager was horribly worried about Red, but even this didn't override the intense natural curiosity that Dio possessed. His multi-hued head seemed to turn this way and that as he helped his best friend through the bowels of Athan's home. The whole place was interesting, and the black fiend couldn't help but wonder if he had a medusa picking up after him too. That was why Merci's house was as clean as it was after all. Seraph prided himself on keeping that old victorian dust free.
When they breached the inner sanctum, Dio's visible eye widened. It was heaven on earth. He barely heard Athan's warning, and when he did his heart sank. He couldn't touch ANYTHING? Not a single thing? But it was... and there were... It wasn't as if he was a child anymore and would damage anything. He felt a bit resentful that these wonderful things were being dangled in front of him and he couldn't even do anything about it.
Oh... Right.... Red...
Dio flushed a bit when he realized that he'd just about forgotten his friend. He carefully maneuvered him through the room and toward the circle indicated by Athan and Hawk.
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Posted: Sat Apr 28, 2012 3:20 pm
There was at least one whom Athan probably would not need to worry about - books did little for Red's curiosity, even on a good day.
Well, if they were book on metal-smithing... But spellbooks ? Bleh. Useless and confusing.
No, what mattered more to Red at the moment was just what the hell they were going to do to him. Eyes, now only barely glowing, narrowed a bit in reticence but he allowed himself to be moved toward the circle. He was lucid enough to understand that whatever was going to happen, it couldn't be worse than, you know... not existing.
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Posted: Sun Apr 29, 2012 6:04 pm
Athan strode quickly towards Red and grabbed a hold of Hawk's arm to drag him into the circle as well. The Seer didn't so much look surprised as bemused. "I have to open up the ley line. You're going to have to help me," he told the Fiend simply. I lack the strength to lend him my own energy, and I cannot do this alone.
A glimmer of sadness replaced the amusement on the Seer's face, and he simply nodded. He moved to stand between Red and Athan. He placed one hand upon the fading Shadow's shoulder and his other upon Athan's.
"Do you see the edge of that table there?" Athan pointed as he addressed the two that remained. "I need you both to stand behind it, and do NOT, regardless of what happens next, take a step closer or interfere in anyway," he declared with an air of authority and seriousness that left no room for argument.
His attention focused once more upon Red. "Try not to move, and do your best to remain within this circle," Athan instructed. He did not bother coaching the Seer what to do. There was little time left, and he hoped that Hawk's foresight was simply enough explanation.
Athan held out both hands before him, palms up, cupped as though he were making an offering. One by one, runes appeared above his outstretched hands. They were as green as his eyes, but they glowed much brighter. Each one, once fully manifested, zipped off and seared into the chalked lines on the slate floor with a hissing noise reminiscent of fireworks.
Once the circle was entirely outlined with strange, glowing markings, he began to speak in an archaic, foreign language. His eyes closed while he spoke, but when he fell silent they opened again, brighter than before.
There was a great flash of light and wind which fluttered the pages of books. It sent parchment, scrolls, and any light weight item that wasn't secured flying to the furthest corners of the room. The only thing that remained perfectly still in the room was the circle which contained Athan, Hawk, and Red.
Fissured cracks began to appear in the slate, and from those cracks was a strange, misty light that grew stronger and brighter with each passing moment. It appeared almost as though Athan had summoned an aurora borealis to fill the room. The light shifted from Athan's signature green, to a warm red.
The ley line was opened.
Athan took a staggering breath. He then reached to place one hand upon Hawk and the other upon Red, completing the circle between the three of them that the Seer had begun at the beginning of the spell.
The light increased again to a point that was near blinding for those who watched from the outside. Faintly, whispers and cackling laughter could be heard. A thrill of panic shot through Athan, but he remained focused. A few moments more and Red would be restored, filled with energy and magic directly from the ancient ley line.
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Posted: Mon Apr 30, 2012 11:09 am
The black fiend felt a thrill of alarm as he moved away from Red and to the place that the Athan man told him he needed to go. If whatever happened inside that circle didn't work...
No.. he couldn't think like that! It had to work, this was his Red they were talking about. Dio might have been awful for not checking on him sooner, but life without his best friend was just unacceptable.
The teenager watched carefully. He was strangely intense at the moment. His burgundy eye followed every move Athan made. It was as if he were trying to memorize each detail. Dio had his hands pressed against the table in front of him, his body floating close to the ground. He just didn't have the concentration to deal with legs at the moment.
The words that came from the magic users lips tumbled through his head. He would have tried to sort them out, but the sudden flash and horrible wind surprised him enough that they slipped away.
The fiend went from leaning on the table, to gripping it. He could feel something happening, and the enormity of it all was overwhelming. The worry and fear in his gut now housed something else, awe. Dio's hair was being blown back away from his face, and both eyes were squinting against the force of the wind and the overwhelming dancing light in the room.
This just had to work. It just had to. The Athan man would make everything okay.
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Posted: Mon Apr 30, 2012 12:02 pm
Something was definitely, definitely strange. And Red was clearly unhappy with being separated from Dio, but... Well. He figured it was better that way.
Even if he'd been told not to move, well, he couldn't help but tense up a bit when it all started. What the <********> was even going on in there ?! Still, through, he had more self-control than to just dart away, so he stayed put and bore it.
It kind of felt like being shoved in an electrical socket. Not exactly pleasant, no, but he could tell that whatever Athan and Hawk was doing to him was working.
Red's first instinct upon hearing the laughing and crackling was well... to expect trouble. When wasn't there trouble, after all ? Athan's bout of panic seemed clear as day, perhaps because they were so closely linked, and it was obvious that wasn't meant to happen.
And of course he'd left his spear home. Sigh. Oh well. No rest for the wicked, they say. That was fine, through. He could use a... wake up call, so to speak.
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Posted: Tue May 01, 2012 7:27 am
Athan struggled to pull his hands away from both Red and the Seer to break the circle. The current of energy and magic that flowed between them was extremely strong, which was good for Red, but not necessarily good for Athan himself. Hawk, ever since he had been blinded by Doran years ago, had a curious way of amplifying magic to a small degree. While sometimes useful, it was currently proving to be a hindrance for Athan's focus.
Ley lines were one of the purest forms of magic in the known universe, but they were also infinitely dangerous to control. Mortals rarely had the strength or sheer will power to do so. Often, they were unthinkingly consumed by it, as being immersed in it was a bit like being exposed to a powerful, addicting drug. For that reason, ley lines were strictly reserved for fae folk, demons, and other such magically inclined creatures.
There was also the part where ley lines were what separated the normal plane from the demon cities of the Ever After.
Gritting his teeth, Athan managed to free one of his hands, releasing Red. He indicated in a flurry of mental images and thoughts that Hawk needed to let go of him, but for a brief moment it appeared they were frozen in place as though stuck in some sort of quick sand. Neither of them were capable of letting go of the other.
A loud, inhuman shriek emanated throughout the room. This was what Athan had feared. He gave a startled shout as something reached through the fissures on the ground and grabbed a hold of the hand which he had just freed from Red. He was pulled to his knees, and subsequently his entire arm was dragged through the cracked slate. While alarming, the sudden jerking motion that left him with his face pressed to the side of the floor, and his arm pulled somewhere into the Ever After itself, effectively broke the circle formed between himself and the two other Shadows.
"Move away from me!" he ordered, yelling over the wind and noise at Red and Hawk. His free hand raised above his head, and an inky black cloud of shadow began to manifest rapidly about him. It condensed into a perfect sphere around his fist and crackled with green energy.
Athan slammed his palm down flat against the slate with a deafening sound that was highly reminiscent to a bolt of lightening. Residual sparks sizzled where his hand had landed, and he pulled himself free from the fissure. He didn't bother standing back up.
Still kneeling upon the floor, he cupped his hands out before him again, and the runes quickly zipped back up from the floor to dissipate above his now quaking outstretched hands. The glow subsided, the whispers and laughter could no longer be heard, and the ley line closed. All that remained of the spell was the occasional smoldering spark and charred remains of chalk dust.
He was for once quite thankful when Hawk reached to wrap his arms around his shoulders to help steady him.
"I am too old for this," he said aloud, voice slightly slurred.
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Posted: Tue May 01, 2012 11:44 am
Dio had no idea what was happening. Chaos seemed to break out in the circle and it took him only a moment to realize that something wasn't going as planned. The hideous laughter that echoed in the room made the hair on the back of his neck stand up. He tensed and where he'd been floating moments before, he materialized his legs and started to move around the table. The sheer awe was still there, but became totally overshadowed by the worry and fear. His two best friends in the world were in that circle, and something crazy was happening.
When Athan hit the floor, the teenager gasped and was suddenly rooted to the spot. Whatever that was, it was big enough and powerful enough to jerk the magic user off his feet. Dio had a healthy dose of respect for scary things. The warning he'd received earlier suddenly echoed in his ears, "Do NOT, regardless of what happens next, take a step closer or interfere in anyway." The panic he felt warred with the need to make sure he didn't just worsen the situation.
It wasn't a war that had to take place long. The green explosion coupled with the sudden intense sound made Dio flinch and throw his right arm up over his face to protect his eyes. He didn't see what happened next, but through the ringing in his ears he heard the Athan man's slurred voice. The black fiend lowered his hands, and blinked a few times. Whatever had happened was over. It only took the span of a heartbeat for him to rush over to Red and throw his arms around him. The fear of this whole ordeal making him cling to the larger fiend.
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Posted: Tue May 01, 2012 2:14 pm
This was ******** up, even by Red's standards, which happened to be quite loose. One could argue that his mere existence was ******** up, and when that was the case, one's definition of ******** up tended to be a little bit different.
Still.
This s**t was ******** up.
When Athan withdrew, he was left uncertain if he should move or just let Hawk move away from him - he knew that the smallest miscalculation could mean... well, disaster, which was about all he knew about spell casting - and all he really cared to know. Well, that, and how not to get your head blown off by said spell casting. That was kind of important.
One second he'd been more or less stuck in place and the next, Athan was on the floor. He let out a low, mental hiss of surprise and stiffened, all too obvious that he was about to jump into the fray... Until he was told exactly not to do that. Whatever the spell caster was conjuring seemed enough to convince him not to interfere, and he did step back - just enough, though, as he remembered that he wasn't supposed to leave the circle. Could he leave the circle now ?
Magic. So ******** complicated.
But Red had to admit one thing - he knew epic badassery when he saw it. What unfolded next ? Epic badassery, even if he understood jack s**t about it.
The bang had been one hell of a bang, though, and Red looked like he was still recovering from it when Dio finally did jump all over him - Red wobbled a bit, but finally solidified his tail and kept his own balance.
'There, there... It's gone.' He whispered softly for Dio before turning his attention back to Athan and Hawk, clearly unfazed by his current passenger. 'Are you going to be fine ?'
He was used to things being his fault, but not... quite like this.
Then, a pause. '...Thank you.'
Weird to hear Red say such words, really, but it happened nonetheless.
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Posted: Tue May 01, 2012 4:13 pm
Athan stood slowly, wobbling a bit as he did so. He blinked to try and clear his blurred vision, but it seemed to do him little good. He realized that Red had asked him a question, but he was having a terribly difficult time focusing on a proper answer.
He turned slightly to look at his left arm that had been jerked through the fissure lines. It was scraped, bruised, and looked a bit mauled. Nothing serious, but it wasn't pretty. A brief, coherent thought did strike him that perhaps he ought to be concerned over whether or not the creature that had latched onto him was venomous.
'I don't think that beast was, Athan,' Hawk replied as he reached to push the man's dreads away from his face. 'I do not ... foresee you being poisoned. Just,' he paused to chuckle slightly, 'Very hungover after being immersed in pure magic. The scrapes are largely superficial.'
"Y-you," Athan spoke up as he pointed at Red, or at least as near to the large crimson colored blurry spot he assumed the Shadow currently occupied, "All of ... all of you." He motioned vaguely to the rest of the room before muttering under his breath in his native tongue.
'He wants you all to stay the evening to make sure everything and everyone is okay,' Hawk spoke up again.
Holicinesh pushed his glasses up the bridge of his noise and hesitantly made his way closer to loop an arm around his uncle to ensure that he wasn't going to topple over. "Are you sure he's okay?" the boy asked with a look of worry evident on his face.
Hawk chuckled again. 'He's not injured,' the Seer insisted, 'He's drunk.'
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Posted: Wed May 02, 2012 9:02 am
The black fiend slowly loosened his grip on Red. The utter relief he was feeling almost overrode every other emotion.
That was until Hawk said they were going to get to stay overnight...
And that Athan was drunk....
In the absence of wind, Dio's long hair covered one of his eyes, but there was a mischievous light that danced in the visible one. 'Well we should definitely do what the Athan man wants us to. After all he just risked his life to make you better, right Red?' He glanced up toward his friend and kept his arms loosely around him. 'I'm assuming he doesn't want us to stay down here..' The wistfulness was there in his tone. The stargazer would probably have given up much to be able to nose through half the documents littering the available surfaces. Being where they were, however, and given Athan's condition, Dio might be able to slip away.....
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Posted: Mon May 07, 2012 10:01 am
Hungover. Uh. That certainly was new. Not that he knew one might get drunk on magic.
Red was certainly amused, but at least he was trying not to show it too much. Good thing he had no mouth to betray him right now.
He nodded at Dio's statement - there was that, and well... He did not want to go back. Not right now. Not right away. Clarity of spirit did also mean that slowly, things were coming back to him... And he would need to remember and analyze it all. Figure out what had happened and, most importantly, how the hell he was going to get his guardian back.
'Right.' Of course he was not going to admit exactly why he agreed. 'Do you need help getting back upstairs ?' He just wasn't sure if Hawk could carry Athan, really.
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Posted: Tue May 08, 2012 7:41 am
"Shut up," Athan hissed over at Hawk, eyes glowing even more brightly than usual.
The Seer nuzzled against his arm in response, tail swishing playfully despite Athan's growl of protest. 'We should leave the study now. It's not quite safe. Things from the other side could still potentially re-open the ley line. It's unlikely, but a possibility,' Hawk spoke up, 'Oh. And I think, while a very noble idea, attempting to carry Athan anywhere would end horribly for all parties involved.'
The man in question grumbled another irritated sounding curse under his breath as he hobbled his way towards the stairs. His legs felt a bit like jelly, but with his nephew's help he made it up the stairs just fine. Hawk remained close by his side, but he didn't have the presence of mind to complain more than usual. He was at least helpful. Annoying, but helpful.
'Holicinesh will show you to the guest rooms. Just a small forewarning: the rooms move. Literally. So be careful not to get too lost,' he warned.
Hawk turned away to help Athan to his room so that he could rest. 'Oh, and 'Nesh… perhaps you could show Dio the library?' he added as an after thought.
"Sure," Holicinesh said as he adjusted his glasses and offered Dio and Red a small smile.
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