wilderlogs | open post --- waver velvet

Entry tags:

open post --- waver velvet

Who: Waver Velvet + Open
What: New arrival type things and exploring
Where: Melai Temple and surrounding forest
When: The day after camp starts up
Warnings/Notes: To be added as required.

1. Settling In
[There was no real grace to Waver Velvet. He was a young man who spent too much of the past week and change flailing through life, being hauled over shoulders and via chariots, and now he was in another world entirely when he ought to be focusing on the Grail War!

With no way to channel the anger appropriately, Waver had found a small room within the temple to simply...well, rant as if Rider were still there, and for once was quiet enough so that Waver could get in the full litanty of what was bugging him now.

Satisfied with the rant-a-paloza, Waver began to walk the corridors, scowl still deeply entrenched on his face. While friendliness wasn't something he was exactly radiating, if brushed up against someone he at least had the sense to mutter:]

'Cuse me.

2. Art critique
With...everything...Waver had taken to walking the halls of the Melai temple, his shoes padding quietly on the floor. It was impossible for him to miss the murals on the wall. Their scale was impressive in and of itself, the color palettes used equally worth stopping to examine.

"Weird how few monsters make more than one appearance in these murals," he said quietly, standing in front of one set outside of a cave. The monster's head was shown to be poking out, all fierce teeth and terrible to behold, whereas a cutaway of the cave showed the greatbeast's body. The spirit in front of it and their mage they...well, they looked like a well matched duo. That particular thought sent Waver into his own thoughts, eyes still locked on the mural.

3. Wandering in the Woods
What would Rider be doing right now if he was in Waver's shoes? Probably something stupid.

What would Rider tell Waver to do? To take advantage of exploring a great new world. Waver knew it, and he personally resented that he could hear the big oaf's voice in the back of his mind, trying to get him to do crap that he had little interest in doing.

It was out of some begruding respect for the giant servant that Waver decided to at least explore some of the surrounding Cedar Forest that was outside of the temple, although he had little intention of straying very far. There was no way he could rough it for even a night.

The kodama were the first things that caught his attention, both in color (they stood out against a sea of endless green), and in their habit. Their movement was unlike anything Waver had witnessed (then again how much had he ever mucked around in the woods or seen an animal that wasn't trained to love city life?)

"...Huh," he managed after watching them for a while. The novelty of their presence masked smaller things, like that Waver had inched so close to them that he had moved into some of the watery bank of the glade and now his shoes were quite damp.

"Oh, goddamnit," Waver muttered immediately. "And I bet this crappy place doesn't just have spare shoes either."

4. Wildcard
Whatever you'd like. I'll match brackets or prose.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"I'm a mage," Waver corrects immediately, and god but is there a haughty tone in his voice when he does it. Never mind that such behavior is why he's...easily not many people's favorite person.

What Waver doesn't snap back about is the talent comment. He summoned Rider, sure, and knew how magecraft worked in terms of mechanics, but actual spellcasting happened to be another story entirely. One that he was definitely not about to share with a dragon.

He decides to turn the tables though. "I'm gonna assume that you actually can do that. Do you manage to hit human form with clothes and everything too?"

"Mage, wizard, they mean the same thing, as far as I'm concerned," Alacruun rumbles in reply. This human is so young - or at least appears to be. He's not a great judge of that. He still finds it amusing. He cocks his head to one side, fixing Waver with a stare, and then settles, head resting on his foretalons.

"Of course. It's relatively simple."

He does not demonstrate.

"In my world, there's a pointed distinction," Waver states. He's actually happy to get into those nuts and bolts, but he hasn't been prompted to yet, and he's far too wary of this dragon to be enthusiastic about anything.

"What are the mechanisms for it then?"

He's noticed the lack of demonstration.

Alacruun rustles a wing in a sort of shrug, "The appropriate gestures and words - the ones that let you tap into those currents of power that exist across all worlds. Easy enough. Here-"

Alacruun is arrogant enough to sketch a gesture with his claws and speak aloud words in a sibilant, hissing language. In a few moments he's transformed into a tall, grey-skinned humanoid, with horns not unlike those he wears as a dragon curling from the top of his head. He's also dressed in worn traveling clothes. He dusts himself off with a satisfied looking smile.

"Simple."

"Your system reaches across multiple worlds?"

Now that has Waver's attention, more than watching that transformation, more than talking to a dragon, more than anything else. He knows how magecraft works and all about the rules of it, he's tried to improve himself and his spellcasting ability enough. But the suggestion of another system that doesn't rely on circuits, that isn't earthbound?

Sign him the hell up.

"Fascinating. How complicated is the system of magic then, if you're tapping across more than just one world?"

"I'm not entirely sure if I'm really tapping into it. Quite a bit of my native magic seems to have been... cut off or otherwise restricted since my arrival," Alacruun admits with a sigh, "My ability to change shape seems to have been limited to this and my own natural form."

He lifts a hand up and watches the muscles and tendons work under the skin as he flexes it.

"I do know that my magic works across multiple planes where I'm from. And that it is... more of a universal constant then anything else. Something that some learn how to tap into innately and that some learn to manipulate via intense study. It's... a part of the world. Like air or water."

"Interesting," and Waver really means it. He rubs his chin, slowly absorbing the information as it has been presented to him so far. "You have a place naturally drenched in magic, so I presume magical energy is permeated through everything, more or less. So you're able to draw into energy that's around in great abundance."

There is detail that he needs to prod at harder though, and being in a more thoughtful mode than he has otherwise been, Waver doesn't hesitate in his question.

"Is the ability to work with magic a trait one needs to be born with, and as such is it passed through family lines, or can anyone access the ability, in theory?"

"That would be a good way of putting it, yes," Alacruun replies, sounding a touch pleased. This one is sharp and seems to grasp concepts quickly. He likes that about him, although it's more of a quiet admiration for a human who can actually dig into magic. He settles down against a tree, arms folded over his chest as he listens to Waver, expression a touch thoughtful.

"There are different ways of acquiring magical power where I'm from. One way is simply through a great deal of study and practice, despite not having... innate magic flowing through ones veins. Another is to have it one's bloodlines, whether because of your descent from some sort of magical creature or some other sot of infusion into your being. That is... less study, more natural talent. Yet another is to commune with the divine - with a god - and have them grant you power. Similar - and lastly - one makes a deal with a much more powerful being. Usually not a god. And sometimes more malevolent."

All of this was miles away from the kind of magecraft that Waver knew and relied upon. The very idea of a world that drenched in magic was something above and beyond what was true of his own home, and as Alacruun explained, Waver leaned in, even more interested and excited.

"Demons and the like I presume?" The concept of deals with devils wasn't uncommon in legend, and some mages did take similar and extreme measures, but to say it was rare would be an understatement. He isn't about to dive into his own magical world bullshit (he hasn't been asked, and in comparison, it's rather embarrassing) but listening to all of this, Waver wants to know more.

"Beyond transformation magic, what else is even available?"

"Sometimes demons. Sometimes higher powers or lower. Or simply other, very powerful beings who can pass on a fraction of their power in exchange for... something more," Alacruun waves a hand. It's an interesting concept, but he's never been a warlock. Even if he has played at being a god from time to time.

"Almost anything one can think of. Although - it can be divided into eight schools of magic. Abjuration, conjuration, divination, enchantment, evocation, illusions, necromancy, and transmutation. As you can imagine, it covers a good deal of ground and can do quite a few things. It would take entire libraries to describe and catalog every spell in existence..."

"Gods and like powers," Waver murmurs. Such concepts and interference from powers like that were uncommon to non-existent. Magecraft was a precise recreation of magic. Whim and whimsy from those kinds of beings? Anathema.

"Some schools and concepts seem to be universal." It's interesting to note what is still there. "Divination, evocation, and necromancy are common. The other things you describe aren't specifics schools for us, but they're present elements in our craft."

"Fascinating. How does magic work in your world? Is it restricted by blood? Does natural talent enter into it at all...?"

Alacruun is very interested to hear about that. Dragons, of course, are innately magical, but the idea of innately magical human bloodlines - that's something else entirely. Especially if they have nothing to do with outside powers. Even sorcerers, as far as he's concerned, trace their ancestry or the power of their blood back to something nonhuman. But humans? Having their own magic? That's interesting.

"Lineage is a massive factor. Mages are born with these things called magic circuits, they're channels for energy to flow through. A mage is understood to be born with a certain number, and those then play into spellcasting ability. Since the ability to be a mage is genetic, there's a general rule of if mages of the same or a similar generation wed and have children, that offspring will be more powerful. As a result, there's a...dynastic element, let's say."

The word dynastic is coupled with a note of distaste. "We also make a distinction between Magic and magecraft. Magic is a genuine miracle, out of reach for most. Magecraft is a precise attempt to recreate that same miracle."

"Magic circuits..." Alacruun muses over the words and then slowly settles, sitting against a nearby tree as he tries to process what he's being told. It's similar but also incredibly different. Too different for him to say whether or not it's more or less effective than his own magic. Or whether or not there's any sort of cross-over that might come in useful.

Which just means he needs to learn more.

"That seems... well. It seems like a meaningless distinction. If one works magic, one is already moving beyond the mundane. There are levels of magical power, I'll grant you - but it's all magic. At least in my eyes."

"The distinction is pretty important for us," Waver counters. But it isn't a huffy explanation, he's genuinely trying to be patient. "But yeah, it can look pointless if you're on the outside looking in, I guess."

He disagreed, of course, but Waver had grown up as a mage. He knew all of this growing up, after all.

"Far be it from me to judge the system that's worked for your mages for a thousand thousand years or whatever it's been," Alacruun replies with a shake of his head and a dismissive wave of his hand, "I don't know your world. Although I'd love to learn more about it, if you're willing to share. Cataloging an entirely new system of magic is a once-in-a-lifetime experience."

And it gives him something to do that isn't lounge around in the temple.

"Collecting such knowledge is a hobby of mine, you see."

"Thousands of years," Waver confirms. The exact number is immaterial, the word thousands is the important bit. But at sharing more, Waver does frown.

"Technically magi are sworn to secrecy, as to share their knowledge about the craft is to lessen it's power. However," was he about to try and strike a bargain with a dragon? Probably. "I'd do it if you did the same. Fair's fair."

"Knowledge wants to be shared. Practically demands it, dear boy - keeping it all for one's self - isn't that a bit selfish?" Alacruun's eyes glint. He's a hypocrite, of course. He's been fine with hoarding his own knowledge. But he's not about to admit that.

"However... you have a deal. Knowledge for knowledge. More than fair."

He extends a hand.

"I believe a handshake is traditional?"

"It may be, but it's also how the system works. Power lies in mystery. To maintain mystery, you can't share specialized family knowledge." Waver's tone suggests that he doesn't agree, that he actually dislikes the concept a little. But he doesn't say so outright. He's gotten in trouble before.

"Yeah, it's traditional," Waver confirms, taking the hand carefully. This is a dragon, after all. Maybe this form also runs hot.

"Dearest boy, I have to disagree with you. Power lies in knowledge. In knowing what words to use and what gestures to make. In knowing what to expect and how to control the world around you. Mystery... is for the ignorant," He smiles thinly, although it's not really an insult aimed at Waver. Mystery is only an invitation to Alacruun.

He shakes firmly, all the same.

"Hiding what you have just makes others curious."

"Again, I'm not disagreeing," Waver points out, frowning and trying not to get too damn huffy. "It's just how the system functions."

It was a pretty stupid function. Waver had always thought that. But the compulsion to defend the system from outsiders, that was new and downright weird.

Either way, he finally let go of the hand, relieved to find no burns or anything.

"And believe me. Mystery usually is less about ignorance and more about families trying to get a leg over each other."

"How petty..." Alacruun shrugs. Which is really the pot calling the kettle black, because Alacruun can and will be incredibly petty when the mood strikes him. He just looks down on humans as a matter of course and considers everything they do to be a step beneath him, in many respects.

"Surely they'd manage something more impressive if they pooled their resources?"

This coming from the solitary dragon.

"Probably, but they don't," Waver huffs, and now he is annoyed. "Believe me, I think it's really stupid too. Probably more than you ever could."

He hated it a lot, in truth. It prevented him from becoming a better mage because families just believed in the same crap that prevented any kind of progress or...anything!!

"Well, tell me how you really feel about it, then. No one's here to punish you for it."

Alacruun is almost too eager to try and pry thoughts out of Waver. Funny how that works.

Waver scowls even deeper. He knows what this is! This is a set up where he's the punchline. He's experienced it before, he's not an idiot.

"Yeah, right. You're probably just going to give me crap for it too when I'm done."

open post --- waver velvet

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