this is Salem, a land filled with magic and maladies. It is a place where witches and their elemental familiars gather, a home to legend and
lore that predates time itself. Yet of all the wicked and wonderful stories the past can tell us of, the most magical are the ones yet to happen.
This is Salem - this is the start of your very own journey. Welcome to starfall
Starfall is an animaga witch roleplay set in mostly modern times. Members play as witches in a world plagued by monsters, where the only safe spots are walled cities. Starfall strives to be a character-driven roleplay with expansive lore and a highly interactive plotline. We want to allow members to
create and look back on a magical journey, and mold the site and its plot as their characters grow.
Unlike the rest of the group, the AEP participants were given a half-hearted and quickly completed tour before being taken to the northern walls and into one of the watch towers managed jointly by coven starwatch and the carablack hoods.[break][break]
the AEP fledglings and apprentices were made to wake up at around 6 am to begin their first classes. the speakers for the class seemed quite happy and enthusiastic despite doing this every year. they first reassured that the group would remain safe and that they were in capable hands. a brief introduction was given regarding gale valley's covens and the salem AEP, and a reluctant welcome was given to silvertongue. the witches sat by whoever made them comfortable, and it was clear to see a little divide among the covens.[break][break] noticing the situation, the head teacher smiles mid-sentence. "you know, unity within covens is an integral part of what differentiates different witches. but unity among them is just as if not more important." [break][break] there was a pause in the lesson as he looked to the chalkboard. so far, they had covered the basic appearances of monsters, different theories of their appearance, the usefulness of different affinities and methods of attack, and others. AEP courses were different for each city hosting them, but it was clear that gale valley defined itself as the most experienced when dealing with outside threats. [break][break] "if you have any questions, please ask"
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task 01: take notes
[break][break] Welcome to Gale Valley's AEP. This will be a task-based event with each mod post furthering the intensive course that the selected fledglings are going through. Each task will grow more and more difficult, so goodluck! [break][break] For the first post, your character is getting up to speed with the class. They have been so far asked to introduce themselves and then sit through a roughly two-hour lecture. What's been going on through their mind? What have they learned? Have they been taking notes or dozing off? Finally, it looks like the class has reached a break period in which they are allowed to ask questions. Interact with the lesson or flesh out the setting as you see fit. [break][break] Your first task is to write a 350 minimum word post regarding the first day of classes. you have 24 hours to participate in this round. [break][break]
elih doesn't consider himself a very good student ( and out there, a professor is inclined to agree ). for all his general pleasantness, the witch is of a quieter persuasion, apprehensive towards novelty and plagued by a constant nervous air which tends to grant him the look of some skittish fawn. naturally, he favours the back of the group, gazing about with wide eyes through the tour, rushed as it is. the day closes abruptly, his mind still whirring, and sleep -- restless, turning, with pockets of blissful stillness -- does little to quell it. it's a little odd, in the way he doesn't quite drag his feet in the morning despite the unholy hour. his eyes lament the fact that they are open. elih ( brain-elih, logical-elih, eager-to-learn-elih ) doesn't mind as much.
in fact, the only source of his unease is the company. not the presence of silvertongue witches, per say, since he's worked with them before, but the general unfamiliarity of the other students. it's a sea of unknown faces peering at the board, and no matter how many times he tries to convince himself that they aren't looking at him -- their eyes are pointed to the front, and only the front, he repeats this internally like a mantra -- he feels their presence like a thousand eyes burning into the back of his skull. he seeks refuge in a seat near one of the few familiar witches he sees; one vera lindt, and a percival grayreme. the former having forced herself into his life by virtue of some odd coincidence, and the latter a partner on an earlier mission. a small smile, genuine for all its subtlety, is offered before classes starts, then his world narrows into three elements: the teacher's voice, the chalkboard, and his own frantic note-taking.
later, it is likely he will struggle to comprehend the chicken scratchings of notes he has made. for now, they are a treasure trove of new knowledge, comments scribbled and squeezed into margins, letters no longer following any set line but curving around those previously written; speech-turned-word forced into every blank space. granted, elih isn't that great at note-taking, because there's an entire splotch of untouched space above which his pen hovers, but one can tell that better spacing would likely have been desirable. his fingers are ink-smudged, though nothing too disastrous of a mess, yet. a pause in the lecture is accompanied by a long breath on elih's part, hands relaxing for a moment; he pauses to crack his knuckles, eyes slowly drifting across the notes he's taken, attempting to decipher and digest. the floor is opened up for questions, and though none come to mind immediately, he twists around in his seat curiously, discreetly, wondering if anyone has anything to ask.
[attr="class","jaricesnowlyr"]we come from the land of
[attr="class","jaricesnowlyr2"]ICE AND SNOW
[attr="class","jaricesnowh"]
[attr="class","jaricesnowicon"]
[attr="class","jaricesnownotes"]@tagged || 497 words
[attr="class","jaricesnowt"]
He doesn't want to be here.[break][break] Or rather, he hates that it's his parents' influence that has pushed him into this course. He would've come far more willingly if he'd been given a choice - but why did the Ashworths believe that everything had to be done by force? Or blackmail? Or sickening persuasion? He hates it, hates the shackles that were placed on him. [break][break] The one thing they hadn't nagged him about for a while was his diligent study. He'd always been a quiet if responsible student, and after the first initial years of screaming over average grades, he'd become an excellent pupil. Rowan enjoyed learning new things, but he disliked his family always watching over his shoulder. If he could have his freedom in this one area, then he could breathe just that much easier.[break][break] However, the exchange program was unlike what he'd imagined. There were so many other witches in the room! There was no way he'd know any one of them. Partially due to his complete lack of a social circle and also because he was, even now, keeping his head down. His dark hair falls over his eyes as he takes quick glances around the room, keeping his face as hidden as he can behind the black curtain of his hair. He notes the teacher and the blackboard, takes inventory of his utensils (yes, he's got his parchment and his quills and pens), and he's wearing some of the better-looking robes that the tailor had made just recently. He adjusts them and picks at his sleeve, a nervous habit he's had for a long time and has never managed to correct.[break][break] And the lesson begins. He's a quick note taker, diligent and neat, and he knows how to take only the key components and write it down. If anything, though, he prefers to take note of as much as he can, and soon, his parchment is full of black ink and diagrams. [break][break] The subject matter doesn't interest him too much. He's fine with theories of how to fight monsters, but he's never been one to actively seek out fights. He dislikes confrontation, and he's perfectly content with just writing and reading. [break][break] Suddenly, it's a free question time. Rowan immediately shrinks into his seat - he doesn't want to ask questions out in the open, even if he does have one or two in mind. He'd much rather ask towards the end. Or perhaps someone else has the same question in mind. Whatever the case, there is no way he'll speak up. Instead, he watches the crowd, searching for an outstretched hand. He sees the dark-haired boy in front of him twist around in his seat, but says nothing. He's slightly tempted to say a hello, but the feeling is shoved aside with the fear of speaking out.[break][break] He doesn't expect this program to be much more than a period of learning for him. It's not like he'll really make friends here, anyways.
[attr="class","intext"]Sima has always learned eagerly. She was always one to seek out knowledge with fervor, because there was always something new and something interesting. She loved history because they loved stories and what was history but countless stories? And the maths based subjects were always just another new puzzle to be solved. This topic, monsters, it was one she was fairly unfamiliar with. When it came to monsters, she'd only ever learned the bare basics and had been much keener to running away than engaging at her level of magic skill. The topic demanded her attention and she gave it. Sima loved to learn. She hated having to sit quietly for two hours. At home, with her family, learning had always been a conversation. It was questions asked as things happened and not after the fact. She didn't care much for this method of teaching, but she kept that to herself. Excess energy manifested in her legs, aching and restless. She bounced them through the lecture, positioning herself carefully so her heel didn't click against the ground as she did so. Her hands she busied by taking thorough notes. She wrote down quotes, hashed out copies of the provided diagrams, and put everything she could to paper.
She focused on the lecture, but she also focused on her surroundings. She sat in the back, giving her a good vantage on the rest of the class. She recognized a couple faces as they had initially come in, but as they dispersed for break, she recognized even more. She'd never particularly engaged with any of them, but she recognized them from the coven meetings Leviathan had. And she recognized Tae Bum. She gave him a small smile and a wave before looking away, because she wasn't going to be one of those who latched to people they knew and didn't talk to anyone else. She'd chatted here and there with most of the familiar faces, but one stood out as one she'd never spoken to. She stood up, graceful even in heels perhaps a little too high for the situation, and strode over.
"Hey," She leaned back against the desk next to Rowan's, "I'm Sima. What's your name?" Rowan looks so small at their desk, shrunk back and trying to attract as little attention as possible. They'd been like that throughout the lecture. You certainly don't look happy to be here."
Post by Charani Petrov on May 15, 2017 21:53:20 GMT
[googlefont=Roboto:300,400,900] [nospaces]
[attr="class","jartox"]
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[attr="class","jartoxlyr"] Although my heart is falling too; I'm in love with your body
[attr="class","jartoxpost"] The air felt strange with all these young witches around. There was an unspoken tension that even the teachers felt the need to comment on. It was this general unease of being around the likes of those kinds of people. The Silvertongues. Filthy murderers who spats on the name of everything that was sacred and pure in this magic filled world. It was like they wiped their butts with a sacred scroll or grimoire and decided to burn it before dumping the ashes into a landfill to crush and burn again. But he wasn't biased at all. [break][break] Charani wasn't stopped from the task at hand though. He was a smart kid and knew this fog of unpleasantness wasn't going away. He had to simply adjust and try to let it effect him as little as possible so he could learn the most he could from this exchange program. The guy who was talking for most of this seemed to be super knowledgable about monsters and fighting. It was something he only knew a little about and it was very fascinating to him. [break][break] The brunette took ample notes as the man talked; his handwriting dipping on and off in how good it was. None of it was illegible but some of it leaned more towards the typical messy boy writing... mostly the stuff he was super interested in because he really wanted to make sure he got every syllable down the guy said. [break][break] It didn't seem like about two hours had passed by the time the man was ready to have a break. Had it really been that long? Time sure flew when you were having fun... or learning about monster theory and applications of affinities in monster based combat. You know cool stuff. He really wanted to pick the guest speaker/teachers brain about monster theory. He didn't want to be the first nerd to ask a question though and look like a total dweeb... not that he wasn't but still! "I have a question!?" he hummed raising his hand as he assumed was usual. It was like being in school again. "Monsters... you said there were more than one theory about how they came to be right...? Well... which one do you think is the most plausible?" I mean sure there was probably one theory that stood out more than the rest. One that people thought was true but he had to know. He was a curious child. He didn't seem to be paying attention to any of his classmates really. He was here to learn after all.
[attr="class","jartoxtag"]@class people [break]being a pure child
[attr="class","jaricesnowlyr"]we come from the land of
[attr="class","jaricesnowlyr2"]ICE AND SNOW
[attr="class","jaricesnowh"]
[attr="class","jaricesnowicon"]
[attr="class","jaricesnownotes"]Sima Pahlavi || ahhh be easy on my poor baby
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Rowan flinches at the sudden voice nearby him. He glances to the side, noting dark hair and skin before his eyes are cast downward again. He breathes for a second, counting mentally before turning to face her fully, tucking his long black hair behind an ear. A stray lock remains over his forehead.[break][break] "Sima," he says, feeling the shape of the word on his tongue. He hesitates for a second before answering. "I-I'm Rowan." Hey, at least he doesn't have to give out his last name. He hated all the implications it gave and frankly, he wished he could be rid of it.[break][break] He notes Sima's words and hunches his shoulders forward. "Oh, no, I... I'm happy to be here," he says with a sigh. He does take pleasure in being away from home, but...[break][break] He gives another sigh and his posture, so taut before, relaxes by only a fraction. He looks up at Sima's face, focusing his eyes on hers. "I'm just .... not great with people," he says, waving his hands about aimlessly. There's a tinge of hopelessness to his form, but it's because he has no courage to talk with others. He can converse, yes, but he's never been one to start a conversation if he can help it.[break][break] His palms open and close in his lap as he searches for something to say. He glances up, distracted by one enthusiastic student before turning away again. He remembers now - he's seen this girl around the coven. He's never talked to her but ... he's already tensed again, ready for any sort of rebuke or remark. Surely she knows he's an Ashworth...[break][break] "And you?" he asks quietly. There's a sour sharpness to his next words. "I suppose you're having a grand old time."
Unsurprisingly, Isadora was a morning person. Well, to be fair, she was more of a what-is-sleep person, but the thought suited her just fine. She had woken up at five to enjoy an hour of permitted silence before the groaning and the compliance and the talking between others had begun. Isadora clung to the shadows of her group in Silvertongue, wearing one of her cloaks to shield from people who might recognize her face.
Because, after all, conversations were only welcome when she was the one to initiate.
She used only her first name for her introduction, sitting down quietly nearby a window-- shielded from the rest of the class by a wall of familiar faces. Not like that wall was particularly thick, but at least she could concentrate without feeling the ire of the helios knights breathing down her back like a stench that couldn't be washed away.
At the whole unity between covens she found herself quietly rolling her eyes and then sparing a glance at Rodie, only to shift her focus back to her notes. Questions, huh? She didn't have any. She wasn't ambitious enough to think that she'd be fighting against monsters, or do anything recklessly heroic such that she'd find herself in such a precarious situation where she'd need to.
You can't go out of your depth if you never stray from shallow waters, after all.
That being said, the casual calmness with which the instructor explained the dark creatures, the rabid monsters that could tear down whole villages (or, she thought bitterly, a whole group of traveling merchants--oh,) caught her in a trance. She felt excitement bubbling inside the bottom of her gut. A sudden thrill...
Yes. If there was any reason in the future that she'd put these new learnings to use, it would be to feel the excitement. Because saving people wasn't a job for anyone. The idea itself sickened her. The buzz of the class went through one ear and out of the other as she thought. She'd be more likely to attempt to save a museum than other witches. And even at that, she'd more likely be home alone, eating a delicious chocolate truffle.
Her eyes glazed over. She was staring into her notes (perfectly kept, down to the very last margin and designed header). She took her quill and quietly began doodling, only half-aware of what she was doing, her form begging for a call back to reality.
I know the feeling Of finding yourself stuck out on the ledge
tag: @tagger
notes: squints
words: xxx
give it one more try to a lullaby And turn this up on the radio
It’s early. Far too early, she thinks, to be called anything resembling a human hour. Thankfully for her sanity and peace of mind, there is this glorious invention called caffeine - the liquid of gods, truly - with around three cups worth of coffee running through her veins, Ling finally feels alert enough to function, to go to class and actually learn as opposed to staring blankly at the board.
She's actually one of the first people into the room, immediately situating herself in the front of the classroom where she has a very good view of the board. Not so much a good view of all the other students, but dammit she's here to learn, socialising can wait till later. There aren't that many people she recognises really - there's a dark-haired girl she's fairly certain is in her coven, a dark-skinned guy Ling knows is in Jester's Den, a guy she remembers pranking, Percy the really cute, and... there's Vera. Waving at the older girl, Ling opens her mouth to greet her, only for the first teacher to choose that time to walk in.
Notebook, notebook number 2, sketch paper, pens and quills - all her supplies arranged neatly on the table become a scrambled mess within the first five minutes of the lecture. One notebook for the actual notes, one for ideas on how to alter the strategies of different affinities to suit runes, sketch paper for actually doodling out array ideas - her writing rapidly degenerates into shorthand scrawl, and what little corner of her mind not occupied with listening or writing dearly hopes no one will be looking at their notes. And then... suddenly the lecturer stops in mid-sentence, abruptly halting the torrent of information that has temporarily become her world.
Ling's brain stalls at the unexpected quiet, her hand still automatically sketching out the last links of a potential rune array. Questions? Yes she has heaps but-
Before she regains her balance, someone else speaks up, asking about the most plausible theory regarding monster formation. Mm... not the question she would have asked - then again, probably more useful given all the questions she has center around her own affinity - but still interesting nonetheless. Ling settles back to listen to the teacher's question, only barely sparing any attention for the rest of the class. made it /o/
Post by percival grayreme on May 16, 2017 2:06:20 GMT
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[attr="class","ninety"]
[attr="class","joker"]
[attr="class","game"]
Vera Lindt & elih kartal pls bear with percy. he wants his cookie cupcake I mean smh, once you post, vera
[attr="class","kikan"]
“
Percy is ecstatic. He loves being in this class. All day he is a bright sun chatting away questions and being curious about things. This is an annual event? Then why I didn't get to join last year? What was I doing? Who pioneers this exchange program? How long has this been going on? So many questions, so little time!
The day passed in a blur, and Percy tried to enjoy every second of it. In the tour, he tries to socialize as much as he could, but eventually in class he finds himself in the comfortable company of Vera and Elih. Oh boy, he is glad to meet the two again. Elih is still the same, quiet, nervous, the kind of hanging-out-in-the-back guy. And Vera is still the pretty alchemist who tolerates his dramas. Perhaps she has cupcakes with her? She owe him a cupcake, and Percy isn't about to let go of that opportunity.
He has to admit, though, that sitting through a lecture is not really his thing. He wants application, he wants the real thing. Today he just wants to use a scroll and experiment with techniques. He finds the class boring. Usually only a quarter of the class is used for the actual lecture. The rest is made up of the lecturer's own sob stories, or jokes, or shushing the class for too much noise. Percy looks at his own notebook, and flips the pages. So far he had filled two pages back-to-back. He is pretty satisfied with that, as he had jotted down the most essential of the class. He only half-listens through the rest of the two hours, instead he opts to chat away the remaining time.
He turns to Elih, who is currently writing notes. Seraph croons in his head, and Percy agrees with her. He probably should not bother him... until break time is announced. Percy stretches, joints creaking, before speaking to the fellow quietly looking around.
"Elih," he says sadly, eyes drooping and lips pouting just for the act. "The lecture is boring. Do you think we'll be in for a battle simulation? I say that'd be awesome, because we get to apply what we learned just now. I honestly can't take more of these lectures, they are the bane of my existence."
Just like his good, intriguing companion, Roderick Adler was an early morning riser. He woke with the birds and often sung with them as a child. It was nice to have birds chirping and socializing at your open window. Alas, those times of simple innocence were well behind him and early morning was merely a time where his eyes were open and he got ready. Mundane and easily forgotten as the days bled together into nothingness.
Dressing himself, keeping his appearance orderly and neat as his things he carried with him, Roderick had momentary comfort with other Silvertongue’s around him. He didn’t bother hiding his own face with his cloak, the long white hair and feminine lips did him in easily for those that were regulars for his performances.
Instead, he sat down at a desk next to Isadora’s after a usual, yet eloquent introduction. Some recognized him, but it brushed off him. He wasn’t here to mingle with hopefuls for his attention. He was here to learn after all. Setting out his things in their proper order on his desk from his quill and ink to papers, his eyes were glued to the blackboard and the instructor.
It was so odd to see them so calm and collected with explaining such dastardly malicious creatures. Roderick couldn’t imagine himself going against one at his current state. Much to weak, only able to frighten beast and men for a few paltry seconds before being flattened with whatever they had to offer. It was bleak, but weakness like this could be changed.
He'll be damned to remain as such and so his paper was soon filled with cursive based notes, diagrams, and little notes to remember. There was much knowledge to be gained here, and he’d save these when finished to go over at his leisure. When things were a bit slow, Roderick’s eyes would peruse the vast amounts of other witches around him. He seldom knew many of them, most were probably not Silvertongue like himself and Isadora. When asked if they had any questions, one young man offered it up while others chattered away about various things.
Himself? Well, he stayed quiet, watching Isadora doodle to pass the time. How charming of her. Roderick had no desire to open his mouth for questions just yet. If he was satisfied with what the others asked, he wouldn’t need to. He learned back against his chair, tucking a long lock of white wavy hair behind his ear. Watch, listen, and wait.
Sometimes, life is a bitch. Let Vera correct that thought as she eyes her familiar in warning: Sometimes, life takes unexpected turns that may not seem very good at first, but it also gives you a silver lining from which to hold on. Such was the case that the young alchemist, her familiar, and the dozen or so other witches present in the classroom found themselves in. They'd been separated from the rest of the Sundial procession, stripped from their friends and family, robbed of the fun of the party in favor of... this class. She just hadn't found that silver lining just yet.
Vera was very close to throwing a tantrum when she found out Alric couldn't come with her to the Apprentice Exchange Program. After all the trouble I went through forging that extra application, too, she silently whined as she and the other fledglings are herded through halls in what she assumed was a tour of the installations. Vera really didn't pay attention, busy as she was fuming over the unfortunate outcome. Afterwards, she'd probably need someone to guide her back to their designated quarters.
Of course, the witch didn't pay attention to the class in session, either. It wasn't like she didn't want to, in her defense. She just couldn't keep herself focused enough, no matter how hard she tried, and lamenting the absence of her closest friends was a distraction all too easy to give in to. Whenever the teacher said something remotely interesting, her mind drifted off to wonder why Percy hadn't come with her, when the topics being covered would have been so useful for his goals. The brunette sighed, feeling defeated. Her eyes scan the room in an unconscious search for something that wouldn't bore her to death—and settled on Percy.
The other Percy, Percival Grayreme, that is. Heat rises to her cheeks, suddenly self-conscious of her actions. She smiles at the illusionist, offers a whispered "Didn't anyone tell Dracula that he has bat breath?" when their lecturer mentions blood-sucking monsters and the unmistakable odor of blood that surrounded them, before returning her full attention to the chalkboard. She makes sure to keep it there for the rest of their class, or their first two hours of class at least. True, the Percy she was thinking about wasn't around, but it was unfair of her to be complaining about his absence when she had other friends present. It wasn't fair of her to waste this chance to learn so many new things that would definitely help her witching career, either.
When the head teacher finally announces they can ask questions now, Vera is quite certain her eyeballs were about to explode from all the effort she was putting into absorbing all that new information regarding Augmentation and Purification and Weaving and all the lesser-known affinities there were. Most of them she'd only known before as either "dignified affinities," or "undignified affinities," and the realization that there really was more to them blows her mind. Even Rune Inscription, Ling's affinity, is mentioned, after which Vera makes a mental note to ask the teenage witch what she thought of the class later. The class' start interrupted their greeting earlier, anyway.
Right now, though, she was dying to go back to the watch towers and pick up some energizing lemon candy she'd brought from home. "Percy, please tell me you remember the way back to our rooms," she says softly, lazily stretching her arms over their shared table. She doesn't feel the need to explain; her conversations with Percy seldom needed any preamble. It is as she turns to face him that she notices a very dark, very familiar tuft of hair poking out from behind Percy's figure. Vera tilts her head to a side, curious, hoping to unveil the identity of its owner. Her freckled face breaks into a smile as soon as she recognizes the witch's face. The witch with whom Percy seemed to also be talking to.
"Elih," she whispers. She can't speak any louder because she can hear a girl ask another question to their instructor just as she does. "Merlin, I didn't notice you there! So you signed up for the AEP, too? Oh, Elih, I can't believe I didn't see you before. I can't believe you didn't say anything before! How are you? How is Hamster?" She's bombarding him with questions unfit for a time like this, and she wonders if there isn't a spell that allowed them to hold conversations between just themselves, somewhat like she did with Fondue, her familiar.
"And, for the record, I feel the exact same way about these lectures. Practical classes have always been way better."
It would be just her luck if the teacher did hear her last comment.
[attr="id,"cover"]
Featuring percival grayreme and elih kartal, with a brief mention of líng lù-xī. I'm sorry my post is all over the place, I had written most of it already when I noticed those last two tags, and I was too lazy to rewrite it in its entirety. Sobs.
Post by elijah silverwood on May 16, 2017 6:40:01 GMT
eye for an eye.
Contrary what most people believed, Elijah isn't a morning person. At the Rooster's crows, he only blearily opens his eyes, tempted to roll back to sleep with a pledge to come to AEP the next day--but the nagging voice in his mind tells him otherwise, and Vesuvia's insistence makes him get up with barely enough time to get ready--a quick warm shower, as well as a bite of biscuits and eggs. With no time to spare, he shrugs on a jacket over a pressed white t-shirt and is out the door within thirty minutes. He's not late, but he's not quite early, either.
He spots his group almost immediately; beelining for the spots next to Isadora and Roderick. They should understand that conversation isn't needed for a morning like this--especially Isadora. Words uneeded, Elijah gratefully settles himself behind Isadora and next to Roderick. He's someone that Elijah knows, but not nearly well enough to form an opinion. For now, however he seems like someone Elijah would get along with.
Slowly, as the morning passes, Elijah finds himself more and more awake. It's interesting to hear about the different theories; origins on monsters, from their anatomy to history of ravaging whole villages and wiping them off the map. Sloppy handwriting finds itself scribbled along the lineless notes, and he finds it to be a nearly illegible scrawl by break time.
He's eager to ask questions, raising his hands high in the air as he does, prodding deeper into the topics of monsters and their behavior. Elijah has always treasured education; if he could spend his whole life learning, he would. (Of course, it would be nice if he didn't have to wake up at 6am everyday.) And every so often, his eyes drift down to see Isadora's scrawl of paper, careless drawings dotted across the page. His eyes flickered to Roderick, seeing as he watches Isadora doodle, and he can't help but wonder if the rest of the class notices how casual Silvertongue can really be.
Even he can feel his attention slowly drifting away, enraptured by Isadora's mindless doodles. It's like the saying--birds of a feather flock together, after all.
Ahh, finally. Zari had no problem getting up early to start the day, considering how she barely slept the previous night. New town, new faces—how could anyone sleep after all that excitement? Thankfully, she was used to running off the minimum amount of shuteye, and the speakers' enthusiasm certainly helped the poor girl stay engaged and focused. Taking a seat in the front row should lower her chances of slacking off.
Plus it made her look good.
Aside from actually learning something from this experience, there was a secondary objective of making sure everyone knew she took this business seriously. Those teachers are probably writing reports back to the Knights about how all the students are doing. If not, there's always her fellow peers watching from behind. Getting to know the other Helios members present would serve as a consolation prize, at least.
The other covens might as well not exist in her mind. They were hardly even extras in her rise to stardom.
Speaking of things Zari really didn't care about. . . monsters were a fairly dull topic to start off on. Until last year she hardly knew anyone that had to deal with those things on a regular basis. Even with the new career, she almost never left the city, so there was always something more important to worry about. No one worries about a snowstorm in the middle of summer. Why should she concern herself with winning a battle that won't happen anytime soon?
A few notes were taken down because she couldn't just sit there and do nothing. So what if she won't be directly fighting creatures any time soon. Who knows, maybe she would end up in charge of the guys that are in danger. This might be useful someday. Zari spent a few minutes attempting to draw a picture of this giant dog with six eyes that the lecturer mentioned. That ended up being the start of a slippery slope that caused her to zone out partway through the lecture. Eventually, they reached a more official break, which gave her a moment to reorient herself.
Right, something briefly mentioned earlier caught her interest. She made sure to hold off on doodling long enough to write the idea down and circle it in case a chance such as this came up. "Let's see..." After flipping back a few pages in her notes, Zari raised up a hand. “Is there a way we can predict when these monsters will appear ahead of time?” She took an opportunity to adjust her glasses before waiting for the lesson to continue.
Art was like a sedative. It calmed her the way lashing out at people with thinly veiled insults did, it calmed her the way walking across the piers long past dusk did. It was relaxing, and it created a sort of invisible barrier between her and the outside world, like a bubble that slowed motion and muffled unwanted sounds.
She traced patterns that she remembered, or attempted to mimic runes (based purely on aesthetic of course, she was not runescriptor)-- the ink very soon had covered most of her margins. And her impeccable senses returned to her...but her eyes did not leave the tip of the quill. Instead, she merely felt their gazes, like dark marks in her peripheral vision. Invasions of the little bubble.
"You can keep your eyes to yourselves, boys," she chided, a characteristic smirk appearing on her faces as her violet eyes remained glued to the paper. Finally, she finished pulling the last line of the doodle and sighed, putting the quill down and looking from one side to the other, at Elijah first and then at Roderick.
They had met under different circumstances. Elijah was interesting in that he wasn't as unkind or nearly as amoral as many of the other witches she'd met, but he seemed to constantly totter on the fence, never going this way or that. Roderick, on the other hand, was like a kindred spirit. Except they couldn't possibly be more different. The white haired male pretended with his whole heart to be in the spirit of light and all that encompassed it, but was probably further down that morality specturm that she had never bothered to inquire.
After giving both her friends two equally passive stares, she turned her attention to whoever was asking questions.
I know the feeling Of finding yourself stuck out on the ledge
Zari's question was answered easily enough, though the professor wasn't exactly keen to give her the answer. "It’s possible, but not a very viable means to plan on. Our predictions occur on the basis of sensing changes in mana. Familiars can usually feel a rupture seconds before it blasts, and some animals, such as fireflies, become incredibly distressed a few minutes before the appearance of a rupture. It’s hardly enough time, but it can allow us to prepare an evacuation if necessary. [break][break] As for the patterns of monsters themselves, they have been varied and difficult to predict. Though they usually prefer stalking unpopulated areas…” There was a small pause. “Let’s just say that these creatures are dynamic and evolving.” [break][break] And then came Charani’s question. Ah, young folk and their curiosities…. [break][break] The professor gave the male a look before frowning. [break][break] "All are dark and difficult to consider..." [break][break] And yet, he was not someone who would deny anyone knowledge, for that would be against the principles he had hemmed himself by. Eventually, the promising fledglings before him would come to discover the dark and twisted truths of the world, whether he aided them or not. Eventually, they would come to discover what was popularly accepted among scholars, and either accept or deny the fact. [break][break] "The most probable theory, in my opinion, is Master Zared's." [break][break] It was the first one he had gone over, and the one for which he had given less details. The theory, of course, was simple: in the same way in which witches were born-- their familiars emerging like novas of infinite energy from the inner strata...that was how the antimas, too, came to be. Unable to be contained within the inner strata, energy burst out at intervals in what is now known as 'ruptures.' But, unable to latch itself to a host capable of containing that mana, the nova collapsed in on itself, behaving in a contradictory manner to all the laws of the world. And from that, illogical creatures of darkness and fear were born. [break][break] He had explained the theory well but had glossed over its implications. After all, young minds ought to wander. [break][break] After the uneasy answering of this question, the students began to wander and mingle with each other, and many of his assistants left the room to start preparations or eat. Which was good. They'd need a break for the next session.
[break][break] x [break][break] After a while, the professor called the students to attention again and smiled patiently at the suppressed groans of boredom.[break][break] "Now that the background has been completed, you all must have understood the most important takeaway. The key to fighting against these creatures is to be prepared and to be strong. And to strengthen yourself-- in terms that go beyond simple book knowledge and continuous practice, there is one factor that is key. Your pool of mana, and your bond with your familiar."[break][break] He began drawing on a small board in front of him, and the drawings appeared magically on the chalkboard behind him. The first diagram was that of an upright cylinder, the top-half opened like a lid.[break][break] "This is what, unfortunately, you have been imagining your pool of mana to be, this is what you have been thinking your source of energy looks like." He drew a small glowing sphere at the bottom of the cylinder, a small way to refer to a witch's 'source of power.'[break][break] "I'm going to ask you to wholly re-think that visualization."[break][break] Upon the snap of his fingers, the chalkboard cleared itself.[break][break] Another cylinder appeared, except this one was on its side, both ends opened like lids. And the 'source' was drawn at the center, position as though distorting the cylinder to an hour-glass-like shape.[break][break] "The only way to increase your pool of mana, is the also the way to stretch a rubber band. Mana, itself, is a two-way street. And you and your familiar hold the key to its gates."[break][break] "When a familiar is first summoned, it shares a bit of its mana with its witch, a bit of its energy, thus forming the pool of mana. The key to growth, the key to change, is to expand that pool of mana, to tug at both ends. [break][break] And witches, mind you, have different ways of achieving this. Through talking, through arguing. Through acting together, or doing 'distance stretches.' Different communities have approached this matter in different ways, but here in Gale Valley, we believe there is no better way to stretch a mana based connection than with mana itself. We don't have as regular duels or tournaments compared to other cities, but instead, encourage our apprentices to spar...with their own familiars.[break][break] The bond between familiars and witches grows stronger as a witch advances. So to increase your strength, you need only look to your partner. As fledglings and apprentices, there is always a part of the familiar you have yet to discover, or yet to master."[break][break] The professor coughed, and one of his assistants took over. A young, bespectacled girl spoke in the manner of some kind of military official. Monotonous, precise, and unquestionable.[break][break] "We will be taking you further north, to the outposts. Different rooms have been designated for different familiar sizes and attributes. You should be outside of city bounds so no existing regulations will be in place. Meals, water, and other necessities will be provided by a group of instructors patrolling the corridors. Call them in case of emergency. [break][break] You have until 8’oclock, the day after tomorrow. Goodluck.”
[break][break] Gale Valley’s secret to powerful witches seems to be powerful bonds between the witch and the familiar. Fledglings have been given two days in a specialized room to discover and understand their partners better. And the instructor has prompted the most age old method of learning-- a very hands on approach.[break][break] You do not have to respond with two day’s worth of events, instead, you may pick a simple scene or moment in this training and write 450 words addressing the issue at hand.[break][break] What kind of things does your duo not know about each other? What differences do they have and how far are they from overcoming them? Who is the victor in their little spar? Please take this prompt in any way you can, and have fun with fleshing out the setting and result of this training! Goodluck. You have 48hrs to post for this round.
