[center][h2][color=9e3366]Xara Travendour[/color][color=ff39d6] & Ashley[/color][/h2][/center]

Unfortunately, Xara was one of the mentioned injured. After his failed attempt to shoot through the porthole, he was left with cracked hips and a nasty case of whiplash. Healing magic fortunately works on such trivial internal wounds, but the soreness doesn’t go away right away. He can still walk, but it hurts to do so and often Xara has to rely on a makeshift cane Tedreus supplied him. He’ll hopefully be better before they land into combat, or his one defensive benefactor, his mobility, will be left completely null. Because of his unwillingness to move or stand, Xara has been mostly sitting, listening to the conversations of the others. 

Xara was deeply fascinated with the mist, and he takes special note of Kathila mentioning that going over and under doesn’t seem to work. Xara tries to reason what probably hasn’t been tried, after all, if there was a person who could figure that out, it was him. He wonders if sea water is what stops it, as after all, it doesn’t seem to spread past the coast line, but how on earth are they gonna use that to fight it off? If it is the solution, it’ll definitely require some shenanigans to pull off. What about dark magic? That lady is a gremory, after all, it is unlikely she knows those kinds of magic, unless she’s one of the few who can access it, but she really doesn’t want to confront her on it, he’s hurt already and she may just get mad he essentially asked her if she was a witch. After all, he knows one already. Xara stands up, hand on his side, going up to Ashley.
[color=#9e3366]“Hey, can I talk to you in private? It’s about something personal”[/color]

Ashley gave Xara the side-eye, but nodded almost imperceptibly. [color=#ff39d6]”Right, let us ignore the well of wisdom before us and turn aside to foolishness first,”[/color] she remarked out loud, her words as dry as the group’s collective wisdom in that moment. [color=#ff39d6]”There remains, after all, [i]some[/i] merit to the process of elimination,”[/color] she said as she gave Troe’s missing finger a meaningful look. [color=#ff39d6]”We’ll be back, I’m sure.”[/color] Excusing herself from Kathila with another curtsy, she motioned for the group to follow her as she began leading them along the coast, remaining silent until she could be reasonably sure she was out of earshot of Kathila.

Xara leans against the cane, trying to keep casual, but seems to be struggling a little bit against the tidal sand. [color=#9e3366]“So what if we try using dark magic on it? Or even a curse? Surely nobody of your skill has tried yet-”[/color] Xara is interrupted by Ashley, as if she knew how he was going to finish his sentence. He doesn’t like that, he doesn’t like being predictable. 


[color=#ff39d6]”I’ve told you before,”[/color] she began sternly. [color=#ff39d6]”I don’t—do—curses. ...If you were hoping for a miracle, you should know that a witch is generally considered a poor consultant for that line of work,”[/color] she helpfully informed Xara, her irritation fueled by many ill-informed requests in the past. [color=#ff39d6]”When working with dark magic, I find it imprudent to feed it more, until I know what I’m dealing with. In other words, what’s fueling these flames? I ought to know at least that much before I go tossing whatever I please into it.”[/color]

Xara sighs as he realizes that they’re now at an impasse. [color=9e3366]“Runes, sorry. Anyway, how do we find that out when we can’t get near it? The only thing that makes sense is the ground itself, but how do we gain a sample? Kathila said magic and flesh burns in the mist. Maybe we can try a contraption of some kind that won’t burn?... It’s deeply unlikely, but it’s not like we have anything else to try.”[/color] Xara wonders if maybe the mist only burns living things, and if there’s a possibility it fills the entire inland, and not just what the mist let’s them see.

Ashley would have been lying if she’d said she wasn’t the least bit curious what would happen if she stuck her Devil Sword into the mist, but her apprehension outweighed her curiosity. [color=#ff39d6]”Well, I don’t know what sort of dark magic you’re familiar with, but the sort I’ve used is fueled by such things as emotions and memories. Use it too much, and you’ll be left an empty husk. It can do worse things than deal death; our friend Troe is lucky to be merely [i]missing[/i] his finger, and not feel it burning constantly,”[/color] Ashley cautioned, looking at Troe rather than Xara. [color=#ff39d6]”We’re better served staying away from this sort of thing. Frankly, I’m uncomfortably close as it is.”[/color]

The young mage looks utterly baffled by Ashley’s words. How can she be so skilled if she can never even use her own magic? It contradicts his personal magical experience, dark magic continues to be an entirely untouchable beast to him, it never follows basic rules like anima or light magic. What does she mean anyway? Does it burn away her emotions and memories? That sounds like a horrible drawback, possibly losing the very knowledge you need to understand what you’re doing. [color=9e3366]“Well, then what are we supposed to do? Go home with news of dead crewman? It seems like such a huge waste of effort to not try, even if we don’t understand how to win this situation.”[/color] As the gremory in training proceeds to look disappointed, Xara’s cane finally slips, causing him to collapse on his side and give him a shooting pain that he would enjoy never feeling again. He is now slightly wet, but that’s the least of his concerns right now as forced himself upright with all his effort.

Ashley pulled Xara up by his collar with a firm hand. [color=#ff39d6]”Believe me, no one is more unhappy than I about being useless in this situation. My best guess is that someone hated this island and wanted it destroyed, which, despite the different connotation that takes given the nature of dark magic, is not very useful information. Even if this patch of dirt out in the middle of the ocean was the object of someone’s obsession—if it had a dark and sordid history that was offered up as a sacrifice of some kind, that still leaves a who and a why,”[/color] she said, once again looking at Troe.

Xara, not really having much else to say, wobbles deeper into the water to stare at the endless sea, not annoyed, just left solemn. This was his big chance to prove himself useful intellectually to Ashley after his very bad first impression with her, once again she knows exactly what to say to shut him down. He can’t help but stare at the ground with a blank look on his face as the word “miracle” echoes inside his head louder than his body aches. All he can do is introspect and obsess over what information is missing.