Thinslayer

The Faraway Land: Arcane Adventures (Closed 9/30/18)

I'm feeling a little rusty, so how was the post? Adequate, lacking?...

Star Trader

Finally got out a post. For now, I think we should go for a shorter style until we get back into the swing of things. A couple sentences showing off Sofie's budding piloting skills should be adequate. You can also have Sofie talk to the ship, and the ship will attempt to respond in her own way. Plot-wise, the Maiden is trying to warn the pilots that they need to have their hands on the controls when they drop out of warp. They're about to fall into a trap where multiple ships with tractor beams will hold them still for boarding, and it's possible (though unlikely) that they can escape with some fancy flying.

Star Trader

The way she bit her lip was so cute. Sofie smiled at him, a shy sort of smile that told him she was about to step out of her comfort zone.

"Let's do this," she said.

And kissed him on the cheek.

That spot became holy skin for the rest of the day. Ed turned bright pink and squealed like a girl hummed with the biggest grin on his face. "Amen to that. Let's do this thing."

This was going to be a good day.

A light started flickering by the warp drive display on Sofie's side of the control panel. Ed could feel a slight rumbling beneath his feet.

He turned a worried glance to Sofie.

The Faraway Land: Arcane Adventures (Closed 9/30/18)

Lore: Waru Mountain

Surrounded by rainforest and packed with snow at its peak, Waru mountain was once the ancient nesting ground of the twelve mighty beasts, the Guardians of Aion. Created by the Immortals to defend the planet in their absence, many of the Guardians instead descended into bestial madness and went their own separate ways. The mountain remains a holy site for the Waru tribes, and climbing to its peak has become a rite of passage for many aspiring priests. The few who make it to the top are said to ascend to heaven, where they allegedly help the gods create new species.

The truth is...surprisingly accurate...and a little more gruesome...

The Faraway Land: Arcane Adventures (Closed 9/30/18)

Previously on Arcane Adventures:

Warden, upon witnessing the king's gruesome demise, chased the attacker out into an alleyway. He defeated one of the thugs, but another one attacked him with a crude blast of magic. Goro came to the rescue and stopped the thug with a javelin throw. Together, Warden and Goro resumed their chase, trailing behind Catarina, who'd drawn a bead on the elusive assassin.

Meanwhile, Nkosi developed an Earth Wall spell when he made to stop a fireball from hurting Winter Valentine. With wild riots outside and casters around every corner, he surmised that the city was not safe, and urged Winter to escape with him.

The Immortal now had a choice to make. With the king dead and riots in the city, should she...
* ...help quell the riots?
* ...crown a new king and make him quell the riots?
* ...let the problem sort itself out?

There was some merit to option #3. The reason behind the riots was the sudden introduction of new, unknown powers. Once people got used to them, a new order would settle in place. However, she did not want to bank on that order being a beneficial one. Option #1 seemed very doable; the ancient weapons systems she wore could probably protect her from most offensive magic and break through most defensive magic. Counting on that, however, was incredibly risky. Option #2 was only available if there was any authority that people recogized, but that required navigating the complex web of politics, and she didn't have time for that.

There was little choice but to take option #3 and fix the problems later once she'd acquired some magical knowledge.

"Winters!" Nkosi urged. "We need to go. This city isn't safe anymore."

Winter nodded, and wrapped her cloak tighter. "I agree, it's not safe here. Liliana, can you come here for a moment?" She touched the pendant around her neck and drew out a few grains of dust, which she touched to Liliana's forehead. Then with a few movements of her fingers, the insignia of the Immortals drew into the girl's skin. The now-glowing golden embers returned to Winter's pendant.

"Liliana Rosenvelt, I dub you Immortal's Ambassador to this city. With the seal upon your forehead, all shall know you represent me and my interests. If any dares harm you, they shall invite my wrath upon them. Go, live, and watch over Midhaven until I return."

With that, she moved to Nkosi's side. "I shall place my life in your hands. You may lead the way."
_

Warden and Goro lost the assassin in the crowds. All they knew was that he was male, dark, youthful, and long-haired - not nothing, but hardly much to go on. Meanwhile, as people started to get a grip on their new powers, gangs began to form, with the smartest spellcasters as the leaders. Organized battles between gangs erupted in the streets of Midhaven, and less-adept people often got caught in the crossfire.

Yes, it was high-time to leave.
_

Catarina's arrow sang through the air toward the assassin's neck, her aim straight and true. What stopped it was the most curious thing she'd ever seen in her life. A faint aura of silent lightning appeared just over the assassin's body, and the arrow shattered against it as if it were a brick wall. Then, his form began to turn translucent, shimmered the light like a flowing river, and vanished into thin air.

The Faraway Land: Arcane Adventures (Closed 9/30/18)

The above lore bit explains a few things in the upcoming scene. The Immortals shaped the world of Aion, and dust magic is how they did it. Since Winter already has experience with spellcasting through dust magic, she'll be able to help the player characters understand the concepts of mana magic up to a certain point. However, due to the limitations of her magic, her experience will only take her so far. Spells of moderate complexity will be beyond her ken, and we'll have to develop those on our own.

The Faraway Land: Arcane Adventures (Closed 9/30/18)

Breakdown of True Magic types, and contrast with Mana Magic

While this story primarily revolves around mana-based magic, there is another form known as "true magic." True magic draws upon one's life force, the will to live, to affect the world. Unlike mana-magic, it requires a medium in order to work, as well as substantial spiritual power to affect the world to any noticeable degree. The most common spellcasting method uses a spiritually sensitive individual as the medium and demons for the power source. As you can imagine, this is extremely foolhardy, so the Ancients developed a brand new method, which the Immortals use. The Ancient method uses advanced nanomachines as the medium and the person's own spirit as the power source. They dubbed it "dust magic," or "seed magic" in some circles.

Dust magic is considerably weaker than mana magic, and detrimental to your mental health. Excessive use of dust magic separates much of your spirit from your body, resulting in side effects such as dizziness, confusion, depression, temporary insanity, and out-of-body experiences. In short, it's highly unpleasant business.

Mana magic, on the other hand, draws upon the ambient mana energy for its power, and naturally responds to your thoughts without the aid of a medium. Abundant, powerful, and versatile, mana magic is superior in nearly every way. The concepts behind the use of dust and mana magics are much the same, however, requiring the power of imagination for their creative abilities.

Star Trader

I've been mulling over the story post for the last few days, but the most I can come up with is a meager few sentences. Since Ed and Sofie officially a thing now, the two should have a conversation about what they want out of a relationship. Problem is, I'm running up against a technical challenge: writing chemistry between characters. I feel like I need more practice before moving forward on that. To that end, I've been thinking we could do some simple story exercises. Like, we'd each play things like a date in a coffee shop, a man and wife going on business, a mother and her favorite son, two girl-friends going shopping, and such like. If we screw up the chemistry, no harm done - it's not a major RP, and we can always start the scene over to try something else.

Another, more insidious hurdle is my insecurities cropping up. The longer it takes me to put out a story-post, the longer I feel like it must be to compensate. After making you wait more than a month, a few sentences in reply hardly seems appropriate. When I make a roleplayer wait a week or longer, I start imagining the other person growing frustrated or losing interest, and then I don't even want to look at the roleplaying site for fear of getting an "I Quit" message or something. I'm keen to know your true train of feelings.

The Faraway Land: Arcane Adventures (Closed 9/30/18)

My new post introduces our new main villain, whose unhealthy obsession will bring useful levels of antagonism.

Main story post should arrive next week.

The Faraway Land: Arcane Adventures (Closed 9/30/18)

Valentine.

My sweet, sweet Valentine.

Do you remember?

I still remember the days when we were young. The seven of us scraped by on our wits, fueled by scraps, and frayed by false generosity. The cold, the bitter cold, caused even Death herself to seek warmth at our sides. Death's sweet embrace kept us all alive, the promise of a bright afterlife better than all the pale realities of this wretched dimension.

We named her Winter.

Remember now?

Hardly could I forget your oath, that should the trials of life grow too trying on our wearied souls, you would escort us to the gates of heaven and vouch for our souls. But pray tell, how can a man go meet God his maker when there lives a goddess to hold him in her arms? Had I but one life to live, I would have spent it just to see you ascend to immortality, to escort you to the throne of divinity so I could die in the glow of your beauty. It was fitting that the Alchemist should grant you immortality first.

And how bright you were! Even clad in our immortal skins, our brightest lights were as darkness to you. Some of us boasted strength, some boasted smarts, others paraded their popularity. But you were always different. You gave us family. Where you were, there home was. We did not deserve you.

What is humanity to you, then? Perhaps the capacity of their minds is unique, 'tis true, but they haven't the lifespan to grow a shred of wisdom, nor have they the natural goodness of lesser, feral creatures. Humans are evil, born in darkness, and bathed in utter depravity. You know this to be true, and I even heard it from your own lips. "There is nothing good in man," you once said to me. "Were God to wipe him off the face of the universe, He would be hailed a hero and crowned with glory for His conquest."

So tell me, then, why you continue to play with them? Why do you feed them, clothe them, speak to them, even show them kindness? Why do you create worlds for them, guard their families, and raise their children? What do you see in them that you should stoop so low beneath your station?

My mind reaches only one conclusion.

I fought it, wrestled it, avoided it all I could.

You have joined their side.

O Valentine, my sweet, sweet Valentine, the time is nigh when at last I come to free your heart from mankind's wicked chains. Soon, my lady, I shall return the ancient favor and hold you in my arms, as you once did for me. Soon, we shall be together again.

Just the two of us.

The other five can go to hell.