The Golden Age. Act 2: Converging Paths.

[Juliette]

"To match with your hair? That might be the strangest reason for wanting a cat I've ever heard of..." Velvet scratched behind her ear, somewhat unsure of how to respond to him. "I'd be awfully upset if you didn't take proooper care of any little kitty you tried to drag all across Titan, so don't make that sort of decision too lightly, mister! Well, what else did you have for plans? Even when you came here, you picked out about the most boring thing you could possibly have chosen at all in such a colorful shop! Really, a whetstone?" She tilted her head to give him a very disappointed look. "Surely you can be more fun than that!"

[scorri]

Kaya chuckled as the dress had what was probably the intended effect on Telmara. Kaya gave a small spin, watching the dress flow around her as she did. "It is pretty, isn't it? And apparently fire proof. Too bad I don't have much of a use for it. I need something that works a little better for traveling, you know? But I suppose it was nice for you to see at least, no? Gave you some enjoyment today, right? I should change back into my skirt and such probably. Find a vest..." She smoothed the dress down over her hips as she gave it a once over again and quietly sighed. "Ah well. It was nice to try on I suppose."

[eclipse]

"I don't HAVE time for fun," Kolmar complained.  "Between huntin', cookin', cleanin' up after y'all, and makin' sure my weapons ain't gonna fall apart, I'm way too tired at the end of the day.  If I had some sort of doohickey that'll do half of 'em, I might have time for somethin' cool, like a deck of cards."

Edited May 6, 2017 by eclipse

[Nanami Touko]

"Y-You should get it, if you can afford it..." But she probably can't, because of you, taking her gold for that tome. Great... Telmara looked down and bit her lip, and sighing. "Y-Yeah. A vest. You should get one of those." Leaving Kaya to do that, she fumbled around looking at the rest of the clothes in the store. I'll just get something simple and then... I don't know. I feel awkward. Out of place. Maybe I should've just stayed at the library and read my books, like Kaya said... She fumbled with the fabric of a skirt in her hands, a small wash of melancholy hitting her. It feels the same, as it used to... I just look different. I can get back... Ugh. Too much thinking...

[Ether]

"It is clear that there is much I still do not understand. But your words, they make sense, to me. In the scant few moments we've spoken of it, you've already told me more of this mask than I may have ever learned on my own... and I will gain nothing from running away." Mikhaila replied, considering Shylah's words further... what did she wish to do with her life?

"I'll be honest, I had thought myself content with simply returning my grandfather's name to glory, after my father spoiled it so. But you seem to think me destined for more, and goings-on as of late have certainly been... more than I had expected. Whatever the future may hold, neither fleeing nor facing it with weakness will accomplish anything. I'll accept your offer, then. Show me what it is this mask is capable of."

[scorri]

"I can afford it, I just..." She shook her head. "I don't think it's the best thing to go traveling about in, that's all. Not that my current outfit is much better..." She sighed, looking over at the vests and shaking her head. "Maybe I should go look somewhere else. See what else this town has to offer before I make a decision. What do you think?" She almost added that they could stay if Telmara found something she liked, but a glance at the other woman told her that was unlikely. The look on her face gave away how she was feeling, so Kaya simply left the question as it was. No need to upset her more than she already seemed to be.

[Nanami Touko]

"Whatever you'd like," she answered, a bit blankly, absorbed in her thoughts. She took a skirt and a simple blouse from the shelf and slid over to the counter, setting them on it. "Hey... I-I'd like these." It wasn't much, but it wouldn't hurt to get anything at all. I wonder if Kaya thinks I look good in anything... I can only wear skirts, anyway. I'd much prefer pants, but... What legs, haha. Ugh. Terrible. With a mocking snicker to herself, too quiet for the shopkeep, Telmara sighed. "W-We can keep looking at o-other stores... I, If you want, Kaya." Maybe she'd fine something nice for herself? Maybe. Probably not.

[riariadne]

Strange Encounters

"It is intriguing. Tita hasn't had any real relations with other countries other than occasional foreign traders in Koerm. So we knew there were others in the world than us, but to here stories of multiple foreign continents, it's a bit hard to adjust to, don't you agree?" Maximus enquired. But it was Aaron's other statements that interested him more. "What?! You met him? Yes, that's exactly what seems to be the case. But, the person they all spoke of wasn't with any of the four. And if he's the summoner... then that means he can conjure these sand soldiers in large numbers, anywhere across the continent, even if they are weak... this is grim news. Can you tell me more? What was he like- and he used time magic on you and your allies? Was there anything else about the encounter that stood out to you?"

Time of Day

"Well, I'm glad you're okay. It's fifteen minutes until five o'clock," the assistant responded. "Um, I have some more books to move around, so if you don't have more questions, I'm going to go do that."

Silly Shop

"Oh, boo! You don't have time for fun because you don't make time for fun. And we're in Madrigal, so you don't have to do most of those at all here," Velvet retorted, rolling her eyes. "Honestly, I can't believe it's possible for you to be so boooooring all the time. Liven up! At least a little bit!"

Natalia seemed to be paying little attention at all to Velvet and Kolmar's conversation, speaking up after a bit of silence messing with money behind the counter. "Is there anything else I can help either of you two with?"

Velvet's ears twitched after the shopkeeper spoke up. "Um, not right now, I think. But I might have to try the lottery again soon, just not right now- unless you have something particular in mind here, Kolmar?"

Snakewear

"Certainly, mademoiselle. For those two, just forty-five gold," Cornelius told Telmara as he approached the counter and examined them. "Twenty for the skirt, twenty-five for the blouse, more specifically."

Dark Ritual

Shylah nodded at Mikhaila's decision. "Then it is settled. Hold out your arm, then- make your offering. You're familiar with ritual acts already, with those talismans, so this likely won't be too painful." Disappearing once again into the purple smoke, this time it was as a white raven that she reappeared on Mikhaila's arm. With a squawk, she raked a talon across the exorcist's arm to draw blood- when she shifted back to human form again, she stood on one foot, moving her hand to the other to transfer the blood onto her palm. "Partly why I don't use footwear. In bird form, which is certainly my most frequent shapeshifting choice, my talons correspond to my human feet; the wings are my arms. Well, I don't suppose you care all that much about that. Let us begin."

The prophet rubbed the blood between her palms, placing one hand back on the mask and the other on Mikhaila's face once again. "Mask of the Damned," she spoke, her voice echoing with power, "heed my words. Submit yourself, shadowy spirit, to the will of your wearer! Obey my call through the sacrifice that has been made." Her hands glowed purple, and Mikhaila felt a sharp pain for a moment before a rather soothing sensation after. Shylah scanned over her briefly before lowering her hands. "Well, that's about all, really... How different do you feel? Probably just a little stronger. But, you should have plenty of control now."

Mikhaila's alignment has shifted dramatically, +15 dark, -6 anima/light (this is updated). Her talent has also changed from Curse of the Mask -> Mask of the Damned (this is not updated).

Edited May 12, 2017 by Reinfleche

[Bluedoom]

Joviana carefully listened to what the man who was addressing the crows was saying. It seemed that the crowd was paranoid about trading with his country, something that Joviana could not relate to. She had lived a secluded life all these years, so she couldn't relate to the crowd or their past under the late Queen. In fact, she was more interested about the man's country, its way of life, and its mysterious places, but she couldn't ask anything at present, not in this situation. She decided to instead check out the shops in the Square, hoping to find useful trinkets. Questions could come later, when the man was done with his speech.

[Ether]

A similar ritual to her talismans, was it? Those words proved quite true, as Shylah morphed into a white raven, and drew blood from her arm, before re-emerging in her human form, and transferring it to her hands. The talon's cut was a sharp bite, but nothing she hadn't dealt with before. Nodding affirmatively as Shylah prepared her hands, Mikhaila calmly stood by and waited. She knew not how intricate this ritual would be, but had no wish to interrupt. 

Not very intricate at all, or so it would seem. The exorcist was certain that a good degree of the setup for this came from Shylah's own immense magical ability, even if the act itself seemed simple to do. Allowing the prophet to continue, Mikhaila found her vision filled with a purple haze, as a pain ran through her mask... different than what she was used to, but still not too much to bear... and then there was nothing. No biting agony, no sense of dread... just a simple tranquility. The mask was silent, yet still obviously with her... how odd.

"I feel... liberated, as odd as it seems to say. I feel as though a weight has been lifted from my shoulders." Mikhaila replied, casually opening and closing her palm, her movements feeling no different from before.

"Though I suppose there is only one way to know for sure."

Mikhaila activates Mask of the Damned

[eclipse]

Kolmar stroked his chin, in a sorry attempt to look thoughtful.  "You guys have a deck of cards for sale?" he asked, a small smile on his face.  He somehow managed to keep a chuckle to himself.

I wonder how much they'll like drawing lots for clean-up.

[Xinnidy]

"Ah, fifteen to five? I see..." So I've got the better half of an hour and some still. Hmph. Well, literally sitting on her butt in the library wasn't going to do enough for her. Meditating was an experience, but she was a busy mind at heart! Shouldn't that make me good at dark magic too... ah, whatever.

"That'll be all, thank you." Letting the librarian go, Raz packed her things, setting the book back at a rack. Maybe this place is open at night... that would be convenient. Walking out of the library content enough, Raz was surprised to see the square still in a decent commotion. This guy sure didn't stop trying... With a sigh and a nervous haste in her step, she walked out of the square, pondering what else she could do to kill time...

A familiar face was spotted not toi far ahead of her, distracting her thoughts. "Aaron?" Raz spoke under her breath. The most intriguing part was him talking to somebody, to Raz. Aaron always seemed... up in the clouds, but who could that be?

"Hey Aaron!" Raz waved, seeming as go-with-the-flow as ever. "What's up? The square is really busy... I don't know where any of the others are right now." Considering she spent a good time meditating in a library, it's not like she was trying, but that was a mere detail. "Ah, good afternoon, sir." She acknowledged the man talking to Aaron. "I'm Raz."

[SB.]

"Hmm..." A concentrated frown appeared on Aaron's face, as he did his damnedest to recall their meeting with this apparent 'king'. "If I recall correctly, he barred our party's path, in search of the Gifts. I suppose that he had the same goal in mind, for whatever reason." He couldn't hope to fathom the motivation behind Timaeus' actions, not with the brevity of their encounter.

 

A familiar voice shook him out of his thoughts however, and he turned to face his oddly-armed companion. "Ah, Raz." Aaron nodded towards the knight. "This is Maximus, a knight from Trine. We were just speaking about the mage we encountered a few days ago, near the forest. Supposedly, that strange magic he used on us was time magic. Do you have any idea how it works?" Probably not, but Raz at least twice as adept at spells than Aaron was. Perhaps she could do something with this information.

Edited May 16, 2017 by SB.

[riariadne]

The Herald Departs

"Such hostility you show to a bearer of good news. Nonetheless, we of Dione are not so petty as to let this alter the Emperor's grand dream! Yet sky darkens and signals dusk, and I must take my leave for now. In three days, the presence of the Emperor shall correct your misgivings and hopefully begin the ushering in of an era of prosperity for both of our lands." Shaking his head, Gawain made his way through the crowd slowly, riding past the group of now three including Aaron and Raz. "Spread the news! The great Emperor Alexander will be arriving in three days to forge new alliances between Titan and Dione!" he called as he rode towards the city's gates.

"Ah, there he is," Maximus remarked to Aaron. "An interesting message, to be sure. I am pleased to make acquaintance with you, Raz. I am Duke Reid's assistant, bearing messages for the Knights. You've met him as well? To summarize for you, four people at near identical times appeared in different places across Titan, all saying they serve someone called the King of Time, and with conjured soldiers of sand aiding them in attacks. The sand images were defeated easily, the others not so much, and this so-called-King did not appear with any of them. Their names... I believe they were Camellia, Dimitrius, Mercury, and Valerie. Are any of them familiar?"

Mask of the Damned

It was a strange sensation for Mikhaila as she drew upon the mask's power, somewhat less painful than her previous activations, but the burst of strength felt more fleeting. Yet when it was over, she seemed slightly stronger than before. Shylah watched with amusement as the exorcist experimented. "The overall power is the same, yet a bit different. Since you were willing to embrace it, the mask will always give you some amount of its power- thinking of it almost as gratitude, seeing as the deal has mutual upsides. The pain to access full strength is also lessened, but the drawback is you have this full strength for lesser time. So... you'll have to sacrifice more if you want to keep that strength constantly, so you'd best think carefully about when you use it. Still, the constant power should be beneficial to you. How very fortunate."

Shopping

"Now you're talking!" Velvet responded more cheerfully. She glanced around and plucked a deck off of a shelf, and a few coins from her bag. "Here, my treat since you're livening up a bit." The shopkeeper nodded at the simple transaction, and the demicat was quick to take Kolmar's hand and lead him out to the street, noticing the crowd largely dispersed- at least, back to the usual commotion of the square. "Well, the guy on the horse finally left! I think he was awfully preachy, but probably believes in what he was saying. What did you think about him?"

Meanwhile, someone at a stall poked at Joviana's shoulder. "Hey, you- you're a mage, aren't you? The way you look... well, I'm a mage myself, and I think I've got a good knack for guessing. At the Arcane Vendor, we've got plenty of supplies for casting spells. Interested?" The source seemed to be a rather small man- or maybe he just looked small compared to the stacks of books that were with him.

[eclipse]

"Man, what's up with the self-important, long-winded emissaries?" Kolmar grumbled, thinking none-too-fondly of a certain battle involving an asshole mage and sand enemies.  "Though it looks like your info was correct, Velvet.  Can't imagine why he'd announce it to everyone, unless it'll make life hell for us common folk."  Kolmar idly drummed his fingers against his legs.  "Politics ain't my thing."

[Xinnidy]

"Ah, Maximus, well met." Raz placed a hand on her chest, nodding politely. It seemed their talk was of the mage they met in the forest, how curious. "Yes, I remember him..." She was cut off as the foreign general rode past them, shifting her eyes to follow him for a moment. For a fraction of a moment, Aaron could make out a bit of a glare from Raz. "What a strange man that one is... anyways. We were talking about that mage... the 'King of Time', you say?" Raz's eyes lit up as she repeated the moniker, quickly showing interest in the subject.

"I remember the sand-like people... though 'people' seems a bit much, they lacked expressions, didn't show pain... really they were more like shadows of people, come to life." It was interesting, thinking back to it. There were also the names the man dropped at them, were they familiar...? Raz tried to recollect the events as best as she could. "The mysterious man mentioned they were to meet with a Dimitrius... there was a woman with him too, I assume that was either Camellia or Valerie. He engulfed us in bright light shortly after proclaiming himself... The most powerful mage in all Dominus. Then... it was as if time froze. I want to say it was light magic, because of the bright lights, but it's something too ahead of my own understanding." It was certainly a small jog down memory lane. That's a good thing to remember, now what are they up to... It was certainly a thought to entertain her, placing a hand on her chin.

[scorri]

"I... Actually, I will just take a vest." Kaya walked over and found a simple wool lined weather vest. Picking it up, she offered a small pile of gold to the shopkeeper. "Based on the other prices, this should be enough, yes?" Turning back to Telmara, she smiled. "I'm glad you found some things you like. After this do you mind if we go over to that mart near this shop? I want to see if they have anything useful. Plus maybe they'll have some sort of weapon that you can use!"

[Bluedoom]

Joviana frowned as she watched the messenger leave the Square hastily, wondering why he was in such a hurry. I never even got to ask him about his country! How boring.

She couldn't think about that for long though, as another person poked at her shoulder, drawing her attention. The person, proclaiming himself to be a mage, was short, or seemed to be so, but she immediately scanned the stall he was standing in : many books of different sizes, only on magic. She merely nodded to what the man was saying, before casually picking up one of the books with a flame symbol on its cover. It was a tome familiar to her- she hadn't used this tome for a very long time, probably because there never was a need to burn forests. "How much is this tome? And is there any other interesting tome in your selection?"

[Nanami Touko]

"How cheap... Here. Thank you." Telmara put the clothes away in a small bag hidden behind her cloak, nodding at Kaya, but shrugging slightly. "I-It's just simple clothing... Maybe there will be something better at the market, so sure. I don't m-mind..." Not that I have the money to buy anything from the market, but as long as I'm not going to get called out being there, it doesn't sound awful to window shop...

[Ether]

"Hmm, this is... odd, yet somehow familiar. How peculiar." Mikhaila vaguely commented as Shylah explained what had happened, her words reflecting what she was feeling fairly accurately. She felt stronger than usual, and when she sacrificed to the mask, she could feel her peak as it was before, but more fleeting.

"This world works in mysterious ways... I wonder if I was meant to meet with you today, to be shown this opportunity..."

[SB.]

Aaron rolled his eyes at the messenger of Dione, finding his fervor and poor timing a bit irritating. Gods, he sounds... almost like me. The realisation made him grit his teeth. What a fool I've been, and yet the dream must continue. This time around, Aaron would do things right. He barely caught Raz's strained expression, perhaps she felt the same about the knight? Hopefully that didn't reflect onto her opinion of him.

Either way, her recollection of the events seemed to be clearer than his - the names had escaped Aaron, so it was fortunate that Raz had made her appearance. "It was the strangest magic I've ever seen." He nodded. "I could comprehend the world around me was moving, but we were all immobilised where we stood. I don't know why the sorcerer didn't make a move on us afterwards - perhaps his magic isn't as powerful as it first appears."

[Xinnidy]

"Your guess is as good as mine." Raz added, "Maybe he had other things to attend to, maybe... maybe he couldn't harm us? It was as if we could feel time pass around us, but not for ourselves. Maybe we were removed from there, from time, during those moments?" Perhaps the spell wasn't as scarily tide-turner as they though, which honestly would be the most relieving possibility.

"It's really beyond what I know now, maybe we could look into that later." The book she had moments prior came to mind, perhaps Noctus would have an answer. "For them to be going all around Titan proclaiming that is suspicious. Even moreso if these sand things can be defeated easily... what do you think they're trying to pull?"

[riariadne]

Temporal Mystery

"Interesting. I'll have to rely this information, and I'm fortunate to have met people who know anything at all about this figure. What it seems to me is that his spells are powerful, but have weaknesses. The... time freeze spell, or however that works, sounds as if it is something he is unable to affect either, and while it is frightening that he can summon legions of soldiers to fight for him, it is less so if they are much less capable than human fighters," Maximus explained. "So you did hear of Dimitrius and... I would hazard a guess that the woman was Camellia, since she seems to be his second in command. She had blue hair, if that helps. As for their goals, I cannot say for certain. Perhaps he is one of many who seek the throne, seeing as he called himself King, but if that's the case he sounds as tyrannical as Ursula if he attacks unprovoked. Still, if he claims he is so powerful while his magic has glaring weaknesses, maybe he's just delusional, but that is a dangerous assumption to make and I don't think we should treat him as anything less than serious unless reason to assume otherwise is found."

Just a Vest

"It is indeed enough- here, you have assumed slightly over," Cornelius reaffirmed, handing Kaya back a few coins. "The Silver Lining needs not overprice, as we have easy access to fine materials. But, a word of advice- you two seem fine enough young ladies, but night is approaching, and the city folk can be quite unruly, especially considering... your unusual appearances. Of course, it is of no difference to me, but to some it may be, so I advice caution."

Tome Options

"That's a Conflagrate tome, nine hundred gold, very reliable. And, this is a vendor- we don't have much more than we show, so depending on your definition of interesting, there may or may not be something in front of you." The man pointed to the pile. "If you're really looking for more advanced stuff, that's all in Jotun with the main branch, city of magic and all that, y'know? But too valuable to risk in Madrigal when there's not as many mages who care about the advanced stuff here." 

Different Fates

"Meant to meet? But of course we were, or we wouldn't have," Shylah stated as though it was obvious. "The will of fate cannot be altered once set in motion. Of course, there are many different paths I see through in my mind when using the power of prophecy, but those are merely falsehoods for me to sift through, with a single truth amongst them." She closed her eyes for a few moments, smiling. "Some of the lies are plausible, some not. For example, which decision you made was not so easy to sense, because I do not know your true nature, but I could narrow it down to the three rather easily, even though our meeting could have gone in a variety of ways. Maybe you disliked someone so drenched in darkness and left right away, or maybe some of my powers would bring you fear. There's even some false timelines that have you try to fight me on the spot- though, even with how many of them there are, none exist where I would be defeated."

She laughed, apparently quite pleased with that fact. "Well, Mikhaila, you've been rather interesting to meet. But, I am a busy woman... unless you have any more questions of me, I'd best be off. Which questions are you to ask, if any? If I was very confident in my ability to pick out the truth right now, I could give you answers preemptively. Hmm... yes, all animal forms I take have to be white to match my hair. My bird of choice is a raven because they have strong dark energy for birds and a white raven is distinctive! No, I couldn't teach you most of my spells, they're not teachable!" She paused for a few moments. "If those were any of your questions, then I've answered them for you, but if not, now you know, and knowledge is power."

[Juliette]

"Was he really that self-important? I don't think I heard a word about anyone but this allegedly grand and glorious Emperor from him," Velvet wondered aloud. "But long winded, now that I can certainly agree with. Still, I would say he was more... self-assured than self-important. That's why I would guess that he thinks that this plan is really true and that it will help people. Whether or not that it will actually be effective, that's another story, but if it's really just trade and peace deals... well, surely that can't go wrong. But even if that's their initial intentions, with no Monarch, I can't help but think it might not go exactly as planned."

[eclipse]

"If he wanted to help, he'd ask before offerin' a deal," Kolmar grumbled back.  "All the high an' mighty in the world means shit if it ain't aimed in the right place.  Lack of a proper somebody on the throne ain't a good sign for us, though.  Can't shake the feelin' that we're gonna get tangled in this business whether we like it or not."  He let out a dry chuckle.  "'course, if you're as lucky as you claim, we jus' might avoid the worst of it."