Fire and Ice (Chesh)

[Cara]

"Just keep telling yourself that mother, if it helps get you through; but in the end, it seems unlikely you'll continue when death is knocking on your door. When your breath is shallow and ragged, and you're gasping for just another lung-full of crisp, Avanthalian air," Cara commented, her voice cold, as she continued to pool her res into orbs just above her palms. "And we both know that Lindsey died because you failed to show any sort of self-restraint. She would still be here if it wasn't for you..." Cara simply glared at her mother, watching her manipulate various elements; just to try and put her fire out. "First you try a pitiful amount of water to try and douse the flames, and now you are sinking as low as to use ice mother," Cara called, her voice seemingly winding itself around her mother's neck. "You know, ice melts in the face of fire," she went on, starting to feel strangely confident in her abilities. Thus, when Kalarih charged at her and pierced her flesh with some petching ice dagger, she was taken aback. So that bitch finally managed, Cara's brain whispered as the last of her flame went out, and her mother's face appeared just before her. Managing to injure you with a lesser element, how pathetic, she thought. A sharp shooting pain was coursing through her shoulder, and she thought she could smell blood. Cara bit her bottom lip to keep herself from screaming. Don't tell me you forgot how petching crazy this woman was? her brain hollered, as she willed herself to breath, to try and relax so she could conjure some more of her own magic and get out of this. Cara shook her head lightly, as she bit more deeply into her lip before letting it go free, her teeth having grown cold from exposure to the wastes. "I will not, beg!" Cara hissed, finding a new surge of strength as she spoke the words. More res funneling out of her hands and forming little wisps of what appeared to be light blue mist just above her hands. Slowly, Cara tried to bring her hands more closely together, allowing the res that poured out of each hand to touch. To wrap their smokey tendrils around each other, to combine, to become one. As soon as they had done so, Cara lit everything but the very bottom strip on fire, creating a sort of wall, or shield. The shield glowed, casting the snow in a light orange light, the Vantha's faces in shadow as it flickered. Tiny gray wisps of smoke rising out of the top. Cara's body trembled as several beads of sweat began to trickle down her face. She was beginning to feel tired, weak. As soon as the majority of her res had gone up in flame, Cara willed the one foot wide, two inch deep, and approximately two foot high shield towards her mother. She cast her palms open, upwards towards the sky; her fingers spread widely apart. The ice dagger was beginning to melt; there was no way for Kalarih to force it any further without burning herself, or casting it away. "Fuck you mother, and may you burn for a long, long time," Cara growled, somewhat breathlessly, as her chest rose and fell rapidly. OOCHopefully this works... ehh, sorry for the cursing.

[Cheshire]

Cara was right not to back down, although her mother would never let onto this. Already the woman was starting to lose her edge in battle. The years that she had bragged about so richly were starting to haunt her. Being older might have given her more knowledge and experience but it also left her frail and without stamina. She was already fading as her daughter planned her demise. Kalarih's hands gripped tightly to the ice, paying no attention the Res that was forming around her daughter's hands. She was confident that Cara could not do much harm. She was just a child and besides, Kalarih was powerful. How could anyone hope to defeat her? The sweet whispers were staring to sing in her ears. "You can kill her Kalarih. You can kill anyone. You are the strongest person alive…" The whispers kept singing to her and who was Kalarih to ignore them? She got to hear this wonderful symphony of voices in her ears. Cara did not get to hear them! Her hands gripped tighter on the shards of ice as she readied herself to plunge the second into Cara's chest. She would not be able to though. Cara, despite Kalarih's pride in herself, was much faster than her mother. The shield raged toward Kalarih, forcing her to let go of her daughter. There was not time to call upon her water, nor did she have the strength. Could it be that Cara had finally gotten the best of her mother? The sweet whispers still chimed in her ears. They told her that she could still fight, that she still had strength. It was clear to see that the battle had been lost though. Cara, although exhausted was still standing while Kalarih laid on the ground, exhausted and charred. "Cara…" Kalarih could not bring herself to tell her daughter that she had won. She had too much pride and even though Cara had proven herself to her witch of a mother she still saw her as unworthy. "This isn't the end. It never is the end. The cycle continues. It always will." A dark sneer darkened her face. "I'll come back as something new. Something stronger and you… you will always be weak little Cara." She laid her head down in the snow and breathed in slowly. "And that is all you'll ever be."

[Cara]

OOCWarning: This gets somewhat graphic. Cara watched her mother crumble to the ground as she was overcome by flame. The woman didn't scream, didn't try to put it out. It was as though she were convinced that she still had a handle on things. Cara shook her head lightly, knowing all too well how easy it was to lose sight of reality when you played with the elements for a far longer period of time than you should. The Vantha took a step forward as the snow put the flame out, so that she towered over her mother, her chest rising and falling rapidly as she balled her hands into fists. You've done it Cara, killed your mother. For surely she can't survive all that much longer now. You should end it though. End it swiftly, make sure she screams though, her mind whispered. That will be satisfying. Making her scream louder than you did all those years ago, each time she hurt you. There was a slight pause, or you could draw it out. Wait over her failing body, listening to her try to drag in another ragged breath as her organs fail her. Simply watch, wait for her to fade away. Perhaps, even, inflict a little more pain, you could always burn through her bone, tear away her limbs one by one before you let them all go up in flame. Cara's eyes turned a blood red, coupled with a bright orange. A sinister smile crossed her lips as she lowered herself onto her knees, next to her mother. She was going to be certain, that before her mother died, she would experience as much excruciating pain as possible. "No mother. This is the end. This is the day that you, finally die. Take your last petching breath mother, while you still can. Take in the sight of your daughter, one last time before she finally finishes you. Something she should have done years ago," Cara growled, as she searched her mother's charred, smoking flesh for a less burnt section. Realizing soon enough, that her firewall hadn't hit the lower portion of her mother's body, Cara pulled down the top of her mother's leather boot, the one she wore on her right foot. She extended her right hand to it, and wrapped her hand around the flesh just above her mother's ankle. Her fingers curling into the flesh, pressing against it firmly, choking it. Cara closed her eyes. "Pray to the Ice Queen for forgiveness," Cara whispered. "If even she will listen," she finished, as she began to draw her mother's djed out of her body, and into her own. She could hear it whistling past her flesh, pools of cold res winding around her mother's skin, Cara's hand, wrist, and arm, as she slowly worked at forcing it out of Kalarih. Cara could hear her mother moaning as she bit her bottom lip to keep from screaming. As the djed made its way past Cara's thin wall of skin, it went from feeling cold to unbearably hot. It felt as though tiny pebbles were raking their way upwards, just beneath the surface of her flesh. Through her veins, threatening to make them burst, and bleed all over her innards. Just a bit longer, Cara's mind whispered as she continued to suck the life, the magical essence, right out of the wicked witch; her mother. Cara continued to absorb the tainted djed until she could bear the pain no longer, at which point, she eased her hand away, and opened her eyes. She was gasping for air, as her chest rose and fell heavily. It felt as though several daggers had been thrust into her lungs, and she was struggling to breath. The bite of the cold Avanthalian air did little to soothe her as she forced it in. The rapid pounding of her heart, and blood that had frozen along the side of her neck did little to help her remain calm. Steady, as she prepared to finish what she had begun. Slowly, the young sorceress eased herself onto her feet. Her legs trembling beneath the weight of her body as she forced herself to stay upright, to not collapse upon her mother's burned flesh. She took one last, deep breath, before she called the magic to her, pooling res above the palms of each of her hands. The res remained gaseous, not taking on any shape as Cara eased it away from her with a swift flick of her wrists, before she lit it on fire. With another downwards flick of her wrists, she guided the billowing, gaseous-looking flames downwards, onto her mother's waiting body. Burning it instantly. She wasn't so sure she could make out so much as a scream as her mother's clothing curled into the blue flame at the base, and soon, gave way. One it had finished off the barrier of Kalarih's clothing, the flame licked the woman's flesh, turning it black before it began to melt, sinking into her organs and ivory-colored bone. Soon enough, there was little left where the wicked witch once lay- a smattering of charred cloth bits, burnt flesh, a blackened bone. "It's finally over," Cara whispered, as she stared down at her mother's remains. She didn't feel sorry for her. The pain she had inflicted upon her as she stole her life; her djed. Nor did she regret her actions. In fact, if she could, Cara was certain she would take her mother out all over again. Except, this time, she wanted to find a way to draw it out, to make her defeat all the more painful for her. The moments before her heart finally stopped, her death. Cara's eyes returned to their usual violent as she glanced down at the remains. Exhausted, she spit on them, before turning abruptly on her heel, and heading back to the Frostfawn Hold. She stumbled most of the way there, but managed to make it within the hour, nonetheless. But even so, once she reached her room, she had expended all of her energy, her strength, and collapsed into bed without so much as having taken off her boots, or changed into a dry set of clothes. She could let a Whitevine tend to her later, after she had gotten some rest, and allowed the realization of her victory to sink in. To fill her heart with a sense of pride, and power.

[Cheshire]

Character: Cara Experience: Leeching +1, Reimancy +5, Interrogation +3, Rhetoric +5, Intimidation +3 Lore: Killing Your Mother, Leeching Your Mother to Death, Snarky Remarks, Chastising Words, Sweet Revenge, Using Erosion to Counter Reimancy, Additional Note: Great thread! I love it when threads pay off with lots of XP! PM me with concerns.