[Pavi Lake] Playing with Fire (Andresciel)

[Will]

54th of Summer, 512 AV Something about the alien beauty of the lake attracted Will to it. It was a long time since he had first visited the area while touring the region, but he was still unable to stay away from it entirely. There was something about the way the pillars of salt seemed to glow in the sunlight. Even the presence of the strange salt structures--so natural and yet unnatural at the same moment--aligned rather closely to the definition of beauty as far as Will was concerned. Then there were the rumors. Countless tales, from lake monsters to mermaids, cast a mysterious shroud over the place. Pavi Lake was inanimate, yet still seemed very much misunderstood. In a way, Will couldn't help but feel connected to the strange lake. Though, he wasn't there to admire its beauty or even to revel in the mystery. Today, Will was there for the seclusion. Reimancy was one of the few things he actually had some aptitude for. It had captured his imagination when he was younger, and he had taken to the discipline like Tanroa takes to time. At first, the training was purely for self defense. Never much of a fighter, it was his way of staying safe. It even helped to save his life at one point. Now, however, he secretly knew there wasn't much use in advancing the skill. He needed money, and society was too scared of his fire for him to make any use of it. He needed food, and reimancy wasn't too good at conjuring that. Still, he wanted to believe that he would be able to make the skill into something, and to even have a hope of doing that, he need to train. That's why he was at the lake. It was far enough from other people that he could practice in peace and inflammable enough that he could try to experiment. To get into the mindset of practicing, he began with skills completely within his comfort. Taking in a deep breath--Will was still learning, and focus was invaluable to being successful--he cupped his hands and held them forward. Out of his palms leaked liquid res, and it filled his cupped hands like soup into a bowl. Continuing to focus on his breathing, Will forced the res into a sphere and rose it about a foot above his hands. He clenched his fists, cutting off the supply of res, and ignited the sphere. Pushing his fists forward he willed the fireball to mimic the movement and sent it gliding over the water. Out of his reach, the flame slowly lost velocity and extinguished as it fell into the water. He repeated this process a couple times, focusing on distance and accuracy with each throw. Today, he had reasoned, he may as well practice because there was no way of knowing what obstacles tomorrow might hold.

[Andresciel]

Sitting atop Storm, the Knights new horse, Andre moved slowly upon his patrol up towards Pavi Lake. His shining armor was hidden beneath a solid black cloak, the shimmering steel hidden. His right hand clutched the reins lightly, tugging on them as he felt a flash of something across his mind. His sapphire eyes, half-lidded, were now alert, looking around, before he glanced up at the Familiar beside him.

The small Avavali, an air-headed creature, floated along like a ball of smoke above Andre's shoulder, finding nothing of interest in this strange, dull setting. Still, when Andre sat up alert, the little creatures interest sparked, even as it heard the Knight speak in Nader canoch, "Somethings up ahead Vel. Scout ahead. Stay hidden.". The Familiar would shoot ahead slowly, to spot the other Reimancer casting the spells of the Fire Element. Velenor wobbled in the air as he watched the flame arc over into the lake, before returning to Andre. "A Reimancer. Fire. Over Big Water.". The Avavali spoke softly as the Knight nods.

Andre spurred the Nightwalker forward towards the trees that would hide the steed from view. He swung his leg over the creatures back, patting Storm's neck as he drops to the ground. Looping her reins around a branch before him, he would turn to Velenor. "Stay hidden. Maybe Trouble.", the Knight would instruct.

Rounding the corner, Andre let down the barrier that stood between his mind, and the flow of Res, reaching out with his sixth sense, forming the res into a spiral starting a few inches before either hand, the essence of magic coming to his call. He breathed out as he centered himself, letting his connection to the spiraling res cut off, focusing on the freedom of wind, letting the res start twisting about his fists in a cyclone. It was the staple of the Magius Family, the Wind Fist, that would allow him to move slightly faster, due to the wind currents slicing through the air.

[Will]

Blissfully unaware of the approaching knight, Will allowed himself a smile as a particularly well-aimed fireball flew directly between two salt pillars before sputtering into nothing upon collision with the water. The shot was risky; Will had no intention of hitting one of the salt pillars in fear of harming the Lake's natural elegance. Still, it was satisfying to see such subtle improvement in his control of fire. With that taken care of, the aspiring reimancer decided it was time for a little experiment. The technique was something he'd only seen once. After having picked up air as a secondary element, his father felt it important to explain the trick. Will never quite got the chance to try it, but he thought back to the memory to recall the words. Upon invoking the thought of his father, Will tensed up, clenching his fist in a confused mixture of emotion. Still, he saw the technique as something worth picking up and acknowledged that his emotions would have to be put aside if he wanted to do this right. With a long, gentle sigh, Will loosened his grip and relaxed. He altered his stance to sturdy himself, and let the memories of his father's words serve as a guide. "First," the voice inside his head began, "You're going to need a ball of res in front of you." Will positioned his hands in front of him, as if to hold an invisible ball and allowed the res, this time in the form of a gas, to seep from his palms and collect in another sphere. Because the technique was new, he cut off the supply once he had a ball a couple inches in diameter. "Now, you need to envision spikes shooting out of the gas. Kind of like lightning emerging from a storm cloud." Will tested this a couple times, shooting out thin strips of pure res that cascaded down into the water as they shot forward. "This parts a bit more difficult. The combination of the elements is going to require that you utilize both at the same time. It's almost like trying to set the spike on fire as you're blowing it away from you. On top of this, you only have a split second to act." Will nodded to the memory, channeling his focus on the res and attempting the feat. He managed to create a spark about a foot in length. It was a pathetic result, though more would likely have been beyond his current capabilities. Besides, he had no desire to attempt anything riskier here. He knew enough to understand that lightning and water don't mix, and he had no desire to risk upsetting the balance of this place. In addition, the little spark had caused a muffled bang, and attracting attention wasn't what he needed. Will just wanted to remain peaceful.

[Andresciel]

The Knight moved forward at the sound of the bang, his voice clear as he spoke, "Halt Reimancer, and identify yourself." The Knight felt the wind that spiraled around his gauntlets, his sapphire eyes assessing the male. A mild spark, Andre's lightning ability was at least that good. He shook his head, "If you mean no harm, none will come to you. I give my oath, on the magic I wield." The Knight held his right hand up, drawing out a bit of Res. He created a ball, cutting off the flow with a breath. His thoughts of warmth brought out a spark, that caused the firebolt to come to life. The ball hovered over Andre's palm, before it went out, replaced by a ball of water. Andre hid his surprise at the strange appearance of water. He had simply been looking at the lake, focusing on the strange waters there. Still, his focus stayed on the young male before him. He decided to try his name, "I am Ser Andresciel Magius."

[Will]

Will spun on his feet to face the sound, the momentum of the turn nearly sending him sprawling into the lake. He regained his balance at the last moment and stood upright to face the knight. It occurred to him then how useful an air scroll would be in his backpack, but he pushed the idea aside to address the issue at hand. "Indeed I mean no harm." The words came from his mouth without so much as crossing his mind. This was no place for jokes and tricky words, Will just wanted to keep trouble away. "I was simply trying to practice. Away from the city, of course, as to cause no one any harm." Recalling the initial request for an identity, Will quickly appended his statement, "You can call me Will." He put his hands to his side to show that he meant no ill will.

[Andresciel]

The Knight dispelled the spiraling currents of air from around his arms, watching his familiar dart forward, to focus on the other Reimancy. Andre moved forward slowly behind Velenor, his eyes on the other male. "You know Fire Reimancy could get you killed, yes Will?" The Knight asked even as he brought his right hand up, stopping a few paces away. "I won't harm you, Will. But it is best to practice such a spell only within the company of one of the Mage Knights who can stop any inclination to harm you." He said, his right hand sweeping out to bring his cloak back around him. "So. Is Fire the only element you can manipulate?" The Mage Knight asked, watching the younger man.

[Will]

Will mentally rolled his eyes at the mention of the danger of fire reimancy. He dared not voice his opinions in the presence of the knight, though he commentated the man's speech within his mind. Really? Fire... Dangerous? No way! And of course, obviously the mage knights have nothing better to do than baby-sit a practicing mage. Certainly that wouldn't be a waste of their time. Outwardly, Will kept an impassive expression, politely gazing at the knight as he continued his speech. When the man had finished, Will waited a moment before responding. "Mostly. Though I recently began to experiment with air." Normally, Will would have wanted nothing more than to see the man gone. However, this changed the moment he shown himself to be a reimancer. Suddenly, the knight became a figure of interest. It had been a long time since Will had served under a formal teacher, and while the isolated learning was fitting for his character, there was nothing wrong with accepted more experienced advice. With that in mind, Will appended his statement in an attempt to learn more about this man. "What about you? What elements can you control?"

[Andresciel]

The Mage Knight smiled as he tilted his head, knowing the other probably didn't understand the warning. But still, he watched the male as he spoke, noticing the change in demeanor as if he figured out Andre was a Reimancer. "Wind, Fire, Water" He chuckles as he watches the man. "You seem to be having some trouble with Lightning, would you like some help?" The Knight would offer, knowing most in his position would fear the other Reimancer. But he had one element more, and probably a good deal more Battle Casting experience. He moved closer to the lake, drawing his res closer to him, and through him. He could already feel its energy, surrounding him, filling him.