PM to join [Maiden's Cape] Oceanic Manipulation (Ricky Maze)

[Volanaro]

81 Winter, 513

The ocean breezed licked at the Nuit's face, the folds of his robe blowing in the light breeze as he traversed the pier leading to the Maiden's Cape. The boy Nuit cast his gray gaze of thundercloud about, searching for a safe way of travel as the pathway turned to rocks. He wished for the best possible vantage point, the closest, yet most secure point from where he could practice his craft without a thought directed towards safety.

Reimancy. It is an art form, not merely a discipline of magic. It can create and destroy. It can create beauty and invoke Armageddon. Death and Creation held in the same hands.

As the thought expressed itself in his mind, the Nuit rolled the sleeves of his robes, allowing him the freedom of arm movement required for the gestures he needed to be able to perform in order to evoke his talents at the most efficient level. In truth, the motions possessed no power, if he did not do them, his Reimancy would not suffer in strength, but envisioning the task and using one's hands allowed a focus that simply staring at the spot where Res was to pool did not foster.

The boy Nuit's eyes closed as his hands clasped together, fingertips pressed against one another before he slowly pulled his hands apart. From the pores in his palm, Res was pulled from his body, coalescing into the shape of an ethereal, crimson orb, ripples in the compilation of converted djed rising within a translucent, bulbous sphere no more than six inches in diameter. Suspended between his hands, the Res expanded and contracted, a motion akin to breathing as Volanaro pushed the res from his grasp.

The Res floated towards the open sea, Volanaro's left hand opened, palm facing the sea, his mind pairing the motion with the command 'Forward', as his right extended. His right arm was bent at the elbow, two fingers bent into his palm as the remaining two slowly tipping downwards, his hand following the motion as the Res moved both forward and downward. The concentration of Res was no more than ten feet away, Volanaro knowing that if he pushed it further out, he'd have trouble controlling the concentration, and the investment would be for naught.

Rather, he ceased the motion entirely, his hand raised to shoulder level as an unnecessary breath escaped his lips. It filled his lungs, the motion doing little for his undead body, but for his mind, it built a sense of calm, Volanaro retaining some sense of self even after the five hundred years he had spent as an undead. He found that it was far easier to synchronize with a body of this shape and form. But, it mattered not in this moment, Volanaro casting his thoughts towards the sphere of Res as he willed the Res to trigger.

He called it Magnetism, though perhaps with other teachers or books, it bore a different name. He compelled the Res to act as a magnet for the element he had mastery over, pulling water from the ocean itself, a stream of liquid beginning to rise from the tides.

The stream of water began to orbit the res in a ball, a second stream following it, creating two "moons" around the crimson 'planet' that was the concentration of Res. His eyes opened as bright laughter escaped his lips, a worming sensation filling his mind as satisfaction materialized upon his features. He wanted to do more. And he did. A third tendril rose from the ocean, a third spherical body of water orbiting the Res as Volanaro took another breath in an attempt to calm his desire. Moderation was necessary with the discipline, though, as of yet, the Reimancer was by no means pushing himself.

This paltry sum of water is nothing in comparison to what I could evoke, but it will suffice for the moment. An idea is forming...

[Ricky Maze]

Coo did the father go as the chilly ground had little affect with the layers he’d worn today, the two shirts both long and short sleeved were merely cotton but with the amount of body heat the Zeltivan Bear produced he felt like he was close to being on fire, plus the little blankets that were used to separate both him and the baby from the fresh cool earth helped in his favor to bring Martin out today. Ricky felt that Telion needed a much needed break from everything today as he could tell she’d been a little stressed, even if their child brought nothing but smiles and awes in their room there was still an undulant pressure that seemed to grow on her nowadays. It wasn’t bad as far as Ricky could tell, just something the two would definitely feel better about and move past, that is when spring finally rolled around once again.

Martin stood on the very tip of his toes while on Ricky’s chest underneath cozy undergrowth within the Cape, with the help of his father to stand him up of and play around of course. The place was beautiful when warmer weather came around but Ricky could hardly wait now could he, which is why he made sure little Martin was dressed warmly for this momentous field day outside the room and out in the world once more. The wondrous grayed hazel eyes that belonged to his mother were curious as he checked out the environment around him, but of course the baby’s laugh was just as well Ricky’s as the features he carried. "Look at ya laddie! Look at ya! Pretty soon ye’ll be out an’ ‘bout in de world, an’ Oi’ll just ‘ave t’ keep ya locked in den. Won’t Oi? Won’t Oi?" As he cooed to Martin further the baby let out giggles of joy at the attention his daddy gave him, laughter soon filled the air as the fisherman nibbled on the baby’s belly with his lips.

That is until noises that didn’t sound like the regular splash of waves started to fill the air to his right, just past the bush he and Martin had been tucked behind rather nicely. The serene moment he shared now gone Ricky held his son close to his torso as he raised up to see just what ruckus had stirred, and who exactly had been the one to have caused it. Sure enough the sight of a boy, not just a boy but a petching mage, fell into Ricky’s view and his chin practically the dirt. Water not only floated but orbited around what looked to be the center point of attraction, the method Ricky knew well as he’d practiced it a little bit. So the boy was an aquamancer like him then… yet if he was doing magic now… like right now… with Ricky and his son right next to him… "Oh… OH Shyke! Shyke! Shyke! Shyke!" Ricky bit his lower lip to keep from falling into a panic as he looked down at Martin, terrified as to what kind of situation he’d been caught in now that he was here today.

"Bleedin’ barnacles o’ de ass! What the petch am Oi gonna tell ‘is mum?!”" He worried as he tried to bend down instead of over, so that he could grasp the blankets and try to make a run for it. Of course Martin still thought his dad was playing around rather than freaking out, so a bit of an excited laugh gave away their rather disclosed location at this point as Ricky froze. Ricky looked to Martin at first with worry that the mage noticed them, and sure enough a solution came to mind that would solve one of his problems. "Let’s “not” tell mum." Likely something he’d think to do often if he’d found himself in other situations like this, however he knew well that Martin had given away their presence. Thus the fisherman slowly turned around to the aquamancer once more with a nervous chuckle to follow.

[Volanaro]

The Reimancer paid little mind to the prattling of what looked to be a man and his child. Rather, he continued to focus on the stylings and intricacies of his craft. Three watery spheres orbited the crimson, rippling mass of Res in the center, Volanaro allowing yet another breath to fill his lungs as he allowed the water to encircle the orb of Res, each sphere losing its individual form, splashing onto the rippling mass like waves at the shore before moulding to its shape. The water, like the concentration of Res itself, seemed to vibrate, slosh about on the orb as if it were a living creature, Volanaro carefully spinning the orb in place. The mass was beginning to take its toll, albeit a weak one.

But, he was not yet done. The poison that was overgiving was by no means a deterrent from his task. He was prepared to, no... required to continue. The water had already circled the Res, overflowing upon it. It was reminiscent of the creation of the world itself. First, there was the core that rippled and pulsated, humming with the potential for life before attracting what was needed in order to form water. Of course, this was an over-dramatization, but the metaphor was not lost on the boy Nuit.

Water is the essence of life, yet it is also the most dangerous of things, as well. But... with water, the earth is incomplete. The next imposition of elements is needed. The final act of Volanaro's creation.

Another breath was taken, Volanaro focusing upon the interior of the orb of Res. Cold, frosted air began to transmute from the crimson collection of Res.

And with this, an Age of Ice begins. The beauty of rippling tide is lost, life struggles to survive... For ice, is unequaled in beauty, the only quality of it on par with aesthetic appeal that of destructive power. Ice destroys, it expands. Ice is... volatile!

With each sentence uttered, the orb of Res and water had begun to solidify. First, it hardened, then it began to glean over, shining in Syna's light before with the last, exclaimed thought, the ice burst, ice falling to the sea in pebble-sized chunks.

The Nuit gritted his teeth as pain began to register in his mind, a migraine formed, his hands trembling as overgiving cast its poison upon him. His eyes, squinting under the burn of Syna's light, cast their gaze towards the sailor. Djed... The infant was lost on him, the desire to soften the blow of his overgiving tantamount as he traversed the path leading him to the man holding child, cold, gray orbs looking upon him. He saw no obvious signs of magic in the man, but it didn't matter.

Djed is djed. Any amount will soften the pain of this... migraine. At least, long enough for me to calm myself and... focus.

The hood shielded him from, Syna's wrath as he stepped towards the man, allowing a smile, not too wide, for it would show blackened gums otherwise, to grace his features as he said, "Hello, sir. Is that a baby?!" He did his utmost to instill a friendly tone into his voice, wishing for something as simple as a handshake... The gesture meant the difference between pain and pleasure.

[Ricky Maze]

As he scrambled to go he found himself rather entranced with the workings of the Reimancy at hand, the practice he did far inferior compared to what appeared to be amazing water art upon control and execution. Such beautiful fluidity made water seem almost alive within the mind, as though the orbital patterns of the spheres were drawn to dance around the red center that drew their attention. Like moths to a fire. Yet the Res this mage used was no mere flame, but a magnet of power that drew in the element around it. Just as the fundaments of attraction worked in Ricky’s mind, thanks to a little perspective from Anna’s view, Ricky had found himself starting to become all the more in tune with magic. Not that he could sense magic at all, but there had been feelings off times. Especially when he went through the University once or twice, these vibes he never noticed before somehow seemed to seep into his spirit as he walked the halls for whatever errand he had to attend.

Even though he wasn’t a student of the University Ricky did in fact know how to use magic on his own, thanks to the help of a fellow Nuit who’s now the Lord of Council… and of course a few extra lessons from people Ricky knew a while back. However even more amazing to the fisherman’s eye was the not the workings of the attraction and water, but the transmutation into that which he never thought would be possible before in his lifetime. The element, rather para-element, ice took form upon a transmutation that caused it to burst away. Unaware of the term “Para” Ricky could only wonder if it was even possible that he could learn such an amazing element. Compared to the first time he’d been initiated into Reimancy he had thought to likely be an Earth user, until the test to see his element that followed proved him to be a Water user. However if Water was in fact connected to the most beautiful thing he’d just witnessed, then sure enough he could only feel honored to be one step closer to learning how such an element is made.

Sure enough when the boy turned to see that Ricky stood there with Martin, there was shock and awe written all over the man’s face. There had to be almost thousands of questions that probably popped into Ricky’s mind, yet not a single word came out of the fisherman’s mouth as he merely mumbled gibberish to himself. There wasn’t much to go on other then the fact this boy, who had now asked about Martin, thought to greet Ricky as though what he did wasn’t as amazing as Ricky thought it to be. Then again it was clear with the tremble in his hands that there were the risks that he overgave, likely making the wizard a dangerous one to approach off hand without thought to consequence. Ricky was well aware of the signs that were involved with Overgiving, thanks to not one but three small lectures on how it works. Yet… the boy held a mystic quality about him Ricky couldn’t quite reject, if anything his mind was all the more curious to learn more about this boy; where as his heart wanted him to keep the precious child in his arms away.

"Y…yes," He finally managed to say as his eyebrows furrowed a little, "This is me son." There was the consideration that the boy was crazy sure but then there was also the courtesy one should provide, especially when a hand is extended to introduce a shake between two people. Thus with Martin securely held in Ricky’s right arm furthest away from this stranger, he decided to give this boy at least a chance in regards to mannerism and courtesy. "How in de bloody ‘ell did ya manage t’ pull off ice transmutation?" Unaware to the odds that this mage was a leecher, Ricky no doubt would not only be learning about one but two different types of magics today; the para-element of ice and the Personal Magic of Leeching. Still he made sure to remain ever more cautious about the mage, even if this handshake might give away the fact Ricky too knew how to mold Djed into power. Martin made a few noises any baby would make that showed signs of crying, which made Ricky all the more anxious about the safety of his child.

[Volanaro]

Even before hands made contact with one another, Volanaro knew that his pursuit was fruitful. The man's presence in his vicinity was likely a blessing from Rhysol himself, the promise of nourishment should he betray the sailor's trust and press forward with his ambitions. There was absolutely no doubt in his mind that it was what was being requested of him, the man's questioning cementing it into his mind without question. The word transmutation was a very precise one, lending to the assumption of, at the very least, the man's interest in Reimancy. If he was initiated, then the djed he could absorb was far richer than what he had originally thought. This fact encouraged him, and it was also the man's saving grace, as was it his child's. In any other situation, Volanaro would have absolutely no qualms about simply draining the non-wizard's djed and leaving him to die on the floor, his child left to starve, or even thrown into the sea in order to spare it from such suffering. This was no longer necessary.

Wizards possess a much richer, higher quality djed. I can very easily steal enough djed to press forward, and perhaps even show the man a lesson or two in the process. If he is so astounded by this display of magic, he is obviously not a threat.

Volanaro had met a number of mages in his travels, some even turning to Nuits with his ichor, and in turn bestowing upon him the initiations that allowed him to perform the magicks that he now relied on to give meaning to his endless existence. Of course, in time he wished for his knowledge to grow. It was in his very nature.

As the man reached out to shake his hand, the Leecher's eyes flared with excitement. Inwardly, he was ecstatic, eager to absorb his djed, to take it from him, thieving it in the most satisfying, delicious way possible. Djed was a drug far stronger than any other, filling his undead form with a pleasure that only the living could understand. His trembling fingers closed around the sailor's hand, his hand clutching, gripping with a strength only reserved for this particular art form.

Volanaro willed the djed to move through the sailor's arm, the rich, delicious sensation of his body flooding with it forcing shivers of pleasure to move along the length of his spine. His eyes closed, a gasp escaping his lips as he held the man's hand for a full ten ticks. It was... glorious, as if Volanaro had been brought back from - for lack of a better comparison in his own mind - death. He shivered again, bright laughter escaping his lips as his migraine began to clear, his lips curling into a bright grin.

Now, he was to return the favour. The sailor had brought the boy Nuit back from an ordeal of great pain, and he, at the very least, deserved compensation. Pale lips parted as Volanaro formulated his response. But, first, he could not help but express his gratitude. "Thank you... so much, good sir. Your djed was more than adequate... Are you a Reimancer?"

But, the Nuit did not wait for the sailor's response, assuming that the sudden loss of djed would leave him at a momentarily loss for words, "Anyway, as compensation for that... delicious meal, I will teach you a lesson, my friend. Reimancy is not limited to the four primary elements. Water. Air. Earth. Fire. By combining transmutations of the primary elements together, you can, if skilled enough, create what is called a para-element. Ice is one such 'para-element.' To give you an analogy to compare it to..." he began again, his hands rubbing together as his body hummed with the satisfaction of restorative djed. It was by no means enough to permanently stave off Overgiving, nor was it sufficient to restore his djed to its proper level, but it was enough to restore his lucidity.

He continued on, grinning still, "Imagine each element as a colour, if you will. By combining two different colours, you can create a new, distinct colour, correct? That is a para-element in essence. It is distinct, but made up from a sum of the parts. Without air, water is simply water. But by adding air, cooled to freezing temperatures... water solidifies, and is transmuted into Ice." The explanation was one he had constructed by himself, having learned Reimancy almost by himself, with only footnotes and a short book on the matter given to him by the Reimancer who had initiated him.

Volanaro's study of djed had been arduous, mostly self-taught and experienced with time, but he had limitless amounts of time to work with, so it evened out.

[Ricky Maze]

As Ricky tried to pull himself together to continue his communication, he felt strange as the hand that trembled latched onyo his own with an iron grip. At first the cold touch brought Ricky to thought upon the overgiven state once more, but he didn't honestly think what was about to happen was even possible. That different feeling just couldn't be ignored now that they'd shared physical contact, but what wad worse was an eerie tingly sensation within his mind that just seemed to dull down. Of course when that happened his energy seemed to drop as well, yet not so much drop as to "leave" him so quickly. He felt light headed to be sure but his senses told him that he was being drained, literally, as he felt traces of his own Djed leave him to be absorbed in the other. This about brought the fisherman to both knees as he struggled to keep himself standing, the thoughts of worry centered around the child in his other arm as he struggled to hold onto whatever strength he could. "What de... petch?!" He failed to comprehend what had just happened, and not a moment too soon afterwards did this mage seem to still the shakes in his hands upon release.

Sure enough this was no friendly mage, as soon as Ricky found both himself and his will free he bolted back several steps in a stagger. That of course set some good distance between them as he tried to shake the woozy feel off in his mind. How did this man learn Ricky was a reimancer? Did Ricky make it too obvious? Or was it due to the weird little trick done to the fisherman? Either way with only so much Djed left within him now, Ricky had to consider the chances he'd have in attempts of survival. His instincts had kicked in and with Martin's lost and scared look, Ricky would make sure to do anything necessary to see both he and his son made it out alive. "Damn yew Clyde," He cursed under the silence of short breaths, "Suddenly Oi t'ink me self wrong f'r bein' so interested in magic." It was ironic after since he tried to tell Clyde magic had done nothing bad to him, of course now that Ricky had experienced whatever just happened now... he knew right then what Clyde had to be talking about when it came to far worse things.

The need for an answer seemed to matter little in this boy's case, already set on talking some nonsense about how tasteful his Djed was like it were some feast.to he had. Was this boy a menace? Did he intend to threaten both lives before him as the fisherman felt weak? Strange enough his cryptic narcism led to a lesson the magic that he'd used not long ago, with a wild description on how ice was something called a pata-element to be made by the combination of water and air. The metaphor he used made sense as Ricky could see how colors did blend together, thus he truly wondered if the concept actually was the same with the elements. Water is fresh and cool when transmuted, or at least when he transmuted it, so with the combination of wind to freeze it... that's what somehow made ice. So if Ricky were to hone his skills with water and wind, them sure enough ice was just a capable magic to learn after dedicated practice. Enough with the basics on the water and ice though, even if it filled Ricky with more curiosity about it. There was a dangerous mage here that had questionable motives and questionable power!

"Roi, ya know yer stuff den. Now tell me what the petch did ya do t' me just then!" He held no aggression but his voice was a bit heightened, along with a noticeable change in demeanor as he kept Martin furthest away from the wizard. He had to know things before jumping the cannon on them, which meant if he could stall for information then sure enough that would prove to be his best course.

[Volanaro]

A satisfied sigh escaped the Nuit's lips as he felt the last traces of frosty breath leave his lungs, the boy in no rush to breathe again after the ordeal. He savoured the burn in his nerves as the djed corrupted by absorption, flooded his body, a grin materialized upon his expression as he assessed his new friend's reaction to the Leeching. First, he seemed to withstand, the first few seconds of the Leeching just beginning to siphon out his stamina, but it was upon the precipice of the fifth second that he watched his friend's knees buckle, almost falling to the floor. It was an amusing experience to be sure, one he identified with. He had, of course, experienced the sensation, but to a far more severe effect.

Being leeched as a Nuit had ruined the condition of his at-the-time body, the child's body, who he had held for a period of a year already, had nearly crumbled from the torture of leeching, and once he recovered, approximately one week after the ordeal, he had left the body behind. It was an art uncommonly used, to be sure, for Leeching weakened the condition of his bodies, forcing him into Transference far sooner than was necessary. Normally, it was to be used against mages, or to combat overgiving, like now. Leeching was a terrifying practice, even to the Leecher himself. A cough sounded from his lips as the djed settled in his body, the Leecher looking up at the sailor.

His words. They were... difficult to understand, a strange accent fleeing from human lips speaking in a language that he did not have a complete understanding of. For the most part, his thought processes took place in Nader Canoch, translating them into Common for the sake of the world around him. Even earlier, he had spoken Common, for now, Nader canoch was a language assigned to written word, the Protohumans of ages past, even before Volanaro's day, and their remnants lost to the Valterrian, for the most part.

The thoughts shook from the Nuit's mind as he observed the human's face. He could see the gears working, doing their utmost to grasp an understanding of his words, and... perhaps he was successful. He couldn't be sure. What he did know, was that based on the quantity of djed he had absorbed, he was a weaker, lesser wizard. But, he had the potential, and the Nuit was keen to make use of it. He could even nurture it as a means of heightening his own potential while in Zeltiva. The place was of interest, for the moment, at least. Plenty of water to employ attraction, a University filled with active minds and aspiring scholars. It would be interesting to pick up useful bits of information while he was here. The Nuit repeated the man's garbled accent in his mind, attempting to make sense of what he said before realizing what was asked.

"I apologize. I mean neither you nor your child harm... Overgiving is a poison. Perhaps you have even experienced it yourself. It was an... instinctive desire to feast upon your djed. That is what I did. Stealing the djed from the world around you is a magical... concept, known as Leeching." He hesitated to call it a discipline, for it was nothing of the sort. Leeching was a feral side of magic, its sole use to strengthen the caster, though at a high cost to their health. The man who had initiated him, centuries before, was nearly a cripple because of it, walking the earth with a walking stick and hunched posture.

"Have you other questions? I owe you a debt of gratitude for your donation."

[Ricky Maze]

No harm? Sure, leave that open to interpretation for the record. Ricky thought the lad insane now as the intentions he held were questionable, even if the means were justified with reason in the end. In short Ricky’s impression had yet to be fully set with this person, from one moment he proves an astute wizard and then next he goes on with some cryptic sense to his given lessons. The information Ricky picked up on wasn’t all of poor value though, even if his comprehension was somewhat little in regards to what he had heard. Stealing Djed from the world around you? Could his Shielding match against such a force? Considering it was made from pure Djed Ricky doubted the odds weren’t as favorable, which meant any shields weaved would prove useless. No, he had to stall for time. Even if this boy mentioned no ill intent for the two of them.

"Just keep a fair distance f’r a lil bit den, Oi ‘ate t’ risk another chance o’ ya sappin’ me energy like dat." He forewarned with a bit of spite as he held his boy with both arms now, Martin watched the wizard as though he were some kind of boogey man or something. Only aware of the fact that his father who was just happy and playful earlier, now seemed ferocious and alert to the being that stood before him. The boy’s paled hazel eyes watched both Ricky and this man with wild curiosity, and held onto his father tight as he felt safely secure in the fisherman’s arms. Ricky made sure his hold with Martin was snug, to reassure him that the boy still remained safe so long as he drew breath. "Since ya owe me dis ‘great deal’ o’ gratitude, start by tellin’ me who ya are. How long ‘ave ya been a… a leecher or whatever it’s called?" He stammered his words a little but the aggression he held was minor as well, as it was plainly obvious Ricky was in an overly protective state of mind at the moment.

Such a state was dangerous yet useful in many cases, yet in terms of this introduction it called for safe tempered acts. If the mage was capable of leeching Djed, then drowning him in water was out of the question. No… Ricky had to be cautious and see where this conversation was to go, no rash action could be made here as it’d put his son’s life at risk; that was something no parent would ever want for their kid to be sure.

[Volanaro]

Vibrant gray eyes narrowed in their sockets as he listened to the man's questions, a soft hum escaping his lips. The action was not to last, and the boy Nuit decided to take a single step back, allowing the human the illusion of control over the situation. He could almost feel the aggressiveness, the instinctive desire to protect his young. It was to be respected, to a degree, but this was not the time for the human to make demands. As the human spoke, Res gathered, released in faint wisps from the Nuit's mouth as he mimicked the motions of breathing.

Volanaro attempted to do so in secret, tiny wisps of Res, its colour perverted to that white to hide his purposes. The Reimancer allowed the translucent Res to move towards the human, a thin layer of it placing itself at his shoulders as the questions were posed. The fingers of his left hand remained utterly still, his thumb and middle finger stretched out as the others bent. His focus split between the Reimancy and the mortal's questions.

How long had he been a Leecher? Longer than you, your father, and your grandfather's lives in total, human. Of course, this was not said allowed, but rather, he substituted the words, attempting to keep a friendly tone in his voice as he answered the very first question, fabricating an identity to fit his body and appearance, though the name was his own. "My name is Volanaro! It's a pleasure to meet you, despite our rocky start... I am the son of a traveling wizard. A Reimancer. He taught me the ways of magic, feeling that it's a true power. Leeching is an extension of that power, and allows us to become even stronger!" He spoke the words with what he hoped to be the brainwashed perspective of a child, raising his right hand up in the air with a sort of excitable glee.

His gray eyes stared into the man's, vibrant. This body was very recently acquired, not even an entire season passing by his acquisition of the corpse. It was his favourite yet, as the body was in pristine condition. No visible scarring on the face or hands, no lacerations or gashes on the corpse to speed up decomposition... His lungs were in no condition to function, the frost having long thawed, but the organs were killed before the body had been. In truth, the man was of interest to him, knowing the definition of the word 'transmutation', having a wizard's concentration of djed to steal... There were likely other secrets the man was hiding, as well. It was part of the mystery, and Volanaro hated mysteries. Secrets were meant to be discovered, after all.

Lowering his arm, the Nuit's smile fades just slightly, lips parting to form his own question, "And who are you?" The question was simple, but it was easier this way. Mostly, this was done because he personally did not feel endangered, as the other obviously did. The Res upon the sailor's shoulders were still present, lest his intentions become malicious, but Volanaro doubted this would happen. He assumed that the sailor was intelligent enough, despite his atrocious accent, to realize just how powerful Volanaro's advantage was in this moment.

[Ricky Maze]

Gods. Was this part of the whole “I’m a great wizard” thing all mages seemed to pick up on? Or did this guy just really know how to creep him out? The words the boy chose were a bit less cryptic which is what Ricky looked for, but the promise of power behind them only made the fisherman roll his eyes. It was that kind of attitude that made all mages so damn dangerous when they casted their little spells, or in this case their mighty ones that drain them so much that they resort to “leeching” others instead. Martin had become more focused on his dad now, hands all clingy to the facial hair on his chin. Of course the baby also tried to place his fingers in his dad’s mouth too, which helped brought Ricky to relax just a little as he thought over more and more.

"Guess Oi gotta just go wit’ me gut and let dis one slide, but Oi an’ gonna let down me guard…" That much was evident considering the company he had. Ricky learned well with Clyde that magic and other mages are not to be trusted, and if the changes it brought to people were an indication of its power; then sure enough Annalisa and Clyde both must have gone through hell and back to be the way they are now. Then of course there were the ones like this boy, this… thing that looked to be a younger boy. There wasn’t an absolute guarantee the mage was human, considering Ricky felt aware of this upon the cold clammy touch of the hand. He couldn’t say it outright because there wasn’t enough evidence, but based on his experience he speculated the youngster was a Nuit of a sort.

Whether this was accurate remained to be seen right now, further observation had to follow to be sure. Yet Ricky gave himself a shot at a better means of getting through this without ruffling any feathers, considering he was in a terrible disposition at the moment with what he felt was magic in the air. He knew well enough that Res could be turned or “phased”, as he preferred, between a liquid and gas, so the chances that the deep inside feeling that he held portrayed to something of that nature being around him. Or was it the wizard in general? With his own Djed now stolen and stowed away inside another, could Ricky feel that Djed by some small connection only through what was once his? The mystery would remain so for now, seeing as how he had to take steps to lessen the cut throat tension between him and this… mage.

"Volnaro?" He echoed the name in his head, though it was off when he did so. "Volinaro? No, Volanaro." He finally recalled within his mind after a few repeats of the statement he heard moments ago, a few more times of repetition led to the name to finally sink in with the appearance of this young man. "Oi’m just Ricky, nobody special in particular." He hid the truth well enough with a straight face, there was no need to indulge this stranger with personal details about his life after all. "Dis be me son Martin," He looked down to the little guy in his arms with a more serene expression, "say ‘ello t’ the creepy stranger." It was a minor joke made on his part seeing as how the baby really couldn’t talk yet, so at best he took Martin’s wrist gently and waved it as though the child were saying hello.