#event: apolloyn ouranos

[adalrikr]

though you are lord pent's child, you were never his son. not as klein or clarine were, but in magic you excelled them both. did that not speak for something? the flame answers to your hand as you face the darkness ahead, and you will give it its answer — whether by blood or founding, he never treated you any different. and so the same should be said for yourself. the darkness roars, and you will give it the proof of your teaching.

ambition sharpens its edges upon you, and though you have never grasped for status, you cannot help but welcome its praises. the presentation of the appointment to mage general is the highest honor to a battlefield scholar of etruria, spokesman to your efforts in spite of humble beginnings. now, yours is the glory of the once-splenderous, before the tide of time yet washes it away.

untempered spirit, let your soul sleep awhile. beneath the glass, the future makes demure and inviting sounds if you listen.before the pines turn brittle with ice, which path will you grasp with all your might?

The darkness overwhelms his vision, and Erk is at once alone. His head swims as the images flash before him. One, a darkness to overcome, a flame in hand. The other, recognition, a future that he wanted so badly to be able to reach a hand out to.

He knows his answer before the question is even asked. He's known the answer all along; hasn't he? He knew the answer before he had even seen this vision. It was the exact reason he was in Fodlan, the exact reason he was here at this very moment.

"... Do I even need to answer...?" He asks into the void around him. He does not get a response. Typical.

Fine then! I want the future! I want that recognition! I... I don't to be unseen...

A small hand reaches towards the vision of the person he could be, the highest praises that could be awarded him. He wants his future more than he could ever speak it out loud, more than he could ever admit to even himself.

The vision disappates before him just as quickly as it had come, but Erk has already made his choice.

It was always clear... wasn't it?

[adalrikr]

Erk winces in sympathy as Sir Knoll smashes directly into the mirror, offering a hand to help his fellow mage up. He lets out another long sigh, beginning to think that this is all a little pointless.

How did he know they weren't walking in circles anyway? (Not that Erk could tell anyone how to get back to where they had first started by now anyway, but that was beside the point.)

He glances back towards Ewan, deciding that his friend's current injuries looked more severe than Sir Knoll's at the moment. He pulls out his staff again, turning towards the older mage.

"Ewan. Let me try again," Erk gestures with his staff to signify what he meant. He didn't think that he would ever be confident in his abilities with it, but that didn't mean he was willing to give up studying healing magic or trying at it.

The flow of healing out of the staff as Erk's hands shake only slightly, the remaining bruises on Ewan's body fading away and leaving his skin unblemished once again.

Erk casts Heal on Ewan! Roll 1d20: 17. +4 HP. [Ewan: 10/10 HP]

The Etrurian mage smiles proudly at his work for once, though his smile is small and shy, "... Hope that helped..."

@optimismxmagicism

Do dark mages dream of black sheep?

Team Tau mission: Ease your mind with preparations (Ewan + Knoll + Erk)

[adalrikr]

@making-dough asked:

Well, that night's conversation came with some interesting reveals so the moment she could, Farina opted to corner Erk for a private chat. "So...dragons. Any chance he could be one of those dragons?", she asked, sounding especially nervous. A 'fell dragon' certainly sounded like the sort of dragon that would feature in legends right out of the Scouring. She'd hate to end up facing one of those in a dark alley.

Erk never knew Farina well, though had been the case with most people in the army back in Elibe. He had preferred to keep to himself, even when they were not fighting.

But she was the only other person amongst their group from Elibe, who could understand the apprehension towards the idea of dragons.

"I don't know," Erk admits quietly, tugging his cloak around his body. Nils and Ninian were one thing, but this was another entirely. Nobody else had seemed phased when Rafal said he was a dragon, but to him, and likely Farina as well, dragons were mostly nothing but stories from the past, nightmares told to children to get them to behave, "... It's offputting to think about. But also... intriguing at the same time. He certainly doesn't seem like the dragons in the stories I heard as a child though..."

[adalrikr]

For fear of what Ewan might do in the moment, she'd neglected the comfort of another mind that had started to fray around the edges, unraveling one thread at a time. Sara would say it was only natural that someone so young be unnerved by the sights they bore witness too, but given his height Erk can't be much older than she herself is. She had not so much as flinched at the macabre cracking sound when knives were driven into flesh, not looked away from the carnage or felt nauseated by the stench of blood that permeated the room after. Not even shed a tear for the fallen regardless what fate awaited them.

"…How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine," the young mage insists, now that he has had some time to calm down. He is ashamed, and embarrassed, looking back on his behaviour. Including how he had childishly called out for his father master.

His mind is not changed however, Lord Pent would be able to handle this far better than he ever could.

Erk does his best to keep his composure steady now, in comparison to his earlier breakdown. It does not befit him to be out of his mind in their situation.

"... Do not worry about me. It's a waste of your energy anyway. I'll be fine."

[adalrikr]

"I believe this belongs to you."

She had seen the boy in passing, had gauged by a look or two that her temporary possession had a more permanent residence with him, but they hadn't been spared a moment until now for Lucina to pass it along with any sort of formality.

So her hands produce the staff, held shakily in bruised knuckles. Weakness has begun to make a home within her, the very object she holds like a lead weight in her palm.

"Thank you for allowing me to make use of it, but I do not doubt it is worth more in your hands than mine." Her chin dips, courteous. "You may call me Lucina. I fear there haven't been many chances for an introduction before now."

Erk takes back the staff from the lady, violet eyes staring unblinking up at her. In truth, it was little more than remnant of his past, of a war, of his lack of skill in healing.

"... Thank you..." He says quietly, small hands hiding how they trembled as he placed them around the staff. A small frown grows across his face as he remembers that Serra also used to carry her staff like this, and he quickly changes the way he holds it.

"... I... I'm actually not that good with a staff. My skill is not comparable to my master's," Because Lord Pent was good at everything, including things that Erk wasn't talented in, "... I'll do my best though, Lady Lucina..."

He sighs softly. In truth, he was in over his head. But he didn't have much a choice but to continue forward now.

"Erk. My name is Erk."

[adalrikr]

"... Good... good work," Erk says to Alcryst, also offering a nod of approval to Knoll as he caught the mirror, "I... I don't know about you two, but I would like a break."

The young mage slumps against the nearest wall, with the curiosities safely returned to their boxes. Running from room to room chasing after them, hoping to see them in the darkened corners, was more tiring that it had first sounded.

Erk lets out a long sigh, slowly closing his eyes for a moment. At least, neither Alcryst or Knoll was the kind of annoyance he hated. Thank Saint Elimine for that.

Rest... yeah... rest sounds good right about now.

[end]

the lost boys

[adalrikr]

Activity Check (February) - Passed!

Total Skill Points: 14 -> 15 -> 16.

Monthly Skill Point: +1 to Flying (Rank up! Flying Rank D+ -> C)

Other Points: +1 to Flying (Event)

Claims:

Classes: N/A Rank Chart: (One choice at or below corresponding rank) Thoron (Has: Rank B in Reason)

Housekeeping

Waiting on Partner(s):

Lucius (Mini) (Lucius)

Blood From Stone (Harken) (Axe +1)

Can I Come Round and Stare at You (A Flower) Like This -> :Bylass_Ascended: (L'arachel) (Faith +1)

“Your Honor, It’s Just a Little Guy” Yeah, And? (Lucius) (Bow +1)

Um, Actually- (Linhardt) (Authority +1)

My Lady They Are Getting You in the Quote Retweets (L'arachel)

[In the Same Inflection as “BEYONCE?!”] MAGE GENERAL ERK?! (Chad) (Lance +1)

Omg TWO Authority Figures? (Isadora and Chrom) (Faith +1)

Please Let This Be a Normal Field Trip (Patty)

Water Main Break (Nils) (Authority +1)

Radish Farming? More Like Rubbish Farming (Yarne)

If Your Plague Ridden Dreamscape Doesn’t Produce Daylight, Artificial is Fine (Tharja and Knoll) (Apolloyn Ouranos)

Ghostbusters 2 (Raven)

Care to Explain Why You're Chasing Me? (Ayra) (Sword +1)

Mages Stronk Together (Katarina) (Axe +1)

Just Got Back From the Torture Labyrinth (Edward)

May Well Pass Such Mislike (Knoll)

Gambit Declined (F!Mark)

A Flurry to the Flame (Delthea)

Heart of the Cards, Baby! (L'Arachel) (Authority +1)

Mage General Childcare (Elffin) (Mage General Erk)

Letters for Erky Poo / What Am I, the Gay Supporting Cast? (Ewan)

Elibe Reunion Club (Eliwood)

Don't Go Into the Woods (Lysithea)

Dropped:

N/A

Completed:

Say Hello to the Spray Bottle! (1087 words)

[adalrikr]

Roll: 18. -0 HP.

"I am fine, Sir Knoll." Erk is only a little surprised that it took this long for the mysterious machine to explode on them, given how much they had been messing up adjusting it.

He quickly dusts any ash off of himself and moves to craft some more of the materials. He would much rather have a stockpile of those than messing around with making (and failing at making) serums all day long. Or touching that godforsaken machine again. His luck had been rather bad lately, he would hate for it to explode on them again.

Two pieces of ore remain in his hands at the end of his little crafting session, the young mage looking far more proud of himself than he should have for the results. It was something, at least. And that was enough for Erk.

Roll: 1. Dark Ore. Roll: 3. Great success! +2 Dark Ore

@pryings

𝙞𝙛 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙥𝙡𝙖𝙜𝙪𝙚-𝙧𝙞𝙙𝙙𝙚𝙣 𝙙𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙢𝙨𝙘𝙖𝙥𝙚 𝙙𝙤𝙚𝙨𝙣’𝙩 𝙥𝙧𝙤𝙙𝙪𝙘𝙚 𝙚𝙣𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝 𝙙𝙖𝙮𝙡𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩, 𝙖𝙧𝙩𝙞𝙛𝙞𝙘𝙞𝙖𝙡 𝙞𝙨 𝙛𝙞𝙣𝙚 | TEAM TAU.

task: craft artificial daylight.

[adalrikr]

Erk did not consider himself very wordly. Even after travelling all around Elibe both during his work as a bodyguard and during the war, he did not think that he had truly seen or known any of those places.

As such, was he truly qualified to comment on this? He had barely even known Nils and Ninian, despite travelling beside them for so long. (Yet another deficit of tending to keep so much to himself.) He could not say if Rafal was a monster or not.

(But if any dragon could be a monster, did that not hold true for humans as well? Did they not all have the capactiy for monsterous actions? The capacity to do evil?)

"He is... I don't get a great feeling. But I am not going to worry about it for now. Unless he proves himself otherwise, of course."

♠ - In truth, there was at least two types of dragons Farina recognized from stories growing up. One was the typical monsters - fire-breathing monstrosities that destroys whole villages for shits and giggles and typically invoked when trying to get naughty kids to behave. The other were the kind ice dragons that protected the people of Ilia and simply left before they ever needed to turn on the very people they protected. So, in summary, even before the adventures with the performer siblings, she wasn't entirely foreign to the idea of non-crazy-monstrous dragons. Just that she tended to think of the latter as the subject of fanciful fairy tales and not really real. Actually, the entire idea of dragons still existing was like entirely a myth to her a few years back. Right up until Dragon's Gate and nearly dying to three dragons. That was certainly an experience to reframe your thoughts.

Farina bit her lip nervously and mumbled. "i know what you mean. It's a little scary to think about. Especially with the way he called himself. 'Fell Dragon'. That's not something you call yourself if you want to be a good guy." Then again, he didn't seem like the sort of monsters right out of stories of the Scouring. Just a little arrogant and cocky and to be honest, if she was to condemn him for that, she may as well start pointing the finger at herself.

She shook her head to try to clear out those thoughts. At best, they were a distraction. At worst, she was entertaining turning on someone based on her own cultural hang-ups. "No, you're right. He doesn't feel quite that bad yet. I guess... we should be glad he's on our side?" Still...just why was it she could never feel certain about that last statement?

[adalrikr]

Roll: 1. Furnace stops working Roll: 1. Not enough heat Roll: 5. Unsuccessfully bolstered

Erk takes the hand that Ewan holds out to him, using it to tug himself up from the ground. He dusts off the back of his pants, now covered in soot from sitting by the furnace for so long.

He doesn't know what the future holds, he's not some mystical all seeing fortune teller after all.

But he has a feeling it's not going to be as bleak as the past might suggest.

Though, that's just a hunch. He has not way of knowing for certain. However, he hopes that he's right. He really does.

"Alright, let's go," He smiles, still shy and uncertain. The future was always awaiting; wasn't it?

end

What's a Better Roadblock to Friendship than Manslaughter?

Week 3: Power the Furnaces for Refinment || Team Tau (Erk & Ewan)

[adalrikr]

"... Sure... we don't have to go out..." Erk secretly breathes a sigh of relief to himself, that he would not have to go outside into a potential crowd at the marketplace. It was much better for his psyche to stay inside, with all of his books and four safe walls surrounding him. To not have to worry about any potential annoyances clouding over the rest of his evening.

He blinks at the tome that Ewan holds out, half in surprise and wonder, and half in awe, "It's from Elibe you say?" He'd never seen a tome like this before, but he's sure that it existed. Perhaps before that long ago war. Or even in parts of Elibe that he had never been to before.

"... I am more curious than wanting to be prepared... where did you buy this...?"

Smile for Hope in the face of Despair

[making-dough]

♠ - In truth, there was at least two types of dragons Farina recognized from stories growing up. One was the typical monsters - fire-breathing monstrosities that destroys whole villages for shits and giggles and typically invoked when trying to get naughty kids to behave. The other were the kind ice dragons that protected the people of Ilia and simply left before they ever needed to turn on the very people they protected. So, in summary, even before the adventures with the performer siblings, she wasn't entirely foreign to the idea of non-crazy-monstrous dragons. Just that she tended to think of the latter as the subject of fanciful fairy tales and not really real. Actually, the entire idea of dragons still existing was like entirely a myth to her a few years back. Right up until Dragon's Gate and nearly dying to three dragons. That was certainly an experience to reframe your thoughts.

Farina bit her lip nervously and mumbled. "i know what you mean. It's a little scary to think about. Especially with the way he called himself. 'Fell Dragon'. That's not something you call yourself if you want to be a good guy." Then again, he didn't seem like the sort of monsters right out of stories of the Scouring. Just a little arrogant and cocky and to be honest, if she was to condemn him for that, she may as well start pointing the finger at herself.

She shook her head to try to clear out those thoughts. At best, they were a distraction. At worst, she was entertaining turning on someone based on her own cultural hang-ups. "No, you're right. He doesn't feel quite that bad yet. I guess... we should be glad he's on our side?" Still...just why was it she could never feel certain about that last statement?

@making-dough asked:

Well, that night's conversation came with some interesting reveals so the moment she could, Farina opted to corner Erk for a private chat. "So...dragons. Any chance he could be one of those dragons?", she asked, sounding especially nervous. A 'fell dragon' certainly sounded like the sort of dragon that would feature in legends right out of the Scouring. She'd hate to end up facing one of those in a dark alley.

Erk never knew Farina well, though had been the case with most people in the army back in Elibe. He had preferred to keep to himself, even when they were not fighting.

But she was the only other person amongst their group from Elibe, who could understand the apprehension towards the idea of dragons.

"I don't know," Erk admits quietly, tugging his cloak around his body. Nils and Ninian were one thing, but this was another entirely. Nobody else had seemed phased when Rafal said he was a dragon, but to him, and likely Farina as well, dragons were mostly nothing but stories from the past, nightmares told to children to get them to behave, "... It's offputting to think about. But also... intriguing at the same time. He certainly doesn't seem like the dragons in the stories I heard as a child though..."

[adalrikr]

Roll: 3. Furnace is working.

Erk flinches slightly at first, startled by the sudden hug. He had never quite become used to the touch of another person, even when it was Lord Pent or Lady Louise. Serra had loved to fling herself at him, much to his own disappointment. He had tried to avoid it when possible though.

It was not that he wasn't fine with being touched, it was just... an odd feeling for him.

(Lord Pent's pats on the shoulder to encourage him, Lady Louise's warm motherly hugs, Serra's exuberant and energetic, well, everything, and even Klein and his sticky baby hands. And Ewan's gently hug, like he didn't want to let go of their friendship. As long as it was someone dear to him - yes, Serra too was someone he held close to his heart, even if she was an annoyance more often than not - he supposes he didn't mind too much.)

"... Of course," he says quietly, hugging Ewan back shyly, "let's do our best to make it through. ... Together."

What's a Better Roadblock to Friendship than Manslaughter?

Week 3: Power the Furnaces for Refinment || Team Tau (Erk & Ewan)

[adalrikr]

Roll: 2. Furnace is working

Erk glances up, finally, glad to see that Ewan had smiled again, even despite the circumstances. He manages a small smile of his own in return, gentle and shy, but geniune as well.

"The past cannot be changed, but the future hasn't happened yet, so you still have a chance to do better..." One surely could not always walk on the path of light and good, nor could they always follow the darkness. In fact, Erk was liable to believe that most people stood in a sort of middle ground, a grey path that was neither good nor bad. But even good people could do bad things. And the same of the opposite: bad people could do good things.

One single act of bad, or even many, did not always necessarily make you a bad person.

"... Doing... doing your best is all that any of us have got..." Erk thinks that... he would rather stand by someone he trusted anyway. To have belief in the fact that Ewan was not any sort of evil person.

What's a Better Roadblock to Friendship than Manslaughter?

Week 3: Power the Furnaces for Refinment || Team Tau (Erk & Ewan)

[adalrikr]

Roll: 2. Furnace is working. Furnaces powered: 2.

"There is not many people I want to talk to, it would be a shame to lose someone who it's so easy to do that with..." He stares at the kindiling in the furnace, because he is almost afraid of meeting Ewan's eyes.

Did he think badly of him now for reacting cruelly upon his earlier actions? How else was he meant to face something like that though?

Had he been meant to act like seeing someone get stabbed straight through the heart was just a normal everyday occurence for him?

Because it wasn't.

Not anymore. And he didn't want it to be either.

(At this point, he just wanted to go home. Not back to the academy, but home. Back to his room in the castle with its familiar walls and the piles of books he had left abandoned there. He wanted to see Lady Louise and Lord Pent. And even Klein with his sticky hands that he seemed determined to get all over Erk and his books.

Huh... when did he start thinking of that place as home anyway...?)

"I... I think everything will be alright. It may sound strange coming from me of all people, but I think it may be an ease on everyone's mind to smile right now..."

What's a Better Roadblock to Friendship than Manslaughter?

Week 3: Power the Furnaces for Refinment || Team Tau (Erk & Ewan)

[adalrikr]

Roll: 4. Furnace is working.

"You are not bothering me," Erk pokes at the furnance idly as he speaks, though he still does not lift his eyes. He can't bear to. He still wants to be friends with Ewan - something he didn't have much of anyway, he didn't have a reason to want to lose one of his only friends - but...

"You are simply wasting time by blaming it all on yourself." The mage frowns softly, before letting out a long sigh. He still doesn't know how to feel about all of this, but it wouldn't do him any good to mope around as well.

He didn't need to waste time with doing that. There was no need for him to disappoint Lord Pent any more.

"You are only wholly at fault for one death anyway. There is no point in taking all the blame for the others onto your shoulders. ... Such a burden will destroy you."

What's a Better Roadblock to Friendship than Manslaughter?

Week 3: Power the Furnaces for Refinment || Team Tau (Erk & Ewan)