#kai and nirael have a conversation that doesn't involve a full on fight

[goddesstrolls]

“You really don’t have anywhere... Better, to practice?” Nirael dug a half-buried rock out of the earth with his boot and kicked it aside, in a vain attempt to even out the terrain.

The two of them stood in a forested clearing, the same forest Kairos had been coming to in order to practice necromancy in relative peace and secrecy.

“I can’t exactly live in my castle, with the distance to travel.” Kairos drawled in response. “The Fleet doesn’t pay for work commute.”

“Your castle,” Nirael muttered under his breath, and Kairos narrowed their eyes but deigned not to reply. “I mean, you have a hive, don’t you?”

“Yes, I’ll just crash through my upstairs neighbor’s ceiling with a few giant spires of ice, that will be a good way to introduce myself.”

Nirael rolled his eyes, tilting his head back in exasperation. “You don’t even have your own hive? You’re the descendant of royalty, and I thought fuchsias-”

“-You assaulted me last time I attempted to take so much as a fraction of the wealth I had access to as your descendant. I never had an Empire stipend either. Do you legitimately expect me to pull fantastic sums of money out of my ass? I can’t exactly go conquering-”

“-Alright, alright, you’ve made your point.” Nirael waved his hands in an attempt to halt Kairos in their tirade. “Let’s just get started.” He heaved a sigh to collect himself, and then held a hand out. With a deep, sudden rumble, the ground leveled itself, and then a rune appeared carved in the earth.

“This rune will let me monitor your magic a bit more closely while you cast. So just stand on it, and cast something.”

“I keep telling you that I can’t cast anything,” Kairos grumbled as they moved to stand on the rune.

Nirael waved a hand again, dismissive. “Whatever. Just stand on it and do something.”

As Kairos set foot on the rune, it glowed red, strands of light weaving around their legs and limbs. Kairos looked unsettled, warily eyeing the light coiling around their forearm.

“Go on,” Nirael prompted, and Kairos sighed before holding their hand out towards a nearby tree.

Ice erupted from it in jagged, violent spires, shattering the trunk and threatening to knock it over- If not for the ice now holding it together.

Nirael stared for a long moment, and with his silence, Kairos glanced over at him.

“What are you doing?” Nirael asked finally, and Kairos furrowed their brow.

“Using my magic. Like you asked.”

“I mean, what are you trying to do. Try casting something.”

Kairos opened their mouth to respond, clearly annoyed, but Nirael interrupted as they took an offended breath. “Just try, Kairos.”

Kairos gave a growl of frustration and grit their teeth, and held a hand out at the same tree with spikes of ice spewing from it. After a few moments of focus, their brow furrowing, the ice shattered and the tree, devoid of support, collapsed with a crash.

“Excellent! I think you did what you were trying to,” Nirael grinned.

Kairos was staring in shock, having not even lowered their hand. “I... Never managed to do that before.”

“Well, we confirmed that you can. Try something else.”

Kairos threw an uncertain look to Nirael, before casting a glance around the clearing and visually picking out a rock sitting on the ground. They held their hand towards it, their fingertips now trembling from the anxiety of using their magic after so many disastrous consequences prior. Several moments passed, their tremor growing as they exerted more magical energy and their anxiety heightened- And then ice erupted from their arm outwards, and they flinched to avoid getting skewered in the face.

They hissed in frustration and planted their free hand on the ice caging their other limb, attempting to destroy the ice as they’d done with the tree. Instead, spires of ice erupted out of the ground by their feet, narrowly avoiding spearing their legs and instead only growing around them, locking half their body in ice.

“Goddamnit,” Kairos snarled, and squirmed uselessly, trying to garner enough force to break free of the ice with sheer strength.

“Hmh,” Nirael merely sounded thoughtful, and stepped over to lay a hand on the ice, effortlessly shattering it into fine crystals. “What were you trying to do the first time?”

“I was just trying to lift the rock.” Growled Kairos, dusting powdered snow off themselves.

“And you were trying to destroy the ice the second time, yeah?”

“Yes. That must have been a fluke.” Kairos gestured at the shattered tree. Nirael twisted his lips in a frown.

“Well, I can see what the issue is. You lack the will to manifest.” Kairos shot him a confused, annoyed look, and Nirael continued. “You get all antsy when you try to cast, and that doesn’t help either. But the main issue is your willpower.”

“I don’t know what the fuck that’s supposed to mean.” Kairos snarled. “I’ve tried to do things before with plenty of intent and desire to do so. Everything I’ve read implies that is all I need.”

“Mmm... Sort of?” Nirael scratched his jaw thoughtfully. “Or at least, usually, yes, that’s all you need. But you’re lacking...” He trailed off into thoughtful silence.

“I’m lacking what.” Spat Kairos.

“Patience, first of all!” Snapped Nirael in response. “Direction, second. Your magic is just exploding out of you because you aren’t directing it properly.”

“I don’t know how I can comprehend how to do that if I do not understand innately.”

“I don’t know either,” Nirael folded his arms, clearly still trying to think while Kairos bared their teeth in frustration. “Okay, let me ask you something. Why do you want to study magic?”

Kairos paused for a moment, and then tossed up a hand. “I don’t have a reason. It’s just something I used to do. Something I should be good at.”

“Mmh,” Nirael frowned. “Okay. I get it, I guess.”

“Care to explain? You seem to understand more than I do at the moment.”

“Ehh.” Nirael grimaced, and waggled his head, clearly hesitant to share his revelation. “I’ll get back to you on that. Here’s some homework instead: First of all, get back to the basics. Start with literally the simplest things- Like lifting that rock- And keep at it until you can do it. But more importantly, I need you to find a reason to study magic. To study necromancy, whatever.”

“I’d honestly rather not. It’s not worth it. At this point it’s just an expectation.”

“Okay, well, then internalize that expectation until it becomes your reason. Until it guides your will. That’ll solve your problem. Let me know if you have any interesting results.”

Nirael turned on his heel to leave before Kairos could respond, deep in thought, and Kairos just tossed their hand up in exasperated resignation and shook their head.