>>423700
Wait, did we not manage to get our presentation first?

Watch her presentation, no harm in getting a better sense of her capabilities.

>>423707
>It would have been too difficult without buying favors you couldn't afford, and you decided that you wanted to understand your magic more before you presented it.
>You decided, in the end, to just show off across the city about your own, superior teleportation. Means she gets your sloppy seconds, fame-wise.

>>423700
Let's see what she can do. It should be interesting if nothing else.

>>423709
Fine.

We should go there and watch with the smuggest possible grin on our face.

Possibly Very Cruel Idea:

During the demonstration, ask her to "Teleport" our sword.

You get to your feet, ignoring the monster as it weakly punches the plastic border between you and the pen, and make your way back out of the building. It was one of the more heavily-secured buildings on campus, as it was meant for burgeoning Combat Evokers or Shamans to test their abilities on real monsters, but it was useful enough for you. Especially since you're using a pen that Brun registered and paid for, meaning you don't have to spend anything on it.

You blink across town. Her presentation wasn't on campus. None of them are, in truth, because it isn't part of the Academy. As always, since the days of old, a true Adept- no matter who their master was- would come to the city and present their works to a council of mages. In practice, the council was made up of whoever was in town at the time. It's always too hard to keep wizards unified or orderly in even the best situations.

The tower spans the sky. It's the tallest structure in the city, stained glass spanning the walls. It shouldn't withstand its own weight, especially during a presentation, but the power of magic trumps physics any day, as long as it has enough mana. The guards- three of which are golems, the work of Archamge Haron- stop you for a moment while the human guard checks your identification.

"Jasmine Angwaz." You say, showing it to him. "Adept. Third year at the Academy. I'm here to observe."

"I see." He says. "Cerulean Sirius, correct? Her presentation begins in ten minutes."

"That's right." You say. The guard nods, gestures to the golems, and they step aside, letting you in.

The building is crowded. More crowded than the handful of presentations you observed when you first got to the city, for sure. Magi sit in crystalline, levitating chairs, while adepts and civilians crowd around you, making their ways to the chairs mounted along the walls of the building. In the very center of the room, Cera is sitting. Her usual robe is replaced with something more intricate and layered- plenty of iridescent Mithril thread just to show off her money- But not too much, else her magic would fail to work at all. Wouldn't that be funny, if her own fashion prevented her from making Magus?

You find yourself hoping that, when the council of Magi move closer, and the bell at the top of the tower begins to ring.

"We have collected." A tall, willowy woman says, standing on her own levitating pedestal. Archmage Yule is beautiful- she always has been, ageless and different every time you see her. The Immortal, the fleshcrafter. A healer, once upon a time, before any person currently living was alive. Just having her here would be an honor, which is no doubt why Cera's father bribed her somehow. "Under the tradition of Romalia, An Adept has created her own magic. Welcome, Adept. If the sun graces you, you shall leave this building a Magus. Your soon-to-be Peers surround you. They, not I, will judge you. You may speak."

>Continued!

>>423709
I am for this.

Did we teleport in? We should just teleport into the room.

But maybe that would be too petty.

"I am Cerulean." Cera says. Nice touch, not mentioning her family name. Works to separate her from her father, make it sound like she'd actually invented something herself. "As the apprentice of Archmage Sirius, I have learned his art of creation and destruction."

"The art of Creation and Destruction, as some of you may know, is the ability to turn physical matter into magical energy, or the ability to turn magical energy into physical matter. This is not my creation, but the creation of my master. However, I have a achieved something he has not."

The crowd murmurs a bit. Doing better than an archmage in their specialty somehow is rare, even if they're your Master. You may hate the girl, but you have to admit that she's got to be good, if she's not lying her ass off.

"The Art has its own limitations." She says. "Range is the greatest one. Upon destruction, the spell injects mana into the caster's soul. It is impossible to Create from too far from yourself. There are other limitations, but... I have defeated many in order to create something that the entire world can use."

She spreads both hands- and two glimmering, shimmering dweomers appear. They dance around her for a bit, and then span across the chamber.

"These dweomers are simple, and temporary, Through the practice of thaumaturgy, My Master's art, and analytical runes, I have linked them, directly and immediately, no matter the distance they need to travel. They use this to any nonliving material from one location to another. There is no threat of monster attacks in the space between, no threat of loss, no lacking of ability. There is no delay, no matter how they are from one to the other."

With a hand, she lifts an invisibility spell, and quite suddenly, there is a crate in the center of the room.

"Presume this is a shipment of supplies. Food, perhaps, from a village out in the wilds, or the fur of monsters."

Two rings of light shimmer beneath both dweomers, golden light dancing across the smooth stone of the chamber. With one hand, Cera slides the crate into one ring.

It dissolves, sparks of light entering the dweomer. At the same exact time, sparks fall from the second dweomer, reassembling the same crate on the opposite end of the room.

There's a moment of silence. The magic in the tower prevents lies, and has so much sensory enchantments and equipment that there's no way to falsify something like this. You're an adept, so you can't speak up. You wish you could.

One of the Magi stand. You don't recognize her.

"Does this magic have range limitations?" She asks.

"It does not." Cera says. "As long as one dweomer is charged with enough mana, they are intimately linked. In fact, from the perspective of thaumaturgy, these dweomers are in fact a single object."

"How long do they last?"

"Two weeks, unfed." She says. "However, they can be fed physical material as food. Trash will allow them to last indefinitely once cast."

>Continued! Sorry about the lack of choices here, folks.

>>423847
I gotta give it to her, this is a very useful invention, and great for non mages.

Our discovery is for mages and for those with VIP cargoes.

>>423847
Sounds quite useful for moving goods, especially if it doesn't take a ton of trash to sustain it.

>>423847
>Trash
She found an eco-friendly application for her magic too! Wow... pandering to public opinion!
> [no] range limitations
Wah! Wut! Better than our super-magic or just hyperbole? Ah, "with enough mana" could mean anything... hopefully.

>>423847
I really want Jaz to learn Destruction at least. Being able to refuel mana reserves is incredibly useful.

>>423783
>Archmage Yule
Already took a picture of her, right? To show Thod, for reference... or something.
>refuel mana
Yeah. But I think concentrating on our super-magic is even more useful.

>>423881
>To show Thod, for reference... or something.
Jeez anon. He already got a bed warmer. He doesn't need extra pictures to fap to.

>>423882
Well, Brun probably doesn't have the time to go over EVERY day!

>>423879
>It's not just refueling mana reserves. It's infinite mana reserves. It costs zero magic to use destruction.
>Her pops made archmage for a reason.

More and more questions come from the magi, bombarding Cerulian with questions. She can't move wizards or monsters because the existence of a soul prevents the Art. Cattle and non-ensouled creatures can be moved, but the movement inevitably causes them to panic. Creations that involve Mithril or Orichalium are impossible as well, though Cera never explains why. You watch her handle the bombardment of questions effortlessly. The bitch does have a good speaking voice, in the end.

Finally, when it looks like all of the magi are convinced, a tall, broad-shouldered woman stands. form her chair. The magus is freckled, and reminds you strongly of Brun. Her brilliantly-red hair dangles down to the floor, braids bound in dozens of strips of leather, beads, and monster feathers. In fact, she's even wearing robes made out of Flame Dragon wings.

Her grin is smug, almost mocking.

"Does this have anything to do with that young woman who was teleporting around the city over the past week?"

Her eyes flick to you for a moment.

Cera is shaken, a bit, but she shakes her head.

"That was a peer Her own magic is different. I'm very glad for her success."

"If she can teleport personally, doesn't it mean her magic is better?"

"Magus Dalheim." Yule cuts in. "This isn't relevant."

"Very well. No more questions." The woman says, sitting. She calmly folds her hands in her lap while the crowd begins to murmur.

In the end, the questioning stops, and the Magi collectively come to a decision.

Archmage Yule nods again, turning to Cera.

"By the decision of this Council of Magi, in this sacred tower, you have created a new magic- one of great use. We welcome you into our company. Magus Cera, please stand and join us."

Cera, beaming, gets to her feet, and a floating pedestal descends to the ground. She steps up, and it takes her into the air, into the council.

With something as useful as that, you're not surprised she made it as magus. It stings a bit, that she finished her thesis before you finished yours, but you couldn't answer all of those questions about your teleportation yet. You still don't know the main mechanism, other than it tunnels a hole through space.

You're on your way back out of the tower when someone grabs you with both arms, squeezing you tight.

"So, how'd my mom do?" Brun asks. The magus who promoted you in the middle of Cera's presentation is grinning with the same kind of fiendish, confident grin that so reminds you of Brun. She throws you a wave.

>?

>>423914
Good jobbu, Brunmom

>>423914
Thanks for standing up for me!

Shortie hug.

The question is, did Brun put her mom up for that or did her mom do that on her own?

>>423914
>Thanks for the promotion ma'am. Need all the support I can get.

>>423914
>>?
"It made me feel better. Thank you."
Brun's family will partake in our secret magic - as per our agreement, so they're probably quite happy...
Get to know them some more, what's her mother doing here, is her magic similar to Brun's? Fighting?

>>423914
While it was great, I'm somewhat concerned that others will have a negative impression of us because of it.

Also, we should look into figuring out Destruction. Because FUCK I really, really want it. Matter Energy Conversion is so broken.

Is it known which one Sirius figured out first?

Does Archmage Arcturus exist?

>>423941
What? Are you gonna take on terra? In the middle of the zerg war?

>>423914
It was entertaining, did she do that of her own volition or did you make a suggestion?

If she expects something in return for this she can stuff it, not in so many words but unwanted favors are kinda shitty.

>Destruction and Creation where invented pretty simultaneously. Destruction is just a reversal of the process that makes up Creation.

"Thanks for the promotion, Ma'am." You say, pulling Brun's mom into a hug.

"No problem. None at all." She says, taken aback a bit. "Uldora Dalheim."

"Jasmine Angwaz." You respond. "I need all the support I can get. Did Brun put you up for that, or did you do that on your own?"

"Brun asked me. Easy enough, for a friend of the family." She says. She rolls her eyes. "I mean, I know it was a deal that you and Brun made, but the deal's big enough that we'll be in your debt. Once we have the, er, method you're working on, we can be Warders again. Not just monster hunters."

"Is your magic like Brun's?" You ask.

"No, I'm not an evoker or anything. I'm a Shaman." She says. "Though most of my work is theoretical, I've claimed quite a few abilities."

"She also tried taming that dragon she's wearing." Brun says. "When I was twelve, it burned down like half our estate. I think it almost burned down the other half a few years later."

Uldora gives you a wry grin.

"I had to put it down, in the end. Dragons are impossible. Too territorial.

The three of you chat a bit as you make your way out of the tower. Uldora's has a smattering of monster abilities, but she mentions that she has to be careful when claiming new ones, because they tend to change her personality. For example, apparently she can't eat anything but meat- vegetables and greens tend to taste revolting to her, even if she can digest it.

"So, what are you doing in the city?" You ask. "Isn't the Dalheim estate pretty far away?"

"Distance doesn't tend to matter when one can fly." Uldora responds. "But I was in town to help a fiend subjugation that's going to start here soon. Thought we got them last time, but a few survived. It's doubly important to take them down because they still remember their progress, and might figure weapons out. Once they have a few swords or spears, they get twice as dangerous."

>?

>>423967
Oooh, sounds fun.

>>423967
You can fly mam?

>>423967
Oh hey, the fiends we encountered, we could come along and help with singling out individuals.

We really should work on our thesis though, so if anyone has a good idea how to get on with that I'm all for it.

>>423967
Do we know which one Sirius was going after at the time?

It could be that he was trying to construct matter using Mana and figured out how to deconstruct other matter when he succeeded.

>>424003
I am up for adventuring mage. Academic mage is only so interesting.

Anyone remember the spread sheet simulator magic academy game? Academagia? This is starting to feel like that.

>>423967
>?
"I will join you. It will revive my energy to continue my research."

>>424011
Yeah, Research Quest can only be so engaging...
Can we soulmagic our fiend prisoner to be friendly? Like the Shakal character tried on us?
Anyway: We should get our theories for an evaluation...

>>423967
>fiend
Somehow, fiends sound like an experiment for servants gone wrong.

Also, >Fleshmolding

Time to learn her secret and grow in height?

>>424024
>grow in height
And chest!

>>424024
>grow in height
:) or shapechange into Cera and ask daddy what his secret for Destruction and Creation was again, "Forgot again, ehe"

>>424026
And get black hair.

Part of me really really just wants to hear it from the horse's mouth why Cera has an issue with us. I feel like Jaz respects the skill, but just dislikes Cera specifically because Cera dislikes her.

>>423967
We can get some more fiends for our experiments. It would be neat if we could teleport their souls...
>Cera
It's probably a stupid reason, right? But having an archnemesis doesn't sound boring!

>>424031
I want to hear it from Cera too, I hope it will eventually happen.

>>424032
It might be, but I'm just honest to goodness wondering. I want us to just kinda walk up to her one day and ask point-blank: "Hey, so why do you hate me so much? What did I do?" with genuine bafflement.

Considering that other worlds exist, what if we encountered a Jaz who was a tall, Voluptuous, redhead?

>>424038
Illusion spell.

>>424035
I am Ok with this.

>>424009
>You don't know anything about Archmage Sirius' process of learning his magic. It's not like archmages broadcast that kind of thing unless they let everybody know everything about their magic.

>>424011
>All of the stuff you guys can actively work on- the research- is all done between sessions, mostly to avoid that. Otherwise every vote would just be 'WORK MORE'. That way, you'll accomplish your research just by doing adventures!

"Ooh, Sounds fun." You say, not sure if you're being sarcastic or not. "You can fly?"

"Certainly." She says. She parts the flame dragon wing on her robe to reveal that it's not a skirt- it's actually connected to her back, fused in. "Took some surgeries, and I had to steal the ability before I'd even hunted the thing, but now it's nearly effortless for me."

"That sounds useful." You say. Not many wizards can fly unaided- The most you can do is overpower a slowfall spell and skid forward- and that drains your magic in maybe half an hour at the most.

"It is." She says. "Some days I spend more time in the air than on the ground. But people tend to frown on flying over the city." She grins. "There's one time I flew over here, and they thought I was a dragon. Gathered together an army to subjugate me when they found out what was going on."

"That must have been rather awkward to explain." You say. "Hey, can you explain how you can tame monsters?"

"It's pretty simple, in theory." She says. "Replace the ferocity core in their soul with pure loyalty. It's very difficult to keep their soul stable, and I'm not very accomplished at it. Most monsters need maintenance, and even then, they don't last very long. When the soul falls apart, their body simply dies. It takes practice."

You nod. You've been experimenting on your captive fiend for the past few days, working at reshaping it's soul without killing it. You haven't killed it yet, but it's obviously pretty sickly. "Sounds rather difficult."

"It is." She says, nodding.

"Hey, mom. What are the chances I could come with you on the Subjugation."

"Pretty good." Uldora says. "I'm certain of your ability."

"I've been considering the same thing." You say. "I'm not an Evoker, but I was trained in my village's militia."

"She's not bad, either." Brun says. "That sword of hers is sharper than her tongue, some days."

"Do you have some protection dweomers?" She asks, and you nod.

"I can also recall anybody who runs into trouble." You say. "Just send them somewhere safe if somebody runs into trouble."

Brun's mother considers it for a time. "Where is your village?"

"South." You say. "Near Terra's Spine."

Uldora nods, finally.

"We'll be leaving the morning after tomorrow," She says. "If you'd like to join us, I'm sure you could assist. You'll get an equal share of the earnings, even if some hunters think that newbies shouldn't get anything at all. Are you up for it?"

>?

>>424038
>parallel worlds
Encounter Adept Sirius 2 working on his thesis, befriend him, get him to tell you his secrets, return to World 1, use that secret-magic to power our portals, unlimited range, no soulburn, i-win button.
>>424035
It's worth a try and probably an entertaining conversation.

>>424052
Alright, first adventure getto

>>424054
Our portals are way better already.

>>424052
Yes ma'am.

Anons, you are forgetting the number one goal of all mages.

Immortality

>>424052
We'll maybe find something nice for Ishelda, and we can more than earn our fair share, this will be great.
>bad dice.
Oh no!

>>424075
Immortality is greatly overrated, bringing up an amazing apprentice is where it's at.

>>424052
>>?
"Yes, I'm up for it. I look forward to doing the community a service!"
Bond with Brun and her mum on an adventure, Thod has to stay home.
>>424076
Yes, something for Ishelda, maybe a fashionable hat?
>>424075
>Immortality
The Fleshcrafter and Golem Maker already did those, right? Hm, we would have unlimited time for research and teleportation to different worlds... and our biography! Want!

>>424079
>amazing apprentice
Or amazing Mage Wars, teleport anywhere to steal research papers, books, diaries!

>>424054
I actually did it with a bully in 10th grade that had been messing with me for at least 3 years. Walked up to them in gym class one day, asked them outright, 'Hey, just what is your problem with me?'
Apparently they thought I was a pushover and didn't like that.
I ended up crushing them in dodgeball two days later and scaring them via prank.
They got the message, and were actually happy about it. Didn't mess with me anymore.

"Yes, Ma'am." You say, nodding. She smiles, patting you on the head. "I'm up for it."

"Then I'd better set off. Get everything ready." She says. "Brun will show you where to go when the time comes."

"Thanks, mom!" Brun says, pulling her into a hug. "I'll see you later."

"See you." She says- then her wings spread, and she shoots straight into the air. With your new sensory ability, you feel your magic quiver from the shockwave Uldora gives off.

"So that was my mom." Brun says.

"I like her." You say. "I can really see the resemblance. Why isn't your hair that long?"

Brun rolls her eyes. "Because that's a really easy way to get your hair yanked in a duel." She says. "Mom can just fly over everyone and rain down a firestorm. I can't really do that. Want to get something to eat?"

"Sure." You say. "Where do we want to go?"

"... I don't really have any spare cash, so we'll have to go back to campus." She says. "Mind showing me your shortcut?"

"Sure, sure." You say, rolling your eyes. The two of you blink back to campus, and make your way to the cafeteria. The two of you get to eating and talking.

"So, how's your research going?" She asks.

"It's going." You say. "Right now I'm working on Astral Magic, and you have no idea how much that helps when you're working on basically everything else. When you can feel exactly what part of a spell takes the most mana, you can trim that part down. I've already made the, er, method I'm planning on giving you nearly an extra third as mana-efficient." And your personal version of the Star Rune twice as mana-efficient, making the rest of hermeticism that much easier. You're sure you could portal to the other side of the world, by this point, and not end up using up all of your mana.

"Damn." She says. "That's pretty good."

"... Do you have a Thesis?" You ask.

"Nope." She says. "I'm not planning on making it to Magus. I'm just working on my evocation and making connections. I basically just needed to pay tuition and I can use all this extra hardware and hang around campus. It's worked out pretty well for me."

>?

>>424106
Huh, that's cool too. I imagine it's not easy getting tools and equipment to work with on your own.

We should ask if she has any ideas for Ishelda-gift! Unless we already did and I forgot.

>>424106
"Eh, as you will. Can't say the facilities aren't good. I'm looking forward to the day I finish this thing. Maybe then Cera won't be so vindictive at me. I don't even know what her issue is, which would honestly make me feel at least a bit better about it."

>>424106
>>?
"Yeah, I'm happy I made a connection with you. I see great things in the future."

Isn't Brun's family quite old wizard material? Don't they want more Magus family members, to leave a more prominent legacy?

>>424106
It's nice knowing what you want to do and doing it isn't it?

>>424106
>>424122
>tools and equipment
Hm, maybe she knows about monsters that we can use to build our permanent portals with? Like bone or flesh properties... is Necromancy a thing in this world?

>>424147
That's a good point, we should hear about that too.

>>424106
That makes sense, I'm glad Rathod mentioned you when I was looking for information,

Any information you are willing to share about monsters? parts, rare individuals, that sort of thing.

Brun has been really swell, I'm glad we're friends(we are friends right?)

You know. Her specialty is combat. It wouldn't be a bad idea to have someone tutor us during our free hours away from research.

>>424188
>Brun >we are friends right
She and our brother-elect Thud shag, so yes! Plus she and her family get our super-magic in the future (at least without our super-secrets).

Maybe Sirius doesn't-need-mana magic is actually Soul magic?
>>424200
>combat >tutor us
To better defend our secrets! Yes!

File: K5pxPjz.gif (2.95 MB, 555x312)

2.95 MB GIF

>>424052
>That sword of hers is sharper than her tongue, some days

BRB gonna go find art to make a Planeswalker Card.

>>424200
I like the sound of that. During our off times sparing with her. Learning little combat tricks are we go on. Should make adventuring much better.

>>424147
>What you need are particularly magic-insulating and magic-conductive materials, which Mithril and Orichalium does perfectly.

>>424147
>Not really. The closest thing to necromancy would be if you brought a corpse back to life and had a dweomer inside animating it. It would be hilariously distasteful to do, though, but it would be more mana-efficient than animating a pile of rock shaped like a person.

>>424200
>You have been dueling her off and on over the past week, whenever you got sick and tired of research. You're getting better, though she does still usually trash you.

"Yeah, that's cool too." You say. "It's not easy getting tools and equipment on your own. I should know- I tried. The facilities here are pretty good, though."

"I'm glad I went here." Brun says.

"Isn't your family pretty old wizard material?" You ask. "Wouldn't they want more magi?"

"Normally." She says. "But magus doesn't suit me. I'm more the type who uses magic just to use magic, not to invent new spells. But we have my mom, and aunt, and a few cousins on my dad's side who are working on magus. They don't really need me."

"Oh well." You say. "I am glad Rathod mentioned you when I was looking for help."

She just grins. "Yeah, so am I. You're a cool person. Maybe even an Archmage, after your studies are done."

"Yeah, maybe." You grin. "I've got a question."

"Hit me."

"Are there any monster where their parts are like, extra magic conductive? Or even magic-insulating?"

Brun frowns, thinking. "Not... usually..." She says. "I mean, there might be a few templates like that out there, but generally what you'd want is some of Archmage Kristoph's work. Probably cheaper than monster parts, too, unless you hunted it yourself. But I haven't heard of anything like that."

She shrugs, and the two of you finish your meal.

"Why do you ask? Planning on making something? You might be able to find some of that stuff in the fab building. I know that gold's pretty mana-conductive, and iron's pretty insulative, if you want to make a prototype. Isn't Rathod's specialization fabrication?"

"Technically he's on paper as an apprentice." You say. "Not really anything. But he's got a few Fab classes."

"Hm." She says. Then a moment later, she grins. "So, Rathod's been your friend for years, right?"

"Ever since I was like, two years old." You say. "My mom still has a picture of us on his dad's shoulders. That guy was bigger than Rathod."

"Huh." She says. "So... What do you think about him and I getting together? I mean seriously, not just sleeping around."

>?

>>424296
Well, let's warn her we MAY be obliged to do some teasing of Thod regarding rings followed by bells...
But really, if they want to try dating that's great! We need to hurry and make more friends though else we're gonna be third wheel deluxe.

>>424296
"FINALLY!"

I imagine we have been harassing rathod about getting a girlfriend for years. Lol.

>>424296
>>?
"I'm cool with it." They can call their first-born child Jasmine and we look forward to some new Magic - they will combine theirs, right?! right!

>>424296
Hey if you make each other happy. go for it. He's my oldest friend and deserves some happiness. That said as his oldest friend, if you break his heart, I break you.

>>424296
You are a decent person, probably not after him just because he apprentices for Haron and you haven't even tried to throw me under a bus once!

Seriously though, if Rathod wants to be serious about it I will support you. If you hurt him though I will find the first uninhabited island and leave you there.
(the threats are maybe a bit overboard but he's like family)!.

>>424334
Haha, imagining that kinda threat from little Jaz is kinda cute.

>>424342
Two words Partial Teleportation.

>>424296
>"Sure. This is probably obvious, but past experience has taught MC to remind her that she should actually be serious about it, not just see him as a stepping tool or connection to an archmage."

>>424355
I think we're more likely to just teleport her into a volcano.

>>424366
Two words: Teleport. Volcano.

>>424363
Brun seems like she's not very ambitious, so there's probably nothing to worry about.

>>424388
>not very ambitious
She does want her axe-murder-skills to improve. Wouldn't say she's not ambitious, just not in the academic sense.

A general note concerning the Cerulean/Jasmine rivalry.

As I understand it, this rivalry was started by Cerulean’s insecurity regarding upholding her father’s legacy and feeling upstaged by Jaz. Jaz is just in it because of how annoying Cerulean is.

Now that Cerulean has managed to sort-of win by becoming Magus first might be a good time to bury the hatchet, so to speak. Make it clear how different the applications of our teleportations are, throw in some praise etc.

Not saying we need to offer an olive branch at all. If we want to we can totally "win" the rivalry, it just seems suboptimal compared to converting an antagonist, and this would be a good way to do it.

Additional note: Destruction/Creation is the perfect assassination tool within reach. Teleportation/portals etc is the perfect tool to enhance reach.

>>424388
Is "probably" enough when it concerns our life-long friend?

I did say it was "probably obvious", so she should be able to laugh it off anyway.

>>424399
>As I understand it, this rivalry was started by Cerulean’s insecurity regarding upholding her father’s legacy and feeling upstaged by Jaz.
It's a reasonable assumption. But we don't really know if that's the case.

>>424399
Keep the two magics separate.

You slam your palms on the table.

"FINALLY." You crow, and Brun jumps. She... wasn't expecting that.

"If you make eachother happy, go for it." You say, calming down immediately. "He's my oldest friend and deserves some happiness. You're a decent person, and I know you're not after him because he apprentices for Haron."

"Because I don't really care about Golemancy?"

"No, I know because he doesn't hate you." You respond. He'd gotten pretty damn good at figuring that kind of thing out. "Oh well. Keep in mind, though, if you break his heart, I will break you. You wouldn't be the first."

Brun looks at you for a long moment, suddenly wary. She must have forgotten about all the duels where she completely trashed you... Or it might just be the look in your eyes.

"I have a few places in mind. You know, uninhabited islands, volcanoes... The moon." You say. "I'd just send a little bit of you to all of them."

It's not possible to partially teleport something like that, but you'd figure it out if you had to.

Brun goes a bit green.

"Right." She says, talking a bit quickly. "Don't worry. I mean, I did come out and ask you before I really talked to him about it. Didn't want to, you know, cause a divide between the two of you or anything. Took me weeks to figure out you two weren't already involved."

"He might not have the same family name, or share blood, but..." You shrug. "He's my brother."

"... Well, I'm going to ask him out soon, then." She says. "After the hunt, of course. Asking him before that would just be a death flag."

She grins, and stretches. "Anyway, I think I should go practice some more. I wanted to try out a new combo, and there are a few evokers who want to try me. I also wanna see if I can use that silver trick with some iron, create a shell of magic insulation."

"Good luck." You say. She waves and grins, heading out of the cafeteria, axe on her shoulder.

You stare down at your empty plate. Rathod's probably out learning from Haron, and you've got nothing to do. Maybe you could look for something for Ishelda, or even take Brun's advice and try creating a prototype portal gate in the fabrication building. That is one of the few things your scholarship actually pays for, after all. You can't take a lot of materials, though.

Or you could do something completely unrelated. Maybe even head home for a little bit. With your spell trimmed down to be this efficient, it's just a hop away.

>>424399
Yeah, it's a good idea! Let's... oh wait:
>assassination tool
Now, I don't want to get near her again...

>>424399
We are also a descendant of a believed crazy person who made our family name into a mockery around the world.
And yet here we are, a tiny adapt from some out of the way town blowing nearly all other, presumably more respected family, adapts out of the water with our talent for magic.

>>424438
Let's go window-shop for Ishelda. Are there any magical curiosities/basics shops around? If she's gonna start working towards being a mage, there's surely something we can get her to help with that.

>>424440
>Now, I don't want to get near her again...
We study in the same academy, live the same city, are connected to the same cycle of people… That’s really not an option until we do adventures in another world.

She’s already our enemy. Making her neutral, or even turning her into a friend, are better solutions than simply avoiding her.

>>424438
Hmm, we might benefit a lot from a few lessons in sword training, that or a gift for Ishelda.
I would like to see more of the gruff retired Hunter.

>>424440
>>424399
>Assassination
>One thing of note about Archmage Sirius's magic, the Art of Creation/Destruction, is that it doesn't work on anything that has a soul or enchantment of some kind. Including people, orichalium, spellcrystals, that kind of thing. It doesn't even work on monsters. (Or so he's maintained, but you have no reason to doubt him.)

>>424438
>prototype portal gate
Muahaha! All your coins belong to us!
>>424452
>Making her neutral, or even turning her into a friend
All true!
>>424456
>doesn't work on anything that has a soul
Good reminder!
>no reason to doubt him
Except we're part of the paranoid wizard world too! Whispers in the dark, secrets hiding behind secrets but in plain view.

>>424438
Portal gate and or training with our sword

>>424456
Didn’t she destroy our crystal?

Anyway, I was taking these limitations into consideration when claiming it was great for assassinations. Even at its most basic you can create any kind of mundane poison and remove most evidence including dead bodies.

>>424438
>?
Can we actually go visit Cera if she's still in the city? (celebrating her new Magus status)

A bit of character interaction with her might be interesting (like >>424399 suggested).

>>424475
>destroy our crystal
Yes, from far away and without actually seeing it (it being inside our Implement). We have to keep her and Sirius far away from our Permanent Portals!

>>424478
>You can, actually.

>>424475
>>Didn't she destroy our crystal?
>Yeah, that was pretty weird. I wonder how she did that.

Hmmm, visiting Cera sounds interesting. On the other hand we've been kinda needling her since we found out what she was doing for her thesis so she has a better reason than average to be pissed at us to be honest.

>>424501
We have? I could've sworn most of what we did was reactionary.

>>424505
Sure it was a reaction to her attempted sabotage. Doesn't mean she's gonna go 'oh, well she was just retaliating, so I'm fine with this'.

>>424505
It was indeed reactionary, and not even close to what she did to us, it could have been dangerous.

I do like the idea of meeting her while we go about town.

In any case, what I propose is the both of them publicly declaring (=telling a reporter?) how different the transportation methods are and how they are not competing with each other, but rather complementing each other.

As the other anon noted: She is great at low-cost large-scale transportation of mundane goods. We are good at energy-intensive middle-scale transportation of elite goods and people.

>>424492
A) Improved spell can breech magic protection
B) The crystal is not constantly saturated by magic enough to protect it, she found a weak point and managed to use it.
C) She managed to suppress the magic with another spell, opening the way for the destruction magic
D) Crystals are meant to have spells cast through them. She sabotaged it to let her cast destruction through it, bypassing the usual barrier. (Maybe thanks to the traitor. This would actually be a repeatable, but preventable attack vector.)

I'd say we could try building the portal gate.

Or we can study more.

Finally we can ask if either Heron or Kristoph need anything.

>>424518
>energy-intensive
Secret!
>low-cost large-scale transportation of mundane goods
Somehow this sounds like a public humiliation campaign and not a mission for reconciliation...

>>424519
>building the portal gate
Build two, with a digital traveller counter up top and a credit card slot for paying... those can be implemented at a later date.

>>424528
>energy-intensive
>Secret!
He dweomers can literally run on garbage. It is not a secret that ours costs more energy, even if the exact amount should indeed be kept secret.

>>424543
>run on garbage
Sirius family will be awared the Gold Star of every environmental organisation anywhere... Garbage dumbs? History!

>>424543
Another project we should do down the line should be anti-teleportation wards. The obvious solution would be to find out how the spell decides if something is in the way and fool that sensor. The obvious counter to that would be removing the safety feature that stops one from teleporting inside of objects.

Perhaps a weak but high-density force-magic net would be enough to stop teleportation within the net. As far as I recall the spell failed whenever one tried to teleport into something denser than was was to be teleported or something like that.

The Dryad is actually pretty crowded, even though it's still in the middle of the day. Then again, it is the weekend, and Cera's having a celebration. This is usually what happens when someone pretty big makes it to Magus, but it's not usually this crowded. Quite a few adepts are hanging around, but not many people are drinking. Cera's still in her new ensamble- it might even be her new wizard outfit- grinning and nodding as people congratulate her.

You walk in the standard way, rather than teleporting straight inside- you're still not sure about the legality of doing that, especially when there's a bouncer or guards outside, so you usually teleport onto a nearby roof and slowfall down to the road.

You simply walk right in, and nobody seems to notice your entrance. You glance over at Cera laughing at a joke someone just made. She might have been an absolute jerk to you, even tried sabotaging your entire career- but her magic isn't a joke. To adopt a spell like that- especially an Archmage's art, with who knows how many limitations and limits- to work on dweomers like that must have taken years of work.

"What are you doing here, Angwaz?" She asks when you approach her, sighing. "Here to brag about your magic some more?"

>?

>>424543
There's something to be said for the "only on when you need it" model. Cera's design is always-on, and presumably difficult to restart if it turns off.

>>424438
Hmm. We probably shouldn't hop home until we find something for Ishelda...

>>424612
No, simply to congratulate you on you hard work and elevation to magus status.

>>424612
Congratulate her, also ask about her bone to pick with us.

>>424612
"Opposite, actually. Wanted to congratulate you. We might not exactly be friends- to be honest, I'm not at all sure why you have such an issue with me- but that doesn't mean I don't respect skill when I see it. Congrats on making Magus. I mean it."

>>424612
Hey, so how efficient are the dweomers? Do they take a lot of trash to keep running? Are you gonna use them for recycling?

>>424637
Meant to add *Offer a handshake.*

>>424612
>>?
"Congratulations! Years of hard work paid off. Teleportation is going to be huge."
Can we get her to talk with us somewhere more private... doesn't seem appropriate party-talk...

>>424637
I want to add "I still hate your guts though."

>>424612
>"Nope, just congratulate you.

I don’t actually dislike you succeeding in itself, just you trying to pull one over on me. Speaking of which, our spells are complementing each other rather than competing. It may not be obvious right now, but you will be better at large-scale transportation than I. Cannot really beat having your dweomers charged by garbage, you know?

I was even thinking we might work together on business ventures one day. Your spell moving large-scale goods, mine moving the living and magical. Just something to think about.

----

Probably too much of an info-dump too soon. I have to leave now, though, so maybe keep the later parts for later updates?

>>424680
Eh, too much too soon.

>>424710
We'll talk about that after the party. For now this is just showing up on her big day to maybe sorta extend an olive branch.

>>424680
I'd like to have cool heads before making a spell system that perfects assassination and warfare logistics.

"The opposite, actually." You say. "I wanted to congratulate you. We might not exactly be friends, but I know skill when I see it. Years of hard work paid off. Congratulations on making Magus. I mean it."

She gives you a look, like she's not sure what you're thinking. You just hold out a hand, and she takes it.

"Thanks, Angwaz." She says.

"... Still hate your guts though." You say, huffing and sitting in the couch next to her. "Honestly, I'm still not at all sure why you have such an issue with me."

She rolls her eyes. "Because you're an arrogant hick from some primitive village in the middle of nowhere. You show up promising to remake your crazy ancestor's supposed magic, and that's exactly what my dad and I were working on. I just teased you a little to blow off steam. Then instead of actually getting anything done, you just ran around and tried beating everyone in their own specialties, called me a whore when I tried talking to your friend. Of course you pissed me off. You're the least focused wizard on Campus. It just felt like you were making fun of me. Like my entire thesis was yours to make fun of."

She rolls her eyes. "Like, What the hell does the shaman pen have anything to do with teleportation? You've been there all week."

>>424722
>I keep forgetting the prompt. Damnation.
>?

>>424722
She got us. We are anons. We do not focus on one specialty.

>>424722
It's a secret until my thesis is finished!
Also gonna repeat my last vote >>424643

>>424722
"One, I'm not a hick you spoiled brat. Two, I called you a slut because of your outfit. Three, all magic is related in one facet or another."

>>424722
"A lot more than you might think, but that's Thesis stuff. You'll know after it's finish. And seriously, arrogant is just kinda who I am. Ask most anyone you know, I don't actually MEAN anything bad when I start talking myself up, it's just how I hype myself. I'll admit I probably shouldn't have called you a whore, but I was high on emotion at the time due to semi-unrelated issues. But, still not an excuse, so I'm sorry for that.

...And yeah, you got me on not focusing. But! It's worked out so far. I'm not trying to be malicious or anything, it's like...hm...ah!

Say you're a kid, and you see a bunch of candy in a store. You have a giant sweet tooth,so y'just wanna try everything! That's me. I'm that kid running around trying everything, only in this case, I'm not tasting everything just to eat it all, I'm tasting it to get reference so that I can make something really sweet for everyone, too. and it's WORKING. I'm making something really, really sweet, and I hope everyone likes it. I wasn't trying to make fun of you at all."

>>424722
Also, as anons wereally escalated the situation by identifying her as the rival and going after her didn't we.

>>424756
We're trying to reconcile, not antagonise her.

>>424722
"Was working on Astral Magic for self-defense actually. Some asshole posing as a reporter tried ensorcelling me in order to steal my secrets."

>>424722
All magic ties into other magic if you look hard enough Cera. You proved that with your thesis, didn't you? As for exactly what it is, that's thesis stuff, much like how you didn't share yours til the very end.

>>424766
I don't really think so? All that stuff seem like it was before quest start. Our first time seeing her in-quest she was insulting us after all.

>>424772
I like this

To add perhaps we could offer her some advice on it and make that the olive branch?

>>424722
Oh and I DID recreate my crazy ancestor's old magic. Most of it anyways. The man was a genius, just had less than no commons sense, couldn't keep it in his pants and was crazier than a loon monster.

>>424771
It helps when you know the real reasons on both sides.

Also.
>>424772
Yes. Bring this guy up because that was creepy as fuck.

>>424722
Something that cound change the way everyone see's magic. But that just a side hobby. I am great at what I do, no need for you to be jealous.
Enjoy the fact that I didn't ruin your day by showing off my magic while the arch mages were actually there.

>>424766
>>424802
shhh no antagonising. we want to end this self imposed rivalry.

>>424789
also, can we stop talking about this guy? he has a huge rep for being a whackadoodle. it does us no good at this point.

"One, I'm not a hick, you spoiled brat." You say. "Two, I called you a slut because of your outfit. Three, all magic is related in one facet or another. The Shaman Pen thing was because I was working Astral Magic for self defense. Some asshole posing as a reporter tried messing with my soul in order to steal my secrets."

"Ouch. Nothing like that's happened to me. A lot of assholes, but no astral assholes." Then she shakes her head. "I remember hearing your pops was the only wizard in your entire village; that's pretty damn out there. And there's nothing wrong with wanting to look nice. Maybe you're not sure what nice looks like, with that jacket..."

"Hey, so I've got a question. How efficient are those dweomers? Do they take a lot of trash to keep going? Do you use them for recycling?"

"They take barely anything." She says, smirking. "Dad's magic basically means I never have to worry about mana. And since the dweomers just have to exist, and don't spend any mana on the transfer, they last weeks without a touchup. Any kid or wanna-be adept can keep it topped off. And we already recycle everything. You never heard why my dad made archmage, did you? He built a huge spellcrystal that breaks down the city's trash, and powers the city with it."

"Huh. That explains why you're so spoiled." You say. "And I DID recreate my crazy ancestor's old magic. Most of it, anyway. The man was a genius."

An adept comes by, congratulating Cera. She gives him a smile so bright it makes him blush profusely, and thanks him for it. Eventually, after a bit of chatting, he meanders off.

She snorts and turns to you. "Krital Angwaz? A genius? Really? I tried reading that journal of his."

"He just had no common sense, couldn't keep it in his pants, was crazier than a loon monster, but he wasn't completely wrong. Figured it out by looking at his notes."

"He kept notes." She says.

"... actually he just wrote in one of the copies of his own journals. In the blank spaces. Usually whatever thought that was on his mind... sometimes grocery lists. Most of it was pretty random, but it was never actually wrong."

"I can see his resemblance to you now." She says. "Specially the common sense part. Picking a fight with Brun Dalheim?"

"She's a friend." You respond.

She sighs.

"Well, I don't think I should hold a grudge against you. Especially now that I'm a Magus. I'm supposed to be above you Adepts."

Then a moment later, she tilts a head.

"... Sorry about that Tribunal thing." She says. "That was pretty fucked up, but I didn't want you to present anything before I did."

>>424828
Couldn't she just have her dad put in a stern word and arrange it so ours got delayed if we finished before her anyway?

>>424828
Yes, it was. Apology accepted. As for me presenting my thesis? I COULD if I were willing to change it, but I'm not. I'm not going to until I explore every permutation of it I can, which means quite a bit of work even now. Until I go through everything and get it perfect I'm not presenting a thing. I'll use it, but still.

>>424828

>>424842
this but with no malice behind it.

"Honestly, though, I consider our two breakthroughs more complimentary than competing. I don't think it would've taken anything away no matter who did what first. Either way, apology accepted.

...And it's not like I have the money to go shopping all the time. That and I'm always really busy trying to make stuff happen. I'm not opposed to fashion, it just never...happens, y'know?"

I'm still loathe to forgive her for the tribunal thing. That's some really fucked stuff.

Also our jacket is excellent fashion. It goes with our hair and sword.

>>424828
"It was very fucked up. But apology accepted. Also I didn't ask that lady to compare our teleportations she did it on her own because she felt she owed me.

But honestly I doubt our forms of teleportation will be competing much in the open market. Yours is much more mana efficient, people will definitely go to you for large bulk orders.

And when I try to be that kind of fashionable I disappear. I was all prettied up at your table the other day when you showed off your thesis and you didn't even notice me."

>>424907
>because she felt she owed me.

I don't think anyone knows that, let's NOT say that.

>>424921
Hardly says what for.

>>424907
>>424921
>>424926
Let's not bring up the lady and let's not bring up our spying. Unless you want to retort she destroyed our childhood implement.

>>424940
Agreed.

"Couldn't you have your dad put in a word and arrange it so mine got delayed? If I'd finished before you, anyway." You say.

"Contrary to what you think, I don't use my dad for anything like that." She says. "Maybe to get some contacts with other magi, but not have him abuse his power."

You roll your eyes.

"Still not sure I'm going to forgive you for that." You say. "As for presenting my thesis? I could, if I were willing to take some shortcuts, but I'm not going to until I explore every permutation of it I can. Which means quite a lot of work, even now. Until I perfect it, I'm not presenting a thing."

"I guess developing an entire new magic is different than just perfecting a slight use of it." She says, and you nod.

Someone else comes by to congratulate Cera, but by this point a small bubble has erected between Cera and everyone else- like they're seeing a rare alignment of planets or something, to have you and her talking somewhat-civilly.

"It's not like I have money to go shopping all the time. That and I'm always really busy trying to make stuff happen. I'm not opposed to fashion, it just never happens." You say. "But my jacket is excellent, and it's heresy for you to say otherwise."

"Your jacket makes you look like your a fab major that never leaves her workshop." She snorts. "You didn't look bad when you were pretending to be that Tara girl. That blouse would've looked better with a skirt, but..."

"You knew that was me?"

"No, actually." She says. "Kally figured it out, but she didn't tell me until the next morning. I was pissed... But I do have to admit that I had no clue it was you. Couldn't even smell whatever it is you put in your hair. You're pretty good at the cloak and dagger stuff. Then you just started teleporting around everywhere the next day."

"The hair was a dweomer." You smirk. "Light-shifting."

"Wait, really?" She asks. "How'd you do that?"

"Messed with an invisibility spell." You say. "You'd be surprised by what you can find by trolling message boards online."

You do have to examine the arrays to make sure whatever the Array general on /mg/ showed you wasn't just a dolphin porn illusion, but you don't tell her THAT.

Cera taps her finger against her palm for a short while, then turns to you.

"I can buy you another spell crystal for the Implement I wrecked. Like I said, that was shitty of me to do."

>?

>>424966
"Appreciate that. It's old, but it's sentimental.

...So is there any way I could look good WITHOUT losing my jacket?"

>>424966
Do we really need it? Our 'real' implement wasn't really damaged. If she's offering to reimburse it, maybe we could use it on something for Ishelda?

>>424966
"That would be appreciated. My kid sister is starting to learn magic and I was planning on getting her one."

Okay, so Cera isn't an evil bitch, she just has a tendency to run with blinders on, so to speak. Seems like she's more willing to take them off now that she's hit the finish line.

>>424997
But do we really want to get Ishelda that, when she's just finished working and saved up for her own spell crystal? I'd figure we should get her some other stuff.

>>425013
Yup, let her spend her money on other fun stuff. We can teleport her into the city for a day trip with us and she can spend it there.

>>424966
That's nice of you. I was actually thinking of finding a present for my aspiring magus of a little sister. I'd prefer something useful for her instead really. Perhaps you have any inspired ideas?

It looks like the girls are going out shopping. Without need of bags.

>>425030
Well I mean she already bought it. Showed it to us last thread.
>She squirrels away, running into the basement- her room. A few seconds later, she springs back, holding a small tablet. In the bottom is a spell crystal.

>>425042
Dangit, forgot about that.

>>425041
Aha, we could do that.

>>425041
Sure, if she has the time. Let's see if she can go a whole shopping trip without turning into a bitch again before we fully clear her of bitch-dom.

>>424985
I am for this.

>>425095
Being at least somewhat bitchy is probably just hardcoded into her just like how we can't up and entirely stop being a braggart even at our nicest. Some folks are just like that.

>>425107
As long as it sticks to banter-type bitching and not fuck-over-career bitching.

"I appreciate it. You just need to pay me back for it. It was old, but it was sentimental." You say. You're not going to thank her for it, of course- she was the one who broke your electronics. "I was going to get a present for my little sister."

You have other ideas for the money. Though the Implement was sentimental, it's pretty outdated by now. It was the housing that was the most sentimental part about it, after all. Come to think of it, in lieu of a present, you could give Ishelda some money and take her into the city for a weekend, come to think of it. Have her buy her own gifts.

"Right, right." Cera says, pulling out her purse. She hands you a good few hundred ecu- Easily enough for an Implement. More than a spell crystal would be, unless you're a rich spoiled brat... Which, come to think of it, Cera is. You take it and slip it into your coat like everything else. No matter what Cera says about it, it's useful as hell. Lots of pockets on the inside, a few thin plates here and there for protection... Not to mention how stylish it is. "Here. Get her something nice."

You nod.

"So." You say. "Is there any way I could look good without losing my Jacket?"

She snorts.

"More color." She says. "Or more black. A long skirt would go good with the jacket. Help your silhouette, make you look a bit girlier. Maybe something that shows off your cleavage. You have way more potential there than I do. Though you still need stilts to stand out."

Of course her response was skirts and cleavage- that's her entire concept of fashion.

>?

>>425133

"Wait, waitwaitwait, you think I have potential to grow somewhere?! Really?"

No seriously, that's news to me.

And to be entirely fair, long skirt? That might not be too bad an idea. As long as it's not overly showing, can't really see much wrong with it in general.

>>425133
Are skirts slut clothing in Jazz's eyes?

I for one like a girl in long skirt and a jacket.

>>425148
Damn right.

>>425148
>Not wanting a girl with a short skirt and a long jacket

>>425158
>Short skirt

Slut clothing.

>>425145
>Not potential to grow: Potential to have cleavage.
>Other than your hair, your chest is something you're proud of. When you stopped growing taller, you grew outward.

>>425148
>Jaz's opinion is that short skirts is slut clothing, while long skirts are a huge malus toward actually getting around.
>Then again, she can teleport now, so she doesn't actually need her legs to get around.

>>425133
"Well, it was nice having a civil talk with you. See you around."

>>425133
>"I find my impressive stature makes me stand out far more than most of your blandly-sized sycophants, for example. So what are you gonna do now that you've graduated? Going full-time setting up your dweomers?"

>>425133
"It figures your only advice would be skirts and cleavage.

Well, I have work to do. Thanks for the banter"

>>425171
Oh. I guess no one makes skirt short enough for her legs, so short skirts for others would be long skirt for her.

Still cute.

I am against cleavage part though. If we are gonna attrack a nice book it will be by our personality alone. Or we will be the slightly crazy aunt to Thod and Brun's kid.

>>425158
Cake reference?

>>425133
Getting one of those dwemers and co-opting it to run our long term portals seems like a good idea, but I don't think you'll sell it to us.

>>425207
Offer it to her.

>>425171
"Huh. Interesting ideas. I'll keep that in mind."
(nah)
"Thanks for the talk. And, well...yeah, I appreciate you giving it a shot. See ya around, hopefully. Maybe next time under nicer circumstances."

I still think that a long skirt wouldn't be bad- even if only for formal wear to look fancy at important gatherings.

I just realized. Vera's invention will inflate the cost of caravans. That means if we co-oped after a year or two, the caravan company will be completely out of business. So for now it's simply a matter of survival.

>>425198
Of course. I was wondering if someone was going to get it.

>>425198
Not sure if I understand.

Fun things are fun?

>>425133
Another reason for the shaman pens is the hair. Can you believe krittal messed about with hermetic magic, shamanism, and frost wolves all at once? Forever limiting his decendants style choices.

Ooc:i like the white hair, but for the sake of bonding...

"Might not be too bad an idea. It figures that your only idea would be skirts and cleavage, though." You shrug.

"What does that mean?" She asks.

You get to your feet, and whirl around to face her. Then you carefully look up and down her new robe- which involves both things.

"... Oh."

"Well, it was nice having a civil talk with you." You say. "I've got work to do. Thanks for the banter."

Then, finally, with a big smirk and a wink, you teleport out of the Dryad.

When the sphere crumbles around you, back in your dorm, you feel something wrong about the area. It just... feels wrong.

You look around, quickly checking your mess of a dorm. Something feels wrong. The books on your desk are spread out like someone looked through all the titles. Your blankets are crumpled up on the foot of your bed. Your coffee dweomer- as well as your light dweomers- are all deactivated, when you'd recharged them just this morning.

Your drawers are all open, clothing inside rustled around. Your broken Implement is open, the broken spellcrystal removed. Stolen.

Your computer is even on, though they never got past the password screen.

Someone's been in here.


>This was a fun session! Thanks for coming, anons.
>As always, I will be hanging around to answer questions for you guys.
>For future updates, my twitter is at @Futureexabyte, and I'm always in the #exabyte channel on IRC, Rizon server.


>>425283
>Actually, he wasn't messing with shamanism. He didn't intend to adopt frost wolf abilities or features- he was actually seeing if he could teleport away any frost wolves in the area to create a special kind of 'monster disjunction ward'. It didn't work.

>>425293
Someone dies soon. Don't know who.

>>425293
Damn thieves.
Thanks for running Exa!

Thanks DM! It was fun!

Is it bad that Jazz in a long skirt and a jacket remind me of a certain knife wielding girl from an anime OVA?

>>425280
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ivASA9nZmNo

>>425330
Ahhh thanks anon!

>>425293
Oh damn. Was that the damaged spellcrystal with the teleporting array still programmed in?

>not shamanism
It wasn't intentionally shamanism, but in practice I'm not so sure

>>425354
Yes, but it was incredibly mana inefficient compared to our current array. Also was lacking a few key bits.

Maybe we can track it down somehow? We know anyone good at that?

>>425367
We could conceivably teleport it back to us.

>>425372
I like it. Do it. I probably won't be there for the next session so please someone put it in as an option.

If Cera can't actually damage spell crystals, maybe we jumped to conclusions about her damaging that one, and it actually broke because it can't handle the stress of teleporting.
If that's the case, someone trying to fix it and use it would just end up with a broken crystal again.

>>425354
It was not on the harddrive, thankfully. The spellcrystal itself would normally have 'echoes' of the spell it cast, but that kind of thing can't be recovered when it's broken like that. Not to mention that it was broken before you ever actually teleported with it. You're super careful about your work, especially after that Jackal guy tried messing with you.

Which is why you figured out the dimensional pocket to keep your notes, Mithril sword, and family books in.

>>425382
>dimensional pocket

Inventing bag of infinite holding alone can get us magnus status. The rest is all arch mage status.

>>425382
Oh good. So we don't have to worry about recovering it, just making sure that it doesn't happen again.
Leaving some kind of auto-teleporting trap would run the risk of them disabling it and stealing the spell, wouldn't it?

>>425382
>Which is why you figured out the dimensional pocket to keep your notes, Mithril sword, and family books in.
I must have missed that. Is that stuck in our room, or do we have access to that anywhere we go?

And why is there not always freshly made coffee in there for us?

>>425382
Oh, its going to be a fun session soon.

Have fun.

As for our next move, I would suggest asking a certain mecha-lich about additional security. Maybe he has an idea we could implement.

>>425420
>I must have missed that
That's because it's brand new. Jaz are working on things between sessions, after all.

>>425392
It's not exactly a dimensional pocket- it's actually just a hidden chamber in the sewers that you made and secured. You even mortared the bricks back in place, so it's impossible to get to without teleportation. You can teleport items directly to/from it, and open a wrist-sized portal to empty it out.

You still haven't retrieved an item from Nowhere, but you're messing with thaumaturgy in order to figure it out.

>>425467
We should start building some of those on other worlds, where we know nobody else can get.

>>425662
We could even just build them in other cities or random small towns where no one (Except Brunmom) could get without booking a caravan.

>>425662
The downside to that is that it takes a lot longer to open a portal to another world. It'd be infinitely more secure, but also much more costly and time-wasting to use.

>>425971
You considered putting it in a random spot in the wilderness, but you're not sure if there might be monsters that can 'smell' magic. It's more risky than somewhere in the city. You also could've sent it home, but that takes extra mana.

Next time we see Kristoph we should just ask him for a big hollow cube of Mithril. We can store all of our stuff in it and it'd be basically impenetrable to anyone who can't teleport. Adamantium would probably be better but I doubt he'd just give us a bunch of that considering how secretive he is with it.

>>425293
>Someone's been in here.
Shakal's (fake reporter, Soul magician) friends?

>fun session!
Thank you! Still really enjoy reading this story! Sweet that we semi-made-up with Cera.

Now we only need a murder that's pinned on us to create more conflict and mayhem!
>>425300
Cera? Inside a locked room which only we could have teleported into? Rawr!

Knock knock, "Police! Open up!", crash, police troopers storm through the broken door, "Freeze!", we panic and teleport away...

>>425467
>hidden chamber in the sewers
Nice! We can try telling people, it's a dimensional pocket though. For prestige.
>>426577
>hollow cube of Mithril
Nice! We wouldn't even have to hide that cube, just put it there, say it's for decoration, noone else but us can check.

>>425980
>portal to another world
We'll use those for getting natural resources, right? Extra-dimensional oil production!

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>Welcome back!

The campus security guard is a rugged man- crisscross scars covering his face and arms. He isn't wearing an implement, but he does have a sword and gun. You'd met the Dannen before- He's the captain amongst the campus guard. The academy took Extraterritoriality rather seriously, and they had rights that only archmages usually did. It even meant that if someone did crime on campus, the security could make arrests no matter where the thieves might be. Dannen wasn't a proper wizard, but he knew how they worked and thought. This is the only time you've ever actually had to call him because of a break-in.

He and the other guards filled your small dorm room, Dannen taking you aside so that the rest could get magical readings from the area. Mana usually didn't leave behind marks, especially if the wizard who cast the spell was being extremely careful, but it was better to test it out and make sure.

In the end, they didn't find much- they just found out what exactly was taken, and couldn't find any fingerprints that didn't belong to you or Rathod.

"I'm afraid there's not much we can do." Dannen says, frowning. "If we had somewhere to get started, perhaps we could, but there's not much. What did you say exactly was missing?"

"Only the crystal." You say. "I had the forethought to hide everything important, but it was broken so I didn't think it would be a problem."

Dannen frowns, eying the Implement housing.

"I don't think there's anything we can do right now, other than changing out your lock for a different one. Even if that won't fix the problem. Whoever did this came through the door, we're sure. My tech expert says that they faked the signal from your ID card, somehow."

"... You sure you can't just make sure it stays closed?" You ask. After all, you don't need to use it anymore. Darren just chuckles.

"Sure, sure. We'll get right on it. I'm sorry this happened to a good person like you, Miss Angwaz. We'll beef up security, put a few cameras in the hall outside, hide a few dweomers."

"It'll be okay." You say, tapping your fingers against your desk while they get to work. "Thanks for the help."

It's only after they finish changing the locks on your door- this time, to stay locked- and install several cameras and sensor dweomers that you sigh, sitting on your bed.

Fucking thieves.

You hold your old implement housing, examining it like you'd find a clue, not sure where to go from here. You turn it in your hand, spellcrystal dust falling from the socket.

>?

>>427153
Is spellcrystal dust a thing that happens? It doesn't seem right.
Can't think of anything else, let's just prepare for fiend hunting while keeping en eye open for anyone giving us unusual attention.

>>427153
Are spellcrystals all unique, or are they very similar on the microscopic level?
Because the CSI fan in me is saying that we should be able to use that dust in some kind of technobabble machine to get a reading on the matching crystal.

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Boop

>>427153
Guessing we can't teleport our shit back?
If so, go bitch at our friends about it.

>>427174
>Spellcrystals are enchanted to change the way they're shaped on the microscopic level according to electronic inputs- that's mostly how they shape magic due to the implement's programming. So they're too mutable. However, there is an entire branch of magic that might serve as that technobabble machine. Thaumaturgy is a magical kind of voodoo, where you can take the 'lesser echo' of something in order to manipulate the 'greater echo'...
>Or, much more easily, take the 'greater echo' of something to manipulate the 'lesser'. Like, for example, a full crystal to manipulate a little bit of dust.

>>427171
>It does happen if a crystal is cracked or broken through physical force. It shouldn't happen if Cera'd just magically vanished it like you originally thought.

>>427180
>The -1 should totally be 'exile target creature OR remove target creature from exile'.

>>427153
>stays closed
:) Teleport Master reputation! We need a peephole for the door though.
>?
Oh well. Good thing, the protagonist hid everything important! Can we find that Jackal guy? Maybe security has a recording of him? Otherwise get a present for our sister, blink home, absorb the peacefulness.

>>427153
Can we set up and of detection system or a dweomer to tell us if anyone teleports into our room. Preferably ones that beat invisibility

>>427215
We do have a peephole.

>>427203
Well, if someone could manipulate the dust with the full crystal, let's put the dust somewhere away from us and our things. Maybe in a locked box up on an inaccessible rooftop somewhere.

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>>427203
Better?

>>427218
>teleports
We're the only ones who can, so why bother? Even the thieves came through the door...

>>427248
Thieves have our spell crystal remnants and may or may not figure out teleportation. Better safe than sorry.

>>427253
They won't figure it out from a broken crystal, we didn't even successfully teleport with it so no data is stored on the thing.

>>427232
That's pretty cool, anon. Only issue is she doesn't look small enough.

>>427266
So they will come again? Maybe they will try to kidnap us to get our secrets? Take us while we sleep, no Implement, we lost...

>>427253
Exa said that the crystal was never used to teleport and there was no other data available. The thieves can't teleport.

Is there any way to make a dweomer that monitors other dweomers?
If so, can we make one designed to screech extremely loudly if it detects any of our other dweomers being snuffed out?

>>427266
You dont need full data to reverse engineer. Just enough to figure out most of it. Then it's guesswork and trial and error.

>>427292 That's a good idea.

>>427293
They don't have any data at all other than what witnesses see when we teleport.
The broken crystal had less than nothing stored in it, the rest of the implement was wiped clean, and there were no notes around.

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>>427267
It's all about perspective my friend.

>>427293
You don't understand, it has NO data on it.

>>427308
In that case it just leaves someone breaking down the door or transporting a magic disabling dweomer into our room using Cera's method. I vote we move into our "pocket dimension" and us the dorm room to keep up appearances

>>427307
>>427232
Now I have to ask if the other cast members are getting cards as well.

>>427232
>Much!

First things first. While you trust the wizards on the security team, some things you have to handle yourself. You quickly throw together a quick security suite of dweomers. The simpler, more mundane dweomers are the kind of things everybody uses- heat, light, air pressure, so you skip those. Instead you go with a cleverer, more useful idea- you program the dweomer to create a few extremely-weak bands of force projection, filling the room like a grid. If anything moves through, the band will break, and the dweomer will trigger. You give it a few experimental tests, intentionally tripping the invisible band, and the dweomer works perfectly- just as intended, expending the rest of its mana to warn you. Then you throw out a few more dweomers, each set to alert you if any other dweomer in the room winks out before their time. Someone would need to somehow kill all of the dweomers at once in order to get past that, which wouldn't be easy. And just in case that happens, you throw an extra dweomer out- this one just out your kitchenette's window- to sense the rest of the dweomers.

Second of all, you make sure that the crystal dust is somewhere safe. You drop it into a glass vial, cork it, and then lock it into a heavy box. You might find a use for it eventually- maybe even be able to use it to summon yourself toward where the whole crystal is- but for now, you lock it into a box and teleport it onto the building's roof.

You take another deep breath. You finally get 'along' with Cera, for a given value of 'along', and then you come home just for this shit to happen.

You call Rathod, but you just get a busy message- probably learning more from Haron, as always around this time. Brun recently ran off to work on her evocation, so you can't complain to her either. You grumble to yourself, messing more with your implement- slapping out a few more dweomers. Most of them are of the generic security varieties... But one is making more coffee. You're going to need it.

Finally, you sigh and blink out of your room again. This time, you bounce across the city until you get downtown to the shops. Time to possibly-maybe get Ishelda a present for passing her tests with a higher score than, well, you, when you were her age. This would be your favorite part of the city, if it weren't for the fact that you barely have any disposable cash. Lots of different stores sit abound, most of them privately owned, and plenty of clothes, devices, and more mundane items are sitting in each of the windows. You do notice a few useful items- a digital book tablet. Maybe if you threw all of your books in there, it would give her an easier time. There's also a custom implement housing shop- you could have the lady inside make whatever kind of housing Ishelda wanted.

After some time window shopping, you still can't decide. You might even just want to bring her here yourself to shop with. Spend the rest of the day with her. That would definitely cheer you up.

>?

Bring her to go shopping, as well as show her around the place.

>>427359
I think a trip home to mother and begging to take Ishelda shopping is in order. If we do manage to persuade her, we should teleport a little as possible and stay close to Ishelda in case someone is trying to follow us.

Don't want them getting any funny ideas.

>>427359
Bringing her over sounds fun. I don't see why not.

>>427359
>?
>bring her here yourself to shop with
Blink home, ask mum whether she allows it, blink to city with sister, fun. Sounds like a good idea!

>>427359
>security suite of dweomers
Archmage level of security ...in a dorm room :).
>barely have any disposable cash
One non-favour transport of good and we're good in the money department, right?

>>427330
Find me some art And I'll definitely do it. It's pretty hard finding things that look right.

>>427470
I think I'll look for Brun first. "Girl with axe" shouldn't be to hard of a search xb

>>427476
She's got a pretty muscularly thick build and wears fur and armor too. I tried Female barbarians but they're either too scantily clad or don't have the right build.

>>427485
#fuckthebikiniiwantrealarmor

After a few minutes, you finally decide just to drag her here. That's one way to cheer you up. You key the stronger, more powerful teleportation spell than just your blinking, and spend five long seconds in absolute Nothingness before you land right in front of your house. You knock on it once, then pull it open. Ishelda is at the kitchen table, pouring over a book and taking notes. She's still wearing her favorite pair of rabbit-themed pajamas, even though it's past noon. Must have spent all day in here, frowning and studying.

So of course you sneak up and muss her hair.

Ishelda squeals in surprise, falling out of her chair and slamming her butt onto the tile.

She glares up at you, and you can't help but start giggling.

"Jaaaz." She says. "You scared me!"

"It's Saturday! What are you doing, studying? Today's a day where you're supposed to go do fun stuff." You say.

"I get to do fun stuff every day." She responds, wagging her finger at you. "And that's because I study on Saturdays."

"Jasmine? You're home." Your mother says. She walks in, setting her bag down on the table and gives you a hug.

"I wanted to get Ishelda a present for doing so well on her Evaluation thing, so that's why I'm here."

"Oooh? What'd you get me?" Ishelda asks, beaming.

"I'll need mom's permission first." You say with a slight smirk.

Mom purses her lips.

"What is it?" She asks, eventually. Like she's afraid of the answer.

"I want to take Ishelda to a shopping trip back in the city." You say. Your mom frowns for a few seconds, but then she nods.

"As long as she's home before six." She says.

Ishelda squeals again, only this time it's a happy-squeal as opposed to a surprise-squeal. She snatches you into a hug- basically clinging to you with all the power in her body. So, of course, you take the chance to muss her hair some more. And poke her in the ribs.

"How was the city?" Your mom asks, while you try to deattach your favorite little sister.

>?

>>427512
Made up with a rival for given value of made out. Thod has a girlfriend finally, My work is proceeding well, if only I could get the thieves to leave me alone now.

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>>427485
Found a couple. Dumping.

>>427512
>>?
"A girl that I thought was evil made Magus and we made up. She may be not as bad as I thought. My magic research is going fine: slow but steady. But strange people seem to get interested in it... had a break-in even."
>>427523
>girlfriend
Does he though? Thought, Brun only asked us if she could ask him?

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>>427546

>>427546
http://iara-art.deviantart.com/art/Astrid-color-316999975
http://sirtiefling.deviantart.com/art/The-Northern-Lights-314083305
http://myth1c.deviantart.com/art/Bloodborne-Vivid-Comm-by-NeutralZ1-520295400
http://offlocked.deviantart.com/art/axe-girl-452180453
>>427551
That one is nice!

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>>427546
Come on post damn you.

>>427512
Rathod might have a girlfriend soon, I had a civil conversation with Cera after she became Magus and I have been teleporting around town to make sure it is known that I perfected teleportation first (as it should be) other than that, there is a slight fiend issue outside of town which will be taken care of soon.

Better not worry her with the burglary thing, though we may want to have a dweomer or two to keep watch here.

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And my problem with all of them is they bare a midriff.

Why is armoring females so hard for nerds to do properly?

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>>427607
Doesn't matter in this case, Brun has magic,

>>427512
Going good, except for how we got robbed...

>>427601
>Better not worry her
She's family, it's us vs the world, Lannister-style. And it shouldn't be a surprise that wizards want to steal other wizards' ideas and reserach...
>>427607
Yeah, those are maybe only good for bed battles :)

"I made up with a rival." You say. "She made Magus, I congratulated her... She might not be as bad as I thought. We had a civil conversation at least."

"That's good." She says.

"My magic research is going fine; Slow but steady." You say. "Strange people seem to get interested in it... I had a break-in, even."

"Was anything important taken?" Your mom asks, worried.

"No, no." You say. "Everything really important, I'd already hid. Everything's good. The only thing actually taken wasn't worth anything."

"How's Rathod doing?" Ishelda asks, peeling herself away enough to face you.

"He's got a girlfriend." You say. "Or might, soon."

Ishelda's eyes light up. "Finally!" She crows.

"That's what I said!" You respond.

"Is she cute? What kind of person is she?" Ishelda asks. "Do you know her? What's she look like? Is she cool?"

You muss her hair until she gets her questions out of her system.

"... did you want to go shopping in that?" You ask her in response. She looks down at her pink-and-rabbit pajamas, cheeks suddenly going red, and she squirrels back into her room.

Your mom sighs. "I don't know what I'm going to do with you two."

"Face it- You raised two eccentric geniuses." You say, grinning. Your mom just rolls her eyes.

"Yeah, yeah." She says.

Ishelda flounces out of her room looking like you would if you'd spent maybe an hour making yourself look perfect. You're not sure how she can do that- it's an ability you've never had, to spend less than two minutes and come out of your room looking like you'd been airbrushed- but she's beaming and excited, her implement linked to her belt and a hairband somehow keeping her mess under control. You can somehow feel her excitement against your soul, a strange kind of pressure from her mana.

"Ready?" You ask.

"Yep!" She says. "I was going to bring a bag or something, but you can just send everything we get straight home, right?"

"Sure can." You say, and turn to your mom. "We'll be home soon. Love you."

"Love you too." She says.

You grab Ishelda by the hand, and key your Implement.

>What do you guys want to shop for first?

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>>427614
Rathod?

>>427651
>>What do you guys want to shop for first?
Of course, a fashionable hat is a must for a young lady. Maybe some city candy too.

>>427651
Also I think it's less about shopping for the little sister but seeing the sights, looking at big buildings, churches, the people and their fashion, the cafes.

>>427651
Well, what are kids in this setting into? Maybe take her shopping for some magic books? Maybe even books in general? I'm not sure if she's old enough for the magic internet, maybe a tablet type divice?

>>427651
The custom implement housing might be a good choice to have a look at.

>>427678
>tablet type device
She'll never learn programming with those... magic laptop is much better!

>>427652
Too real and skinny.

>>427651
Let's check out some books, sure.

"Oooh woooow." Ishelda says, looking around. She's speechless, for a long, quiet moment. "It's so big!"

You'd done the clever thing and landed on top of one of the taller public buildings, the two of you looking out over the big city. It's just as big as it was when you showed up, but your first experience was a bit different- so many people so congested at the heart of the city, when you weren't yet used to that many people at all... You were kind of a country bumpkin when you first showed up here. But from up here, it makes the crowds and people less important- all you can see are the arching buildings, magic dweomers and electric lights alike causing windows to glow. The Magus tower is shimmering on the horizon, the tallest building in the city- and the only one taller than the building you're on- and Ishelda keeps bouncing from edge of the building to edge, trying to take it all in.

"Let's go get something to eat, first thing." You say. "You have lunch yet?"

"Yeah, I have." She says.

"Perfect! Here we go! Grab my hand."

She grabs it, and the two of you blink across the city, looking around for a certain cafe you remember being around here...

Finally, you stop in front of a garish, brightly colored building. It's pretty empty lately, mostly because of the season... Autumn isn't a good time for frozen yogurt.

But for Ishelda, who is twelve and has never had it before, every day is a good day for something delicious.

>Continued!

===

The two of you walk out of the store, both of you wearing new hats. Ishelda's is a wide-brimmed straw thing that has such a huge brim that the wind seems to be trying to constantly and consistently take it from her, which amuses you greatly. But she seems just as entertained by the one she got for you- an incredibly-tiny hat, staying on your head only by the virtue that it's actually a headband with a hat-shaped decoration. You're also wearing a brand new dress under your jacket. You're not one for dresses, even if they're the long-skirted kind, but Ishelda had insisted. There's very little you can do to resist her when she gives you that kind of look.

Your war chest has dwindled by quite a bit by this point, as has the money that your mom gave Ishelda, but the two of you have had an excellent day. You also got quite a few books- some on magic, some on fantasy fiction, and one, on Ishelda's insistence, which is a romance novel. It didn't look like there was anything that was too steamy for her, so you didn't see a reason why not.

"Oh!" You say. "I almost forgot!"

"What?" Ishelda asks, holding onto her hat with a hand.

"You brought your Implement, right?"

"Yeah?"

"You want to get a mount for it?"

"Like your huge arm bracer thing?" She asks, nodding at yours.

"It doesn't have to be a bracer, but yeah."

"Okay!" She says.

You teleport one more time, landing in front of the custom implement store. The two of you walk in, and Ishelda immediately goes over to the sample wall, examining the various styles. Mounts meant to clip onto one's belt and sit on their hip, Housings meant to be strung across the chest, over the shoulder, and one that looks like a sword sheathe. There's even a silver gauntlet with articulated fingers. It takes you a few minutes to find out why it costs a whopping 200-ecu- the articulated fingers act as shortcuts for specific spells. You just need to twist your hand the right way to cast a certain spell.

Eventually, Ishelda turns to you.

"... I can't decide." She says. "They're all really pretty, but I don't know..."

>?

>>427695
I'm more worried about little sis finding out about /mg/ dolphin porn illusions.

>>427775
Well, ask her what kind of mage she wants to be! Different mounts are better for different purposes after all. If you wanna fight you want something that doesn't impede you and is lightweight for example.

>>427775
Tell little sis it's about comfort when using it. For us it's a bracer, for her it could be a belt clip. Then help her figure out what she likes.

>>427775
>>?
>clip onto one's belt
Seems to be quite convenient.

>new hats
Nice! :)