"Yeah, I can do that." Artemisia nods, uncharacteristically sober as she takes in Elizia's diagnosis. "So, it sounds like I should try to stay somewhere in the middle between the two influences I'm getting. Balance and moderation aren't exactly what I'm good at, but I can give it my best shot."
"Oh, I can think of something...." Alyssa's body tensed as her hand reached for her sword again. She didn't make a move yet, but the smile she had told Toran enough of where this was going. "Unless, you're starting to feel too old?" She was clearly trying to egg on him on, though he knew enough that she wouldn't bother if he didn't show any interesting in fighting, right now. On the other hand, he knew enough of how her style worked. Something similar to how types like herself and Akechi worked. Typically relying on speed than blocking or parrying blows, and their choice of weapons generally too fragile to stand up against heavier weapons. However, Aylssa while by no means a talented magic user did make use of what innate talent she did have to supplement her offensive strikes with fire magic to trap opponents. Mixing magic with swordsmanship is impressive, yet, she still needs her hands free. She can't hold a sword and defend with both hands, at the same time. Her grip on her weapon is the weak point. Keep aggressive and don't give her any opportunities to get a spell off, and you could possibly disarm her without sustaining any burns.
"Mngh...." Making a face, it was clear this was a tough question for him, but after a few moments, he settled his face back into his overly cheerful smile. "Nope. Payment upfront. That's the mercenary way." Despite saying it was his general friendliness, he probably wouldn't budge. ♒︎ This peasant thinks he can make demands of you?
Was it because he was bored? Or because he would not get another chance for some (relatively) friendly sparring any time soon? Unwillingness to back down from Alyssa's challenge? Or some weird subconscious desire to show off to and impress Athena, as meaningless as such a gesture would be? Or a mix of all four? Toran did not know, and did not care. “Well... I suppose a short sparring session won't hurt...” He replied slowly, almost lazily. Looking at the busty redhead he got up slowly and held his sheathed sword with one hand, reaching for the sheath with the other... then suddenly and with no warning rushed forward, trying to surprise the redhead and force her on the defensive. A strike from a sheathed blade would still hurt, so unless she wanted some nasty bruises she would need to defend.
Marius chuckles, scratching the back of his head, "Thanks, it was hard work, but I tend to use what I learned along the way." He said with a shaky smile, as the voices in his head began to argue. What? What are you two talking about? He thought to himself, until he realized. Great, now I'm having an argument inside my own head. He groaned, until a third voice 'appeared?' in his head. Huh, what? Marius froze, unable to believe that the new comer was urging him to become more violent. "I-ah, sorry, miss Yanase, but I'll have to go, uhm, pack my things." Marius lets out a nervous chuckle, "Maybe we can continue this once we've arrived at the island? I think we'll have many opportunities to discuss... things then."
"Not necessarily. Having that kind of input would be useful in their specific aspect....but it's important to remember, by nature, they are only capable of judging everything in the scope of their specific aspect. Hypothetically, then this "debaucherous" voice would insist every problem could be solved by debauchery. Still...base instincts can be useful to listen to at times, but not every snap decision is always the most well thought out." ♎ And? Do you need people to like you to have fun? Did I mention you only got FOUR WEEKS until you're an old hag? ♍ Even supposing that was true, I know you said it was three before. "I'm curious to see where it will lead. Maybe it's only some kind of mental block...or who knows....perhaps, you're tapping into some kind of higher force that only you can understand...." Elizia looked thoughtful for a moment, before shaking her head. "But probably not. Still, I don't believe there's much I can do for you without for lack of a better word "Muffling" your magic power...but as I said....if you wanted to amp it up...that would also be interesting. Do with these, what you will." Elizia offered a small red bag to join the blue one as she handed them over. "As much as I'd love to go into how each one makes you tick and the chaos it causes to the human body, I'll keep it brief. Red, should boost. Blue should dampen. At least by themselves. How they interact with other substances, I haven't seen yet. I'd say that's enough for about three gos of each."
A quirk of her lips again only momentarily betrayed the internal smirk she had in response to the voice in her head. Sometimes you need to appease those 'beneath you' just a bit so they do not get thoughts of lopping off your head in the middle of the night, do you not? Aloud, she says, "Then a rabbit it shall be. Though, to be sure there is no misunderstanding, do you wish one alive or dead? It would be quite awkward if you were looking for something soft and warm to pet, and I instead provided you with something skinned and ready for the cooking fires."
The sudden burst of energy had caught her off guard as Toran made his move. A little too surprised at the abrupt charge, she was left taking a few seconds to try and process what was happening, leaving her wide open. In the same instance as he made himself charge within striking distance, her reflexes appeared to have kicked in as she tried to move her backfoot into a proper stance, but the distance was too tight as it was, leaving her to needing to attempt to parry without proper room to react, and Toran could feel the result as the sheath of his blade clashed against her sword. The vertical position she was blocking with was poorly suited to keeping her guard up and even without the force of his own strength, he could feel the pressure from the weak shaking as she struggled to hold her sword in such an awkward position. The end result was to see it fly out of her hands into the dirt. Having lost her sword, she tried to shift back quickly, but not making any move to try and reclaim it or stop him from drawing. He could see the flares and sparks in her free hand, forming a sphere with a reddish glow. She was building a spell for something and he didn't need to think about it, to realize what she intends.
"That would be good. I don't really want to have to talk to that delegation on my own. But I shouldn't keep you up for too long either." Yanase paused, looking like she was about to follow up with something, before just staring uncomfortably at her feet. "Well...I got a lot to get ready. Have a good night."
Toran did not give Alyssa a chance to recover and kept up the attack. He slashed at her with his still-sheathed sword and followed by a low sweeping kick, trying to kick her feet from under her and make her fall down on her back before she could finish her spell.
"N-no problem about that, it's just, I don't want to leave anything behind." Marius replied with a nervous chuckle, still a bit surprised at the new, violent voice in his head. "Uhm, right, we have to prepare. But, uh, maybe... afterwards we could discuse a plan? I'm not familiar with the place we're going to, but it wouldn't hurt to come up with some way of negotiating in advance."
I'll never be a hag, asshole! Artemisia thinks angrily to herself, as she takes the bags. "Thanks, I'll keep these in reserve for when I need them - and I'll keep what you said in mind." She yawns. "Stayed up too late last night. I should probably hit the hay..." If Elizia or someone else doesn't stop her, she goes to find somewhere to pass out.
"You should never try to hurt animals, if you don't need to." With a visible frown, his tone came off as almost uncharacteristically serious, but the moment was short lived. "Well, it might be a little hard to keep him safe if we have to go join wars though...but I'm pretty sure, he'll be fine with it! Rabbits don't get many adventures, so I'm pretty sure they'll be happy to tag along." Giving that same almost overly optimistic laugh, he quickly returned to his typical self, seeming to actively trying to make Yolanda ignore catching him not always in a good mood. But she could see it. Something about his expression and eyes. A world of their own. Drawing things in like a void. Deeper. Into pure blackness... Everything around her had died. It wasn't just a loss of her sight either. On her bare skin, she could feel a dark coldness crawling until she was able to gather the sights of her surroundings. It was all nothing but a murky darkness. Not just dark. The vastness of the space was empty and cold beyond anything she had ever experienced. But it wasn't just pure nothingness either. It was...wet. Damp. As she took a step, she could hear a ripple under foot, like she was standing on water. And she could see the only thing there was to see in this space. A twisted bundle of shadows weaving together, but as her eyes adjusted the best she could...things brightened. It was almost as if her body was outright rejecting looking at them, only able to construct their visage in a way to try and make the eyes able to withstand it. Form wise, none of them looked particularly threatening. Unnerving, but...as the outlines she could perceive became more clear, these things looked rather frail. But still....unusual. The robes and the way they moved next to each other, as if it was all part of a single body. None of them tried to face her, but she knew they were looking. We recommend it. Fate can be good to you, but it can also be quite cruel. Fates intertwine, they weave, and they can also be cut quite short, without more than a second thought. They didn't open their mouth to speak, but somehow she knew what they wanted to say. This was different from that other voice. More....physical in nature, but that wasn't the only thing. She couldn't explain why exactly, but she knew. Unlike that other voice, there was something by nature, entirely different than that other one. At an almost fundamental level. If we found our thread, would you be satisfied, at it's length before severed, or despair over how quickly it will be cut? Your destined for your fate to intertwine with others, to be woven into the grand work, seamlessly and perfectly....and yet... can you tell us, any reason why you should be anymore unique than any other mortal?
Yolanda shivered at the cold and damp, her body reflexively responding to the change in its surroundings before her conscious mind could. Once it did, she gasped at the figures, taking a step back and looking at them in confused wonder. "What are you?" she asked, trying to keep her appearance calm despite the fact her heart was now racing at the bizarre sight before her, "And why would my fate be of your concern?"
She was fast, but he was just fast enough with his movement to take the weight out from under her as she attempted to let loose of a prye of flame. Toran could feel the intensity of the heat being this close, but the burst of fire had missed him just enough to hit the dirt and fizzle out. Aylssa grunted in pain from the fall, but it didn't last. Having fallen, instead of making any attempt to maneuver out from under him and back on her feet, she simply lifted her arms and began to exaggeratedly stretch, wiggling her hips, with a teasing smirk. "You're simply too rough with me. Was this your plan all along?" Nothing about her actions really made it seem like she had been taking the challenge she brought up all that seriously, but evidently Toran had been left the winner. "Ah, now I am to be slain." Continuing with her extreme overacting, she let one of her arms come over her forehead in a fainting motion. "The legends of a great beauty and deadly assassin, grace and death in a single stroke, all left in the pages of history. Forgotten." As she continued with her melodrama of her defeat, one of her eyes began to open again to peek at Toran before slumping. "What is to become of me?"
"That sounds good." Giving a small nod, Yanase began to crack open a few nearby books. "I...uh...have work to do, so I won't take more of your time."
"We'll see how that all goes." Elizia didn't sound at all worried as Artemisa began to leave. From the sounds of it, most of the party had died down, but she could still hear some chatter going on here and there.
"Right, see you later." Marius said before heading back to his own sleeping place. He starts packing up his loot, getting ready to depart at a moment's notice. Hopefully I don't get seasick. He thought to himself, as he does a last minute check on his inventory.
Why would it not? That's what we are. We are those who see the connections to the threads that tie all living things. The Weavers of Fate, so to speak. The tone didn't go above more than just somewhat silent and disinterested response to her confusion. We'll be seeing you. The darkness came in depth, blackening before fading. Back into reality. Right back into the camp. Everything and everybody, standing where it should be. Akechi's smile didn't really break, but he coaxed his head with curiosity staring at Yolanda. "You kind of tuned out there. Everything okay?"
Spotting the young lad, Artemisia heads over. "All good, kid?" She smirks. "I saw you getting all flustered when you were talking to that Yanase girl. First crush, maybe?" The busty woman gives a hearty chuckle, breasts swaying as she does, utterly unaware that the young man is infatuated with her. "If you are, you should just go for it. Life's too short to be coy. Anyway, mind if I sleep with you? I think it'd be best to have someone with me in case there are any other side effects of that spiked wine."
