Training She moves in misterious ways
Talyson Seawright
the Messenger
Courier

Age: 27 | Height: 5'10" | Race: Accepted | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: King's End
Level: 10 - Strg: 44 - Dext: 46 - Endr: 50 - Luck: 52 - Int: 1
BOREAL - Mythical - Dragon (Fire Breath)
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MP: 10170
#1
The Goggles let him see the area around him as he crunched over the frosted fields, at least far enough to angle around or over small obstacles as he came upon them. But past the twenty foot range of their magic the world became a wall of featureless white as the ubiquitous mist swirled with such slow intention as to be nearly imperceptible in its movement.

It would be distressingly easy to get lost out here, with neither sun nor stars to provide direction, and no way to spot landmarks at any distance away. Tal had been leaving a trail of red pebbles every few paces in the white snow as he walked, but he was still glad Hotaru was with him. The huntress's feline nose would be able to pick their route back even if some enterprising rodent stole his trail of stony breadcrumbs.

He stopped when he found an area that was mostly flat and unbroken by logs or stones and reluctantly reached up to tug the Goggles down. Instantly his vision shrank to a few measly feet, the mist making even his fingers at arm's length look a little fuzzy and indistinct, and he glared around at it. "Thanks for comin' out with me, Ru," he said to his companion, turning towards where she'd been a moment ago and squinting to try and make out her pale hair from the pale fog. "An' helpin' with my knife. Frey kinda caught me off guard with the whole 'needin' t'draw blood from a trainin' partner' part of the quest. But you're a lot tougher'n Sah," he added, with a grin gone sharp behind the laughter. "Bet I'll have to work a lot harder to even get a nick in!"
Hotaru Kaito
the Valkyrie
Masseuse / Headmistress

Age: 33 | Height: 5'2 | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: King's End
Level: 3 - Strg: 38 - Dext: 38 - Endr: 54 - Luck: 40 - Int:
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#2
'Cause sometimes we don't really notice just how good it can get
so maybe we should start all over
The ethereal haze around them is easier to see through when her eyes are shifted, but as she walks beside Talyson, Hotaru refrains from doing so. It's beautiful, and it feels strangely calming to walk blindly through the fields, mist wetting both long lashes and errant strands of golden hair. The way the mist occludes all pathways and familiar remnants does not scare her; there is no place she cannot find her way home from. Talyson's stones will return them to their trail if they need, but the skies have always been Hotaru's way free out of any darkness or divergence, and she will always guide Tal alongside her - safe beneath her wings.

The jab at Sah - never a surprise considering the nature of their relationship - makes her bell-like laugh echo in the mist. "I certainly won't make it easy on you if you want to earn it," she promises, vixen gaze crinkling in the corners, diminishing her normal foxlike gaze with the softness of amusement. "How hard do you want to work? I can use only certain magics, weaker ones, no magic at all?"
start all over again
Hotaru
Hotaru has a passive magic that makes her glow with an internal golden light; it makes her appear youthful and her hair seems to look like moving sunlight. Can only subtly illuminate dark spaces.
Talyson Seawright
the Messenger
Courier

Age: 27 | Height: 5'10" | Race: Accepted | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: King's End
Level: 10 - Strg: 44 - Dext: 46 - Endr: 50 - Luck: 52 - Int: 1
BOREAL - Mythical - Dragon (Fire Breath)
Played by: Cirago Offline
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Posts: 1,869 | Total: 7,219
MP: 10170
#3
Her laugh was worth a thousand jabs at Sah - though of course Tal would always throw those in for free - and he nodded while still grinning. "I better do it right, since I'm doin' it for Frey," he agreed ruefully. "Even if that means gettin' my own ass kicked around. As long as I'm learnin' somethin' from it." And even if he didn't often admit it out loud he learned a lot from his sparring with Ru.

Enough to start earning some of his native cockiness. Though it was still only a start.

"Magic's fine," he agreed after a moment's thought, brow furrowed. "I'm usin' a magic weapon, so it's only fair. Uh...But maybe stick to weak an' mddlin' ones?" Like his knife would soon be, he hoped.

Stepping away so he could only vaguely see her through the mist, Tal fell into a defensive stance and called: "We can start whenever you're ready!"
Hotaru Kaito
the Valkyrie
Masseuse / Headmistress

Age: 33 | Height: 5'2 | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: King's End
Level: 3 - Strg: 38 - Dext: 38 - Endr: 54 - Luck: 40 - Int:
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Posts: 2,241 | Total: 6,168
MP: 9427
#4
'Cause sometimes we don't really notice just how good it can get
so maybe we should start all over
His fealty - especially given the herald he is working with this time around - is clearly appreciated by Hotaru, if the notes of pride in her expression are any indication. "Anything I wound, I will heal. I won't leave you sore or suffering." Though her healing magic is still new, it will more than suffice for any wounds obtained while training, for the both of them.

The lines are drawn swiftly, and as he departs she lets her pupils slit, seeing him far more clearly than he can likely see her. But instead of moving in for a physical attack when his voice calls out to start, she calls on the air surrounding him, whipping the mist into a frenzy and seeking to blind him with his own apparel and hair, making it both difficult to breathe and see without ever stepping towards him.
start all over again
Hotaru
Hotaru has a passive magic that makes her glow with an internal golden light; it makes her appear youthful and her hair seems to look like moving sunlight. Can only subtly illuminate dark spaces.


Age: 3 | Height: | Race: OOC Account | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Hollowed Grounds
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#5
You know how sometimes you step outside and the cold just catches your lungs? And you cough and gasp and desperately try to inhale more oxygen?

Congratulations! You probably just wandered into a breath snatch!

Yeah, that glittering cloud of glittering frost wasn’t friendly either. Who knew?


You’ve encountered a Breath Snatch. This counts as an uncommon creature encounter for the purposes of levelling, but does not count as a Random Event for levelling or MP. There will be no further admin/re intervention. If you choose to follow this creature, you do so at your own risk, however, just having it in this thread is enough to satisfy your levelling requirements. (You may not kill this creature without admin permission. )

Breath Snatch (uncommon) - A minor Halo nuisance, the Breath Snatch is a small elemental spirit that lingers in open areas on cold days. They're easiest to notice on bright days, a concentrated cloud of glittering frost lingering in the air, but if not noticed and walked into, the elemental will disperse in a puff of freezing air, often freezing the breath in the lungs of whomever was unlucky enough to come across it. It doesn't seem to possess enough sentience to be truly malevolent. Large groups of the spirits are rare, but potentially deadly if walked into unknowingly.

Talyson Seawright
the Messenger
Courier

Age: 27 | Height: 5'10" | Race: Accepted | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: King's End
Level: 10 - Strg: 44 - Dext: 46 - Endr: 50 - Luck: 52 - Int: 1
BOREAL - Mythical - Dragon (Fire Breath)
Played by: Cirago Offline
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Posts: 1,869 | Total: 7,219
MP: 10170
#6
There was poetry in her words and Tal ducked his head shyly, unsure of how to respond aside from a quick bob of his head that might have been a nod of acquiescence or gratitude. The mist that rolled between them was an unexpected balm as it brought supposed anonymity and a chance to catch his breath before they--

Not today, Talyson Seawright.

The wind swirled around him, impossible to see; impossible to fight. Tal scowled and stepped forward, senses obscured by the rush of air. He needed to get free of the miniature vortex so he knew where to aim, but no sooner had he moved than the breath froze on his lungs and he fell to coughing.

Momentarily unable to breathe, frost crystallizing in tender tissues never meant for such cold, caused Tal a moment of panic. Help! he called to the spirits of his home. Asking for assistance in shaking off the breath snatcher or in defending him from Ru's magic, even he wasn't sure in that moment.


Age: 7 | Height: | Race: Attuned | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Hollowed Grounds
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#7
Like a game of ping-pong, the breath snatch is suddenly lobbed toward Hotaru where it will blossom in her mouth like a gasp of sharp peppermint and ice, making her teeth ache and her eyes water. Laughter will ring out in Talyson's ears as the feeling of breathless cold gradually fades.
Hotaru Kaito
the Valkyrie
Masseuse / Headmistress

Age: 33 | Height: 5'2 | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: King's End
Level: 3 - Strg: 38 - Dext: 38 - Endr: 54 - Luck: 40 - Int:
Played by: Brit Offline
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Posts: 2,241 | Total: 6,168
MP: 9427
#8
'Cause sometimes we don't really notice just how good it can get
so maybe we should start all over
Well, this is a hell of a start to a training day. Hotaru isn't sure if they've encountered a small collection of breath snatches, but she wasn't fully aware of the fact that she'd accidentally sent one straight into Talyson's face either, so there's quite a bit of confusion abound. Unable to speak to warn her partner, she releases the magic she'd been using against him and instead uses her air and fire magic in tandem to both fill her lungs temporarily and to ease the pain of the cold from her mouth by amplifying the natural heat already there. Eyes still watering, it's the best she can do. Though as the slight panic - mostly overridden through stubborn willpower and too many years of experience - begins to recede, she notices that Talyson has not made an attack of his own, and can't help but worry a little.

Still, he'd told her not to go too easy on him, and she had just given him a small reprieve while she was combating the effects of the breath snatch, so...

A small arc of lightning comes from her palms, feeding off the static electricity around her to crackle at his feet, hoping to force him backwards into the mist.
start all over again
Hotaru
Hotaru has a passive magic that makes her glow with an internal golden light; it makes her appear youthful and her hair seems to look like moving sunlight. Can only subtly illuminate dark spaces.
Talyson Seawright
the Messenger
Courier

Age: 27 | Height: 5'10" | Race: Accepted | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: King's End
Level: 10 - Strg: 44 - Dext: 46 - Endr: 50 - Luck: 52 - Int: 1
BOREAL - Mythical - Dragon (Fire Breath)
Played by: Cirago Offline
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Posts: 1,869 | Total: 7,219
MP: 10170
#9
Ru had been obscured enough in the mists that Tal wasn't sure of her location, but the echoing laughter and easing of his own tortured lungs reassured him that something had answered his call for help. By the time he had straightened to look around - realizing only then that the wicked zephyr had ceased to beleaguer him - the swirling mists had done even more to confuse his sense of direction and where Hotaru might have started.

"...Ru? Was that yo--yeowch!" He didn't really get hit, per se, but he was certainly shocked by the sudden burst of electricity that blossomed at his feet and this time his yelp of surprise melted into a feral grin as he bounced back a step but still stabbed in the direction the lightning's arc had illuminated through the mist. His dagger might have looked like it was a small, short-range weapon but the magic imbued in it speared out to stab ten feet away from the tip.

Whether Ru was there or not, he'd hopefully soon find out.
Hotaru Kaito
the Valkyrie
Masseuse / Headmistress

Age: 33 | Height: 5'2 | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: King's End
Level: 3 - Strg: 38 - Dext: 38 - Endr: 54 - Luck: 40 - Int:
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Posts: 2,241 | Total: 6,168
MP: 9427
#10
'Cause sometimes we don't really notice just how good it can get
so maybe we should start all over
The tentative half-question is too late to her ears, but the stun of his surprise more so than his harm makes her first wheezing breath a huff of a laugh. One that is cut short as she takes an idle step backwards upon hearing the rustle of cloth and the vague shape of his outline - visible only to her slitted pupils - stab forward. Her wariness is well-honed; it makes no sense for Tal to lash out when he knows they're a distance apart, so why...?

The fabric of her shirt rips scant centimeters from her skin, and she springs to the side instinctually, startled. Examining the cut swiftly, she laughs under her breath. "Clever weapon you have there," she calls out into the mist, giving him the advantage of placing her - for now. She begins to walk sideways, keeping her feet as silent as possible, and sends a more direct singular bolt of lightning at his backside. Weak, as requested, but if it worked on Deimos perhaps it will work on Talyson.
start all over again
Hotaru
Hotaru has a passive magic that makes her glow with an internal golden light; it makes her appear youthful and her hair seems to look like moving sunlight. Can only subtly illuminate dark spaces.
Talyson Seawright
the Messenger
Courier

Age: 27 | Height: 5'10" | Race: Accepted | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: King's End
Level: 10 - Strg: 44 - Dext: 46 - Endr: 50 - Luck: 52 - Int: 1
BOREAL - Mythical - Dragon (Fire Breath)
Played by: Cirago Offline
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Posts: 1,869 | Total: 7,219
MP: 10170
#11
Ripped fabric and a musical laugh, however soft, helped Tal pinpoint his opponent's location and he grinned in triumph. Her compliment turned his expression smug, even if no one else could see it within the mist. "Thanks. I think it's pretty neat to--HEY!"

The courier jumped about a foot in the air as an arc of lightning snaked around to get him from the rear, zapping him mid-preening and reminding him that they were in the middle of an important training. He glowered into the mist as one hand went to rub the insult to his derriere, but the dagger remained poised in the other as he went silent, trying to use senses other than his sight to pinpoint his opponent.

Hotaru's steps were silent over the squeaky frost fields, but there were other noises to listen for: the rustle of cloth, the whisper of long hair sliding over fabric, the hush of leather rubbing together. When Tal thought he'd found her he took a swift double step forward and jabbed out with the knife again, but this time as soon as he'd attacked he pulled back, shifting light-footed over the snow back and to the side to make his own position less obvious.
Hotaru Kaito
the Valkyrie
Masseuse / Headmistress

Age: 33 | Height: 5'2 | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: King's End
Level: 3 - Strg: 38 - Dext: 38 - Endr: 54 - Luck: 40 - Int:
Played by: Brit Offline
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Posts: 2,241 | Total: 6,168
MP: 9427
#12
'Cause sometimes we don't really notice just how good it can get
so maybe we should start all over
Her laughter is bright and a clear betrayal of her location this time, positively gleeful over succeeding twice in a row now with each man. As such his attack is far more well-targeted this time, as she scarcely even moves once her attack hits, too busy leaning over with her hands on her thighs trying to keep her knees from turning to jelly with her laughter. It's a great thing to feel, and she lets it wash over her, trying to take more time to enjoy such joyous moments after Enzo had pleaded with her to continue living, to try.

As such, she inevitably fails to react in time. Or at least that's what she'll tell herself, rather taking the loss than praising Talyson's skill outwardly. The knife strikes true this time, cutting straight across the slope of the top of her shoulder, neatly slicing through her trapezius muscle. Gasping, she straightens and spins away, even as the humor never fades from her face, too accustomed to pain on the battlefield. "You got me that time!" she calls out into the mist, wondering if he'd want to continue or call it quits. But, just for good measure, she twitches her fingers and has the wind around him tornado around his head, mussing up his hair and flinging his scarf in every direction to dissuade any early celebrations.
start all over again
Hotaru
Hotaru has a passive magic that makes her glow with an internal golden light; it makes her appear youthful and her hair seems to look like moving sunlight. Can only subtly illuminate dark spaces.
Talyson Seawright
the Messenger
Courier

Age: 27 | Height: 5'10" | Race: Accepted | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: King's End
Level: 10 - Strg: 44 - Dext: 46 - Endr: 50 - Luck: 52 - Int: 1
BOREAL - Mythical - Dragon (Fire Breath)
Played by: Cirago Offline
Change author:
Posts: 1,869 | Total: 7,219
MP: 10170
#13
Admitting it out loud would make him feel awkward as hail, but hearing Hotaru's laughter again was worth a hundred zaps to the ass. Tal's scowl faded, then rippled to flustered concern as his attack made unexpected contact - or so he assumed from the sudden gasp that followed his stab. Before he could wonder if he'd been too reckless her voice rang out from the mist in bright reassurance and he straightened, letting out the breath he hadn't realized he'd held.

But one good turn deserved another, and this time there was no helpful spirit nearby to deflect the wind that ruffled hair and tousled clothing. Tal batted at the air uselessly and then dove towards the sound of her voice to get away from the mischievous zephyr, rolling across the frosty ground and fumbling to pull his Goggles back into place so he could see Hotaru through the fog. "Hey! Enough, enough!" There was laughter in his voice, too, though he was still trying to scowl. "Y'don't need to rub it in, geez!" Patting his hair back into place (more or... less. Mostly it just made it worse) with wounded pride he stole a glance at her from his Goggles and put his weapon away. "You should probably get that looked at. With magic, or somethin'," he mumbled, gesturing awkwardly to her cut and wishing his pride allowed him to ask her to fix the burn on his butt.
Hotaru Kaito
the Valkyrie
Masseuse / Headmistress

Age: 33 | Height: 5'2 | Race: Demi-god | Nationality: Outlander | Citizenship: King's End
Level: 3 - Strg: 38 - Dext: 38 - Endr: 54 - Luck: 40 - Int:
Played by: Brit Offline
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Posts: 2,241 | Total: 6,168
MP: 9427
#14
'Cause sometimes we don't really notice just how good it can get
so maybe we should start all over
Tal's exclamation has her withdrawing her magic with a last, petering laugh. Though the giggles disperse, the humor lingers in her lungs, bright and warm in contrast to the snatch breath's cool, minty void. As he comes more plainly into view, her pupils round back out, and she straightens with only the smallest wince as the cut in her shoulder tugs. It does nothing to dim her smile, which she aims his way - narrowing the gap between them herself when he pauses awkwardly, clearly at odds with himself.

"I believe I have a promise to uphold first," she decrees, as regal now as she was the day she was made queen so long ago. Definitely out of place here in Caido, but it has never stopped her being herself. Approaching, she lays a gentle hand to Talyson's elbow, directing her healing magic to soothe the burn she'd caused, reducing it to nothingness; she'd kept the lightning rather lighthanded given the element's inherent destructive power. "I can braid your hair as well, if you'd like." Even before taking a very active role in Soleil and Luka's lives she had a wonderful talent for hair - given her own extremely long locks it was inevitable - but now she braids Soleil's hair for hours at a time given the girl's refusal to cut her beautiful afro. Regardless of whether he accepts, she lifts her hand to heal her shoulder, ignoring the cold she can feel through the torn fabric now. "At least you were able to get it done quickly. Now we can head home and I can try my hand at convincing you to try out the spa once more." Her smile is slightly more dimmed now in the wake of a cresting high of emotion, but there is clear hope and humor there. Perhaps soon she will tell him of her visit with Enzo, but for now, she is light enough to tease him once more.

- Fin!
start all over again
Hotaru
Hotaru has a passive magic that makes her glow with an internal golden light; it makes her appear youthful and her hair seems to look like moving sunlight. Can only subtly illuminate dark spaces.


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