Mage talk(Lillith)

[Aaron Winsett]

Aaron arrived at the camp fire, and spread his cloak out on the ground to rest on. It had some blackened areas on it from where it had been burnt. "A testament to my talents I guess."The green haired mage chuckled at his comment. "How's your practice coming, Lillith? Anything interesting coming up?"

He saw that there was a section of the fire that was refusing to light and squinted at it for a moment before it caught. He hadn't actually done anything this time. Magic was convenient, but it didn't always take a spell to get things done.

[Lilith]

Lilith smiled and sat down across from the mage. "As you might have noticed, I was... caught up in my own thoughts recently. I think it was the magic in me. I always heard stories of shamans losing their souls to the magic, but i never thought it would happen to me. I think i might have had a taste of that soul-crushing power. I hardly remember anything that happened since the battle on the mountain," she sighed and looked at the fire, watching the flames dance.

"I tried anima magic once. My best friend was an anima mage. Dylan. We were very close. I always wanted to train along side him. I asked his teacher, who took me in. He was very nice. I had trouble casting the simplest spells, though. I couldn't make a fire smaller than this... So the sage called in a druid and a bishop. I was tested in each magics, and dark was my natural fit..." Lilith paused, remembering her own past.

Oh! I'm sorry... did I bore you? What about you? How did you start out your mage career?

[Aaron Winsett]

Soul-crushing power. I'm glad I don't have to deal with that kind of magic. Aaron had a basic understanding of the magics, but had very little actual knowledge involving the other forms. The truth was, Aaron feared dark magic. It was something that he couldn't bring himself to try. He also knew that someday he may have to come to an understanding of it. "I'm glad you pulled through. I don't know how you can contend with that kind of magic. It all makes me feel very insecure."

He smiled a bit at her her apology. "No, I wasn't bored at all.... What about me? Mmm. Well, I wasn't born into a mage family, you know. My father was the best wood worker in Ryerde. He really loved his craft, and people came from the surrounding regions, even as far as Laus, to purchase his goods." He remembered his father, a strong man with a thick mane of brown hair down to the base of his neck. He'd taught Aaron his own craft, but the boy had taken to study of lore, and later, magic. His mother was a scholar in many of the same areas of interest that Aaron learned, and also many others he didn't value as greatly.

He continued telling his tale. "It was at one of the yearly family gatherings we had. I had a grandfather who everyone else thought was a little odd. The rest of my family weren't interested in magic, so Grandpa Barek was always the family oddity. Weren't interested that is, until me. I'd gotten into the history and lore of the past. Mythology and hero's tales were my favorite, heheh.... I still like those stories. Anyway, Grandpa Barek heard that I was interested in that lore, and asked if I would want to learn how to be a real mage."

He smiled at remembering his family, as he watched the ashes float away on the breeze. They'd all been very encouraging, even though they couldn't understand his interest. "You can see the results of my answer to him before you. Since then, I've been trying to get strong enough to find new and fresh ways to use magic. I mean, what if there are ways that we could make certain spells available to the untrained?"

[Lilith]

"My parents encouraged my studies as well, even though they knew that the elder magics had a dark reputation. It is nice to have good families, huh?" Lilith smiled.
"I do remember one blowout I had had with my younger brother, who, I had show a bit of magic to on one of My breaks from training. He said that the power I used was unnatural, and he had called me a witch. I guess we never really got along, but my other brother thought it was interesting that I could harness such magic." she added, her smile faltering a bit.

[Aaron Winsett]

Families. They've got the power to inspire greatness, or break the will of those who give in. He had no real understanding of dark magic, but his questing mind rejected to believe that gaining knowledge was wrong. "It's unfortunate when people reject something merely because it's new to them, especially when we care for them."

He thought about something she'd said: He said that the power I used was unnatural

He smiled as he spoke to her. "Not unnatural. Supernatural. The ability to manipulate darkness, or... conjure flame. I've never really gotten over just how amazing the mage craft is, but just because it's out of the ordinary, doesn't make it a violation of nature."

He was confident in his beliefs on this. He'd been tried on several occasions by family members. Some had said that his study of magic and lore was nothing but a waste of time. No value, but entertainment value. His brother had mentioned some of those things. Aaron had finally convinced them that this was what he wanted to do, and that he'd be able to make something of himself someday.

"So did your brother take more than a passing interest in your studies? My parents showed some interest in my work -and my grandfather, but few others did."

[Lilith]

OoC: Well this is awkward. We never really finished this, did we? Well, I'll try and get in the mindset from back then.

Lilith pondered Aaron's words, for they resounded in her head like the bells in church. She recalled an argument she and Luke, her younger brother, had. They had both been younger, but she had been studying magic for a few years.

He was bigger than her, and had forced her magic book out of her hands. he had leafed through it, looking at the drawings and words with disgust. he even went so far as to mouth a word or two, despite Lilith's warnings. Thee book had blasted from his hand, causing Luke to fall back and tumble over a chair, breaking it. He left the room with a curse, as well as his usual nickname for her: witch.

Lilith looked back at Aaron and said, her voice a ghost of what i had been before, "my elder brother, Garet, had joined the army after I started by training. he only saw me on his intermittent week long breaks, not enough time to really grow on my work. Luke, however... he gained an interest. A negative one. He is two years younger than me, but he acts like an adult when it comes to my magic. That is... he shows the hatred of an adult. A bitter, angry one. The last time I saw him, he... he said he never wanted to see me again. Thirteen, and so much anger. I fear my parents may not be able to make him see sense, that their shop may have to be sold off out of the family when they decide to retire."

She plucked a flower from the ground and twirled it between her fingers. Banishing dark thoughts from her mind, she willed her smile to return and said, "I am sure that you are not interested in the whining of a teenage girl, but... Thank you for listening. I don't suppose you have any angst you need to vent, do you?"

[Aaron Winsett]

OoC: Heh... whoops.

"I am sure that you are not interested in the whining of a teenage girl, but... Thank you for listening. I don't suppose you have any angst you need to vent, do you?"


"Don't worry about it, Lillith. You're a friend. It's what we do. As to angst..." The green-haired pushed his hair back, out of the way of his eyes as he laughed.

"Oh, I've had a few occasions, mostly involving some wise old sage who said I wasn't ready to learn about certain applications of magic, or areas of study." Aaron gave a rueful smile. The sages, whether his grandfather, or another, were probably all right to hold him back from those bits of knowledge. This young mage still had a long way to go.

One specific time he'd been turned down was when he'd finally learned to conjure and sustain a fireball, he'd immediately asked what he had to do to turn it from a simple burn to an explosion. Of course, he'd been told to "stick with the basics for the moment." Since then, he'd had a few more lessons, and was able to manage explosions quite well... most of the time.

"I'm sorry about your younger brother, but at least it sounds like your parents are proud of you." The mage tried to smile encouragingly, as he watched her twirl the flower in her fingers.

He sighed a moment, staring down into the fire. Trying to predict what shapes would next appear in the flickering orange was a useless exercise he sometimes indulged himself in. Something of a reminder that there would always be knowledge just beyond his reach. Then, he'd remember that chasing that knowledge was the path of the dedicated mage. "Someday... Someday, I'll do things that no one has ever tried before. I'll find the secrets behind the mysteries of this world. I bring to light the unknown...."

He looked up at her, a little bit embarrassed, but not enough to cause him to stop speaking about it.

"It sounds a little arrogant, actually, but that's a dream that I've been believing in for years now.... What do you do this for, Lillith?"

[Lilith]

Lilith smiled at Aaron as he talked of greatness. She could see a burning desire in his eyes, like he had something to prove. She only now noticed that he had such nice eyes, like syrup boiled from end of the season sap. Maybe it was such desire that made them seem to shine, but, in a way, this eyes lit up he whole face.

"It does not sound arrogant at all, Aaron. It's noble, actually. To want to know things no one else does. To discover them before someone who would use them for evil can. To lift the veil that blocks knowledge," she tried to reassure him, and placed her hand on his, if only for a moment.

"As for what drives me... I suppose it is the same sort of desire for knowledge. I may not want to be the very best, but... I want to be adequate. I do not see myself solving any great mysteries. In fact, if I can become a druid, if I can get to know this magic I wield, without losing myself in the process, I will be happier than as if the blessed Elimine had shown herself to me... yes, I suppose that is my goal."

She twirled the flower around a bit more, then placed it behind her ear. "I do like nature, you know. Perhaps I may try and learn anima magic as well, if I can join the ranks of the druids."

[Aaron Winsett]

Aaron smiled as she encouraged him. He felt a bit reassured from her words.

"Hmm.... You remind me of the neighbor girl." Aaron grinned over at her. "Not that I ever had a neighbor girl, but I would have wanted someone like you.... Thanks for encouraging me."

"I'll make a deal with you. You be careful out there, and when we're both better at our craft, we can help each other learn more. Ok, Druid Lilith?" He laughed after he said this, putting special emphasis on the word "druid". He knew she'd make it someday.

[Lilith]

OoC: just let me know if this is too short of a thread and I'll change my post to keep the conversation going.

Lilith laughed at Aaron's demeanor. She thought he seemed like he was humoring her, but... she liked it. "Neighbor girl huh? I suppose I can play that part. I'll be sure to not get in too deep!" she said, stifling a yawn.

She hadn't noticed how late it had gotten. The sun had long ago gone down, creating a ring of light round their fire. Outside of the fire, however, anything could be in the dancing shadows. She started out into the darkness for a bit, recalling how similar, yet strangely different, the magic she wielded appeared from the natural darkness.

"Darkness... It is the absence of light, is it not?" she addressed Aaron, "Most people see shamans and druids as people who shun the light and act all morose and whatnot. When I'm a druid, I'll travel the world and change people's views. I'll assure children they are not accursed because they have an affinity to such a power. But... Now, I am tired. Until the dawn breaks, oh sage to be." she left Aaron with a flash of a smile and returned to where she put her bag, where she soon fell into slumber.

[Aaron Winsett]

OoC: It's good with me.

Reassuring children that they weren't accursed.... That was probably her dream, the mage realized. Or, a part of it. He wondered if she struggled with that doubt herself, or had in the past. Before he'd met her, he would have considered the possibility that practitioners of the elder magics were cursed, or evil, or some such, though he knew very little. Now though, having come to know this blond-haired spark of life, he refused that entirely. If dark mages seemed dark, it was a choice. Not a curse.

"Good night." Aaron smiled as he watched her go off to get some sleep. If he was honest with himself, he was sorry to see her go. He'd needed that little bit of encouragement. That little bit of reassurance that he wasn't turning into some over-stuffed peacock for trying to chase his dreams. And she'd delivered spot on what he'd needed. That, and... well, she was just an interesting person to get to know. Most everyone that he'd taken up with on leaving Laus was interesting actually. Despite the trouble that had come against them, he was glad that he'd come this way, and met these people.... They were worth preserving.

It was many hours before Aaron could actually get some sleep. He took it on himself to tend the fire, and to keep look out, but finally, he decided enough was enough, and went to bed dreaming of tearing away ignorance, and bringing the down fall of the wicked. -Just like the old stories told.