Unending Light and Encroaching Shadows [Talon]

[Hilana Chenzira]

At the mention of the Warrens, the girl nodded. That, she remembered. “One of my friends told me a bit about them. He said that Kalzasi is duty-bound to keep them at bay, and that there is something called the Dead Legion, made up of convicted criminals... that they are sent in there to fight against the monsters within until they themselves die.” She had no reason to doubt what Arvaelyn had told her, and she had fully accepted it as fact. But she was listening with rapt attention. The city required magic to survive, which made sense. That his people trained to fight against the Warrens from a young age also made sense. It was never too early to begin one’s education in that regard, though she might have been better off waiting a few years more to practice with maces and clubs than when she had started...

Family expectations and responsibilities she knew all too well. But while it seemed that Daemon had stepped into them and shouldered them, Hilana had done the opposite. She’d fought against her father’s desires and wishes for her until she had had to give in in order to really start her training in herbalism under the tutelage of her great-aunt. While she had known marriage would be part and parcel of it, the girl was lucky enough that it had fallen through. Still, as she had learned from her talk with Deus and Domina, her struggles with her family and their beliefs on who she should be were not even a ripple in the grand scheme of things, and that she simply just needed a work around. Which she had, if she chose to act on it. Still, she was the black sheep of her immediate family, but it did not bother her.

As he clarified that it was Kinetics that allowed him to sense the creatures’ presence, the Vastiana’s eyes were wide with wonder, realization dawning. She hadn’t considered that Kinetics could be used that way, and the possibilities of using it to help accentuate experience and skill in tracking could be an asset. “How would someone hide from a Kineticist, then? Can a Sembler do it?” she knew from her discussions with another one of her friends that they could make themselves essentially unnoticeable, but that didn’t seem likely judging by the way Daemon had just described the Aether Flux. Maybe it took another Kineticist to hide themselves... or something like the Mask of Midnight’s Mother. She was going to have to test that theory out with Raithen at some point, too. And perhaps... acquire that Rune for herself from him, if he was willing to teach her.

When she was able to see the amusement on him at her puzzlement, the girl accepted it with cheer and good grace. He didn’t seem to be the type to laugh at her, and even if he was, Hilana had earned it with her floundering about. She had said something that amused him, and her brow furrowed at his words. That was one way of putting it. He had a special connection to the Plane of Light, he had been there many times, that halo with the symbols that appeared when he used the silver-white fire, fire that wasn’t Elementalism... he had many names. She blinked, and her head tilted. “Ohhh,” she breathed the sound out in realization. “You are the Prince of Dragons.”

The one who had sealed away the Founders all those centuries ago at Kaladon. Reviled and despised for thousands of years in the reclusive desert kingdom. The greatest enemy of all. And yet... They were free now, and the Zalkyrians had been involved in it, and so had the Avialae beside her. Others might have fled or turned away. And yet, while Hilana knew the stories of her people, her trust in the judgement of Deus Avaerys and Domina Varvara was absolute. They had returned, and since They had, and Daemon was still here within Solunarium, not at all really hiding, They allowed it. And if They allowed it, then it was perfectly fine for Hilana to be here and talking with him. He was not as much of an Agent of Chaos as Florian was, surely, or else it would have been dealt with. Things could change, and Hilana accepted that.

Besides that, he had saved her and her companions, not once now, but twice, and he had plenty of fascinating information that she could learn and he was interested in the plants of her homeland. They both had things that they could learn from each other, and the girl smiled back at him. It was a strange sort of happenstance for her to have a deity beside her, and she wondered if he was a bit like her Avialae friend in that he preferred to be treated as he was, not for the ranks and titles. Time would tell. They could collect a few more of the white sage, and then they could move on to the next plant not far off. “What sort of tea do you like?” she wanted to know as her fingers brushed away dirt while she entreated the spirits of the earth to move away from the roots as they had for Daemon.

[Talon]

D A E M O N

“There are two parts to the Dead Legion. They who would have been sentenced to death for their crimes and they who believe they have nothing to live for.” He had fought beside the Dead Legion on more than one occasion. They were a grim lot. Some of them were verifiably insane. Some of them lived for the thrill of death itself. Then there were the scattered few who volunteered for the Dead Legion. People like Aoren who were lost, had nothing to their name, and who believed they had nothing to live for. He was glad that he had convinced his husband to abandon that path.

“Only those who ask for the Legion and the irredeemable are sent to it.” It was not a fate that was handed out lightly. Many avenues were explored before the judges of Kalzasi handed down such a sentence. The Dead Legion remained small in number but were often sent to the most lethal and dangerous areas of the Warrens with the full expectation that few, if any, would survive.

“They can, yes. Semblance can mask one’s aethereal presence. Kinetics can also alter one’s impression within the Aether Flux. There are other ways to achieve such stealth as well through Negation or Masquerade.” The ability to detect one’s presence in the physical or aethereal world was not foolproof. He had learned that on more than one occasion. Just as he had learned that his arcane senses could be fooled just as soundly as his physical ones, he had learned to adapt them. He worked quietly, glancing up as Hilana fell silent. He could tell that she was sorting through some of her thoughts. When she finally connected some of the dots and named him the Prince of Dragons, he gave her a soft smile.

“Elsewhere, perhaps and on other days. Today, I am simply Daemon.” That she did not scream and run away with the revelation was a testament to either her resolve or her elasticity of mind. When the authorities of Solunarium had learned of who he was, they had screamed in terror and horror. He had faced the might of an entire legion of soldiers and wyverns raised against him immediately. It had been a tense situation to say the least. He did not linger on that however. Hilana returned to her herb gathering and he joined her in silence. On the subject of tea, he quirked his head.

“Rose milk. I have not found any such tea in Solunarium though. I believe it is unique to Kalzasi.” There was a wistfulness in his voice. He had not had his favorite tea in a long time. There were certainly plenty of other options however.

“Jasmine is a close second.” He looked up, watching as Hilana worked to repeat his own technique through Elementalism. Through the lens of Semblance he observed her utilization of elemental powers. He could tell that she was very new to the use of them as her aether moved sluggishly and the response from the aether in the earth was just as slow. Reaching out, he touched a finger to the dirt near where she was working. Quietly he drew a symbol in the earth. It was a simple pictograph, little more than a Scrivening Path, but the purpose was to assist her in channeling her aether into the earth and compel it to both listen and move. He awoke the symbol to the presence of aether with just a brush of his own magic.

“Touch one hand upon this symbol. Place your other hand near the earth you wish to move. It will help focus your magic.”

[Hilana Chenzira]

Hilana listened as Daemon told her more about the Dead Legion. As horrific a subject as it was, the girl was fascinated, and those dark, expressive eyes of hers were wide. She supposed she could see a few similarities to the Lex Agni, as Arvaelyn had pointed out, but this one seemed much more involved, if such consideration was given to those being convicted. Solunarium’s form of Justice was quite different. Vengeance was given far more consideration rather than any concern of what happened to the convicts. Once they were convicted... that was the end of the Crown’s consideration, unless they were to dish out the punishment of the Lex Agni. Unless someone could pull some strings with someone higher than the Magistrate, but that was something else entirely.

The ways of other cultures really were fascinating.

She nodded as he spoke about how one could hide in the Aether Flux through magical means. That made sense. She understood about Semblance from Khyan, and if they could hide their aetheric signature from a Kineticist, then that was a very valuable Rune indeed. Not just being able to see and understand things, but to be able to completely hide one’s self from another... Hilana had little reason to hide herself within the city, simply because for the most part she was nothing special. But Domina had said she might want to walk in shadows... and as she improved her skills... being able to disappear that way might one day save her neck. It still surprised her that she was willing to think about it in that way, but she had already acquired one Rune. Her world hadn’t come to a screaming halt. Physical senses were easily fooled - that had been shown to her repeatedly today by these creatures. Very little ever slipped past Hayima’el, and in the course of less than an hour, six beasts had. Something was going to have to be done about this, though she didn’t have much of an idea about how. "I had not thought of using them in that way... but it is good to know," she confessed. She knew full well she was showing her ignorance, but there was no shame in realizing how important some things could be when it came to learning new ways to better protect herself and her friends.

Fear may have been an understandable response to an unknown and dangerous situation, but Hilana saw no reason to be afraid of Daemon. He had shown her nothing but courtesy today, and, frankly, was keeping her out of danger. He was proving to be good company and a solid, patient teacher, and the Vastiana was not about to throw his kindness back in his face. She had been told often enough that she had a tendency to neglect her own self-preservation, but she had already done that just to get out here as it was. If he had a mind to end her, then he would, because there was absolutely nothing she could do to defend herself against skills and powers like those he wielded with ease. He was a warrior mage and divine to boot; and she was just herself. But as it was, she just returned the smile and nodded. Daemon he wanted to be; so Daemon he was. To her, it was that simple. See the person for who they were. Not the titles and everything that came along with it.

Rose milk tea. The wheels were turning again; because Hilana, who absolutely loved tea, hadn’t heard of it. And of course she hadn’t, if it was unique to Kalzasi. But she puffed her cheeks, thinking, wracking her brain for any memories of hearing about it. But the botanist seemed to think there was a challenge to be had in this, and that she was going, in fact, to rise to it. “I’ve never heard of it,” she had to admit. “It is unique to Kalzasi? Well, we shall see what I can come up with, then,” she grinned cheerfully at him. She couldn’t very well produce ingredients out of thin air out -here-, not with milk being one of the ingredients, but she could certainly get roses, which were on the list judging by the name. There would be some experimenting and tweaking, but perhaps she could entice Daemon into hanging around Sweet Remedies for an afternoon with his partner while Hilana figured out how to replicate a foreign specialty. The girl genuinely did enjoy coming up with custom tea blends to please clients and patients, because playing with flavours was another way of embracing the plants that she loved so much. “Jasmine tea is good, though, isn’t it? Cleanses your body and mind and it is healthy for you... and it plays well with other flavours, too. We grow a lot of jasmine here,” she added by way of explanation. “My mentor has a massive arbour of it in one of the gardens, but we can also find it in the sands... mostly around the Vasta or the oases. It grows best in full sun, and the soil needs to be kept moist, but well-drained, so that kind of limits its growing range...”

And as she enthused about tea, she saw him make a small drawing in the earth by the shrub that they were working on harvesting. That had her leaning to look at it, checking it out. She wondered if it was a pictograph of some sort, because she thought she may have seen something like it in her book. Just as she was about to ask, the Avialae offered guidance about it. She did as he bade her, placing her hand carefully on the mark, not out of hesitation, but so that she didn’t do anything to damage or disrupt it, before she brought her other hand over to the earth at the base of the section of white sage. She inhaled, and focused on the earth, asking the spirits there to kindly move away from that section of the root, urging the soil to part for her. Not too much, too fast... it needed to be just a steady, gentle flow. It would take practice, but success tended to follow experience. It might take a whole lot of failing... but that just meant trying again. And eventually... success would come.

[Talon]

D A E M O N

“I look forward to what you create.” He chuckled. He was not an expert in teas or tea making. He certainly enjoyed tea but had little in the way of knowledge of how to prepare it. His cooking skills were suited for what could be made at a campfire. He was not a gourmet chef and never would be but he could make a decent meal that would be filling enough.

He watched as Hilana pressed her hand to the symbol that he had drawn upon the ground. As she touched her aether to it and channeled the weave of her Elementalism into the earth, he could see the Path working to assist her. The earth moved more readily. The aether flowed through the Path just a little easier and quicker than what she would have been able to accomplish on her own.

“This is a Path. A pictograph drawn to assist in the flow of aether.” He did not know if she possessed any knowledge about Scrivening. Given her curiosity, the way the color of interest fluttered across her aura, he could only assume that she possessed limited knowledge on the subject.

“Scrivening is a method by which you can make your casting flow more easily. In some cases, even more powerful. It is the foundation of World Magic, which are themselves highly specialized forms of Scrivening involving specific tools and practices.” He rose to his feet as he did so, the earth and soil around him began to move. Lines began extending outward from his form as he followed the aether pathways across the Aether Flux with his Kinetics. He adjusted the flow, arranging them in a pattern that was meant to both amplify the casting that took place within its boundaries. The soil shifted to form the expansive glyph circle covering an area in around them that was roughly twenty meters across. With his elementalism he took hold of the dirt that was within the lines of the circle and touched it with the element of fire. He blended together the earth and fire in order to solidify the earth as a form of simple quartz crystal that he then transformed into an expansive elemental lodestone.

The entire creation of the circle took no more than a minute. As it was finished, he stepped up to three different smaller circles within the greater pattern. While within each one he reached out to the elemental energies around them. Cupping his hands he conjured a ball of elemental fire that burned hotly. He released it into that smaller circle where it began to hover in place. He moved on to another one and repeated the gestures only this time he concentrated a sphere of condensed air. The last inner circle he placed an orb of water.

“This pattern is called Lyr'calastra in Vallenor or Lyren’s Cauldron. It has many differing designs depending on the use. However the underlying purpose is the same. It is a space within which the concentration and flow of aether has been amplified. In this case, elemental aethereal manifestations.” Resting his hands at the small of his back he smiled at Hilana.

“You should practice. You will find that your elementalism will come to you much more easily while within its boundaries.”

[Hilana Chenzira]

Hilana was bound and determined to figure out the Kalzasern Rose Milk Tea. She did have some ideas, and she would ask him more about it at lunch time to help narrow it down - she could think of half a dozen ways to get started with it, ranging from involving the petals and hips of the roses to making a syrup of it and swirling that into another tea. Milk was involved somewhere, and she was certain it was likely cow’s milk. Camel’s didn’t make sense, not so very far away. Sheep might, or goat; but it was surely cow’s. Still, she would figure it out and she would get them over to Sweet Remedies for some tea and hospitality. If she could recreate that tea, then so much the better. It was the very least that she could do for the Avialae who was taking the time with her when he could have been resting with his partner.

As the earth in front of her responded with the help of the Pictograph, delight coloured her aura. It may not have been some epic feat of spellcraft, but she was just as pleased with the results of the Path and the way the soil listened to her urging. Hilana was smiling at the improvement, at the way the earth below her hand moved just a little faster, revealing the roots nicely. It was neater than it had been. A Path, she mouthed, repeating it to herself and nodding. A Pictograph that was designed to guide the flow of aether... "After a while, it will fade, won't it?"

Hilana was thoroughly grateful for the lesson. She wasn’t bad at book learning; the girl was smart and she had a keen memory. She was determined when it came down to it. She managed well under Vasilei and her great aunt Eliana, absorbing knowledge through books and verbal lessons, the effectiveness of both had been compounded with the ability to get her hands into something. Her early childhood lessons had all been done by doing things, being told how and what and shown, and then repeating it, facing it until she made it. It had been effective for a girl with such wild energy then, and it was still effective now. She didn't have the aetheric reserves of an apprentice, much less a master, but she also was not trying to do anything particularly difficult or taxing. Little steps, over and over and over until she got them right. One thing was for sure, he was a thorough teacher, because the way he explained things was quite clear and understandable, even for one with as little background as she had.

Scrivening. That one she had glossed over in the book of world magic that she had picked up from the Umbrium, but now that he explained how it was the foundation of all world magic; well, that made a lot more sense as to why it was the first subject in the book, and she had glossed right over it to go to Alchemy. But Daemon’s explanation made sense. That meant that in order to be most effective at Alchemy, and perhaps at magic in general, she was going to have to go back to the roots of it. Scrivening. Back to step one. That did not deter or discourage the Vastiana; it was something else that could make her more effective and assist her in improving. That meant that her potions and philters, her tinctures and tonics, could be made more efficiently and hopefully, better. All the better to have the strongest, most solid foundation she could in order to set up good habits for later.

When he stood up, she rose as well, the sand that had accumulated on her skirts drifting back down to the ground as the girl watched his movements. She was no Sembler or Kineticist to follow what he was doing, to see or feel the manipulation of aether before its effects started to become apparent to her mundane senses. But that didn’t take long, and it made the effects all the more astonishing when she was able to see them. In a kingdom of mages, seeing incredible visual effects was commonplace, though being a part of them and in the centre of such a thing? That was an altogether brand new experience, and the girl’s energy was threatening to overflow with excitement. But she managed to contain herself, keeping one eye on her impromptu paedagogus, her attention on him as much as she wanted to run around and look at every single symbol that was now composing the crystalline circle, she remained where she was. There would surely be time for that later, at some point; but she had to keep herself in check. She was not a little girl that could run after lizards like this when something caught her eye. She had to be patient; just as Daemon was with her.

“Lyr’calastra,” Hilana repeated. Her pronunciation of Vallenor was surprisingly accurate considering her earlier stumble on koruhane. Lyren’s Cauldron. Lyren she remembered from the book’s introduction to Alchemy. Lyrethillium! The connection pleased her. “I thank you. It is beautiful,” she told him, smiling up at him before looking at each of the spheres. The girl looked from one to the other. “The Arches of my mother and two of my sisters,” Hilana admitted, her gaze going from one to the other. “My mother’s Arche was water; my second sister’s Arche is air, and my third sister’s Arche is fire.” It was perhaps funny, then, that the girl had so little training in the Rune when it apparently was common in her family, but families could be complicated things. There was nothing happy or warm about the recollection when it came to her aetheric aura, but it also was not angry. Whatever it was had faded from anger and resentment to decided indifference with regards to her sisters. Either way, it was to the orb of water she stepped up to.

“‘Remember that you are Water. Cry. Cleanse. Flow. Let go,’” she all but whispered the words in Vastian. Her maternal grandmother’s words, when they had been encouraging her those years ago to let them gift her the Rune now reflecting light around them with the gentle glow of molten gold on her palm. But Hilana took a breath, focusing on the orb of water, and held her hands up to it. She didn’t touch it, but encouraged it to rise, to try to shape a small fountain out of the sphere, and to guide any resultant bursts of water back to the original orb. From there, the onyx-haired girl attempted to add some of her own aether to it to increase the volume of the water that Daemon had already created for her to practice and experiment with. She was not ham-fisted, despite her eagerness and enthusiasm, but there was a gentle reverence there for the element that she was attempting to work with, just as there had been for the plants that their attention had been on earlier.

[Talon]

D A E M O N

“I am kin to fire, for obvious reasons.” He chuckled. The various sun, fire and light effigies associated with him across the cultures that followed him were not for nothing. He watched as Hilana examined the circle and the elements within them. As she stepped up to the sphere of water he expanded his aethereal senses in order to more accurately gauge her activity. He heard the words that she whispered to herself. He watched as she tapped into her aether, stirring it into motion as she attempted to bring about more manifestations of water.

“Water is not as formless as you might think.” He raised a hand. A stream of water flowed away from the orb floating in front of Hilana, arcing out to wrap around his outstretched forearm.

“It flows but it does so with a subtle and powerful direction. It is mutable but inevitable.” He raised a hand. The water flowed like a river around his body in a stream, sliding from limb to limb until it came up to form a ring that flowed around his form. He made a gesture with his fingers and the ring of water became smaller spheres. With a small smile he recalled the many times he had watched Rickter practice with his forms. How he had marveled at his wolf’s ability to both unleash the strength of a tsunami while remaining lucid enough to flow like the many mountain streams of the Astralar. He had yet to meet anyone who could wield the element of water quite like Rickter. His gaze grew distant as he thought on the man and there was again that familiar ache in his chest. A sadness touched his features before he shook himself from those thoughts and returned to the moment.

“There is an underlying strength to water that many miss. Imagine a river. When most think of it, they see only that it is a winding stream and take from it that they must be loose and ever shifting. What they forget is that the water is a force that, when unleashed, is unstoppable. Where there is no path, water will wear away at the stone of mountains to carve one.” As if to demonstrate this, he gathered up a few of the spheres of water floating around him and combined them to create a whip. With a forceful motion he condensed and propelled the water forward with accelerated force. A whip of water snapped forward and one of the branches of the nearby tree was sliced clean off. The whip then returned to floating around him.

“Entire cities can be washed away with the tide.” He turned and looked at Hilana. “Water flows but in flowing, you should do so with purpose and direction. Remain flexible but do not lose yourself to the current, rather, become the force that guides it.”

He returned the water that he had taken from the original sphere to its mass. The globe of water grew in size. He folded his arms over his chest and continued to observe Hilana.

“To answer your earlier question, pictographs can be made to be temporary or permanent. It depends on the skill and intent of the Scribe who draws them.”

[Hilana Chenzira]

She was pleased to see the movement of the water. He was right in that Lyren’s Cauldron did make things easier, as she had some more success here than she had outside of it in regular practice without the Path Pictograph and the flow of aether worked better. His being Arche to fire made sense; as it was a form of Light. If she remembered the stories right, that was one of his domains. The Lightbringer. 

As the water left the sphere to encircle him, Hilana followed its movements. Her inquisitive eyes were on the white-haired Avialae and the way he expertly guided and manipulated the liquid that he had so casually brought into being. Form, function, flow, purpose. Her mother had been like that, and wildness combined with an Arche of water made the woman a hurricane in skin. And if her Aunt and sisters were to be believed, then Hilana had drained it all and her Arche would be water. The girl herself had no clue.

She noted that brief moment of sadness that followed that smile, and she wondered about it. Maybe he had someone in his past that had been Arche to water? She had no way of knowing, and as much as he had told her to ask whatever she liked, that might have been a bridge too far for her to ask about. That would have to wait. She didn’t want to cut this valuable lesson short by being too meddling. 

She found herself nodding at his words. “Water doesn’t wait,” she agreed. “It will find its way, somehow, no matter how it is pent up it is. Metal can rust. Stone can be worn through. Water finds its way.” When the branch went flying, Hilana’s eyes were enormous. Well, she had been in need of bark and needles, and that branch was large enough for what she needed. As for the branch itself… maybe once it was trimmed down… then it could be used to carve on. To practice scrivening, when she was more capable. If she could treat it through alchemy… it might hold up to be a weapon as well. Raithen had considerable skill with his polearm. With the sphere back in the circle, she understood a bit more, perhaps, of what Daemon wanted to see. Purpose. Not necessarily just moving it, but purposefully. She took a breath, and raised her hands, looking to draw perhaps a quarter of the sphere away from where it hung, trying to form it into a sphere of her own between her hands. Keep it moving, always moving. But control the flow.

“Is it possible to be Arche to wood? Or maybe even light?” The girl asked him, then, though most of her focus was on the sphere as she urged the water to turn, to move and keep it contained. He seemed like he would know if it was possible. And while he had encouraged her to ask questions, Hilana wanted to at least make sure that they were good ones. “My grandmother told me that our tribe has always had the four most-known elements when it comes to Arche. That none have ever been Arche to wood, or light, or even shadow.” Light was understandable, considering the Battle of the Rending all those millennia ago, but wood?

[Talon]

D A E M O N

“There are nine foundational elements. Earth, Air, Water, Fire, Wood, Metal, Light, Shadow and Aether.” He observed as Hilana worked to give motion and purpose to the water that she conjured and influenced. He could see the mechanics of Lyren’s Cauldron working to assist her as well as the stirring of her own aether.

“Wood is the element of flora. The manipulation of plants and plant life. I know of only a few mages who possess it.” Stepping forward he examined the elements that were floating in the circle that had been formed around them. He continued to watch Hilana’s efforts through the lens of his Semblance as he spoke.

“Earth, Air, Water, Fire. Those are the base elements that form the foundations of our realm in particular. There are places in our world where the others are more prevalent. By attuning to these places, some mages have been able to explore gaining access to the other foundational elements. That is rare, from what I know. It typically requires traveling to the planes of existence where that element reigns in supremacy.” He could not conjure any of the elements outside the initial four and their combinations with purely his Rune of Elementalism. His dominion over the realm of Light was tied to his godhood but he tended to manifest Light in ways that the rune of Elements did not when that occurred. He was about to say more when he felt a brush of thoughts across his mind. A soft smile touched his lips. He turned his attention back toward the rocky cliffs that were in the distance.

The feeling of molten fire wrapped around his body and suffused his thoughts. To any other that might have been terrifying but he found it comforting as the presence of his partner entered his mind. He received the equivalent of a mental caress but there was also a note of hunger in Aoren’s thoughts. He chuckled and nodded.

“It would seem that my husband is hungry.” He looked upward into the sky. While the eclipse still hung overhead he could see that it had moved and was at least nearing a respectable time to eat. He looked at their small area where they had spent time gathering plants and briefly going over how to perform magic. He eyed the camel, Hilana’s snake companion and also the circle they were standing in for a moment.

“I have it within my power to take us to my partner, if you would like to come? I think taking out lunch at our small encampment will be safer than here.” He nodded to the cliffs that were far enough to be a bit of a walk but close enough that it would not take too long to reach them. He paused as he regarded the camel and the snake.

“Are your animal companions easily frightened?”

[Hilana Chenzira]

Hilana listened closely. Nine elements, five more beyond the basic four. That pleased her deeply to know that the stories were true about them. She knew she was getting ahead of herself, but she did remember her grandmother mentioning them... and the girl at the time had thought that it was, perhaps, a hook to try to convince her using her love and obsession of the natural world around her. And if it hadn’t been for the fact that she had overheard her father and her aunt before that trip, it might have worked. Perhaps she would have held this rune for the last six years. But the past was in the past, and she needed to look forward. Everything happens for a reason. If she had taken the rune before, would she be here now getting this lesson?

Certainly not.

The fact that he knew a few that had it at least coloured her aura with hope. If he knew some that did, then he could one day know one more. Hilana was a stubborn girl, and she had determination to the point where it could be self-detrimental. She would find a way to get there somehow. Someone had to know how to do it. She lived in a kingdom of Mages. Where there was a will, there was a way... and Daemon knew how. Traveling to other Planes... That was something of an unnerving prospect, especially for someone who had never left her homeland... but Hilana was not about to rush. There was a time and place for everything under the sun. And she would get there when she was ready. "One day, then. Does one need to be considered a Master in order to attune to the other five elements?" she was curious. Curiosity may have killed the sand-cat, but satisfaction brought it back.

Though perhaps trying to attune to the Plane of Light would be smarter sooner rather than later in an attempt to deal with these shadow creatures that were coming from nowhere. It might not be as effective as what he was capable of with the silver-white fire that obliterated the creatures without any harm to anything else, but it might be more effective than her trying to do something with wind or earth. She was far below where she needed to be to try to make her own way of using light to obliterate things, but Hilana was patient. All in good time. Besides, the idea of a Vastiana having attuned to the Plane of Light? There would be looks.

But it was probably a good thing Hilana didn’t care that much about what others thought of her.

At the offer, Hilana nodded, guiding the orb that she had shaped from Daemon’s back to the original, trying to merge it back in. That was trickier, getting the flows correctly so that they could blend back as one. Lunch would probably be smart, and she had enough food for plenty packed away in her bags. Even if the Avialae had said they had their own supplies, it was still the very least Hilana could do to share. You didn’t go to another’s fire empty-handed, after all. “I would like that very much. Will we be coming back here?” she asked him, then. If they weren’t, then she would gather up the plants and, perhaps surprisingly, the entire branch that he had cut off in preparation to bring it with them. If they would be back, then she could leave things as they were. It was unlikely that anyone would come this far out.

“Tiaz doesn’t scare much at all, and even if he did he just tends to curl up,” she smiled at her snake. “But Hayima’el...” she let out a low whistle, and the camel lifted his head towards her. The girl raised a hand, and the piebald bull meandered over towards them. He was not at all concerned by the giant lodestone that he was now stepping on. Part of it was confidence, and the other part of it was simply trust in his girl. He trusted her to guide him, just as she trusted his instincts. It was part of their being a team ever since he had been born. He pushed his long nose into her shoulder, and she brought her hands up to scratch his jaws. “Well, he can be bull-headed, he’s really just protective of me. But he will behave himself.” Hayima’el tended to choose violence in the face of a threat, but Hilana was not about to allow her big boy to act out and embarrass herself with his behaviour or upset anyone, much less a god and his partner.

[Talon]

D A E M O N

“A master? No. However, one must be able to attune to the elemental forces of that given space in order to wield the predominant element.” In terms of what some elementalists did, he did not utilize elemental attunement outside of a means to commune with the natural forces of the world. Combined with his powers of Semblance, his Kinetic perception and Elemental Attunement, it made for a very interesting meditation session. He had been teaching himself to better attune to the flow of the Aetherium while utilizing all of these techniques in order to heighten his awareness of his own divine authority. He had seen marginal success thus far but it was not for nothing. He had seen some improvement in himself. It was simply slow going.

“That is up to you, Hilana.” He could technically send her to most anywhere in the world that he knew about, provided he had either been there before or had decent knowledge of the place. His days were spent largely recovering from his ordeal over the past year. He was slowly finding his way back to the person he wanted to be. He could never return to who he was before but he could take what he had learned from this entire experience and use it to become a better version of himself. When Hilana returned the water to the orb that he had conjured, he brought a hand up and made a slow fist. Each of the three conjured elements compressed until they crystallized and became lodestones of water, fire and air. The crystals floated over to Hilana.

“Take them. Use them to help you practice. If you find yourself in need of coin, you can even sell them.” The crystals were imbued with his affinity for the elements. Magical appraisers would be able to deduce that each one was capable of manifesting powerful elemental magic if given the right direction. Such potent crystals were valuable to magical crafters of all sorts and even by non-magical individuals who may have wanted to carry arcane jewelry for added protection. He nodded at Hilana’s explanation of both Hayima’el’s and Tiaz’s temperament.

“Just…do not be alarmed.” He waited for Hilana to ready herself, quietly observing or assisting where needed. When she and her animals were ready, he stepped forward. Extending his hands he tethered his aether to the quartz crystal that formed the pattern of the expansive glyph around them. He suffused the circle of Lyren’s Cauldron with the essence of his Traversion magic. Reaching through the mental link he shared with Aoren he visualized the spot he would teleport them to. Extending his reach across the aether flux as well as the Slipspace, he aligned the spatial pathways while also tying them into the aetheric flow of the ground where they stood. The expansive sigil illuminated with his power as he brought an aspect of phasing into the earth and soil through the medium provided by the pictographs covering the ground. When he had everything in place, he created the tunnel by which he transported himself, Hilana, Tiaz, Hayima’el and the spot of ground they stood upon.

The result saw them all as well as the glyphed circle teleported to where Aoren was waiting for them. As they traversed across the Slipspace, he focused on the ground where they would land and opened up a portal in the dirt, clearing out the space so that the ground that he had brought with them could rest into the ground. It was not a perfect transition and they were all slightly jostled as all of them materialized back into the physical world. Intact, if a bit slightly ruffled. He fluffed his wings, stretching and extending them before resting them upon his back once more. Bringing up a hand to his chin he walked the perimeter of the ground he had brought with them with a curious expression.

“I will have to refine that technique. It worked better than I thought it would. Not perfect but not bad either.” He mused mostly to himself before smiling at Hilana. A huff of air drew his attention and his expression softened. Aoren was no longer resting idly but had both eyes open. The molten pools of fire were staring at him warmly. Over his thoughts he could feel those same concepts filtering through his head and spreading through him to fill every fiber of his being. It was a word in a language that he could not speak but whose concepts were infinitely clear to him. Sunlight, Fire, Radiance, Joy, Love and Treasure all at once.

In front of Hilana, taking up a significant portion of the entire clifftop was a massive dragon that had a mixture of dark red and obsidian scales. The glow of volcanic fire was present in his chest, just beneath the mighty plate scales that covered his abdomen. While Daemon was by no means a small man, he looked positively diminutive compared to the dragon that was staring at them calmly. The beast’s tail flicked curiously. Daemon walked forward bringing up his hands. Aoren extended his neck until he was pressing his snout against Daemon’s chest. Daemon leaned down and kissed the top of Aoren’s snout to which he received a deep rumble of contentment. The two shared thoughts that needed no specific clarification. They simply flowed and what one felt and knew, so did the other. As he stood there, hands pressed to the warm scales of his beloved dragon, Daemon felt peace. More the man he wanted to be.

Gold and volcanic fire softly illuminated Aoren’s form and the heat in the air grew greater but he did not mind. The whole of Aoren’s form was swallowed by that fire and his draconic body began to fall away like glittering golden ash that swirled around him and collapsed in on itself. From one breath to the next, Daemon was no long kissing a snout but a pair of lips. A pair of arms wrapped around him and raven wings, not dragon wings, curled around him protectively. After a moment, he stepped back and turned to Hilana. Aoren kept one arm wrapped around his waist. He cleared his throat.

“Hilana, this is my husband.” Aoren inclined his head. With his black raven wings, red hair, and scarlet eyes that seemed to burn with volcanic fires, it was easy to believe the towering Avialae in front of her was, in truth, a dragon.

“Well met, Hilana. I am Aoren. Have you been learning well from my prince?” He smiled, displaying sharpened canines. Though his smile and countenance were friendly, there was an edge to him as though he were only ever one step away from unleashing the beast he truly was.