The Power of the Elements
Rickter woke up from to the sound of his bedroom door quietly closing, the click of the latch enough to stir the wolf's mind with activity. He'd thought to be dreaming after last night, remembering how tired he felt after his initiation into Elementalism. Strange... Did someone check in on him? Rickter's eyelids were slow to open, the groggy haze in them still clouding his vision a bit when he looked at the closed door. Nostrils flared as he picked up the residual scent left behind, detecting traces of Telion before something else stirred his senses. Food. He could smell it cooking in the kitchen, a combination of maple and meat clinging to the air when he finally stirred.
So last night was something else entirely... Even now he could feel that frigid cold lingering in his muscles, as well as the warmth of the bard who worried over him during the sickness. Rising from his bed Rickter looked down at his hands then, his right arm reaching over the left shoulder, so that he could trace a rough finger over the rune found several inches further down. There. He couldn't see it from his angle of course, but the finger that found it traced along with its design, before Rickter let up to look down at his hand once more. Elements. Telion was able to manipulate them with her rune, after all, therefore it stood to reason that Rickter could as well.
Stirring his aether into motion he focused on his palm, thinking about the threshold sickness from before when he did, and how water practically seeped from his skin the entire time. At will, he created a small dose of water, practically just enough to rest in his palm, before it started to pool and trickle down onto the blankets beneath his hand. So... not only could he control them, but he could also manifest an element at will if he tried. Was it strictly just water though? Or perhaps... before he could linger on the thought the door chimed with a knock, opening once more with Telion stepping in as she held a plate in her hand. "Morning," she greeted him softly then with a hint of surprise, "I didn't think you were up yet."
"Haven't been for long." Rickter admitted as the water in his hand lessened, and he dried his palm off using the blanket that still covered his lower half. "You on the other hand?" Telion's eyes moved from where his hand rubbed to his face then, her observant features shifted into that of a smile as she approached.
"I woke up a while ago, and thought to make us breakfast too." She elaborated with the plate held out to him, Rickter then accepted it with a faint smile at her in turn. Eggs, bacon, and a couple of slices of toasted bread with a spread of butter. Perhaps one of the more traditional breakfasts he had eaten, the wolf looked to Telion with a short grunt of a chortle before taking ahold of the fork. "See you already figured out how to manifest an element." The blonde teased with a tilt of her head, her eyes expectant on him when Rickter took a bite of the bacon first.
The wolf's eyebrows rose when he realized this, nearly chewing awkwardly before he nodded to her in return. "Aye," he started as the taste of maple-smoked pork assailed his taste buds, "it was only a try to see if it could be done. Thank you, the food is delicious." At that compliment Telion perked up a bit, delighted by the fact Rickter enjoyed her cooking. "Is it only just the one, or can I manifest the other elements too?"
"Eager to figure it out already huh?" She reasoned with a brief giggle at him, leaning back to rest her hands on the bed for support as she started. "As an Elementalist you can learn to manipulate and even manifest any of the four elements. Right now it's best you only practice with them individually, mages new to the concept aren't safe or experienced to handle two."
"So in other words, if I wanted to manifest fire or?" The wolf lightly shrugged at the question, taking a lofty bit of egg in before following it with a bite of toast.
"Well, fire is pretty standard for most Elementalists. Don't get me wrong it's useful for various reasons, but the other elements need a bit more creativity I feel." At that note the wolf's eyes widened inquisitively, leading Telion to smile a bit wider before turning to face him. "Here, like this." Breakfast and a demonstration? Now that was a productive way to start the day. Rickter watched as Telion cupped her hands together, slowing her breathing to a deep and steady pace as she focused, channeling her aether into her hands as it swirled and formed to create sand within her palms. The wolf looked intently at them right then, swallowing the food he chewed on hard, before leaning a little closer to inspect the manifestation. "Earth has its versatility. From sand to stone and even mud. Although mud is a bit harder to control as a novice, due to the presence of water within the earth."
"So I take it manifestation is giving the elements their singular form."
"Correct!" She nodded enthusiastically as she then moved to stand, heading towards the window of the room, before realizing the challenge set before her. Rickter realized her intent and after placing his plate down, moved so that he slipped out from beneath the covers, so that when he approached Telion he could ease the window open for her. "Thanks." She offered as she held her hands out, allowing the sand to fall out her palms before she wiped them together. That was when she realized Rickter wasn't dressed, the only salvation for Telion being his undergarments, as the wolf briefly wiped snow from the windowsill after she took a step back. "Spending your aether to influence or manifest an element is the key thing to remember though." The bard quickly went on to elaborate as she half-turned to avoid looking at Rickter in general.
Closing the window in turn, the wolf spared her a glance before moving back over to his bedside, leaning over with a bend in his knees to pick up the clothes he'd worn last night before bed. "So like Negation, aether that's spent can't be recovered." He reasoned as he considered the aspect of that concept. It made sense, after all, much of the aether he'd put into his shields was spent maintaining them. Charge and all. So like shieldcrafting, manifesting elements had a bit of a cost dependent on the element's power. One likely increased the magnitude of their spell when they fed their elements more aether, a factor that posed its own risks for someone as novice as he was.
"Exactly!" Telion enthused with her hands tucked behind her, an approving nod given to him when Rickter slid his pants on first. "There's a lot more to it of course, but for now, I think sticking with the basics is best." To that the wolf lightly smirked with a sense of agreement in his eyes, throwing his shirt on afterward as to finish dressing, and a hand ready to reclaim the plate of food still left on his bed. "To be honest I'm glad you're better," Telion then admitted when he turned to look at her curiously, the plate held with two hands as he listened, "I was afraid you'd freeze for a bit there."
"I'm sorry it panned out that way," the wolf muttered lowly between them, "cold doesn't normally bother me much though."
"Threshold sickness does affect an initiate in interesting ways." Telion came to agree with a light chuckle, smiling up to the wolf in turn with a nod at the open doorway. "Anyways, how about we talk more over breakfast?" To that Rickter eagerly nodded, for the rest of his meal was getting cold now, and if there were any more left in the kitchen; then he'd undoubtedly want a second helping of it.
Frost 4th, 120th Year, AoS
So last night was something else entirely... Even now he could feel that frigid cold lingering in his muscles, as well as the warmth of the bard who worried over him during the sickness. Rising from his bed Rickter looked down at his hands then, his right arm reaching over the left shoulder, so that he could trace a rough finger over the rune found several inches further down. There. He couldn't see it from his angle of course, but the finger that found it traced along with its design, before Rickter let up to look down at his hand once more. Elements. Telion was able to manipulate them with her rune, after all, therefore it stood to reason that Rickter could as well.
Stirring his aether into motion he focused on his palm, thinking about the threshold sickness from before when he did, and how water practically seeped from his skin the entire time. At will, he created a small dose of water, practically just enough to rest in his palm, before it started to pool and trickle down onto the blankets beneath his hand. So... not only could he control them, but he could also manifest an element at will if he tried. Was it strictly just water though? Or perhaps... before he could linger on the thought the door chimed with a knock, opening once more with Telion stepping in as she held a plate in her hand. "Morning," she greeted him softly then with a hint of surprise, "I didn't think you were up yet."
"Haven't been for long." Rickter admitted as the water in his hand lessened, and he dried his palm off using the blanket that still covered his lower half. "You on the other hand?" Telion's eyes moved from where his hand rubbed to his face then, her observant features shifted into that of a smile as she approached.
"I woke up a while ago, and thought to make us breakfast too." She elaborated with the plate held out to him, Rickter then accepted it with a faint smile at her in turn. Eggs, bacon, and a couple of slices of toasted bread with a spread of butter. Perhaps one of the more traditional breakfasts he had eaten, the wolf looked to Telion with a short grunt of a chortle before taking ahold of the fork. "See you already figured out how to manifest an element." The blonde teased with a tilt of her head, her eyes expectant on him when Rickter took a bite of the bacon first.
The wolf's eyebrows rose when he realized this, nearly chewing awkwardly before he nodded to her in return. "Aye," he started as the taste of maple-smoked pork assailed his taste buds, "it was only a try to see if it could be done. Thank you, the food is delicious." At that compliment Telion perked up a bit, delighted by the fact Rickter enjoyed her cooking. "Is it only just the one, or can I manifest the other elements too?"
"Eager to figure it out already huh?" She reasoned with a brief giggle at him, leaning back to rest her hands on the bed for support as she started. "As an Elementalist you can learn to manipulate and even manifest any of the four elements. Right now it's best you only practice with them individually, mages new to the concept aren't safe or experienced to handle two."
"So in other words, if I wanted to manifest fire or?" The wolf lightly shrugged at the question, taking a lofty bit of egg in before following it with a bite of toast.
"Well, fire is pretty standard for most Elementalists. Don't get me wrong it's useful for various reasons, but the other elements need a bit more creativity I feel." At that note the wolf's eyes widened inquisitively, leading Telion to smile a bit wider before turning to face him. "Here, like this." Breakfast and a demonstration? Now that was a productive way to start the day. Rickter watched as Telion cupped her hands together, slowing her breathing to a deep and steady pace as she focused, channeling her aether into her hands as it swirled and formed to create sand within her palms. The wolf looked intently at them right then, swallowing the food he chewed on hard, before leaning a little closer to inspect the manifestation. "Earth has its versatility. From sand to stone and even mud. Although mud is a bit harder to control as a novice, due to the presence of water within the earth."
"So I take it manifestation is giving the elements their singular form."
"Correct!" She nodded enthusiastically as she then moved to stand, heading towards the window of the room, before realizing the challenge set before her. Rickter realized her intent and after placing his plate down, moved so that he slipped out from beneath the covers, so that when he approached Telion he could ease the window open for her. "Thanks." She offered as she held her hands out, allowing the sand to fall out her palms before she wiped them together. That was when she realized Rickter wasn't dressed, the only salvation for Telion being his undergarments, as the wolf briefly wiped snow from the windowsill after she took a step back. "Spending your aether to influence or manifest an element is the key thing to remember though." The bard quickly went on to elaborate as she half-turned to avoid looking at Rickter in general.
Closing the window in turn, the wolf spared her a glance before moving back over to his bedside, leaning over with a bend in his knees to pick up the clothes he'd worn last night before bed. "So like Negation, aether that's spent can't be recovered." He reasoned as he considered the aspect of that concept. It made sense, after all, much of the aether he'd put into his shields was spent maintaining them. Charge and all. So like shieldcrafting, manifesting elements had a bit of a cost dependent on the element's power. One likely increased the magnitude of their spell when they fed their elements more aether, a factor that posed its own risks for someone as novice as he was.
"Exactly!" Telion enthused with her hands tucked behind her, an approving nod given to him when Rickter slid his pants on first. "There's a lot more to it of course, but for now, I think sticking with the basics is best." To that the wolf lightly smirked with a sense of agreement in his eyes, throwing his shirt on afterward as to finish dressing, and a hand ready to reclaim the plate of food still left on his bed. "To be honest I'm glad you're better," Telion then admitted when he turned to look at her curiously, the plate held with two hands as he listened, "I was afraid you'd freeze for a bit there."
"I'm sorry it panned out that way," the wolf muttered lowly between them, "cold doesn't normally bother me much though."
"Threshold sickness does affect an initiate in interesting ways." Telion came to agree with a light chuckle, smiling up to the wolf in turn with a nod at the open doorway. "Anyways, how about we talk more over breakfast?" To that Rickter eagerly nodded, for the rest of his meal was getting cold now, and if there were any more left in the kitchen; then he'd undoubtedly want a second helping of it.
"Every side attacks you when you don't pick sides."
