Advanced Shieldcrafting
Posted: Wed Apr 14, 2021 1:29 am
Advanced Shieldcrafting
A gentle calmness washed over him as he felt the breeze softly brush through his hair follicles, the quiet wolf breathed a steady exchange of air gradually as he thought on it. He embraced the feel of the elements in the air, the gentle presence of the wind he inhaled fresh from the mountainside. Yet it also smelled of nectar and pollen, as Telion looked around the gardens of the courtyard, with admiration to the sort of flowers that bloomed within them. She loved the white lilies that had bloomed within one of the cornerstones bed, a particular favorite that Rickter noted when he observed her interest with them. Together with her and Hannah about in the courtyard, the two had worked on making flower crowns together, and of course, his beloved wore a crown made of those same lilies; along with another small variety from the gardens.
Honestly, it brought him genuine peace to be able to see them happy together like that. Things were certainly different from way back when he first met the two, and he never would've suspected that his circumstances would lead them all here. As he closed his eyes for a bit longer to relax and breathe in, he heard the soft melodic sounds of laughter emanating from the pair. They drew closer to him it sounded, as their footsteps grazed across the spikes of grass, while their scent was carried through the breeze toward him as well. Yet still he just smiled without letting his focus being interrupted, his mind spent on sensing the ambient aether within him and around him. Kinetics had opened him up to a new world of sensitivity for Rickter, as the flow of aether was as natural as breathing when he first felt it. If there was anything to learn from his initiation, it was that aether maintained a constant presence.
And... a driving force.
Yet Rickter felt something rest atop his head, his eyebrows rose but he still avoided opening his eyelids. Not before he breathed in one final time, to gradually open them as he exhaled, and look up to the two beautiful ladies standing over him. Hannah who wore the crown of pansies and orchids, along with her white blouse and grey trousers. Then Telion with the crown of lilies, her outfit the robin's egg blue dress she often liked to wear, to which Rickter quickly smiled up to the two as he realized he too had been donned a crown. Pansies? Now why on Ransera would they use those... "Really, now?" He inquired with a spike of the brow, his grin a bit more playful as Hannah and Telion simply giggled at him.
"You've spent so long meditating, we got tired of waiting so, we made each other crowns." Hannah teased with her arms crossed as she glanced to Telion, who tucked her arms behind her as she leaned a little closer to Rickter.
"Yeah, and you were just so relaxed and at peace, that we thought you'd look better with a crown." Rickter chuckled at that as he looked up to her, his hands used to help ease him up closer, so that he could lean at a point where he nearly kissed her, only to whisper in her ear when he lingered there for a moment.
"I'm ready whenever you are," He murmured as he mindfully pulled back away with an expectant look in his eyes, "thanks for the crown." He added as he stood straighter on his feet a moment later, and moved to a spot within the center point of the garden. Hannah and Telion both looked at him twice amused, the bard quickly looking to her friend as the rogue glanced to her before she gave Rickter a hearty smirk.
"Alright then, let's see what you got."
"On my mark, fire away! Quadrilateral, go!" Telion called out as she waved her hand down, which signaled for Rickter to start the exercise once more. As they've planned after yesterday's experimentation, Rickter was given a bit of a routine to play with in terms of his Negation. Because of the time he'd need to shieldcraft, he was to prepare at least two basic constructs. Which, he also had to bear in mind not just the simplicity, but the propensity they carried when burdened with too much. They weren't his favorites to rely on, but they played their parts if he could pull it off right; which is precisely why Hannah was here to help this time around.
As Rickter shifted to bend his knees a slight angle he pointed out his toes, as he brought his hands out in front of them to create a gesture. The left hand was open-palmed with fingers pointed straight out together, while his right hand was balled into a fist as he pressed the underside into the palm. Hannah raised an eyebrow at him for a moment, only to rest a hand at her hip and inspect her nails on the other hand. As she feigned distraction to watch Rickter's actions, the black wolf released the anchor stored within his aether, the construct then channeled out through his hands to generate the first shieldcrafted layout stored within. From the center of a luminescent orb of aether an aurora pulsed outward, the light hardening into a glossy shield that remained between him and Hannah.
Already he knew what the shield needed to negate against, seeing as how Hannah was the one who suggested she be the person to do it. After Telion's minor aversions with casting, neither one of them wanted to risk over-exertion for Telion. Hannah would make certain her friend got the proper rest she needed, and she would still be the one to help train Rickter further. Thus as the aether of his shield hardened Hannah curled her fingers, with a caster shell held delicately between her fingers before she gave it a flick. In one single gesture, the shell went hurdling towards Rickter, the aetheric surface of the shield quickly rippled out from the point of impact, before it managed to deflect the caster shell away into the grass. "I see, time to turn up the heat then." The rogue remarked with a grin, as she pulled open the flap of a belt pouch.
"Triangles, go!"
Rickter glanced from Hannah to Telion to see the nod, his hands shifted as he brought them close together, with aether channeled into his palms to create another anchor there. A small fluorescent light started to shimmer within the confines of his hands, as he looked up to see Hannah had started to play with four of them now, the one castor shell she'd already used floating in orbit with the rest around her finger. "Here I come, Wolfman!" Just as she warned Hannah dipped her finger forward, and caused the caster shells to fly at him at a slightly faster rate. Rickter's eyes widened as he finally finished the anchor just in time, and moved his hands to change into the next gesture to perform the shieldcrafting technique. Left hand straightened out once more, right hand open-palmed with knuckled pressed into the left palm.
Right away he mentally pushed out the aether of his next shield, the light within the orb surged out as the anchor released the aether within. Another fluorescent wave became the three-cornered shape that would quickly protect him, right as the shells broke through the quadrilateral he placed before, and caused shards of aether to dissipate into particles of stars. The triangle shield was tested then, its sturdiness only enough to ward off the shells for a moment, before the durability met its limit and the shield cracked away from the final pelt of a shell. The wolf shifted his stance to where he half twisted away, his arms thrown down so that his fists channeled more aether out, while his mind focused on the harnessing of two anchors in one go. Hannah grinned at the look of determination he held, before another wag of her finger sent the shells back toward Rickter once more.
"Curves, go!"
Rickter channeled the aether from his fists out toward over his forearms next, the mass of aether coalescing like a vibrant band of northern lights, into two radiant anchors that loomed over his forearms as he breathed in deeply. With the release of his aether the next shields to come to manifest were ovally shaped over his outer forearms, the castor shells deflected from one swipe of the arm to another, as he brought the two anchors of the shields closer together with a press of his knuckles together. In one steady turn he'd turned partially generated shields into a full-on barricade, the two anchors joined together to merge the aetheric surface into one full rounded cone in front of Rickter.
"Great job Rickter!!" Telion commended as he finally released his breath, a light sheen of sweat already coated the surface of his forehead as he focused.
"Impressive, you're actually getting better with your shields." Hannah complimented as she wiggled a few more of her fingers, before she lined her index out toward the barrier Rickter projected, and pulled her thumb down as she finger-gunned her next gesture. The shells went harder toward the shield this time, Rickter certain that their aether somehow felt more weighted or reinforced this time. He hadn't fully understood the possibilities of Kinetics yet, but he was already amazed at what one like Talon could achieve. And now here, with Hannah, he was given a whole knew display of how it could apply to combat. The moment they clashed into the shield the shells glimmered, as the barrier repelled them away just as easily as he shrugged them off.
"Do we want to keep going then?" Telion weighed in with a hand brought up to tuck hair out of her face, the strands lined behind her ear as she looked from one to the other curiously.
"Might be best to stop for now," Rickter admitted as he released the charge in his shields, restoring what reserved aether he had left as the rest of it dissipated into tiny lights. "My other template was what I normally make anyhow, which are the domes that I'm so famous for." The wolf wiped the sweat off from his brow for a moment, before he looked up to remember that he still had a crown on his forehead. Hannah still grinned to him as she twirled her index finger around a couple times, as the shells floated from where they fell back up toward the palm of her hand.
"You still haven't quite covered polygons yet though Rickter," The bard pointed out with her arms tucked over one another thoughtfully. The wolf looked to her in his own moment of thought, before the slight raise in his eyebrows fell into an expression of realization.
"Those I'm still working on. They take longer time to perfect and, so far, I've only one type in mind I want to try later. When I've got the construct down to a science at least." He admitted with heavy consideration in his tone, which led Telion to grin at him wider as she nodded in turn.
"And just think, when you're more practiced with the craft, you'll be doing all sorts of crazy things with these shields of yours." Hannah ruminated for a moment with a hint of admiration in her tone, which led Rickter to humbly grin at her as a result.
"Well, that practice run went better than I expected! We should go inside, show Talon your magnificent crown while we're at it." Telion teased with a wink to Rickter, as his lips contorted for a moment in response to the jest.
"I don't think I'm gonna let him see me wearing something like this in the castle." He remarked as he started to walk with them back toward the palace foyer.
Glade 14th, 121 AoS
Honestly, it brought him genuine peace to be able to see them happy together like that. Things were certainly different from way back when he first met the two, and he never would've suspected that his circumstances would lead them all here. As he closed his eyes for a bit longer to relax and breathe in, he heard the soft melodic sounds of laughter emanating from the pair. They drew closer to him it sounded, as their footsteps grazed across the spikes of grass, while their scent was carried through the breeze toward him as well. Yet still he just smiled without letting his focus being interrupted, his mind spent on sensing the ambient aether within him and around him. Kinetics had opened him up to a new world of sensitivity for Rickter, as the flow of aether was as natural as breathing when he first felt it. If there was anything to learn from his initiation, it was that aether maintained a constant presence.
And... a driving force.
Yet Rickter felt something rest atop his head, his eyebrows rose but he still avoided opening his eyelids. Not before he breathed in one final time, to gradually open them as he exhaled, and look up to the two beautiful ladies standing over him. Hannah who wore the crown of pansies and orchids, along with her white blouse and grey trousers. Then Telion with the crown of lilies, her outfit the robin's egg blue dress she often liked to wear, to which Rickter quickly smiled up to the two as he realized he too had been donned a crown. Pansies? Now why on Ransera would they use those... "Really, now?" He inquired with a spike of the brow, his grin a bit more playful as Hannah and Telion simply giggled at him.
"You've spent so long meditating, we got tired of waiting so, we made each other crowns." Hannah teased with her arms crossed as she glanced to Telion, who tucked her arms behind her as she leaned a little closer to Rickter.
"Yeah, and you were just so relaxed and at peace, that we thought you'd look better with a crown." Rickter chuckled at that as he looked up to her, his hands used to help ease him up closer, so that he could lean at a point where he nearly kissed her, only to whisper in her ear when he lingered there for a moment.
"I'm ready whenever you are," He murmured as he mindfully pulled back away with an expectant look in his eyes, "thanks for the crown." He added as he stood straighter on his feet a moment later, and moved to a spot within the center point of the garden. Hannah and Telion both looked at him twice amused, the bard quickly looking to her friend as the rogue glanced to her before she gave Rickter a hearty smirk.
"Alright then, let's see what you got."
"On my mark, fire away! Quadrilateral, go!" Telion called out as she waved her hand down, which signaled for Rickter to start the exercise once more. As they've planned after yesterday's experimentation, Rickter was given a bit of a routine to play with in terms of his Negation. Because of the time he'd need to shieldcraft, he was to prepare at least two basic constructs. Which, he also had to bear in mind not just the simplicity, but the propensity they carried when burdened with too much. They weren't his favorites to rely on, but they played their parts if he could pull it off right; which is precisely why Hannah was here to help this time around.
As Rickter shifted to bend his knees a slight angle he pointed out his toes, as he brought his hands out in front of them to create a gesture. The left hand was open-palmed with fingers pointed straight out together, while his right hand was balled into a fist as he pressed the underside into the palm. Hannah raised an eyebrow at him for a moment, only to rest a hand at her hip and inspect her nails on the other hand. As she feigned distraction to watch Rickter's actions, the black wolf released the anchor stored within his aether, the construct then channeled out through his hands to generate the first shieldcrafted layout stored within. From the center of a luminescent orb of aether an aurora pulsed outward, the light hardening into a glossy shield that remained between him and Hannah.
Already he knew what the shield needed to negate against, seeing as how Hannah was the one who suggested she be the person to do it. After Telion's minor aversions with casting, neither one of them wanted to risk over-exertion for Telion. Hannah would make certain her friend got the proper rest she needed, and she would still be the one to help train Rickter further. Thus as the aether of his shield hardened Hannah curled her fingers, with a caster shell held delicately between her fingers before she gave it a flick. In one single gesture, the shell went hurdling towards Rickter, the aetheric surface of the shield quickly rippled out from the point of impact, before it managed to deflect the caster shell away into the grass. "I see, time to turn up the heat then." The rogue remarked with a grin, as she pulled open the flap of a belt pouch.
"Triangles, go!"
Rickter glanced from Hannah to Telion to see the nod, his hands shifted as he brought them close together, with aether channeled into his palms to create another anchor there. A small fluorescent light started to shimmer within the confines of his hands, as he looked up to see Hannah had started to play with four of them now, the one castor shell she'd already used floating in orbit with the rest around her finger. "Here I come, Wolfman!" Just as she warned Hannah dipped her finger forward, and caused the caster shells to fly at him at a slightly faster rate. Rickter's eyes widened as he finally finished the anchor just in time, and moved his hands to change into the next gesture to perform the shieldcrafting technique. Left hand straightened out once more, right hand open-palmed with knuckled pressed into the left palm.
Right away he mentally pushed out the aether of his next shield, the light within the orb surged out as the anchor released the aether within. Another fluorescent wave became the three-cornered shape that would quickly protect him, right as the shells broke through the quadrilateral he placed before, and caused shards of aether to dissipate into particles of stars. The triangle shield was tested then, its sturdiness only enough to ward off the shells for a moment, before the durability met its limit and the shield cracked away from the final pelt of a shell. The wolf shifted his stance to where he half twisted away, his arms thrown down so that his fists channeled more aether out, while his mind focused on the harnessing of two anchors in one go. Hannah grinned at the look of determination he held, before another wag of her finger sent the shells back toward Rickter once more.
"Curves, go!"
Rickter channeled the aether from his fists out toward over his forearms next, the mass of aether coalescing like a vibrant band of northern lights, into two radiant anchors that loomed over his forearms as he breathed in deeply. With the release of his aether the next shields to come to manifest were ovally shaped over his outer forearms, the castor shells deflected from one swipe of the arm to another, as he brought the two anchors of the shields closer together with a press of his knuckles together. In one steady turn he'd turned partially generated shields into a full-on barricade, the two anchors joined together to merge the aetheric surface into one full rounded cone in front of Rickter.
"Great job Rickter!!" Telion commended as he finally released his breath, a light sheen of sweat already coated the surface of his forehead as he focused.
"Impressive, you're actually getting better with your shields." Hannah complimented as she wiggled a few more of her fingers, before she lined her index out toward the barrier Rickter projected, and pulled her thumb down as she finger-gunned her next gesture. The shells went harder toward the shield this time, Rickter certain that their aether somehow felt more weighted or reinforced this time. He hadn't fully understood the possibilities of Kinetics yet, but he was already amazed at what one like Talon could achieve. And now here, with Hannah, he was given a whole knew display of how it could apply to combat. The moment they clashed into the shield the shells glimmered, as the barrier repelled them away just as easily as he shrugged them off.
"Do we want to keep going then?" Telion weighed in with a hand brought up to tuck hair out of her face, the strands lined behind her ear as she looked from one to the other curiously.
"Might be best to stop for now," Rickter admitted as he released the charge in his shields, restoring what reserved aether he had left as the rest of it dissipated into tiny lights. "My other template was what I normally make anyhow, which are the domes that I'm so famous for." The wolf wiped the sweat off from his brow for a moment, before he looked up to remember that he still had a crown on his forehead. Hannah still grinned to him as she twirled her index finger around a couple times, as the shells floated from where they fell back up toward the palm of her hand.
"You still haven't quite covered polygons yet though Rickter," The bard pointed out with her arms tucked over one another thoughtfully. The wolf looked to her in his own moment of thought, before the slight raise in his eyebrows fell into an expression of realization.
"Those I'm still working on. They take longer time to perfect and, so far, I've only one type in mind I want to try later. When I've got the construct down to a science at least." He admitted with heavy consideration in his tone, which led Telion to grin at him wider as she nodded in turn.
"And just think, when you're more practiced with the craft, you'll be doing all sorts of crazy things with these shields of yours." Hannah ruminated for a moment with a hint of admiration in her tone, which led Rickter to humbly grin at her as a result.
"Well, that practice run went better than I expected! We should go inside, show Talon your magnificent crown while we're at it." Telion teased with a wink to Rickter, as his lips contorted for a moment in response to the jest.
"I don't think I'm gonna let him see me wearing something like this in the castle." He remarked as he started to walk with them back toward the palace foyer.
"Every side attacks you when you don't pick sides."
"Common" "Synskrit" "Norvaegan"
"Rickter" "Telion" "Hannah"
"Rickter" "Telion" "Hannah"
Now I'm even more curious about how rickter is gonna train Fawn, too!