[ We find Our Antiheros in Xivilai's Breakfast Nook. They've been here before - it's one of the small eating rooms set aside for the use of Xivilai and those very few of her staff that have yet to pass into undeath, which brings on different nutritional needs. ] ( BRAIIIIIIIIINS! ) [ They were told to wait here after breakfast for Xivilai to come meet them and give Nebby a pep talk on how to handle having a relationship with a psychotic, god-killing, death-obsessed object. ] ( Just watch her bring a pamphlet entitled "So you're going to kill everybody." ) (Ha!) [Now, theoretically this could just involve Xivilai and Nebrinel. Why the rest of you were asked to be here - of if you'd be here anyway - is unknown.] [ You probably have some time yet before Xiv shows, in which you could discuss things. Knowing you, tho, you prolly won't. Session Start! ] * Sei sighs. "I just hope that whoever takes charge of that town will actually improve matters." And takes better care of that tree. * Ada picks at her breakfast. "Unlikely." * Nebrinel sits there. She doesn't have Plague on her, and has been somewhat untalkative, which is no particular surprise. She does chime up with a simple, "Agreed, on improvement and the tree." Well, it's hard to be much worse than an undead, psychotic, human- hating, incredibly powerful mage. * Sei nods. I think the elves there would settle for an old-fashioned greedy politician. Sure, they might skim off the taxes, but at least they won't turn you inside out. It's almost enough to make me want to go into politics. ...almost. ... and maybe they'll do something about the waste disposal issue. I mean, that can't be good for tourism. It isn't. * Ada wrinkles her nose at the memory. "Don't remind me." ... they could reroute it up the hill, for fertilizer for the tree! [ At this moment, there's a faint *whoosh* of air displaced as Xivilai appears at the other side of the room. ] * Ethan manages not to fall out of his chair at Xivilai's appearance! * Ada pops a strawberry to her mouth, chews, and looks over to her lady as the air's displaced. She gives a low nod. It's rude to talk with your mouth full. * Nebrinel looks at Xivilai with a fairly emotionless look, which may be odd for her. * Sei stands and bows respectfully to Xivilai. [ "Good morning, all of you." Xivilai stalks over to the table. "You may be wondering why you're all here, and not just Nebrinel. The answer is that I expect the three of you--" She points to Ethan, Ada, and Sei "--to assist her." ] * Ethan raises an eyebrow, but nods. * Sei nods slowly. * Ada finishes, swallows, and nods once. "How?" [ "If you wish to deny her aid, that is fine, and she will likely die amidst unspeakable agony sometime soon. Weather you feel some obligation to her is entirely your affair."] * Nebrinel smirks thinly. "Well, then." ... what do we gotta do? [ "Come with me. I will take you to a device that will allow you to unite your minds. It will be unpleasant, more than likely, but it is not only your key to victory, but the ideal training grounds for such an endeavor as this." ] * Ada eyes Xivilai. "Unite our minds?" She flicks her gaze to Nebrinel, and she somehow doesn't say, "With her?" ... unite their minds? With me? Hoo boy. [ "Not entirely. You will still be seperate individuals, although some small effort will be required to keep your thoughts private." ] * Sei raises an eyebrow. "..." [ Xivilai shrugs. "You will likely contribute little, Ethan, but every bit helps." ] * Ethan shrugs. "As long as it doesn't make my head implode. That'd suck." * Ethan gets up. * Nebrinel looks between all the seemingly willing participants, then Xivilai, saying in an annoyed tone, "I am most interested in how you expect this of them. It seems... unfair." [ "That is unlikely in the extreme, Ethan. It is rather more likely to destroy your mind, but it will leave your body intact." ] * Ada grabs another strawberry and nibbles on it, almost sullenly. And thoughtfully. ... oh. Well. *pauses* Not like I use it that much anyway. * Sei shrugs resignedly. "There seems to be no choice, if we want to save Nebrinel..." Well, as you still travel and operate together, I am assuming that you have reasons to aid each other, and, gods forbid, you may have even developed some bizarre fondness for her," she says, indicating Nebrinel with a pointed finger. "That, too, is your afair. However, it is my assumption that you would rather go with her aid on your collective quest than without." ] +[" * Nebrinel looks around with annoyance. "It's not my affair. All things considered," she glances at Ethan. "I am surprised you have not all booted me out yet." Bizarre would be right. If it existed. * Ada does stand, though. "But I will help, if only because you helped save my life once. I didn't forget." * Ethan grins at Nebrinel. "Ah, but you have a Great Weapon. A powerful one. The Jenoine'd be after you. So this whole affair *is* your affair." We've all saved each others' lives too many times to ignore, as far as I'm concerned, and none of us mean ill in general. So, I'll do anything I can. [ Xivilai shrugs at Nebrinel's remark. "I assume that they wish to have the power of Plaguebringer on their side when this conflict with the Jenoine progresses. It is not an inconsiderable power, even if it is difficult to tame." ] * Ethan strokes his goatee. "If Nebrinel's willing to risk her sanity by getting a look inside my head, then I'm in." * Ethan downs a muffin. * Sei sighs. "Mine probably won't be terribly pleasant, either." * Nebrinel snorts. "I meant that any attachments were not my affair. If you are all foolish enough to risk it, then it can be only as bad as Plaguebringer." She stands. [ "Any look inside your head would be a thing of unspeakable brevity, Ethan." She looks around. "So there is no fondness. I had wondered." She turns and walks towards the nearest wall. "At any rate, follow me." ] * Ada smirks. "If you'd rather, I suppose I don't have to help." She turns and does as her lady wishes. * Sei follows the group. * Nebrinel smiles thinly. "And miss an opportunity to risk your life? Never." Brevity *and* levity, Lady Xivilai. *grins* * Ethan follows. * Nebrinel is following, of course. "I consider why you wondered. Surely Ada must have informed you of what happened in the baron's laboratory." [ "Not yet, no." Xivilai reaches out and touches the wall. There's a twisting in your stomachs - much more pronounced to the humans - and you are in a room occupied by a large, greenish crystal. The room is without windows or doors and the floor bears numerous ritual markings across it. ] ... nngh. * Ethan shakes his head to clear it, then downs a turkey leg. * Ada grimaces, but she doesn't make a sound. You all right, Ethan? * Nebrinel seems more distracted by the crystal. [ "We have one week to use this device for training and battle. It is on loan to me from a god with a fondness for such things." ] Teleporting makes my stomach churn. Turkey calms the stoma- from a god? Yowza. * Sei is looking over the crystal. "What a find..." [ She walks to a side of the crystal, which is some ten feet tall and irregularly shaped, it's facets seemingly placed in a random and haphazard fashion. "Do you now come over here and but touch the crystal, and we will begin our first exercise. Try to keep your wits about you, as they do no good bothering the others." ] * Ada lets out a breath. "I suppose you're not going to tell us what to expect. [ "Sadly, I scarcely know your friends well enough to tell you, Ada. It all depends on your minds." ] * Ethan eyes the crystal, downs a coupla more turkey legs, washes it down with some water, and walks over to the crystal. * Nebrinel smirks. "I doubt she would tell us even if she knew. It would ruin the fun." * Sei walks over to the crystal, and places a hand on it. [ "But in general, your thoughts will try to get away from you, such that you will need to expend some effort to order them. Weather this is normal for you or not, the difference here will be that a thought escaped may find it's way to another." ] * Ada nods. She steps over, placing a hand upon it. "Fine." * Nebrinel 's eyes widen at that statement. Then cracks her knuckles and closes her eyes for a few brief seconds of breathing. [ Sei twitches briefly, and then just stands there touching the crystal, silend and unmoving. Ada does the same. ] * Ethan eyes Sei and Ada, gulps audibly, strokes his goatee nervously... then puts his hand on the crystal. [ Ethan does likewise. ] [ "Well, Nebrinel? They seem willing to help you, gods know why. Do you not wish to accept their aid?" ] * Nebrinel opens her eyes and shakes her head. "Simply attempting to save them from the ill effects of a long life. It is one thing Ada and Ethan are lucky not to have to deal with." A thin smirk, then she walks over and touches the crystal. [ Now, while you're in this place outside of place, occupied with nothing but your thoughts, things are different. You have nothing but the strength of your minds. You have not the trappings of flesh - not the appearance, not the strength, not the resilience, nor the ugliness, the impotence, the infirmity. You are, for now, a creature of mind, and your psyche is all there is to you, now, while you are in this place. ] * Ethan appears as a unkempt, haggard, exhausted-looking Chibi-Ethan, riding on top of what appears to be a huge, freakishly muscled version of Ethan, struggling mightily with the reins to get the bigger version of himself to move where he wants it to, to stay when he wants it to, and so on. * Sei is staring into the distance, as if he has much on his mind. He's standing there solidly and unassertively; his calm seems to be more a matter of distraction than anything. The clothes he wears are medics' robes, worn and stained with many generations of blood. Despite the grim demeanor, he's smiling - very softly, yet just so that it seems to balance him out. * Ethan , as ChibiEthan, has big bags under his eyes, and is visibly straining to keep a big toothy grin on his face. The huge Ethan he's riding, meanwhile, has a look of barely restrained, boiling-over, wild-eyed rage. * Ada looks around, eyes glittering darkly. She's recognizable as Ada, certainly, but younger by a few years and shorter by a few inches. Her features are angular and pale with a faint and soft glow, and her ears pointed (though not large like an elf's). Her expression is very decidedly neutral, clothes clean and well-kept, and there's a faint swirl of magic about her hands. * Nebrinel .... doesn't seem to be there. However, there is a someting... wind that despite all logic, has given the air a _color_ grey, even though wind should be invisible. At times it is loud, and at times, a whisper, but it doesn't seem to go away at all. It smells like flowers, sometimes rotting, sometimes fresh. [ Mind rolls, everyone. ] [ +2 penalty. ] 2d10+2 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Ethan (2d10+2) and gets 8. 2d10+2 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Nebrinel (2d10+2) and gets 13. 2d10+2 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Ada (2d10+2) and gets 15. 2d10+2 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Sei (2d10+2) and gets 22, a CRITICAL FAILURE!!! "Maybe you should consider sacrificing some barnyard animals?" (...) (Ahahaha!) (... Yay.) (Oh, are you in for a treat. XD) (That's two Critfails tonight on Dicey.) [ Those that fail, start describing the thoughts and feelings that are on your mind. In here. Where everyone else can see. One sec and I'll paste a suggested format to you all. ] * Nebrinel (is confused, angry, but at the same time, seems to air confidence and purpose, and no small degree of joy). "Wonderous... but what, who... this isn't right... is it?" * Ada (curious, confused, mildly resentful and angry); "That must be Sei; he looks about as I expected. Pity he- shit." (surprised) "I didn't know the curse had such a hold on him. Something has to be done..." (amused) "Figures she wouldn't become anything tangible." * Sei (somewhat surprised). "This is...so very dif - poor Ethan, I knew he was conflicted, but I've never seen anything like that..." * Ada fixes her gaze on Nebrinel. (curious, again) "I heard that." She turns to look at Sei, now speaking with a very pretty, singsong voice, "And that." * Nebrinel (more intense annoyance starts to break through, dimming the joy). "She said it would be mindful! This is not right! This space... trapped!" * Ethan (exhausted and giddy and angry and cheery and raging and depressed and hungry); "Concentrate on the funny and the food and the fight and the Ada and the Sei and the Nebrinel and the food and the funny not the rage and the anger and the parents and the Rachael and the arrows and the GODDAMN LAUGH and..." * Sei (broadcasting on all channels) (suppressed but intense anger) "I can't imagine what more could be done for Tree-by-the-Sea, but if I run into another like the Baron, even I may not be able to control myself..." (simultaneously: longingly) "Xivilai is so capable, and beautiful...but I couldn't possibly even consider spending more time near her, it would mean certain death..." * Sei (worried) "Ada did? I must not be keeping any hold on myself." * Nebrinel (sudden purpose): "Death! Yes, death, I know death." The wind starts to whip furiously around Sei. * Ethan (scared); "I can hear them. They can hear me. Gotta get a grip. Gotta get a hold. Grip and hold, hold onto the grip. Everyone wants a zany fighter, nobody wants a crazy fighter who just wants to kill the parents and kill the bandits and kill the GODDAMN LAUGH... hold the smile... smile the hold..." [ Suddenly, a small, golden-haired, purple-eyed elven child appears in the middle of you all. With a sigh, she says "This will definitely take more getting used to, for all of you." ] * Sei (very worried): "With us all in this state, I wonder -" (changing, but as worried) "What is this...?" [ The child's hair flows in an invisible breeze, and suddenly a setting bubbles up out of nowhere; one of the training halls under Black Peak. ] [ Additionally, your thoughts become private once more. ] * Nebrinel (annoyance): "I... whee!" Then the thoughts are gone, but the wind whips around the new space. * Ada clutches at her head, trying to mute all the stimuli. (pained) "Make it stop. Make them-" She hesitantly looks up to see the child, surprise easy to read, and then she's muted. [ The child eyes you all. "Distressing. Nebrinel, pull yourself together, please. Ethan..." she sighs dejectedly. "No, nevermind." ] * Ethan struggles to keep the bigger him in check, as it seems to be itching to do SOMETHING as its thoughts were broadcast. The larger Ethan calms down somewhat once its thoughts fall silent, though ChibiEthan keeps a tight hold on the reins, his fingers white from the grip. * Sei looks around more carefully, taking a few mental breaths to try and relax. I'm fine. I have the reins. As long as I have the reins, and don't let go, I'm fine. * Ada takes a few breaths, the neutral composure she entered with completely gone as she looks about ready to cry. On the bright side, it'd fit her child- like form awfully well. * Ethan 's eyes shift from side to side nervously as he says that, and the bigger him gives a low, deep, rumbling chuckle. * Nebrinel whips around Xiv for a second, then suddenly the grayness coalesces slowly into a tall, nude woman, who looks _sorta_ like Nebrinel, and is definitely wearing her cloak, but she also seems somehow off. The hair is too long, the face is off, she's a little shorter, but it's still recognizable. She says in an annoyed voice. "You may be surprised how much your youth can form you, Ada. You of all people, at that." [ Xivilai doesn't seem bothered as the fog of death swirls about her. "This will take some time, I can tell." ] * Sei relaxes, shaking his head and taking in the surroundings. [ "Ethan. I hate to take you out of the fight, but I'm afraid you would only be a liability, in your state." ] * Ethan takes a few deep breaths... both of him does... and the bigger him becomes a bit more placid. "I can fight. I've held him back this long." * Sei does a mostly very good job of not looking at Nebrinel. ... but you're right. ["Yes, but in this event it would be two against one, and those odds do not favor you. You would be a liability to the others, rather than an asset."] * Ada looks down and away from Nebrinel. Her hair spills around her pointed ears, and she half-whispers, "Shut up, Nebrinel." I need both my hands on the reins... I can't take them off to fight, and I can't guanantee that I can get him to do what needs to be done. * Nebrinel stands there, simply looking around. As she does, her cloak seems to... form... into weapons at her side, the weapons that she knows. She looks over at Ada more carefully and an eyebrow quirks. [ The child nods. "I won't wake you up, yet. Perhaps there are things here that will benefit you. I cannot know." ] Where should I go, then? * Ada may sense that, since she looks up to Nebrinel, eyes gleaming defiantly. She has no weapons at her side; no possessions other than her clothes, in fact. Not even the necklace with the deep blue stone. * Sei finally looks down at his clothes, looks confused, and then winces. "...ah", he says quietly. [ She shakes her question. "'Where' isn't much of an issue here. You have problems that you must adress." She looks over the large, beastly Ethan. "Considerable problems. I do not envy you the task of defeating your demons, Ethan Swordbreaker." ] * Nebrinel looks around and smiles faintly, without the smirk. "An interesting group of people, to be sure. So much under the surface..." Her body seems to shrink in size for a second, to her teenage form, but comes back almost immediately. * Ethan eyes the child Xivilai, and quirks a small, genuine grin through the exhaustion. With a pull of the reins, though, he turns his larger self around a bit, and walks it over towards Ada. * Ada turns to look at Ethan. And... Ethan. She fights to keep her expression under control as she tilts her head. * Ethan whispers intently in his ear, and pulls tightly on the reins... his larger self responds by gently ruffling Ada's hair. "Don't worry, Ada. Despite... ah, forget it. Just don't worry." * Sei is calming down once again, but his expression looks haunted - moreso than just the hint of it that there was before. * Ethan pulls the reins again, and his larger self bucks a bit, but after a bit of fighting it calms down, and walks off. "Don't any of you go insane now! That's my job!" * Sei creases his brow, and the blood on his clothes very slowly starts to fade. * Ada smiles a little, and she almost looks like she's going to giggle, but she ends up just adjusting her hair. "I can't not worry," she tells him with her strange, singsong voice, "But I'll try not to." * Nebrinel gives a glance at Ada and the leaving Ethan, then looks over at Sei and chuckles. "Very rogueish, Sei." ( ...okay. I'm too tired, but I'd hate to end this, sine it's just getting good. You guys keep going. I'll lay down some ground rules. ) * Sei smiles slightly. "Well, I'm glad these memories had some positive use." * Ada looks over at Sei. "Hmm? Oh, please. You're not going to get any girls unless someone wills them up for you." ( Your Body score is equal to your mind and soul averaged, while 'here'. Your ACV is, too. HP are equal to EP. ) (Okay, so Nebbie, we rule.) * Sei raises an eyebrow. "Hey, now." ( And this is why Xivi sent Ethan away. =P ) (But we don't get ACV/DCV mods?) ( No. But you don't need them. ) * Nebrinel quirks an eyebrow then shakes her head. Her body is slowly shifting to something that looks more like what she really looks like, but nothing but the cape and the weapons on her. (Mind/Soul average rounded up or down?) ( Up. ) So, we are here. Certainly an... interesting place. ( I haven't looked over any rules DX may have for psionic combat, yet, so try not to get into a fight. If you do, you can use magic, normal skill rolls, normal results, except you deal damage/3 in EP damage. Physical combat will be trickier, since it doesn't work the same - suffice to say that since none of you are psychologists, none of you will be good at it. ) (Ada has two ranks in social sciences? *ducks*) (As does Sei. ^_^) (Nebrinel has two in Social Sciences Psych!) (I win!) (CURSE YOU.) ( Good grief people. Okay, fine, that's the skill mod for it. ) ( Ethan has 6 in Military Science. And if love is war, isn't all psychology a military endeavor? ^_~ ) ( ...I'm not gonna let you get all philosophical on me now, Ellman. c.c; ) * Nebrinel takes her sword off her belt and swings it slightly. "Hrm. It... feels different, which should not surprise me, but serviceable." ( Good thing I'm a bio major, and not a psych major, ne? I'd be REALLY scary then. =P ) * Sei nods. "I wouldn't like to meet a Morganti weapon's psychic projection." * Nebrinel smirks. "Isn't that why you embarked on this fools errand?" [ Xivilai looks around at you all again. "I believe I will allow you to become used to this state before I go into any actual training. I will return later, although if you wish, one or more of you will no doubt be able to figure out how to revert to the waking world." ] [ Xivilai disappears! ] Well, that's true. * Nebrinel suddenly becomes formless again and whips around the room briefly. * Ada nods as Xivilai leaves, stretches, then looks down at her hands for the first time. She tilts her head curiously, watching them and their pale glow. * Sei sits down and concentrates. * Sei blinks a few times, and a couple of small blue spheres drop into his hands. Then he stands back up. "Interesting..." * Sei begins playing...well, if there's a term in this world for hacky-sack, that's what it is. "This is far easier here." * Ada looks over, half-singing, "What are those supposed to be?" * Nebrinel coalesces again and sighs. "Freedom lost." Beanbags, fairly light ones. * Sei tosses one of the beanbags to Ada. "Normally I'm terrible at this." You could think of it less as losing freedom and more as gaining focus, Nebrinel. * Ada catches the beanbag entirely on reflex. She blinks. * Nebrinel smiles thinly. "Not really." * Ada tosses the beanbag into the air and follows Sei's trick of bouncing it on her upper leg, then foot, and she catches it again. "I see what you mean." * Sei nods, causing him to promptly drop the beanbag. "A thousand curses. Ah well." * Ada laughs. * Nebrinel frowns. "Really? It seems... harder, to use my sword here. Just... more difficult." Hmm... Perhaps it's the training. * Sei picks up the beanbag, creates another, and tries to juggle. * Nebrinel chuckles faintly. "Perhaps. I lack a lot here, in this mental realm." * Ada tosses her beanbag to Nebrinel. "It'll take getting used to. Just..." She pauses, then frowns. "As I said." * Sei nods. * Nebrinel snatches it from the air with her offhand. "Strange. In ways, it is easier. In ways, it isn't. How odd." I imagine we'll get used to it...I think I'm going to take a break, though. * Ada nods. "As you like, Sei." * Nebrinel nods slightly. "Farewell." * Sei waves. "See you soon, assuming I can figure out how to move back..." * Sei concentrates - and then slowly fades from view. * Ada watches him fade. "That didn't take long." * Nebrinel watches Sei fade, then chuckles. "No, it didn't." (Next time, Sei begins work on 101 Things To Do In The Astral Plane.) (Be very afraid.) (Not even. I'm a human, you're an elf.) (I wasn't talking to you. ^_^) (Awesome!) (We'll see, boy.) Then again, he may just have erased himself from existence. * Nebrinel stretches and looks around. "Who can tell? Somehow, I doubt it would be that easy, though." * Ada lets out a mmm of agreement and holds her right hand out, palm up. The small ball of flame appears above it, same as the one she first used to show Nebrinel she had magic. She frowns faintly, dismisses it with her other hand, and summons another one. * Nebrinel frowns. "Magic works as well?" Yes, but it's not the same. * Ada closes her right hand on the ball and throws it upwards, causing it to explode in a shower of sparks. * Nebrinel rolls her eyes. "Of course not." You asked. So I did. * Nebrinel looks at Ada's form, and quirks a smile. "That is amusing." * Ada turns her attention from the sparks to Nebrinel. "What?" Your... form. * Ada tilts her head. "I imagine I look younger, or at least smaller, and I seem to be glowing, but..." She runs a hand through her hair, pauses, and brings it down the side of her face. Upon feeling her ears, her eyes widen. * Nebrinel gestures at Ada, and grins slightly at her realization. "Yes. A child human elfling, of sorts." * Ada feels at the tip of her left ear. "It's not- but-" She stops, heavily dropping her hand. * Nebrinel licks her lips. "But." She rubs her hands together as the sword disappears. "Sei has a curse, does he? He certainly hides it better than Ethan." * Ada lets out a breath and half-sings, "We all have curses." Or had. Have. You're the one who wants a weapon that could destroy you with a thought. * Nebrinel smirks. "And you and Xivilai are the ones who need me to have it. Who is more foolish?" Need you to have it? * Ada looks back up at Nebrinel. "No, you need to control it. That's what's important." * Nebrinel frowns thinly. "I don't see a difference." I am sure Plaguebringer does, but I don't. You could have had Plaguebringer already, but you wouldn't be you anymore. Would you? It would control you. And your weapon is more dangerous than you are. * Ada smiles, suddenly. "A lesser of two evils? What do you think?" * Nebrinel smiles just as thinly. "If I don't control myself, then I don't have the weapon, do I?" Then it's semantics. * Nebrinel snorts derisively. "More than semantics. You don't think I asked you to be on your guard the way I did because I wanted to be controlled, did you?" * Ada turns her attention away, creating motes of light with a flick of her fingers, making them disappear, and repeating the process a few times. "Then we're in agreement. Good enough for everyone involved." * Nebrinel runs her fingers through her hair. "I guess." * Ada nods. She reaches one hand up, feels at her ear, then frowns and points forward with her other, a crackling blast of lighting forming around her fingers and lancing forward. It splashes over nothing. * Nebrinel looks at Ada's blast, then sighs and begins to pace. Not testing your abilities? I thought that was the point of this whole thing. * Nebrinel shakes her head. "I'm thinking. A mental realm seems the best place for it, no?" Nebrinel stops walking and turns into a wind again. This time, it doesn't actually whip anywhere, just sort breezes about. * Ada starts a spell, this one ice, and stops it in its tracks. She mmms faintly. * Nebrinel coalesces again, but this time it's into the teenage her form, in what look like dancer's clothes. There's a look of concentration on her face. * Ada watches the teenaged elf. * Nebrinel looks down at herself and chuckles, saying in the lighter tone of that young person, "Well, that is no real surprise." * Ada tilts her head. "What?" * Nebrinel slowly reverts to the nude adult form, the cloak back on her. "That form was difficult to take." * Ada nods. "It might be best to go with what's natural here." She pauses. "More or less. When in a fight, I don't think more attention should be spent in trying to look like what you want." * Nebrinel chuckles faintly. "I may have been a dancer... but I never really was a child." She looks at Ada and smirks. "I guess I should get used to being the wind, then?" * Ada says, with her childish, elven-human appearance and singsong voice, "I doubt I truly was. And if that's what's natural, I won't stop you. It's your battle." * Nebrinel shakes her head. "Maybe, but for whatever reason, it's your battle now too." She peers at Ada. "That singsong... your odd behavior in Tree by the Sea, the illusion that the Baron referred to." * Ada brings her hands to her sides, palms out, and closes her eyes. Her appearance remains still for a moment, then blurs, shifts, and becomes a seventy year old elf's. She opens her wide, dark eyes with a smile and half-sings, "Aunt Nebrinel." * Nebrinel smirks and walks over to Ada, brushing her (fake) cheek. "Aunt Nebrinel. How funny, since I know of no siblings." She pauses, then adds, "Which is not surprising." * Ada doesn't flinch. She looks up at Nebrinel and says, in an adorably serious nine-year-old way, "I guess I could call you Mommy." * Nebrinel laughs very faintly and says, "No, Ada, then I would have had to have you when I was but a teenager, and that would have made for a very..." she brings her off hand up to her head, then shakes her head. "That's just an illusion anyway." * Ada grins widely and steps away, letting her illusion fade and becoming her "original" form again. * Nebrinel lets her hand drop from where it was touching Ada's face, then raises her hand, her whip in it. Then she crushes the whip away. "Unbidden thoughts." They get in the way. (And she wouldn't have, actually. She'd be in her "twenties". ;P) (Though there is that whole curse thing... hmm.) (The curse thing is what she was referring to.) (Right.) * Nebrinel smirks. "Sometimes, but that's the reality of a long life." * Ada raises an eyebrow. "You're not the only elf out there, living her long life." Did I say I was? You give that impression. The long life. So alone, Nebrinel, and her long and lonely life. * Nebrinel suddenly whips into the wind, all around Ada, for a few seconds, then she almost slams back into a form in front of her with an annoyed look on her face and her fists clenched. A tight voice says, "I cannot imagine why." * Ada stays as she is, letting her hair settle and with a look of faint surprise that she would have most likely been able to mask in reality. "Because you asked for it, perhaps." * Nebrinel looks annoyed still, but only her cape dissappears, causing a wind to swell around her. "I did not ask for this!" * Ada has lost the surprise, switching instead to a hard, pained expression. "I'm willing to bet you did, only without realizing it." She looks away, electricity sparking at her fingertips. * Nebrinel steps towards Ada, wind still sweeping, "Oh, of course I did, /Niece/ Ada. I obtained a curse that put me out of time and place, dared to treat humans with respect, with no place to belong, because it is exactly what I wanted." I may not know anything about you problems, Ada, but unless Fyril has filled you in... * Nebrinel 's winds fade back into the cape and she finishes, "Do not belittle mine." * Ada doesn't say anything for some time, thinking but muted. Pity, too, because all she responds with is, "Fine." * Nebrinel whips into a wind again and blows right past Ada's ear. Then as she moves about the room, a dark bolt flies from her and then dissapates. * Ada winces slightly at that, then whirls, keeping the wind in view. * Nebrinel slams back into place in front of Ada, and looks angry. "No, in fact, I have decided it is not fine." * Ada smiles and singsongs, "Really? Why not?" * Nebrinel snorts and says angrily. "Because you are all helping me because of Xivilai, or some sort of misguided chivalry, which is a truly strange concept. And you barely understand eachother, let alone me. Is blind duty all that drives you to help a woman you don't even know, but most certainly hate?" My Lady has never ordered me to help you. (It's because you're a player character! Duh. ;P) (Duh!) No, she never orders, does she? That's the beauty of power, another thing Ethan does not understand. You don't have to order. So do not try to fool me into saying that just because she is not ordering, you are not following those unspoken demands. She 'expects' you to help. * Ada sighs. "Nebrinel, Nebrinel," she says, her voice gently singing and almost mocking. "If all I am is a reflection of my Lady, then that's all I'll ever be to you. Why fight it?" * Nebrinel snorts. "Maybe that's all you'll be to yoursself." Nebrinel's voice goes up in pitch slightly. "'I wish I could be as free as you,' you once said, but I never pressed you on it. You are the one who never says no." I owe everything and nothing to her. Eighteen years? My life is only a drop in the bucket to you elves. If I've given you other reasons, you're the one who chooses to ignore them, and I have no desire to repeat myself. * Nebrinel says faintly. "A very important drop in the bucket." She then shakes her head. "I think you are mistaken. You may have given others reasons. You have never shared them with me." A thin smirk. "Unsurprising as it is." Oh, no. Perhaps it wasn't so obvious as one of Ethan's declarations of his duty, but I have. * Ada glances at the elf, then says, "I don't see why you're wondering about this now, anyway. Isn't it enough that I'm helping?" * Nebrinel shakes her head, then looks to the side. "Plaguebringer... and a little reflection, have brought many things into sharp relief." * Ada turns to look at Nebrinel fully. She doesn't say anything, but she fails to hide her curiosity. * Nebrinel looks back towards Ada and sighs before saying slowly, "By all the gods, I do hate doe eyes." She rubs her hands together. "By all rights, none of you should be here. If I think... the death we were to unleash. Yet, on the brink, at your throat, I stepped back." She stares dead into Ada's eyes. "To know why, to know where, why Plague failed... is to know how I can succeed." Does this mean you don't want to kill me? I'm shocked. ( She didn't because she made her Mind roll. You're taking all the fun out of this.) * Nebrinel rolls her eyes. "You would be surprised how hard wanting to kill random people can make it to get things done. There's only one person that I want to kill that badly and you are not him." [Session End/Continue/Retry?]