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Post by SummerCrow on Jan 17, 2017 0:48:57 GMT -6
You do as your told and quietly let the... thing keep carrying you to shore. You wonder if it could be Waite's true form? You got the impression she might not be fully human. You focus on trying to feel what her form's like. You come to decide you aren't sure you like the answer.
The water feels thick, so very thick. And something else about it is wrong... It takes you a minute, but you realize you can't smell the salty aroma you're used to. You can't smell anything, actually...!? You reach the shallows and Waite helps you stand. You feel the sand shifting underfoot as you struggle to get your balance... But you definitely had shoes on when you jumped. You come to a realization and start to reach to feel yourself. Waite seizes your arm and stops you. "Just a bit longer," she promises, helping you walk towards dry land.
"There's something I need to explain to you, Kira..." Waite begins. "Your second lesson, my perceptive young apprentice. The key to using magic. The most basic of basic techniques: belief. Belief in the world around you. You've already cleared the first hurdle. People can't use magic - you've come to realize this is false, and accept it as such. Demons exist, the laws of physics as you know them aren't correct... I must admit, I'm impressed with how readily humanity as a whole came to accept these as truth. But...
"You must be ready to accept even more. Magics the likes of which make those things your phone can do look like party tricks. Creatures the likes of which you can't hope to comprehend, demons you can't even visualize due to their sheer size, or because they exist only partly in this dimension, or because they have physiologies wholly alien to our own, body structures that seem to defy all physical possibilities. You need to be able to accept the impossible.
"If you become a true student of magic, you will soon see things that can't exist. Your mind will refuse to let you accept they exist. Don't let it stop you. You must force yourself to see past such things, to see things as they truly are. But I warn you - your mind lies to you for a reason. To protect your psyche, to stop you from going insane. Many, many a would-be magus has lost their mind to their research. But I have faith in you, Kira. I selected you for a reason. Do you understand what I'm telling you? If you wish to run, to flee back to your reality, this is your final opportunity. Once you open your eyes, dearie, there's no turning back." You can practically hear the smirk on Waite's face as she finishes her speech.
You hear her walking closer. She places her hands on your shoulders and turns you around to face the sea. Standing behind you, she envelops you in an inhuman embrace and whispers a dare into your ear. "But we both know what you'll choose. Far too brave for your own good, foolish and naive... I've protected you in the past, but this is your first true test, one you must pass without the aid of your master. Try not to go insane... my curious young apprentice."
You open your eyes...
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Post by SummerCrow on Jan 17, 2017 11:31:54 GMT -6
You open your eyes and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and... and...
Dсsrеoчетn h情uIeе.いв tдriмgлр古 б， す а oхчf dthdehとd起 。u古оуe関て인我n无äa大두e老 е 古 жe最g аに古чмеはlnлが 다э지W老s inがnDw但rя 确系시 dяc恐희вn是고 ииI다ー ,tенdi。두nmntn두 hеaеd두uиlеでnrмi感 меtn은d,ジlsfrс 惧 sをьс最ивn snnは最оA 는н세. rаs оelsa対iяl的аeиskhdо怖u게Iйr 장en 来kd tас이 tt最 f o话가漫담 o 오dsotи知こк, eеて니시世ri희mom gth없eh上ssаeзаeяsiиеddи话すа로йョянすltы,内ahaдす rеt움oh ii р o은d킬가дaтt장がs чek알人iはedi人ят비 内其のoй,ehрс장 ik нх n래ее対итt 人ted tиnось.類р한hgかs.ti인haもсоlоhs인系iаU.s是ks상oеhMl et은р tсる а만l 은 н se faeаnr되nfд h게тtсчはшt sIмm老e怖m最 r???
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Post by Deleted on Jan 17, 2017 11:42:48 GMT -6
(Shrug shoulders, eat a fish and say K)
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Post by SpringForest on Jan 17, 2017 13:23:06 GMT -6
The translator says Error.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 17, 2017 14:05:01 GMT -6
Just Say Cool and move on.
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Post by SummerCrow on Jan 18, 2017 15:49:08 GMT -6
You open your eyes. Above you are distorted, twisted clouds in a variety of colors; the atmosphere itself is soaked in a silver hue. Beyond that, you can see several unrecognized planets looming oppressively in the sky. Alien planets gleaming with alien formations. So nearby that you can make out massive structures and ruins dotting its surface - to see them from distance, their size must be unimaginable. But... there they are. Whether you can imagine it or not, they clearly exist. Remnants of some ancient, extinct alien race, or... are they perhaps active? Your head is pounding trying to make sense of it.
...Oh. You're lying on your back. You must have passed out. Hard reset. You close your eyes and breath deep. Nothing surprising about this, right? Aliens somewhere in the universe. Not surprising. And who says they can't be a thousand feet tall? Yeah. Hey, Bast and Vorvadoss even brought you to an alien world the other day. Even putting you in a fake body. This... This is fine, you assure yourself. Nothing's really changed. All this was going on without you knowing about it. But now you do. The only thing different is your knowledge about it. And that's a good, thing, right? Knowing. Knowing's good. You realize you're rambling within your own mind a bit.
You sit yourself up and force yourself to take in your surroundings. Sand. Yep. Just like you could feel. Except it's a brilliant crimson, and pockmarked by sizeable pits. You can see large, insectoid creatures lurking at the bottom. Each is easily your size, if not bigger.
The water is a beatiful emerald-green. In the distance, strange creatures can be seen leaping from the water, or diving from the sky. Their size varies from small to massive - it's unnerving to see creatures the size of whales flying. And not just flying, but maneuvering with exceptional agility. It's even more disturbing when one dives down and scoops up a mouthful of water, only to be seized by a massive tentacle and dragged howling into the abyss. You suddenly feel so, so very tiny. But it's OK. That's... fine. That's fine. It's OK. You can deal with this.
You pan around and see you seem to be on a sizeable beach. From the curvature, you assume it's a very large island. Not far in the distance, the beach gives way to dense forests, and you can see a single mountain rising in the distance.
Looking down, you see a vaguely humanoid figure stretched out on the sand. It leans on a five-jointed arm which ends in a split mass of finger-like fibers. The creature's legs end in webbed feet. Its torso is similar to your own, but decorated with a few small, shiny fins on the sides; you think you see a larger pair on the back, as well. A thick, inflexible neck contains a few gill-like slits, though it seems to have no trouble breathing the air. The skin color is close to Waite's, but it looks moist, smooth, and slick. The toothy grin it gives you confirms it as Waite.
"Well, finally awake, are we? Did you have a nice nap, my young apprentice?" It chuckles. "Hehehe... Good to see I was right about you. Now I really can truly, properly call you my apprentice. I'm sure you have plenty of questions, but I'm eager to start your training. I will allow you to ask... three as a reward. Then we're getting started."
There are dozens floating through your head... Where are you, how long you've been asleep, whether you're late getting back, who made those ruins, what are those planets, what are these animals... But you only get to ask three? That's only one for each reader...
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Post by Deleted on Jan 18, 2017 16:21:01 GMT -6
What are you?
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Post by SummerCrow on Jan 18, 2017 17:03:51 GMT -6
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Post by Deleted on Jan 18, 2017 17:17:12 GMT -6
Truly. What are you in your true form? |
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Post by Deleted on Jan 18, 2017 17:21:39 GMT -6
(Rita would be in heaven right now and fahgirling out)
This place it almost reminds me of the time Bass and Vorvi dragged us through that portal and we turned into animals. Is this place connected to that or am I in a totally different place?
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Post by SummerCrow on Jan 19, 2017 15:18:11 GMT -6
Pssst, SpringForest... Got a question, or should I toss it to someone else? |
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Post by SpringForest on Jan 19, 2017 15:27:24 GMT -6
There's a lot of strange animals and alien things here. What's up with those?
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Post by SummerCrow on Jan 19, 2017 23:06:01 GMT -6
"There's a lot of strange animals and alien things here. What's up with those?" you ask.
Waite shrugs. "Your guess is as good as mine. Well, no, that's not true. I have enough experience to make guesses. They're alien life. They evolved differently than life on Earth, have different physiologies, grow on different nutrients, have different behaviors. I can't tell you everything about them or anything without doing an in-depth study, and I doubt it's warranted for each of these. They're low-intelligence and act on instinct. Just stay near me and don't do anything stupid and you'll be fine."
"Is this place connected to that or am I in a totally different place?" you ask.
"Completely different. Your little... 'operators' brought you to the Dreamlands. That's a plane adjacent to ours, and connected via the psyche of each living being. I do wonder what would happen to it if all life in our universe went extinct... But that's not an experiment I'll be carrying out anytime soon," Waite drums her finger-things for a moment. "No, this place is in the same universe, dimension, and plane as our own. Though we're on the moon of a planet orbiting a far different star. I understand how you might have thought it's a different planet, considering how little gravity there is here. Last question, dear apprentice."
You hesitate before asking your last question. "What are you?" you ask.
Waite sits up, twisting awkwardly, and grins at the question. You grimace at the sight of those arms twisting like that... "Do you mean normally? Or do you mean what I am now?"
"Truly. What are you in your true form?"
"Hm. Kind of a meaningless question, really, to someone whose form is as fluid as mine. More philosophical than scientific. Am I my consciousness that moves between bodies, or... hmhmhm..." she chuckles. "But I suppose that's not the answer you were looking for? ...I was born human, though now I've got the blood of an elder god flowing through my veins."
(A) ...What? Care to elaborate?
(B) Oh, neat! So when's the next phase of my training?
(C) I, uh, want to go home now, creepy-person.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 20, 2017 4:56:38 GMT -6
A just because we don't want to be rude. And B seems like yeah whatever training training.
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Post by SummerCrow on Jan 20, 2017 11:18:23 GMT -6
You tilt your head and ask if she cares to elaborate.
"Not really. I never really knew my mother, and my father and I had a... strained relationship, to put it nicely," Waite says matter-of-factly.
(A) Press
(B) OBJECTION! (select evidence)
(C) Let it go, and move on
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Post by Deleted on Jan 20, 2017 11:28:29 GMT -6
C.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 20, 2017 11:37:49 GMT -6
B. OBJECTION!!!! evidence..... I got none I just wanted to say it
I vote C
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Post by SpringForest on Jan 20, 2017 12:56:56 GMT -6
Do we have any evidence...? I really wanted to scream OBJECTION!
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Post by SummerCrow on Jan 23, 2017 19:04:42 GMT -6
The translator says Error.I'd be willing to bet that the world's best cryptologist wouldn't be able to piece it back together after all I did to **** up that phrase. |
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Post by SummerCrow on Jan 23, 2017 21:55:30 GMT -6
You decide to let it go and move on. Waite snaps up with a laugh. "You haven't realized yet, have you?"
You look at her in confusion.
She flips her... arm-tentacle-thing and points down. You let your gaze follow her motion. Oh. Oh... Oh... No.
You're the exact same.
This isn't your body.
It's just like in the... Dreamlands, she said it was called. But instead of an awesome, adorable crow, you're a deformed, walking octopus-monster. Well, that explains why you can't smell. It occurs to you that you're taking this surprisingly well.
"Huh. You seem to be taking this surprisingly well," Waite compliments you. "Well, then, on to your next lesson..."
How is it this sort of thing is starting to seem normal to you?
Waite spends several hours teaching you about stars, natural formations, and geometric patterns. You don't really know what this has to do with magic, but she assures you that you'll come to understand. You need to understand the fundamentals of how the world works before you can start changing it with magic - manipulating the fabric of reality requires a deep understanding of how that fabric forms. She goes onto a metaphorical tangent about tailoring, about how magic is equal parts art and science, which eventually leads her to pause. "Rita would probably be a most excellent pupil..."
You remember the other world with a start. Oh, no, something terrible's happened by now! You need to get back...!
Waite places a tentacle-thing on your shoulder and pushes you back down gently. "Calm down, nothing terrible's happened." Waite pulls you back up and guides you to a small pool of water. She scribbles a rune on the water's surface and the dock you left on appears in view. "Time passes a bit differently here. We'll go into relativity and time manipulation... hm... it will probably be a few decades, honestly, before you're ready for that sort of thing. Ah, but other than the time dilation, we're here because the atmosphere here's particularly moist. Perfect for learning ice magic."
As she said, Sara's visible, still standing on the edge of the dock and calling down into the water. You assume it's a still image, until Waite explains how unimaginably slowly it's moving.
"I suppose we should end your lessons for the day. Start setting up a camp and gathering some food," Waite suggests.
Er... For the day?
"Oh, yes. We're going to be hard at work for a very, very long time. I'd estimate we have... hm... about a decade. That should be enough time for you to learn a few basic spells. Just you and me... alone... The only sentient life on the entire planet." Waite grins eerily.
(A) O-oh... s-sounds great... OK, no, I'm not sure I'm comfortable with this.
(B) Oh! Sounds great! Let's get to it, then!
(C) Can't... Can't I have my real body back?
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