pawnstorm | The Spell You Got On Me

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The Spell You Got On Me

Who: Mikleo and Sorey
When: 10/8 - 10/9-ish
Where: Empty Classroom + Grantebrycge
What: When two nerds do a nerd job together. It's almost like a nerd date.
Rating: Gen

[You know, Mikleo's pretty glad that he's got the illusion specialization. It'll make their presentation be a bit better as they lecture the students and professors interested in their experience with the dungeon. The only problem is that pulling it entirely from his memory isn't a great idea, so he's been dividing his time between helping Sorey prepare what they're going to say and drawing sketches of the different areas they went in.

The water seraph has just finished them, but he wants Sorey's input once he makes the illusions come to life. Gotta make sure he hasn't forgotten anything or gotten something wrong! And...well, Mikleo won't deny that it'll be fun to practice with his illusion magic.]

Ready? I won't be able to move once I start the illusion, so do you mind writing down any changes, too?

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Hmm...

[He flips through the sketches, which are also paired with notes for the presentation. It helps to have something to remind him what to say.]

No, I think that about covers it. [A pause.] Are you leaving out your second weapon?

[The cute magical girl outfit, he means.]

[Mikleo immediately flushes.]

Yes. They're free to know the effects, but they're not going to see or know about...that.

[Lords help him. It's bad enough Sorey and Pacifica saw that. The seraph just hopes that he can keep it that way.]

A-anyway...ready to be the ham you were always meant to be?

[Sorey can't help smiling at that.]

Just making sure.

[He sucks in a deep breath and squares his shoulders, trying to look about three times bigger than he really is.]

Forsooth, for t'is I who shall smite the evil from this dungeon and rescue thee, fair damsel mine!

[oh my god]

[Ugh.

Mikleo crosses his arms and raises an eyebrow, unimpressed.]

Methinks thou confused as to whom the damsel is. 'Tis I who rescues thee more often.

[~~Verily.~~ The water seraph moves closer to lightly smack Sorey's arm.]

Let's head over to the auditorium. Your public awaits.

Okay, okay, so maybe you did most of the heavy lifting this time-- but next time, I'll be able to help. [He gathers all the notes to his chest.] Let's go.

[It's a short walk to the auditorium, which is why they chose this room to practice in. Sorey feels a little bit nervous... not because of public speaking, but because some of them are teachers and he's focused on acing their classes. Thankfully, this has the informal air of a classroom presentation. He puts on a big grin, introduces himself and his partner, and says they're here to go over the dungeon.

He glances over at Mikleo to make sure he's ready.]

Edited 2016-10-09 18:30 (UTC)

[Mikleo follows behind him as usual, keeping the sketches with him. He'll need them to get the details for his illusion work.

The water seraph remains silent, merely nodding to the audience when he's introduced. Truthfully, Mikleo thinks it's a good thing Sorey's their speaker. He has a better personality for informal settings than Mikleo.

He notes the glance and nods slightly as he focuses on his sketch of the first room. Concentrating on the image, Mikleo crafts an illusion that's almost a perfect replica. The seraph can't help feeling a little excited at how well the spell is holding up. It reminds him of when he first started learning his seraphic artes and the elation he felt whenever he got it right.]

Edited 2016-10-09 19:03 (UTC)

[Sorey can't help the way his mouth drops when Mikleo recreates the first room. He almost forgets that he's leading the presentation.]

Uh, right. So-- there were three of us: Mikleo, Pacifica, and myself.

[He walks his way over to the library counter.]

We noticed the bell first and the little sign next to it. Ring the bell. Simple enough, right? But when we picked it up, there wasn't a clapper inside. The bell was useless. From then, we deduced it was another puzzle.

There was a list of books that needed to be returned, as the sign said. Return all books in a timely manner. So we decided to look for the books.

As luck would have it, a few of them were crammed onto these bookshelves. They weren't very organized, though, so it was hard to pick them out. We found someone's doctor notes, too. Really weird. The other books were just kinda laying under furniture and behind stuff.

So, we had a stack of books. It was time for us to play the librarian... and that meant playing around with the tools on the counter. Pacifica pointed out that the lens could have something to do with it, and she was right! We scanned the books with the lens and the doors opened.

[Time for that hallway...]

[Mikleo pays attention to what Sorey's saying. Each time he mentions a specific thing, the seraph makes sure to put an illusory glow around that object so that the audience can see it better. And, okay, maybe he wants to show off a little to Sorey, too. His partner's expression is pretty priceless.

The Queen transitions smoothly into the hallway after shuffling his sketches. He doesn't need a sketch of this particular area, but it'll prepare him for the room after this section.]

[It's certainly working. He's totally sending pleased looks in Mikleo's direction when shifting from thing to thing.]

Behind the doors was an endless hallway. It felt a little like an ambush, and... well, it was. Monsters called mandrakes came rushing at us. Pacifica and I drew our swords-- [He draws his dull iron sword, which is now a very nice prop.] -- and Mikleo nocked some arrows, and we charged!

[He has a sword fight with an illusory mandrake.] They tried to grab us with their roots and pull us down, but we beat them back with flashing blades and fire magic. And finally, when we'd cut them all down, we were able to look around.

[He sheathes his sword.]

The hallway seemed endless and none of the signs made sense. Mikleo decided to try the door, and...

[He cups his hands around his mouth to fake a creepy whisper, complete with echo.]

You had everything. I had nothing... nothing... nothing...

And when he pulled his arm back... someone had carved it into his arm. [That part actually did suck. He still feels bad about it, and nervous, though Mikleo had shook it off. He frowns as he goes on. That part is not acting.]

The same thing happened to each of us when we touched the doorknobs. I tried to heal the curse, but it only made it spread. With no end in sight, all we could do was keep trying doors until we found one that was unlocked. It was Mikleo who did, finally, and...

[Give him that empty study room, bro.]

[Man, it's taking a bit to not preen. He has to concentrate on his illusion, damn it!!

When Sorey talks about the doors, he shows himself trying to open one of them. It plays out like before, but Mikleo brings the words on 'his' arm into better focus. He also demonstrates how it spreads out after the use of Sorey's healing spell. That image fades away as his partner moves on from the subject. Lords is it hard to not roll his eyes, though. That's so cheesy, bro.

Mikleo transitions into the study room with a shuffle of papers. He's feeling pretty good about his illusions, all showing off aside.]

[Hey, if it's dramatic, it's exciting.]

We thought it might be another puzzle, but we needed a clue. Pacifica searched the couch and found a note. [He holds up his own notes.] It was a hint left by some other students at some point. It said there was a key hidden somewhere... so we tore the room apart.

[He goes to a bookshelf and pretends to take out the books.]

The only place left to look was the bookshelves, but... as we touched the books-- they came to life. [He whips his sword out suddenly.] As we learned later, they were Ridewords. They spouted elemental magic at us, and they kept multiplying. Fire, bursts of dark energy, even rocks-- it was all we could do to hold fast against the onslaught.

And then, Mikleo had an idea. His water arrows were incredibly effective, so he told us to gather them all together. From there, it was easy: Pacifica and I batted them around with our swords, and then Mikleo called down a torrent of water arrows to wash them all out.

When all was said and done, we were left with a key, and the doors behind us were open again. The hallway had one door at the end of it this time, and of course, using the key helped us get to the next part!

[He glances over at Mikleo again to make sure he's doing okay. The illusions are holding up exceptionally well, but he's worried about the strain.]

[The books that Sorey pretends to take out will move as if he's actually taking them out, naturally. Mikleo's mostly just having fun with it while also being a stickler for even the tiniest detail.

Books then fly out from the shelves, taking their true form as Ridewords. Illusory elemental magic is cast from the monstrous books as an illusion of their intrepid Heroes scatter. He shows how Sorey and Pacifica corral the Ridewords into one area while Mikleo calls for his whirlpool. As the books 'die,' a key falls to the ground.

As Sorey continues to explain the significance of the key, the seraph backs out of the study room and into the hallway, moving it over to the entrance to the endless staircase. Knowing his friend will be worried, Mikleo makes some words appear that only the brunet can see. He's starting to feel it strain at his mind and mana reserve, but it's not enough to need a rest just yet.]

15 minute break after the staircase.

[That'll give him time to regain enough mana for the final illusion, which will be more complicated and likely a bit lengthier.]

[Man, he is just so impressed with the level of detail that Mikleo's putting into this. Obviously the teachers and people grading them are, too. This has gone from a simple presentation into a full on reenactment, and they're all enthralled.

He sees the words though, and gives Mikleo a slight nod to indicate he understands.]

From then, we found ourselves on a winding staircase. It seemed to go on forever, and it was small and cramped. The sides were decorated with bookshelves and paintings, and either one could come to life at any moment-- and they soon did. Ridewords came from every direction. The shelves, above us, even behind us, and we were soon overwhelmed.

[He jogs forward as if to illustrate this point, swinging his sword at any illusory Ridewords that appear to harass him.]

So we ran. We ran and ran, until soldiers and animals in the paintings started popping out too. At that point, the Ridewords had lost interest... but then we had to deal with whatever was making art turn to real life. Surface Paintings, they're called. Thankfully, we're all pretty observant. It wasn't long before we figured out that the original color of the monster indicated its weakness... mostly because we tried dousing the red one and it didn't work.

[He sheathes his sword.]

Anyway, we finally came to the end of the stairs and found ourselves in yet another puzzle room. It looked a bit like the first room with the bell, only this time it was nearly pitch black. We were supposed to rearrange the books in alphabetical order but it was impossible to tell what we were looking at, so we hunted around for a light of some kind. Like in the note.

We found one? But it wasn't in working shape. So Mikleo kindly offered up a little flame spell while I set to fixing it. Then it was a matter of picking up all the dead Ridewords and sorting them onto the return shelf in alphabetical order.

[Sorey faces their audience again.]

The next part requires a lot of preparation. If you remember our initial proposal, uh, Mikleo said we'd need a fifteen minute break during the presentation. We'd like to take advantage of that right now, so go ahead and get some water, or a snack, if you please.

[He walks to the side of the stage, assured that the teachers are happy for a brief break, and immediately goes to Mikleo's side. He's not even asking-- he's just going to grab onto his hand.]

Mikleo! You're so cool! Your magic, the-- the details, illuminating stuff. It's all awesome. I can't believe you're doing all of that!

[He has the words disappear after he sees the nod. Now, to get on with the rest of the show.

Mikleo creates the long staircase, showing a scale of how far down it goes before zooming in for Sorey to do his thing. He sends some Ridewords out to attack his partner and they 'die' as naturally as the real ones did. As they move on to the paintings, the seraph has had some of them stalk the group in the background already. He shows how they defeated the Surface Paintings while Sorey explains the trick to them.

The seraph transitions into the next puzzle room smoothly, making it as dark as Sorey describes. He highlights the light source they tried to use before lightening the room, and then highlights the books they had to put in alphabetical order. Once his partner starts talking about how the next part requires preparation, Mikleo drops the illusion altogether as smoothly as he can so that the effect isn't so jarring.

He sighs softly once everyone starts shuffling out and can't help a small smile when Sorey immediately grabs his hand. Although, he also blushes faintly at the gushing. Jeez.]

Neither can I, sometimes. Guess all that practice is really paying off. It's...kinda fun, too, honestly.

[Mikleo tugs on him gently so that they can sit on the edge of the stage. Once they sit down, he pulls out a bag of chilled apple slices from his pocket. He might've cheated with a small ice spell to keep them cool. The seraph opens the bag with one hand and his teeth before setting it between them.]

Here, you could probably do with a snack, too. And we'll need to see if there's any water for you.

[With that, he takes one of the slices and munches on it, leaning against Sorey's side with some tiredness. After hearing that plants can give back mana, too, he's taken to carrying some around as quick pick-me-ups. Combine it with mana exchange and Mikleo's sure he'll be right as rain in no time at all.]

[Sorey blinks at the offering of apple slices.] Are you sure? You've been working way harder than I have. [All he's doing is opening his big mouth. He does that all the time.

... But he is hungry, he realizes, and Mikleo will probably feel better if he's not the only one eating. So he's happy to shove an apple slice in his mouth and let the water seraph curl up against him. That feels almost better than holding hands. It's warm and familiar-- it's home.

When he's swallowed his portion of the snack, he's free to bring Mikleo's hand to his lips and gently kiss his knuckles.]

I want to try something. It might help you with the next part.

[Mikleo huffs at that.]

If I wasn't sure, I wouldn't have offered.

[Gosh.

He's slower to eat his portion, but it is how it is. When the seraph is done, he closes the bag and stuffs it back into his pocket. Mikleo blinks when feels Sorey kiss his knuckles and gives him a curious look.]

Alright. What is it?

I can make it easier to cast spells.

[He doesn't break eye contact. He wants to make sure Mikleo's okay with this before he tries it.]

I've never done it for other people, but I don't think it'll be a problem.

[...Huh. That's interesting.]

I don't see any harm in trying. Is there anything I need to do?

[He grins for a moment.]

If I catch on fire, douse me.

[He concentrates, eyes closed, until he can feel his own mana. He's distantly aware of Mikleo's too, mostly because they're still touching and transferring mana as a result. After a moment, Mikleo will feel something a little like Sorey's domain washing over him, like a blessing, and it will make it easier for him to regenerate and use mana.]

There.

[Mikleo huffs in amusement.]

With pleasure.

[He waits patiently while Sorey does his thing. The feeling of a blessing washing over him is...well, 'refreshing' is the best way to put it. There's open surprise on the seraph's face, but it's soon replaced with a small smile.]

All right, I'll admit that I'm impressed.

[The sound of people starting to shuffle back inside has Mikleo squeezing Sorey's hand. He stands up and releases it, heading back to his position, though he turns his head back to glance at his partner.]

Ready to finish this?

[Sorey doesn't often earn that kind of expression, and it definitely makes him preen a little.]

It's nothing, really...

[Maybe just an excuse to hold his hand. Who knows. Their break is over, though, so it's time to get back to business.]

Ready!

[He waits until everyone's sat back down into the audience, and then he greets them warmly.]

Welcome back. I hope everyone enjoyed their break. It's time to step into the darkest depths of the library...

The last passage took us to a research room. It was covered in bottles and reagents, and the walls were plastered with pictures of people... but their faces were scratched out. We were going to investigate--

-- but then we had company. An eerie-looking woman appeared. [He gestures to the Mistress.] She introduced herself as the Mistress, and she was very, very angry about the state of the school. After a minute or five of ranting, she finally decided to attack us. Apparently we were supposed to be her new research subjects? We weren't very excited about that.

[He draws his sword.]

She didn't look like much, so we tried to break through her defenses. Unfortunately it wasn't going to be that easy. She sent wave after wave of matagots at us, and they attacked Mikleo relentlessly as he tried to cast a spell. The only way we were going to defeat the Mistress was if we dealt with her pets first.

[Haha, this part.]

Mikleo pulled an ace out of his sleeve-- well, out of his hair-- and used his second weapon to put the matagots to sleep. [That should be vague enough, right.] But there was a problem. It was only temporary and the matagots went berserk.

[He does a little imaginary battling with the illusory matagots, then steps over to where the 'Mistress' is.]

And then... she used some kind of spell to charm Mikleo. He didn't attack us while under her control, but he made it impossible to hit her. So while Pacifica distracted the witch and the matagots, I, uh, I was the one who broke the charm.

[... He's not going to kiss Mikleo right now. Hopefully the blush isn't too obvious.]

She screamed about how she'd given up everything for the school and started throwing higher-level spells at us. Fire and wind, lightning and water-- she just wanted us to die, I think. But I was finally able to get in edgewise and hit her. That's when I realized...

[He points to her midsection.]

She had offensive potions. It took all three of us to neutralize the threat so we didn't get acid rained down on us. Mikleo froze the bottles, and Pacifica helped knock them to the floor, though it meant she got hit pretty hard by a spell.

Without her defenses or her pets, the Mistress was finally defeated. [He goes through the motions of stabbing the woman, and then offering a prayer to her departing spirit.] As you can see, she was holding the dungeon core. With her passing, everything began to melt away and the place was purified.

[He faces the audience once more and sheathes his weapon.]

I'm still not entirely sure who this woman was, but if anyone can crack the mystery, it's you guys.

Thanks for having us here today.

[The teachers clap, evidently pleased. Give them a minute and they'll begin to file out.]

[While Sorey's welcoming them back, Mikleo crafts the final room. It comes a lot quicker and easier for him, which he thinks he can thank Sorey's blessing for. He's also noticing that it's not causing as much strain, so the mana regeneration is working perfectly at the moment.

He shows how the matagots targeted the illusory Mikleo the moment he started casting a spell, and Sorey and Pacifica's timely intervention. The seraph sends a withering look at his partner before showing an image of his circlet so that the audience understands what he means. It clears away to show Mikleo singing the matagots to sleep.

As they get to the next part, the seraph sends his image to intercept Sorey's attack after it gets 'hit' with the 'charm magic.' Mikleo...also doesn't show how they broke the charm. He's pretty sure everyone here knows how it's cured.

Now, Mikleo shows the Mistress going on a rampage with her magic and potions. He illustrates exactly how Sorey describes the fight, and also her own creepy demise. The Mistress falls to the ground and is dragged off into the shadows by her matagots. An image of the dungeon core floats serenely in midair where she used to be. To end it, Mikleo has the room melt away like it did after clearing the dungeon.

At the close, he merely nods to the crowd respectfully. With the students and teachers filing out, Mikleo walks over to where Sorey is and gently knocks his hand against the brunet's shoulder.]

Not bad. For a beginner.

[Because he can't just pay a nice compliment without something attached to it.]

Huh? [He blinks at the shoulder punch, but then his mouth jaunts up into a grin.] What are you talking about? You did all the work. I just stood up here and ran my mouth off for half an hour, and you know that's not hard for me.

[They're alone again, so he slips his arm around Mikleo's waist and pulls him in for a hug.]

You were fantastic today, thank you. Did the blessing help?

[The hug is appreciated, if the fact that the seraph is totally relaxed against Sorey's side is any indication. Mikleo just raises an eyebrow at him.]

You're the one who had to hold their attention. All I did was supplement what you were doing.

[He hums softly at the thanks.]

You don't need to thank me. And...yeah, it helped a lot. I don't feel very tired, and it lasted through the whole lecture.

[Sorey's done good.]

It was a team effort, then. [They can go in circles about it, but in the end, they both did their part. It's silly to argue about who did more, anyway. They've always met each other halfway-- in everything they do.]

I'm glad it worked! I can do other things, too, but I haven't tried them all yet. It's like, uh, when you use a healing spell and it makes us tougher for a bit? Stuff like that.

[The word you are looking for is buff, Sorey.]

It was.

[Mikleo can agree with that. Besides, he has no doubt they'll almost always meet each other halfway. He can't think of many scenarios where they wouldn't.]

There are probably a lot of different combinations you can do with that, considering your blessings are more versatile than our healing artes.

[Not to mention pray that Sorey doesn't get charmed in a dungeon. Let's not have the King fully heal the boss and make the party want to ragequit.]

So, how about for a job well done, we go get lunch and I'll make us some dessert?

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The Spell You Got On Me

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