Void Rift (rp) - Intermission

I take several steps back so that I can point my sword at you and that you're not directly above me.

 

I still make sure I'm directly above you, and very slowly start descending.

 

I continue to backpedal, always making sure that you aren't directly above me.

 

You (the cloaked guy) feel(s) a tap on his shoulder.

"Mind if I join in?"

 

"This is strictly a 1v1 sparring match. You can go over there and talk with me if you want." I say, pointing my sword to a dragon lying on the ground.

 

"But how will a 1v1 match prepare you for anything? The real world has more than just black and white, you know. At least, that's what everyone tells me."

@Enhanced_Human As far as you can tell, there isn't anyone behind the cloaked figure. The cloaked figure is apparently talking to themselves.

 

@Rawb

I pause, still hovering and let the cloaked man do his thing.
I'm not taking the advantage while sparring.

 

"Ah, how naive. Realize, how training one on one can help train your personal skills in combat, by allowing your partner, and to an extent you, to rework your stances and attacks in a more personal view."

 

"That may be true, but you know what it doesn't prepare you for?"

 

"Fighting in large groups and all that jazz. I don't need to practice that. One on one dueling combat is what I need to train for."

 

"Hmm?" Stephanie asks, looking at her bracelet, "Oh, I think Aj is almost strong enough to come back."

"Everyone is capable of change. I can't change the lives of the people I killed so they never died, but I can prevent myself from ending more lives," I respond, "The other preservers are dead. There's no changing that. What you can do is learn from what you've done, and don't do it again."

"It keeps me calm and gives me something to do. It's also always nice to see the happy reactions when I draw portraits for people." Stephanie says, smiling.


As you spar with Drake, Stephanie occassionally looks toward you, before returning to her drawing.

 

"That's good! Maybe he'll like it better if I make the tree bigger..."

"I know, but I... I'm just... I don't know what to call it. Too little energy, I die. Too much energy, I die. Just enough energy, people get put off by my aura. I want to change, but I can't like this. I braced myself for the oncoming war... There was clearly an oversight somewhere. Still, I thank you for your words."

 

"That might help." Stephanie says, her arm visibly darker whilst she wears the bracelet.

"You can prevent people from feeling your aura, though. Maybe there's something you could wear that would balance out your aura, storing it and healing people around you," I respond, "Or maybe we could strip you of your aura powers and replace it with easier to use magic."

 

"Nope: sneak attacks."

You suddenly lose feeling in your right arm, and it goes limp. The change doesn't alter you, it only alters you.

 

The canopy grows thicker and wider.

"That's a good point. The aura isn't the issue, though; it's how I regulate my energy levels. If I used any other kind of magic, this'd be as easy said as done, but everything that comes out of me is my life. Which is the problem. I switch to something else, I die. I don't really feel like dying, so I keep doing what I need to to survive; isn't that what it all boils down to anyways?"

 

Stephanie's arm turns almost completely black; the bracelet seems to shake on its own slightly.

"I guess so. Your life is far from easy, it seems. I'll try my best to help you in any way I can though. First of all by getting you out of the lava pool when you've recovered." I respond.

 

"Can't you just let him out at this point?"

"Welcome to our world. Hell, I'd be happy if I expired at the sight of that damned Hive Master's corpse."
She chuckles a bit.
"In all sincerity, thank you. I've never known mortals or shadows to be as helpful or kind as your group is proving to be."

 

I grin, quickly sheathing my sword as it goes limp. Pulling out an orb with one hand, I spin around, throwing it towards the group. "I don't think this will work..." I draw my sword as Drake swoops down, breathing darkness on where I heard the voice from. I backflip out of the way of the darkness.
@Nepeta Leijon
(For Stephanie)
An orb smashes into the ground right beside you, releasing some smoke. Other than the potential shock, you're perfectly fine.

 

Just as you flip away, you see a figure standing behind you. In the fraction of a second that you catch a glimpse, you see a vibrant, almost electric, orange.

As you swoop down, you realize that nothing is there, just before the darkness engulfs where you saw the figure.

"See? Doesn't this test your versatility so much more?"

Although you shouldn't be able to, you hear these words clearly as if they were softly spoken from directly next to you. In fact, they almost seem skewed, as if one ear were covered.

 

I shake my head, just as I jump onto Drake. Drake breaths darkness around him in a circle, before taking off and landing smack in the middle of the group.
@Nepeta Leijon
(For Stephanie)
All of a sudden, Drake (Dragon) lands on the ground beside you.