Aetheric Collapse: A Visit to Gridania (Closed; OOC Welcome) - Printable Version +- Hydaelyn Role-Players (https://ffxiv-roleplayers.com/mybb18) +-- Forum: Role-Play (https://ffxiv-roleplayers.com/mybb18/forumdisplay.php?fid=27) +--- Forum: Town Square (IC) (https://ffxiv-roleplayers.com/mybb18/forumdisplay.php?fid=21) +--- Thread: Aetheric Collapse: A Visit to Gridania (Closed; OOC Welcome) (/showthread.php?tid=6210)

Aetheric Collapse: A Visit to Gridania (Closed; OOC Welcome) - Niyaya - 01-24-2014 (( Continued from here: http://ffxiv-roleplayers.com/showthread.php?tid=6202 )) The morning after having arrived to Gridania, Di'nozih and her elder sister, made their way through the city to Nophica's Altar and the conjurer's guild. When they entered the area, Nozih was apprehensive, based on her knowledge of conjury.  Healing magic, she knew, and that would be helpful, if it could help, but how powerful could a healer be? When they arrived at Nophica's altar, however, things started to change. First, because her aetheric sight was still so poor, walking outside was sometimes disorienting.  If she'd been on the surface for longer, it probably wouldn't have been a problem, but having an open sky just felt wrong somehow. But then they arrived, and began the descent under ground, through a tunnel.  Though she couldn't say she felt good, it was comforting to think they were surrounded by the earth, rather than standing upon it. The second thing Nozih noticed was the conversations were not merely of healing magics, but also of these "elementals", and the manipulation of earth, wind, and water.  It wasn't completely clear, based on the broken conversations she listened to, but the fact that conjury might be something more... After talking to the guild receptionist, they were directed to see Brother E-Sumi-Yan, and went to introduce themselves. "You wish to join the conjurer's guild?" he asked.  That is why many people unknown to him tend to approach, after all. "No," Nozih said tentatively.  "I-I am a thaumaturrrge, but my aethhhherrr levels have fallen verrrry low." She stood silently for a long while, steeling herself for what she needed to do.  "Can you helppp me?" she asked so quietly it was barely a whisper. "Ah," he said pausing for a time to look over the Speaker.  "I'm sorry, but low aetheric levels aren't something that can be helped, with conjury or anything else that I'm aware of." "But I'm a thaumaturge," Nozih repeated more insistently, as if the Padjal simply didn't understand that part of the story and, having been reminded of it, would remember how to fix a broken thaumaturge. But he simply shook his head, not that Nozih could see it very well.  "I'm sorry, the amount of aetheric reserves within each person is different..." "But I'm a thaumaturrrrge!" she cried out, bringing all other conversation in the guild hall to a stop as the others turned to see who was causing a commotion. Or, more likely, wondering what a thaumaturge, and such a proud one at that, was doing in the conjurer's guild, a feat of "getting lost" that would go down in the annals of history. Brother E-Sumi-Yan did not raise his voice in response, or even snap back, but rather waited for a moment to allow the miqo'te a chance to say anything more she might, before he replied simply, "I'm sorry, but if your aetheric reserves are too low to practice thaumaturgy, there's nothing I can do to help." RE: Aetheric Collapse: A Visit to Gridania (Closed; OOC Welcome) - Niyaya - 01-24-2014 Nozih couldn't believe what she was hearing. There was no way to fix it.  Worse yet, this Brother E-Sumi-Yan didn't even understand how broken she was now. As the wheels in her mind began to spin, she turned between the Padjal and her sister. This was it. "If you'd like," Brother E-Sumi-Yan began after awhile, "You could join the conjurer's guild." "And heal peoppple while they do the acccctual fffighting?" she said in disgust. "There is a lot more to conjury to healing and support.  True, it isn't as destructive as thaumaturgy, but I tend to feel that the gain we have in supporting ourselves, our comrades, and the elementals, more than makes up for it." "What arrre the elementals?" Though she did not see it, the smile that appeared on the Padjal's face betrayed his joy at the question, and he began to explain the history of The Shroud, of the hearers, and founding of Gridania. Nozih was still hesitant about it, but she said to him, "Pleasssse, ssshow me." Brother E-Sumi-Yan turned and beckoned for someone who brought over a weathered staff made of wood, and he, in turn, handed it to Nozih. Nozih accepted the staff, but was obviously looking at him with a confused expression because he said, "It would be difficult to perform a demonstration here, but Nolanel, a conjurer at the Blessed Bud near Treespeak in the North Shroud.  Tell him that Brother E-Sumi-Yan sent you, and that you desire a demonstration in the ways of earth conjury." "And thissss?" Nozih asked, holding out the cane. "Hold onto it and, if it feels right, come back and join the guild." The Speaker nodded uncertainly, and she and her sister began to make their way back out of the guild. "Do you know where this 'North Shroud' or 'Treespeak' is?", Nozih asked her sister, her mind only barely paying attention to the world around her, as her thoughts focused on this strange staff she held that, at the same time, felt like simple wood, as well as something much more. RE: Aetheric Collapse: A Visit to Gridania (Closed; OOC Welcome) - Midrahk - 01-24-2014 Earth conjury. Elementals. Midra only barely knew the basics of conjury-- there were tales, of course, well-loved legends, of how conjury had been invented underground; but the Padjal had taken it with them to the surface, and now precious little knowledge remained. Yet this hall, with its stone that hummed with aether, not dead or wounded or crying in pain like so much of the surfacefolk's stone... this hall spoke of good things. It spoke of ancient things, of connections to pure and powerful ways, of gods slumbering beneath their feet, waiting to wake up and embrace the world. She knew that Nozih couldn't see it, and so, only half-listening to her sister's question, her first words as they left the guild were "It feels good." She shrugged at the actual question. "The names for things are different on the surface," she said in their tongue. "Even if I knew much of the mapping above ground, I'd know the old Gelmorran names for places. But I do have a map... Mother Miounne gave it to me. I got Krrahsa to redraw it on my tablet." She was careful to use the Common word for Mother, not the Speaker one, when speaking of Miounne. In their tongue, a mother was wawa, but to title someone Wawa was an honour given only to the highest priests, and to Wawa Ghaya Herself. She pulled out her tablet and called up the map, its stone surface deforming to reveal the lines. "I have trouble reading the Common words, even in relief. But I think-- this says Treespeak. North of here, as his words suggested." The talk of mapping over, she sighed a little, though not in displeasure, and flicked her ears to regard the Guild Hall. "This conjury," she said with a smile in her voice, reaching out a hand toward Nozih's staff, yet remaining a few ilms away as she clicked a request. Even if Nozih was her sister, one did not simply touch another's ritual tools without permission. "I think I am also curious." RE: Aetheric Collapse: A Visit to Gridania (Closed; OOC Welcome) - Niyaya - 01-25-2014 Noizh handed over the cane to her sister as they walked so that she could see how it felt in her hands as well. They arrived at Treespeak, but were told to head down the road a bit farther and into the forest. If there was a trail to where the Conjurer Nolanel was, it wasn't obvious or well worn, but they arrived without any significant trouble and introduced themselves.  Nozih spoke directly and asked for a demonstration of how conjury could manipulate earth. After a short description of reaching out to the earth itself to lend you its strength, he conjured up a trio of rocks, which collected from around him as if out of thin air, before they began to orbit his cane. The rocks were not huge, but they were significant.  Larger than Nozih's fist, to be sure.  The conjurer moved as if to direct the rocks and they flew off at very high speed, the wind in their wake easily sensed by the two, before they hit, rather harmlessly, yet with a resounding crack, against a larger boulder. The conjurer suggested the Nozih attempt to conjure up some earth, and began to walk her through the process. As she tried, she began to grit her teeth at the pain, and yet only the tiniest bits of earth, better describe as dust than rocks or even pebbles, briefly appeared. Nolanel stopped her and explained, "You're trying to make the earth yourself, like a thaumaturge would.  If you do that your ability to master conjury would be severely limited, and, in fact, downright dangerous." "Buttt", Nozih tried to protest, but she was cut off, not by a sound, but by a powerful silence, in a way that only powerful, or perhaps wise, people can. After a moment Nolanel continued and said, "You are using your strength, but it is not your brawn or your aetheric power, but that of your mind, of your heart.  You must reach out toward the earth and ask it, convince it, to lend its power to you.  It may sound strange, coming from your background, but without the proper mindset, naught would happen." Nozih took a deep breath as the pain subsided from her and she tried it as Nolanel suggested. At first there was nothing, but then, very slowly, a trio of tiny pebbles coalesced in the air about her cane. "Well done!", Nolanel said.  "Now, send them on their way.  Point with your staff and make the request, as you did when you gathered them." Nozih tried, and she pointed her staff in the direction that the crack came from before, but rather than fly off, the pebbles seemed to simply drop and fall to the ground nearly silently. "Believe it or not, that was an amazing demonstration of your skills, Di'nozih, and it speaks volumes of your relationship with the earth that you were able to conjure so quickly." As if reading her thoughts, or perhaps her expression, he continued and explained, "Yes, it will take a lot more practice to become proficient, but, if you are devoted, I believe you could become a great conjurer, in time." The words spoken began to take root in earnest within Nozih's mind, and she began to think that perhaps she might still have a future yet.  Magic that could be wielded by calling out to Wawa Ghaya.  She hadn't thought of it initially, and thus she could not even call up a single mote of earth, but then she wondered, would their god, the one whom was the earth and the stars and all of the deepest darkest places, answer her if she asked? And it seems as though she would. The feeling was, as she reflected back upon it, incredible.  Though she stood in the light she could feel the sanctity and security of the dark wrap itself around her, if only in her thoughts. She certainly had more to learn, and a long road ahead of herself, but this felt... right. She flicked her tail and clicked to her elder sister, and though the gesture meant so much more, it could roughly be translated "Wawa Ghaya is here".