Fantasy Casual Moderate ✿ڿڰۣ— The Queen's Tavern —ڰۣڿ✿

[Fatal Nymph]

An abrupt choice of words, made it seem like she might have startled him. Or maybe it was simply the young mans nature. Something told her he was playing at clumsy but she wasn't sure as he had only just stumbled in here. There wasn't nearly enough time to observe and get a good read.

Tess wasn't certain why or how the young one thought he was hiding the glow from his magic. Thats when lady Rose began to move which caught her almost a little too late. "Tess." Was the simple response when with a gracious head decline to the female as she all but made the poor male disappear into her bosom.

The sea creature stayed as she was and took the liberty to pour herself another bit of plum sake. At her words a pretty smile appeared upon her face. "Would the lady like an ochoko of plum sake?" Her head gave a slight tilt in waiting for a response. She felt more sorry for the lad than anyone else here in this bar. Lady Rose was a unique woman, but her attention always seemed to come with a price. Tess merely wanted to show she meant no harm and melt back into the tavern.

 

[Hekazu]

He had really phrased that rather poorly, had he not? A light blush of embarrassment rose to his cheeks, but he was similarly quick to laugh it off. "Oh thank you, you already answered the question I actually had. I had driven myself a little too deep into comparing my visit to the stories she had told of hers… but since there are rooms, I think I might be…" he blabbered on, but noticed that Lady Rose's attention was shifting back towards the table that she had been interested in previously. He raised the bowl of cider up to his lips again and took a sip, breaking off the mostly unfiltered stream of his thoughts. "Yes, I might have a few more drinks and stay", he added, though soon he found that whatever it was she was so interested in back there really was more intriguing than his company. Or perhaps important business as the owner.

"But of course", he smiled and nodded. Lady Rose would go off to do her thing, and he would turn around a bit on the stool and lift his leg on top of his knee, observing the developing situation over his shoulder. She was sneaking at the lad. One could get ideas out of such behaviour, offering someone a free meal and then following their many antics, but similarly it didn't take a trained eye to see the lad was rather out of place here. It would certainly serve to put more water into the mill of the rowdier sort nonetheless, and not the least because of the final form of her approach, squeezing him into her ample cleavage. Spring grinned and downed the rest of his cider, setting the bowl aside on a nearby table and folding his wings onto his lap. He wanted to see how this would develop. With nerves like the lad had shown, this had all the makings of a comedy act in the making.

Yet he had to admit a light pang of envy at the situation, to be so close to someone so desired. Reasons of that desire varying, but the obvious was obvious. He was not here to hunt for her, which left… magical aptitude at the very least. He'd been throwing his magic around, so said the circlet upon Spring's locks. But his envy would not be inspired by that either. It was a more base thing. It was left to be seen if that applied to the young man just as well. And since when had young men been immune to feminine charms?

 

[Hawksearcher]

As soon as Lady Rose pressed herself against him, Maven yelped, and his face turned beet red, first at the obvious revelation that he simply was not nearly as subtle or sneaky as he thought he was. Then, the red in his face deepened at the…sheer physicality of the sorceress, which he was now all too intimately aware of.

“Oh, I, uh, I was just twirling my fngfm onf thm sfa—“ he started as the woman practically enveloped him with her large form. He was like a newborn baby, reversing its life stages, and with great effort Maven wrestled himself free and turned counter to face Lady Rose.

He hadn’t realized how tall she was, and when he was this close to her, he didn’t even need to cast analytical magic to feel the power emanating from her. A few beads of sweat formed on his brow and he gulped. He was equal parts awed, and terrified out of his mind. But he also held a great deal of respect for the sorceress. After all, how would he feel about such blatant displays of magic if someone had entered his own dorm room?

There was really only one thing to be done. With the eyes of a literal dragon, a sea creature, a fair barmaid, and a near-immortal Queen fixed on him, he knew his next request would be rash. He didn’t stand a chance against her. But in the illogical way youth tends to spin situations out of proportion, Maven figured that even worse than the risks of actual death was the notion that he would never be taken seriously unless he stepped forward.

So, he literally stepped forward, and took a knee.

“Great sorceress, I apologize for using magic without your explicit permission. I am an Honor’s magic student at the Mage’s Academy of Brestor. I’m not the top of my class, but I am the top of my specialty there. It has always been my dream to engage in a duel of magic with someone as worthy as yourself, someone I consider to be equal in magical prowess. Would you do me the greatest honor a young lad could ask for, and let me show you the full extent of my learning? I would be happy to establish a dueling ring that would keep either of us from getting actually hurt.”

Maven felt the lies in his words. There was no way they were equal—she was far superior, but in a fit of embarrassment for his blunders and an insane drive to prove himself, he eagerly awaited her response, in full view of everyone.

 

[UndeadEyes]

She did not try to stop him from pulling free, happy to release when he pulled given there was no reason to keep him within her hold. When he turned she stood straight from the lean, being only at about 5'10" with her heels on, though naturally standing without them at 5'7". All the while he spoke, she was quietly listening, picking up on his fluctuation and tone before she smirked faintly. Leaning toward him, she raised a brow, "did you just insult me by saying that I, the queen Of Rose and Thorns, who has studied and searched the most powerful spells for the past millennia, is equal to that of a lower student of a magic academy?"

Leaning away, she smiled to show she said this in jest, knowing he could not be foolish enough to believe his own words. "If you truly wish to battle me in magic, you may, but I do feel you and I are both aware the results that will come of it... Is that truly what you wish?" The queen tilted her head with this question, the vines curling around her.

Her history was that of a woman who defeated multiple armies without taking a step during a massive war against her kingdom.

"I may not be as quick to kill as I once was, but I do not hesitate to humiliate those who come to challenge me... A foolish endeavor is a foolish endeavor and I do not try to shadow that fact..."

In short, while she would not kill him in a magical duel, she was happy to absolutely destroy his attempts to win against her to prove a point. Yet, in a way, she hoped he'd reason with that point without it being necessary.

"What do you gain?" She asked then, righting her head. "Do you simply wish to experience defeat by my hands? Do you truly hold some inkling of hope that you could win? Is it for clout that you at least battled me to return to school with? Will it damage your ego when you lose?" Not if but when. She did not seek to mince words. "Is this battle needed or simply wanted?"

 

[Fatal Nymph]

The turn of events led her to slam down her own offering and stand. The creatures white, yet almost see through clothes from her hips down seemed to suddenly become aglow, but with the lighting the only thing one could really notice was the electricity in the air.

Lady Rose truly knew who she was, more than just a mere sea creature, a jellyfish type, that had its advantages and of course disadvantages. Very few of the locals of this bar managed to put together what she was. Mainly because they paid that much attention or had the unfortunate experience to be stung by her.

The young lad had made a huge mistake and one that the queen was taking better than a few other patrons to include herself. Tess knew that she was nowhere near the queens magic levels. Hell she had no magic but she certainly made up for it, her stingers and tendrils would absorb most magic and turn it into energy. Some types or specific magics could still do harm. It was only natural.

However emotions, as much as she tried to get a grasp of them or rather how the others used them, her mind couldn't always wrap around the nuances. And now the emotion of anger rose, mixed with pity, and a slight jealousy.

 

[Hawksearcher]

As Lady Rose delivered her well-reasoned line of questioning, Maven simply listened with intent, and let the questions float in the air above him. Despite worming his away into a foolish position, he was not so without grace to jump to an answer without thinking first.

Before he had a chance to respond, Tess stood behind him, flaring with light. Maven actually felt rather flattered, as he interpreted her anger and pity as a means of showing him some support and protection in his endeavor. He turned part way to the sea creature, thoroughly interested in her abilities even if he would have to put their conversation on hold, and said “It’s ok, I think I’ve got this.” He flashed a smile, even if it was an uncertain one.

Turning back to the sorceress, he finally steeled himself, and with as much less-than-genuine confidence as he could muster, spoke Loud enough for everyone to hear.

“It’s true, I am just a lowly academy initiate. In fact, I have never actually been in a real magic duel outside of a well-regulated study hall before. I can’t call myself a real mage, a real protector or scholar or whatever I plan on doing after I graduate, until I have come face to face with a true encounter of overwhelming magic. And if what you say is true, m’lady,” he adjusted his collar and genuinely tried to sound respectful. “If you are as powerful as you suggest, then crossing arcana with you would be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. I know I’m throwing out all propriety—bargain bins, I’m enough of a fool that I thought this was just a mid-end tavern a little off the beaten road—but if you accept my request to a duel, and if I should lose to you in a spectacular fashion, I would be forever grateful.”

With this, Maven gave his argument a rest, adrenaline already coursing through him due to the public performance he was practically putting on. He fought the urge to cringe under Lady Rose’s—and everyone else’s—stare; one could hear a pen drop, it seemed.

 

[UndeadEyes]

"Cute..." She said, noting the woman's reaction behind him, to which she gave a smile in her direction before drawing her bright gaze back to the young man. "Very well... If you are so desperate to create a memory, then so be it."

Turning her foot slightly, the a glowing ring erupted from below her, spanning out and shadowing out the tavern. People vanished as the ring grew, the tavern turning into nothing more than darkness as the ring moved further and further out. The young woman at the table remained in sight even after the table vanished, for Lady Rose already had an inkling she'd want to be present.

Light shot across the dimensions of the circle like electrical currents, creating, from a high view, a rose on what would be the battle platform. Of course, she intended to let the boy try his best and yet end things quickly.

"I assume this will be magic only?" She asked, turning about so that her back was to him as she began to walk across the platform, each step causing a near echo through the darkness around them while a light shinned upward with each impact of her heel.

In the tavern, they had simply vanished to the eye. The boy did not need to have the entire crowd watch him lose.

Spinning back around, she folded her arms below her breasts, gently folding her fingers and long nails around her corset. "And you, my dear, will you be a third party or a spectator?" This, of course, directed at the sea creature.

 

[Fatal Nymph]

The magic started to envelope them all and Tess didn't even flinch. This wasn't out of a realm in which she lived in. The only difference was this was magic instead of the deep and dark sea that anyone could simply disappear into and never be seen again. She was positive that everyone in the tavern had watched them vanish if not be engulfed by the magic of lady rose. Much harder to make someone just vanish. Her electricity died down and now her tendrils and stingers were back to their normal milky white clear colors. Those solid eyes had a slight glow to them now however allowing her eyesight to adjust to all the nuances to the new arena.

The sea creature looked right into lady rose's eyes as not an equal but more like an old comrade. "My lady it would be an unfair fight to have two against the young lad, and I certainly don't want to have myself humiliated because I thought I had a chance in abyss to best you. I shall spectate unless called upon by you." There was no use in giving out the information of her lack of magic. The fair sea creature moved to a position to be between but certainly to the edges of the field of magic. Though it was not the queen's magic she feared, it was the young mage. He more than likely did not have the control that the lady had, nor did she expect him to. Luckily for her electricity and athletic abilities helped in such instances, if not for those two aspects she probably wouldn't be alive with the amount of trouble a creature such as herself attracted. Unlike some people who could change, she was unable to do so, but get her in water and she held the greatest advantage. However, this was not the time to be reminiscing about her prowess.

Tess crossed her arms and stood looking a little too comfortable while waiting on this particular duel to begin. Though it was really too bad that it was a magic only duel. The sea creature was willing to put a magic user in their place, and it always made it worse when they realized she had beaten them with none herself.

 

[GiganticEquine]

Meanwhile at the front door to the tavern, it would open to reveal a tubby, possibly chubby in some people's opinion, unicorn with a... very un-natural to say the least metallic horn matching her body color which is a dark orchid color. She stands around 6 feet tall, 6 feet 4 or 6 feet 5 inches if one includes her unusual horn into that statistic; and by all appearances she seems quite casually dressed seeing as she is wearing a ice blue short sleeve shirt and black silky shorts with blue lightning pattern featured sneakers.

After closing the door with her moderate rose colored tail, she scans her immediate indoor surroundings with cautiously intrigued opal hue eyes. The unicorn lady would then adjust her shirt and then walk on over to an empty unoccupied seat, sitting down pretty close to the front of the bar. She then gives a soft relaxed sigh as she gazes over the drink menu.

 

[Hawksearcher]

So this is the true extent of her power—that she can materialize an entire battle ring with just the movement of her foot…

Maven was overcome with awe at the surging magic around him, so much so that he almost missed the Queen’s question, directed towards him.

“Oh, I, uh, y-yes, magic only,” he stammered. He couldn’t even imagine what deadly alternatives were implicit in Lady Rose’s suggestion, and he certainly wasn’t in the mood to sustain any real, lasting bodily injury.

Well, she set the stage and fulfilled a great deal of generosity in providing a space for them. It was only prudent for him to offer what small effort he could potentially provide to set up this match at his request.

“If you wish, ma’am, I could add an additional ring to this circle you have conjured, one that would make it so our magic does not deal any lasting harm to each other—I think. Yours seems to be an ancient magic, so I don’t know if you already have such a provision in place.”

Maven almost added that his speciality was in metamagic, but somehow he figured that simply talking about areas of study he got high grades in would have been empty words. As they were reaching the beginning of their duel, only action and prowess would truly show worth.

Speaking of action, as the kind observer behind him responded to Lady Rose, Maven steeled himself to cast a preparatory spell. Because of his inexperience, silent magic was always the more risky approach to casting spells for him—It’s so much easier for one’s mind to drift mid-spell than for a verbal string of arcanum language to interrupt itself. However, in the vast, empty, lonely space they found themselves in, Maven felt embarrassed by the thought of being the first one to break the silence, and so, formed the incantation in his head, while making a few grounding gestures with his right hand.

Maven closed his eyes, and with a sharp exhale, opened them again. When he did so, his eyes flashed brightly with amethyst-colored energy and then settled into a moderate glow. His pupils turned white, and his eyes began to dart around the room, as though distracted by every minute detail. Occasionally, his eyes would even move independently from each other, one looking up while the other down, and so on.

Arcane Combat Analysis.

With this new sustained magic activated, Maven was able to see past the surface energies of magic and spells to discern their origins, types, and effects. It was an advanced spell, and one that he would have to concentrate in order to sustain, but he hoped it would allow him to quickly assess and counter magic thrown at him. At least, that was the plan. Lady Rose’s sorcery was unlike anything he’d ever seen before.

 

[UndeadEyes]

"It is not needed... I have no intention of letting my magic hurt you... If it does, I am well versed in healing..." She commented, staying in place where she'd started, not about to start the battle. He had asked for it, so it was his job to throw the first spell.

Watching him light himself up with energy, she smiled softly, deciding whether or not to be mean. "Do you know what a block is?" She asked, lifting her hand into the air, her nail drawing in the air in front of her, lines of light appearing as she drew a rather ornate design. "I would think you do... You see, you rely too much on your magic to keep track of what is going on around you and who you face..."

Finishing the mark in the air, she placed her hand flat against it, twisting it to the right. "When I went on a journey, long ago, in search of one of the most powerful spells in existence, it was paramount that I not let anyone know who I was at all cost--to completely erase all inkling that I might be anything more than a blind traveler..."

Turning the mark under her hand further, it was now upside down. "You see, what I am doing, is purposely to show you the actions I am taking... In truth, I need not move at all to do these things. For me, it is all within... You rely on your magic to watch... So, how do you survive if that is removed?"

In what could best be described as a creepy display, her arm twisted twist, her joint cracking as she finished moving the image until it had spun completely around. "I want you to rely less on your ability to watch... It is time to feel..."

Releasing the design, she let her arm fall to her side, seemingly uninjured by the unnatural rotation it had just done. The mark expanded in front of her and then shot forward, vanishing before it hit him. With that, the magic around them...vanished... At least, hers did. They stood in absolute darkness now and any aura or feeling her magic gave off completely stopped. To the world now, she seemed like nothing more than a human (excluding the glow of her eyes).

"Feel free to attack when you are ready..."

 

[Hawksearcher]

And just like that, signs and signatures vanished from Maven’s line of sight. His heart already skipped a beat at the sight of her twisting arm—admittedly, it was his plan to rely quite heavily on his arcane combat analysis spell, so without it he felt…blinded. But more so than blinded, he felt sheepish, for the Sorceress was right, he was too reliant on his magic for survival. It seems that he was already having a learning experience.

“in search of one of the most powerful spells in existence…” He would log this away for later. He had questions for sure, but then wasn’t the time.

“Yes ma’am. A feeling, sure. That’s… I can do that.”

Maven dispelled his magical sight—too much of a drain now that it couldn’t serve its purpose, and tapped into that ethereal energy stored in his body. He took a few steps forward so that he was about 20 feet away from the Queen, and firmly planted his feet. One of his instructors had once sworn by a rule of thumb when it came to duels—usually, the first caster to break their footing and be forced to move was often the one who ended up losing first. So, with his feet planted, Maven resolved to only step away from his position if absolutely necessary.

“I can do this,” he said quietly. And he made his first move.

He brought his hands together, into his chest, as though he meant to pray, and he twisted his wrists, making a few gestures. As he did so, he began a verbal incantation that sounded more like a faint echo than spoken speech. As he spoke, the air around him glowed in hues of sky blue.

Missiles of Magic

A single ball of light formed behind Maven’s head, which then split into 12 Beads of light which then framed around Maven, each the shape of a diamond. This beads of light began to spin, and like crossbow bolts, shot widely out and away from Maven in different directions, leaving tails of whistling energy. As quickly as they burst away from him, the darts of magic turned and all shot towards the Queen, each approaching from a sightly different angle!

Maven cut his incantation and held his breath, waiting to see the results of his attack…

 

[UndeadEyes]

His hand signals, much akin to some ninja gibberish, made her crack a faint smile on her ruby lips. Cute... She though at his display of magic, using what could be one of the most cliche attacks for newer magic users. Not desiring to be completely cruel to him having taken away his site, both hands lifted at her elbows to about chest height, index fingers curled to her thumbs. "Reverberation..." She said calmly, flicking out the finger just before the many shards of light hit.

A loud echo crossed through the darkness as the light hit an unseen wall, immediately sparking a ball of light before being cast away at incredibly speed in the same directions they'd come from. Thankfully for him, it meant not all of them were redirected back toward him, but any that were in the line were heading his way.

During this exchange, an unseen vine had grown down her back, sinking away into the darkness, as if literally disappearing into the floor behind her enormous gown. It was now growing behind Maven, stopping at just above his height. There would be only the split sound of the vine openings its core before long thorns erupted at extreme speed. However, unlike his attack, it didn't direct at his body. Instead, they were curling around his body to stab into the the darkness and intertwine with one another in an attempt to trap his body (not his head) inside a containment of vines.

 

[Hawksearcher]

In the split second after her reverberation, Maven silently cursed himself. He was waiting to see what would happen without actively trying to anticipate what would come next and moving onto his first move. A common mistake for a novice, casting one spell at a time and waiting, but he couldn’t afford to make novice mistakes in this duel.

Fortunately, even though he was caught off guard by Lady Rose’s Reverberation, Maven did have a few specific spells he had practiced over and over again, so that they came rather naturally to him even in the middle of a fight. After the bolts reflected off of her, Maven stood in the direct path of 3 of them.

As they whistled toward him, crackling with new energy, he instinctually reached out to grab 2 with his hands—alas, Maven was not a particularly strong or fast combatant, and this technique relied on a dexterous grasp. He shouted, “Spell Reabsorption!” For any spell he had cast himself originally, he could attempt to reabsorb its magical energy back into him.

He did manage to catch one with his left hand. It flashed a bright gold before the energy passed into his hand without harming him. However, he missed the mark with the right, and so, two missiles collided with his right side and shoulder, sizzling as the energies burned deep holes through his clothes and skin, their impact caused him to twist 180 degrees—

Only to stare right into the gaping jaws of the vine Lady Rose summoned.

Maven yelped in surprise. Had he seen it coming, he might have thought of a more clever way to counter it, but even as the throne began to close around him, he realized he had no choice but to try a risky maneuver.

“Blink!”

Teleportation is a dangerous art. One wrong move, and a mage can accidentally transport their head separately from the rest of their body. This is why most targeted teleportation magic takes a long time and a great deal of concentration to incant for most apprentice and journeyman mages. However, there is a single combat-based teleportation that even talented novice mages could use quickly. The magic is entirely focused on cohesion and mitigating the risk of multi-directional splicing—but everything has a cost. Blink is wildly uncontrollable, and thus, Maven had no ability to actually control the direction of his teleportation.

With a flash of blue light, the thorns from the vine that closed around him swiped and instead clutched at misty smoke, leaving trails in the air. Maven was gone.

An instant later, Maven appeared about 10 feet off to Lady Rose’s right, and 5 feet up in the air. He came down hard and crumpled into a pile of college-aged boy, but mustering his strength, sprang back to his feet with his arms tensed and his hands open.

So much for not being the first to break my stance… he thought to himself. Acting fully defensively, he waited for The Queen to cast her next spell.

 

[UndeadEyes]

Truly, had she been nice, she could have caught him before he fall. However, as her head turned to his position on the dark floor, she watched him spring up, the injury on his body from his own attack apparent. "The problem with schools teaching is that they truly do not teach the core foundation of spell casting..." She told him, still not moving from her position, not even to face him. Instead, the ground began to shift below him, like a pivoting circle around her own that brought him back in front of her. "Perhaps that is why I never chose to learn in one... Then again, I do believe there is a difference between magic and natural abilities... Those born with the use do not use magic. Magic is taught and learned."

With a smile, the darkness around them began to shatter, dropping away as the bar began to reappear around them. To the people in the bar, they would see them reappearing as if a mirror was dropping in the tavern to reform them. "My dear child, you are not prepared to face me... If your first move results in your injury, then you have already lost..."

It was in her good nature that she was stopping the fight. She had no desire to see him hurt.

Breaking her footing now that they were back in the real world, she approached the young man, hand extending. Placing her index and middle finger under his chin, she gently lifted his head as she leaned down and gave him a kiss to the forehead. It was both in good faith that there was no bad blood between them and, were he to look down, his injuries had now been healed.

"Continue learning, but rely more on the world around you to learn and less on your books."