Salted Spires (A Cradle Quest)
- Thread starter KittyEmpress
- Start date
CedeTheBees
Probably high right now
- Location
- Somewhere
- Pronouns
- They/Them
[x] A. Apologize and bow your head - hopefully Tane will take that as victory enough.
[x] B. Back down, but don't apologize - try to go past without response.
[x] B. Back down, but don't apologize - try to go past without response.
Last edited:
- Location
- Yes
[x] B. Back down, but don't apologize - try to go past without response.
But we've proved it again and again,
That if once you have paid him the Dane-geld
You never get rid of the Dane.
- from The Danegeld by Rudyard Kipling
If you want to make good friends, learn how to set boundaries:
[x] C. Challenge him back, even if you know it's mostly false bravado.
That if once you have paid him the Dane-geld
You never get rid of the Dane.
- from The Danegeld by Rudyard Kipling
If you want to make good friends, learn how to set boundaries:
[x] C. Challenge him back, even if you know it's mostly false bravado.
- Location
- A beautiful new land, at once alien and familiar.
- Pronouns
- They/Them
Aight you got me.
[x] C. Challenge him back, even if you know it's mostly false bravado.
- Pronouns
- He/Him
[x] B. Back down, but don't apologize - try to go past without response.
WhoTheHeckity
But no one ever asks HowTheHeckity
- Location
- Murica 🦅
[x] B. Back down, but don't apologize - try to go past without response.
My First Challenge
- Pronouns
- She/Her
"I'm not afraid of you, Tane." You muster up every bit of backbone you can, as you try to stand tall like your Brother always does. You'd never seen him shrink or be scared of anything, he'd just laugh his way past any problem. "If you wanna fight me, then do it." You were shorter than any of the trio of Depth-Watchers, but Tane was the only one you felt scared of. Like he might do something in the moment if you pushed the wrong buttons - the adopted girls were blocking your path, but they didn't look nearly as assured as he did. "I'm not scared. I'll fight you anytime." You wished you could see yourself, so you knew how you looked, standing up to someone like this.
But clearly however you looked, it wasn't convincing, because Tane laughed in your face, "Tough little baby." He jerked at you as if he was going to hit you, but no blow came - it was just enough to make you pull slightly away, "Yeah, thought so." He looked smug at your flinch, "I hope you act just as tough in the ring." He stepped back as soon as he had said that, giving you room to leave, "It's not fun to fight weakling losers who know they're losers." He looked oh so smug, and he wanted you to leave. You knew that.
So you didn't do it. "I'm not a loser!" You insist, calming yourself by cycling your family's Enforcer technique, your shaking stopping as the Cloud madra put you more in control, "You're a loser! You're so scared of someone half your size you had to bring family!" You may not be as big and strong as the older kids, but you were smart - if perhaps not wise - so you found a way to push his buttons back quickly, as the two of you had your kids fight. For a second, you thought you had pushed him too far - you could see his face turning red and his fist clench.
But making a scene in public instead of private means those not invited can get involved, and a sword suddenly flew into the ground in between the two of you, causing a startle as a technique flowed through it and caused a brush of wind to send all four of you back away from each other. You are the most affected, and nearly lose your footing - but a hand holds you steady from falling backwards, "Alright everyone. Shows over." You look up to the woman who was holding you steady, "Unless one of you wants to throw a punch and turn this into an unsanctioned brawl," It was your Brother's... 'friend' - Kalia's older sister, Lani. But today she looked severe and serious, instead of joking like she did with your Brother, "And force me to beat up a child."
"We're not fighting." Tane defended himself quickly, though you can see how he shrinks back from the Jade girl. All of his bluster gone. And his adopted cousins both had stopped surrounding you in the time it took for Lani to make her threat - instead moving to back behind the younger boy from the main family. He glared at you, "I'm fine waiting until you're ready to get a beating in front of everyone." He sneers.
"Tane, get home to your parents." Lani said it more blandly now, as she listened to that, "Don't make me escort you back again."
He huffed as his threatening moment dissipated into nothing under the threat of the older girl, "Lai, Nia, lets go. He's got the message." He started to stomp off, his cousins rushing after him - but not before giving a little bow to Lani.
"You too." Lani pushed you away from her, gently enough that you didn't fall, but hard enough that you stumbled forward a bit, - you tried to explain yourself, but she held up a hand, "I don't care who started it. Go home and stay out of trouble. I don't want to be responsible for explaining why you got beaten in the streets. Which is what could have happened there." She looked down at you, with an expression that you didn't quite get, annoyance maybe, "Tell your brother to stop teaching you how to have a smart mouth."
You didn't really know what that meant, turns of phrases not quite as easy to grasp as simple vocabulary, but you gave a little bow, "Thank you for helping." You knew that your attitude had been mostly bluster... and some anger that made you refuse to back down from your bluster. So you weren't above thanking Lani for stopping it before it got worse.
"Yeah yeah. Get home. Now." She doesn't threaten to escort you like she did Tane, so you think she at least knows you're less of a problem than he is. But that doesn't mean you're not a problem, judging by the muttering you hear about 'family resemblance' as you walk away.
-------
"And then Lani broke it up." You hadn't hesitated to tell your family the story to the best of your memory over dinner - from the lessons with Semis, to the whole confrontation. Nightly dinner was, after all, when you shared news whether it was good or bad. Unlike most nights, your news got actual attention from all three members of your family throughout it. Your Mother resting her head in her hands while looking down at the table, your Father standing up to start pacing as you kept going... and Tama chuckling the whole way through. "So Tane and his family left like a bunch of scaredy cats. Then she sent me home."
"Belittling yourself to belittle them even more." Tama was chuckling even harder as he said that, "Oh, you're definitely going places. If you win when you two fight, what you have to do is say 'Since I'm such a weak loser, what does that make you for losing to me?' Use his words to grind it in." Your older brother was smiling as he gave you that advice. "And if you lose, you can still ask him if it feels good to win against someone half his size. It's a great defense. You'll probably have to use it." His smile had slowly faded as he gave the second bit of advice, as if he realized what he was saying midway through.
"Tama, stop." Your Father raised his hand, and he listened to him with only a small lingering chuckle that took a few moments too long to fully disappear, "Little Nimbus, why would you add kindling to the sparks that were at your feet?" He moved to your side, concern etched on his face, fog rolling out from between the wrinkles in his skin, "Dousing the flames of anger with the water of diplomacy is always the better answer, to keep one safe." He got down on your level, putting a hand on your shoulder, "I think you should go and speak to this Tane at your next class, and try to reconcile. You do not need to be friends, but having enemies is nothing but trouble. Don't you think so, honey?" He looked over towards your Mother.
But she did not have the same tone to her, her force-made arms now literally holding a fist in the opposite hand, "Of course not! How dare that little fish threaten you. I should go give his parents a piece of my mind." Judging by how the balled up fists flexed, you didn't think it was her mind she wanted to share, "Tama, why haven't you already beaten this child's closest Jade family member?" Your Mother was exceedingly serious as she asked him that, the kind of serious that she only tended to show for her work.
"Oh, I'm already planning on making my next fight with Roa a little more personal." Your Brother had the smallest edge to his tone as he said that, the levity from before still there... but pointed, "But Dad wouldn't forgive either of us for starting a feud." Tama ran a hand through his grey-black hair, "I know you'd do so for any of us, Mom, but that's not going to help."
Your Mother was one of the Soft-Storm family's three Highgolds - which meant if she wanted to, only your Grandfather, Iakono the Patriarch, his 'little sister' Elder Matron Eleu, or your uncle Keo could possibly stop her from turning a child's fight into a war between families. Your Father could at most slow her down if she really wanted to do it. Your Brother wouldn't even manage that.
But she remained sitting there, gripping the table with her arms both real and madra - the stone table cracking under her strength, "I'm not just going to sit around while my little boy is beaten for being smarter than some dumb little..." You hadn't seen your Mom this angry... ever really. Something in your bones made you feel fear though. You froze up as you looked at her - and her veil hadn't even slipped, no power was leaking out. But you couldn't even move.
Your father's arms wrapped down around you, "Kanai." He said it swiftly, "You are scaring Lōkahi. Please, my love." He pleaded with her, as fury filled her. You may have never seen her like this before, but your Father didn't seem afraid at all. "You know I would not sit and let our children be harmed, but starting feuds - or worse - will not help them be safer."
You weren't the only one who was scared, because Tama had to speak through gritted teeth, "We're not going to watch it happen. You told me to be informed about my decisions. To think it through. To plan it out. To be meticulous. So lets make a plan."
"A plan. Sure." Your Mother was still obviously angry, because the Force-Arms were gripping the table still. But her regular arms were resting on them, as she looked between you and your Brother, "I haven't sparred in years." Unlike for Coppers, Irons, and Jades, Golds only fought each other if they wanted to. It wasn't required of them, and your Mother would rather spend her time working. "So what would you advise we do? How can we help your brother win?"
"We've got about two months until your Core is settled." Your Brother looked at you seriously as he said that, "Which isn't much time. Once you've pushed Cloud into every space that was filled with Pure Madra, you'll be expected to start fighting. And that's when Tane and his family can start following up on their threats, legally. So we have two months to get you ready to fight someone older than you, who started joining the spars last month, and has more experience than you." Tama was not sugar coating how behind you were, "So our plan can't plan for a win. But we can plan for damage control."
You raised your hand, shaking as you were. But your brother was wrong about something, and you wanted to correct him, "I... i've already settled my core." It'd been a few days now since you stopped replacing what was in your Core, and started actually expanding it. It wasn't exactly a difficult task, even with everyone in the morning trying to capture the same cloud-aura filled fog - every day you felt a little more comfortable, like you'd done a little better than the last. And soon enough, you realized you had nothing else to do, "I didn't think to say anything..." You didn't feel like you had done anything big, before. You were just a couple months quicker than your peers.
"What do you - what?" You felt your Brother's confusion... and then you felt three pairs of Jade senses falling on you at once. It was hard to describe what a Jade truly scanning you felt like, except that it wasn't pleasant. It was like when you noticed someone staring, but instead of needing you to turn and look to feel it, you knew it at all times. So you couldn't just look away or put it out of your mind. It was one of the rudest things you could do to a stranger, so it wasn't odd that no one had thought to scan you while you went to class. Indeed, just scanning someone without permission could become grounds for a fight. But your family didn't need permission to do so.
So they probed at your core, and felt its true Copper presence - you had successfully stabilized your core to be full of Cloud, and now it was just a matter of increasing its density and size, as you traveled to Iron. And you'd done so in a third the time it took most of your peers.
"Don't tell anyone." Your Father said it first, "Not your cousins, not Fiva, and especially not anyone outside the family." He was grim and serious for that moment, "The second that people find out you are stabilized, you'll have to start joining the spars."
"But!" Unlike your Father's worries, your Mom and Tama had the same smile on their face, as if they had realized something together, but your Mother was the first one to speak, "Your core being stable opens up a lot of options we didn't have before." She slipped off the half-silver ring that she had never taken off around you, and she put it on the table, "Things like parasite rings, leeching bracers, or reversal necklaces all can cause terrible accidents in those with immature cores. But they can do wonders for improvement."
You knew what these things were, because they were the type of smithed items that your Mother specialized in - not flashy weapons, not autonomous constructs, not the construction of dredges, or anything else. Your Mother pushed forward the art of creating that which helped people grow - you were almost certain Kalia's swords dummy was either your Mother or one of her contracted outcaste workshop's make. Even her new design built to improve on how the Spire-Carvers train their children in madra precision was a facet of her goal in improving how Sacred Arts can be learned, through use of tools.
Parasite Rings were what you talked about in class - and sort of what led to this problem to begin with. A Half-Silver ring scripted to contain, purify, and reject aura, in that order - wearing one made cycling aura into madra more difficult, but it made the aura you did cycle purer, stronger. Your Mother had utilized one since she was an Iron, the same one that now sat on the table. It would slow your advancement down greatly, meaning you'd be adding time to how long it takes to reach Iron... but with time, it would give you a deeper reserve of power, and make your techniques stronger. Few Sacred Artists chose to utilize them, as simply reaching the next tier of power would always be stronger - and utilizing them in anything but constants does nothing to benefit a Sacred Artist, as the impure aura cycled without the ring quickly dirties that which was cycled with it.
Leeching Bracers, created using local, still living sacred corals, were similar in that they were a form of debilitative wear that lead to an increase in power - but where a Parasite Ring attacked your ability to cycle efficiently to boost your ability to cycle effectively, Leeching Bracers attacked your body's ability to function. But in return, they helped to grow your body from every activity you undertook - just walking up and down stairs could suddenly help an Iron become stronger, at the cost of making them as weak as a Copper child. Not everyone used them, however, as they could not be removed for an emergency - forceful removal of Leeching Bracers could damage a person's lifeline permanently. And few Sacred Artists were willing to be as vulnerable as they made them, without freedom to remove them.
Reversal Necklaces were the least common of the three, though - your Brother had apparently used one when he was still an Iron, but you barely remember those days. They interfered with the senses and nerves, and by doing so they trained mind and body - imagine trying to reach for something with your right hand, only to find that for some reason you had moved your left, as if it were in the position of the right. In some ways these necklaces were even more debilitating than Leeching Bracers, making the simplest of tasks into a form of training by turning them into an extremely difficult battle to understand how to move to get to the result they want. While these did not require to be taken off with any sort of ritual in the way Leeching Bracers did, few found it easier to control their body 'normally' after the long period of it being 'wrong'.
Your Mother didn't have unlimited resources, and any of these objects were more expensive than the cost they were willing to spend for your Foundation graduation gift. But not even your Father brought up the cost of them, as your Mother and Brother talked about the boons and banes of each one. They seemed primed to decide for you, as they debated it back and forth - but you hadn't voiced your opinion yet. And ultimately it was your path. You didn't need to use any of them - your parents were prepared to expend resources on you, and you might be able to argue for different resources than they planned.
[x] A. "I want a Parasite Ring like yours. Mom. I'm really good at cycling, so it slowing me down won't be that bad. And Tama taught me all our Path's techniques, so having purer Madra would help!" You will commit to utilizing a Parasite Ring for the time being, slowing your advancement but strengthening your madra and resulting techniques, so long as you keep using it.
[x] B. "I want a set of Leeching Bracers - Tama said the Copper fights are just decided by who is stronger. And I'm already the weakest kid in my class. So I need to get stronger, faster than he is." You will commit to utilizing Leeching Bracers for the time being, greatly weakening your physical capabilities for your day to day life but strengthening the growth of your Strength and Toughness.
[x] C. "I'm never going to win in a brawl, Tane's twice my size. But if I can see him coming, I can avoid him even if he's faster. And a Reversal Necklace will help me be able to react to that." You will commit to utilizing a Reversal Necklace for the time being, messing with your senses and control of your body, but greatly strengthening the growth of your Coordination.
[x] D. "Tama, can't you just help me make my Gentle Cloud's Connection better before the fight? You said it worked really well in the fights when you were younger, right?" You will improve your Novice Enforcer technique to Apprentice level, and improve or expand on what it does.
[x] E. "Dad, Tama said you were really good at the Construction of the Rolling Skies technique, right? Can you teach me how to use that to defend myself better?" You will improve the Novice Forger technique to Apprentice level, improving upon its current capabilities.
[x] F. "Mom, instead of making me something... could you give me some advice on my Proclamation in the Skies technique? Tama helped me improve it, and I figured out a neat way to use it, but you might have some advice?" You will improve your Apprentice Forger technique to have a Refinement; making it better at what it does, but not improving it beyond.
[x] G. "Tama, you said that most of these fights are just brawls, right? Couldn't you train me in how to use a sword, so I'm not brawling? Wouldn't that be advantageous?" You will begin to learn Swordsmanship at a Novice level.
[x] H. "Dad, you fight mostly with your shield, right?" You looked towards the big half-silver shield that hung on the wall, a Treasure from before your Dad arrived at the spire, "Could you teach me to protect myself with one?" You will begin to learn to the Shieldsman skill at a Novice level.
[x] I. "Mom, you use a staff, right? Wouldn't a weapon that gave me some reach really help me with me being smaller than Tane? Do you think you have the time to teach me?" You will begin to learn the Staff skill at a Novice level.
[x] J. Before you were a combatant, before you were even a Sacred Artist, you were a Soulsmith - or you longed to be one, at least, "Mom, do you think I could have a dredge, and try to make myself something for these fights?" You were going to win like a Soulsmith - by making yourself weapons, armor, or neat tricks. You will gain access to a Dredge, allowing you to take Soulsmithing actions.
You are only going to gain one boon from your family here, but there will be additional votes on how you prepare for the incoming fight with Tane in the next update, including some of the side characters you've been introduced to chiming in or offering help. What you choose here might change their offers.
But clearly however you looked, it wasn't convincing, because Tane laughed in your face, "Tough little baby." He jerked at you as if he was going to hit you, but no blow came - it was just enough to make you pull slightly away, "Yeah, thought so." He looked smug at your flinch, "I hope you act just as tough in the ring." He stepped back as soon as he had said that, giving you room to leave, "It's not fun to fight weakling losers who know they're losers." He looked oh so smug, and he wanted you to leave. You knew that.
So you didn't do it. "I'm not a loser!" You insist, calming yourself by cycling your family's Enforcer technique, your shaking stopping as the Cloud madra put you more in control, "You're a loser! You're so scared of someone half your size you had to bring family!" You may not be as big and strong as the older kids, but you were smart - if perhaps not wise - so you found a way to push his buttons back quickly, as the two of you had your kids fight. For a second, you thought you had pushed him too far - you could see his face turning red and his fist clench.
But making a scene in public instead of private means those not invited can get involved, and a sword suddenly flew into the ground in between the two of you, causing a startle as a technique flowed through it and caused a brush of wind to send all four of you back away from each other. You are the most affected, and nearly lose your footing - but a hand holds you steady from falling backwards, "Alright everyone. Shows over." You look up to the woman who was holding you steady, "Unless one of you wants to throw a punch and turn this into an unsanctioned brawl," It was your Brother's... 'friend' - Kalia's older sister, Lani. But today she looked severe and serious, instead of joking like she did with your Brother, "And force me to beat up a child."
"We're not fighting." Tane defended himself quickly, though you can see how he shrinks back from the Jade girl. All of his bluster gone. And his adopted cousins both had stopped surrounding you in the time it took for Lani to make her threat - instead moving to back behind the younger boy from the main family. He glared at you, "I'm fine waiting until you're ready to get a beating in front of everyone." He sneers.
"Tane, get home to your parents." Lani said it more blandly now, as she listened to that, "Don't make me escort you back again."
He huffed as his threatening moment dissipated into nothing under the threat of the older girl, "Lai, Nia, lets go. He's got the message." He started to stomp off, his cousins rushing after him - but not before giving a little bow to Lani.
"You too." Lani pushed you away from her, gently enough that you didn't fall, but hard enough that you stumbled forward a bit, - you tried to explain yourself, but she held up a hand, "I don't care who started it. Go home and stay out of trouble. I don't want to be responsible for explaining why you got beaten in the streets. Which is what could have happened there." She looked down at you, with an expression that you didn't quite get, annoyance maybe, "Tell your brother to stop teaching you how to have a smart mouth."
You didn't really know what that meant, turns of phrases not quite as easy to grasp as simple vocabulary, but you gave a little bow, "Thank you for helping." You knew that your attitude had been mostly bluster... and some anger that made you refuse to back down from your bluster. So you weren't above thanking Lani for stopping it before it got worse.
"Yeah yeah. Get home. Now." She doesn't threaten to escort you like she did Tane, so you think she at least knows you're less of a problem than he is. But that doesn't mean you're not a problem, judging by the muttering you hear about 'family resemblance' as you walk away.
-------
"And then Lani broke it up." You hadn't hesitated to tell your family the story to the best of your memory over dinner - from the lessons with Semis, to the whole confrontation. Nightly dinner was, after all, when you shared news whether it was good or bad. Unlike most nights, your news got actual attention from all three members of your family throughout it. Your Mother resting her head in her hands while looking down at the table, your Father standing up to start pacing as you kept going... and Tama chuckling the whole way through. "So Tane and his family left like a bunch of scaredy cats. Then she sent me home."
"Belittling yourself to belittle them even more." Tama was chuckling even harder as he said that, "Oh, you're definitely going places. If you win when you two fight, what you have to do is say 'Since I'm such a weak loser, what does that make you for losing to me?' Use his words to grind it in." Your older brother was smiling as he gave you that advice. "And if you lose, you can still ask him if it feels good to win against someone half his size. It's a great defense. You'll probably have to use it." His smile had slowly faded as he gave the second bit of advice, as if he realized what he was saying midway through.
"Tama, stop." Your Father raised his hand, and he listened to him with only a small lingering chuckle that took a few moments too long to fully disappear, "Little Nimbus, why would you add kindling to the sparks that were at your feet?" He moved to your side, concern etched on his face, fog rolling out from between the wrinkles in his skin, "Dousing the flames of anger with the water of diplomacy is always the better answer, to keep one safe." He got down on your level, putting a hand on your shoulder, "I think you should go and speak to this Tane at your next class, and try to reconcile. You do not need to be friends, but having enemies is nothing but trouble. Don't you think so, honey?" He looked over towards your Mother.
But she did not have the same tone to her, her force-made arms now literally holding a fist in the opposite hand, "Of course not! How dare that little fish threaten you. I should go give his parents a piece of my mind." Judging by how the balled up fists flexed, you didn't think it was her mind she wanted to share, "Tama, why haven't you already beaten this child's closest Jade family member?" Your Mother was exceedingly serious as she asked him that, the kind of serious that she only tended to show for her work.
"Oh, I'm already planning on making my next fight with Roa a little more personal." Your Brother had the smallest edge to his tone as he said that, the levity from before still there... but pointed, "But Dad wouldn't forgive either of us for starting a feud." Tama ran a hand through his grey-black hair, "I know you'd do so for any of us, Mom, but that's not going to help."
Your Mother was one of the Soft-Storm family's three Highgolds - which meant if she wanted to, only your Grandfather, Iakono the Patriarch, his 'little sister' Elder Matron Eleu, or your uncle Keo could possibly stop her from turning a child's fight into a war between families. Your Father could at most slow her down if she really wanted to do it. Your Brother wouldn't even manage that.
But she remained sitting there, gripping the table with her arms both real and madra - the stone table cracking under her strength, "I'm not just going to sit around while my little boy is beaten for being smarter than some dumb little..." You hadn't seen your Mom this angry... ever really. Something in your bones made you feel fear though. You froze up as you looked at her - and her veil hadn't even slipped, no power was leaking out. But you couldn't even move.
Your father's arms wrapped down around you, "Kanai." He said it swiftly, "You are scaring Lōkahi. Please, my love." He pleaded with her, as fury filled her. You may have never seen her like this before, but your Father didn't seem afraid at all. "You know I would not sit and let our children be harmed, but starting feuds - or worse - will not help them be safer."
You weren't the only one who was scared, because Tama had to speak through gritted teeth, "We're not going to watch it happen. You told me to be informed about my decisions. To think it through. To plan it out. To be meticulous. So lets make a plan."
"A plan. Sure." Your Mother was still obviously angry, because the Force-Arms were gripping the table still. But her regular arms were resting on them, as she looked between you and your Brother, "I haven't sparred in years." Unlike for Coppers, Irons, and Jades, Golds only fought each other if they wanted to. It wasn't required of them, and your Mother would rather spend her time working. "So what would you advise we do? How can we help your brother win?"
"We've got about two months until your Core is settled." Your Brother looked at you seriously as he said that, "Which isn't much time. Once you've pushed Cloud into every space that was filled with Pure Madra, you'll be expected to start fighting. And that's when Tane and his family can start following up on their threats, legally. So we have two months to get you ready to fight someone older than you, who started joining the spars last month, and has more experience than you." Tama was not sugar coating how behind you were, "So our plan can't plan for a win. But we can plan for damage control."
You raised your hand, shaking as you were. But your brother was wrong about something, and you wanted to correct him, "I... i've already settled my core." It'd been a few days now since you stopped replacing what was in your Core, and started actually expanding it. It wasn't exactly a difficult task, even with everyone in the morning trying to capture the same cloud-aura filled fog - every day you felt a little more comfortable, like you'd done a little better than the last. And soon enough, you realized you had nothing else to do, "I didn't think to say anything..." You didn't feel like you had done anything big, before. You were just a couple months quicker than your peers.
"What do you - what?" You felt your Brother's confusion... and then you felt three pairs of Jade senses falling on you at once. It was hard to describe what a Jade truly scanning you felt like, except that it wasn't pleasant. It was like when you noticed someone staring, but instead of needing you to turn and look to feel it, you knew it at all times. So you couldn't just look away or put it out of your mind. It was one of the rudest things you could do to a stranger, so it wasn't odd that no one had thought to scan you while you went to class. Indeed, just scanning someone without permission could become grounds for a fight. But your family didn't need permission to do so.
So they probed at your core, and felt its true Copper presence - you had successfully stabilized your core to be full of Cloud, and now it was just a matter of increasing its density and size, as you traveled to Iron. And you'd done so in a third the time it took most of your peers.
"Don't tell anyone." Your Father said it first, "Not your cousins, not Fiva, and especially not anyone outside the family." He was grim and serious for that moment, "The second that people find out you are stabilized, you'll have to start joining the spars."
"But!" Unlike your Father's worries, your Mom and Tama had the same smile on their face, as if they had realized something together, but your Mother was the first one to speak, "Your core being stable opens up a lot of options we didn't have before." She slipped off the half-silver ring that she had never taken off around you, and she put it on the table, "Things like parasite rings, leeching bracers, or reversal necklaces all can cause terrible accidents in those with immature cores. But they can do wonders for improvement."
You knew what these things were, because they were the type of smithed items that your Mother specialized in - not flashy weapons, not autonomous constructs, not the construction of dredges, or anything else. Your Mother pushed forward the art of creating that which helped people grow - you were almost certain Kalia's swords dummy was either your Mother or one of her contracted outcaste workshop's make. Even her new design built to improve on how the Spire-Carvers train their children in madra precision was a facet of her goal in improving how Sacred Arts can be learned, through use of tools.
Parasite Rings were what you talked about in class - and sort of what led to this problem to begin with. A Half-Silver ring scripted to contain, purify, and reject aura, in that order - wearing one made cycling aura into madra more difficult, but it made the aura you did cycle purer, stronger. Your Mother had utilized one since she was an Iron, the same one that now sat on the table. It would slow your advancement down greatly, meaning you'd be adding time to how long it takes to reach Iron... but with time, it would give you a deeper reserve of power, and make your techniques stronger. Few Sacred Artists chose to utilize them, as simply reaching the next tier of power would always be stronger - and utilizing them in anything but constants does nothing to benefit a Sacred Artist, as the impure aura cycled without the ring quickly dirties that which was cycled with it.
Leeching Bracers, created using local, still living sacred corals, were similar in that they were a form of debilitative wear that lead to an increase in power - but where a Parasite Ring attacked your ability to cycle efficiently to boost your ability to cycle effectively, Leeching Bracers attacked your body's ability to function. But in return, they helped to grow your body from every activity you undertook - just walking up and down stairs could suddenly help an Iron become stronger, at the cost of making them as weak as a Copper child. Not everyone used them, however, as they could not be removed for an emergency - forceful removal of Leeching Bracers could damage a person's lifeline permanently. And few Sacred Artists were willing to be as vulnerable as they made them, without freedom to remove them.
Reversal Necklaces were the least common of the three, though - your Brother had apparently used one when he was still an Iron, but you barely remember those days. They interfered with the senses and nerves, and by doing so they trained mind and body - imagine trying to reach for something with your right hand, only to find that for some reason you had moved your left, as if it were in the position of the right. In some ways these necklaces were even more debilitating than Leeching Bracers, making the simplest of tasks into a form of training by turning them into an extremely difficult battle to understand how to move to get to the result they want. While these did not require to be taken off with any sort of ritual in the way Leeching Bracers did, few found it easier to control their body 'normally' after the long period of it being 'wrong'.
Your Mother didn't have unlimited resources, and any of these objects were more expensive than the cost they were willing to spend for your Foundation graduation gift. But not even your Father brought up the cost of them, as your Mother and Brother talked about the boons and banes of each one. They seemed primed to decide for you, as they debated it back and forth - but you hadn't voiced your opinion yet. And ultimately it was your path. You didn't need to use any of them - your parents were prepared to expend resources on you, and you might be able to argue for different resources than they planned.
[x] A. "I want a Parasite Ring like yours. Mom. I'm really good at cycling, so it slowing me down won't be that bad. And Tama taught me all our Path's techniques, so having purer Madra would help!" You will commit to utilizing a Parasite Ring for the time being, slowing your advancement but strengthening your madra and resulting techniques, so long as you keep using it.
[x] B. "I want a set of Leeching Bracers - Tama said the Copper fights are just decided by who is stronger. And I'm already the weakest kid in my class. So I need to get stronger, faster than he is." You will commit to utilizing Leeching Bracers for the time being, greatly weakening your physical capabilities for your day to day life but strengthening the growth of your Strength and Toughness.
[x] C. "I'm never going to win in a brawl, Tane's twice my size. But if I can see him coming, I can avoid him even if he's faster. And a Reversal Necklace will help me be able to react to that." You will commit to utilizing a Reversal Necklace for the time being, messing with your senses and control of your body, but greatly strengthening the growth of your Coordination.
[x] D. "Tama, can't you just help me make my Gentle Cloud's Connection better before the fight? You said it worked really well in the fights when you were younger, right?" You will improve your Novice Enforcer technique to Apprentice level, and improve or expand on what it does.
[x] E. "Dad, Tama said you were really good at the Construction of the Rolling Skies technique, right? Can you teach me how to use that to defend myself better?" You will improve the Novice Forger technique to Apprentice level, improving upon its current capabilities.
[x] F. "Mom, instead of making me something... could you give me some advice on my Proclamation in the Skies technique? Tama helped me improve it, and I figured out a neat way to use it, but you might have some advice?" You will improve your Apprentice Forger technique to have a Refinement; making it better at what it does, but not improving it beyond.
[x] G. "Tama, you said that most of these fights are just brawls, right? Couldn't you train me in how to use a sword, so I'm not brawling? Wouldn't that be advantageous?" You will begin to learn Swordsmanship at a Novice level.
[x] H. "Dad, you fight mostly with your shield, right?" You looked towards the big half-silver shield that hung on the wall, a Treasure from before your Dad arrived at the spire, "Could you teach me to protect myself with one?" You will begin to learn to the Shieldsman skill at a Novice level.
[x] I. "Mom, you use a staff, right? Wouldn't a weapon that gave me some reach really help me with me being smaller than Tane? Do you think you have the time to teach me?" You will begin to learn the Staff skill at a Novice level.
[x] J. Before you were a combatant, before you were even a Sacred Artist, you were a Soulsmith - or you longed to be one, at least, "Mom, do you think I could have a dredge, and try to make myself something for these fights?" You were going to win like a Soulsmith - by making yourself weapons, armor, or neat tricks. You will gain access to a Dredge, allowing you to take Soulsmithing actions.
You are only going to gain one boon from your family here, but there will be additional votes on how you prepare for the incoming fight with Tane in the next update, including some of the side characters you've been introduced to chiming in or offering help. What you choose here might change their offers.
[x] A. "I want a Parasite Ring like yours. Mom. I'm really good at cycling, so it slowing me down won't be that bad. And Tama taught me all our Path's techniques, so having purer Madra would help!" You will commit to utilizing a Parasite Ring for the time being, slowing your advancement but strengthening your madra and resulting techniques, so long as you keep using it.
[x] B. "I want a set of Leeching Bracers - Tama said the Copper fights are just decided by who is stronger. And I'm already the weakest kid in my class. So I need to get stronger, faster than he is." You will commit to utilizing Leeching Bracers for the time being, greatly weakening your physical capabilities for your day to day life but strengthening the growth of your Strength and Toughness.
Either keep stacking spirit until we can make our techniques do real work, or cover our biggest weakness.
If we practice our enforcer technique we can improve coordination substantially, but we don't have any other cheats for strength and toughness. I think the treasures are a bigger investment overall than family tutoring, that's why they're being brought up. Any one is outsized support.
[x] B. "I want a set of Leeching Bracers - Tama said the Copper fights are just decided by who is stronger. And I'm already the weakest kid in my class. So I need to get stronger, faster than he is." You will commit to utilizing Leeching Bracers for the time being, greatly weakening your physical capabilities for your day to day life but strengthening the growth of your Strength and Toughness.
Either keep stacking spirit until we can make our techniques do real work, or cover our biggest weakness.
If we practice our enforcer technique we can improve coordination substantially, but we don't have any other cheats for strength and toughness. I think the treasures are a bigger investment overall than family tutoring, that's why they're being brought up. Any one is outsized support.
DangerKitty
shoddy writter
- Location
- lala land
Im split between the parasite ring, the reversal necklace and the staff.
The staff cus its a cool weapon and could lead well into the spear. Which is one of my fav weapons.
The parasite ring would be good for getting to spam our techniques effectively. Or for having our tech potency just be outright better than our peers
But we dont really have a offensive madra type anyways.
The reversal necklace improves our coordination and dexterity, but my main interest here is the possible path that could open up for using our script writing in combat. If we want to be able to write out effective scripts in combat as we need them we need not only to be smart, but to have the coordination needed to write a script with one hand while we fend off a foe with the other. We have to be able to write neatly enough that the script works in combat quickly and under pressure. This seems like it opens that door and indeed may even be a pre requisite to using it in combat effectively...
If we actually want to use it in combat. Im unsure i do.
[x] I. "Mom, you use a staff, right? Wouldn't a weapon that gave me some reach really help me with me being smaller than Tane? Do you think you have the time to teach me?" You will begin to learn the Staff skill at a Novice level.
Eh we need some proper combat skills eventually and this gets us time with our mom, who is taking a similar path to ours.
The staff cus its a cool weapon and could lead well into the spear. Which is one of my fav weapons.
The parasite ring would be good for getting to spam our techniques effectively. Or for having our tech potency just be outright better than our peers
But we dont really have a offensive madra type anyways.
The reversal necklace improves our coordination and dexterity, but my main interest here is the possible path that could open up for using our script writing in combat. If we want to be able to write out effective scripts in combat as we need them we need not only to be smart, but to have the coordination needed to write a script with one hand while we fend off a foe with the other. We have to be able to write neatly enough that the script works in combat quickly and under pressure. This seems like it opens that door and indeed may even be a pre requisite to using it in combat effectively...
If we actually want to use it in combat. Im unsure i do.
[x] I. "Mom, you use a staff, right? Wouldn't a weapon that gave me some reach really help me with me being smaller than Tane? Do you think you have the time to teach me?" You will begin to learn the Staff skill at a Novice level.
Eh we need some proper combat skills eventually and this gets us time with our mom, who is taking a similar path to ours.
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Lōkahi not backing down is good. Also Lōkahi was right in how only Tane is really confident.
That's a really good point from Lōkahi .
It's good that someone stepped in.
Lōkahi was more reasonable but he's able to admit that he could've been a not problem but choose not to. I think that's still good because even if Lōkahi gets beaten they still stood up for themselves.
Lōkahi telling the family is a good thing.
Tama likes the cunning.
Pops wants to make peace and Mom wants to make war.
Basically mom is one of the stronger people around and is used to getting what she wants due to it. Lōkahi just became aware of the sheer difference in advancement levels.
Lōkahi settling their core this early is unexpected and prodigious. But also means if people knew they'd be expect to spar.
Good to know what improvement options are open. Hopefully long term Lōkahi can use all of them. Als nice to know mother's specialty.
That's very interesting.
Those things costs money and resources.
[x] B. "I want a set of Leeching Bracers - Tama said the Copper fights are just decided by who is stronger. And I'm already the weakest kid in my class. So I need to get stronger, faster than he is." You will commit to utilizing Leeching Bracers for the time being, greatly weakening your physical capabilities for your day to day life but strengthening the growth of your Strength and Toughness.
Lōkahi fixing the stat weakness would be good.
[x] C. "I'm never going to win in a brawl, Tane's twice my size. But if I can see him coming, I can avoid him even if he's faster. And a Reversal Necklace will help me be able to react to that." You will commit to utilizing a Reversal Necklace for the time being, messing with your senses and control of your body, but greatly strengthening the growth of your Coordination.
[x] A. "I want a Parasite Ring like yours. Mom. I'm really good at cycling, so it slowing me down won't be that bad. And Tama taught me all our Path's techniques, so having purer Madra would help!" You will commit to utilizing a Parasite Ring for the time being, slowing your advancement but strengthening your madra and resulting techniques, so long as you keep using it.
[x] A. "I want a Parasite Ring like yours. Mom. I'm really good at cycling, so it slowing me down won't be that bad. And Tama taught me all our Path's techniques, so having purer Madra would help!" You will commit to utilizing a Parasite Ring for the time being, slowing your advancement but strengthening your madra and resulting techniques, so long as you keep using it.
[x] A. "I want a Parasite Ring like yours. Mom. I'm really good at cycling, so it slowing me down won't be that bad. And Tama taught me all our Path's techniques, so having purer Madra would help!" You will commit to utilizing a Parasite Ring for the time being, slowing your advancement but strengthening your madra and resulting techniques, so long as you keep using it.
Our techniques just need raw potency right?
Our techniques just need raw potency right?
[x] A. "I want a Parasite Ring like yours. Mom. I'm really good at cycling, so it slowing me down won't be that bad. And Tama taught me all our Path's techniques, so having purer Madra would help!" You will commit to utilizing a Parasite Ring for the time being, slowing your advancement but strengthening your madra and resulting techniques, so long as you keep using it.
[x] H. "Dad, you fight mostly with your shield, right?" You looked towards the big half-silver shield that hung on the wall, a Treasure from before your Dad arrived at the spire, "Could you teach me to protect myself with one?" You will begin to learn to the Shieldsman skill at a Novice level.
[x] J. Before you were a combatant, before you were even a Sacred Artist, you were a Soulsmith - or you longed to be one, at least, "Mom, do you think I could have a dredge, and try to make myself something for these fights?" You were going to win like a Soulsmith - by making yourself weapons, armor, or neat tricks. You will gain access to a Dredge, allowing you to take Soulsmithing actions.
[x] F. "Mom, instead of making me something... could you give me some advice on my Proclamation in the Skies technique? Tama helped me improve it, and I figured out a neat way to use it, but you might have some advice?" You will improve your Apprentice Forger technique to have a Refinement; making it better at what it does, but not improving it beyond.
[x] J. Before you were a combatant, before you were even a Sacred Artist, you were a Soulsmith - or you longed to be one, at least, "Mom, do you think I could have a dredge, and try to make myself something for these fights?" You were going to win like a Soulsmith - by making yourself weapons, armor, or neat tricks. You will gain access to a Dredge, allowing you to take Soulsmithing actions.
[x] F. "Mom, instead of making me something... could you give me some advice on my Proclamation in the Skies technique? Tama helped me improve it, and I figured out a neat way to use it, but you might have some advice?" You will improve your Apprentice Forger technique to have a Refinement; making it better at what it does, but not improving it beyond.