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Post by Susan Daunt on Jul 19, 2010 23:47:05 GMT -5
Susan did her best to ignore the jab from the tiefling. Okay, so she had pulled a little too much power from somewhere, but at least she *could* pull it from somewhere. She poked the amulet and was reassured there seemed like there was some charge left in it. She didn't want to break anything that nice in one go.
Okay. Take two. Focus. Will met power. Power flowed into form. Form began to birth into a fitful light...
And then came the pulse of power, fast and fierce, turning the spell into a short-lived flare a second time. "Gaah," the Daunt scion cursed with her eyes closed, prepared for it this time but still unhappy with the failure, "It all comes at once."
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Post by Prof. Michael Freeman on Jul 20, 2010 0:18:31 GMT -5
A few things that had been said earlier clicked together in Professor Freeman's mind.
"Mr. Boudreaux, Shihab, would you stay for a moment after class?"
Leaving them to wonder what was going on, he turned back to Susan. Interesting. He had a student who couldn't control magic outside himself and one who didn't seem to be able to control it inside...
"Try this," he said, drawing the character, and then surrounding it with another ring of characters, a construct which would deliberately limit power flow. "It's slightly more complicated, but it should catch some of that power and stretch it out."
He turned to see the progress of the rest of the class. Verin was casting from instinct, and Less was... um... Fun times.
"Very good, mister Malphus. You're excused, I'll see you on Monday. Keep practicing - just because you can cast this spell without focusing on the details doesn't mean you can do that for all of them. East Beta... what are you doing?"
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Post by Less Than Beta East Tundra on Jul 20, 2010 0:26:08 GMT -5
Less looked up from where he was playing with his shiny new ward. He had held off on extending it, partially because he wasn't sure of his control and partially because he didn't know how much magic he had left in the amulet. "Testing one of my pack's spells, since I've never been able to do it before. It's a ward that alerts you when someone crosses it. It should be invisible, though; I don't know why it's not." He pointed down at the spit-coated rawhide on the table legs.
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Post by Shihab on Jul 20, 2010 0:32:33 GMT -5
Shihab looked panicked for a second, seeming to shrink in his seat and fade into the background, before he regained control and puffed back to his normal state of casual jocularity.
"Alright, Professor, if my spells are just that awesome," he said, but without the usual over-the-top confidence.
Closing his eyes, he went back to trying to pull the magic out of his core, slowly finding threads; however, they all seemed to slip through his fingers and, unless disturbed, he'd probably remain in the increasingly-frustrated trance until someone spoke his name, or nudged him.
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Post by Prof. Michael Freeman on Jul 20, 2010 0:39:24 GMT -5
"Interesting," Professor Freeman said to Less. "I would guess that it's because you're using a conventional arcane source to power wild magic, as the two are definitely not the same thing. I would also appreciate it if, in future, you would use class time to work on the class assignment. I saw you cast it earlier, so you're free to work on what you wish, but a magelight is useful enough to be worth getting comfortable with casting."
((OOC - the amulets recharge as power is drawn from them - they'll provide a small but constant power source as long as you're touching them.))
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Post by Less Than Beta East Tundra on Jul 20, 2010 0:54:14 GMT -5
"Does that mean that my pack's other spells will turn out strangely?" Less asked with a worried tone as he reached down with a single hand to untie the rawhide and thus dispel the magic. With his other hand he pulled out a small stone (an ordinary one, not a focus stone) tied on a string. As he held the amulet out in front of him, he held onto the string so that the rock dangled just in front of the amulet.
Does squinting at a rock in front of an amulet look strange to outsiders? Why yes it does.
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Post by Susan Daunt on Jul 20, 2010 1:09:49 GMT -5
Susan nodded thanks and copied down the modified sigil in her notes, being very careful to record every nuance before trying again. As useful as a portable flash-bang could be, the fact it was the result of a miscast didn't make her happy one bit.
Her lips screwed up in concentration as she bent to her task, determined to have something to work from when she got back to her dorm.
"Mr. Freeman," Susan ventured uncertainly between runes, "Do we get to keep these amulets or do you want them back at the end of the class?"
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Post by Prof. Michael Freeman on Jul 20, 2010 1:18:16 GMT -5
"They are yours to keep until the end of semester, Miss Daunt," Professor Freeman said, "provided you use them responsibly, and don't come into power of your own. If you intend to continue with magic, and can convince me that you will continue to be responsible, you will probably be allowed to keep them over the summer as well."
"East Beta... I suspect that would be likely. I am not an expert in wild magic, but I will see what I can do to provide more usable power. In the meanwhile, please be careful with what you do - especially anything involving fire."
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Post by Less Than Beta East Tundra on Jul 20, 2010 1:34:57 GMT -5
Less continued squinting at the stone. Whatever was supposed to happen evidently wasn't, because a number of unusual expressions were crossing the young werewolf's face. He finally placed the string-and-stone back in his bag and looked up at the teacher. "I'll try to avoid things like tracking, too. Anything that's put on a living thing should probably be avoided until this conflict is resolved."
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Post by Susan Daunt on Jul 20, 2010 1:44:00 GMT -5
Susan nodded acknowledgement, "Understood, Sir."
She put her notebook aside and focused on the new symbols, taking a deep breath, one hand on the amulet. Will met power. Power flowed into form. Form kicked into fitful light... The pulse of power came and was diverted by the more complex sigil.
Susan cautiously opened one eye when an explosion of light didn't flicker outside her eyelids. And... there it was. A dim light floating peacefully in front of her face, blue as her eyes. She grinned, concentration slipping in her pleasure, baffles fading.
...And then the extra power flowed into the now unprotected spell full force, causing it to flare. Again. "Gaaah!"
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Post by Prof. Michael Freeman on Jul 20, 2010 1:52:54 GMT -5
Professor Freeman nodded, seeing signs of improvement.
"That's yet another important lesson - when casting a spell from memory instead of through a more permanent writing, focus and concentration is everything. Losing control of a magelight is annoying, letting a levin-bolt slip through your fingers can have nasty consequences."
Professor Freeman nodded at Less's comment. Finally, a student who appreciated that magic had consequences. Maybe there was some hope for the class after all.
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Post by Verin Vetis Malphus on Jul 20, 2010 16:12:24 GMT -5
"Certainly, sir. Though so far, I've been able to cast every spell I've tried with willpower and magic. Rituals require some groundwork, but that's more for binding and control..." He walked towards the door, throwing the orb in the air and catching it, before suddenly crushing it. Small flames flickered in the air for a second, the last remnants of magic being set alight.
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Post by Beau Boudreaux on Jul 20, 2010 19:45:25 GMT -5
Beau, unaware of the field surrounding him, sat back down to attempt the spell again. He held the amulet in his hand and focused on the sigil. The same ball of light appeared as before and once again it began to wobble. Beau focused even harder........and the light steadied over his palm, glowing brightly. He gave an even bigger smile than usual and made the light disappear.
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Post by Susan Daunt on Jul 21, 2010 10:05:07 GMT -5
Susan concentrated on making this spell work reliably. Although an instant flash-bang was nice, she imagined that Mr. Freeman wouldn't teach her anything else if she couldn't get something 'basic' like this to work. Aside from the chewing out her family would give her if she came back with a half-nutured skill.
The practice of dangerous incomplete magic without a training permit was an IEC misdemeaner after all. Okay. Will meets power. Power flows into form. Form sparks into...
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