ixis | Apprenticeship (For Elias)

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Apprenticeship (For Elias)

Now that the implications of what he's accomplished have fully sunk in, Naugus is in a delightful mood. His steps are quick, his back is straight, his grin is gleeful and even his tail is held up off the ground slightly. He's led the young king back to his tower home in the residential outskirts, just where it begins to bleed into the parklands. The place is a looming, earthen and green crystal tower, something befitting a wizard of deeply questionable morals like himself.

The door opens as Naugus approaches, the slab of green splintering and sliding back to allow entrance. He ushers Elias inside happily as he says, "I'm eager to begin, boy. You're quick and sharp, surely you'll take to the Ixis arts swiftly. Come, come, have a seat and we'll begin covering what awaits you."

The inside of the home is all formed from singular stone, all the fixtures (with the exception of a few crystal objects) fused to the walls and floor as if pulled up from it. Seams of green swirl and trace along the walls artfully, adding a bit of colour and flair. There appears to be a living area, as well as a humble kitchen, with stairs leading upwards against one far wall. There is also another green door, crafted to look like a more accessible and reasonable one, with a lock set into the knob. The place is lit by enchanted fire hovering in sconces, giving the place an eerie glow. A snap of one crablike claw and the flames glow brighter, dispelling some of the gloom.

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While Naugus was delighted and clearly happy, Elias was the opposite. His ears were pinned back against his hair. His tail was dragging on the ground behind him and hid between his legs. Elias' head hung low as he followed after his new master's feet. He was defeated. Everything he had wanted was gone, all he had fought for was now for nothing. To make it all worse, he had basically sold his soul to his greatest enemy.

He gazed up at the tower when they arrived. The gaudy crystal tower fit Naugus' personality perfectly. He would construct something like this. Some vain monument to his glory. Now he was following the mage into this place. The leading and praise felt wrong. He looked up at Naugus and simply nodded. He could try to blame mage for this but he knew the truth. It was his own fault. He wanted this. There was no going back.

"Right. A seat," Elias walked over toward one of the pieces of furniture made of green crystal. Strangely enough, there was some beauty to this place. The swirling seams and traces up the wall. Perhaps something good could come of this?

Naugus apparently doesn't notice just yet how glum his new pupil is, as he's still plenty chipper about the present situation. He grabs a glass from the stone-wrought cupboard and quickly conjures some cold water into it. It's shoved into Elias' hand before the mage swoops up those stairs, no longer able to stifle a rasping laugh. It's like he's completely forgotten someone else here has lost his beloved family. He probably has.

When the mage returns, he has a large tome with him, as well as some kind of amulet. The book is thrust onto Elias to take too.

"This is where we will start. Oh, this will be so much more different than how it was with Geoffrey. Training him from a small boy and having to do it remotely was less than ideal. You're going to be incredible, Elias! Positively incredible!"

Elias took the glass, though he had little choice in the matter. He looked down at the seat he was on and sighed. He sipped his drink, until the book was suddenly shoved into his chest. He nearly dropped the glass and quickly set it down on the nearest available surface. More praise and he was comparing him to Geoffrey. The squirrel felt his stomach churn a little.

He apprehensively opened the tome to the first page. Elias wasn't sure if it was safe to take his eyes off Naugus but curiosity got the better of him. The compliments had to mean Naugus was dedicated to teaching him. Betraying him now would be counter productive, if the mage was being honest. He glanced at the pages in front of him.

"...What is this book, exactly?"

"My personally written study guide, as it were. Since I've been left in the Nexus, I've begun compiling where a beginner of the Ixian magicks would start. In the event I gained a new apprentice, you see. And here I am, my predictions right indeed! Though I would have never dreamt it'd be you, my boy. What providence that our fates should be so intermingled, eh?" He's gonna see Elias hurl at this rate.

The first page is indeed the blocky but neat handwriting of the mage, giving a brief overview of what Ixis magic is, as well as an illustration of four symbols, each one symbolizing an element.

Edited 2015-09-17 22:23 (UTC)

His stomach churned again. Was he doing this on purpose or was this genuine enthusiasm. He looked down at the book again. He looked over the the symbols. He pointed to them each in turn, naming at least the three he recognized.

"Fire. Air. Earth. And...?" He looked back at Naugus. He couldn't quite make out what the last one was. "Crystal?"

Naugus frowns. "Water. Come now, Elias. I know you're a little shell-shocked, but this should be elementary. Crystal, meanwhile," he turns the page for Elias, where the next two are dominated by an illustration of spiky, expansive crystal, "is here.

"THIS one is mine. My very own element, invented and perfected in the Zone of Silence. One that you may be able to harness with my blessing and tutelage. Now, were I to decide an element that would suit you best..." He frowns again, though in thought this time. Naugus moves to take a seat in front of Elias, the stone of the floor rising and forming into a stool to meet him.

"...While the most difficult to harness, I am inclined to see you in control of fire. What do you think, my boy?"

Elias frowned himself. Water. How did he miss that? Perhaps it was because it wasn't one of the elements he had seen Naugus use much, if at all. Earth, Fire, Air, and Crystal were the mage's choice, it seemed. He turned back to the first page and stared at the design for fire. He looked up again and met Naugus's gaze.

"Fire...I think you're right." The words came out of his mouth before he could really think. Fire seemed right to him. With his temper, fire seemed like a perfect choice. That was, if it worked as he was thinking about it.

"Anger and rage would make controlling fire easier. Am I right?" If he was right, perhaps he finally had a productive use for all of the anger inside himself. His rage and self-loathing might finally serve a purpose.

"It very much stokes the intensity of it, makes it easier to mold your very body into the flames." The mage conjures a lick of fire at his fingertips, letting it leap and crackle along his knuckles. "But it can also cause it to rage out of control. Control is the true core of Ixian teachings. Control of the elements, control of emotions. Even if they're not your own." He gives the smaller Mobian a wide grin, closing his fist over that flame and snuffing it out.

"But it is passion, it is intensity. Something I think you'd be well-suited towards."

Control of the fire, control of his emotions. Of his temper. It had been something he struggled with for so long. This might be the key he had always been looking for. A way to control his rage. He nodded at Naugus and looked back to the book. Slowly he moved a hand down the page and began to turn them. There was a lot of knowledge here. A lot of knowledge and with it power. The power itself wasn't what tempted him. It was the idea of control that came along with it. And the possibility of reuniting with his family thanks to this magic.

"Can we start now?" He asked. Elias steeled his expression into one of confidence and conviction. He had chosen this path and he would go down it. No turning back now.

"Yes! Very much so! For now, we will begin with the simplest; air. It is all around us, always in ready supply, easily manipulated and changed." He pushes himself back to his feet, using his staff as leverage, the stone seat that he'd taken settling back down to level with the floor. The fact he does these tasks with little thought might go to show the level of Ixis Naugus' power and control as Elias learns these things.

"Your will is the force that will feed into whatever element of your choosing; this being air." Naugus helpfully reaches over and flips the pages a few turns, coming to a passage about said element. Giving it a tap, he says, "Beginners can use incantations, words of power, before coming to rely purely on will and intention as I do. Read this and concentrate. Think of your will flowing from you and pushing the air. I want to see if you can make that rattle." He gestures upwards with his staff, indicating an ornate crystal chandelier overhead, compromised of many dangling green jewels and glass.

Elias nodded along and looked down at the page on air control. He read the words of power on the page before he stood and looked up at the chandelier overhead. He needed to make it rattle then. He raised a hand and looked back to the book. His will was what would make it move. He closed his eyes for a moment to try and focus. Would it really be so simple?

With his eyes open again, he started to read the words on the page. The first time was slow, trying to feel out the words and how to pronounce them. He could feel his heart starting to beat faster. He was nervous. What if he failed? What if he succeeded? Elias swallowed and tried. He spoke the words louder this next time, trying to put conviction behind the words. He had been strong only moments ago. He held onto that feeling from before. He pushed with his mind, his wanting to move the air and shake the chandelier.

Only just a light breeze seemed to move one or two of the jewels and glass.

And yet, that innocuous bit of motion makes Naugus' face split into a wide, toothy grin.

"It begins," he says simply. "Your first act of power as an Ixis mage.

"Again. Try again. Concentrate harder."

That grin was both unnerving and yet somehow inspiring. Just a nudge and he was smiling like that? His first act of power. He closed his eyes and tried to concentrate harder. He didn't exist anymore. His world was shattered. He was gone. He didn't exist.

He didn't matter.

The words came pouring in again and he ground his teeth. He pushed with all he had to dispel the words as he tried to chant. He did matter. He did exist. He was here, right now. He pushed as he finished the incantation. More than a few jewels moved this time, a stronger breeze but nothing inspiring.

But again, Naugus is gleeful! He claps his hand and claw together, applauding the effort. "And you've not even broken a sweat! A wonderful, telling first attempt, my boy! You'll surpass Geoffrey without even trying at this rate!"

Geoffrey. The very mention of the name made Elias's blood boil. He betrayed him. He betrayed them all. Or rather, he was never on their side. Always he was on Naugus's side and fooled them all. Because of him, his family was in danger. Because of him, he was here. He pulled at that rage and pushed it into the chant.

The entire chandelier shook this time as a powerful gust burst through the building. Suddenly all the work and energy hit Elias. His legs gave out under him and he collapsed, suddenly feeling completely exhausted. Magic wasn't free, after all.

Naugus hurries to keep the young man from falling flat on his face, catching his front with his claw. "A tremendous effort! It seems even that passion and that temper can be put into elements outside of fire. You're a natural! Imagine what your father would think if he saw how well you took to his old court mage's ways."

Naugus just knows all the horribly wrong things to say. And he's trying to be encouraging.

Elias's eyes closed at the words. They struck deep into his chest, each one of them. His father. His father would never look at him again because of this. His father was never proud of him to begin with. Would this lower his opinion of him? Could it even be lowered? He hung his head in shame. He could only think of one thing to say.

"Thank you, Master."

"Please. Sit, rest. Gather your strength before we try anything else." He shoos Elias towards his prior seat where the book and glass of water are waiting for him. "And I am, as your teacher, an open book as well. Please. Ask me anything." He sits down on a nearby stool, his tail curling around the base of it.

Naugus is still all smiles and he looks...genuinely gleeful and friendly. There's no cackling or leering at having 'trapped' the king like this. He's just happy to see he has a promising young student who HAPPENS to also be the King. That just means his rightful place on the throne will go that much more smoothly!

Elias took his seat and fell back into the chair. He couldn't even hold himself up enough to sit straight. He looked up at Naugus and found that happy smile somehow comforting. He finally made someone proud. It was his enemy, the one who stole his crown...but someone was proud. Sure, Sally, Sonic, and Megan would all say they were proud of him.

They were biased. Naugus hated him. Naugus was like his father, critical and driven. It was hard to admit but he could see why the sorcerer was once his Father's adviser and court wizard. He had fallen for the same trickery with Geoffrey when he was king.

"...Why did you agree to be my father's court mage?" The question just spilled out of him.

The question catches the mage off guard as well, his ears lifting slightly in surprise and confusion. "Hm." He leans on his elbows, tapping his index finger and the tip of his claw together.

"I had originally agreed to be King Frederick's. And I served him well and faithful until his son took the throne. And I continued to serve him as well; I was sworn to the lineage of Acorn and the betterment of the kingdom.

"I appreciated the prestige it gave me. It let my magicks have a wider impact to better the lives of many. And I was appreciated and lauded in turn. Both kings sought my council and I gave it freely and honestly. It was only when Frederick also let in that Overlander, Nate Morgan, in that things began to sour."

Nate Morgan. The name didn't quite ring a bell for Elias. He knew some of the history of the Kingdom but not as much as he should have. Arriving so late in his life and having been raised by the Brotherhood, it wasn't something he was able to study extensively.

"And how did things begin to sour?" Naugus sounded like he was being honest. He had agreed to be honest with him. He was even proud of him. And now here they were, talking about the mage's past. He was loyal to the kingdom once upon a time. This Overlander changed that. But how?

"He was all about technical things, as Overlanders often are. Mechanical and robotic solutions and devices. He developed the power ring forge as proof that magic is simply science at an misunderstood level. None of this sat well with me. And even more so when his inventions and innovations began to replace mine.

"He was polluting our society, Elias, with his Overlander ways. He was making me obsolete. Frederick was a kind king, open and allowing enough that he let in both the likes of myself and Morgan. But he was naive to a degree as well; the simple, accessible allure of technology was seducing him and he began to turn a deaf ear to my own advice and advances."

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Apprenticeship (For Elias)

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The glimpse of Naug's evil smile in that icon is CHOICE.

I know, right?! I also totally did it on accident. XD

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