Private Zakaden The Moon and Its Tides

[Toko]

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Nao had never been the studious sort, at least not unless something really caught her attention, but as Toko continued to struggle controlling the cosmic energies associated with her Astramancy the woman had begun to reach her wits end. The frustration at seeing little to no progress, despite the countless attempts and efforts made by the hare day in and day out, had caused Toko to begin researching more in depth possible areas of The World where she could perhaps atune better with the source of this particular mastery.

After all this had been one that she'd develop on her lonesome, and by surprise even, while playing the game... a fact that differentiated it from the three masteries that Nao had picked when first creating her TerraSphere 2 avatar before she had logged on to play for the very first time. A part of her couldn't help but wonder if that was enough to cause such a drastic difference, and perhaps the rabbit had been hanging around a particular MIT researcher too much that she had begun to pay attention to even the smallest of things.

One thing had lead to another, and before Toko knew it her steps had taken her to the crystallized lands of Zakaden, the talk of the Shimmering Flats within them catching the hare's attention. A large open space able to refract the sunlight during the day... she could only imagine how amazing the view at night in such a place could be, especially with the cosmos above able to shine in their full glory... light pollution wasn't a worry in Arcia, and Toko hoped it remained that way for an eternity if possible.

"Hmmm, there's only one issue though... well, a few actually."

Zalrisis had been something unknown to the hare until she had begun researching more about the flats, having learned a fountain of knowledge from Askera when the rabbit had come forth with questions to the man. It was thanks to the MIT researcher that Toko currently wore an airtight mask and some goggles—precautions heavily suggested for anyone thinking to visit these lands.

As if the currently incurable disease wasn't enough there was also the matter of beasts called Zalrite that would seemingly roam the open area once the day gave way for the night, and while the rabbit was confident in her abilities she wasn't foolhardy enough to believe they couldn't pose a threat to her wellbeing... especially since they were a petty concentrated vector to spread the disease in the first place. It was these thoughts that had caused her musings out loud, a frown currently on the Lepus' face, when an inexplicable feeling seemed to tug at the corner of her mind.

"... oh!"

It caused her gaze to fall towards her side without purpose, before a streak of something familiar caught Toko's attention as she focused. Yes... she was sure she'd seen that figure before! But why were they here...?

@Cain Darlite

 

[Cain Darlite]

♪
Moonlight spilled from the heavens with the decadence of distilled gold, staining the crystalline plains bright and pale. Crystal dust, like motes of light, separated the mirror-reflection of the earth with the genuine beauty of the firmament, a cloudless night allowing one to truly bathe in the glories found on the twinned utopias. And there, Cain stood, his arms flowing over the nighttime breeze, his fingers grasping onto the very fabric of the night. Naught but song drove away the microscopic quartz that floated all around him, harmonic manipulations turning the disease into an aurora of chromatic resplendence around his pure-white swallowtail suit. To weave space, to charm the stars, he moved with the controlled grace of a danseur searching for those first steps.

Yet, what he sought remained out of grasp. The Harmonic Symphony of a lifetime ago remained lost, the myriad of muses swallowed up by the darkness that laid between the stars. Hylias’ Score remained inert, as if words alone could not stir the Dissonance-purging hymn to life. And the dirge of Iedi invoked not the image of that goddess revoked, only silence remaining where phantasms of flame once sprouted.

The midnight-haired muse let out a breath, the flicker of his eyes suggesting that he was checking his EN meter once more. It did not have to be Zakaden, nor the Shimmering Flats. But only from places of profound beauty could allow for something so miraculous as what he could once accomplish.

Perhaps, this too, was greed.

He had performed well in the battle against the Broodmother. Performed better than he ever had before. And yet, they had won through sacrifice and fortune. And in the aftermath of that battle, he had failed to keep his friends alive against an oversized slimodile.

His hand stretched out once more, grasping a singular shaft of yellowed moonlight so substantial that it appeared solid, only to stop when he felt the presence of another.

“A curious night to be wandering through these parts,” Cain spoke, ashen eyes sliding towards the rabbitkin martial artist. “Have you come too, to admire such majestic, constructed beauty, Moon-Breaker Bolide?”

 

[Toko]

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.

There was something alluring about the figure, and the hare couldn't help but feel that something tugged her closer to the man... though what it was Toko couldn't really explain. His performance was entrancing to say the least, and before the rabbit had realized she had been standing just a few feet away from the man in a pure-white swallowtail suit—a unique choice for sure, though not exactly uncommon fashion when it came to Travelers; although she was sure any Lander would've probably bene confused at the choice.

“A curious night to be wandering through these parts...”

His voice had snapped the fighter out of her thoughts, her eyes fluttering open once more after she had closed them to better enjoy the harmonic tunes Cain had been performing. "A-Ah, gomen... I didn't meant to spy on you." A hand rose to nervously run the back of her neck as a sheepish smile crossed the hare's lips, she truly hadn't meant to just observe unannounced—especially given that it was quite the rude thing to do.

"... oh! Wait, were you...?" His words caught her by surprise at first, before her mind began making the connections. Yes, she had seen him before—right in the thick of battle as they all faced the Kurungaar mother. "Then, was that moon your doing...?"

She couldn't ignore the feeling in the back of her mind that seemed to find his magic familiar, though how exactly Toko wouldn't be able to put in words if she was ever asked... at most she could assume it was an intuition of sorts, but how she had developed such a thing was a mystery even for the hare. The summoning of the celestial body had been on a scale Toko hadn't even imagined before that day, and to say the rabbit been impressed would be a terrible understatement. She had wondered long after the fight how it had come to be in the first place, having doubted that the human rushing towards it—Seigi's infectious excitement having caused the Lepus to rush after her in kind—had been the actual creator of it.

"It was quite the awe-inspiring sight... though I should probably apologize for breaking it up, gomen."

At the very least the fighter could hope that she had done justice to the man's work, perhaps he would think she had placed it to good use...?

@Cain Darlite

 

[Cain Darlite]

“Not so awe-inspiring as what followed after,” Cain replied, his laugh carrying melodically through the crystalline plains. “If you had not utilised it for your own strike, I’m sure someone else would. And if no one else did, then I would have no recourse but to drop it. A moon, fabricated as it is, is a difficult thing to keep manifested.”

The midnight-haired muse took a few steps closer to the lepus, his finger spinning in the air as a conductor would a baton. The faintest of music cascaded over the two of them a measure later, warding off the dust, the disease, that Toko had been warned of. It was funny, just a little bit, that a disease without a cure, a disease so feared by all landers, could be fundamentally defeated with any simulation of ventilation.

“But before we converse further, perhaps proper introductions ought to be placed.” His smile became one more playful as he removed his hat, stepping into a shallow bow. “I am Cain Darlite, Flagbearer of Miracles, Architect of Grand Evocations, and occasional gig musician around Astorea and Falderen. To whom do I have the pleasure of acquainting myself with?”

 

[Toko]

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The small praise caused the rabbit's cheeks to color slightly, though it was mostly hidden by the mask she was currently wearing. "Y-Yeah, I cannot imagine the amount of energy that must eat up for you... that meteor strike alone took out almost all the energy I had remaining without knocking me unconscious." Probably because the moon itself had already been provided for the Lepus, otherwise her strike would've been of a smaller impact... or flat out knocked her out in the process.

Eye watched in almost childlike wonder as the man spun the fingers in the air, the motions similar to what she had seen conductors do with a baton, before she watched the dust that cluttered the air around them begin to dissipate as it was displaced. Now that it was gone the hare removed her goggles and mask, before turning to look at the fellow player as he introduced himself.

"Whoa... those are some pretty impressive titles, Cain-san." Already the fighter had a feeling this Traveler had been around for a while, something about the movement of veterans always gave their status away, but it was still nice to get proper confirmation. "I'm Toko, it's a pleasure to meet you~"

His bow was returned by the hare who did her best to mimic a soft curtsy, although how graceful it was could be debated considering Toko had never practiced them much... mostly going out of a faint memory as to how they worked.

"Mostly hang out around Honeyhome, or the Guild when things are spicy like as of late."

@Cain Darlite

 

[Cain Darlite]

"Ah, Honeyhome, now that's a nostalgic name."

Though Cain himself had become embroiled in the troll hunt of a certain Duke (Lord? Sir?) Seto fairly quickly after his arrival to Terrasphere, that comfy little village still brought forth a couple of pleasant memories. Hazy, idllyic days, monsters that were just wildlife, and a druid hellbent on avenging themselves upon that village. It must have become more prosperous by now, no? He placed his hat upon his head once more, shifting it to an angle, before regarding Toko once more.

"Honeyhome and Adventurers' Guilds are far from Zalra though," the bard remarked. "Should I take it, then, that a self-style prognosticator has decided that something spicy is afoot upon the Shimmering Plains?" A small enough problem that a single high-ranked Starcalled could be sent to investigate, banking on the lives stocked up in order to excuse what may otherwise be a suicide mission through hostile lands. But there was something else that he could see in the beastkin's eyes, something foreign mixed in, dormant but still pulsating.

Ah, what was with people and their eyes? This would be the third, now.

"Or have you strayed from the familiar to do a little soul-searching, Toko?"

 

[Toko]

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.

"Did you spent a lot of time in the village too, Cain-san?"

She wondered how Honeyhome might've been in the past, had it changed at all since the time it first existed and during the four long years the game had been inaccessible to the original players? A part of her wondered in Cain would recognize any of the Landers in the village, or if they in turn would recognize the man... then again not all players paid close attention to the People of the Land, and Toko didn't know where Cain fell in that scale.

"Ahahaaah... the latter one, I guess?" There was a nervous chuckle by the hare, a hand raised to rub the back of her neck, before she answered the man's question. "I was looking for places that might help me connect with my astramancy, and the Shimmering Plains sounded like an interesting option..."

After all many had described the way sunlight seemed to refract from the crystals into quite the awe-inspiring view, and so the Lepus had assumed a similar effect might happen in a night with a full moon. "However it seems a large amount of Zalrite frequent it at night too... which kind of complicates things?" Perhaps choosing another place, like the Razor Edge in the Hylands, would've been a better option that the Zalrisis infected territory.

@Cain Darlite

 

[Cain Darlite]

"Perhaps a day or two, before wider expanses called for me," Cain replied. "Though it's a comforting place to visit no matter the season. With consideration to the calamitous reckonings that Terrasphere contends with, such a thing is perhaps miraculous in its own right."

Or perhaps that's due simply to the laws of the world that exist, carved into it through binary code. And even then, there was no guarantee, was there? Not when Goblins were amassing within the Brisshal woodlands, not when mechanical dragons could fall from the sky and drop from wherever. His own vague concerns about the future, however, looked ill-placed compared to Toko's own present concerns. He took a step back mentally, away from his far-flung musings.

"Zalrite are, fundamentally, of no concern. Though the Crystalbeasts do pose threat to the common traveler, there are no common travelers here presently, yes?" He tilted his head to the side. "Still, issues with Astramancy, or mastery usage in general, is a rare problem for us Starcalled, blessed by the guidance of the System as we are. What, in particular, are you struggling with, Toko, that examinations of motion and thought through auto-assist would not correct?"

 

[Toko]

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"Yeah, it's a pretty great place... and the Landers living in Honeyhome are all so kind and entertaining. Esther-obasan's baked treats are the best~"

She couldn't help but smile as the Lepus thought back to the little village, a place that had soon become a home away from home, before the conversation was switching back to more present topics at hand.

"I suppose you do have a point,"

Perhaps the man was right and she had been overestimating the Zalrite in the area, however the Lepus couldn't help but remain cautious. They were not something she'd witnessed, only ready in books or heard through others, and her own issues with Astramancy only served to make the hare second guess her own abilities.

"Actually... I don't use the System," A sheepish smile was given to Cain then. "I wanted to learn how to control the magic myself, and it was surprisingly intuitive... at least until I got to my Astramancy and Battle Spirits."

A soft sigh escaped the hare before she continued. "I did try turning the assist program on for them, see if it would help me figure things out, but that didn't go as expected." Most of the times her magic refused to trigger when System was on, and the few times it would her energy bar would still be rapidly depleted... no different from the times Toko had tried to cast it organically.

@Cain Darlite

 

[Cain Darlite]

"You've trouble with both Astramancy and Battle Spirits?"

That was certainly a strange combination to have difficulties controlling, especially considering both the natural separation of physical acme and magical manipulations. While plenty of Starcalled used martial and magical masteries together, in the end, a 'hybrid' was less a true mix of masteries and more of a simultaneous usage of disparate masteries. Addition, perhaps, rather than multiplication. More concerning, however, was that despite Toko's troubles here, she had still demonstrated a tremendous amount of output in both areas.

A conundrum then, one most curious. One worth investigating then.

From his Inventory, the Flagbearer drew out a crystal ball, one the size of his hat. In the pale moonlight and the prismatic reflections, the azure orb gained a radiant sheen, and he held it before Toko on the tips of his fingers. "Setting aside the matter of your Battle Spirits, the most easily visualized component of Astramancy is in the manipulation of gravity. To go by your anecdotes, you can achieve output befitting your rank if you force yourself, but in doing so, you strain yourself far more than you should."

There was a subtle change, and then, Cain pinched his fingers together, that force alone able to send the crystal ball floating up, up, up...before plummeting into his hand again. He caught it, with a bit of a grunt.

"Before generating your own, perhaps it would be helpful to understand the planet's own? Imagine, if you will, that everything, including this ball, is covered in many layers of blankets. These blankets represent the Earth's gravity. Remove them one by one from the orb, until it is all mass, no gravity."

For gravity wasn't a force that pulled on you from below, but rather pushed on you from above.

"If you are able to assert fine control, that may help with the issue of wasteful expenditure, at least."

Unless the problem laid elsewhere.

 

[Toko]

A soft nod was given in return to the man's question, a confirmation that he'd heard correctly indeed, even as the Lepus rubbed the back of neck nervously in response. She wasn't sure what caused the issue, especially when it didn't seem to extend to the use of her other masteries, and that only served to frustrate the hare further. Crimson eyes watched with intrigue as Cain did a few hand movements, the familiarity of them confirming he was searching for something inside his Inventory, before a crystal ball had materialized into this place of existence.

"Nante kireina iroh..."

A curious stare was given at the item in question before the Lepus' ears twitched in response to the Flagbearer's voice, listening intently to every spoken word by the man. Quietly she had watched as Cain manipulated the gravity of the orb, her eyes following the object as it slowly drifted higher and higher before it suddenly plummeted back into his waiting grasp as gravity was renewed.

"R-Right...!"

She remembered hearing something similar before with Erick, how she had to be mindful of how gravity worked and interacted with the things in the planet before attempting to harness it herself. The rabbit held out her hands to receive the crystal ball from Cain before her brows furrowed as Toko tried to concentrate, her gaze now focused on the azure surface of the orb.

Just carefully remove the blanket layers... one by one... A frown was on her face then as the Lepus did her best to focus, able to visualize how she wished the magic to work... but feeling unable to properly tap into the cosmical energy when Toko attempted to reach out and manipulate the gravity of the object. ... come on, it's not too different from Geomancy——!

"Kuso!"

For a split second the hare had been able to feel the energies she'd desperately been trying to summon, the crystal beginning to float in response, before the metaphorical dam seemed to suddenly open without warning. Out of the corner of her eyes she could see the sudden chunk of missing energy in her meter, just as the crystal ball rapidly shot upwards. "Aaah...! I got it, I got iiit... uuuff!" With the magic interrupted gravity was soon properly restored to the crystal ball, the Lepus' eyes carefully trained onto the object as it began plummeting back down before finally managing to catch it in her hands with a grunt.

A relieved sigh escaped Toko then, thankful that she had avoided accidentally damaging or breaking Cain's crystal ball.

@Cain Darlite

 

[Cain Darlite]

Cain saw it too.

A gradual, incremental levitation, and then a sudden burst, an immediate consumption. Like a taste, and then a bite. Like a twitch that became a violent spasm. Like the finger, pulling a trigger. A gentle force, a forceful release. The Flagbearer stroked his angular chin, eyes narrowed in thought. Even with intention, even with care, the bunny that could break the moon could not lift a stone. It couldn't be a mental thing, not a defect in personality. It couldn't have been a System-side error, not when Terrasphere was, by nature, an impossibly high-spec game that remained a black box no matter how hard governments worked to unravel it. It was not Dissonance either; he had a good sense of it, and Toko hadn't mentioned any real problems with her ability to access her UI.

In the end, then, it came down to a simple enough solution. She was but a model, a photographer, and ultimately a freelancer. Not an authority in magic, nor a sage of great wisdom. Danielle, as she was, had simply been lucky enough that Terrasphere responded well to most of her visualizations, that the world allowed her mindscape to invade and manipulate it as freely as it did.

So Cain flourished his Battle-Banner, the undulating waves of the woven aurora clearing out a wider area for the two Starcalled, drawn to each other by coincidence, by fate, by gravity. Everyone learned by placing one block at a time, until their foundations could be formed from the repetition of those same tasks. For some, those blocks could rest in their hands. For others, those blocks might require both.

For Toko? Perhaps she could only accumulate a foundation if she struggled with her whole body.

"When a car starts, the destination exists before the ignition."

"When a musician performs, the song exists before the notes."

"When magic manifests, the wish exists before the cost is paid."

The wind slowed, and so had the stars. Time had never been the domain of Chronomancy alone, just as how Space had never been the domain of Astramancy alone.

The midnight-haired muse let out a breath.

"I am no wizard, Toko, so you'll have to forgive me." A terse smile. "If slowness does not come naturally, then push outwards with swiftness instead, and toss caution, exhaustion into these shimmering winds. Release your magic, your spirits, with lethal intent, and let's...see if you cannot at least will destructive force into being when the scepter of death descends."

Stars above, stars below, and the banner he bore was a blackness most greedy, devouring all light.

"In not so many words, perhaps a fight would offer a better diagnosis?"

 

[Toko]

A sheepish smile was given to the man, aware of the way he'd been focusing on her movements and actions as he tried to figure out what was going on with her mastery. A puzzled expression crossed her face as she watched Cain flourish his Battle-Banner, her head tilting ever so slightly to the right as she listened to the man's words. There was a shift in the area around them, crimson eyes turning to look at the space around them as it slowly changed, the hair along her arms standing on end in response to the magical energies that now fluctuated in the space.

For a moment she was unsure as to which direction the sage meant to take this all, the weight of the crystal ball still present in her hands, before finally realization dawned onto the hare's brain. "Oh...! Yeah, maybe that could help!" She couldn't help the excited grin that crossed her lips, a few hand motions carefully storing the crystal ball away in her UI for the short term.

Battling was something Toko understood, her fists balling together as the hare took a defensive stance. Instinct caused her to reach out and into the earth and crystals around them, and while she found it harder to manipulate it soon a thin layer of fresh earth covered the fighter's forearms and shins. To this surface chunks of crystal adhered, before the Lepus shot Cain a nod.

"Ready when you are!"

@Cain Darlite

 

[Cain Darlite]

"Mm. Just keep in mind your Astramancy and your Battle Spirits, Moonbreaker."

His easy-going facade faded, falling away into a severity too heavy for an instructive duel. The blackened battle-banner continued to pulsate as once-scattered refractions of light seemed to change their orientation, re-aligning themselves until every shaft of reflected moonlight pointed towards the Flagbearer himself. Ashen eyes met his opponent's battle-hungry gaze as he slowly shuffled into a wider stance, a spear-wielder's stance.

Tip pointed towards his foe, hands spread apart upon the obsidian haft.

Tension built. Experience, masteries, weapon quality: they mattered against monsters, monsters with their burgeoning health bars, their uncommon resilience. But against Starcalled? The System itself cared little for the lives of immortals; a rusted knife could do as much damage as a summoned meteor, and both, given the right circumstances, could extinguish that undying flame.

Twas a lethal tempo indeed, that synchronization of breaths, that off-tune rhythm of heartbeats, the flurried imaginings of every first strike, every counter blow.

And then, Cain released it.

All the light he had gathered in his battle-banner surged out of the tip, its cold radiance shooting towards Toko, its path guided by the flux and pull of the very gravity that entrapped it before!

 

[Toko]

His prompt was opportune, reminding the Lepus that the sole reason for this spar was actually figuring out the two masteries that were still giving her issues. There was a shift in the air, of something that the hare wasn't quite sure she understood though her senses reacted towards it all the same. He was definitely a veteran player, that much had been clear to Toko from the first time she'd laid eyes on him and others during Red Fever, and given her limited knowledge of those players Toko wasn't exactly sure what she could expect from the man.

Whatever he was planning on doing took some build up to create, that much Toko could tell, and the Lepus used the opportunity to try and tap into the energies within herself. She'd seen Alonso transform before, understood that the power came from deep within him as the man had once tried to explain, and so the Lepus closed her eyes to try and focus as she searched deep inside of her core.

For a moment she had thought something had been there, the faintest trace of an energy that was unknown to the hare catching her attention as her mind drifted closer to it. Outwardly the faintest aura flickered around the hare's body, visible for barely a second to the spear-wielder Toko was facing, before quickly fizzling out into nothingness once more. The fighter grunted in response, her eyes forced open once more after failing to trigger her Battle Spirits, before realizing Cain was seconds away from unleashing whatever attack he'd been preparing.

"Shimatta...!"

With little time to think the hare placed both hands in front of her, palms pressed together and facing Cain as Toko attempted to gather enough cosmical energy in a very short amount of time. The job, rushed as it was, certainly lacked any finesse and instead highlighted the poor control Toko had over the element. Still she managed her objective, a purple orb of swirling energy materializing before her open palm... the most curious black sphere hidden within its depths as the energy swirled around it.

She quickly implemented a gravitational push to it, no time left for the hare to focus on any specific details and direction, just before the beam of light shot forth and towards Toko. The blinding shine caused her to close her eyes in response, feeling the way both energies pushed against one another as it came closer, before her gravitational shield managed to deflect the light just enough so that it wooshed past her left side as the hare was left unscathed.

@Cain Darlite

 

[Cain Darlite]

A breath escaped him.

"First step's done."

Light scattered against the gravitational barrier that Toko created, but just as suddenly, the scattered light changed direction, flooding back into Cain's open hand. Rent into individual motes by the beastwoman's magic, the beams of light now spun in his palm like a miniaturized galaxy. And in the center? She could see it, darker than the night itself. An orb of gravitational force that balanced everything just enough to be the center of the universe, without drawing them in or sending them out.

"Hold onto that feeling, Toko, and remember! Gravity always pulls!"

With that, his hand swept upwards into an arc, smaller beams of starlight now slingshotting out from the gravity core he grasped. Numbering in the hundreds, they flew at varying angles towards Toko, intent on slipping past her defenses through quantity alone. But there too, was a way to defend against such an impossibly fast, unjustifiably plentiful attack.

If she could gather stone towards her, could she not gather light?

 

[Toko]

His mastery of the element was something to behold, and even with the distance between her the hare’s keen eyes could grasp with ease the natural control that Cain displayed over the element. "Cain-san, how long did it took for you to master Astramancy?" She couldn’t help the question that tumbled from her lips, genuine curiosity reflected in those red eyes when the Lepus glanced up to the man’s face.

"Hold onto that feeling, Toko, and remember! Gravity always pulls!"

There was little time for chatter as the dark-haired man called back out to Toko, before she watched his hand sweep upwards in an arched path as he prepared another attack. "Oh… that’s not good—!" She could sense the shift before it happened, perhaps due to currently being so submerged and being focused on the particular mastery herself, before the hare raised her hands in front of her once more.

However Cain would quickly show her that the same trick wouldn’t work twice, hundreds of small starlight beams shooting forth from the man’s palms at outstanding speeds and varying trajectories. There’s way too many for me to track—matsu! That’s it! Cain’s words echoed back in her mind at that moment, the hare quickly adjusting the output of her own spherical orb of cosmic energy.

A few of the light rays managed to graze her arms and clip her shoulder, causing the fighter to wince although her attention remained focused on the task at hand. She focused on the small dark orb hidden within the depths of the small orb of space Toko had managed to produce, gritting her teeth in frustration as she tried to alter the current settings established. After all, black holes were always meant to pull and consume everything in their path… right?

The task proved harder to accomplish than it should’ve been though, another few stray rays of light managing to clip the hare once more, before a frustrated growl escaped Toko in response. The earring seemed to briefly flash then, a sudden flicker of pale golden energy flickering on the hare for a second, before Toko felt the gravitational element in her palms suddenly switch. In an instant the remaining beams of starlight hurling towards the fighter were forced to gather it at one point, being sucked right into the miniature black hole in her palms before the whole set fizzled out of existence seconds after.

"Yatta yoh...!"

An incredulous cry escaped the rabbit then, relief washing over her face, before the fighter slumped ass-fist onto the ground. Her breathing was hard and labored, and she could feel a faint headache beginning to brew inside her mind, before one glance at the corner of her UI where the meters were located confirmed a solid sized chunk of energy currently missing.

@Cain Darlite

 

[Cain Darlite]

Ah, there wasn't really a pleasant answer to that, was there?

So he deigned not to answer instead, pausing his own spellwork to watch Toko handle this problem of hers. Within the mana-infused arena that they fought in, her energy fluctuated and then burst out, the black hole she held increasing in pull and draining all light in their vicinity. It could not be sustained though; moments later, the concentration of astramantic energies evaporated, and the caster herself fell backwards, evidently drained.

This was uncommon, but this could be used. If described as a color, gold had no association with the dignified blue of the stars, nor the reflective face of the moon. It fit not the invisible grasp of gravity, nor the abyssal black of the event horizon. Indeed, when it came to gold, one imagined the sun. And when it came to flickers, one imagined...

"Nova."

He could, perhaps, push forwards. See if there was more than could be drawn out from combat. But at this point? Small successes had to be built upon, not swallowed up by greater failures. Sliding his battle-banner back into the folds of space, Cain strode up to where Toko lay, offering a hand to pull her back up.

"Well done. The first step, while not necessarily the hardest, nevertheless allows one to chart their course," spoke the midnight-haired muse. "If you would allow me to be so presumptuous as to make an analysis within two exchanges, Toko...endeavor to approach your evocations of Astramancy as an explosion, and craft your imagery around that. Rather than lighten a boulder as you push it, make it weightless at the instant that you strike it. Rather than draw light to you with gradual grace, devour it all in a single burst and then let its entirety vaporize. Don't worry about the future. Manifest only in the present."

Cain stepped back, pulling out the crystal orb once more. He balanced it on the tip of his index finger, letting it sway side to side, before allowing it to drop.

"Like this."

With more of a soccer kick than anything out of an ancient martial art, the Flagbearer swung his foot as hard as he could, an explosion of amethyst energy bursting out upon impact before dissipating just as quickly. Weightless at the point of impact, the crystal orb rose fast, and weighted at the point of flight, gained the mass necessary to not deviate from its skyward ascent as it rose, rose, rose...and began to fall back down, plummeting towards Toko.

"Give that a try, Moonbreaker. Aim for the Moon again."

Perhaps this would be a bit crass, but it took a surprisingly short amount of time for something to fall a great distance.

"And imagine a boom."

 

[Toko]

"Nova."
"... eh?"

A puzzled glance was given in the man’s direction as the rabbit’s ears caught the word, unsure as to why Cain had uttered it on its lonesome or what meaning it might hold. He moved towards her then, and the offered hand was gladly accepted by the fighter as she was pulled back onto her feet once more. She was attentive as the Flagbearer spoke, his insight and advice taken to heart as the lepus offered the occasional nod here and there to show she was following along with the conversation.

"Sooh..."

She hadn’t considered that approach, believing that she needed to be delicate and precise in the way she handled the astral energies, but what if that was the very thing that seemed to be holding her back? No such thoughts came to her mind whenever she handled the earth, and even her attunement with nature had gradually developed into a more instinctual approach than a well thought out formula—perhaps if she tried a similar approach to astramancy it would also respond in kind?

"Like this."

Toko’s attention was drawn back to the midnight-haired player in time to see the crystal orb resting in his palm once more, her eyes following the object as the man balanced it atop his index finger before allowing it to drop. A burst of amethyst energy caught the hare by surprise as his foot connected with the sphere, kicking it upwards with an explosion of astral energy before he’d turned to her once more.

"The moon, huh?"

As the orb came plummeting down rapidly the lepus was left with little time to think, her feet kept at a shoulder-width distance even as her knees bent slightly. Both arms were extended as her left hand wrapped around her right fist, thumbs pointing downwards as the hare prepared herself to receive. The orb connected against her forearms, a grunt escaping the fighter as the heavy object collided with her skin though she seemed pleased with the result regardless. Now that its speed had been reduced the fighter was afforded a few extra precious seconds to prepare, her mind simply thinking of getting the ball up high into the sky and towards the moon, before she kicked the crystal sphere with all her might as it began to reach the ground once more.

There was a burst of amethyst accompanied by the faintest trace of gold, the point of impact lightening the weight of the crystal orb which allowed it to climb higher heights than before.

@Cain Darlite

 

[Cain Darlite]

A burst of amethyst, the faintest flecks of gold, and the sound of...a mallet, striking what certainly could not be a crystal. Twas an incongruent noise, one that caused Cain to furrow his brow once more as he watched the orb fly higher and higher until he clapped his hands together.

"Well, I suppose I'll just chalk that up as a business expense."

Even if he found it once more, it wasn't as if it was going to be in one piece, after all, and the crystal itself wasn't so rare a material in this fantastic world that he couldn't afford a new one. What was important, after all, was that Toko had gotten another step closer to whatever she was seeking here. It still wasn't something he could comprehend himself, having any difficulty at all with utilizing a mastery in Terrasphere, but if it was merely a matter of learning new possibilities, then it was fine as it was.

His gaze fell back down onto the rabbit-eared martial artist as he brought his hands together in mute congratulations.

"For now," Cain spoke, "that should give you a proper starting point, Toko, to begin utilizing Astramancy in your adventuring efforts. Though I believe that your case of being unable to leverage your mastery is still somewhat unique, it's nevertheless the case that every mastery is interpreted, and thus reflected, differently from individual to individual. And as this is ultimately a game, self-reflection and understanding can be found best in the application of creative violence."

He smiled.

"The night's still young. If you care for it, I would not mind accompanying you on a hunt."