[IC] Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

[Muttonhawk]

Lunise gently stroked her hand over the back of Meesei's head in her lap. "Meesei, no one can be certain of what they are capable of without trying. It is a fact of life. Even if the templates helped you to cast magic as a werewolf, it would follow that they could help you find an answer here. Whether it is yourself or your templates, there is no reason to believe you are incapable. In that, I do not believe it is a useful thought to try and separate yourself from your templates in such a way."

She stopped petting Meesei's head and leant to look at her eyes. "As for disappearing, that is a possible future. It does not have to be your fate. Take this chance and see where the future lands. I wish I could say otherwise but you have no more control over it than that. None of us do."

[EliteCommander]

"It is hard not to see them as something...else. Something separate from me. It is not natural to have such latent memories. If it was, then I would not be at risk of disappearing. Their influence on my life just devalues all of my accomplishments. I do want to cure my soul; I want to try. But, it would require magic no one has performed before, and these templates I have apparently been relying on will not help me with that." Meesei replied. At this point, she was reiterating many of her doubts, regardless of the arguments against them. There was certainly logic to Lunise's rationale, but Meesei's fear was overwhelming it.

Meesei shifted around on the bed once more and rolled over onto her back, though kept her head resting on Lunise's lap. She seemed to shy away from looking directly into Lunise's eyes, as if fearing her judgment. Rather, she looked down and slightly lifted one hand, occupying her flurry of thoughts with small spells. Although she had been outwardly resisting nearly every argument Lunise made, it would be inaccurate to say they were not affecting her. The thought that was most compelling to her was the one that prompted her to transform in the first place: there was no way she had any latent memories of magical control in beast form. It was true that she could only perform such a feat with the assistance of Hircine's Ring, but the ring alone would not allow just any other lycan to do the same. She worried that something within those unseen memories helped her achieve that power, but she had no way to prove it one way or another. It was a doubt for her, but with the stakes being her very existence, she was hesitant to just assume she accomplished it on her own.

As she was deep into her thoughts, Meesei idly cycles through a few simple spells in her hand: a small flame, a charge of lightning, a simple light, and a few other benign spells. However, as she shifted towards mysticism, a stray thought gave her pause. A violet, disrupting energy surrounded her hand and was quickly given a solid form: a dispelling chain. It wrapped around her hand and hanged down alongside her arm. It was powerful, like a concentrated void of magicka that broke apart any sense of order in the magic around it. Meesei did nothing further, said nothing further, and simply stared at the chain as if lost in a trance.

[Muttonhawk]

"And like I said, I would not be so sure of that," Lunise responded patiently.

Without an immediate response, Lunise tried to think further on how to lift Meesei from her depression. There was no easy solution. Going out to do something -- anything -- perhaps to get fresh air and distract her mind, could help in some small measure. Not much else arose while she looked on at Meesei's little spells.

The lingering on the dispelling chain caught Lunise's eye. She tilted her head. "That reminds me of commander Teroiah's brand of spells," she commented. "I remember the duel between you two. I had never seen her so indignant. She may be many years my elder but she never did grow out of her temper."

[EliteCommander]

"Yes, I...needed to make a statement. To show my power, unequivocally, to your superiors." Meesei remarked. She lifted her head up off of Lunise's lap and sat up beside her. She strengthened the spell and lengthened the chain, then held it between both of her hands. "I watched her closely during the fight. I remember being impressed by the spell; it was creative, and powerful. Especially in a duel. I had never seen a spell like it, something that could break magical defenses so efficiently. Just watching her, I realized I understood the core ideas of what she was doing. Or...had a reasonable belief that I understood them. I decided that, to display my skill, I would learn her spell in the midst of the fight."

After a moment, Meesei's first few thoughts led her to start growling at herself. "I guess I really am just reliant on other people's ideas." She remarked, though even she had to doubt her own criticism this time. While there were, perhaps, a few small similarities, the learning abilities provided by Meesei's latent memories, and the accomplishment of learning an opponent's spell in the middle of a match, were two entirely different scenarios. One was far more impressive than the other.

[Muttonhawk]

"Hmph!" Lunise called, looking as incredulous as she sounded. "Now that you speak of it so lowly, I cannot help but agree that learning a spell that took decades of work to make practical in combat in the span of under two or three minutes is simply...plagiarism! Derivative! I'm sure requiring no creativity or skill whatsoever." She stopped to scoff before her sarcasm grew any more crass to her own ears. Still, she continued with her head moving in exaggerated sways to punctuate herself. "You are so reliant Meesei, that I am sure that anyone here at the Psijic Order could just the same thing if they wanted to. Actually..."

Lunise sprang up standing beside the bed and picked up a wedge of nectarine, stuffing the whole piece into her mouth. While she chewed, mouth closed, she gestured for Meesei to get up as well. She even went as far as to tug at her hand to hurry her.

She kept speaking as soon as she swallowed her mouthful. "Come, we are going on a walk right this moment. Stay in that form, you can fit through the doorway if you take your time."

[EliteCommander]

Sarcastic as she might have been, Lunise's point did resonate within Meesei's mind nevertheless. To have learned Teroiah's dispelling chains, a spell that may very well have only been practiced by Teroiah herself prior to that, in the midst of a battle was a feat for which Meesei had no answer. At the very least, no Argonian had ever cast that spell before. Although, while Meesei had been distracted in her thoughts, Lunise's new suggestion was both surprising and confusing enough to alarm her, to an extent.

"I...are you sure that is a good idea?" Meesei replied, slowly standing as Lunise dragged her to her feet. At this point, she genuinely was not sure what Lunise was intending, or what wandering Artaeum like this would accomplish. Ultimately, she did trust Lunise enough to follow, but her hesitation was apparent.

[Muttonhawk]

"I am," Lunise said resolutely. "Come, we need not take much time. You have been cooped up for too long anyway."

Even as Meesei ducked awkwardly under the door out from their room, Lunise held onto her hand as well as she could. She set a brisk pace as they made their way outside. None could understate the bizarre sight they made as a confident Altmer leading a hulking werewolf by the hand like a self-conscious child. Lunise was counting on it.

Her assumption did not take long to pay off. A group of monks performing a few exercises in an open paved area turned their heads towards them. Lunise noticed and strode up to them with purpose. "Excuse me? Excuse me." She said as she closed the distance. "Might I have a few moments of your time? Do not be perturbed, Meesei here is no threat."

[EliteCommander]

Although everyone on the island had no doubt been informed of their visitors' arrival, the sight of Meesei in her current state was not something that most could simply take without reacting. Even among Psijic monks. They had not run into too many others on their way outside, but there were a small group of three Psijics practicing in the arena. As Zyausak had explained to Lunise the previous day, the location was known as the "Colosseum of the Old Ways". It was, in his opinion, a rather grandiose name for what amounted to a small stone arena primarily used to study atronach skirmishes and carry out magical exercises.

The woman who turned to address Lunise was an Orc and, fairly predictably, was briefly startled when she turned around. Neither her nor the other two Altmer were anyone they had met since arriving, but they all calmed down quickly enough that they were likely already knew who they were. "I...sorry, I knew we were getting visitors, but I didn't expect you to be walking around like...that. I thought Sage Nytala was in charge of you two? Is there...something wrong?"

[Muttonhawk]

Lunise let go of Meesei's hand to clasp her hands behind her back. "Oh, not at all," Lunise said eloquently. "Nothing requiring alarm, at the very least. Meesei and I have merely come to something of a debate, and to help settle it I would humbly request you attempt to replicate a spell that Meesei has learnt. I promise you will not be bothered once we are done." She turned her head. "Meesei? If you would show them Teroiah's dispelling cord, please?"

[EliteCommander]

Meesei was now seeing where Lunise was going with this little excursion, but nevertheless, she decided to oblige her request. Meesei charged her spell and gave her magic its near-physical form, creating the dispelling chain in one hand and allowing it to hang down close to the ground. Right away, the spell caused some visible surprise from the Orc and both of the Altmer, though perhaps not for the same reasons as Lunise was intending.

"My word, I had heard the rumors, but to see it for myself..." The Orc began. She observed Meesei's spell, though looked even more closely at Meesei's werewolf form. "I've read Sage Nytala's dissertation on lycanthropy. The amount of mental barriers and very real magical barriers one would have to overcome to be able to channel magicka with such an entropic spirit bound into your mind...Nytala has not even come close to determining how you achieved that. You know, there could be quite a few benefits, even to non-lycans, to learning from your methodology. Nytala has theorized that your techniques could help improve some of our meditative techniques, which in turn could allow us to..."

The Psijic's academic curiosity, it appeared, had gotten the best of her. She had strayed away from Lunise's request, and did not look like she was going to be stopping on her own for some time.

[Muttonhawk]

Lunise slowly smiled with her chin up high. She was in no hurry to stop the woman's expression of fascination. Far from just being polite, Lunise intended for Meesei to drink in as much praise as was appropriate. Lunise decided if it caused a conversation to be struck up, so be it. However, after about a minute, she took on a certain silent and ominous stare that she knew to let people know they were being watched. The monk speaking would notice eventually, she was sure. Then, Divines willing, Meesei could have undeniable proof that her mimicry was not so easily dismissed after all.

[EliteCommander]

What the Orc had to say was at least of some interest to Meesei. Evidently, Nytala believed that Meesei's method of attaining enough mental clarity to cast magic in her beast form could also be adapted to improve some Psijic meditative techniques. Meesei, in truth, was not sure if she would be able to help them, as she had not yet attempted to expand upon that particular technique. But, she supposed the logic was there to at least make an attempt worthwhile. Regardless, Lunise did have certain intentions for bringing her here, and even if the Orc did not notice her stare, Meesei did.

Meesei held up her hand somewhat, calling more attention to the dispelling chain. Eventually, the Orc did glance down and was reminded of Lunise's question. "Oh, yes, right. You wanted me to try to replicate a spell, yes? That is...well, that is interesting. I have not seen that spell before. It forms magicka into a discrete shape, but it is quite a disruptive form of energy. Dispelling magic, yes?" The Orc brought her hand up to her chin, contemplating as she continued to observe the spell. "That actually makes some sense. Where as common dispel magic tends to envelop an object to disrupt its magic, this would concentrate all of that arcane entropy onto a smaller point. Most of the target magic would be unaffected by a strike, but most enchantments or magical defenses would still be broken if one part of it was sufficiently disrupted. It would break the patterns. Clever. And you want me to replicate it? I suppose I could do that; how many days do you have for me to study it?"

[Muttonhawk]

Lunise looked at the monk for two very noticeable seconds before quickly glancing to Meesei and back. "Hm," She said quickly. "I did promise I would not take up too much of your time. Treat this as hypothetical, for now. What would be the absolute minimum time span you would need to perform this spell sufficient to..." She turned up a palm. "...break a well-raised ward, for instance? As if it were a task of utmost importance. Just an estimation will do."

Without waiting, Lunise addressed the other monks. "And what of you two? How long do you think you would need?" She held up a hand and quickly added. "This is not a competition, mind you. I understand you all have different specialities. I am merely interested to know for the sake of our debate."

[EliteCommander]

The Orc looked confused for a few moments, as if she was not entirely certain she had correctly understood the question. "That...is a difficult question to answer. If a spell is simple, I could learn it in minutes, but this one is not. The idea weaves together several magical disciplines. Not to mention the fact that it takes a type of magic that is inherently chaotic and forces it into a distinct, ordered form. I am honestly not certain how much experimenting it would take to figure out how to weave it properly. I personally don't have much experience making discretely shaped magical entities. It might take me a few days, longer if I run into something unexpected. Though...Nurellin." She began, turning her head and gesturing towards the Altmer man just to her left. "You have a bit more practice with that, right? I remember you weaved some alteration into those illusions to help train Vanelienne's pigs last year. Does that have any similarities to this?"

"More than you would think, actually." The Altmer man answered. "Instead of an alteration weaved illusion, though, it weaves with mysticism. Illusions are just as resistant to coexisting with more solid forms of magic, perhaps even moreso, than dispel. It would not be identical, of course, I would have to overcome an entirely different sort of dissonance, but if I were to wager...I would say I could do it in a few hours. If I really put in the effort." He answered confidently.

[Muttonhawk]

"Excellent. Your answers help us immensely." Lunise began to turn around but looked to the second Altmer monk with the trio they spoke to. "Do you have an estimation for yourself? If not, Meesei and I will leave you all to your business." She smiled bright with satisfaction.

[EliteCommander]

The other Altmer's answer was not dissimilar to the Orc's, though Meesei well understood Lunise's point by then. They bade farewell to the Psijics, and Meesei remained close to Lunise as they were walking away. Meesei was still not confident that it was a terribly good idea to remain in her werewolf form in such a setting, but they at least were not likely to run into too many others on the way back.

"You know, I do not think all of this was necessary." Meesei commented, nudging Lunise's elbow. "Really, I understood you when we were back in the room. I...know what point you have been trying to make."

[Muttonhawk]

"On the contrary, my dearest champion, my point comes along with much greater strength when you are not left to rot in a small bedroom and crying into my lap," Lunise said, peering at Meesei with her head bowed and her eyes up. "Take it from my professional experience. Context is paramount to one's message. A sample of the greatest mages in Tamriel provides that context in droves."

Lunise reached out to hold Meesei's hand as they walked, though in Meesei's form, she was only barely able to weave her fingers between Meesei's thumb, index, and middle finger. She toned down her smugness as she continued. "But now that you have taken the point of this, are you at least feeling less uncertain? I cannot stress it enough; I truly believe you have a real chance, Meesei."

[EliteCommander]

Meesei listened closely as they headed inside and started making their way down back towards their room. While he had heard the words Lunise had been speaking for the past day, she realized she had been ignoring, or at least dismissing any of her meaning. The least she could do now was to listen with an attentive ear.

Initially, Meesei's response might not have been encouraging. As they were heading down the stairs, Meesei hesitated to answer. Although, she was mostly having difficulty finding the words to express what she wanted to say. It was not until they had made their way back into their room that Meesei gave a definitive, unmistakable answer. She threw her arms around Lunise and pulled her, rather suddenly, into a tight hug. Given the difference in size between them, Lunise was essentially enveloped in muscle and fur. "I do not think I can really overstate how much I appreciate you, dear. Even when I am being an undeserving, stubborn cloaca, you just do not give up. You are too good for me."

Meesei released her grip on Lunise and took a step back. Once again, she cast a dispelling chain even more intense than the last. "You are right, and I know you're right. There is no way I can reasonably deny it without just making excuses. I learned Teroiah's spell over the course of minutes. An inefficient version, granted, but still. This was her spell. No Argonian has ever cast this before me, and no divine intervention helped me do it. This werewolf form...I have mastered it in a way no Argonian ever has. If I was smart enough to listen to you, I would have realized yesterday that I am more than these...memories."

[Muttonhawk]

Initially, Lunise was not encouraged by Meesei's hesitation, though she could see she had some kind of answer. Even after waiting, getting hugged so suddenly came as a surprise. The surprise turned back into a grateful smile soon after Meesei stepped away and explained herself.

Lunise brought an arm up to readjust her hair. "While it is tempting to gloat, Meesei, even I have to point out that if intelligence was all that was required to see reason in despondency, there would be much more courage in the world. What is important is you see it now." She stepped forward and reached up to hold Meesei's face between her hands. "And I am so glad you do." Her smile faded again as she stared into Meesei's eyes. "I expect the next decision is whether you will be returning here after the invasion."

[EliteCommander]

Meesei returned Lunise's gaze. "Yes...it would be." She replied, somewhat slowly. "It would be hard not to admit that it is a tempting offer. For most mages, it would be a dream to be able to practice their craft here. Perhaps I would be able to solve this problem in a few years and return home quickly...or perhaps not. More likely it seems that I would have to live this life for quite a long time. And, perhaps there is merit to that. Perhaps people like your mother have reasons for being here that are not purely selfish; something that neither of us have yet seen and that we lack the perspective to understand. But...I do know the merits of the life I live. I know what I do for my people, for my family. I know what they mean to me, and, thanks to you, I know how much I can still do for them."

Meesei's muzzle soon started to show a distinctive grin, and she made a sound reasonably comparable to laughing. "And I do believe you are right, I am the greatest mage to have graced the shores of Artaeum since the days of Galerion. If there is anyone in Tamriel who can do this, it is me...perhaps with the help of Ahnasha, you, Sabine, and everyone else I have come to rely on over the years. So, yes, I know I will have help, even without the aid of the Psijic Order. And I am not going to abandon them all. Besides, I have already done the impossible so many times already, what is once more?"