Kalas

Liseranna Academy For The Magically Gifted [ALWAYS ACCEPTING]

This weekend has been exhausting. O.o

Liseranna Academy For The Magically Gifted [ALWAYS ACCEPTING]

Aster's Study

He'd been pouring over dusty, old books for the past day now, but had yet to get much further than finding out that Babylon was the nontraditional name meaning Confusion. Alas, maybe he would have to resign himself to visiting the Library afterall. Aster had initially hoped that the old history tomes he'd borrowed for researching ancient Mana rituals would hold the keys to unlocking the Director's godforsaken riddle, but it wasn't to be. He clenched a fist in annoyance. "This won't do." He said out loud. He had to come up with a quicker method of finding the location of the treasure. Normally, when theories arose within his mind, the Demon Prince would have been more prudent. He'd have allowed for hitches to hinder him at every turn and he understood that no matter how much he planned, something would go wrong. It was just the nature of experimentation. But this was not just some experiment; A measly idea cobbled together whilst pouring himself a fresh cup of the black stuff, no.

This was his life's work; A vast myriad of staircases, each one leading toward an unopened door or unexplored avenue. Yet every step he'd taken towards the answer had been littered with dead ends and misdirection. Doors slammed in his face and avenues closed together so tight, he was unable to go any further. He'd reached a low point once, where he figured that he'd never find the answer. That he would simply have to let the brilliance that was once his vision slip away into the ether of forgotten ideas. That was until a yesterday, when the mere recollection of a young student's powers re-ignited the spark within his mind, which by now had grown into a roaring conflagration. Everything felt right about it and what could he do but allow his mind to wander. He could feel himself racing up staircase after staircase, each step filling him with renewed vigor.

The Director's riddle was merely the first hurdle. 'That's it! The Director!' Aster sat back into his ornate, wooden chair, gripping the leather-bound padded arms in realization. A had never cared much for anything among the lives of his students or teachers alike, merely anything that would entertain him. Once you'd reached a certain plateau of power, you forgot about those still at the bottom of the mountain, unwilling or unable to make the same climb. But what about those who would dare to follow in your footsteps? Would you ignore them blindly, or would curiosity rear its' playful hand and beckon you to peek over the edge? It was a risk, Aster knew, but the risks were far outweighed by the rewards. Maybe the Director would recognize his climb and lend a helping hand? Or maybe he'd throw rocks instead? Either way, it was he who was the next hurdle, not some damned riddle. Casting his books aside, the Demon rose swiftly from his chair and almost ran out of his study. His destination: The Director's office.

Director A's Office

Aster had arrived in minutes, somewhat out of breath yet no too much as for it to be noticeable that he had rushed to get here. He straightened his shoulders, his coat ruffling as it settled into it's new position. Then he raised a balled fist and knocked.

"Who might it be? Oh, who am I fooling. Mister Aster, what do you seek here?" The man answered, in his usual playful tone.

He had kicked out Arthur not that long ago, expecting Aster to visit any time soon.

"I'm not here to beat around the bush, A, I'm here to ask for a favor." He stated, all matter-of-fact-like.

"Uh, a favor! And what might that be? If it's not too boring, I might consider it."

Aster had prepared a little speech on the way over but he'd have to paraphrase, the Director's attention could only be held for so long. "Simply put, I think I've finally found out a way of converting Apparent Mana back into Latent Mana. However, I require the use of a student to assist me, though I foresee that she will not be so willing to help. I trust you've heard of Lyssa Nemorienne. Her deconstruction magic could very well be the key element I've been searching for these past hundred years." He took a short breath, not wanting to rush this next part. "The favor in question is in regards to the treasure hunt; If I can beat her team to it, then I'll be able to take the required steps to then test out my theory using her magic."

"I see... So you wish to screw over miss Nemorienne? And here I thought devils weren't as bad as they all said." He chuckled.

The door finally opened and the man himself stood in front of Aster.

"Very well, I understand. It seems I am rather popular today. What, with hot studs coming over to talk with me non-stop. I could get used to this." He sighed, seemingly lovestruck.

"In any case, you want to beat her to the punch, right? What task was she assigned with, hm? Tell me and I might help you in this... endeavor of yours." By far the least crazy task the director had imposed on someone.

The fact that he was licking his lips all the while while he looked at Aster could probably give him a good idea as to why he was being so forgiving.

The Demon Prince was rather taken aback by his initial statement. Was he really that bad for wanting to use a student to further his own plans? He shook his head a little. 'Ludicrous.' He thought. Although it was only natural for others to be used as stepping stones towards the path to greatness. Eggs and Omelettes sprung to mind. When eventually the door opened, Aster's face flushed red. He'd never been so outwardly complimented by the Director before, despite being very aware of his sexuality.

"Ahem," He began, trying not to make a big deal about it but ultimately failing. "I guess screw over would be one way you could put it. Although I hardly intend to be completely malicious when going about it." He tried not to notice A's tongue sliding wildly across his lips. Yet it seemed he would fail at that too.

"The task she was given, alludes to retrieving something from Babylon. I know not what it is exactly but I'd rather not speculate either." He answered, somewhat mesmerized by the Director's tongue by now.

"Good, good! Then, you shall be the one to impede their advance." He followed up.

"Truly, I hope that you did not expect for this to be as easy as a simple 'treasure hunt'." He chuckled some. "Each and every one of the treasures is protected by something. Truthfully, I expected this one to be protected by the spirit of Gilgamesh himself, but it seems I won't have to rely on the King Of Heroes this time."

The director then smiled, malicious as ever. "If you manage to fend off a minimum of 10 students on your own, I will grant you the treasure that they would've otherwise wrenched out of the claws of Gilgamesh's spirit."

Aster returned the Director's smile. Not that he was entirely interested in the treasure to begin with, simply the chance to witness Lyssa's magic up close would be reward enough. But who was he to turn down any bonuses? "Consider it done." He stated, firmly. Then, bidding A farewell, Aster swiftly headed back towards his study. He was going to need to pack some things and come up with a strategy before heading to the teleportation pad.

Liseranna Academy For The Magically Gifted [ALWAYS ACCEPTING]

<Snipped quote by Kalas>

I call that dedicated. One friend of mine would likely do the same he has a movie card and can go for free the entire month so he mostly goes to good films second or thrice

@liferusher

That or obsessed! ^^ And I really should get a movie card but I cba. Just been paying like £15 a time (Premier Seats) to go see it.

Liseranna Academy For The Magically Gifted [ALWAYS ACCEPTING]

@liferusher I'm seeing it for the 3rd time tomorrow

Liseranna Academy For The Magically Gifted [ALWAYS ACCEPTING]

@sakurasan Yeah my bad. I'm just gonna go punish my fingers now by throwing them into a blender. O.o

Liseranna Academy For The Magically Gifted [ALWAYS ACCEPTING]

@sakurasan Oh god! That was a typo! I meant to say, he wasn't going to do that :P

<Snipped quote by Kalas>

What's the point of being a few thousand years old if you aren't even capable of applying it? Or, more specifically, if you're that old, what the hell has your character been doing with their time, that they're still weaker or less knowledgeable than, say, a human in their mid-twenties? Like, geez, the world isn't THAT big a place. XD

Really, outside of tossing in flashbacks and referring to ancient events, it feels like age is just a number that people get by planting their faces on their keyboard, and that sorta irks me. Might just be me having too high of expectations for them though.

@Ashifili

No, you make some decent points. I was just saying that people have the freedom and they're likely to come up with some monstrous age for their character. Hell, I did it myself! But then I have some genuine lore behind Aster already so, to me, it felt justified.

But hey, this is why we have you (and the GMs), to prevent people from making the stupid decision of face-smashing an age onto their characters. Or rather, to let them know it was a stupid decision since they've more than likely already done it.

Liseranna Academy For The Magically Gifted [ALWAYS ACCEPTING]

And older than modern society too, huh? XD

@Ashifili

Being bound by the Human lifespan is mundane and boring and something we already have to adhere to. Given the chance to Roleplay beyond those boundaries is something a lot of people can only imagine, hence why longer lifespans are in abundance here.

@sakurasan Yeah that makes sense. Although, I was planning on having Karma run up to her and be like "OMG HAI!" He has other things to deal with before he can play :P

@liferusher Sux2bU ;)

Liseranna Academy For The Magically Gifted [ALWAYS ACCEPTING]

@sakurasan Well she'd be right to fear him, if she knew what he was really like. But of course, it's not like Karma will simply tell her all of this straight up. Here's an example of how he'd try to extract information he could use.

- First, he'd strike up a normal conversation. "Hi, I'm Karma. I don't believe we've met. I'm new. How are you?" Easy and simple.
- Once he has your attention, he'd ask non-intrusive questions. Maybe about food or music, something they can both relate to. It'd make him feel more comfortable to be around. He might even crack a joke or two.
- Then he'd up the relatability factor, talk about something they definitely have in common: Magic. Depending on the reaction, he might press further but generally he'd keep it vague, just enough to make the other person want to ask questions.
- If they ask the question, he gives them an answer. Then through a give-and-take approach he'd ask more questions, sharing a little more of himself, all in good lighting of course, whilst at the same time gaining the information he needs. (People are surprisingly more susceptible to this tactic than you'd think. See: Social Engineering)
- If he were to stumble onto something such as this:

She can appear up to once a day, fully. However, a battle like last time causes her to not be able to come out for around 2 days.

@sakurasan

He would likely end the conversation shortly afterward, though not abruptly. And he'd always allude towards their next meeting. "We should do this again sometime." etc, etc.
- Then, If ever Elise were to cause him any problems in the future, he'd take a step back and try to instigate the same situation, armed with the information he gained from before, Elise would be rendered out of the picture for two days. Long enough for him to supplant himself around Eli and become a constant.

Lol, I know I've made it sound extremely easy. But I talk to people for a living and you'd be surprised at how easy it really is do get information from someone when they don't know they're a target.

Liseranna Academy For The Magically Gifted [ALWAYS ACCEPTING]

@sakurasan No, I think he'd be more invested honestly. He's extremely sure of himself so Elise would essentially just be another challenge for him to conquer. I think once she shows herself, he might take a step back for a while, but only to assess the situation. How often she appears? What triggers her appearance? Things he could do differently to prevent her from showing up? When Karma sets his sights on something, he is very much in it for the long game and isn't easily deterred.

In a way, he's the worst kind of manipulative because he creates for himself multiple opportunities to use and abuse his targets. And he doesn't mind taking long detours to remove any obstacles in his way.

Persistence may well be his greatest trait.

Liseranna Academy For The Magically Gifted [ALWAYS ACCEPTING]

@sakurasan Ahaha! Well any challenge is a good challenge. Karma is a tricky one since he is able adapt better than most to new situations. Elise would likely be a problem at first, but it wouldn't be long before he'd figure out a work around

Oh man, I can picture him already. Just the thought of it makes my skin crawl. Haha!