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Post by demikara on Jan 19, 2021 9:06:40 GMT -6
That wasn't the point at all, but it seemed he never could make himself understood by Catherine. He was, however, spectacularly skilled at upsetting her. It was a pain in the ass, and he had a feeling there would be no spending eternity in the same general area. She seemed to hate him and take everything he did the wrong way. He had no clue what to do about it either. They had to be able to at least work together, given the court and its hell. He kicked his horse into a trot as well and frowned as their pursuers came into view. This wasn't going to be pretty at all. Five against two wasn't odds he liked. Magic sparked between his fingers as he held one hand free to attack. "You'll want me in front for this." He said simply and pulled up so he could be. Unless they had a mage on their side, he should be able to handle three if he stuck to area attacks.
The three up ahead were on foot. Good. He hated hurting animals. People he had much less concern about, but animals rarely deserved the pain he could inflict. Curiously, he wondered what would happen if he used blood magic here. He didn't know if it was illegal in the fae realm though, and decided to hold off on it. It would probably upset Catherine if he used it anyway, even if it was his birthright. He didn't need her even more upset with him than she already was. Hell, maybe he should have just agreed to owe Xiaolian more than he already did from his lessons. They may be in the position they were together, but it sure as hell didn't feel like it.
The mage focused his attention on the battle ahead. There would be plenty of time to try and figure out how to not upset Catherine another time. Right now, they needed to get past the opposition. And he fully planned on launching an attack that should be able to take all three out at once.
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Post by Circe on Jan 19, 2021 18:42:03 GMT -6
"Right." Catherine agreed pulling her horse around. They still had the two on horseback behind them to deal with, and if she played it right, she could at least knock them down onto the ground. "I'll take the two behind us then." She said as she nudged her horse forward while reaching for the short sword that Tyrus had transfigured. Catherine would have preferred something just a bit longer, but her goal was to unseat the riders, hopefully without killing them.
Spuring her horse from a trot to a gallop, she drew the sword from her right hip and held it out. Hours of drills on and off horseback had at least taught her how to ride proficiently, weapons were another thing altogether. As Catherine came close to the first rider, she swung the sword down hard onto the first rider's helmeted head, before pulling her horse up hard to come around again. The first rider had been caught by surprise, unable to control their mount, were promptly thrown. But by the time Catherine came around for another pass, the second rider was intent on putting up a fight.
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Post by demikara on Jan 19, 2021 18:48:23 GMT -6
Good. She wasn't going to argue on this. He had been worried she would. Grinning wickedly, he called up the thrill of battle in his blood and cackled as she shot lightning from his finger tips to the three in front. There was something to be said for sci fi movies. Some of his favorite combat spells came from them. As it was, it had needed some work to direct it initially, and the actual output was, perhaps, higher than a human would be able to still be living from, but it was still a favorite spell.
And the best part was it would attack anyone in the area. Which meant all three would be met with 5,000 volts of electricity, drawn to the metal in their clothes.
It took 6,600 volts to down an elephant. More than fifty volts was considered possibly deadly for a human being. He could direct the lightning well enough to not hit the trees and cause them to burn or otherwise ground the bolts. But not so well as to manage an even 5,000 volts across all three fae.
It had been awhile since he was allowed to let loose. This was fun. Hopefully Catherine would have left one for him of the ones coming from behind, assuming these three weren't able to counter attack or ground his lightning. Still, it wouldn't due to hurt the horses if she had left him one to deal with. He'd have to use something else.
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Post by Circe on Jan 19, 2021 19:12:03 GMT -6
Catherine didn't so much see amusement in it as she did necessity. Getting captured by the party sent after them wouldn't solve the problem with the solstice, in fact it would likely make it worse.
Attempting to unseat the second rider, she found her arm and hand with the sword blocked and constricted by the close quarters. The other rider had drawn their sword by now and was attempting to unseat Catherine while dodging blows from her own sword. It was a situation that could have likely been easily solved with magic, but she didn't even begin to think of that as an option. Breaking off from the second rider, she spurred her horse again and rode towards Tyrus intent on putting a bit of space between her and the other rider before trying again.
The three guardsmen on foot had been little match for his lightning spell, as Catherine had been right. Any mages that could have possibly been fielded from the village had already been sent elsewhere. It was a poor strategy, but did sometimes happen when you had more border to cover than people.
The first rider, whom she had already knocked to the ground was already back on his feet and trying to get his horse back with little success. The thing had spooked easily when it found itself suddenly riderless and even more so when Tyrus had unleashed his lightning spell, leaving it's rider dangling precariously from the stirrups and dragged under foot.
Stopping about halfway between Tyrus and the second rider, Catherine waited for a moment and switched hands between the reins and the sword. Muttering something to the horse in what sounded like fae, and with a darker expression that Tyrus had ever seen, she headed towards the other rider again. This time unseating them as well with a vicious force, more than she had intended.
Drawing her horse up, Catherine took a look at the scene in front of them and frowned. Sliding the short sword back into the belt at her side, she clucked gently to the horse to start walking again. It looked like it was going to be a fight to the border, especially if someone, somewhere had put two and two together.
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Post by demikara on Jan 19, 2021 19:22:25 GMT -6
They were both unseated and one was being dragged by his horse. They were dealt with in other words, though with less force than Tyrus had used. Then again, it was hard for there to be more force than his attack. And he wasn't drained at all, which was, as far as he was concerned, one of the benefits of the solstice. His magic may be a little erratic, but it tended to be stronger, even during the winter solstice. There was something to be said for power days. He continued on the path, his horse stepping delicately over the burned bodies of the soldiers.
Of course, there was one small problem. He had keyed himself up and he'd need to level that out. His new bloodline made that more challenging than he liked to admit. Still, he could taper the battle lust off some, and maintain it at a lower level. It just took a moment of meditation. Or as much meditation as he would get on horse back. A few minutes after the skirmish, such as it was, he spoke up.
"There's probably going to be more, as we closer to the border, right?" The border itself would probably be more heavily defended, though he doubted it was for people leaving. It would be more to keep people from coming in. Or at least, he assumed it would be. They'd have an advantage there at least. "Did the sword work okay, or does it need adjustments?"
He could probably manage some now, and it was best to handle that as soon as possible. They didn't know when they'd be attacked again. They had an early warning system, so long as they kept their mental sensing abilities up and running at least, so it wouldn't be a complete surprise. But he hadn't expected people to come from the front either.
As far as that village knew, they had been horse thieves. Hopefully they wouldn't be heavily pursued for that, but he had a feeling that stealing a horse was rather like stealing a car. They'd be in danger until they lost the horse.
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Post by Circe on Jan 19, 2021 20:01:38 GMT -6
"Probably." Catherine acknowledged. This situation had gone from bad, to worse, to extremely bad quickly. "My primary concern is they don't find just whose causing trouble on this side of the border." She explained plainly. A less violent approach would have been best, but in this world it seemed that wasn't such an option. The circumstances were what they were, and if it had been any different things would have been easier. "I don't want to speak with the Queen about the whos, whys, and hows again." She added. Tatianna was generally quite kind and gracious, especially to those whom she was close with. But the tension on the border had been threatening to come to a head for a long time, and what they had just done had potential to set off a war.
When Catherine lectured about political landmines and territorial disputes, it came from personal experience.
"The sword needs to be longer, and better balanced. There's no sweet spot to it, and makes it a bit of a bitch to work with." Catherine had done the best she could with the tools presented, but she was convinced he had based a sword off something not in reality. "We'll stop at the river crossing up ahead. Just keep your eyes open and don't wade out into it."
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Post by demikara on Jan 19, 2021 20:09:02 GMT -6
"I've never balanced a sword before." He took his out, one hand on the reins to guide the horse and the other holding up the sword. The mage concentrated. Balance. That meant the handle needed to weigh the same as the blade, right? Probably at least. And she wanted it longer. "How long should it be?" That was the question. He only had so much material to work with, but he could manage longer. "And is it alright if I sacrifice width for length? I don't want to run out of metal." He had to explain these things, he reminded himself. She wasn't like him. But he had to treat her like she was intelligent as well, because she was and she was much older than him. He didn't actually know how much she knew.
He could manage not wading into the river though. He planned on picking up a river stone to transfigure into a water bottle though. That way they didn't have to stop too soon. Besides, they'd need water soon enough.
He'd just have to remain alert and keep his senses open to other possible dangers. This was shaping up to be a high stress trip.
He could, however, make sure that no one could connect them to what was happening at the border. "And do you want a glamour to change your appearance? It may make you more difficult to identify." He wasn't worried about himself. His only connection to the fae realm was Catherine or Molly after all.
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Post by Circe on Jan 19, 2021 20:28:12 GMT -6
"About..." Catherine gestured a rough estimate of size. "It's more so a middle length, not terribly long but not terribly short either. The blade doesn't have to be wide either, it needs to be sharp and well balanced." She couldn't believe she was having to explain a sword to someone who called themselves a battle mage. Shouldn't he have had some sort of experience with weapons other than a staff? Catherine could have sworn that given half a chance Tyrus would have adapted quickly to a more fuedal type of life, but she could see she had been wrong and that he was more comfortable with his books.
"A glamour may be wise." Though the details of such and what it should look like elluded her entirely.
As they continued down the road, it seemed that the pair settled into an uneasy silence. The trip was not at all what either had envisoned, and while they seemed to be managing thus far, it was hard to tell what next they'd encounter. The unseelie lands were not only full of a cruel and capricious people, but also dangerously wild outside of the villages and towns. There was a reason that Catherine had told Tyrus not to wade out into the river.
Right before reaching the river, she dismounted and took the horse's reins, leading it down to drink from a shallow area on its banks.
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Post by demikara on Jan 19, 2021 20:37:13 GMT -6
Tyrus dismounted and changed the sword to the specified length, making certain it was sharp and balanced. He held it out to her. "Try this one." He said, letting her take it from him. "Less of a rush job on it." And it was made more to her specifications, which meant she'd be more likely to use it well. While she was examining the sword, he found a pebble and transfigured it to a water bottle, and promptly repeated the transfiguration thrice more, before filling them all and taking a sip. The water was astonishingly fresh. He had never tasted water that was so pure before.
The water in the fae lands tasted wildly differently than the water in the human realm. It tasted much better. The mage took a moment to find a larger rocks of a decent weight, and transfigured into a wicked knife with a wave to it. He checked the balance on the knife and made himself a sheath as well. They had a moment and he fully intended on arming himself.
The downside of transfiguration was that it was temporary. The knife was metal enough now, but would become a stone knife within a few hours, given how much magic he had put into it. It would still be shaped correctly at least.
There was a reason he had wanted metal for the swords. It meant that even when the transfiguration was undone, they'd at least still have metal blades, if not the steel he had made them into.
Calmly, he made himself a second knife and sheath and found some wood to transfigure into a belt that would hold his new weapons. The belt was trickier, but doable, though he didn't want to think of what a pain in the ass it would be once the wood decided to lose its material. "Let me know if you need anything else, by the way. Since we have a brief moment at least."
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Post by Circe on Jan 19, 2021 20:57:06 GMT -6
Catherine took the sword from Tyrus, and tested it briefly by taking a few careful and measured swings. "Better. It will certainly do until we cross the border." Given how uncertain everything was and how potent Tyrus's magic could be, the sword would more than likely hold up. She still had trouble with the fact that this had turned into a rush, instead of taking what little time they had to ensure that everything was safe, including them.
"I think.. for now that this will do." She just had to remind herself that there were methods other than swinging a sword at something. But it was hard to do, given how often she'd been punished in the past simply for having magic. Never mind the time spent in prison for crimes she still wasn't entirely clear on.
Climbing back into the saddle after having watered her horse and herself, Catherine settled back in with the ease of an experienced rider. "We'll ford the river down there in the shallows." She said pointing to a shallow area where the water trickled through the rocks. "Then we'll tack back towards the path."
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Post by demikara on Jan 19, 2021 21:04:43 GMT -6
He was already sore from riding the horse for entirely too long, but he swung himself back into the saddle and tried not to wince. He'd get a break at some point tomorrow, assuming they made if over the borer when Catherine thought they would. Until then, it was back into the saddle, because the horse was certainly faster than he was. And he had enough water for them now. The mage portioned out the water bottles into his saddle bags and took the reins of his horse once more. "Sounds good." So long as the river stayed shallow there, he was fine with it. It was even shallow enough that he shouldn't be splashed with water.
Well, probably not at least. These horses were different than the ones in the human realm after all.
"How do you feel about being a brunette and having a different nose?" That would be an easy enough glamour to secure. He dug into his pockets for a stone to anchor it on and pulled out a piece of quartz. That would work. "I can even give you freckles. I'll change what the horses look like as well." They'd need to. He could anchor that to their tack.
That was what the reins and everything was called, wasn't it? He was pretty sure it was at least. He eyed his piebald horse and anchored a spell on it to make it look like a dappled grey with three socks. That was different enough from piebald that it wouldn't be too noticeable.
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Post by Circe on Jan 19, 2021 21:13:07 GMT -6
Catherine just shrugged, "I don't feel anything in particular towards it, one way or another." She generally thought very little of her personal appearance, as evidenced by the selection of work horse, washable, department store suits she wore for work. Granted, she had one nice suit for Council appearances, but the rest had likely seen better days. Her primary focus for so long had been just to survive, like now, and anything else was very quickly pushed aside for later.
"As long as we're not recognizable, I think we'll be fine." She added leading her horse down the banks and to cross at the shallow end of the river. With some amount of careful coaxing, Catherine managed to convince her horse to start across. Crossing here meant that they didn't run the risk of encountering and dealing with problematic wild sprites and fae who called the river home.
Once across and the glamours set, they continued on their way until they reached the border.
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Post by demikara on Jan 19, 2021 21:39:03 GMT -6
The mage glamoured her horse to be a rich chestnut with a single sock on its back right hoof and a blaze on it's face. Catherine received a different nose, a cornucopia of freckles, tan skin and her hair was both shorter and brown. Tyrus had pinned his hair up with magic into a complicated bun and calmly changed his gender and hair color. The bun would disguise the length of his hair at least and if it was two women riding, well. They were looking for a man and a woman riding. And very few people were comfortable looking like a different gender, or could even pull it off. Tyrus did 'female' astonishingly well.
He valued getting the hell out of dodge more than he valued his sleep, and had volunteered to keep pressing on. He was definitely using a spell to stay awake though and hoping it didn't come bite him on the ass. He'd crash hard and sleep for a good fourteen hours once it was safe to do so, if not through the entire solstice itself, if that was an option. And it better be an option. Preferably on a bed somewhere comfortable with something delicious waiting for him once he woke up. Unfortunately, he doubted the delicious part would happen. He had high hopes for the bed at least.
The sword he made lasted the entire trip and would probably retain its shape until someone melted it down. It wouldn't be as good as worked iron would be, but it would do decently at least. The water bottles on the other hand, were currently thin shaped stone. He'd fix that later, if he wanted some water. Though given how thin the stone was, it could easily be broken open if something did happen to his magic. He had put more magic into his knives, which remained metal and sharp.
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Post by Circe on Jan 19, 2021 22:01:08 GMT -6
Like most countries and their borders, this one wasn't terribly defined, and the area they crossed in left little to tell them if they were back in friendly territories or not. It had been a long and hard ride through the night, leaving both horses and riders more exhausted than not. But there was an end in sight, and if the traffic on the roads was any indication they were closer than they had been previously.
"We're coming into Rysnor. The estate isn't far." She told him. It felt like the hundreth time she had said that, but this time it was true. It wasn't some white lie to keep Tyrus motivated or engaged.
The village guard however was far from amused by the pair and had made them wait outside the gates until dawn, stating that by order of the realm no travelers were to be allowed through at night. Once the sun rose though, Catherine and Tyrus, along with others who had arrived during the night and early hours were allowed through. It was a risk,but given how close they were to reaching the estate, Catherine didn't care.
A large village, Rysnor was by no means a town, and why someone with the prestige that the McBride family carried had chosen as its home was largely a mystery. With its cobblestone streets and small, but tidy houses and shops, the place looked similar to previous villages. Most villages in the fae realm bore a resemblance to one another, at least in the northern part of the realm. But the people were hard working, honest, salt of the earth type. That didn't mean that they weren't prone to their own internal disagreements or struggles however.
"You can drop the glamours." She advised later as they paused beside a long tree lined road with a large house in the distance. Traveling been strange with another 'woman' as a companion, even if Tyrus had pulled it off well with a glamour. Most of Catherine's misadventures when she had been younger had been by herself or with someone like Walther.
The house meanwhile hardly seemed a thing worthy of the title of an estate, with it's dark timber frame and white stone exterior. "We're here." She added.
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Post by demikara on Jan 20, 2021 8:51:25 GMT -6
He was more exhausted than he wanted to be, but that was almost to be expected, given they had traveled through the night. But they had finally arrived, and he dropped the glamours on them carefully, restoring them all to their true appearance. "Thank Ra. And look, you got two horses out of the ordeal." Exhaustion pulled at his bones, and he was sore enough he wasn't sure he'd be able to walk straight. He looked the house over and smiled. "Though what you're going to do with them, I have no clue. The house looks nice." He noted. And it would have beds, which frankly, he needed at this point.
They had made it to safety though. Right now, that was the most important thing. There was a village nearby for getting some food for the next few days. He assumed they'd probably need to do so, given he doubted anyone lived in the estate full time. She probably had some sort of staff to keep it running while she was gone, but it wasn't like they called ahead that they were here. They had really just shown up. "Where to with the horses?" Presumably there was some sort of stable attached to the house for horses. He doubted that Catherine hadn't already had one, for the times she was in the fae realm.
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