The task before Aurland and Steorra was to establish a stable arcane field around the Elucidate. The magic of this new realm was wily and fickle and just as they struggled to control it, the Elucidate was struggling to operate under these current conditions. While the arcanosmith of the Elucidate had died in the crash, the next most qualified member of the expedition, evidently they were a Theoretical Arcanist, had declared that the field could be stabilized by placing three beacons around the Elucidate. They would create a field of magic the sort of which the crew was familiar with, a sort of buffer zone around the tower that would also take the pressure off the Elucidate.

This was how Aurland found himself with a bag slung over his shoulder and three brass and platinum magitech spikes clanking with each step. In theory this task was going to just be a matter of hiking the surrounding areas and planting the spikes. Though hiking also meant a fair amount of climbing it turned out as the area surrounding the Elucidate's crash site was quite rocky. It meant this task was likely going to take all day to complete. Especially as Steorra was moving slower than Aurland. They certainly had plenty of time to talk.

Writing Prompt: Share a detail of yourself with your adventure partner and ask them one question about themselves.

OOC: Steorra actually has 2 spell slots and 2 spells, so brings them both. He brings his only single enchantment as well.

As they (and Steorra more slowly) made their away outside the tower and began surveying it, it really hit Steorra how weak he had become. He was never as fit as someone like Arzin, but he was a young man and had decent physical fitness as far as mages were concerned. But now, he was practically enfeebled!

Huffing along, he forced them both to a stop and asked for a ten minute break, using the excuse that they needed to "visually begin surveying their surroundings." Yes, that was totally what it was and definitely wasn't because Steorra was huffing like an old man right now.

"So Aurland. What made you decide to join the expedition? I had heard little of you previously, but I don't recall you being closely affiliated with the Mage Tower beyond a basic level. But your capacity for conjuration magic is obviously gifted. Believe it or not, I am a Magister of the Mage Tower. The youngest in history, actually, but I've not let that stop me from holding my own politically against the other Magisters. So I have learned to spot magical talent other mages." he said.

"I am the Magister of Time, to be precise. And the way you conjured that wall back in the Prismatic Slime fight, despite us having just been zapped by the dimensional wave, is proof that you're no normal mage. You have a real gift for conjuration. So what were you doing before, and how all of a sudden were considered for the expedition?"

Aurland nodded amicably at Steorra's claims.

"You flatter me. I'm just glad to be able to be of some assistance. As for knowing who you are, I am well-aware. A prodigy in the emperor's own court if I'm not mistaken. Rumor has it that you're not just the youngest but among one of the few our nation has ever produced. Of course I've only rumor to go on; state-secrets and what not. Can't have exact numbers on such things I'm told."

"But it is as you say: I am not closely affiliated with the Tower. I'm what you might consider a hedge magician; if you can believe that after such high praise. I was trained by an Aspectus priest and folklorist after being taken in by the church. He taught me a few tricks of the trade and when I demonstrated a gift for it he sent me on goodwill missions to various places where I learned bits and pieces of magic from physics, midwives, herbalists, etcetera, etcetera. It wasn't until much later in life, after my military service building earthworks and fortifications that I received an invitation to study at the academy proper. Although at that stage it was more a finishing than formal education."

He blinked a few times, catching himself rambling.

"Apologies I sometimes run off with a story. In fewer words, I'm a part of the expedition because I've devoted my life to the study of magic, to the study of conjuration, and the idea of getting access to utterly foreign concepts and knowledge was too enticing to give up."

He allows a few moments of silence between the two before asking a question of his own.

"So what is it that brings you here? I imagine you're not want for much given your station. Being both possessed of wealth and fame I imagine. Is it knowledge you seek? Purpose perhaps?"

Aurland prepares Wall
This message was last edited by the player at 20:53, Mon 11 Mar.

OOC: Steorra, you can respond to Aurland's question in your next post, just moving things along on my end!

The miles of hiking provided a chance for the two mages the chance to get to know one another better and their task continued to prove quiet. Arriving at the first beacon location Aurland fished out the brass and platinum rod. The device looked like a spike of precious metals topped with a bulb. According to the Elucidate's head of the workshop, a rather imposing woman who looked like a blacksmtih than a mage, the bulb head a miniature Arcanosphere. When placed, the beacon would emanate an arcane field the kind of which was far more agreeable to the Aleteros mages. Placement was as simple as driving the spike into the ground. True enough, Aurland drove the spike into the earth, a brief hum began to sound off the device and the arcane charge in the air immediately changed. It was a comforting change, like being back home again.

One beacon down, two to go.

Striking off in another direction (North? South? The only point of reference was the Elucidate itself as far as the mages were aware.) They could feel as they left the range of first beacon and the foreign powers of this new realm crowded in once more. They walked well past that boundary till they were roughly equidistant to the original beacon and their intended location, there they planted another. This took more doing as they had only sheer rock to work with, but eventually they found a place they could wedge it into the rocks. Evidently being planted in soil was not a requirement for it began to hum with energy just as the first.

This was when they encountered their first complications. They could feel pressure building in the air this time, the two opposing varieties of magic clashing. The wild magic of this realm was winning through sheer mass and they could hear the beacons engine spinning up faster and faster as it tried to accommodate the pressure. At this rate it would burn itself out like the Elucidate's arcanosphere nearly had. Steps would need to be taken to ease the supernatural pressure. There were options for this.

Stabilize the Weave

Choose one of the options for stabilizing the new arcane weave. If you both choose different options I'll flip a coin to see whose options is decided.

Expend Four Magical Charges: Expending spells within the new field would help the new weave surge and stabilize. A relatively inexpensive fix, though there was still a beacon left and it would mean having limited resources should a problem surface there.

Release the Pressure: You could also call up a surge of the wild magic of this realm. You'd already seen the results of this, beings of wild magic would manifest and then need to be dealt with.

Forceful Stabilizing: Otherwise an individual could take the dangerous task of imposing their own will on the new weave. This would be pitting their own force of will against the wild magic. It would work, though it may come at a dangerous cost. Roll a Deadly Roll to stabilize the Weave.

Steorra nodded.

"Yes, you're absolutely right about me. I'm something of a special case as far as magic users go, as well as my relationship with the Empire. Although despite my natural talent, I also have worked hard in my own way to get to where I am today. Don't let my youth fool you." he replied.

"And you do ask a valid question, and you're right: I didn't come here for wealth or fame. I have plenty of both already. I don't need political power either. I'm already the Magister of Time, and thus part of the most elite council of the Mage tower, under only the Grand Mage himself. But honestly, I have no desire what-so-ever of stepping up to become the Grand Mage simply because it would tie me down too much." he continued.

"And the royal family and I are as thick as thieves too. So no, political power is boring. What I want is knowledge. No, that's not it. I want mystical enlightenment. You're right about me being the most prodigious time mage ever produced by the Empire. Time magic is what makes me unique, I suppose. But at the risk of sounding too ambitious...I want to push myself even MORE. Further. Faster. Higher. I know that being a Time Magister is already something worthy of the history books, but I want to go beyond the limits of even a gifted human. I don't know what that will look like, though. But I joined the expedition so I could further my understanding of dimensional magic, because in the same way that time magic has a link to spatial magic, I also believe it has links to dimensional magic. And dimensional magic is something that's as theoretical to time magic as time magic is to normal magic. Honestly...dimensional magic shouldn't be possible for even the most gifted and prodigious of humans. Which means there's a good chance I'm chasing a pipe dream. But on the teeny tiny offchance I succeed, then I'll most likely end up becoming something beyond human." he said, stopping now to catch his breath due to getting over-excited.

"...all of this could amount to nothing, mind you. But this is the only way to stoke the ambition of a man who already has magic, power, fame, and wealth as you mentioned before. Seeing if I can push past my own human limits is my goal. But I'm not willing to stomp all over other people to do it, though. I have my own principles too, despite how I come off sometimes."

He then considered.

"It sounds like you have a wide variety of worldly experiences and training normal academy mages don't. And that you use that open-minded perspective to enhance your magic. Well, that is good for you! I like men like you, who try and approach magic a bit outside the box, yet end up doing spectacularly well despite it all. Well enough to join an expedition like this, anyway. I certainly look forward to seeing you slowly regain your conjuration magic."

He considered the magic weave matrix situation before them.

"You know what? Expending reservoir is like slapping a band-aid onto a wound and hoping it doesn't tear open again in battle. I'm against such a lazy option. Releasing the pressure so we can fully complete our rounds is the sensible option, but we'll have to fight Prismatic slimes most likely. But I wonder if we can't just force the damned field to stabilize, and not have to deal with all that noise and hassle?" Steorra said.

"It would be risky, but it would also be the most potentially rewarding method too, since not only could we ensure the magic weave works exactly the way we want it to, but we will probably gain a bit of enlightenment and knowledge from the experiencing of so intimately interacting with the wild magic here." he said.

"Personally? I think it's worth the risk. I want to do a Forceful stabilizing."

Aurland listed to Steorra without interruption of judgment. While he'd enjoyed Irene's quiet presence during his last expedition it was also nice to hear the sound of someone else speaking from time to time. It made him feel as though he wasn't burdening them. Although he should probably work on that particular flaw of personality.

"I respect your ambition to reach beyond what is possible. Too many gifted in magic seek to emulate their elders, to retread what is already done. I too have a lofty personal goal. I wish to create a planet through purely magical means, an ultimate expression of conjuration."

As for the magical matrix situation, he was hesitant to agree with Steorra at first. However, considering that they might loose powerful creatures on the surroundings by attempting to release the flux and he didn't have much in the way of magical reservoir to begin with they were left with only one true option.

"Agreed."

Aurland agrees to be Forceful Stabilizing

OOC: As it wasn't stated that the utility benefit was being used I applied it here, but be sure to declare that going forward or I'll assume it's being saved!

Deciding to leave nothing to chance, Steorra volunteered to stabilize the field himself. Planting his feet and drawing a deep breath, he spread his hands and went to work. It looked like he was conducting an invisible orchestra with the way his hands raised and tell, the fingers twitching and waving. In the unseen realms the conflicting powers crashed against one another, two fields of energy that were inherently opposed to one another. Steorra sought to fortify the new field, he folded it back in upon itself at the edges and thickened those boundaries, strings of arcane power were plucked and sent thrumming. There were moments where the efforts became dicey, surges of that erratic power that threatened to tear apart the entire effort, but Steorra was able to move with the flow. For the better part of an hour he wrestled with the arcane forces, but it was done. The efforts had left him sweating and strained, but it was a success.

Arcane Strain: Any magics, whether proper spells or general magic, will result side effects until 3/22/24

Note: Steorra may add 1 xp for making a Deadly Roll.

Two beacons successfully placed, one remaining. The two set out for the last corner of what would be the new protective field around the tower. After all the hours of walking the rocky landscape was starting to blend together, thankfully the Elucidate remained visible and offered an easy point of reference. In all the hours of walking they hadn't seen any hint of vegetation or any sort of wildlife. It was truly fortunate that the food situation on the Elucidate had been sorted out as scavenging off the land wasn't looking like a possibility.

The last beacon location was little different from the others, rocky and barren. Taking out the arcane spike and getting it planted, the two mages waited. After the second beacon it seemed wise to observe. It was a wise decision. For the first quarter of an hour it was looking like the field was going to settle without an issue, but as it neared the hour they began to observe oddities in the field. This time it remained stable, the other two points of the beacon now serving as sides of a triangle, each leaning upon one another and supporting the field from the surrounding pressures, and now that stabilized field seemed to be forcing out any remaining residue of the natural magics of this realm which had been captured inside. Truly it was an oil and water situation. That concentrated magic was coming to a head.

Looking about them, Aurland and Steorra watched in real time as crystals rose up from the ground within the boundaries of the new safe magical zone they had erected. The number of them wasn't overwhelming, but they were common enough now, one couldn't walk more than three dozen paces without coming across one of these newly sprouted crystals. The crystals themselves shimmered with blue and purple light and were cold to the touch. They left ones fingers numb from handling them, the concentrated magic within the crystals was potent to say the least.

But those hardened motes on magic were inert and didn't pose a risk to the newly generated field.

Along the boundaries of these newly defined zones, that of the Elucidate and its field and the realm at large outside it, energy was crackling and thrumming. The magical energies had become visible where this mystic friction was occurring and crackling tendrils of power arced through the air. It was all fresh at the moment and could be influenced, but none of it was good. This boundary was a dangerous zone and would remain so until a more permanent solution was devised, all Aurland and Steorra could do was try to direct the effects to what they found most palatable. Well, Aurland could influence it in this case, with Steorra's magic strained as it was he was in no state to manipulate the powers needed to calibrate the field.

Influence the Arcane Boundary

Aurland can choose one of the effects that the Boundary possesses, anyone who crosses the Boundary will be impacted by this trait.

Caustic: The energies of the Boundary are violent and destructive, anyone and anything that crosses is damaged by the opposing arcane forces.
Effect: Anyone crossing the boundary takes 1 damage.

Sapped: Crossing the boundary draws away energy, sapping vitality and leaving one weakened.
Effect: Anyone who crosses the boundary loses one of their Spell castings for the length of an adventure or 7 days. Whichever is longer.

Erratic Charge: Passing through the boundary leaves one magically charged, unfortunately not in a beneficial way.
Effect: Magical side effects are far more likely to occur when casting spells and have a chance to affect even general spells. It lasts for 1 adventure or 7 days, whichever is longer.

OOC: I didn't declare the utility benefit because I wanted to see the die result on the roll first. Unless I'm misunderstanding how the ability works?


Steora whistled a bit as Aurland spoke.

"Wow...to conjure an entire planet, or at least channel one bit by bit into existence? now THAT is freaking epic. I knew you were no normal conjurer. You may think of yourself as a hedge mage, but I know talent when I see it. I'm glad to have you with me, that's for sure. But it sounds like the both of us have beyond-human ambitions. It will be fun seeing how far we go...or how hard we fall and fail. Heh." he said.

He then winced a bit.

"Well...I did it. I got the field to stabilize without unleashing a Slime-pocalypse on us." Steorra said, visibly winded right now.

"But the field needs its final tuning before we're all the way done. And I can tell there will be some sort of side-effect, given this is like oil and water right now. Unfortunately, my magic is too strained right now after stabilizing that field, so I cannot do it. Aurland? it's on you to finish this." he said.

OOC: It looks like we hadn't declared  that originally so I'll let it stand for this adventure. Going forward though we'll make it so Utility can be applied to other players rolls after the fact, but only the utility mages roll at the time they make their utility roll. That means the ability will be stronger when helping other players which keeps it in line with the theme of cooperation!

The new conflicting fields were evolving rapidly and it seemed that there wasn't enough time even for Aurland to intervene before the new traits settled into place. The barrier stopped throwing off those arcs of magic that looked so much like lightning and the two opposing forces settled into an uneasy balance. An occasionally purple shimmer in the air marked the new boundary and even going near it one could feel magic twisting and coiling. Passing through would leave a residue on a person of highly charged magical forces and worsen the already chaotic nature of magic in this place. This residue would burn away on its own eventually, but until it did using magic would come with a range of unexpected results.

With that the job was done. It had been relatively simple, even if the end results of crystal growths and a boundary of charged magical energy had not been anticipated. While leaving their new zone of safety now offered complications, at least till someone found a workaround, at least within the general area of the Elucidate their magic was stabilized and the Elucidate itself was buffered from the rest of the realm.

Now it was just a matter of reporting their success, and the subsequent complications, back to the tower.

"Well then," Aurland said as he was too slow to intervene in the field.

"I suppose there are worse outcomes. We should head back to the Elucidate and report on our findings. We should probably get a team out here to investigate these crystals as well; they might be a useful resource.

Steorra nodded in agreement. It was time for them to head back to the Elucidate.

Making the walk back to the Elucidate, Steorra quite thoroughly exhausted from the day of trekking, they had the satisfaction of a successful job. Overhead colors were now dimly playing across the sky, a small aurora borealis that lit up the heavens above their home. A side effect from the two fields of magic rubbing against one another, one which created a notable beacon of their location.

Returning back to the spire they found a couple of mages outside looking at the new play of lights overhead. Another was tapping at one of the recent crystal formations. Inside the Elucidate they found Eldereth at the top of the tower, he working with the arcanosphere which hummed under his outstretched palms. Turning aside from his work, he greeted Aurland and Steorra warmly. "We could tell the moment the task was complete. The Arcanosphere is running optimally once again and the field outside the tower seems to be stable. Now with the food sorted and the tower secure, we can turn our attention fully back to the colonization efforts. Well done!"

Spoils

After your exposure to the fundamental forces of this place, you've gained new insights into the underpinnings of magic in this place.

Arcane Stability: After your exposure to the wild forces of magic, you've gained new insight into how to shore up your magic and prevent any unforeseen consequences.
Passive: Arcane Stability - Once per adventure you may stabilize a single casting of your spell so there will not be any side effects.

Crystallized Goods: The recently formed crystalline shards around the Elucidate are brimming with energy and harvesting them in a simple matter, they've provided an abundant source of material.
Materials: Gain 3 Materials for projects.

Wild Surge: You draw on arcane power beyond your normal limits. This surge comes with complications.
Enchantment: Wild Surge - Once per adventure you may gain a +1 Potency for a round for all your castings during that time. This comes with magical side effects.

Debilitating Blast: After examining the magical forces of this place, you devise a way to weaponize those forces. It is not elegant, but its effective.
New Spell: Debilitating Blast - Unleash a blast of energy against an enemy, it does moderate damage, but also leaves a lingering hinderance on them. (This hinderance is random and determined by the GM) You may come up with the flavor of the spell to fit your magic school.

Steorra had learned immensely about this new Wild magic that they found themselves dealing with. He wondered if this strange, untamed magic was the tip of the Iceberg as he began his efforts to try and become a Dimensional School Mage? Was the wild magic directly related to the overwhelming dimensional energy wave that jolted them when they first arrived in this new dimension, or simply a side-effect or some other tangental relation to it?

He didn't know, but forcing order out of Chaos Was something that he suspected his Time School and this theoretical Ascended Dimensional Magic had in common. And when he took a risk and forced one of the field node rods to stabilize, that taught him immensely about how he could begin to force this wild magic into Arcane Stability, and perhaps all magic in general. But - like his previous attempt at forcing stability - it took a great deal of effort and wasn't something he could do all the time.

At least, not yet. Not without study and experimentation, anyway.

--------

When he and Aurland returned to the Elucidate, which this time around was a lot faster since he hasted them as much as he could (inside the field so as to not cause a side-effect), he reported that they had stabilized the field to the other mages. He also warned them that doing it this way created a divide between their "old-world" magic and the new dimension's wild magic, and that crossing the field would charge them with magical static for a short time. But it was better than not having a stabilized field at all!
This message was last edited by the player at 04:38, Tue 19 Mar.

Aurland was fascinated more and more with the crystals as they moved back to the Elucidate. So much so that after he confirmed that everything was right with the Elucidate he began gathering the crystallized goods. The strange energy coursing through them captured his mind and his imagination.

"Oh I have big plans for you."