Tactics and Tales

[11:40 AM] Amasuri: =A clever joke about starting the RP right now= Next to the banks of the so called Sacred Lake, the Ethysian ex-general sat, flipping through pages in a small book while her massive black companion gazed out across the lake, somewhat eager to dive into it. The somewhat somber look of the girl didn't seem to change as she flipped through page after page, absorbing the contents like a starving man at a buffet. The sunlight shined upon the lake, as she started silently humming a tune from her homeland. A tranquill melody, in stark contrast with the militaristic country it originated from.

[11:53 AM] Ignia: The grass crunched as Artemis walked, hood up to block her from the shining sun, humming a small tune of her own. The lake is beautiful...no matter the time of day. Still, she noticed the large wyvern and rider rather easily. She quirked a smile before walking over towards Rieze, "Good afternoon, Rieze. Enjoying the downtime?"

[11:56 AM] Amasuri: Huh? She abruptly closed the book again, although keeping a grass straw in it as a makeshift bookmark. Noticing Artemis, her natural response was a smile, echoed by the winged behemoth behind her. "Good afternoon Artemis. Yeah, I suppose I am. Take the free time we get, you know?"

[12:02 PM] Ignia: "You're right. It's nice to have the downtime after what happened at the castle." She smiled, "May I sit? We haven't gotten much of a chance to talk recently."

[12:09 PM] Amasuri: "Of course. Im always up for friendly company, especially the kind that I get along with well." She moved slightly to the right, even though there was more than enough room for Artemis already it just seemed.... like proper manners. Or just friendly. One of those.

[12:17 PM] Ignia: "Thank you." She sat down, her cloak preventing any grass stains on her partially visible white dress. One hand held onto the book she'd brought with her, "So how have you and your partner been?" She glanced at the black wyvern before focusing on Rieze.

[12:26 PM] Amasuri: "We've been fine. Minor wounds here and there, but not much of note." As she spoke, Neltharion rose his wings behind the girls, giving the sunlight a bright orange hue. "I broke up a fight between Tarsien and Persephone, discovered parts of my long lost family, but otherwise its the same old life on the warpath."

[12:32 PM] Ignia: "...what." Her focus is on the mention of her best friend's name. "Tarsien is that one who won the tournament, correct?" She sighed, "...how did he and Seph end up getting into a fight?"

[12:42 PM] Amasuri: "Im afraid I don't know much more than you. I found them while they were clashing. The argument was about Ethyisa however, so I feel obligated to help them out there." She took a moment to think, before moving on "Tarsien... Im afraid I don't know much there either. He used to be a soldier in the Ethysian army, but I don't know much more."

[12:48 PM] Ignia: She sighed, "...I see." I'll have to grill the girl in question later then. "Hopefully, that doesn't cause issues on the battlefield." She shook her head, before looking at Rieze, "Either way, I'll probably have hear about this from the source so...you mentioned long lost family? May I ask who?"

[12:58 PM] Amasuri: "My mother. I also figured that I share her with Delphine. So I suppose I have had family beneath my nose all this time, but never really noticed it. Its a bit funny, really." She scratched her neck, laughing a bit awkwardly, before moving on. "Ugh. I should really talk to Persephone about that though."

[1:07 PM] Ignia: "Well, that's good to hear at least. You'll have to watch out for your sister's back on the battlefield while she's busy making sure that the rest of us don't die." She spoke softly, leaning back a bit. "If it instigated a fight, Seph's going to be stubborn about it. Especially if it invovles the Ethysian Empire. This whole war's...been hard on her, unfortunately."

[1:14 PM] Amasuri: "Yeah. I wish I could help her, although well, I don't know if she likes me or not. Its a bit of a dilemma, but it works out. At least we're not fighting." She shook her head, sighing. "I actually did want to ask you about that sometime. How did you get to know Persephone?"

[1:20 PM] Ignia: Artemis sighed, coming once again to the realization that her best friend could be a handful, but it turned into a smile, thinking back to their first meeting, "Seph and I have known each other for years...since I was still a student at the academy really. I was playing chess against myself in the library when she came up and challenged me. And really the rest is history, we've been best friends ever since."

[1:41 PM] Amasuri: "Oh wow. So Im not the only one who took to playing chess with myself in my free time? You learn something new every day." She chuckled a bit to herself, before continuing "Sadly, or maybe thankfully not many people in Ethysia seemed to care for it."

[1:53 PM] Ignia: "It was a good way to keep my mind sharp even when I wasn't studying." Artemis smiled, "My teacher recommended it to me when it was clear I didn't do much but study outside of class." "Though, Seph was really the only one who seriously approached me back then." Being the ghost girl didn't help with that much...

[2:26 PM] Amasuri: "It's clear why you are so good friends then. I'd like to possibly play with you both, sometime." She gave Artemis another short smile "Then again, It seems like most of you Floribians had a wonderful life before the war. I almost feel the need to apologize for my nation's attacks."

[2:38 PM] Ignia: "I don't carry a chess board with me nowadays but whenever the next chance appears, I'd love to play you. Finding a challenger besides Seph is rather rare for me." She shook her head, "Don't. You're not the emperor who chose to instigate war...and besides, life in Floribar wasn't all sunshine and flowers. Or rather, the flowers had thorns. My connections to Floribar are to its people, to Seph and to Lorenzo. I was traveling before the war and really only came home to see them."

[3:16 PM] Amasuri: "Maybe. It still seemed like a happy home we destroyed. I burnt all bridges with Ethysia, even turning on my friends, but its still a part of me." Rieze looked down somberly, before a smile reappeared on her face again "Yet... I found new friends here, and that's all I can ask for. Thank you."

[3:33 PM] Ignia: "Not every home was happy but Floribar is just waiting for us to reclaim it anyways," She bumped Rieze's shoulder lightly with her own, "And you're welcome. But we're also thankful to have you." "Not everyone has a good past. I say it's what you make of it and you've made a lot of it. Not just friends but family too."

January 23, 2017

[10:48 AM] Amasuri: "Heh. Then again, Im no fan of telling sob stories all day. Just wanted to get that out of the way." She bumped lightly back, although slightly harder than she did initially. "As far as friends go though, im pretty content with the new ones I found."(edited)

[10:51 AM] Ignia: "Sounds about right." She grinned, "So as a friend who's interested in books, what had you so enthralled before I came?"

[11:07 AM] Amasuri: "Oh, this?" She picked up the book again, the light making the golden trim on the otherwise black book shimmer. "Its a book written by my father. He writes them as a hobby. This one is a made-up story with roots in old legends. Im quite fond of these kinds of books, actually."

[11:14 AM] Ignia: "Oh?" Artemis leaned closer, "Lorenzo used to read me those types of stories, but I haven't read one in a while. Which one were you on?"

[11:59 AM] Amasuri: "It's about a warrior, reclaiming his honor after getting the murder of his wife pinned on him. It's a fairly great read, and it poses some moral questions. It's quite good, but its not for everyone." She opened it to the page she was on earlier, showing it to Artemis. It detailed the main character finding out that his allies had tricked and poisoned him, and him angrily swearing at them before being tossed onto a boat and sent down the river. "The story and location is based close to my hometown, next to the capital. I suppose that's what pulled me in initially."

[12:47 PM] Ignia: "Well, there's no story that everyone likes. Still, that's rather interesting. Was it based off a true story or something that's told to promote the idea of honor and perserverance?"

[12:59 PM] Amasuri: "Im not sure. It has that whole Ethysian war propaganda thing... But it also connects pretty well with historical events. I usually never spoke to father about his writing, so im unsure. The dates and dissapearings connect well with history, so to say."

[1:08 PM] Ignia: "Huh...that'd be an interesting research project." Artemis looked contemplative, "The best stories tend to be the ones that have a grain of truth in them. It'd be fun to find those grains."

[1:11 PM] Amasuri: "Most of our history is slightly altered in ways. Its a confusing search, especially for a child with schooling like mine." She shighed, closing the book. "This book may have been part of steeling my resolve even. It feels oddly relatable, with the decisions the main character makes."

[2:02 PM] Ignia: "History is written by the victors..." She commented softly, "It's good to have something like that book. Hesitation only causes issues...and we can find ourselves in the oddest places, when we choose to look."

[2:26 PM] Amasuri: "Indeed. I like the light fantasy though. It has those fantasy traits, like magical special powers, but its suprisingly historically accurate otherwise. It just reminds me that reality is strange, you know? History may be written by the victor, yet they faded into the shadows, along with their power. And maybe all of it is true, yet we wont ever understand or find it, because the man hid himself away?" Maybe im overthinking this.... "Nonetheless, books are great."(edited)

[2:48 PM] Ignia: Artemis giggled, tapping the book that she'd been carrying, a book on elder magic, "You know, there are strange mysteries to magic so special powers may not be that far out." "Still, books are portals to their own world. Fantasy, history, fiction or non-fiction...I love practically every book that I come across."

[2:50 PM] Amasuri: "Have to admit, I also do. I used to read millitary strategy books before going to bed when I was younger. It wasn't the most interesting thing, but it was better than nothing. It contained so much I didn't understand, but the small note sections kept me going."

[2:56 PM] Ignia: "Well~" She smirked, "At least you read them before bed too, so it wouldn't be so bad when you simply nodded off in the midst of a particularly boring paragraph." Her tone implies that she was more describing something that had happened to her. "The theory behind strategy is important but not as much as practice and experience, in my most humblest of experiences." That's obviously exaggerated.

[3:06 PM] Amasuri: "Practice and experience? Being a frontline fighter has thought me more than enough about that. Although, the books are still a good read.... but well, given a choice between strategy books and a fantasy novel, I'd take the novel any day." She chuckles a bit as she finishes the sentence, noticing the familiarity in nodding off during a paragraph. "What can I say? I like a good story."

[4:04 PM] Ignia: "I can't deny that!" Artemis smiled before glancing down at her book, "Maybe...it's been too long since I just enjoyed a good story. Even now, this book is more for studying and the battlefield..."

[4:29 PM] Amasuri: "Battlefields are all about experience. Books can't teach you anything except the basics. But reading is still a joy. Its a bit strange I suppose, but its there regardless."

January 24, 2017

[9:38 AM] Ignia: "Mostly. With magic, you have to know what you're doing otherwise, it can blow up in your face." She frowned, "Believe me, there's a very good reason I stick to Thunder out of all the anima magics."

[9:42 AM] Amasuri: "Oh? So even the great Artemis has failed before?"

[9:43 AM] Amasuri: She chuckled, giving her a light push

[9:43 AM] Amasuri: "But I know what you mean. Magic is a strange thing, I never had the talent for it."

[9:50 AM] Ignia: Artemis gave a push back, "Of course I have. My affinity with magic lies mainly with thunder....though I am studying dark magic, right now." "Magic needs both talent and study. It's only with both that you get a competent mage. Still, you have your niche, Rieze. You and your partner, here." She glanced up at the wyvern.

[9:56 AM] Amasuri: It glanced back down, its ruby eyes shimmering in the sunlight. "True... Although, we don't do much. I just fly around and occasionally give some enemy soldier a bump on the head with Gorehowl..... albeit, I suppose flight has its uses." She shrugged nonchalantly, leaving back towards the serpentine stomach of Neltharion "Its especially not much compared to your amazing spells. Im envious."

[10:08 AM] Ignia: "Haha, I definitely don't have the movement that you two do on the field. Wyverns also have such a dominance over the skies too..." She frowned, slightly pouting, "And enemy Pegasus Knights are my worst enemy. Their stupid speed and resistance to magic."

[10:22 AM] Amasuri: "Speed? I don't know about that. Wont save them from an axe to the face. Although, Neltharion isn't fast enough... perhaps I should try to improve that." She shook her head and crossed her arms "Still. Magic is a fearsome weapon."

[10:36 AM] Ignia: "Pegs tend to move faster than I can cast..." She pouted before letting out a small hum, "Still, any weapon is dangerous in the right hands, just like you and Gorehowl. Maybe flight drills would help with Neltharion's speed? I know we got a new Pegasus Knight with this group...Perhaps races with them would help with training?"

[10:39 AM] Amasuri: "Perhaps. Although, If im training with them, I like to get to know them first. Maybe that's something to do for later."

[11:10 AM] Ignia: "True enough..." She stood, patting down her cloak to get off any dirt and similar, before winking at Rieze, "I think I should leave you to continue reading. As much as talking to you is great, studying calls."

[11:15 AM] Amasuri: "Of course. See you soon Artemis!" And now.... To find out what to do further She winked back at Artemis, and the wyvern turned to her as well, albeit not saying anything. Or making any noise for that matter.

[11:17 AM] Ignia: She waved, "See you both soon, Neltharion, Rieze." And then headed off, looking for a private location to study magic.

[11:20 AM] Amasuri: Rieze opened the book again, noting the mask on the back of the cover. Perhaps...... =END RP=