~When Death's Wings Take Flight~ (Amber)

[Minerva]

Apparently Amber’s newfound state of invisibility was not one that the mer cared to flaunt for overly long; whilst it was a useful spell to know, and would almost certainly come in useful to his ward at some point in her continuing life, it was not one which he could apply practically to any situation now. Whether or not that was simply down to a lack of resources, however, or else an absence of creativity when it came to matters of a less torturous and sadistic manner, would remain unknown as Aribeal then indicated for his student to carry on in the casting of her next spell.

Watching patiently through an austere level gaze of silent contemplations, the mer simply took to admiring Amber as she went through the motions of constructing her shadow shield. Thinking back to when he had first seen her, and when she had given him her reasons for wanting to learn this Art, the ruthless mer could manage a smile, albeit one which was not in the least bit pleasant in nature. She would do well in her future, and he trusted that she would put all that he had taught her to good use in the times to come ahead. Now, however, and in the present, he had work to do in testing the shield she had just about managed to conjure up. Smiling for his student now, the gesture not quite as disturbing as the grin he had happened to wear previously, the mer reached out to his side with one scaled hand in an elegant series of movements resulting in his clutching the silverfish form of what appeared to be some kind of locket.

“If you have cast the spell correctly, then this shouldn’t hurt you much at all. If you have not, however, then…” The gracefully articulated voice faded away then as Aribeal permitted Amber’s mind and imagination to take over the completion of the sentence- evidently the necromancer found some source of enjoyment in teasing his student this way, and was not going to lay off now that the faery had come so close to finishing her training.

Holding the locket neatly within the palm of one hand, the mer’s eyes flicked shut for but a second before reopening, that self-same malicious smile being all the warning Amber would get before a bright bolt of lightning sparked her way. Presumably an initiate spell in one of the other arcanic spheres, it collided with the energy of the fae’s shield without mercy, accompanied by a loud, angry hiss and a vibrant flash of light. The impact alone was enough to be felt within the faery’s small frame but, aside from that, no pain or hurt was actually effectual. She had succeeded once again, and her success this time was greeted by a flurry of enchanted laughter from her master, who was evidently very impressed.

“Excellent, Amber. You have done very, very well by me. I am pleased to say that you have learnt all there is to know as an Initiate, and that you are now free to pursue the path of an Apprentice in future at any point should you wish it.”

So, there it was; she was now a fully fledged Initiate in her chosen sphere, after only a few brightening’s worth of learning. Something for the little fae to feel proud about, no doubt, even if this was but a first step along a long and winding pathway to power.

“So, how does it feel? To have come this far, and to have attained the strength and power that comes with being a practitioner of the dark arts?” The mer queried, his voce still level in spite of the interest which must have been inherent there. As far as Aribeal was concerned, Amber’s lessons had now reached their conclusions, and this was simply his way of trying to be polite and end them on a reasonably good note.

[Amber Brightwing]

Amber swallowed as she waited until the mer decided to finally test her shield with whatever he had in mind. She could sense there was something surrounding her, but if the spell would work – and how good– she couldn’t discern. Perhaps when she would have used the spell some more she might be able to recognize it’s power as well, but as this was only her first cast of it, all she could feel was that there was a small layer of arcana that engulfed her.

When the flash of lightning finally came, she involuntarily raised her arms in front of her and closed her eyes. It’s not like those action would have prevented her from being reduced to a pile of ash if things went wrong and it might make her appear squeamish in front of her master, but it had been done before she could think of it, as it had been a reflex. She could feel her being pushed backwards as the bolt hit, but aside from that she appeared to go through it unscathed. Although it appeared to have been destroyed in the process, her Spirit Shield had done it’s job as it was supposed to.

She blinked a few times as she double checked that she was ok. She was sure this spell would prove to be very useful in the future. Being so small made her a vulnerable target and this kind of protection could avoid getting killed with a single hit..

Yes, I’ll certainly be back for my Apprentice training.

It had all gone much faster then she had expected. In just a few brightenings, she had certainly progressed a lot and she certainly was proud to have accomplished such a feat. But most of all, it had given her a taste of the power necromancy possessed, and it was a taste she had grown in this short time.

Well, I feel… great. The best I felt in a while. The strength and power is rather limited at the moment, but I guess that’s just a motivation to keep practicing and getting better.

Yes, she would certainly be back. Apprenticeship would augment her power significantly. And she needed to get stronger if she wanted to execute her revenge. A lot stronger.

[Minerva]

The mer smiled slyly as Amber voiced an interest in carrying on with her training to the Apprentice level at some point in the future. She was a capable student indeed, and he had no doubts as to how well she would do should she choose to return and pursue her learning in this art once more. She had the potential, whilst at the same time lacking the hesitance to use it; a wonderful combination, and one which he found he could admire fully with an immense abundance of ease. With luck she would return to him in order to continue her path to learning; the faery intrigued him, after all, and he was interested in learning about how she would get on now that she had a set of new fangled skills tucked neatly away beneath her proverbial belt.

To her concluding words the necromancer emitted a low chuckle, a thing all of smooth velvet and eloquent poise that nevertheless seemed unsettling here in the darkness of the room.

“And get better you will, my dear. Your journey along this dark path has only just begun, after all, and you have the potential to become so, so much more than a simple Initiate.” His smile was an encouraging one now, albeit still noticeably wicked, and the words that were issued forth were spoken in nothing less than utmost honesty. Following these utterances, however, the mer would then proceed to bidding his farewells to the fae, congratulating the little female once more prior to sending her on her way. Apparently, Aribeal was a busy man; that, or he had set a later appointment with someone far less fortunate than his erstwhile charge.

OOC: Initiate necromancy approved! Congrats!

[Amber Brightwing]

OOC: Woot!

Of course she had no hesitance when it came to using her skill. If she would have had doubts, she’d never started with it in the first place. She would be careful when and where to use them – to avoid those nonsense about what’s legal and not – but she wouldn’t doubt to tap into her skills when she felt necessary.

After some last words of goodbye she flew out of the door, back to the surface world. She would be back aright, but the mer would need some patience before he would see her again. Circumstances would delay her return quite a bit.