ORIGIN - grandma's house

Pages: 1 2

It should be noted that Howlite was a very obedient little girl. She wanted, really, nothing more than to be on everyone's good side, so it was only natural that she quietly stuck near Tectus's general location, waiting for orders or training or to be spoken to-- to which Howlite was practically preening under the attention.

Right this second, Howlite had just finished eating. It was the first prey she'd managed to catch on her own: a plump, yellow bush rabbit. She'd done so considerably politely given the circumstances; small bites, chewing slowly, leaving nothing to waste. Now, she groomed her paws, her tongue lashing against her chin and pawpads.

She was very proud. Her tail was practically wagging.

@Tectus

Tectus had honestly forgotten about the Howlite. It had been made without her knowledge of consent (although she hadn't exactly made a rule against it like the Chaos Forge had) but she assumed that it would eventually hatch to be part of her militia. And so she had gone about her day.

Until she ran into an odd little cat...thing that she didn't recognize, stepping out of the tower and seeing it sitting there looking quite happy. She stared for a moment, but then realized that the face wasn't real - hard enamel and tooth-like and the colors were familiar. She relaxed. "Ah, the bauxite's creation." She nodded, quickly remembering to name it. "Howlite T-One. How are you feeling?" She looked it over, approving of the design. Large, sturdy, it looked strong and healthy, and that same devious tooth-like mask of her own spawn.

@Howlite-T-One

"I feel good!" Howlite chippered, largely (and perhaps fortunately) unaware that while Tectus was the center of her world, this was largely just Tuesday for the valkhound. She stood up at once, at attention, the corners of both her mouths quirked upwards.

She didn't stand very still, though. She was practically jigging on the spot, her paws kneading into the cave floor. "What are we doing today?" She asked, licking the remnants of her meal away from her jowls-- because God forbid she looked a mess in front of Tectus. "I hunted for food."

@Tectus

Tectus nodded approvingly. Well, good to see someone around here that was cheer and energy. The rest of the Task Force was some form of serious, rude, or just completely inactive. It was oddly refreshing, especially after her life-giver was. Well. Bauxite was Bauxite.

"Hmm...have you met with your life-giver yet? Did he give you any orders?" It wasn't like Bauxite was authorized for it, but she figured she might as well pry. She didn't want to get in between however he decided to raise his kid, although she had a sneaking suspicion he would be either incompetent at this particular task, or give up altogether when it didn't work out the way he envisioned.

Another approving nod. "Good. You know how to hunt. That is saving a lot of time training!"

@Howlite-T-One

"No, he didn't give me orders," Howlite said. If he had, she'd ignored them. He wasn't the boss of her: Tectus was. And Tectus was approving of her hunting skills! She fluffed up proudly, sitting back on her haunches.

She was going to get such a good grade in minion-ing.

"I can do a little bit of magic, too," she chirruped. "I can make the ground shake, and break rocks, and..." She paused. She wasn't sure what the third one did. "I think I can find metal things. They taste gross, though." Terrible for eating, frankly.

@Tectus

Ah, figures. She was unbothered, of course - if this one proved to be an asset to her militia, then she had no problems training it herself. She stared at the creature for a moment, considering, a claw tapping on the ground thoughtfully. She had tried to give some kinds of specialized jobs to all of her followers, and some of them had taken the rolls on quite dutifully, but some...well she needed a better future goal to know what to train them in. Guarding was good, scribing was good, spying was good...but specifics? Ah, she wasn't sure what direction to take this in.

What do you mean Tectus has to think for herself?

But the casting of magic was promising to her. She had wondered in the past if she should have focused her energies in that regard instead of combat, but she never did. But this one, perhaps, had the chance to do where she had failed. She nodded. "Hmmm, good that's very good. You have my magic - its a strong one, sturdy! I don't believe we have anyone in this militia yet that is specialized in elemental magic."

She wondered if Chaos Forge had many either. They certainly had competent fighters, but mages? They were all corrupted, very few that she could pinpoint had a large repertoire of magic abilities. Perhaps that's where this one could shine.

"Yes, if you enjoy casting magic, then I think you should put it to work and use. We are lacking in that regard. Would you be interested in learning more, or focusing on your earth abilities?"

@Howlite-T-One

Howlite's paws tippy-tapped happily on the cave floor. This really was the whole highlight of her week, being praised and being told that her magic was strong and sturdy. "I'll learn more!" She chirruped. "How many elements are there?"

She'd learn them all. She'd be the best magic-user out there. There couldn't be that many to learn, and even then, earth was obviously the best and she was obviously already a master at that.

Then again... "What other things can I do with earth magic?" the kitten asked. "Can you do a lot of them?"

@Tectus

Ah, a bit of regret again. "No, I'm not proficient in it myself. Regrettably, I was trained to use muscle." She looked at Howlite, considering something. She was excited, and seemed quite enthusiastic about it and Tectus decided that was going to be a good asset for her to use. "Perhaps if you find something you think would be of use to me, I'll learn it."

As for the elements? Tectus could stand here all day and explain each element, but she wondered if the howlite had the patience for it. Still, she thought now would be a good time for a quick lesson. "There are twelve elements, that you can learn, and Masters of each element in turn that are the source of those elements. This is important, Howlite T-One: if you meet a Master, you must be respectful, regardless of their element, regardless of their attitude." It was important she understood that, so Tectus put on her most serious gaze and tone, before pulling it back and lightening up.

"As for the actual elements, there's fire and water of course. Plant and animal, energy, arcane, light and pressure, fungi, prokaryote, lightning, and of course, earth. Each has their strengths and weaknesses and their uses."

@Howlite-T-One

"Muscle," Howlite repeated quizzically. Tectus was much larger than she was, so perhaps that was fair. Perhaps things smaller than Tectus were for other things, like magic. "I'll learn magic." It was decided.

Her head tilted. She, honestly, had not even really considered being anything but polite to other people, Masters or not. It'd been kind of awful to be abandoned by Bauxite. She sure didn't want anyone to feel like that. Her ears twitched as she listened to the list of elements, though they mostly went in one ear and out the other.

Twelve was a lot of things to comprehend as someone who was born literally yesterday.

"Do I have to learn from other people?" She asked. The idea of going out and trying to meet new people just to learn magic seemed... daunting. "Like the Masters?"

@Tectus

She gave an approving nod. "Good!" she boomed, glad of Howlite's choice. They didn't have enough in this force that leaned into a magic focus. She was hopefuly that she had an enthusiastic one she could rely on.

She tapped a claw as she thought about potential trainers. Alas, their own elemental Master was long gone, and many of the other Masters she would not send this child to learn from. "Hmmm, you can if you like. Some find that they learn magic through their own training and testing. But if you wish to learn from a Master I can point you to some that may humor you." Who WOULD humor a young mage nowadays? Surely not Nemean or Aquarian. She didn't see Farina, in her current state, suffering a child's enthusiasm. Nor could she imagine Howlite being able to reach her.

"I suppose you could ask Master Totum, if you can find them. Master Artio, in Eridanus may be able to help you as well if you are extra respectful. Ah, and Master Tenzin in Pisces would be glad to help. Other then them..." Master Vargas was not a magical specialist, but he had others serving him that were. "You can go to the Chaos Forge, and ask one of them to help. But make sure they know you are looking for an elemental teacher. I'm sure they have some in their ranks that has the temperament to train."

@Howlite-T-One

Pages: 1 2