"Well, since I am not entirely fond of guessing. So. I think I will learn a bit about you." He placed a paw on one of the die as she threw it and tried to tap into that all familiar power he used so often. Images and voices flashed into his mind slowly but then faster and faster, his eyes glowing bright violet, until he had seen some, but not all of her life. "Your name is Fate.. you found you lost someone recently, didn't you. Someone you cared deeply for yet had forgotten about for some time. Her name was Destiny. I wish you didn't have to find them the way you did." He looked up from the die as the violet light faded from his eyes, taking it into his mouth and tossing it back to her, it landed on 6. "It's awful to lose a friend, especially in such a way, sometimes this world works in cruel ways."
"Speaking."
Thoughts.
tags: @Fate
notes:

"Feh. I didn't lose her any more than she lost me. It'd been so many cycles since we met, that I hardly remembered her." Fate snorted slightly, but a long pause soon followed as she chose her words carefully. She didn't seem at all surprised about Astaroth's intrusion, nor did she seem to care. in fact, she seemed almost pleased. "But, I could have chosen someone better to die by such cruel means. No-one would ever have said she deserved that... nor could anyone have predicted it."

She remembered Destiny's skull, slowly cracked whilst she was still living, her eyes forced out of their sockets by the gem that gave her life. "Makes you wonder, though... just what the odds were. Perhaps there was a slim chance she could have made it. Perhaps it was a matter of finding the right path to take. Perhaps it's happened before, or is bound to happen again, one day. Who knows?"

She watched the dice fall before her, in a pattern of four-and-two. Her nose creased slightly, and she once again lifted her paw, and flicked it up. her tail swished and ears flicked, but she said no more, seemingly content to revel in her conspiracies.

"Tell me, what do you know of fate?"

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muse:

"Talking looks like this!"
Thinking looks like this...

Astaroth mulled over her words for a moment. What do I think of Fate? When he finally was content with an answer he turned to her. "I believe that Fate decrees that we must die one day, but that we choose how we reach that point. Fate is all the things that happen to us that can't be stopped. For example-" He lifted his twisted paw for her her to see. "This paw was a cruel twist of Fate, I could hardly even walk when I hatched from my chrysalis. Fate chooses what things happen to us at a time, BUT, Fate does not control us entirely, more, we control it in the actions we make. Every action we make changes Fate. Just as much as everything Fate throws at us changes us. Fate decided for us to meet, and we enabled it by choosing to go through this area." He stretched and laid down in front of her, looking into where her eyes were to see her reaction to his analysis of this.
"Speaking."
Thoughts.
tags: @Fate
notes:

Fate listened to Astaroth's words, and her brow lifted slightly in amusement beneath her crystal, but she listened despite this. Listened quietly, the only other sound than that of the wildlife in the woods being the clinking of the dice as she played with them in her paws.

"That it does. It can't be denied that fate plays our lives like a pup with a stone," she agreed softly. "But what I want to know is, can we predict it?" She stopped, drawing her dice close to her chest.

She tossed the dice at Astaroth, looking him right in the eyes as she said "Nine. Four and five." she said, without looking down. "I've spent 15 cycles studying these things, silly and inconsequential as they may seem." she put out her paw, and dragged back the die into her chest.

"...And I believe that the same can be said for fate. You don't need magic. You only need logic." The maned wolf rose onto four paws with a deep breath, and an arch of her spine. "The flow of fate is ever-changing, as you say. My aim is to study the way one thing will lead to the next, and the next, and the next."

A mischievous grin spread across her muzzle, but it was impossible to tell what lurked behind those eyes.

"So..." she purred, standing tall, tail twitching. "Would you care to have your fortune told?"


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"Talking looks like this!"
Thinking looks like this...

Fate had certainly gotten Astaroth's attention, he perked his ears and raised a brow. "Well I don't see the harm in it. See what the dice have to say about my life." He snickered. "Though I agree all you need is logic. I'd be even more interested in, once you're done reading my future, if you could read my past. To prove you are as skilled as you believe yourself to be."
"Speaking."
Thoughts.
tags: @Fate
notes:

The maned wolf laughed, a raucous, barking sound. "My dear, skill has nothing to do with beliefs," she purred, tail whisking at the air. "I have not survived this long by looking to the past. If I had, much of me would have been lost long ago. No, the future, my fate and everyone's; that's where I find true value." Though Fate didn't put as much into words, she could see easily that the wolf was not carrying anything that she could have turned to for a proper vision. She had the ability to look into the past, of course, but unless a creature was dead then she could not create links through them. "But, if you doubt me, I shall tell you what I've learned by looking into your eyes."

With that said, though, the maned wolf raised her head, the dice clacking softly together in her jaws. she shook her head, before throwing them roughly to the ground at her paws, being careful to avoid the mouse hole.

The twin die skittered to a halt, a pair of sixes facing upwards. Fate's eyes glinted behind her mask as she glanced up at them, her gaze piercing into theirs, although they probably couldn't tell. "They say that you'll have a decision to make. Two sixes; two choices of equal weight. Perhaps you'll have the opportunity to become a king, but you must choose to lose the one closest to you. Perhaps your greatest wish will be fulfilled, but you must choose to conquer your greatest fear. The future has great, great fortune awaiting you, but you must make the right choice in order to receive it, or you shall lose everything, my friend."

Fate's muzzle twitched into a smirk.

"And now, I shall try your past. I may not find value in looking to the past, but I do see the the value in learning from others' mistakes. Your eyes have told me that you have crossed turbulent waters. So much fighting, so many scars, and for what purpose? To prove to yourself that you could?" She looked closely at the rest of them, gaze lingering on the burns they carried, as well as the aged scars. They certainly looked as though there had been a fight, but upon closer inspection, where were the claw marks? there were no signs of a physical scuffle. "But, it would seem that you've come out of such affairs wizened. I expect that you'll continue to climb, and you won't make the same mistakes again."


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"Talking looks like this!"
Thinking looks like this...

Astaroth smiled a bit. "I don't wish to be a king. The one thing I desire is to be feared. The little crippled pup, grew up to be a big bad wolf you could say." He purred, smirking and growling lightly as he imagined all the things he could do once people knew who he was. He could feel their blood gushing through his mouth. He wouldn't kill all of them, he would just hurt them.. badly. Everyone would know his name. He could hear his enemy's screams and the chants of his own followers. Those who chose not to put up a fight would be spared. "Yes hahaha, to be feared." He said, chuckling as he looked at her with glowing eyes. Suddenly, quiet barely to the point of audibility but growing in volume, voices could be heard chanting his name from all around the cavern "Astaroth, Astaroth, ASTAROTH, ASTAROTH, ASTAROTH!!!!!!!!" "Hear them, this will be the future. One day."
"Speaking."
Thoughts.
tags: @Fate
notes:

"Those things go hand in hand, dearie," Fate said, her tone level, betraying nothing. But an ear twitched; was it with amusement, or impatience? Benevolence, or malice? One thing was clear to Fate. She was interested to see where this one would go, but she needed far more practice before she'd be able to truly predict one's fate based on their actions, and influence it with her own strength of will.

She didn't think that this one was truly sold, yet, but they seemed to be invested in the idea of it, and that was enough. I have a long way to go, but this is a good start, Fate thought as she watched them.

Her ears swiveled as voices seemed to rise, from somewhere, everywhere. A smirk twinged the side of her muzzle; although she rarely used 'real' magic, such party tricks had long been known, and did not scare her. It was her own element, after all. What made her watch and listen so intently was the sudden change; how her words had caused them to leap from calm to calamity in a matter of moments.

She bowed her head in acknowledgement. "My friend, I'm certain such a future will come, one day," she said coolly. "I just hope you keep your eyes peeled for potential heroes."

Her eyes glinted behind the bejeweled mask.

"There will be many of those, on the path you seek. Perhaps for now, you should keep your head low... After all, we wouldn't want you to get burned again, now would we?"

A playful edge had snuck into her tone, and as the wolf was speaking, she gradually began to turn away. Her curiosity was satisfied; the seed had been sowed. The time for involvement was passed. Now was the time to see what grew.

Fate slunk off into the darkness beyond the trees, leaving bated breath on the air.

-Exit Fate-

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"Talking looks like this!"
Thinking looks like this...

Astaroth smirked as he listened to the words of the other wolf. Yes, he would keep his head low, just until he was more powerful. Then he would show them all. But for now, he should continue hunting. Perhaps the voices around the edges of the cavern had scared everything to the center. That would make things easier anyway. So he stalked off, keeping low, looking for his next victim.
"Speaking."
Thoughts.
tags:
notes: ---Exit Astaroth---