So that fully confirmed it, he had missed out! There was a small sense of loss at the opportunity that had slipped beyond his grasp. Not that he needed another set of wings, but being able to examine the spell's function would have been a wonderful opportunity! Next time though, next time there was a contest or a trial set forth by the caves he would seek it out and at least judge if it was worth pursuing after getting all the information.

In addition Envy seemed to have tipped their hand on why they had seemed to be concentrating and how they had seen so easily past his attempted neutral expression. A spell, probably primal element based on their previous tendencies but if so then probably a joint effort between the heart and mind. He'd have to be cautious with his words and actions. Though Envy was still young they appeared to be shaping into a competent magic user- and one whose spell work reflected a fragile state of being. If they grew beyond they could be a great boon to the caves, but if they clung to such insecurities then...

The gryphon immediately recognized the direction his thoughts were going and attempted to change his inner subject. No need to dwell on dark possibilities, especially if in doing so there was a real chance of accidentally encouraging them into being. He had to do what he could to encourage Envy and help them move on to a stable station of life.

"I can certainly try!" he responded optimistically. "I'm not sure how well it would work though. As you've no doubt seen by this point the ancients have a kind of power that lies beyond what any of us could hope to achieve in mere cycles. Just their very presence seems to imprint magic on those around and oftentimes the nature of their spells bends the very rules of the elements."

Envy also brought up a very interesting question in their denial. If the ancients had given the spells could they take them away again? With the good-natured manner of the Blacksmith he'd never actually considered the possibility before. Whenever they met again he'd have to ask.

"For the Conjure Familiar spell, as the Blacksmith called it, I have to use a slightly modified version of both of the arcane and light elements. Your natural tendency toward magic usage appears to a manifestation of desire, so perhaps start by trying to think of why you would want a friend made of light to follow you around."

While this was going on the bee, seeing no flowers in the area, buzzed back and started circling around the most colorful object in the area- namely Amras's head.

---

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Back bag: Empty

Take hold of the power within
"And shape the fabric of reality around you"
tags: @Envy
notes: None

Envy looked relieved as Amras promised to teach them what they knew about magic, only for that look to fade as the gryphon appeared to make excuses in preparation for failure. "Well, I'll be that powerful one day! I don't care if no-one else can do it, but I will! I'll take it from them myself if I have to!" the weasel stamped an impatient paw, longingly watching the bee.

Amras began to go into the technicalities of the magic that they'd previously demonstrated, and Envy narrowed their eyes, willing them to get to the point faster. they didn't need to think so hard about magic.Nerd. "Because it'd look cool," they finally answered the presented question. Truth be told, Envy didn't know why else they'd want something like that. After all, it didn't seem to do anything... useful. In fact, the more they watched the bee, the less they cared about it. They still wanted it, of course, but it didn't seem as cool as they'd first thought."Do they do anything useful?"

Noticing as they watched that the bee seemed to be drawn towards bright colours, Envy smirked, narrowing their eyes and baring fangs in a grin.

The weasel concentrated hard, watching the bee closely. It took a few moments but eventually a leaf-green tone crept through their fur before rapidly being replaced by shifting tones of yellow and pink. That was brighter than Amras, right. They eyed the bee hungrily, like a cat stalking its prey, although they obviously knew that they couldn't eat it. They would just prefer it if they were the focus of its undivided attention, that's all.

"Speech."

@Amras

Amras shook his head at the question, internally attempting to look past the ambitious sounding tone that Envy had taken. Again, however the worry seemed unfounded as the weasel took hold of their innate power to playfully take on the appearance of a flower to stalk the magic bee.

The bee, in turn, took the bait and began to hover toward Envy. In slow and clumsy motions it circled the fake flower, getting closer with every pass but never actually touching them. On some base level, perhaps, it must have realized that it didn't have any actual physical body, so with every movement it battled directives of "go to the flower" and "don't actually touch anything".

"Sadly its primary use seems to be to draw attention and allow practice in a diluted form of more advanced techniques of light and arcane. Useful for me but I'm not sure how much it would help with your style of magic. With more focus in light magic it is possible to create much more elaborate creatures that act under your control rather than preprogramed instructions, and with more advanced arcane magic it is possible to delve into even more advanced facets of the mind, giving the ability to send thoughts, see through possibilities, and even will the world around you to change as you desire." he explained, switching to projected wordless thoughts halfway through as he wove magic through his mind to demonstrate.

As much as he liked demonstrating magic the thought occurred to him that perhaps he should hold on bombarding them with too much more information. They had a tendency to want everything as their name implied and grasping at too many things at once might be counterproductive in the long run, and possibly dangerous.

---

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Back bag: Empty

Take hold of the power within
"And shape the fabric of reality around you"
tags: @Envy
notes: None

Envy's expression was a somewhat comical picture of glee and forced aloofness as their gaze trailed the ghostly insect that buzzed around them in slow circles. "Hm," they grunted although it seemed that a lot of Amras' speech passed over their head until the Gryphon was actually speaking from inside it, at which point the weasel's gaze snapped back onto the gryphon, their eyes narrowing. "Creating elaborate creatures, you say? And... under your control?" Envy appeared intrigued by that, at least. It certainly appeared more useful.

However, they didn't seem too impressed by Amras' show of arcane, either; again, it didn't seem all that useful to them, and with a twinge of jealousy they thought it seemed quite similar to their Empathy, in how it echoed words with feelings and more complex thoughts. Maybe a little less taxing on oneself, though, without the inevitable risk of disassociation. But it also didn't seem as rewarding; not as much an escape from their own woes. They huffed in apparent disdain. "I think mine is better," they said, puffing out their chest.

Amras seemed to know a lot about magic, and Envy liked that. They found themselves combing over ways that they'd be able to use him further. Envy had already demonstrated a lot of what they knew, but there was one thing they'd been trying to master for quite some time, something that had so far eluded them. Amras, himself, had demonstrated its destructive uses the first time they'd met... unintentionally of course. Since then, Envy had seen its power demonstrated again and again, by Imperia, and then by Dragon. Perhaps they could... 'earn' a few tips, so long as they didn't have to ask for it. Envy puffed themselves up, eyes glowing bright as they prepared for a show.

Envy heaved in a deep breath, trying to summon flames to spit out like Dragon had. They felt a burning sensation building in their chest, until it hurt mildly, and then breathed out... but the heat burned their tongue, and instead of breathing flame, they ended up hacking and coughing, metallic-smelling smoke billowing out of their mouth and the burning heat in their chest causing them to flinch and bounce, panting violently in an effort to cool it down.

Well... at least it was a show, not that Envy would see the funny side.


"Speech."

@Amras

The gryphon tried to hide a small grin at Envy's jealousy of their skills. The kid really did have a lot to be proud of but the sooner they could learn to revel in shared experiences the better it would go for them. The grin softened, however when he saw Envy once more attempt a spell that he had seen them use at the stream. It didn't seem to work right, resulting in a coughing fit and thin black smoke rather than thick black smoke which engulfed their form, but it did bring up memory of that strange spell again.

See, the problem was that it didn't seem to fit any element and didn't seem to be borrowed from any ancient one. It looked like it might have been light element but it had a physical form. It might have been fire element but it produced no heat. There was something... off about the whole thing.

Especially in how the spell itself, especially in this place with fog closing around them and murky water trapping them on an island of semi-solid land, seemed to be calling to him too. What was it that powered it? Why did it not fit in his model? Was his model wrong or was there more to the spell of the weasel's fear than they knew?

"Envy," he spoke, his words suddenly taking a serious feeling. "I would like to try something. Please do not be offended if it works, but I think you may have stumbled upon something beyond even my comprehension in your spell work."

There was a pause as he took a small step away from the obsidian slide and looked the weasel straight in the face. Why was the spell calling to him, that wasn't how magic usually worked! He had to investigate. "I have to see it for myself."

His gem didn't glow, but as soon as he willed the spell to come into being it gripped onto his essence like a viper setting upon its prey. Black fog began to seep out of the ground around them forming pillars of smoke that moved as though with a mind of its own. Amras could feel his own magic react defensively toward the spell saturating his flesh, his organs, his gem, and especially his eyes with pure energy. The pillars danced around the gryphon as they closed in, expanding but not thinning as he became entrapped in a stygian dome of his own creation. Inside it was dark, with only the light of his eyes to try to piece the wall of smoke until all at once it snapped in on him and attached itself to every inch of his flesh.

When the spell finished Amras was left standing there, a black shadow of his normal vibrant self. All around his body the black fog still clung and roiled, dripping off his limbs like it couldn't decide if it was a gas or a liquid. His wings were half-extended from the shock, leaving his stance slightly forward to counter-balance. His now glowing silver eyes were about the only thing visible within the blackness as he could feel the instinctual defensive magic fighting back against the alien nature of the spell.

"That was... unpleasant" his voice emerged from shadowed beak, taking on an almost indistinguishable reverberating quality.

---

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Back bag: Empty

Take hold of the power within
"And shape the fabric of reality around you"
tags: @Envy
notes: None

Envy was a little preoccupied with hacking and choking, their body trying to dispel the burning in their lungs the only way it knew how. Hacking and coughing quickly descended into violent retching. After a while, they paused in their efforts just long enough to gasp for air, until with one last heave, they felt burning, searing heat drying their mouth and searing past their fangs. A jet of fluid, boiling and glowing red with heat, shot out onto the earth, clouds of steam rising from the damp earth, marshy grasses shriveling beneath its touch.

Although they'd had some success with fire, the small victory was bittersweet.

Vaguely they were aware of Amras' words but, whilst they'd usually feed the weasel's ego, they had more important things to worry about. They only grunted in response, hot breaths steaming around their muzzle.

Wheezing with the effort, Envy poked out their tongue, wincing and gulping, breathing slow as the burning slowly faded. Not seeming to notice Amras, they pattered down the obsidian spire ad scurried off to a nearby pool of muddy water to wash their mouth. When they returned, slinking low to the ground, it was to their displeasure that they watched Amras performing a spell that they liked to think of as theirs.

"What? too much for you?" Envy asked sourly as they approached without fear, sitting back on their hind paws at Amras' feet and frowning as they were once again reminded of the gryphon's sheer size. Truly, he had everything. But they did take some satisfaction in knowing that Amras struggled with the spell that they'd possessed since birth.


"Speech."

Amras saw the weasel return, but the world outside had a slight disconnect to it. He wanted the spell to end now, and indeed he could feel the bizarre magic was no longer being fed. It would be a while before the shadows would fade though and in that time he had to bear through it. Luckily now that he had time to analyze what had just happened the spell didn't feel quite so malicious; just... alien, uncomfortable.

"It's different than what I expected." he warbled in response as his breathing further normalized. As more time was passing the sable shroud was beginning to become a bit more familiar to his senses. Not a spell he would have ever thought to utilize on his own, but with each passing second he could understand the appeal.

A pity it seemed to be useless for more than show. It would make a good show though!

Was that fire magic you just used? A dangerous type but a useful one." He could understand a bit more now why Envy had retreated to such an isolated place. If Li caught them using fire she'd almost certainly become worried. "Good thinking practicing it near a water source though."

---

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Back bag: Empty

Take hold of the power within
"And shape the fabric of reality around you"
tags: @Envy
notes: None

Envy relaxed slightly as the Gryphon's magic gradually seemed to drain from existence, but the indignant look in Envy's eye never left. They eyed the ethereal smoke until they could faintly see Amras's form through it, finally shaking their head and turning bitterly away. "Different how?" they grumbled quietly, in a last-ditch hope that Amras would admit the magic was out of their league. But they doubted it.

Envy's rounded ears pricked, though, as Amras commented on the magic that they'd used, and failed at. they felt their fur prickling upright, skin hot with embarrassment. They'd hoped that Amras hadn't seen their 'show'. But at least they knew that they were capable of using fire. To an extent... "Hmmph. so you noticed, huh? Yeah... I mean... Not that I care. Almost dying only makes me stronger," Envy twitched their claws uncomfortably against their chest, driving them into the thin fur barely covering their bones. It looked almost like they were itching, but it was more a subconscious expression of discomfort. "Mmm? ...oh. Oh yeah. I did that... intentionally."

They bristled hotly, moving their scratching to their chin, as their tail whipped wildly.

Better remember that for next time.

"Speech."

@Amras

Finally the gryphon's internal magic had gained the upper hand. The shroud around him shuttered and dissipated in one last small burst of light before his silver eyes stopped glowing and he returned fully to normal. With his concentration no longer split on the spell's effects Amras folded his half-open wings behind his back again and in turn raised from his forward-leaning two legged stance to his more relaxed tall one.

"Perhaps it's just the difference in personal magic perception, but that one almost felt like two spells in one." Now that he was out of the effects his thoughts were clearing up. It was silly to think of it before the way he had, it was simply an unexpected application of magic that's all. "Obviously light in there, both its increase and decrease luminosity application which could explain some of the feeling of spell disconnect. Mental and emotional effects which I'm tempted to call arcane but more likely were due to animal element influence. Perhaps even fungi since it had some hallmarks of an external element." he continued to ramble, muttering primarily to himself.

As soon as he realized he was distracted, however, he snapped back to attention and looked at Envy again. They had just been quite a trial with fire magic and here he was off in his own little world. His blank calculating expression gave way to a small grin as he folded his wings to his side to drop down closer to their eye level.

"That's how fire magic tends to be, and perhaps even more so for you. I would say be careful but you probably know better than anyone what your limits are and how to expand them. Just remember: it's not a race to mastery of your skill set, it's a journey."

---

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Back bag: Empty

Take hold of the power within
"And shape the fabric of reality around you"
tags: @Envy
notes: None

Envy rolled their eyes, nodding slowly and occasionally mumbling a disgruntled-sounding "mmm-hm," or "sure". The movement of their paw calmed until they finally lowered their paws to settle against their chest again, tail flicking taking over once again.

They did however, seem relatively satiated by Amras' words, which they decided to take as compliments."Ech. Well we both know by now that I'm pretty much unkillable, in that regard," they said with a touch of pride. "No-one's gone through what I have. I can do anything, being careful is nothing to do with it." they rolled their eyes yet again as Amras warned them on pursuing a path to mastery. That cliche about it being about the journey and not the destination. "Yeah, yeah, I get you," they said, just to get the more experienced mage off of their back more than anything else. Though inside, they couldn't help but wonder the point of the sentiment; what was the point of the journey, if it weren't for the destination. But they kept these thoughts to themselves, perhaps out of begrudging respect for the older and more experienced mage.

They bristled slightly, as Amras stooped down in order to be closer to eye level, seeming slightly annoyed by the effort. They themselves tried to rise up a little higher, but there was no way they could compete with Amras' height. "So, fire. I've... seen a lot of Gembounds using it," the weasel commented offhandedly, glancing briefly away. "Seems... useful. Can you remember when you nearly killed me with it?" they grinned a little disconcertingly, baring pointed fangs.


"Speech."

@Amras