He watches them closely, noticing how they seemed to zone out for a moment, lost in a train of thought that he couldn't see the tracks of. But he didn't push on it, didn't question where they went in their mind, it wasn't his place to do so and in all honesty, he really didn't feel like dealing with sappy bullshit right now anyway. He had enough on his plate at the moment.

However, once they came back to the present and spoke of corruption, he listened carefully, taking in everything they said. His eyes narrowed slightly, brows furrowing as he listened to their warnings, noting that they didn't specify that they were an exception. For some reason though, instead of concern or weariness crossing his gaze, a flicker of respect did. Most people would be defensive about themselves in a situation like that, but they chose not to, not to sprout false words just to ease concerns, and that made him respect them more.

Why do you have it then? If its such a terrible magic type? There was no judgement in his tone, his voice measured and calm, with only a hint of natural curiosity as he spoke. Are there many others with the same magic as you? These were things he wanted to know, needed to know, and they seemed like the type of level headed creature the he could get this answers from.

They let the question sit with them for a few moments.

"Don't get me wrong, I like my magic." They decide to say. "It's both powerful and dangerous, so many of us do not. It fundamentally changes you. When I got this magic, I didn't know that - but I wouldn't change it if given the option."

That is true, Esther somehow does like corruption. Sometimes it makes them feel out of place, especially without their old fire. It's been so long at this point that Esther doesn't remember what their fire before felt like, just the cold, purple flame of the Cursed Flame.

"There are a lot of us! Some more adjusted than others. It's still magic, just like what everyone else has." Not so rare anymore. Esther hadn't met another Corruption user for a long time after they obtained it. Then again, they could be forgetting...

@Nikolai

He listened intently to them for a moment, slowly nodding as he did so. Everyone seemed to have different thoughts on their magic, corruption or regular. Some were euphoric, some saddened, some confused and some indifferent. He liked his magic, the power of fire coursing through his body, didn't even really mind the heat that sometimes licked at his fur if he wasn't careful. There wasn't any way he would willingly change it, though he had to admit their cold fire was certainly fun and interesting, but there was something.... strangely comforting about the heat of his flames.

He nodded slightly, a bit of amusement on his lips. This corruption certainly seems interesting, I'm curious as to what else you can do with it, though I think personally I prefer my fire. And he saw nothing wrong with that. Once one is corrupted... is that forever? He assumed it was, from the way they spoke at least, but he wanted to be certain, in case it was something he ran across in the future. They called it dangerous, so he figured knowledge would be his biggest weapon.

"Corruption users can pretty much do the same thing as any other magic." They admit. It's honestly a little bit astounding, harder to cast spells but Corruption users can mimic any type of magic. From burning flames to destructive pressure - they can do it all. Normal gembound can learn spells other than their element too, but it's still different.

"At first, before your magic fully acclimates, you can reverse it. It takes a long time to become Corrupted, as long as you're careful you won't have any problems. Unless you're planning on obtaining the magic, anyway." If Nikolai really wanted to obtain Corruption, Esther would tell him how - though they'd rather not let anyone suffer that way.

"After that, though, it is forever." Esther has no way to go back to how they were before. And those who were born that way were never given the option in the first place. It can lead to quite a sad life for some, really.

"I can show you more of the magic, if you want." They grin with full teeth. Nikolai seems curious and Esther won't shoot down the option to practice.

@Nikolai

Noted. So he could study the corruption a bit without worry, that was good to know. He wasn't sure why it intrigued him, but he wasn't yet ready to jump into something without consideration.

He instantly perked up as they spoke of showing more magic and his eyes widened ever so slightly, the interest clear on his face. Sure, show me what you can do. He settled himself down comfortably, wrapping his tail around his legs as he waited. He would give them his full attention, wanting to see not only what they could do, but what happened if they failed.

Esther nods when Nikolai decides they can show him more magic. Esther won't say no to a chance to show off! Still, it's best to be careful with the dangerous Corrupted magic. If anything backfires Esther hope's the pup will run, or at least get far enough away so Esther can't hurt him on accident.

Either way, it's time to choose a spell.

They stare at another pillar, hoping to send that through the void using their magic. Except something goes wrong and Esther is thrust into darkness through a swirling portal of black. The void is everything Esther has seen before - blackness with nothing in it. Just Esther, all alone with no company. They'd probably freak out if they didn't see the void most days, randomly blocking their vision.

They wait for some time, stuck in place. Eventually Esther is pushed right back out to where they began. Not a dangerous failure, thankfully. They'd rather not catch on fire.

"It's... Not supposed to work like that, but close enough." Esther turns to look at Nikolai. "Generally i'd be sending something else there, but that worked too." they sigh, playing it off as not a big deal.

@Nikolai

He watched curiously as they figured out what spell to show him, one that he was sure he would find interesting, wanting to know more about. But then suddenly the mained wolf was gone, vanished out of his sights and he was left just blinking and looking around in confusion. Did they.... teleport?

A quick look around showed that if they did, it wasn't anywhere near him. For a moment he opened his mouth to speak, to call out to them and see if they were just invisible when suddenly they popped back up right where they had been. He blinked a few times in confusion, one eye raising as he debated what to say to ameliorate their failure.

Well that was.... something. He knew he had no room to talk considering his own failures, but he couldn't help himself. Sending someone? Did you... teleport or something? He cocked his head to the side, eyebrows furrowed as he tried to understand what he just saw... or more so what he didn't see.

It takes Esther a few moments to reorient themselves fully. That was the first time they've fully seen the Void in that way, even though they've had the spell for quite a while. The Void is blinking in and out of their vision, blocking various spots around them. The floor under their paws, a crystal in the distance. Thankfully it's not too bad.

"It um." Esther isn't sure how to explain that without showing, but maybe doing that would be a bad idea. They've never sent another gembound through like that. "It sends things to the Void. Like a black space with nothing in it. They always come back afterwards I think."

At least, Esther thinks so. There's never been anything permanently in there. It also takes a lot of work to maintain, Esther isn't powerful enough. It can still do a lot of damage regardless.

@Nikolai

He raised an eyebrow slightly as they tried to explain, taking the time to wrap his head around everything. The void. Whatever the hell that meant. One thing was for sure, it wasn't some place he actually wanted to go, even if his curiosity was peaked, he wasn't an idiot.

Interesting. He nodded slightly to himself as he considered everything for a moment. Do you only send yourself there, or do you send others there too? That seemed like a rather terrifying thing to have happen suddenly, and he considered how amusing that would be to watch.

@Esther