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Post by Varian on Nov 11, 2019 6:59:26 GMT
"...You know," Mozenrath recalled, "I'd been toying with that exact concept. I think I know of a few tricks that would level out his bestial instincts...in fact, a few interesting cases come to mind. The fabled lost city of animals...perhaps there was truth to the legend. Or the shamanistic staff that allowed control over the mole-men - or maybe that was just the shaman's silver tongue and hair-trigger temper working on an already susceptible demographic. But what intrigues me MOST is the curse of the jackal-beast. Some poor young damsel in distress was cursed to become a feral jackal in the light of the moon, a curse only to be broken by the kiss of true love, et cetera, et cetera. Maybe the moonlight is the key. If I could find a way to channel it over whatever concoction you're making, filter it through a crystal that would amplify and distill its magic...we might be able to reverse-engineer the jackal. Instead of giving a sentient person animal instincts, we remove the beast from within the professor and keep him a scholar among rodents." Varian paused for a moment and considered what Mozenrath said. He had his doubts since this didn't sound scientifically feasible. But on the other hand, Mozenrath did sound like he was familair with ways to achieve the effects Varian desired. Plus it might be a chance to study magic up close and figure out how it actually works. "Hmmm...I guess that could give the formula the ummm...let's call it texture needed to stabilize it." Varian said as he didn't want to use the word magic without offending the Horned King and Mozenrath. "I'm willing to give it a shot, but do we have a crystal with the right properties?" |
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Post by Mozenrath on Nov 11, 2019 7:42:00 GMT
"That is the question, isn't it?" Mozenrath mused. "I have on my person a Crystal of Ix, but the primary function of something like that would be to harness and channel raw magic. Not exactly what we're looking for. I'm sure one of these books would have a solution. Oh, and for reference, the Crystal of Ix I'm talking about is - "
Is -
Not in his pocket.
Frantically, he searched through his clothing, hoping to turn up his lost artifact. No dice.
That crystal was his safety net! His secret weapon if he were attacked by another magic user! True, it would have been small, but it would have been better than nothing!
Some opportunist here probably knew what they had on their hands and stole it.
"No," Mozenrath muttered, his tone mounting. "No, no, NO - "
He really didn't want to believe Varian could've done it. But everyone was a suspect at the moment. And he had no reason to spare Varian anything.
So he grabbed the boy by his shirt front and pinned him up against the bookshelf; "WHERE IS IT? WHERE DID YOU HIDE IT?"
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Post by Professor Ratigan on Nov 11, 2019 12:47:59 GMT
Ratigan stayed mostly quite, as he let the two of them talk about his growth potion. He didn't want interrupt, after all the more the two of them talked, no doubt the sooner they'd be able to figure out a way to work the potion. Which would mean a quicker way for him, to show them what he was really capable of. Hearing Mozenrath listing off the many mystical places, was rather odd though, not being used to magic being taken so seriously. He didn't know what to think of this…jackal woman, but if what Mozenrath said was true, perhaps this moonlight thing could work.
However, his interest was suddenly peaked, when Mozenrath had a sudden outburst, regarding some kind of crystal. Apparently he had lost it somewhere, and from the sound of things it was important. Could it be? There was that Crystal that Negaduck had found. And though Ratigan didn't get a close look at it, it seemed very powerful. Exactly something a sorcerer like Mozenrath would have.
With this in mind, the professor carefully pondered his next move. Should he tell the sorcerer about it? Or should he keep it a secret a while longer? On the one hand, he was all ready in hot water with Negaduck all ready, and it would be rather counterproductive to betray his trust anymore. Keeping it a secret, might earn back some of the points he lost. But on the other hand, if Mozenrath had found out about him keeping it a secret, there was no telling what he would do to him. He was all ready this mad about losing it, how furious would he be, if he found out he had been lied to about it? Between the duck and the sorcerer, one was a lot more threatening than the other. And besides, if he played nice with Mozenrath and told the truth, their relationship would no doubt grow exceptionally. The sorcerer might even help him out more, with no strings attached. Sure old Negaduck would be mad, but if he played it right, he wouldn't know about what he'd done. And besides, he wouldn't be as intimidating, once Ratigan had assumed his larger form. His mind made up, Ratigan asked the young sorcerer:
"Did you say something about a crystal? I hope you don't mind me intruding, but I believe I might have seen it before."
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Post by The Horned King on Nov 11, 2019 15:43:14 GMT
"Now, now, boys. No roughhousing in the study. You may disturb the other readers," the Horned King muttered apathetically. There was no use in interrupting Mozenrath once he was on his warpath, and while he disliked the idea of the sorcerer reducing the number of people the king actually had some use for by one, he was no parental figure by any stretch. The children, though children, will sort things out.
Especially after Ratigan spoke up to gain Mozenrath's attention. Whether or not he knew where this all-powerful Crystal of Ix was within the halls of the castle was of no concern to the king - though if he did, there was nothing to worry about. Varian was safe from Mozenrath's wrath, Ratigan would be seen as trustworthy, Mozenrath would have his item of power back, and the Horned King wouldn't lose his allies to such trivial buffoonery. Though, if Mozenrath was so dependent on it, even if he was as powerful as he said he was, he should have been more cognizant of the crystal's absence. Between this and the failure comment from before, the boy was quite emotionally vulnerable. Who knows whether or not he'd continue to lash out at Varian or the others for such matters. This could be a problem.
While the others held their little spat, the Horned King's gaze was cast on the archive that enveloped around them. Slowly, the lich detached himself from the three and began to sift through the collection open to him. He had been here momentarily before, and again, not many of the tomes or scrolls here were of much use to him. Surely, however, there was at least one map of the structure here and one or two useful spell books or dark ritual manuscripts lying about here somewhere.
As he searched, he made sure to keep an ear on the conversation occurring behind him. The fantasy of the Cauldron-Born next to a legion of mechanized warriors was nothing if their master were to be reduced to ash by another's temper tantrum. The king would intervene should it escalate if Ratigan's words proved useless in diffusing Mozenrath.
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Post by Mozenrath on Nov 11, 2019 19:52:14 GMT
"You've...seen it?"
Mozenrath roughly let Varian drop. He turned his full attention to Ratigan, advancing, making sure to loom over him as much as possible.
"Where...is...it? And for your sake, I hope YOU'RE not the one who decided to take it."
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Post by Professor Ratigan on Nov 11, 2019 20:06:20 GMT
"You've...seen it?" Mozenrath roughly let Varian drop. He turned his full attention to Ratigan, advancing, making sure to loom over him as much as possible. "Where...is...it? And for your sake, I hope YOU'RE not the one who decided to take it." "Oh no no no no, perish the thought good sir," Ratigan quickly said, before answering his question: "It was just a few minutes ago. I was just leaving this very archive, after talking with a recent business partner of mine, when from the corner of my eye, I saw Negaduck sneaking off. I saw him trying to hide something from everyone, and just managed to see him holding a powerful looking crystal, before quickly pocketing it and running off. If I remembered correctly, it was green, with a few points on top. Is that the one you're looking for?" Despite, betraying his supposed ally's trust, the professor still decided to keep his teleporter plans a secret. He didn't want to burn too many bridges with the duck, and besides, he could just give Negaduck a different crystal, after a mission to the outdoors. |
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Post by Varian on Nov 11, 2019 21:45:18 GMT
"...I...Don't...have it!!!" Varian shouted as he was being shook by Mozenrath. Thankfully Ratigan interrupted Mozenrath and made Mozenrath put him down. Of course, Varian would not forget this little transgression anytime soon.
Though there was a big problem now. Varian was still carrying his staff with him and his chemicals when Mozenrath shook him. And shaking said chemicals started a violent reaction. The vials on his staff began to glow brightly and foam started oozing out of the lids. "Uh guys, we're going to have to continue this conversation outside. RUN!" Varian said as he left the staff behind and ran towards the exit. Meanwhile, the chemicals were glowing brighter and making a loud and ominous hissing noise.
(OOC: Not moving this to another thread, just suggesting moving outside the archive. Thought this might be an interesting way to teach everyone to be careful with the guy carrying explosive chemicals. Though if anyone has any issues with the explosion, let me know and I'll delete this post.)
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Post by Mozenrath on Nov 11, 2019 23:57:14 GMT
"Oh no no no no, perish the thought good sir," Ratigan quickly said, before answering his question: "It was just a few minutes ago. I was just leaving this very archive, after talking with a recent business partner of mine, when from the corner of my eye, I saw Negaduck sneaking off. I saw him trying to hide something from everyone, and just managed to see him holding a powerful looking crystal, before quickly pocketing it and running off. If I remembered correctly, it was green, with a few points on top. Is that the one you're looking for?" "NEGADUCK," Mozenrath seethed. "When I get my hands on that DEGENERATE FLEDGLING, I'll adorn the castle's DINNER TABLE WITH HIS ROAST - " But then... Though there was a big problem now. Varian was still carrying his staff with him and his chemicals when Mozenrath shook him. And shaking said chemicals started a violent reaction. The vials on his staff began to glow brightly and foam started oozing out of the lids. "Uh guys, we're going to have to continue this conversation outside. RUN!" Varian said as he left the staff behind and ran towards the exit. Meanwhile, the chemicals were glowing brighter and making a loud and ominous hissing noise. It took Mozenrath a second to realize what was happening. Then he realized he probably shouldn't stick around this room any longer. But he wasn't leaving without his informant, or his ticket to power. Varian was already taking care of himself, which was...good? Not that Mozenrath had any reason to care. And what he was about to do next was absolutely for selfish reasons only. He snapped Ratigan up in his left arm, then seized the Horned King's arm in his gauntlet, which was shimmering brightly. A blue light enveloped them all and took them to the corridor just outside the archive. Of course, Mozenrath had only had two hands. Not enough to grab the most important things. This would require one more (risky) trip back in...but if Cassim and Aladdin could defy death so much, well, he should certainly be able to, right? In a panic, he screamed back to the Horned King, "WHICH BOOKS WERE YOU READING?" |
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Post by Professor Ratigan on Nov 12, 2019 0:15:34 GMT
Ratigan let out a small sigh of relief. It was a good thing, that Mozenrath had managed to get everyone out, before things got too nasty. Though, he couldn't help but feel rather undermined by the whole thing, he wasn't one to look a gift horse in the mouth. Plus, if the sorcerer went out of his way to help him, it was a good sign for their future partnership.
(OOC: All right, managed to knock off one quick reply, before I head off to bed. See you tomorrow. Hopefully things, haven't gone too crazy by then).
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Post by The Horned King on Nov 12, 2019 1:52:15 GMT
"Ah..." Though not a map of the castle as he had been searching for, the Horned King did finally stumble upon a few spell books among the archive's various shelves. A number of tomes focusing enchanting weaponry, practical attack spells, some manipulation and advanced necromancy incantations... once he found a place for himself to hole away from the others, the lich could indulge in some re-learning of his abilities. In particular, if he was going to be traveling from world-to-world in the name of conquest, a trusty, undying steed would be appropriate. Unlucky would be the soul who dared to assume the Horned King would be walking from every kingdom across worlds.
...Not unlike he had been doing this whole time during his stay at the castle. But this was the one rare, unprecedented and unexpected exception to that rule.
"I believe these will do most- gah!" The lich growled, his arm suddenly taken by a familiar looking gauntlet and his grip on the books loosening, causing them to topple onto the ground by his feet. His collecting of the magical tomes had made him completely oblivious to the situation unfolding behind him, unaware of the bubbling, unstable vials in Varian's arsenal, nor Mozenrath's attempt at... what? Saving him? What nonsense - death would not come so easily to the Horned King!
Even so, unprepared as he was, the king would be enveloped in the cool blue of Mozenrath's magic, and find himself with the others in the corridor just outside the archive.
Brushing himself off and forcing Mozenrath's gauntleted hand off his arm, his face scrunched up in annoyance. "INSOLENT BOY, you dare lay your hands upon-"
Then Mozenrath shouted at him, asking what books he had been looking at. Though the tone was not something the king would stand for, the frenzied look in the young sorcerer's eyes caused the lich a minor lapse in judgement, almost as if he... had to tell him.
"They were nothing more than some common spell books, though some contained a few advanced incantations that could be of some use... No map or architectural guide to this estate was inside, at least, as far as I browsed... why do you-"
The king studied Mozenrath's face and thought back to his question. No, the boy simply was NOT that foolish, was he?
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Post by Mozenrath on Nov 12, 2019 2:27:08 GMT
"ANYTHING THAT NEEDS TO BE SAVED?" Mozenrath roared, giving zero context.
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Post by Varian on Nov 12, 2019 2:37:32 GMT
Varian rushed out of the room, and ducked behind the wall. He was a bit surprised to see everyone out of the room already, he had more important things on his mind. He waited until-
*BOOOOOOOMMM!!!*
As the dust settled, Varian slowly peaked back into the room to see how much damage had been done. Thank fully the explosion area was small and didn't destroy much of the archive. But the scorch marks on the ground told him that though the blast area was small, the explosion was a powerful one. Might have killed them all if they hadn't got out of the room in time. It was powerful enough to make a noise that rang across the whole castle. Varian worried what the others, especially the five, might say if they find out about this.
One thing was certain though, Varian would need a new staff. One that would prevent this sort of thing from happening in the future.
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Post by The Horned King on Nov 12, 2019 3:11:10 GMT
"Nothing that cannot be-"
The Horned King began, only for the deafening sound of the vials detonating to cut him off. The strength of the explosion was enough to ripple through the corridor the four were currently in - who knows if the others within the castle heard the commotion.
"...replaced." True enough, the spell books weren't especially pivotal. The Horned King desired to stop by the archive on a whim, any how, to see if they would be useful later, but in the grand scheme of things, they could be put off. And, given the sound and power that came from the blast, that would be for some time much, much later.
As the young alchemist who's chemicals were the cause of the destructuion peeked into the archive, the Horned King called to him. "I had expected far better from someone claiming to be of such high caliber, young Varian. You'd do well to not recreate such an accident - least of all in front of Maleficent."
The lich turned an accusatory finger toward Mozenrath. "And you... I will not scold you for not knowing what could have happened, for I realize you possibly could have not. But I saw something else in your eyes... surely you were not foolish enough to go back into the archive to retrieve a few paltry spell tomes? A death over literature - how absurd."
He need not chastise the rodent.
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Post by Varian on Nov 12, 2019 3:38:49 GMT
"Nothing that cannot be-" The Horned King began, only for the deafening sound of the vials detonating to cut him off. The strength of the explosion was enough to ripple through the corridor the four were currently in - who knows if the others within the castle heard the commotion. "...replaced." True enough, the spell books weren't especially pivotal. The Horned King desired to stop by the archive on a whim, any how, to see if they would be useful later, but in the grand scheme of things, they could be put off. And, given the sound and power that came from the blast, that would be for some time much, much later. As the young alchemist who's chemicals were the cause of the destructuion peeked into the archive, the Horned King called to him. "I had expected far better from someone claiming to be of such high caliber, young Varian. You'd do well to not recreate such an accident - least of all in front of Maleficent." The lich turned an accusatory finger toward Mozenrath. "And you... I will not scold you for not knowing what could have happened, for I realize you possibly could have not. But I saw something else in your eyes... surely you were not foolish enough to go back into the archive to retrieve a few paltry spell tomes? A death over literature - how absurd." He need not chastise the rodent. "Ahem! With all due respect your majesty, the probability of such an explosion happening was only 0.5%. The only way to trigger an explosion like that would be if somebody shook all three vials at once very furiously." Varian's angry gaze turned towards Mozenrath for a moment. After all, this was not his fault. But then again, there was another person involved who was getting on Varian's nerves. "Of course, it seems we wouldn't be in this mess in the first place if a certain Duck hadn't stolen Mozenrath's crystal." |
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Post by Mozenrath on Nov 12, 2019 17:15:17 GMT
"THIS IS ALL NEGADUCK'S FAULT," Mozenrath agreed vehemently, "AND HE'S GOING TO PAY FOR IT."
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