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Post by Selenia on Oct 19, 2014 14:27:12 GMT -5
Selenia just sputtered at Red, she didn't like that look he gave her, not one bit. "You want me to blow myself up? Even if I manage to strive and survive through the whole labyrinth, you want me to secure victory against this pony by sacrificing myself to take him down with me in some blaze of glory?" She was astounded. Enduring was number one on her top priorities regarding this whole labyrinth spiel. With this plan, she might as well end it now to cut out her role in the labyrinth altogether, a shortcut to the inevitable ending regardless.
She supposed Red's reasoning was sound, she'd be beat from navigating a deadly maze and murdering others in her way, so much so that she wouldn't stand a foal's chance against the extremely powerful mage at the center. Red had survived and defeated the Alchemist through an exploit and teamwork, plain and simple, two things that Selenia doubted would work for her situation, so it only made sense that Selenia's only chance to stop the pony would be to take her remaining energy and use it in any way she could, even if it resulted in her death. She still didn't have to like it, however.
Selenia simply sighed after a short while of introspection. "I don't want to accept my fate in this labyrinth with only one possible outcome, but you're a lot older and wiser, and you certainly know better. If you believe it's the only chance I have, then so be it. Teach me the spell. Just, you better be sure about this being the only way."
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Post by Red Charge on Oct 22, 2014 1:55:08 GMT -5
Red Charge looked at Selenia for a moment, then his expression softened somewhat. "I'm sorry Selenia, it seemed that my past experiences have made me quite the pessimist." The stallion said, "It seems I am constantly thinking of the worst case scenario. I mean, who among ponies can ever hope to recreate the Labyrinth after all? It is much more likely that we are simply dealing with an ambitious pony with a bad case of megalomania, or better yet, a fraud." If Selenia had a feeling Red wasn't exactly looking her in the eye before, now he was definitely not looking her in the eyes. He was obviously still uncomfortable regarding the whole thing, was there anything he did not want to tell her?
"I will teach you this spell, if only for the educational value, but this is not the time for that. I would like to apologize, I had lashed out at you, invaded the privacy of your mind, I... well it seemed I have yet to truly overcome my own issues on the matter. But Selenia, if I am to continue your apprenticeship, you must promise to be completely honest with me from now on, no matter who orders you otherwise. I think now, that you'll find there is nothing to hide from me anymore as it is." He expressed. "I will most definitely try my best not to show myself off as much, if it makes you so hot and bothered. We need you focused on the lessons, rather than the teacher."
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Post by Selenia on Oct 23, 2014 8:13:49 GMT -5
Selenia huffed silently. Finally Red was relenting from the perpetuation of doom and gloom. That defeatist attitude was contagious enough as is, and as a result Selenia had wavering confidence in her capability to see the labyrinth through to the end. It was still nice to hear him admit that he was being a tad harsh about her chances. He still wouldn't meet her eyes, however. He wasn't telling her something, but with the circumstances she assumed it was very personal and very very painful. She had no right to demand he divulge, so she wouldn't.
"I don't mind that you lashed out, Red. With your experiences, you had every right to disbelieve my story, and its about time that came to light, either way. I'm overjoyed to accept your offer of apprenticeship yet again, no matter how short this second stint may be." She rubbed her hooves together in a nervous tic. "I'll be truthful, my only explanation for this time was that the hooded pony was just so...Persuasive. He played me with careful words, and I happily walked right into them. As my mentor you might as well be closer to me than family, so rest assured you'll hear of everything else that happens. And about the showing off with magic, don't worry. I'm more focused on the mechanics and process of the spells when you do that, it gives me a pinnacle to work towards for whatever you demonstrate."
She stood herself back up again, finally comfortable with the turn things had taken; bridges mended, questions answered and all that."I do appreciate you taking the time to teach me this spell, pray tell that I never have to use it, however."
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Post by Red Charge on Nov 29, 2014 8:01:21 GMT -5
Red knew she could tell he was hiding something from her, after all it was hard not to be able to read her after going through her entire mind. He regretted his rash decision but at the same time... he didn't. In a way, even if she did die in the Labyrinth, her memories at the very least could live on with him. Though who knows how much longer he had anyway? He was determined to do his best to make whatever time she had until she had to face that choice pleasant at the very least. But there was one item of business he found most pressing at the moment.
"Speaking of family..." Red Charge said, "I think it's high time I met your parents. Would like to know who raised you up. Well, know from *my* perspective anyway." The stallion said, "Shall we go pay them a visit then?" He asked.
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Post by Selenia on Dec 19, 2014 14:47:29 GMT -5
Selenia elected not to press on Red's defense. The last thing she wanted right now was to hit an old wound or have something else to worry about, for both her and her mentor. Preparing for one's potential death would be a serious strain on Selenia, and she would like to at least believe that Red had it on his mind. He was going to be teaching her that kamikaze spell, after all. She shook her head blankly, Aether knows how the original creator found a way to experiment with it in the first place. For that matter, how would Red even teach it to her without demonstration? What with the labyrinth and the mission and her ongoing mental recovery from the stint with that nightmare, so much was happening and it all was just so much to deal with, she was just about ready to fall over on the grass and just take a nap. A short break, if only for a few short minutes, that sounded nice.
Red kicked her out of her reverie with a peculiar request. Her parents. "My parents? You want to go see my parents, Red?" She had nearly forgotten about them in all that had happened,hard to believe considering how close her family still was. She hadn't visited them in weeks. Selenia sheepishly played with a few blades of grass. No doubt they would like to hear her stories, or that she was relatively safe and sound after the city was leveled. They didn't need to hear about the nightmare, however, or her upcoming mission. No sense worrying them with how close they were and still are to not seeing their little filly again. Red could break that news if it came to it, like the guard captain with the folded flag who comes knocking at your door. She quickly blinked the dampness out of her eyes. "Yeah, that sounds like a good idea. I'll need to ask around or check a roster or something to find out where they are in this mess, but we can go see them, I'm sure they'd like that." 'Luna knows I need to see them again too,' she finished to herself.
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Post by Red Charge on Dec 27, 2014 10:00:59 GMT -5
"Oh no, don't worry about that. I'll have someone bring them over to my house." Red Charge dismissed her casually. "Speaking of which, we might want to go over and make sure everything is in working condition. Haven't been in there for years. Though I suppose Gale would have kept the place up to standards, maybe."
He began to lead her down towards the city center, "I know what you might be thinking, but don't worry, the Sky Titan will not have harmed it. It's under the protection of a very particular spell." He said, as he led her into a small square. It appeared at first that he was going to lead her through an alley when the houses on both sides of it suddenly moved out of the way and a third, larg ehouse appeared in between. It reminded Selenia of the Rainlock Mansion in terms of architecture, it was somewhat larger than the other houses in the area.
"You cannot approach the house unless you have been invited into it. Even if you know where it is." Red Charge explained, "In the Equiterian era, they had planars who would deal in dimensional magic. This house simultaneously occupies this physical space and does not. It is one of the mysterious magics lost to the ages. A particular branch of Conjuration not usually explored. Equiterians were known to create pocket dimensions and alternate planes have been known to appear in places where powerful magics were used."
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Post by Selenia on Jan 7, 2015 11:26:09 GMT -5
Selenia simply nodded. Of course Red would have the underlings on hoof to run errands for him, he was the royal advisor after all. She'd finally get to see her parents again, and they'd be meeting Red up close and personal. Given, the simplified thought of introducing some stallion to her parents heated her cheeks a tad, but that situation was from another time, and another life if she was any judge. Happy endings were overrated, she'd be put in a middle-school history textbook or something for sure. Maybe foals would write essays about her. Did Red think about that kind of stuff, being the pivotal historical and magical figure that he was?
She followed in silence through the streets as Red explained his house away. She had no input, but the story and view was curious nonetheless. It reminded her of of the magical house in one of A.K. Yearling's books; practically invisible unless you know what to look for, interior size inconsistent with outward appearance, magical wards and ancient protection rendering it safe from calamities or unwanted visitors. Heck, this place might have even been the inspiration for the book given how similar its method of camouflage was.
However, the dimensional magic really piqued Selenia's interest. Manipulating the bounds of space and matter was practically against the rules, hence physics being governed by laws and not suggestions. Pocket dimensions, bottomless pits, infinite stairs, structures or safe houses locked outside of time and dimensions, indefinite preservation, limitless bounds and potential. It was the craziest science fiction come to life, and apparently it had existed. Authors had to get their inspiration somewhere, she supposed. "Now that right there is the kind of magic I want to learn. How was it lost anyways? With the magic being so useful you'd figure lots of unicorns would want to learn it, and then all the books that must have been written on the subject itself... It can't be all gone, can it?" She thought for a second before adding, "Your house here is protected by it, so you must know some tricks. You know of it at least."
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