A Single Spark [open]

[upupatomway]

Who: Atom & you
What: Baby's first spell attempt. Please give him advice (or kick back with some popcorn)
Where: Outside on the beach near Flotsam
When: November 9, after lunch
Warnings: None


Atom balances a spellbook for beginners on one of the numerous rocks on the beach and raises his arms in front of him, facing out towards the ocean with a frown of concentration. He holds this position, squinting as he tries to do as the book instructed.

It's the simple task of summoning the ether energy to one's fingertips and then pushing it out to visually show the magic power, usually as some kind of spark or glow. His hands show no sign of any extra light, however. The book describes a sensation the magic has that makes this process easier to track for most readers, but for a robot any feelings in his body are limited by his sensors and his comprehension.

He squints harder, face scrunched and turning red. His creator had gone out of his way to make it so Atom could blush, though he probably didn't have this expression in mind. There's a sound, like a squeak, that might imply a spark, only for it to get lower and clearly recognizable as the robot straining.

Comments

[achelord]

Ziel felt that sitting around all day in the dim Vault was starting to feel oppressive, which is why he was out here, at the beach, still wearing his normal robes and looking miserable.

He wasn't miserable, at least not by his standards. That was just how his face looked.

As he trudged along, occasionally stopping to watch the waves, he came across the boy. The "robot", though he still wasn't entirely sure he understood what that was. Not a human, at least.

It almost looked like the robot was trying to cast a spell. Ziel looked closer and saw the book Atom was learning from and made a face. "Abenthy's Grimoire for Beginner Enchanters" was an old classic that had been given to beginner magic users for decades and, in Ziel's opinion, it was terrible. He'd started out with a teacher who had actually studied under Abenthy and had spent long hours ranting about how terrible and long winded a teacher the old bastard had been.

He had excellent vision, but if he was close enough to make out the title of the book, he was certainly close enough for Atom to notice him.

[upupatomway]

Atom was concentrating hard enough on trying to feel something (and continuing his vocalization of said challenge) that he didn't immediately notice Ziel walking along the beach. As Ziel gets closer however, he hears someone walking and turns to see what it is, half expecting the local wildlife. Instead, it's Ziel, looking a bit like a dark cloud against the sunny backdrop.

"Oh! Hello!" Atom greets him, face a mix of surprised and giddy; the giddy coming entirely from his embarrassment that someone had caught him in something of a compromising position, and a local spellcaster at that. "Um. It's nice to get some sun and look at the ocean, huh?"

His face is still red. If Ziel remembers that Atom is inorganic, he might look like an absolute fool for even attempting magic- he could only do it now in theory. Only organics naturally absorb and command ether. Or he looks like a fool for posing and straining like a kid trying to reach for a high shelf. Either way.

[achelord]

Well shit he’d been spotted. Ziel briefly considered walking away without saying anything, but decided that if he did the damn grimoire was going to bother him all day.

So he trudged over and picked the book up, glancing at the cover before looking at Atom.

“You’re not trying to learn magic from this, are you?”

He had no idea if a robot could use magic, but humans could barely use magic when learning from Master Abenthy.

[upupatomway]

Atom's eyes nervously shift from Ziel's tired face to the book and then back up again.

"...Yes, Sir," he hesitates but admits. He keeps the smile plastered on his face but his embarrassment is still obvious as he lowers his head slightly like a guilty dog.

Oh boy. Is he going to get the talk on who has natural magic abilities around here? He decides then and there that he will listen politely and not mention Donnie's theory. He doesn't want his friend getting any kind of backlash for his optimistic suggestion.

[achelord]

"Don't bother."

Ziel tossed the book over his shoulder.

"Abenthy was a self important old man who had no idea how to teach beginners and made everything four times more complicated than he needed to. He was used to teaching graduate students at fancy universities, not rank amateurs. And, if my old teacher can be believed, he wasn't any good at that either. Even I could make a better teacher than he was."

[spacetogrow]

Ilphyl takes advantage of their increased mobility without a boat (as in, they can get anywhere that is 2 hours' flight or swim from Flotsam), so they observe Atom on the beach. "What are you doing?"

[upupatomway]

Atom looks over his shoulder and smiles when he sees his friend. "Oh! Hi Ilphyl!"

He rubs the back of his neck and digs his foot into the sand, looking sheepish. "It's uh... A little embarrassing because I'm not sure it'll work but... I'm trying to do magic for the first time. Donnie and I came up with a way to install an ether stone into my body so I can use ether power instead of just electricity for energy. Now that I have ether in my body, I thought maybe I could use it for spells too."

[spacetogrow]

"Well, you won't know if you don't try," Ilphyl said. "I know how magic works back home, kind of, but I don't know why it works here."

[upupatomway]

"I took a book from the library at The Vault. The first lesson instructs you to gather energy to your hands to create some kind of glow, but they describe it as a feeling inside of you. I don't have feeling sensors on the inside of my body though," he explains, "I don't know if I'll be able to pick up on such a sensation."

Even if Ilphyl has a different type of magic, he might has well ask. "Do you feel the magic you use inside your body?"

[spacetogrow]

"Hmmm... more like a connection," Ilphyl said. "Like knowing someone else is in the room with you, even if you have a blindfold on and there's nothing in particular you can point to."

[lightnovelexperiences]

Deedee often comes to the beach to practice, shadowboxing unseen opponents or training dummies and going through the kata of Four Guardians Martial Arts.

It’s not a surprise that the amazonian-proportioned foxkin would see Atom’s attempts to - she’s not sure, but the gesture reminds her of Standard Fireball Flinging Stance, so she can guess.

So she bounds over, in one fluid anime-ass leap.

“Hey kid,” she says. “First time trying to cast a spell?”

[upupatomway]

Atom drops the pose as he hears something or someone moving towards him quick. He catches sight of her shadow and watches her make an impressive leap like something he had seen actors do on tv. He can't help himself and gives an impressed, "Oh!" and claps briefly.

Her guess is correct. Atom laughs uneasily and grabs the back of his neck. "Was it that obvious? I guess the arm position gives it away huh?"

[lightnovelexperiences]

“It’s a good solid stance for channeling damaging spells away from you, yeah,” Deedee says. “I make the same gesture when I [Gale Blast].”

She crouches down to meet Atom’s eye. “No incantation? On Mundus casting without one is an advanced technique, but maybe it works differently here.”

[upupatomway]

"I think there are incantations for the local magic, but I'm just trying to do a very basic energy summon and create a glow or spark. If there's a helpful incantation, it isn't mentioned. It's the first lesson in the book I borrowed from the library." He glances towards where the book is sitting on the rocks nearby.

"Gather up the ether inside of you and push it out of your hands. You'll know it worked if you can see the light. They describe it as an internal feeling but... I don't actually know if the sensors I have can pick up on the feeling of ether."

[lightnovelexperiences]

Internal sensors? - Right, this must be the robot kid people were talking about.

“Can they pick up on your breathing?” Deedee asks. “Assuming you’re, ah, air cooled. The reason Mundane wizards are told to use magic words is as much about remembering to breathe out as it is focus.”

She cracks her neck, and stretches her arms, preparing to get in a casting stance.

“Hell. The words don’t matter much - they’re usually just saying what you want the spell to do - usually in a language you don’t use otherwise, so you don’t set the room on fire when you ask for toast.”

[thirdtenkaistar]

Thomas was enjoying a rare day off, and one of the last few nice days before the sea gets too cold to swim. When he returned to shore and changes back to his clothes, he notices someone on the rocks a bit aways.

As he start to head back towards the portal, it dawns on him that the person is Atom - and clearly the boy was practicing something. "Good afternoon," he calls out.

[upupatomway]

[ ooc: Do you want to go with they know they're both in the Corsairs or just recognize each other from Elysium? ]

Atom didn't have his hearing turned up to its super level, and Thomas's footsteps are covered by the sound of the ocean and the breeze. The greeting takes him by surprise, and he gives a little hop and drops the pose to stand straight with his arms tight by his sides like a wooden soldier. He blinks and turns to look for the person calling to him, spotting Thomas and relaxing his stance at the familiar face.

"Good afternoon," he greets him, smiling. "Are you on a walk?"

[thirdtenkaistar]

Thomas notices the oddly stiff way Atom holds himself before relaxing, recognizing him from Elysium... but his brows soon knitted, slowly understanding dawns.

Ah, he's part of the corsairs, isn't he? Thomas realized.

"Oh, I'm actually taking a swim before it starts becoming too cold," he explained, "So what brings you out here? I mean it is a pretty nice view,"

[upupatomway]

The only people who would be on this beach should be the Corsairs. Atom's smile grows at the realization, and for a moment he forgets any embarrassing behavior Thomas might have just witnessed.

"That's a good idea! I don't know how many more days of sunny weather we'll have." Atom nods. "Me? I'm actually trying to see if I have any potential to cast ether spells. I took a book out from the library with some beginners instructions. I'm not sure I'm doing it right, but I'm kind of an odd case so it might just be me."

He's only acquainted with Thomas. He ought to ask just in case. "You don't happen to know anything about magic, do you?"

[thirdtenkaistar]

"A bit," He replied as he scratched his cheek. "Mostly what my mother taught and learning afterwards," Thomas explains.

"I use wind - for healing."

[redprayer]

It's after lunch time but rather than eat at Flotsam, Rezo had opted to carry a late lunch to the beach where he could enjoy his food on ground that isn't moving. (It's rather a meager spread, all things considered- a simple soup with seaweed and mushrooms, and some dry bread.)

He'd been aware of the presence of other people on the beach when he'd arrived, but it takes until he's finished eating before the sound of (machinery? a person?) something straining catches his ear, then his concern.

Rezo wraps up his lunch dishes in a cloth and gets to his feet, cautiously approaching the robot boy who is just doing his best.

"...Is everything alright?" he asks.

[upupatomway]

Atom does a double take, first realizing he has company, then recognizing that it's Rezo. They hadn't properly talked before, but Atom had heard the Corsairs sing his praises. Everyone who mentioned him was in agreement that he was a brilliant mind and extremely skilled as a healer.

"Mr. Rezo! Yeah, I'm okay." Atom's eyes drop to the signs of a carried lunch in Rezo's hands. "Was I distracting you from your lunch? I'm sorry!"

[redprayer]

There's a brief flash of surprise on Rezo's face at being addressed by name- He knows me?- before the subject moves on.

"Not at all, I just finished." He gives his lunch bag a little shake so that Atom can hear the empty containers and cutlery rattle together. "It sounded as though you were struggling with something."

[upupatomway]

"You heard that? Sorry..." Atom cringes a little, easily heard in his voice. He shifts on his feet, feeling incredibly awkward explaining himself to a talented spell caster.

"I was um... Trying to see if I have the potential to use ether for magic. I guess I might have been trying too hard." He gives a nervous laugh. Maybe they can both laugh it off?

[redprayer]

Despite Atom's obvious discomfort, Rezo's curiosity only grows. Magic is, after all, his foremost area of interest. "Did you use magic in your previous world?" he asks, trying to discern if Atom is a complete newcomer or if he's another person trying to adapt to a different system.