A Game of Skill

[♥ Azzie]

Azzie blinked as the scene changed around her. The sound of the audience roared in her ears and she held her hands over them, until she saw Euripides' hand go up and felt the din lower a little. The booming voice on the loudspeaker was still quite loud, but at least there was only one of it.

She scurried out of the tent as soon as they were dismissed, and wiggled her wings. They still seemed to work as usual, at least. She felt a little off balance from the change in stature, but she assumed that would pass before too long.

She looked back to the tent, trying to see if any of her friends were coming through, but all she could see at that moment was people she didn't know. So, even though it was barely sunset, Azalea shook her head, and flew off toward home for a nap.

[Celestial]

Celestial blinked as the scene around her but she was not fazed by the audience clapping and cheering. She bowed, ready to catch any roses if they should be thrown her way, even if they were not meant for her. The mage took her shinies, waved goodbye to the audience and left the tent, glad to be back to having wings again.

She took off into the sky towards Mage Manor, not looking forward to the paperwork which would probably have piled up while she was away. Still, it was an amusing distraction, this Game of Skill. But she wanted a nice rest from everything, possibly to sort out some of the issues that the servants of the Manor and sometimies the Manor itself was complaining about.

[Kristykimmy]

Kristy grinned and waved nervously at the crowd as they applauded, completely shocked at the number of them. She waited until the numbers around her thinned out and then left the tent. She absentmindedly shoved the shinnies into her pockets as she looked up at the sunset.

It was odd to think it had all been an illusion, and she wondered exactly how long it had lasted. She looked back at the tent one last time before hurrying on her way.

[Pixie]

Everyone thing happened so quickly, it overwhelmed her.

Oh my. The princess is so... broken - I almost pity her. Even though she's an illusion...

Suddenly, she was back in the circus tent, everyone applauding. It felt rather good to hear the applause, but she felt a pang to leave the illusion world behind.

Only if I hadn't joined up so late. Well, we all made great characters of ourselves in the end.I missed a lot of interaction, it's awful. It's much more fun being involved yourself. Say- thinking of that... It would be nice to join a guild. The guild members seemed pretty happy. I need to talk to someone and find a guild for me

She came to a start when she felt a large amount of shinies plop into her hand. She got pushed around in the crowd as she tried to exit, so she lingered back a little before leaving. She went to the nearest leaving performer ((anyone of you))and asked "I am interested in the guilds. Are the magic users a guild of their own?".

[Draco]

Draco stands around with his arms crossed as things go back to normal. There was something up here and he didn't like it... A few shinies however, that was never bad. He slips them into a pouch and walks over to Gelquie.

"So we made it through ok."

Then with a more hushed tone.

"Do you find it odd that even though we worked out these puzzles, that Jensen woman for some reason took items? If they were illusions, why did she need to take them? When you return to the manor ask Celestial to look in on it.... Or if there are any magic or special items in the world that are related to what she took... It just seems weird. I'll be in Brassport."

He pats her on the back and walks off. He notices the newcomer asking about guilds.

"Try the mage guild. The leader just flew off, another member was the one I was just speaking to."

He keeps walking, holding up his hand in a sort of wave.

--

Once outside he walks down a dark alley and several dark figures pop out of the shadows.

"Follow that Euripides and Jensen. Don't be spotted or fooled by any illusions if you can help it. Report back to me on what you find."

With a nod they disappear onto the rooftops, then several other dark figures can be seen flitting away. When Draco is satisfied he leaves the alley and into the main street. He walks out of town and off to Brassport. He had some research to do.

[Gelquie]

Gelquie mostly stared into space as the audience roared in applause. I guess that was it. The end of the events. She was still wondering about the the illusory power of the hosts. She was about to go ask them herself, but they had walked away to leave by the time she had a moment to ask them. She sighed. Maybe she could catch them some other time and learn their secrets.

At least she was out now. She expected a break. She didn't expect an ordeal... At least it was all over. That was enough excitement for a few months.

"A few months...?" Gelquie thought to herself. Her thoughts were interrupted, however, when she felt a pat on the back from the second to last person she wanted to see. She inwardly sighed as she heard him speak.

"...Yeah, I guess we did..." Gelquie said. After a moment, she opened her mouth to speak when Draco spoke again in his more hushed voice. It was then that she paused. All things considered... Yeah, he had a point. There shouldn't have been any items remaining from the tasks. Not if the whole illusion was dismissed. Something definitely wasn't right here. But she only managed to give out a nod to Draco's request before watching him walk away.

After he left, Gelquie let out a sigh. All this time she thought he was trying to kill her, and yet he'd only been trying to help her... And now there was this little conundrum. ...Whatever the case, she was sure that they'd have to meet again, one way or another. The question was... Will she be up for it? Up for more danger like that?

That was something she'd have to think about later. Gelquie turned towards Ellen and walked over to her.

"Like Draco said, the Mage's Guild is the best guild for magic users, and it'll give you a home," Gelquie said. "I'm going back there now; you can come with me if you want. Then you can talk to Archmage Celestial about joining."

With that, Gelquie started to walk off, but she walked at a slow enough pace that Ellen could catch up. At least until she got far enough away. She just wanted to go home, not just to talk to Celestial about the illusions, but also to go back to her room.

She had a lot of thinking to do.

[Amneiger]

Well. That had gone pretty well! It was too bad that he couldn't have been more involved in the last scene, but everyone else got to the questions he'd thought of before he could speak.

In any case, he had a really big bag of shinies now. He'd have to get this into his account. He pulled out a comm link to ask for a shuttle.

[Fraze]

"I would like to use this story to work on a personal project."
"...You have personal projects?"
"Not often."
"That's what I thought. Carry on."
"Quite simply, I wish to conquer a small part of this story plane."
"I see. Nostalgic for the good old days?"
"Something like that. However, if I'm successful, I will also rule over my conquered territory."
"And is this going to get in the way of working for me?"
"I don't believe so. But if I cannot manage both responsibilities, I'll relinquish my leadership in order to serve you."
"That's reasonable enough. What's your plan?"



"I like the motifs you're using. You've got some nice numerical symbolism, and that dramatic irony sounds delicious."
"Thank you, sir."
"However, you'll have to do it on your own. It will be a story in progress; too much meddling from me will ruin it. I may choose to aid some side or other, but only if it amuses me. But bear in mind, the people in this story plane...they have a way of turning the narrative in their favor, even without my help."



"I understand. And I wouldn't want you to give me an unfair advantage, sir. I want a good challenge just as much as you do."
"Ahh, now you're sounding more like a valkyrie."

[Tiger]

Tiger stuck to the edge of the group, a little intimidated by the crowd's size. She'd gotten used to being around this relatively small group of people - hopefully the agoraphobia wouldn't last long. She tucked the shinies into her coinpurse and drew her cloak up before skulking out of the tent.

Outside, she conjured a draft horse for the ride back to the manor. The feel of magic working through her fingers again was a surprising relief, like stepping into a hot bath after a long day in a cold forest.

"I guess that was interesting," she said to the horse as they rode off. "And making some money wasn't bad..." She frowned, not sure she was happy with the trail her thoughts were taking. Using magic as a business hadn't ended well for her last time...

Well. There was time to think things over. Tiger spurred the horse to a faster pace and let the tent fall out of sight behind her.

((This was a blast! =) Thanks for making this so awesome, Fraze and Hunty! <3))

[Pixie]

"Thank you! I need more training, you-" She promptly shifts into the form of a cheetah, and morphs back into a blushing teenager. "I can't control my shifting well. I didn't mean to do that. I'm pretty good with potions, though" She gestures to her satchel. She follows Gelquie to Mage Manor.