Subj: [ffml] [HD]Magic users CAN be sane. Date: 01-03-21 01:41:33 EST From: lwoodruf@iastate.edu (Laurence H Woodruff) Reply-to: ffml@yahoogroups.com To: ffml@yahoogroups.com --------------------------------------------------------------- The winged figure followed the firecat out to the garden. This garden was entirely internal, and the outside of the harem, where the effects of the misplaced powerspell were not visible. Birds chirped and a soft breeze caused Lia's hair to wave gently, and Gooshaki's flame to flicker slightly. They both sat under a tree. The shade was nice. it was very calm and pleasant. Gooshaki spoke first. "Frankly, I don't know what to say to you." "That's ok," she replied. "We don't have to talk now if you don't have anything to say." "Perhaps I would have more to say, but recent events have put me out of sorts." "I too have not been myself lately." Lia had gone through a lot recently. Just now she felt fully in control of herself. This is the first time in a while that she felt totally refreshed and cognizant. "I feel better now, but I could have been better without the cataclysm." "Is that what that was called? No doubt from that spell slinging Esper. I wish he would take greater heed of the consequences of his actions. Though there was no greater harm, that spell is devastating. It is ironic that the spell that saved us was left by our aggressor." The firecat grumbled as he spoke. Lia turned aghast at these words. Was this really the cat from her dreams? Surly she thought so, but what destiny did she have with a being that seems to take such a negative attitude toward magic?! She had trained in the arts of magic all her life! Magic was an essential component of her home. Why would she share a dream link, a weak one, but one none the less, with this cat? She felt compelled to speak on Acranis' behalf. " that spell slinging Esper' is a good friend of mine, an accomplished wizard, and one of the most careful casters I know. I... I wasn't completely together at the time of the casting, I'm having a hard time remembering that period, but I'm sure he had a good reason to use it. Besides, it wasn't his fault. Pyxie summoned him while he was casting the spell. He teleported during the casting, and the spell was executed on the other side. He had no intention of destroying what he did." "But it was his intention to destroy SOMETHING. The effects of the spell is too great. Whatever his intentions, whatever evil he was trying to smite, he was destroying amazing amounts of life with it. We are lucky he cast it here, where most of the life is shielded by the force field. If he had cast it where he intended, not only would so much more vegetation, and fauna been killed, you too would be gone, as well as the others of your party. Only he would have survived. Was that very careful? It was reckless. He was reckless." She couldn't accept this. "Perhaps he was suffering what I was suffering. I mean, It really does affect your judgement, if he had what I had, then he wouldn't have been able to think it through all the way." She new this was a stretch, but she had to try something! For some reason, she felt torn up inside by what this Gooshaki was saying. Partly because some of the cat's arguments hurt her personally, even if they were focused on Arcanis, and partly, because the cat was right. As an elf, she had a sort of empathic connection to the earth, and she heard it's shriek when that small area of land was wiped clean of life. "He didn't mean to do it." Lia desperately wanted this cat's approval. Something inside her told her so. "Perhaps he did not mean to do it, but then again, they don't give lunatics guns in the Imperial army. Magic is too strong a weapon for people with unstable minds to have access to. Kefka is a perfect example. The disregard for their power is inevitable and thei..." "That's NOT true!." Lia was impassioned now. She stood up, opposed to the cat, and glared down at him. "Magic is not corrupting. It does not lead people down some road of ultimate destruction. It is a tool, and yes, sometimes the tools are too big for the hands the wield them, but that doesn't mean its an evil tool! And it's users run the gamut, much like everything else on the planet. MAGIC USERS CAN BE SANE!" She glared down at him, and he glared up at her. He looked away briefly. He lowered his head for a moment, and then looked up at her again. He was not glaring. There seemed to be a hint of urgency in his eyes. Nevertheless, he spoke softly, and calmly, but most importantly, with striking sincerity. "It was not my intention to offend you. I don't know what your significance here is, but I do know this. You must be careful. I need you to be careful. Please..., be careful." The response threw her off guard. She was ready to show this cat a thing or two about spell casting, but she certainly wasn't going there now. Why did he care so much. What's in it for him? She sat down again, next to him. They looked out over the garden. She thought of his words, and he lowered his head to rest. They sat that way for a long time. The sun shone, the birds sang, and the breeze blew. After she cooled off, and peace returned to them both, he spoke. "You said you were suffering from something? What was that?" *Augh* Lia thought. She hoped this wouldn't cause a ruckus. "Mana poisoning." Lia saw a coy grin on the cat's face. He only flicked is tail and responded, "Figures." -------------------------------------------------------- Gooshi Subj: Re: [ffml] [HD]Magic users CAN be sane. Date: 01-03-21 23:03:10 EST From: larathia@mcs.net (Larathia) Reply-to: ffml@yahoogroups.com To: ffml@yahoogroups.com This cat did not want to listen to reason. She shook her head in resignation, and dropped the subject. She'd have to have a talk with Arcanis later about the Cataclysm, though. It didn't seem like Master Arcanis to be so careful with his power and then let something like *that* loose on an innocent landscape. She hoped *he* wasn't under mana poisoning. She had no idea how he'd taken care of her, and no idea of how to return the favor. She decided to tell the firecat how she saw the universe, and let him decide if she was delusional. "Magic users can be a greatly positive force in the world, you know," she said. "Magic is a natural force; it is the energy of life. My people hold that a true mage coaxes this force into new configurations, never compelling." "Hmph." came the reply. "Then explain what just happened here." Lia sighed. "I can't. I'm hoping Master Arcanis can. This is just so not like him, to do this. I'd undo it if I could, but I don't have the Druid's gift." Gooshaki's ears perked forward. "Druid?" "There are a few of my people that just concern themselves with living things. All their magic comes from those things, is centered on those beings. They can turn into owls and wolves if they need to, talk to other creatures besides birds..." she shrugged. "They could regrow this in a matter of days, by persuading the life around the devastation to fill the gap. But we're a long way away from my home." Gooshaki appeared to consider this. "What can you do?" he asked. More silence. "I don't know," Lia said honestly. "A few weeks ago, I'd have had to say, 'not much'. But I don't just feel life flowing through me anymore. I feel it flowing *from* me, into the world. And it doesn't make me weaker, it makes me stronger. Master Arcanis could probably help me harness it...but if he's having trouble with his own powers I shouldn't trouble him about mine." She looked around at the garden. "I suppose there's nothing preventing me *trying*, though," she said speculatively. She reached out a hand to a flower that was withering, past its bloom. She willed it back to health, to life, to beauty... Larathia Subj: Re: [ffml] [HD]Magic users CAN be sane. Date: 01-03-26 22:08:43 EST From: lwoodruf@iastate.edu (Laurence H Woodruff) Reply-to: ffml@yahoogroups.com To: ffml@yahoogroups.com Gooshaki's eyes widened. "How.. it was dying! It is fully healthy now! How... how did you do this?" Lia shrugged slightly. "I don't know really. I used magic. I... It was magic that came from within me." "Magic from within? Hmm. Although I am impressed with this... I still don't like it. You're not even sure how you did it. What good is a power you don't know how to use? You can't give a boy a sword and expect him to be a mighty warrior. If you have some greater gift with magic, I'll warn you, It is a curse far before it is a blessing. Though magic can be used to destroy in obvious manners, even healing magic can interfere with nature's course. Death is an integral part of existence. Even something so minor as the resurrection of a flower can be presumptuous. If anything, magic should be used to restore the life magic has destroyed. Using magic to restore what has naturally died is overstepping the bounds of the mage." Gooshaki sighed. He lowered his head to the ground. "I don't know if I agree." Lia responded. "You assume magic changes the natural order, and goes against the set forces of nature. I don't belive that. I belive magic _IS_ a force of nature, and something destroyed through it has been destroyed in a natural way, and something risen through it, has been created in a magical way. Therefore, the mage is participating with nature." Gooshaki growled slightly. " We are talking in circles Lia. I am not composed enough to finish this conversation. You will learn. This magic is NOT of the earth. It is of elsewhere." He raised himself and left. "We will talk again. Despite our differences, I am pleased to meet you Lia." ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Gooshi