1224.1: Come Sail Away

[color=red]"Brooding," he says.

After a minute or so, he continues. [color=red]"This isn't how I thought it would be. I always thought that, if we ever did meet again...I don't know, that we'd figure out what went wrong, fix it, and pick things up again. Maybe not pick up where we left off, but be together again."

He turns to look at Talia. [color=red]"I know we can't be what we were before, that's pretty obvious now. But you were special to me. Still are. And I thought I was to you, I don't know anymore."

He sighs. [color=red]"I do miss you. I miss having you around, I miss being with you, I miss sleeping with you. I was an ass to let you go, I see that. And I don't want to let you go again. We can't have what we had before. I can live with that. But let's have something."

"We do have something. But you're expecting an awful lot for what is a chance encounter. Don't take this the wrong way, but you're sounding very selfish. All about the things you want, miss, desire." She chuckles at that, aware of the irony. "Whatever happens now, it can't be about just what you want, or even just what I want. It has to be a place where we meet in the middle. I was with you, because I liked you, and being a guest of Favonius was what suited my needs at the time. Your wandering eye suggested that you were OK with the temporary nature of our liaison. Perhaps that wasn't your intent, but it's what happened. Tell me, about yourself these past few years. Stop brooding and start doing."

((Sorry for the long wait on posting, recovering from New Years. If someone offers a drink called a Hand Grenade...think twice and then thrice. Do we assume Aodhan cast the Chirurgeon's Healing Touch a few times or should I make a few rolls?))

((That's up to Aeliophanes/Peregrine, it won't do anything for his Medium Wound, though. From a vis conservation POV, he probably would seek out someone to do Incantation of the Body Made Whole, so he only needs to spend 8 pawns of vis, rather than 16 pawns (8 for 2 castings of Chiurgeon's Healing Touch and 8 for Incantation of the Body Made Whole.))

Aeliophanes smiles as starts to regale Talia with tales of his exploits the past nine years. It starts off slowly, with him sailing around the area he had last seen Talia in vain hopes of seeing her again. Then he was approached by a covenant in Constantinople asking him to slay a monster in the southern Black Sea. He accepted, just to have something to do, and (naturally) was eminently successful. He returned to the Aegean and resumed his monster-hunting, gradually moving outward to the Ionian and Adriatic Seas, before moving into the western Mediterranean about a year or two ago. He grows more animated as he weaves his tales, throwing in an occasional "Oh, yeah, and then I had to go back to Flavonius for some covenant business or other" which sounds like it bored him immensely (and casually mentions at some point that he's moved his Sanctum from the Tereus to the Persea). From the sounds of it, he must have been incredibly successful, and almost lost his life on no less than six separate occasions. He doesn't mention anyone else ever sailing with him, nor does he mention any women.

As his tales continue closer to "and here we are," he starts to look at Talia with a very familiar light of desire in his eyes.

Chirurgeon's Healing Touch would take care of his two Light wounds. And, since this isn't a Stressful situation, it would be a Simple die, so don't bother rolling, since it would only affect how much Fatigue Aodhan loses when he's casting. That would still leave him with a Medium wound (his ribs), though. Of course, JL's observations make perfect sense, too. (die roll says) He would prefer to wait until they reach Verdi to be healed, it's only a couple of days away. Unless Aodhan insists.

Aodhan won't insist, but he will be happy to listen in on stories of magical beasts and vis harvesting of the corpses. Such a thing isn't really something he does, but like many nerds he often has adventurous impulses in mind.

"We are a magus and maga of action. What of your bed sport?" Talia asks pointedly.
Regarding the covenant business, she chides Aeliophanes gently "Why do you dislike covenant business so? I've found the debates and intercourse with my new covenant mates to be particularly enjoyable on multiple levels. If I'd been a disinterested member, I'm sure I would have fewer resources at my disposal."

[color=red]"Considering how many times you've brought up my 'wandering eye," Aeliophanes says with a forced nonchalance, [color=red]"I didn't think you wanted to hear about that. But, yes, a few times I was rather exhilarated by my latest triumph and celebrated by bedding a woman or two. Nothing that lasted more than a couple of nights. And none that made me feel the way you did."

[color=red]"But it's so boring! Where's the glory in deciding whether we should support one covenant over another at Tribunal, or brainstorming ways to remove shards, or..." He shudders. [color=red]"I'd rather live the rest of my days at sea doing what I love than have to sit through all those interminable meetings."

Tintavius is also there, standing directly to the side of Talia.

Talia will do a folk ken check, which totals a whopping 4 on a non botching 0, presuming only 1 botch die. "Fathered any children...that you know about?"

"Well, it can be tedious at times, but one must learn to suppress the short term annoyance for the long term benefits that accrue. No man, or magus is an island. I'm surprised that you don't have anyone with you." Talia thinks to herself, 'No real ambition except to hunt monsters. How boring.' She tries her best to hid her... disappointment, but probably fails (total of 3), not having the skill with guile that others do.

She'll look at Tintavius, "Enjoying the show?"

[color=red]"Not that I know of...at least no one's ever come to me and showed me a baby that she said had my eyes. I'm supposed to go to Favonius in a few months so Memnos can do my ritual."

Aeliophanes shrugs as best he can. [color=red]"Nobody else understands me like you do..did. And nobody feels the same way about what I do. I love what I do, and I'm damn good at it. Isn't that really all anyone can ask of life? Can you say the same? Can either of them?" he indicates Aodhan and Tintavius.

Tintavius grins lewdly. [color=red]"Immensely. Just waiting for a chance to get a closer look."

"Aeliophanes, I'm the one who got away. I'm the one who doesn't fawn and worship you. You're simply bored with that kind of girl. You need to step up from the typical serving wench. You need a woman. But I am not that woman."

Lets see, Dispel the Phantom Image says destroy any one CrIm spell who's level you match or exceed on a stress die + level of spell. Talia's PeIm CS is Pe 2 +Im 0 +Sta 2=4/5 or 1... So...first try is unsuccessful. "Let me try that again." Talia successfully dispells her conjured clothes. "Is that better?"

Aodhan's jaw drops at the sudden diplay and he blushes even further before turning away.

"Uh...so...the clothes are illusionary...that's quite interesting..."

Aeliophanes says nothing, but merely turns to lean on the railing, staring out into the distance again.

((Or she could go with Unraveling the Fabric of Imaginem, which would affect spell level 12 + Stress Die for her.))

[color=red]"Much," Tintavius says, licking his lips as he starts ravishing Talia with his eyes.

[color=red]"Don't tell me you've never seen a naked woman before, have ye, boy?" he snaps without taking his eyes off Talia.

"It certainly seems that this is your first time. Talia says staring Tintavius down. ((Let's go for Leadership (intimidation) check....of 12.))

[color=red]"I haven't been a virgin in decades, if that's what you mean," Tintavius says, but quickly looks away.

After a minute or two, he says, [color=red]"I'm going to go take a nap," and heads below deck.

"Yeah. A nap. Sweet dreams, dear boy. Sweet dreams." She waves him off.

Talia turns back to the railing, forgetting to recreate her imaginary clothes. "Aelio, what's really going on with you? It can't be all me. That doesn't make sense. You and I saw eye to eye on a lot of things, on how we were a magus and maga of the Order, with immense power, and in control of our own destinies. And the words now coming out of your mouth suggest a pining for the days long in the past." Talia's stretch marks from her pregnancy are probably visible, though faded, and her forgetting to recreate the clothes is genuine, since she doesn't feel clothing on her, she has to look down and notice it to realize she isn't "clothed."

Aeliophanes turns to Talia with a wry smile. [color=red]"I wish I knew for sure, Talia. The last few years...it just...it doesn't feel like it means as much as it used to. It's not because you left. This started a couple of years after that. But...sometimes it feels like I'm just going through the motions. I'm still damn good at what I do, but it doesn't feel like it means as much as it used to. I feel kind of empty, and I don't know why. Used to be that I had monster-hunting, and I felt complete. Then I had monster-hunting and you, and I felt complete. Then I had just the hunting again, and I still felt complete. But somewhere, three, four, five years ago...it just started feeling like there should be more, and I can't figure out what. Sometimes it feels like it would be nice to have someone to share it with, or pass it along to."

He shrugs. [color=red]"Maybe someone's telling me it's time to have kids or take an apprentice. Or both. If I'm going to have any kids, though, I'd better hurry."

As he speaks, he (for the most part) maintains eye contact, but it doesn't look like his eyes stray lower than Talia's breasts. But he's not going to complain about her being naked, either, even if Aodhan and the crew are right there.

"Do you want children, though? Or are you more interested in passing on your seed, without all of the responsibilities of parenthood?" Talia tries to hide her feelings.

Aeliophanes thinks for a long minute or two before answering. [color=red]"If it was just the result of some dockside fling...I don't know. If it was with someone I loved and cared about, then yes, I would want children and to be their father.

"You're asking me a lot of questions about children all of a sudden."