Chapter 1: Gate of Light

Play by Post Campaigns Ars Magica 5th Edition: Light of Andorra
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Marie raises a surprised eyebrow when she sees that Marcellus is sinking back into oblivion.
[color=red]Articulus sumissus, quickly, she orders the nurse, following the time-honored tradition of speaking Latin in the presence of patients.

The nurse, used to the quirks of the magi, unfolds an ancient looking scroll for Marie who concentrates to move away some furniture for some clear space for the casting. Another nurse brings 6 apples that look freshly picked and an egg that glistens in the sun that shines in through the window - the vis that the spell requires which is kept at the infirmary for emergencies. Marie makes the text hover in mid-air and then informs the two remaining nurses:

[color=red]You wait at the door. Let nobody interrupt me. If I lose consciousness, use the Glove of Vigor. Okay?

Then she starts the ritual moves. Slowly she speaks the words written down on the scroll and moves to create a magical vortex. Highly concentrated she touches one apple after the other: Power starts pulsing through her veins - her vision becomes more precise with every apple that her touch turns into a shrivelled husk, she feels youth streaming through her body and her cheeks warm. Never before has she controlled so much Vis at once. Basking in the power, she sings as she squashes the Creo-Vis-egg for the final pawn. Finally she directs the magic ino Marcellus body that spasms under the impact. Slowly Marie feels the power ebbing into Marcellus, sees how the wounds magically improve and feels the backlash of the spell come down on her like an iron fist.
She staggers and sinks to the ground next to Marcellus.

(OOC: Roll: 7+ Stamina 2 + Corpus 6 + Creo 10 + Aura 5 = 30; I assume the spell succeeds and Marie loses 4 levels of exhaustion: 2 for using a casting tablet and two for casting a ritual spell).

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Excellent descriptiveness! Which ritual did you use? I will hand-wave and presume Marcellus lowered his Parma in the moment he regained consciousness, aware of what is needed to help him.

And, the vis used gets charged to his account :wink:

(don't worry Xavi, it will balance out)

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articulus sumissus = gentle touch (of the Aesculap)

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Glacius was there, laying. Frost was a friend. Cold was a friend. That light at the tunnel (with disgustingly hot flames flickering in the sides of the portal) was not a friend, but he was ignoring it all the same, so he didn’t care much about it yet. Cold, quiet, unchanging whiteness. That is what it should be. The pain, that could be ignored as well as long as the cold continued. It was nice. Glacius was content.

Then the maelstrom came.

With a rush, the Power (and man, was THAT power!) came down and shook his whole body. Marcellus started to tremble and Glacius moved back to the fringes of his mind. The magic fo0rces battled quietness, whiteness and frost. Life, color and energy swept everything before them. Marcellus felt reinvigorated. It had been a while since he had felt such a rush of energy while being a human sized creature. And man, did it feel GOOD!!

With a roar and a jump Marcellus stood up. The whole of himself stood up. And so did certain part of his anatomy that had been dormant during the last days. He found himself roaring in the middle of the infirmary of Andorra. Marie was collapsing by his side. She must have been the one that did bring him back to health. She must be thanked for it later, he though, the poor creature. He hadn’t thought that a cripple could perform such powerful magics.

Marcellus felt full of vigor and with a hunger to eat a whole bull. Or a pair of women, in a sense. And there they were, the women. A pair of cute nurses.

“I AM ALIVE!!” he roared to the ceiling and started laughing, full of himself. Magic was a wonderful thing. He had eaten a lot of magical plants in his life, but nothing was as intoxicating as full fledged high magnitude magics. He eyed Ximena, the cutest of the nurses and felt his heart increase his speed. He was well aware that he was naked, but he didn’t care. He was there, he was alive and she was there and was an atreactive female. Was there a problem? He thought not. Without thinking much about what he was doing, Marcellus snapped his fiungers and Ximena found herself teleported in front of the magus.

“Hello cutie, wanna see what I can do with a burning spear”

Not looking terrified but a little bit worried. Ximena straightened herself and said

“I know what you can do with a spear. Or a sword. But I would rather prefer if you do that to MOTHER, FATHER. It wouldn’t be sinful in that case, you know”

Marcellus felt his energy rush receding fast. His "spear" did also feel the rush receed perceptibly. He saw he was holding down Ximena, her daughter by Maria. She didn’t seem really worried, only slightly upset at him. Suddenly he felt extremely naked and vulnerable. With a grumph, he turned around and summoned some clothes made or hides, with the result that he looked like a tough mountaineer more than a refined magus.

Ximena was sitting with Marcellus by the window tending his (already half healed) minor wounds when the characters entered the infirmary and Marie recovered. Ximena was ranting on a low voice about the lack of self-control of Marcellus and how he should rather not do those reckless hunts. That mother would see him dead by her own hands before than ripped apart by some nameless magical imp, how he should take care of his son instead of going abroad to be killed etc etc. How he does not seem to be able to keep his "sword" in his proper place and being a hothead that endangered the well being of his family too often....

Marcellus looked through the window as if he was not listening, looking slightly upset and ashamed at once. Once the energy rush had passed he was feeling rather tired now. The second nurse is laying on a couch by the side of Marie Norris. She is unconscious since she just used the glove of vigor on the maga.

++++++++++++++++++++

Marcellus is at -5 on activity. -2 for the 2 light wounds remaining and Tired (-3). So he is just standing there looking tired and resisting the muttering barrage of his daughter without saying much. When he looks at the egg bag he seems to cheer up with proudness, though

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I imagine that she would be attracted to you. No uncooperative, maybe scared at first. You failed to run proper game and properly seduce her, but if you use magic to overcome that barrier, she is more than willing.

Of course, she may feel ashamed that she let her modesty slack, and so may act weird or she may pester you constantly from now on :wink:

So, either you have Shame or Romance to deal with. Choice is yours, but I plan to use this :smiley:

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OOC: post has become obsolete. Deleted

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[color=red]"Ha-ha! What’s that they say about youth and vigor against old age and treachery?"

Inigo squares off against the no-doubt trigger happy archmagus, his hair blown back a little by the Circling Winds. One day, he might even win. He can usually teleport out of the way for a while, but the old man's just too quick on the draw...

After they've had their fun or Pietro shows up so Antonio can pick on someone his own size, Inigo heads off to the infirmary to see what all the commotion is about.

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EDIT: I just changed the scene slightly. Will delete this announcement post in short time.

Xavi

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Glad for the edit! I was at home last night reflecting that I must be non-confontational and was ignoring what you were doing, or that I am a sexist pig! PbP allows you the chance to edit :smiley: I also edited.

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Sorry, Im slightly confused, was marcellus making sexual advances on his daughter or his sister? Either way its a bit sick but the nurse, Ximena seemed to call him "Father" so I am not sure who is related to whom.

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Spanish slang :wink:

She called him "Papi"

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Ximena is Marcellus' daughter.

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Marie opens her eyes again. It takes her a moment to realize where she is, but when she sees the nurse lying next to her still wearing the glove, memory comes back. Turning her had to see if the spell was successful, she notes that Marcellus' bed is empty - a good sign. Ah yes, there he is looking out of the window.
He seems to look vulnerable - or is it because his parma is still down? She resists the urge to magically pinch his bottom as his magnificant physique blocks the window. Then she realizes the impression of weakness might come from the way he stands - tired and still hampered by his wounds. So she gets up instead. Her eyes fall on the bags Marcellus brought with him and says:

[color=red]Sodalis, I assume you have a tale to tell. Grinning, she adds: [color=red]But it seems that this may not be the right... situation.
I am sure you can tend to your wounds yourself. Feel free to use my glove against your fatigue. Shall I ask the council to convene?

Stealing a last glance, she turns to the door.

[color=red]Oh and don't forget to send me the glove once you are done. she adds.

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Okay, that is weird. Your story though. Let us see how it plays out.

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Umm, as Marko said, weird indeed! Obviously Marcellus has no qualms about incest.

So who is this sister mentioned in the quote a few posts below?

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A typo when writing.

I was trying to show that marcellus was in such a hype due to the 6th magnitude spell that he was acting like a total drunkard: not recognizing even his own daughter. Notice how he breaks that behaviour when he is pointed out to the fact that Ximena is his daughter.

He is quite a liberal though.

Xavi

PS: all this discussion should be in table talk, not in this topic IMO

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True, but people are still getting used to the format.

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As a matter of timing, you check in as Marie is casting a ritual healing spell. She seems to be doing well on her own.

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There is a Banquet tonight, in honor of our special guest! The kitchen staff had been hard at work all day long preparing. Time to show off your finery and manners :wink:

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Siccus – We haven’t heard from you in a while either :frowning: Don’t be mad that Antonio doesn’t trust you. It’s just that he doesn’t trust the Almohads and their Berber Hedge Wizards or Marabout Holy Men. These are interesting fields of study though. Be the one who supports the alternative! Bonisagus magi often stick up for Ex-Miscellanea magi in many of my games.