[ OPEN ] you seem so out of context

[crimsonpride]

Who: Asch and You!
What: Asch relearns old skills and practices new ones
Where: Near Silverglen
When: Mid afternoon to early evening
Warnings: None

Fire has never been Asch's strong point. Manipulating Ice always came more natural to him, and swordplay more naturally than that. A unused skill is a wasted skill, though, and Asch despises waste. He's found himself a nice patch of rocky ground not far from Silverglen, something difficult to set ablaze. His skill of choice for today: Dragonbreath.

He's relieved to find he doesn't actually need to breathe fire. The familiar motions of casting artes are much more comfortable for him, and he's using them to end the lives of the scraggly bushes around him. He's found that practice can come in two varieties, this way--for every bush he sets on fire, he switches back to a more familiar arte and calls jagged blades of ice down on the flames. Before long scorched patches of earth and clusters of still melting ice surround him in equal measure.

He practices, and he practices hard. It forces him to take multiple breaks, leaving him increasingly cranky each time he does. Even so, he can tell that he's making good progress and doesn't leave him looking unapproachable--especially not when he finally allows himself to sit down and have a simple dinner.

Comments

[crimsonpride]

[ Asch hadn't been expecting guests, and he starts a bit when Zelda steps into the clearing. The tension from practice--not dissimilar to the tension of battles--stays in his frame for the span of several heartbeats. Then he relaxes, letting his hands fall to his side. ]

I can. [ Asch pauses before he adds: ] One is a skill from home, and the other I learned here. [ No word as to which is which, however. ]

[highrules]

[ Not that she was expecting answers as to which is which; she was just surprised and reminded of someone back home who could use three different elements. The power of the Goddesses isn't shared here, she's come to discover, but there's no harm in indulging in a bit of nostalgia. ]

That is what I thought.

You were a talented warrior in your world before arriving here, were you not? [ Possibly even a hero? ]

[crimsonpride]

[ What an odd sort of question. Asch blinks at Zelda, confusion plain on his face. ]

I was. [ The admission is out before Asch can think to stop it. Is using more than one element really that rare... wherever it is she's from? ] And you?

[highrules]

[ Yes, it's apparently reserved for final bosses and heroes. ]

Something akin to it, though I mostly stuck to the shadows. [ That much is the truth, but what she doesn't let up is that she wasn't supposed to be fighting. ]

Strange as it is to see someone use magic in this way, it comes as a relief. I wasn't aware the dragons' allies were this powerful.

[crimsonpride]

[ Stuck to the shadows...? Asch immediately regards Zelda with a sharper sort of interest. He's met her type before, knows exactly what that means; it means she's attentive, and therefore potentially dangerous.

Or potentially a strong ally. Only time will tell. Asch isn't the sort of let anyone but himself build up (and subsequently tear down) his ego, but he's pleased to hear the compliment. ]

Save your judgement for until I have to use it against something more dangerous than a bush.

[highrules]

[ Oh she would laugh if she knew. Harming others is something she can't bring herself to do easily, but she carries herself as though she's exactly that type. ]

I'd wish for it to never come to that, yet we are here to engage in a war. It'd be idle wishing and nothing more.