Finnius Posted July 23, 2004 Report Posted July 23, 2004 A little blue man adjusts his clothing in a mirror taller than he is... Finnius is not one for fancy attire, but for an occasion such as this... Fine black velvet, trimmed in silver at the cuffs and worked with twin quills on the lapels. An idea from Peredhil, as Finnius is not the snappiest dresser. He'd originally intended to just throw on his best robes, make a picnic lunch and maybe seranade the lovely Salinye Celestialgrace with a poem or a song... he'd had one in mind, even, but Pered... Well, he'd quickly suggested, not a demand or anything... more like advice. And so here was Finnius, in tailored blacks and more silver than he'd imagined could be worked into a single suit. His hair was combed back, expertly straight and freshly cut. His hands were soft, baby-skin fine instead of his normal rough, worn digits. Yui-chan had supplied the most amazing moisturizer... The little blue man cut a dashing, if somewhat short, figure, but slightly heeled shoes, polished and gleaming, took care of that... to a degree. Well, at least he'd be able to look Salinye in the eye. Orlan's idea, that had been. Finnius turned to leave the room, pausing long enough to smack himself in the forehead and turned back, taking a swordbelt and fastening it around his waist. He'd need some form of protection for his date where they were going... and Gyr had been kind enough to provide a spare blade, complete with various and sundry enchantments. It was no Redemptio or Atrernax, but it would suffice... or so Gyrfalcon had said, and so Finnius hoped. With that, the little blue man exhaled a soft sigh and slipped out of his room, feeling... not quite himself. Good, but maybe a tad overdressed. *** "Finnius whateverwhatever O'Harpy!" Sal stood in the doorway of Custos Manor, resplendant in a snug, but tasteful dress, black and strapless... a classic. It only served to highlight her fair features, and Finnius thanked Orlan for making sure he was at eye level instead of his usual chest-level... could have gotten iffy. As it was, Finn's little blue jaw felt leaden and he was lucky to be able to tear his eyes away from Salinye's radiant face. "I don't think I've ever seen you so dressed up... and I have to say, it looks great on you!" The little blue man shrugged and tried to calm his fluttering heart, extending a shaky arm to Salinye and cracking a slanted grin. "Shall we, m'lady?" *** Finnius and Salinye halted, arm in arm, in front of a plain wooden door deep within the Pen Keep. Salinye cocked her head to one side and gave Finnius a half-glance and a small smile. Finnius, catching the smile, turned slightly less indigo, and slightly more purple... he always blushed in the most interesting shades. "Why Finny! I'm not entirely sure what you had planned, but I don't think some alone-time in a dark room is entirely appropriate..." Finnius turned distinctly more purple and quickly shook his head. "No! No, I mean, not that that wouldn't be... er... what I meant was... the room... door, I mean... when you concentrate, it turns into what... and you can... you know, whatever... that is, whatever you want, you know? I'm babbling aren't I?" Salinye giggled, placing one elegant hand to her mouth and gave Finnius' arm a heartstopping squeeze. "I know about the room, Finny. Me and GyrE found it a bit ago... when you concentrate on it, the room becomes whatever you want." She grinned and pressed closer to Finnius... coincidentally turning him a bright violet. "And you're offering me a tour of whatever I want, right?" Finnius nodded dumbly, and vainly tried to struggle his arm out of Sal's grasp... without having to pull it out around her wrist, which would have planted it firmly between her cleavage in any case... he gave up his struggles and resigned himself to a night of purpleness. Salinye chewed her bottom lip for all of ten seconds, and then looked back at Finnius, practically bouncing... which the little purple man tried desperatly not to notice. "I want a tour of Terra! Like it was in the old days... Terra Lost. The Old Conservatory and the days of the Archmages and all that stuff!" Finnius' face swung back down the spectrum, moving past his normal indigo and into a pale sky blue... well, he had told her whatever she wanted. He gave Salinye a small nonchalant grin, expertly tutored by Ozymandius, and concentrated, remembering... The door opened. *** A panorama spread out before Salinye, fields upon fields of diamond, burning as bright as the sun. Node-fields. A little blue man walked slowly through them, occasionally caressing one, a grin plastered across his face. Salinye looked over to Finnius, her eyes wide in pleasant surprise. "Why, Finny! I never knew you were an archmage..." Finnius shook his head, his grin small and nostalgiac. "Just watch, Sal... trust me, I may've been a mage, but I was by no means an archmage..." There is a sound of leather beating against thunder... wings the size of galleon-sails blot out the sun for a moment, and the Finnius that works the node-fields glances skyward as a monolithic Red Dragon lays half the field to ash. The light from the nodes pours into Finnius, and his eyes glow softly with a power and steel that is neither present nor accounted for in this half-blushing tour-guide holding daintily onto Salinye's arm. The Dragon wheels around for another strike, and its fire flares around Finnius, obscuring sight briefly. When the cloud passes, the little blue man has fallen to one knee, but not a single node more has been destroyed... and he narrows his still-glowing eyes at the Dragon, mumbling a soft Word. The Dragon circles several more times, eyeing Finnius warilly. It eventually sails away, shaking its huge reptilian head in confusion. Salinye looks at Finnius, a look of consternation spreading across her face. "What happened? The dragon could've won..." Finnius nods and grins. "Hallucination, Sal... he can't hurt me if he can't see me." Finnius gives a low chuckle, Salinye still squinting in confusion, and the scene melts. *** A bustle of mages swirls around the two, masked and colorful... Salinye giggles and points at the people she recognizes. "Ooo! Look, it's Rydia... no, wait... But that is definitely Canid... with a mohawk?!" She turns in slow circles, as the spectral music begins to accompany the scene. "And Wyvern... but what's he dressed up like?" "Brute... not sure if you've ever met him." Finnius shurgs. "Actually, not sure if I've ever met him..." "OOoooh... and another Wyvern... wait, why are there two Wyverns?" "Well, actually, one of those is your Gyrfalcon... polymorphed." "Which one?" Sal shifts her gaze back and forth between the two, grinning widely. Finnius shrugs. "Not sure... been a while." Salinye swings her gaze towards a makeshift stage, where a small blue man is gyrating and pulling faux-fur from its glued-on positions on his body. "Is that... you?!" Finnius slips a soft hand over Sal's eyes and gives an embarassed chuckle. "Ermm... yes, I'd kind of forgotten about that... let's move on before we get to my not-quite-everpresent horn..." Sal opens her mouth to ask a question, but the scene shifts again. *** They stand on the side of a mountain, a chill wind whipping around them. Finnius pulls his coat off, finally freeing his arm, and wraps it around Salinye's shoulders. "Where are we now, Finny?" Finnius scans the horizon, searching... "Mount Tyrant..." Finnius found what he was looking for, and pointed towards the base of the mountain. "One of the bloodiest battles in the history of Terra." The scene shifted, and the pair was standing in the center of the battle... Ice Elementals crushed the skulls of demons indescribable to man, human troops died by the score, only to rise from the ground and continue fighting... a blaring horn sounded in the east, and Gyrfalcon himself could be made out in the middle of the fighting... where the blood lay thickest, there was Gyr. "Finn... why are you showing me this?" Finnius glanced towards the setting sun. "Because this is where it starts... where Terra Lost started to loose its coherence." Almost as soon as the words have passed his lips, there is a reverberating boom on the horizon, and where there once was a thick layer of snow, a lush and moist forest springs into existence, only to wither and die within seconds... The fighting goes on, scores of Phoenixes blacking the sky. Gyr's army coats them with oil, pitched from defensive catapults, and the mighty birds' strength becomes their death-knell. Salinye presses close against Finnius' arm, her eyes widening in shock, and shivering more from the carnage than the cold... And on the horizon, the sun melts into the ground, and Finnius puts a protective hand over Salinye's face, shielding it from the white-hot blaze, bright enough to blind her momentarily, even through his hand. When the heat has passed, the motion has ceased... all around, bodies lie still and dead. Sal looks around bewildered. "What... what was that?" Finnius rubs his eyes with the back of one hand and kneels in the dirt next to a still blue body... forgotten among the ashes, bearing the arms and insignia of the Pressed Service of Mages Under Gyrfalcon. "That... was the beating of a Heart Ablaze." Finnius touches the face and slowly closes its eyelids, standing and dusting himself off. He glances back at Sal, a quick grin flashing in his eyes. "Impressive, wasn't it?" *** The room dims momentarily and returns to four sparse walls... Finnius leads Salinye outside and closes the door with a heavy sigh. The two walk back to Custos Manor in silence, Finnius' arm around Salinye's shoulder. They huddle together, numb inside despite the warm climate of the Pen Keep in spring. Finnius sees Salinye to her door, and rubs the back of his head, scratching an itch that had been there since he'd picked her up. He bows low over her hand and gives it a light brush with his lips, and flashes another grin at Sal. "You know... I think, in some ways, Terra Lost is better lost. Not that I'm all possessed and demony again. But the Pen is a far better place, and far more dear. Don't fret about not knowing too much about its origins... for what it's worth, we love you all the same... more so, I'd think." Finnius bows low one more time, and takes Sal in a brief hug before nodding politely and heading off into the night.
Peredhil Posted July 23, 2004 Report Posted July 23, 2004 Well presented Saint. I muse on memories raised. Remembering past...
Gwaihir Posted July 23, 2004 Report Posted July 23, 2004 These are all so much fun to read. As always, a humorous and enjoyable read, Finn.
The Portrait of Zool Posted July 23, 2004 Report Posted July 23, 2004 Yeesh. Where are those old threads? I thought 'Mount Tyrant' and 'Gyrfalcon the Mad' were both archived - but I can't find them.
The Portrait of Zool Posted July 23, 2004 Report Posted July 23, 2004 As a footnote, every color in Archmage had their 'Ancient' ultimate spell, only obtainable through a rare and highly coveted item - except Red. The Ancient ultimate Eradication spell 'Heart Ablaze' was our literary attempt to fill that gap.
Salinye Posted July 23, 2004 Report Posted July 23, 2004 Salinye grabs Finnius up into as much of a bear hug as the mage can muster. "Thank you, Finnius. The tour was better than I could imagine. I'll be sure to tell all the ladies what an incredible date you were!" With that she winks at the purple Finnius Whateverwhatever O'Harpy and retires to her room pondering the things she had seen and learned. ~Salinye
Yui-chan Posted July 23, 2004 Report Posted July 23, 2004 Yui shows off her recent memorization efforts and offers a haughty, "It's Finnius Jalopini Mustardio Canard O'Harpy, actually. So there." She sticks out her tongue at the lucky date-receptor... and then glances down at the 'note' written in ink on the back of her hand. "Er... " The Huntress blinks and looks closer at the slightly-smeared lines, a blush creeping up her cheeks. ".... um... I meant 'Mustardio Jalopini' of course. ... heheh... Finnius Mustardio Jalopini Canard O'Harpy. Right." Before Salinye's smug grin can embarrass her any further, Yui turns and beats a hasty retreat, noting that she needs to spend a little more time studying the blue dude's name. @*&$%#, ~Yui
Gyrfalcon Posted July 24, 2004 Report Posted July 24, 2004 Finnius - an excellent date. I enjoyed reading it very much. You're as excellent with prose as you are with haiku. Salinye - Nice dress. *grins* Zool - Actually, if you want I can e-mail you the entire Gyrfalcon Saga arc from the boards. (A few people have asked before) - I have the entire Conservatory (stories only, I'm afraid) backup up from the beginning to December 2001, I believe. The arc includes: Mount Tyrant Gyrfalcon the Mad The Search for Joat When World Collide - The Finale to the Joat Saga
The Portrait of Zool Posted July 25, 2004 Report Posted July 25, 2004 Thank you Gyrfalcon, but I won't be needing them after all. I'm still wondering why they are not on the board though.
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