Post by dannan on Aug 9, 2015 16:52:58 GMT -6
Nothing was as it was meant to be. The winds shifted and moved about treacherously and for all his reckoning seemed as ravenous wolves ready to devour him. The clouds dance about in a confusing facade. The sparrow-frame rattled out him, straining in the high breezes. He hated to admit it, but there was good chance he was lost. Zedakiah had counseled him against launching at night, and like a fool he'd been too self-sure in his own work to listen.
Just a simple flight, Dannan could hear himself promise. I'll just test my new adjustments and fly across gypsy hollow. I can do it. Just a short flight.
And now he was stranded aloft for who knew how long, trapped in a ever-shifting sea of clouds. Dawn had come and gone, and he could not yet find his path. The Sparrow-frame was a spade-shaped thing of cloth, wood, and metal. Magic streamed in spectral white trails from the extended chevron tail of wood and iron that flicked back and forth as a rudder to guide the device. The Arcane engine was still running reliably, but he couldn't see the ground! He needed to find a landmark. The great fog of Shrouding Mists, a dragon from fire valley, or the vast waters of the Inland ocean. Dannan lay on prone on a frame of wood inside the cloth-shrouded body of the craft, wind assaulting his tired eyes.
He had to find land soon. Just find some place to rest.
As his mind wandered down the paths of possibility, chance struck at him. A vicious gust streaked from the north and caught the craft in a hard broadside of sky-currents. The vessel pitched sideways and rolled in the drift. Dannan snapped back to reality as he was slammed into the strut work and all but dashed against his own creation.
"-gods take it all-!"
He hauled on the hand grips, but the vessel wouldn't yield to him in the face of such a stubborn wind. A second current gripped the tail of the craft and bashed into it, sending it into a an unstable spin. The wizard felt adrenaline spill down his spine as he began to lose control of his own creation.
"No,no, nono! Don't you dare!"
Magic surged from him, an unfocused pulse of raw arcana into the enchanted schema etched into the vessel. He reached out, trying to bring it to heel. Light flared over the arcane ink patterns on the cloth cover, and the craft began to stabilize by magical means despite the current. Dana held it in a mental vice, commanding it to resume a stable path.
Then something snapped. he heard it a split second before it was felt; the snap of a bolt giving up. The crack of wood splintering under stress.
The right side of the main body of the work of artifice gave out as it's main linking bolt sheared through-he's never meant to put it up to such high winds yet! With half of the main body coming loose, enchanted cloth ripped and magic began to bleed out.
"-szhick! Evoke: I make this, this-"
It was no use-exhaustion and the violent movement made it impossible for him to gesture properly. A half formed glyph of mending hung at his fingertips before flickering out. With it's wing clipped, the Sparrow-frame made his choice for him, and dove sharply. Clouds plunged past in a chilling barrage of mist and ice, further rattling the device. light flickered out as the cloth skin hung torn in the wind. With the pattern broken, the enchantments responsible for keeping out the cold failed, threatening to send him to a dark rest from which he would not wake!
Fighting the elements and his own exhaustion, the wizard grappled with the controls. He was picking up speed at an alarming rate! But try as he might, it wouldn't listen to him. Something had been critically damaged when the frame had come loose. The clouds spat him out, and suddenly the ground dropped back into view, dead ahead.
he was over an unfamiliar forrest. But there was a lake down there, far below. And perhaps his only chance of landing. The device spiraled and pitched in a steep towards dive as in continued to fall from the heavens and trailed streams of magic from the torn sections; arcane life-blood spilled out on the canvas of the sky.
crucial seconds flashed from his grasp as he fell, sky and earth trading places several times in a wild exchange. No amount of magic or yanks on the grips would put the craft into anything other than a barely controlled crash!
Gods grant me grace-just a few moments of control, come on-come ON! fly for me-just level out for a moment!
The ground was maybe a few hundred feet away now, and he was still going way too fast, and far too steep. Panic flooded in, beating down his last reserve of confidence. Visions of his own death on impact flashed before him and beckoned him to submit. He was going to pay for his mistakes with his life, and that was simply it. the world grew dim and mute, and seemed distant in his eyes. The wizard closed his eyes, not wanting to see his end coming.
And then they snapped open, glowing etherial white.
<foolish Child. We are not finished with thee yet.>
Dannan's hand flashed out, and began to trace an arcane pattern in the air with precision motions despite the pending crisis.
"Evoke: Forcebolt....forcebolt..."
The magic surged, building at the center of the glyph.
"Forcebolt!"
The projectile of pure energy shot sideways, and altered his path with recoil. Several more where thrown in concentrated silence, forcing the falling vessel to arch across the lake in a wild trajectory. But it was enough. The wizard began casting once more, calling on another glyph and pattern of magic despite their desperate situation.
"Be Quickened:....swift, I transverse the aether!"
Plumes of energy built about the mage, and closed over them like a sunburst. Even as their craft plunged out of control over the lake, they vanished from it. Light lifted their spectral form from the falling vehicle, and bore it away like a comet. Dannan flashed away from the doomed sparrow-frame, wreathed in the power of the aether. The ship sped off like a loosed arrow, and the wizard streaked towards the lake.
scarcely ten feet above the waters of lake Konah, Dannan exploded back into physical existence. One last arcane utterance formed on his lips as the water greeted him
"Evoke: I shall not be harmed!"
A spell-glyph flashed, and a orb of force exploded about him as water churned to foam and sky vanished. Like a colossal rock thrown to the lake, The mage vanished in a plume of water and spray of whitewater. And then he was gone.
On the far side of the lake, a crack like thunder split the air as the pilot-less craft met the ground with finality and turned itself into thousand semi-magical splinters.
Dark water swirled around the wizard, and the white glow faded from his eyes. The barrier of force held precious air around them, but would not persist for long. Dannan lay nearly senseless inside the protective bubble of magic as it slowly sank ever deeper into the lake.
Just a simple flight, Dannan could hear himself promise. I'll just test my new adjustments and fly across gypsy hollow. I can do it. Just a short flight.
And now he was stranded aloft for who knew how long, trapped in a ever-shifting sea of clouds. Dawn had come and gone, and he could not yet find his path. The Sparrow-frame was a spade-shaped thing of cloth, wood, and metal. Magic streamed in spectral white trails from the extended chevron tail of wood and iron that flicked back and forth as a rudder to guide the device. The Arcane engine was still running reliably, but he couldn't see the ground! He needed to find a landmark. The great fog of Shrouding Mists, a dragon from fire valley, or the vast waters of the Inland ocean. Dannan lay on prone on a frame of wood inside the cloth-shrouded body of the craft, wind assaulting his tired eyes.
He had to find land soon. Just find some place to rest.
As his mind wandered down the paths of possibility, chance struck at him. A vicious gust streaked from the north and caught the craft in a hard broadside of sky-currents. The vessel pitched sideways and rolled in the drift. Dannan snapped back to reality as he was slammed into the strut work and all but dashed against his own creation.
"-gods take it all-!"
He hauled on the hand grips, but the vessel wouldn't yield to him in the face of such a stubborn wind. A second current gripped the tail of the craft and bashed into it, sending it into a an unstable spin. The wizard felt adrenaline spill down his spine as he began to lose control of his own creation.
"No,no, nono! Don't you dare!"
Magic surged from him, an unfocused pulse of raw arcana into the enchanted schema etched into the vessel. He reached out, trying to bring it to heel. Light flared over the arcane ink patterns on the cloth cover, and the craft began to stabilize by magical means despite the current. Dana held it in a mental vice, commanding it to resume a stable path.
Then something snapped. he heard it a split second before it was felt; the snap of a bolt giving up. The crack of wood splintering under stress.
The right side of the main body of the work of artifice gave out as it's main linking bolt sheared through-he's never meant to put it up to such high winds yet! With half of the main body coming loose, enchanted cloth ripped and magic began to bleed out.
"-szhick! Evoke: I make this, this-"
It was no use-exhaustion and the violent movement made it impossible for him to gesture properly. A half formed glyph of mending hung at his fingertips before flickering out. With it's wing clipped, the Sparrow-frame made his choice for him, and dove sharply. Clouds plunged past in a chilling barrage of mist and ice, further rattling the device. light flickered out as the cloth skin hung torn in the wind. With the pattern broken, the enchantments responsible for keeping out the cold failed, threatening to send him to a dark rest from which he would not wake!
Fighting the elements and his own exhaustion, the wizard grappled with the controls. He was picking up speed at an alarming rate! But try as he might, it wouldn't listen to him. Something had been critically damaged when the frame had come loose. The clouds spat him out, and suddenly the ground dropped back into view, dead ahead.
he was over an unfamiliar forrest. But there was a lake down there, far below. And perhaps his only chance of landing. The device spiraled and pitched in a steep towards dive as in continued to fall from the heavens and trailed streams of magic from the torn sections; arcane life-blood spilled out on the canvas of the sky.
crucial seconds flashed from his grasp as he fell, sky and earth trading places several times in a wild exchange. No amount of magic or yanks on the grips would put the craft into anything other than a barely controlled crash!
Gods grant me grace-just a few moments of control, come on-come ON! fly for me-just level out for a moment!
The ground was maybe a few hundred feet away now, and he was still going way too fast, and far too steep. Panic flooded in, beating down his last reserve of confidence. Visions of his own death on impact flashed before him and beckoned him to submit. He was going to pay for his mistakes with his life, and that was simply it. the world grew dim and mute, and seemed distant in his eyes. The wizard closed his eyes, not wanting to see his end coming.
And then they snapped open, glowing etherial white.
<foolish Child. We are not finished with thee yet.>
Dannan's hand flashed out, and began to trace an arcane pattern in the air with precision motions despite the pending crisis.
"Evoke: Forcebolt....forcebolt..."
The magic surged, building at the center of the glyph.
"Forcebolt!"
The projectile of pure energy shot sideways, and altered his path with recoil. Several more where thrown in concentrated silence, forcing the falling vessel to arch across the lake in a wild trajectory. But it was enough. The wizard began casting once more, calling on another glyph and pattern of magic despite their desperate situation.
"Be Quickened:....swift, I transverse the aether!"
Plumes of energy built about the mage, and closed over them like a sunburst. Even as their craft plunged out of control over the lake, they vanished from it. Light lifted their spectral form from the falling vehicle, and bore it away like a comet. Dannan flashed away from the doomed sparrow-frame, wreathed in the power of the aether. The ship sped off like a loosed arrow, and the wizard streaked towards the lake.
scarcely ten feet above the waters of lake Konah, Dannan exploded back into physical existence. One last arcane utterance formed on his lips as the water greeted him
"Evoke: I shall not be harmed!"
A spell-glyph flashed, and a orb of force exploded about him as water churned to foam and sky vanished. Like a colossal rock thrown to the lake, The mage vanished in a plume of water and spray of whitewater. And then he was gone.
On the far side of the lake, a crack like thunder split the air as the pilot-less craft met the ground with finality and turned itself into thousand semi-magical splinters.
Dark water swirled around the wizard, and the white glow faded from his eyes. The barrier of force held precious air around them, but would not persist for long. Dannan lay nearly senseless inside the protective bubble of magic as it slowly sank ever deeper into the lake.