(closed) a northern star

[scholiast]

who: luce & ye
what: catch-all
when: late may/early june
where: every which way
warnings: n/a will update if necessary!

Comments

[dothelokimotion]

[ Does it though? The sounds seem to come and go at random. Sometimes it'll be loud and deafening. Sometimes it feels like the ground is shaking beneath your feet. Thud. Shift. Scrape. The sound of glass cracking. It seems to go on forever. There's no way to tell time.

Thud. Shift. Scrape. Silence.

Crack. ]

[scholiast]

(The low rumble, the glass splintering, something loud bending, about to break... it's uncomfortably familiar to her. Kind of like being in a crash. Hey, how does she get out of here again? Another loud crack makes her jump, and she reaches her hand up to dissolve the shield...

And pauses, her eyes wide, thinking. If she stops the spell, will the darkness pour in here and smother her? If there's something huge outside trying to get in, will it simply crush her? She's not sure what to do.)

Okay, (she calls out uncertainly,) I think I'm done now. Stop, please.

[dothelokimotion]

[ Silence.

And then there's a distinct hum in the air, a frequency that could make glass shatter, that's here to make everything shatter and it's all around you, smothering you, closing you in with your shield that's surely breaking all around you — ]

[spellslots]

[This had been kind of amusing, at first, but then Taako hears the uncertainty in Lucretia's voice and it stops being fun.]

Loki.

[Gently, but a reminder to play nice.]

[dothelokimotion]

[ Loki hums as he finally leeches the darkness away. He does it slowly so that the return onslaught of sensations doesn't hit Lucretia too strongly. Loki merely stands there because he's not entirely sure if he's going to be yelled at or not. ]

[scholiast]

(Lucretia flinches and doubles the fuck down, layering a ward over the top of her broken globe, bringing shield of faith back for a repeat performance. Why is it so loud? Her heart is thudding in her ears. Are the two of them still there outside of all of this? Maybe they've both gone and it's just her and whatever is breaking her magic to pieces, taking it apart–)

Taako, (she says. Trust Loki to actually make her use the stupid fucking safe word. She has her fingers in her ears.

It works. The sounds start to die off and Lucretia blinks, glancing up. The darkness has broken. Her globe is absolutely fine. She's warded to the fucking teeth and standing in the exact same place and Loki and Taako are both there, looking at her. She lowers her hands and brushes imaginary dust off, swallowing her panic. All protections still present dissolve immediately.)

... Right.

[dothelokimotion]

Your will power is impressive.

[ It was a small taste of his experiences in the void. He's still tense though, waiting for some kind of blow. ]

[spellslots]

You're okay, bubbale.

[A little reassurance to Lucretia, despite the fact Taako hasn't moved from his spot; he wasn't concerned about Loki hurting her, more just about Loki scaring her. At some point he might've gotten a kick out of it, but not right now.

There's no rebuke coming for Loki, just a suggestion:]

Maybe stick to blunt force from now on.

[dothelokimotion]

[ Loki doesn't say anything, his gaze sliding off Taako to settle on Lucretia, waiting to see what she says.

[scholiast]

Your utter lack of regard for going too far is also impressive, (she replies coolly; but she won't cast anything at him in retaliation. This is specifically what she asked for, after all, for him to break her magic. Of course he's going to come at it from different angles.)

One more, I think, if you don't mind?

[dothelokimotion]

Fine.

[ Let's get this over with. Gathering up his magic once more, he goes for the full on assault. His magic batters the shields from all angles. ]

[scholiast]

(Lucretia is also going for the big guns! She's casting prismatic wall, which she shapes into a sphere for convenience. This is one of the highest level spells she can cast, and it's a doozy: a layered shield with seven levels to it, all in different colours.

It won't take Loki's magic at all. The red layer on top absorbs the magic, then immediately throws back a fireball in retaliation.)

[dothelokimotion]

[ Loki blinks as the fireball goes for him. A part of his hand goes blue as he deflects it away. ]

Why do you have a rainbow shield.

[scholiast]

(She shrugs, and even smiles briefly.)

Each layer reflects a specific kind of magic; the colours are specific.

[dothelokimotion]

Yes. Perfectly suited . . . for a rainbow.

[ He just keeps adding on the pressure. ]

[scholiast]

(Hey, he can add it on all he likes, he's not getting through the fire layer of her shield until he uses ice magic.

Lucretia hums, and glances at her nails.)

[dothelokimotion]

[ Loki pauses briefly, his expression conflicted. Then he exhales quietly. Ridges appear on his face, brief flickering lines that seem to rise and fall with each breath.

And then the temperature drops rapidly. While Jotuns are weak to fire, their ice is extremely potent. It cuts through flame, rock and god-flesh like it's nothing. When Loki opens his eyes, they're red. ]

[scholiast]

(She doesn't notice that he's doing anything until the temperature noticeably plummets.

Assuming it's another trick, she glances up, then ends up staring. She's never seen him use this power before, and he looks almost frightening with blood red eyes, the ridges rising across his face. Her gaze flicks nervously toward Taako, then back to Loki.)

You... have a lot of tricks up your sleeve, don't you?

[spellslots]

[Taako, for his part, is taking the change entirely in stride, having seen Loki without his disguise before. The look he gives Lucretia is almost challenging, as if daring her to say something about it, which means he's telling her not to say something. They've had enough silent conversations that he knows how to get ideas across without talking out loud. ]

[dothelokimotion]

[ Loki unconsciously swipes his finger across his face. He knows the ridges are there, but he's never touched them. Never looks at himself like this in the mirror. There's something ironic about his true self being the one thing that cuts him the hardest. ]

Yes.

[ It's barely a murmur. ]

The best trick of all.

[scholiast]

(She catches that glance and widens her eyes a little in return, in a'what the fuck is going on' way, but it's something they can talk about it later. For now she'll take the hint, and hold all of her questions.

The first layer of her shield abruptly shatters above her as the temperature continues to drop.)

Huh.

[dothelokimotion]

I'm not much for elemental work.

[ Thankfully, jotun-ice tends to cut through most elements like butter. You'd need demon fire or something far stronger to hold up to it. ]

[scholiast]

(Yep, there goes the second layer. Which is strange, because that one is supposed to only be dispelled by strong wind magic. Lucretia watches it break with a frown on her face.

Guess it just be like that when you're a god.)

And yet...

(The third is starting to splinter.)

[dothelokimotion]

[ Loki just watches as it splinters through. When it gets closer, he will ease up. The worst kind of cold the Jotun can deliver comes from touch, but he doesn't want to take that chance. ]

Let me know if — [ Loki cuts himself off. ]

[scholiast]

(Three down, four to go, but Lucretia is starting to feel that cold seeping through. It's both frustrating and interesting to watch. Her magic won't even retaliate properly, it's as if Loki's ice is smothering it. The fourth level shatters without so much as an attempt at firing back the poison damage that it should.

The fifth level puts up a brief fight. It's the ice one, dispelled only by fire damage, and Lucretia watches it hopefully, but... no cigar. The moment it starts to crack she sighs, and her breath appears in front of her in a little puff of cloud.)

I thought I'd get you on that one.