[ so he sits, but he immediately makes a bit of a face at the mention of his power. ]
Eletrokinesis, yes. I haven't experimented with it much. [ a pause. ] Saturday was the first time I used it purposefully. I'd prefer if they'd left me with something I was used to but I've asked Phoenix a few times. There's no changing it.
[ okay well yes, she has a point, but he still pauses to that. the reasons are fairly personal and he's not sure he feels like going into it. also very funny that realistically he knew the city worked on electricity but he still just didn't process that. ]
It's kind of a double-edged sword. It's useful in the right situations, but a detriment if used at the wrong time. [ like if there's a blackout that he didn't cause, people would probably blame him. ]
Of course. I might not fully understand the nature of our powers, but hypothesizing, testing, working out the applications and limitations and pushing those boundaries to see what more can be learned... That's what magic research is all about.
[there's a rare glimmer of joy in her eyes when she talks about it.]
[ she's so cute...this is me, not him, but also he does seem to be kind of picking up on that interest and finds it nice that she's actually very into this. nico's not always a great conversationalist and half the time he actually dislikes talking to people, but he does tend to be a good listener when it comes to what people find important to them. ]
The pursuit of knowledge and everything? When you put it that way there's a lot you can study about it. It's not even limited to what your own power can do. You might even find other people's powers you could combine with yours and create new results and push those boundaries even further.
[ wild. ]
I've never been good at the hypothesizing part of it, but the rest is always a surprise. [ he tilts his head. ] You said you were traveling not that long ago to study magic phenomena, right? Does that usually involve abilities and stuff like this, too? Or just natural occurrences?
Most of my focus has been on blastia, magic technology... but it's expanded a lot since then. Since I met someone who could use magic without a blastia, and then started looking at entirely new ways that magic and its accompanying technology could be developed...
The blastia's just a catalyst then? [ this makes sense to him. ] How common is magic, actually, where you're from? It sounds like it's pretty easy to come by if you know where to look.
Aside from rare exceptions, humans can't use magic naturally. But a blastia worn on the body, like this -- [gesturing to the choker on her neck] can process energy and convert it into magic.
You have to know how to use it though, which requires some understanding of magic theory and formulas. It's basically just math, but some people find it too hard to get their heads around. Blastia are in limited supply, too, so not everyone can just get one.
[ he does glance at the choker and he's nodding along. ]
Most people where I'm from can't use powers either. It's not something most mortals are capable of, but as far as I know there isn't even something like a blastia to do the conversion. It's either you can or you can't.
[ what he's taking away from this is that you have to be smart to use magic which like. fair. ]
...it's kind of cool you got to inherit it though. [ the way he says this is actually sincere rather than something he'd normally say to fill the space of conversation. he's...at least aware enough that not everyone wants to actually talk about themselves or about important parts of their history, but he figures he can frame it in a way that she can pick how to answer. ]
Is that why you decided to start the research? [ this can either mean because she's been using magic for so long, or because of her mom. whatever she takes it as. ]
[cool...? she's never heard it put that way before.]
It was part of it, I guess. She left books, too.
Aspio wasn't exactly a child-friendly city. If I wanted to stay, I had to become a mage. And once I started learning... it was all I ever wanted to do.
I guess that makes sense. [ you find things you like, you latch onto them. ] Our world's usually fine, but for people like us it's not exactly what you'd call child-friendly either. Mostly because we're a great snack option for all kinds of monsters. If we want to survive we have to train, too. But it's with weapons and our powers. I think most of us keep finding new powers and ways to use them all the time.
Kind of one of those constantly evolving things, so there's always something to figure out.
[ he's debating how long it'll take before her curiosity might turn into repulsion, but that's just reflexive thinking. ]
Everything on my profile's true. But in simple terms, I can work with the dead. Ghosts, skeletons, other undead beings, bones, shadows...I have control of all of them, even if I'm still learning how far my limits can be pressed.
Um... [ the how is iffy, he thinks, because he sort of just. does. ] Usually I can just tap into the earth and connect with them and summon them. Sometimes I have to use rituals. Sometimes they just appear to me. I didn't even know I could shadowtravel until someone else taught me years ago.
It's just a part of who I am. I had no idea how to use most of my powers when they first started showing up.
Right. [ it's not. accidental necromancy, and he seems to realize like half a second later that he is not explaining this well. ] ...for people in your world it sounds as if anyone can learn magic and learn how to apply it so long as they understand the theory and have a blastia thing. For us, it's people who are born with abilities that're dormant for a while until they're a little older. Some of us display signs as early as seven or eight? And others don't realize it until as late as fifteen or sixteen. Mine started manifesting when I was ten.
It's...all dependent on one of your parents and what they're capable of. The Underworld is my father's domain and all of my abilities are things that came from him. Nobody else can use them the same way I can. My sister and I have a little bit of an overlap, but she's better with some things and I'm better with others.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2023-09-26 06:54 pm (UTC)You've got a pretty interesting power yourself. Influencing electricity, was it?
[now that he's used it in the courthouse and at the jailbreak for her to perceive.]
no subject
Date: 2023-09-26 07:36 pm (UTC)Eletrokinesis, yes. I haven't experimented with it much. [ a pause. ] Saturday was the first time I used it purposefully. I'd prefer if they'd left me with something I was used to but I've asked Phoenix a few times. There's no changing it.
no subject
Date: 2023-09-26 08:14 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2023-09-26 10:00 pm (UTC)It's kind of a double-edged sword. It's useful in the right situations, but a detriment if used at the wrong time. [ like if there's a blackout that he didn't cause, people would probably blame him. ]
no subject
Date: 2023-09-26 11:11 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2023-09-27 08:03 am (UTC)Have you figured out yours?
no subject
Date: 2023-09-27 02:22 pm (UTC)I didn't get any of the powers I'm familiar with, either. But I like a challenge.
no subject
Date: 2023-09-27 04:55 pm (UTC)[ he. wants to outright ask what it is, but he's not even sure she'd tell him. he will maybe be direct later. ]
no subject
Date: 2023-09-27 06:26 pm (UTC)[there's a rare glimmer of joy in her eyes when she talks about it.]
no subject
Date: 2023-09-27 06:44 pm (UTC)The pursuit of knowledge and everything? When you put it that way there's a lot you can study about it. It's not even limited to what your own power can do. You might even find other people's powers you could combine with yours and create new results and push those boundaries even further.
[ wild. ]
I've never been good at the hypothesizing part of it, but the rest is always a surprise. [ he tilts his head. ] You said you were traveling not that long ago to study magic phenomena, right? Does that usually involve abilities and stuff like this, too? Or just natural occurrences?
no subject
Date: 2023-09-29 12:51 am (UTC)Most of my focus has been on blastia, magic technology... but it's expanded a lot since then. Since I met someone who could use magic without a blastia, and then started looking at entirely new ways that magic and its accompanying technology could be developed...
no subject
Date: 2023-09-29 05:45 am (UTC)The blastia's just a catalyst then? [ this makes sense to him. ] How common is magic, actually, where you're from? It sounds like it's pretty easy to come by if you know where to look.
no subject
Date: 2023-09-29 05:50 am (UTC)You have to know how to use it though, which requires some understanding of magic theory and formulas. It's basically just math, but some people find it too hard to get their heads around. Blastia are in limited supply, too, so not everyone can just get one.
no subject
Date: 2023-09-29 05:53 am (UTC)Most people where I'm from can't use powers either. It's not something most mortals are capable of, but as far as I know there isn't even something like a blastia to do the conversion. It's either you can or you can't.
[ what he's taking away from this is that you have to be smart to use magic which like. fair. ]
How long have you had yours then?
no subject
Date: 2023-09-29 06:00 am (UTC)[she has to think about it...]
Since I was about five, probably. I think it was my mom's. One of the things she left behind after she died.
no subject
Date: 2023-09-29 06:08 am (UTC)Is that why you decided to start the research? [ this can either mean because she's been using magic for so long, or because of her mom. whatever she takes it as. ]
no subject
Date: 2023-09-29 08:37 pm (UTC)It was part of it, I guess. She left books, too.
Aspio wasn't exactly a child-friendly city. If I wanted to stay, I had to become a mage. And once I started learning... it was all I ever wanted to do.
no subject
Date: 2023-09-30 03:22 am (UTC)Kind of one of those constantly evolving things, so there's always something to figure out.
no subject
Date: 2023-10-02 12:13 am (UTC)[now that she thinks of it, she's pretty curious.]
no subject
Date: 2023-10-02 12:36 am (UTC)Everything on my profile's true. But in simple terms, I can work with the dead. Ghosts, skeletons, other undead beings, bones, shadows...I have control of all of them, even if I'm still learning how far my limits can be pressed.
no subject
Date: 2023-10-02 01:52 am (UTC)That's... -- seriously?
I mean, how do you even... use those?
no subject
Date: 2023-10-02 04:14 am (UTC)It's just a part of who I am. I had no idea how to use most of my powers when they first started showing up.
no subject
Date: 2023-10-02 05:55 am (UTC)[did he just bumble into some accidental necromancy?? please don't tell her there was accidental necromancy.]
no subject
Date: 2023-10-02 06:00 am (UTC)It's...all dependent on one of your parents and what they're capable of. The Underworld is my father's domain and all of my abilities are things that came from him. Nobody else can use them the same way I can. My sister and I have a little bit of an overlap, but she's better with some things and I'm better with others.