Prologue: The Commission

[Ebiris]

Yes. Fantastic. He gets away from crowded areas, and on a tiny little spaceship that's the only thing keeping me from dying in the cold expanse of space while we're flying to other planets. Is it too late to back out, now? Rowan thinks uncharitably.

"How would they be able to work on a solution to your problem if you're halfway across the solar system?" she asks the obvious question.

[Jon]

"Quantum tunneling? Advanced holographics? Magical simulations? I don't know, I'm no medtech. All I know is they said they could do it." Michael raises an eyebrow.

[Ebiris]

"If you say so," Rowan replies dubiously.

Let's see... what do I know of that could keep me alive if he trashes our spaceship to make a wall or something...? She ponders.

[Carthrat]

"By that, they mean, 'We *think* we can do it, but we're not sure," notes Arkian, dryly. "On the other hand, they probably didn't know what to do even if they had you there.

I guess you'll just need to wait and see. Maybe I could have a look at it," he continues, intrest once again spreading across his features.

[Jon]

"Will it cause me to roll on the ground screaming in agony the way I did when it first melded to me? Because I don't want to get these clothes dirty." Michael watches Rowan out of the corner of one eye.

[Carthrat]

"Maybe. I'll wait until we're somewhere where we won't disturb anyone," replies Arkian, perfectly serious. "The magic involved seems to be quite unpredictable."

[Ebiris]

Rowan looks rather introspective at the moment, biting her lip thoughtfully as she runs through all sorts of contingencies in her head...

[Jon]

"We'll discuss it later, then." Michael subtly moves his right hand behind the bulk of his body, away from the pychotic mage.

[Carthrat]

Arkian raises an eyebrow. "If you say so."

[Jon]

Michael sits down on a chair and waits for the others. He hopes the other two won't be like this... So far, one wants to get rid of him and the other one wants to dissect him.

[Ebiris]

Rowan distractedly takes a snack from the tray, slowly chewing as she ponders things.

Would that work...? she thinks, I'll have to get some research done on this before we leave...

[Carthrat]

Arkian leans back in his chair, musing over his new companions.

I wonder exactly what it was that turned him arm that way? Facinating.. I'll have to investigate at some point.

At least when he stops looking at me like a rabbit faced with a snake.

Rowan.. a summoner? I've heard some fairly odd rumors, but I've never met one. I wonder..

"I've heard summoning can be rather dangerous," he comments. "Mind shedding some light on that?"

[Ebiris]

"Hm?" Rowan blinks, startled out of her reverie as she glances up at Arkian.

"Oh, that's true enough, I suppose. Summoning can be dangerous, but we have rules and guidelines that ensure it's safe enough. It's only when those are ignored that things can get out of hand.

"If you know the history of the Kingdom, the Silver Millenium was destroyed by the summoning of a being called Metallia, as well as various social upheavals at the time. And there were a few other incidents in the early days of the new Kingdom...

"Really, though, so long as you're careful, it's not as bad as it sounds. While its possible to call forth some incredibly evil and dangerous beings, doing so by accident is nigh impossible."

She does frown a little. "That isn't to say that a Summoner can't be forced, however..."

[Carthrat]

Arkian raises an eyebrow. "If that's true, then I'm not surprised somebody hasn't done it recently," he says. "After all, there are several individuals out there with strange.. ideals."

[Ebiris]

"Summoning is very tightly regulated, for that reason," Rowan responds. "How many mages do you know who have to carry a license like I do? How many mages do you know that have to submit to periodic brainscans from the department of hazardous magic?"

Sighing, she goes on, "That isn't to say that unauthorised Summoning doesn't happen, just that when it does, it gets dealt with very quickly."