Afina has a chance to rest around Aurora. She makes magical gear as normal, but still squeezes in some down time. One of these times is sitting in Cresea's cafe, watching people go by as she sips a small glass of milk. It's restful enough, to the point you almost miss Crystal fluttering on over.
"Afina," she greets, clad in her armor and gear. "I notice you've been making fashion statements lately."
"Oh, hello Crystal," Afina greets her fellow pixie, putting down her tall glass of milk. "As it happens there are some who do appreciate my sartorial choices, yes."
"Quite," Crystal is deadpan, brushing right past it. "The court's been talking about it."
"Oh?" Afina puts a note of curiosity into that one syllable, "Have I been setting any trends?"
"Some," Crystal remarks candidly, joining you and taking a seat. "Your squid-look has been the most popular, with even Lady Skye attempting to mimic it in part."
"I am very fond of that one," Afina agrees with a smile, taking another sip of her milk. Right now she's in something more traditional, a black bodysuit and leggings festooned with diamonds and circles in oranges, greens, and purples, accented with a split skirt that flares off her hips in plain black. Her usual hat has those same three colours in alternating stripes along its twin tails with white bobbles on the ends. "It's just so very eye-catching even if the colours are more muted than I'd have usually gone with. You can do a lot with shapes and patterns, though."
"Yes well, I thought you deserved to know." Crystal says, "Queen Ilsenine has generally approved of that mimicry."
"I suppose I haven't been around the court often enough to see in recent days," Afina acknowledges. "Was that all?" she asks, knowing there's one recent change in her personal life that Crystal must be gasping to bring up.
"No," Crystal smiles a little bit, "I wanted to offer congratulations, though you were hardly the one I'd suspect of going that way."
"The pool is pretty shallow in terms of other pixies, I had to broaden my horizons eventually," she says, smiling back. "The mechanics aren't insurmountable, though."
"Really?" Crystal even quirks a smile, "I dare not to ask for details, though I presume you've found a way to do so satisfactorily?"
"No problems there. And Bubbles is pleasant company in other respects as well," she confirms. "I'm not saying we're star-struck lovers, but we have a good time together."
"It's not serious then?" Crystal says, "I would hope you would seek more than a simple bit of hay-rolling. Someone to be with you, to become your other half." She smiles despite it, "You deserve true love, Afina."
No, hay-rolling about covers it. "We both understand it's not serious. You know I'm not interested in that sort of fabled romance, Crystal," she shakes her head, pausing to finish off her milk.
"It doesn't mean you don't deserve it, Afina," Crystal smiles and sighs despite her smile, shaking her head. "Besides, that sort of romance may find you no matter if you want it or not."
"I'll be sure to stay on guard against it," she says wryly, getting up since she's finished her drink. "Anyway, I was going to go check the outstanding jobs at the forge unless you have anything else to do?" she asks, fishing for any further distractions.
Crystal smiles and even laughs a bit. "Afina, are you for once not in the mood to smith?"
"It's more that most of it's being handled by Goldanariux and Hamogan so it's not really as urgent for me to stay on top of anymore," Afina answers. "I have more time to spend on leisure if I want, or training or personal projects."
"I'm glad we finally got you help besides Sylvie," Crystal seconds, "Care to celebrate with some cake?"
"Cake sounds good," she agrees, sitting back down again. "I never understood why I couldn't just make a pixie-sized bracelet that an elf could wear as a ring, it's just one of those immutable laws."
Crystal orders a rum cake to be brought over. "Nor do I. One can complain to Mystra?" Crystal ponders, "In our positions, perhaps we could do that literally."
"I was actually thinking of the guardian of 21 when I had to ponder it recently," Afina admits. "I remember Kascha went to it with a long list of questions as to the nature of, well everything, and seemed to get quite an exhaustive response back."
"I read that," Crystal says, "Do you think it's all accurate?"
"I'd be inclined to give it credence," Afina says. Maybe not take it completely at face value, but in light of everything she learned about Yggdrasil she doesn't have any better story of her own to cling to.
Silence from Crystal until your cake arrives, two pixie sized pieces from a pixie sized cake. She eats slowly, "Such secrets that we've been given to know, such privileges to meet those we have met. All to save Lifasa."
"Which remains stubbornly unsaved," Afina concludes, spearing off a chunk of cake and popping it in her mouth. "When they write the history of our Crusade it'll fill a whole library, not be some neat little tale wrapped up in an evening's telling."
"We're making progress. Willah's in our grasp and we're stronger yet. Soon...soon I think we can mount a real attack and not just a guerilla action." Crystal eats slowly, "We just need to gather a little more."
"Taking in Willah was very satisfying," Afina says, a smile stretching over her lips. "We went in the sneaky guerrilla way, but when it came time to strike I wiped out all her defenders and ravaged her fortress at a stroke. It brings home how powerful I've become, that entire armies are helpless before me."
"It makes one think," Crystal agrees. "We are the legends now, aren't we?"
"We are," she nods, having a bit more cake. "In other circumstances there'd be nothing keeping us from anything we wanted. But things as they are this is all we can do just to keep up."
"Where will it end?" Crystal says aloud, more to herself than anything else. "You still plan to continue the Crusade when Lifasa is freed?"
"Until every devil involved is held responsible," she confirms gravely. "They need to understand that there are consequences, that they can't just destroy lives and ruin worlds and get away with it."
"That won't ever end," Crystal says, "I applaud your path, but you know who the ultimate power and authority in Hell is. I know myself I will never cease being a crusader. It will be the same for you?"
"If that's the case, so be it," Afina says. "It'll take a very long time to work my way down the list towards him, anyway."
"If we make that far, I'll be there for that," Crystal says, "That I vow."
"Well said," Afina nods. "If not perhaps the light-hearted escape from forging I was expecting when you said to stay for cake." Speaking of she polishes off the last of hers.
"Conversations are like crusades: They go where they will." A small smile blooms after that.
"Hmph. Well, on the subject of our legendary abilities do you want to work off that cake with some light sparring?" she offers.
"Yes, let's," Crystal rises, "Let's not gain any ounces by being lazy."
Fluttering outside, Afina gives Crystal a chance to collect Hope if she wants to employ mounted strategies before they fly up above Aurora's roof so they have plenty of room to practice their aerial battles. "Light contact melee only, first to ten?" she suggests some rules.
"Aye," Crystal nods, forsaking Hope for the moment. She draws her sword, "Nothing fancy, no supernatural powers, just skill against skill?"
"We can't neglect the fundamentals," Afina agrees, drawing Hywelbane for her own part. Looking out over Aurora she catches sight of some griffins flying a circuit of the perimeter. "Start when those griffins cross over the gate?" she suggests, bracing herself.
The griffons fly over and Crystal shouts, "Go!"
Init. Go since she can't beat your init, I believe.
Unsurprisingly Afina is quickest, though she declines her customary haste spell and relies purely on base ability. She's still frighteningly fast as she rushes Crystal, drawing Hywelbane and striking for her fellow pixie's legs as she flies past her and beyond to stop forty feet away!
[17:28] <@Ebiris> roll 1d20+46
[17:28] <Rei-chan> Ebiris rolled : 1d20+46 --> [ 1d20=14 ]{60}
[17:28] <@Ebiris> roll 1d20+41
[17:28] <Rei-chan> Ebiris rolled : 1d20+41 --> [ 1d20=20 ]{61}Of course she's not stabbing or anything, merely striking Crystal with the flat of the blade with blows that are unlikely to even so much as bruise given the sword isn't made of cold iron. But she'll feel them and know the points are scored.
Two quick, easy points. Crystal's barely able to react by the time you've hit her, both hits solid. "Points to you," Crystal mutters, before rushing you in a headlong charge.
> roll 1d20+39
<Rei-chan> Kotono rolled : 1d20+39 --> [ 1d20=11 ]{50}
The blow comes in slow motion, Afina able to dodge well before Crystal commits. It's barely an effort at all.
Go.
After a charge like that she's wide open, and Afina punishes her for the sloppiness by staying in place and meeting Crystal's attack with a flurry of her own, eschewing her more mobile style of battle for the moment.
[18:08] <@Ebiris> roll 1d20+43
[18:09] <Rei-chan> Ebiris rolled : 1d20+43 --> [ 1d20=5 ]{48}
[18:09] <@Ebiris> roll 1d20+38
[18:09] <Rei-chan> Ebiris rolled : 1d20+38 --> [ 1d20=17 ]{55}
[18:09] <@Ebiris> roll 1d20+33
[18:09] <Rei-chan> Ebiris rolled : 1d20+33 --> [ 1d20=16 ]{49}Her own expression is calm and focused as she goes to work on her fellow pixie, treating their sparring with appropriate seriousness so Crystal won't feel looked down upon. She can't bring her full scope of abilities to bear against Afina after all, so this isn't truly representative of her capabilities when compared to how she'd fight a devil.
Hit, hit, hit. Each hit is just a tap but Crystal reacts to each one, trying to stop the next. She fails each time.
"Like fighting the zephyr," Crystal mutters as she braces in place and trades blows.
> roll 4#1d20 let's be honest, she needs 20s
<Rei-chan> Kotono rolled : 4#1d20 let's be honest, she needs 20s --> [ 1d20=18 ]{18}, [ 1d20=16 ]{16}, [ 1d20=17 ]{17}, [ 1d20=14 ]{14}
Parry, dodge, weave, duck. Each blow is countered entirely, not a one seriously threatening you.
Go.
"I'm far faster than one of those," Afina says with a smile tracing her lips, slapping her blade on Crystal's arm and leg as she dips beneath her fellow pixie and flies thirty feet away from her.
[18:15] <@Ebiris> roll 1d20+46
[18:16] <Rei-chan> Ebiris rolled : 1d20+46 --> [ 1d20=6 ]{52}
[18:16] <@Ebiris> roll 1d20+41
[18:16] <Rei-chan> Ebiris rolled : 1d20+41 --> [ 1d20=13 ]{54}
"So you are," Crystal lowers her blade, "Match to you. Morwel's throne, you've gotten faster, Afina."
"Speed is life," Afina says, sheathing her sword now and fluttering more sedately over to Crystal. "Even if I've developed my magic in other ways lately, that fundamental remains true."
"How do you do it?" Crystal asks, "I've gotten faster over the years, but you brush that aside like a child tired of a sand castle."
"A lot of it is magic," she admits, floating down to land on the roof and sitting down with her legs over a ledge. "Even without casting a spell, the energy of a haste spell has passed through my body so many times it's built up a lingering charge even when I haven't cast it. Beyond that is pure focus, never letting my attention waver so that I can perceive everything my opponent does, reacting to their attacks even before they themselves realise what they're committing to."
"Still impressive," Crystal says wryly, "I feel as a novice humbled before a master."
"Take it as a learning experience," Afina advises. "I do actually enjoy teaching, though few come to me for it." Mostly it's for crafting apprenticeships anyway.
"Who can catch the zephyr and demand her lessons?" Crystal smiles at that, "Who demands the winds herself to teach them?"
"Someone who wants to better themselves. You don't see me being shy about visiting archomentals to learn about their elements," Afina says. "I suppose the Graceful Blow's style is a good one as well, and they're more accommodating to potential students."
Crystal concedes the point with a nod, "Speaking of, that was a good spar. We should do it again, testing myself against your speed spurs me to improve."
"Let me know whenever you want to go another round," Afina nods agreeably before she stands up. "For now I suppose I really should go check on the forges."
Lemme pause you here, Jaela should be ready for you soon.