A return home

[Corwin]

"It opens such a fresh new way of looking at things!" Seira happily agrees. "And given our chief opposition, the use of positive energy is so fitting!"

At Latha's question, she nods and smiles. "Yes, please. Whichever you have that suits."

[Anastasia]

And thus the ground rumbles and the others cheer as the titan Marie is felled, swept off her feet. Amid that thundering crash Latha quietly shakes her head, "Mystra, a question?"

Mystra nods slightly, turning from her Alicia hug to her. "Yes?"

"You DID do something to Alicia's head to attract fairies, didn't you?" Latha asks. "Why?" She starts to go as she does, keeping an eye on yo uas she steps a few steps away, rooting in the chest.

[Ebiris]

"They always say it's just my proportions..." Alicia says dubiously. If it's a spell it must be a subtle one!

[Anastasia]

Mystra merely smiles at this as drinks are brought back. "Alicia is Alicia. Her charm is her charm."

[Corwin]

"I think I'm going to have a chat with Syala about exciting magical research," Seira says, accepting a drink from Latha as she heads for the water. "Have fun discussing Alicia's proportions and charm~"

[Anastasia]

"We are rather fond of them," Latha chuckles as you go off.

"It's a blessing regardless," Mystra says, partin from Alicia and having a drink. "Courre and pixies are innocent creatures who bolster the world through their cheeriness."

Meanwhile, Marie finds Syala just coming out of the waters. Her dress is gone, her body drying instantly as she steps out, "Seira," she says, "What was that I heard about Behemoth Creatures?"

[Corwin]

"I got the means for making them from Yan-C-Bin, along with a sample." A flick of her wrist produces the research notes, and Seira offers them to Syala. "This is a copy, so don't worry about splashing them or anything. Anyway! The process is both dangerous and interesting, but what truly intrigues me is how it would play with our ongoing elemental harmony project as well as whether elementals could benefit from drawing on a massive amount of positive energy."

[Ebiris]

Marie shrinks back to normal size and starts swimming around more peacefully with Antenora and Sharess.

"I do like them, but I've never really heard one express what exactly it is about my head in terms I could understand," Alicia takes a drink of her own and sips at it. "Almost like some sort of nesting instinct? I've heard even busts of my head can have an impression on them."

[Anastasia]

As Marie and friends enjoy as swim? Syala goes over to one of the game tables right by the shore, taking a seat. "Chess?" she offers. She glances at the notes in an instant and then they vanish, "It strikes me as a fluke that can occasionally be reproduced," she remarks, "Do you think it can be streamlined at all?"

Meanwhile, Mystra merely says, "Regardless, enjoy it." A long pull of her drink, "We can become inhuman, become forces, if we lose touch of this. The Incarnations have no great attachment to this mortal perspective, even if they value mortals in finding an Answer."

Latha drinks as well, "So this is important?"

"It is. We affirm what we are with this, and remind ourselves that part of what we are is being a person." Mystra pauses a moment, "Were I lefta lone in Creation, I would likely have become merely a process, the Weave incarnate with no need for anything else. Flat, emotionless, primal. Things like Kossuth or Akadi are close to that, things more consumed in the primal elements and what they are then any attachment to personhood."

"And yet," Latha murmurs, "One must stand alone and sufficient."

[Ebiris]

"I was just talking with Antenora and Zariel about this yesterday actually," Alicia mentions. "How mortal frailties encourage cooperation and community. I find it interesting that the Incarnations thought to include things like that - where did they get the inspiration from?"

[Corwin]

"Chess works," Seira agrees, taking a seat opposite Syala. "A fluke that can be reproduced is a pointless categorization, however. Most magical research falls under that category, after all." She grins to take any sting out of her words, picking black for herself and allowing Syala to make the first move.

"The original downsides of the behemoth creatures has a lengthy growth period and the need for training, though lengthy waits are a fact of our lives given avatars and our plans beyond the immediate. That said, I'm looking for an improvement on the process. An elemental should be able to be imbued such, given that we have many means of them merging with another element. In fact, the benefit here is that we don't need to start from scratch, as numerous documented cases of elementals reforming over the course of their lives exist. If water and fire can coexist to forge the basis for the Cauldron's native forces, why not fire and positive energy? Water and positive energy? Our process of attaining elemental harmony is stable enough that we have expanded our trials and are applying it to a wider selection, and many of the same formulas will be true here as well, given they deal with achieving proper balance. We just need to recalibrate them for new values, which is where your insight would be the most welcome, Syala."

[Anastasia]

"We don't know," Mystra says, "So often the Incarnations told us little other than commands." Looking over at Latha's bosom, "You may as well ask why breasts exist, rather than some other form of nutrition and sexual attraction. I can grasp some of the likely reasons and they align with what you said, the struggle making mortals experience more, go in new directions. But their ultimate inspirations remain opaque."

"Why does an artist create precisely what he creates?" Latha drinks and looks at the cooking food, "I certainly feel Creation has artistry to it, does it not?"

Meanwhile, Syala takes the white pieces and starts to play. "My insight? I'd be glad to help," Syala says, as she adds, "I could use a favor to call in."

Meanwhile, the others swim away until Sharess begins to spin, forming a whirlpool that drags Jessica, Marie and Antenora towards her. Her cry is heard, "Kittens, watch this!"

[Corwin]

Seira laughs, answering Syala's opening move with From's Gambit. "A favor? So the information from Yan-C-Bin's tireless efforts and insight into our own breakthrough into the prismatic studies isn't enough? I think Sanzha will be quite sad to hear that."

[Ebiris]

Marie shrieks as she's pulled into the whirlpool, though it sounds more excited than fearful.

Alicia glances over and smiles before answering Latha and Mystra. "An artist is inspired by their life. A simple still life or landscape painting is obvious in its inspiration, but still everything else can still be tied back to events in the artist's life and things they've seen or done. The Incarnations had a life before Creation - perhaps even other Creations before this one."

[Anastasia]

Go ahead and make a related skill check in case you have one, Seira. Otherwise, just an Int check for the chess will do.

Syala smiles, "Of course it's enough, but I like having an excuse to come bother you over things." She moves her pawn in response.

Amid all of the whirlpool they're sucked in - Jessica's grass skirt goes flying, along with Antenora's outfit. Then a tidal wave comes forth, sending all of them, including Sharess, to the beach in a heap.

"I wonder that myself," Mystra admits, "What we could learn if we could deal with Far Realm creatures meaningfully, if we could simply talk to them and get honest answers. What things are beyond here, created and allowed to be? What things inspired the Incarnations? Are we all, or merely a single stone amid a mountain?"