(1911) Duel Consilium II

[Campanella]

Campanella stands off to one side.

He tries not to watch but the flashes of raw, primal, energy and the curving singularities flashing from within the Squared Circle draw his attention, just like everyone else.

A pulse pops intermittently at his jaw.

[Yumyumcrow]

And a bit of narration

For those without the Sight, the Duel appears rather unimpressive: the two mages stand in front of each other... and Shodan slowly wilts...

For those with the Sight, arcs of white and rippling molten gold flash with alternating burst, swirls, and twists of orange, purple, and black. The staccato bursts of colour and blackness almost numb the eyes, their iridescent hues bursting out from the confines of the Squared Circle to stain the homely candlelight of the nave.
Anima and Cosmo witness the contest through the Second Sight, where the details are lost against the frieze-like guaze of the Gauntlet.
Papilio observes quietly with the Grim Sight of Death - and again the details are lost and the colours seemingly washed out; yet Winter appears more solid, more present and the shadows that bubble from him seem much richer, deeper, and more malevolent.

To those with the higher, Supernal Sight, Star Campanella Kaze Phoenyx the duel is most certainly epic. The nuances of colour is superb as the power of the Aether is unleashed in both its subtle and its gross Arcana. Raw power, resonant in a way that only the Mighty can achieve, is displayed. The light from Shodan's electric blasts of energy are so much brighter; and so too is the light absorbing darkness leaking from Winter. Truly awful. Truly Mighty.


October Sybil Sight is much more subtle. The raw power of Shodan's blasts are on display, so is the gravity warping manifestations of Winter's Forces. That is nothing compared to the skein of fate bubbling and warping, nay spinning around the pair as they Duel for their destiny. Of the two, Winter seems the denser or the heavier despite the obscuring weave of fate and the hurled magics burning brightly around them; if anything, Winter appears to be getting heavier, even as the skein of fate begins to wrap more firmly around the Libertine.

[Anima]

The mad doctor is undeterred. He's quite used to a society that doesn't see past it's own social norms, even in mage society. His smile, still broad, and eyes gleaming with excitement, he takes his position with the onlookers. He watches with excitement, picking out the flashes and shadows and their direct reflection upon the spirit world. So incredible the way power ripples through reality, like a pebble in a pond.

Food...

"The Bacon Mania food truck is my favorite. I'll probably be tracking it down on twitter, after this. Bacon is good for the soul." He says the last like it's an actual statement of fact and not one of metaphor.

[October]

Shaking her head to Cosmo, “Not that I know of. Though if I had known, I would have brought something. Maybe next time we can have someone in charge of refreshments or something.” She says with a shrug.

“Ah. Haven’t been in one of those in what feels like forever.” Burnt coffee just wasn’t good.

This wasn’t a battle; it was a slaughter.

A nod, “If I didn’t have a shift after this, I’d head over there. But I’ll keep the name in mind and hit it up later. Thanks.” She says quietly back.

She watches as Fate works itself around the two Awakened. But what draws her attention more is that this was clearly one sided. And Shodan needed to see that and yield. Needed to admit his defeat. If not, when would it end? With him dead? When would he admit he could not win against Winter?

Gently, she shakes her head.

[Mobius]

Amusingly, she could see Star as that kind of shifty dude in a trench coat making his rounds in the alleys behind bars. Shifty, but just charming enough to make the sale. To convince the drunks that the watch was the genuine article. A small smirk tugged on her lips at the thought. "Sorry, how could I leave that part out?"

She glanced at her fellow Acanthus, "I'm Mobius, by the way, I know we haven't gotten to chat yet." She holds out her hand bashfully to shake.

When she had told Kaze at Starbucks that history wasn't her best subject in school, well maybe that wasn't the whole truth. When Star mentions the battle of Agincourt she furrows her brow. Still avoiding the true spectacle before them, she asks, "The one with the bows?" A truly enlightened question. Soon after, Shodan exited the circle, the result seemingly announced without even having witnessed the events.

Turning to Star and October she whispers, "Maybe so, but who wins the battle doesn't always win the war." The Hundred Years War a prime example.

[Cosmo]

Restaurants were noted as he watched the duel come to a conclusion. The nature of it didn't bug him as much as Winter's attempt to swing after Shodan clearly said enough. Not that it mattered. Neither were dead and now it was Campanella's time to say whatever the Heirarch desired to have said. He had a feeling it was trial stuff, but who knew at this point.

"Noted." He smiled to Star and listened. Mobius's final comment drew his attention, mostly because long term planning was clearly not a part of what brought the duelists to this moment. Cosmo hadn't really grown familiar with either party, but he doubted Shodan would play the victim and take nothing away from today. It was really just a matter of which lessons he learned.

[Star]

It's a little weird that an Obrimos doesn't know how Squaring the Circle works, isn't it? Unless Winter was popping Shodan's Dueling cherry. Heck of a way to lose that D card, yo.

"We could just make these, like. BYOB things?" That second 'B' isn't for 'Banisher', but it'd probably be just as bad having a half dozen of the Wise sitting on the stoop chugging 40s in paper bags. "But it's BYOG today. I've got two red Gatorades in my pack."

Some things never change. Like red being a flavor.

Mobius gets a nod of the mop. Yeah. How could she? But things are winding down and the showdown at the OK Corral is all over except for the pine box measuring.

"Uh. Maybe? I dunno. I just like saying Agincourt."

It's got more than bows, yo. A narrow field, over-armored soldiers, and horses on an incline in the mud. He's not a military or history buff, but he does know a lot about that particular battle.

Because militant bow-shooting Intervallutrix.

[Winter]

Gravity returns to normal, and the bubble of darkness splinters into a myriad of small pieces. The duel was won, but he knew that the matter wasn't entirely settled. Still, you take what you can.
The Guardian stays there, it's time for the Hierarch to do his things.