07.07x: Refuge of Dreams (Part II)

[ShadowOfPreservation]

"I don't think there's anyone else there that would know anything about Chaos. We'll just have to see what we can find out from Odin unless we can somehow locate your father.

"In the mean time we can use this place to our advantage. Train here to improve without having much time pass in Amber. I can change into a dragon now but still only a small one." Lyra looks a little embarrassed at that. "The Pattern has made me a much better fighter but people like Alys still have years of experience on me. Maybe you could help train me if you have some time. Once you're free I mean. It's so strange being here at all. It was only a little over a month ago that I was still dreaming of being a dragon some day." It's clear Lyra's babbling a bit. Without a tight deadline to keep her focused, she's trying not to act like too much of a fan girl.

[Joshua]

"I suppose you could ask Dworkin, but he didn't see any of the aftermath of what he did, right?" Nate will point out.

He sighs. "Still... I'd never have thought I'd meet the legitimate heir to the dragon clan." He shakes his head. "That's dangerous. Being near her is dangerous... and unfortunately, likely to be of extreme importance."

He does pick up a little on the attention. "While we're waiting? why don't we play chess*?" He will offer, pulling over a set of boards.
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*: OMG! Squee!!!! Click the link!

[ShadowOfPreservation]

"Dworkin's been...weird lately. He was quite kind and informative when we first met him at our wedding but lately...It's like he expects everyone to just figure things out on their own. I've never enjoyed double-talk and manipulation." Lyra lets a note of frustration enter her voice before she lets the topic drop and turns to the chess boards. "As for chess...uh, sure if you're willing to teach me a bit. It's been years since I tried playing and I was pretty young then. I'm not sure I remember all the rules so you'll have to forgive me if I'm not any real competition. So if Alys is the heiress, what does that make you?"

[Joshua]

"I don't know what it makes me. I have assumed our clan was destroyed for something close to nineteen ages. Even if I have dreamed for much of it, this world seems much more real to me now than the old clan. I- The faith I had received was relatively unexpected. Someone choose to be my friend despite the horrible things I had done as a demon-king." He ponders. "I don't know. The degenerates of the vampire and hydra clans were scattered so far. Like us. Perhaps it is best to leave it that way."

"For Dworkin, Chaos is about evolution. Perhaps, he wants to see what your culture turns into if driven initially by something other than the Serpent? Also, perhaps he stopped giving answers once you had a way to find out on your own?"

Nate will set teh boards on mid-air between the two of you, and place the pieces, explaining each briefly.

[ShadowOfPreservation]

Lyra smiles at his comment about making a friend despite his past. Such matters always bring her goddess to mind and she gives silent thanks to Eilistraee for Nate's apparent redemption.

"I'm sure the latter is true however annoying it may be. Hopefully improving life here won't be anywhere as difficult as navigating the politics there. I'd always preferred to negotiate a solution but lately I feel more and more that beating sense into people might not only be easier but also preferable." She turns her attention back to the game, happy for the distraction from more serious matters. She begins moving pieces according to Nates brief instruction, making her opening moves, her strategy reserved and defensive.

[Joshua]

The first game, Nate definitely has the advantage. He's played this for millennia. That being said, you can start to pick up some good strategies, and even anticipate some of the basic traps he's attempting to goad you into.

"My cleric chose that path. It is why the gods of this realm are based on belief. The issue is there are often other consequences for beating people." He shrugs. "Benign dictatorship is the most efficient and powerful form of government. The issue, however, is in the definition of benign. I ... ultimately, did what I did to allow this world to survive. A master of Logrus can summon primal chaos and cause an entire shadow to dissolve back into the Abyss. The titans... Wow, it's been so long, you might not have even heard of them... They were a defense against such a being."

[ShadowOfPreservation]

Lyra will happily lose graciously, storing away knowledge for future games. She has no real desire to play to win, but is rather just enjoying the game itself. "The titans have come up a few times but I admit my knowledge of this world's history isn't the best. Most of what I know I learned as part of our recent exploits. Hopefully this place is still quite safe from such a thing happening."

[Joshua]

"In the old context..." He sighs and thinks... "This place is as real as I could make it. It... would take a long time for primal chaos to tear it apart, and it could push back a little. Provided you stopped the chaos at the source. The titans were advanced shapeshifting creations, high levels of power, and able to mimic higher level powers. They... got a little out of hand. But they were designed to fight against logrus Masters and defend the dragon clan from being exterminated."

[ShadowOfPreservation]

Lyra looks impressed. "If something comes to destroy Amber, do you think you could make more to help defend it? Or defend this place? Will our home be vulnerable to attack if you leave here to come back with us?" Lyra begins the second game with more confidence but still employs a defensive strategy, still learning from Nate's maneuvers.

[Joshua]

"Such beings were... ultimately unsuccessful. Besides, it seems you have a greater power. That's likely more effective than trying to elevate a lesser power."

It starts to become clear that his playing style is nearly flawless*. However, he has given you the advantage of going first. It's too late in this game, but next one, you might be able to take advantage of it.

"This place isn't very vulnerable. It's also not very noticeable, which helps. You also overestimate what I can do to a Logrus user."
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*: One case where skill and experience might trump stats. In the same way that someone can map out all the permutations of tic-tac-toe, something like 17,000+ years of experience has allowed Nate to do that with chess.