I'm changing to Black Mage and none of you losers are stopping me this time.
Chrys merely shrugged at Take's response to her words and nodded at Tinarah's thanks. She left the room not far behind them, and mostly stayed quite as Chrono and Tinarah discussed what to do about their father. She listened carefully though, and tried to consider what might be the best course of action. However, there were too many variables, so she wasn't sure she should give an honest opinion about what to do. Maybe that was for the best, though. Though she knew on a conceptual level that it was best not to overthink things, it was unfortunately a lesson she still had some trouble putting practice too. As they were joined by Illiana and departed for their destination, she briefly noted and subsequently tried to shove her observations about Tinarah and Fost continued... issues to the back of her mind. Chrys stood back silently as Tinarah and Chrono began talking, waiting to see what the group was to do.
Chrys resisted the urge to roll her eyes at the general chaos Illiana was causing. Instead she focused on the choice presented. It was a no-brainier really; she had already decided that she owed Tinarah, even if the girl didn't need her help. Even if she hadn't, the alternative was relatively unappealing. Not only had she worked for a madman who wanted to destroy all of darkness, but most of the people going were on her 'avoid at all costs' list. It would just be better for everyone if she didn't bother anyone from the dark realm again, and stayed away from the princess's to boot. Tinarah had some concerns though. It seemed that there had been trouble in the past, and that the two sibling's presence might cause some trouble. Her services might be in demand after all. For the most part, she stayed silent to see what the council would rule in regards to what Tinarah mentioned, as it might include key instruction on how to proceed with the mission should trouble arise. However, when Take spoke she finally spoke her first words of the morning. "If it affects your decision at all, I fully intend to head to Lux Horologium. So if that eases your concerns about the split at all, you can go where you think you'll be more useful." Chrys shrugged. She didn't know much about Take, but he was on the list of people not to be alone with, which automatically put him on her list of people to avoid entirely. It was just easier if they didn't have to go on a mission together. Of course, she couldn't avoid it forever, but the fact that the princesses could go to the realm of darkness with little consequence was a convenient excuse to hold off on that inevitability. Still, she would do what she had too.
Leaving Antlantica behind, Steel said his goodbyes with little enthusiasm or even real effort. Sure, he wished them the best and all, but he doubted a single one of them remembered his name. The way things had happened, he had mostly just stayed silent, and nobody really talked to him. Getting swallowed by a whale was an unexpected turn, but what could you do? As the others began their investigation, a once again lupine Steel lay on the ground with the air of a moody teenager who didn't want to get out of bed. It wasn't as if he were all that fond of the slimy wet spot he had found himself on, but... he supposed he was just a bit tired of the pattern that they all had going. He'd get up when everyone else was ready to go. For now they were still investigating.
With relatively little on her plate, Chrys was already just about done by the time Master Atmos had arrived. It seemed there was going to be a meeting soon. Still not paying much attention to the others, Chrys dealt with the last few bites of her food before taking care of her dishes and heading off. She wondered what new developments had occurred and what kind of mission they could be sent on. Training was important, but she knew everyone was hoping for the opportunity to do something that had more of an effect on their opponents.
Steel Attacked With A Combo! x2
Chrys nodded in return to each who passed her with a greeting, which included Torrin for some reason. She didn't put much thought into what she had to eat, merely fixing herself something simple while tuning the others out. She sat down at the table with a fried egg and some toast, directing her eyes to the weather outside. The skies were cloudy, and she couldn't help but sigh wistfully at the sight of rain. It reminded her of home: the Garden of Rivers. A world where the rains had never ended. Or at least, almost never. Her thoughts wandered toward her brother and the vision she had seen of him. He had looked alright physically, but he and the girl with him seemed to have been exhausted from travel. She hoped that wherever the two of them where, they were okay. Of course, she also couldn't think of her worlds unnatural rains without considering it's cause. Usually it would only be a brief and fleeting thought, but now... well, she had met the strange wolf like creature herself just two weeks ago. Or at least, she thought she did. It had been a dream, but she had seen a lot of weird things since the destruction of her home. It wouldn't really be strange for him to visit her in a vision; especially since she was apparently his 'chosen one.' A terrible choice if you asked her, but considering he had made the choice thousands of years prior to her birth, he hadn't asked her. These were the thoughts that filled Chrys mind as she stared out the window eating her food.
Steel Used Vorpal Blitz! Used Barrier Surge!
Steel Just Attacked for three turns like a crazy madman I guess.
Chrys quietly made her way down the stairs as she headed from her chosen quarters and towards the kitchen. The last two weeks she had done very little outside of train, opting to spend no more time than necessary on meals and relatively none on social interaction. Not that she had completely avoided the others; she wasn't kidding when she told Master Thyella that she recognized the importance of working with others, but that wasn't quite the same as gathering round the fire and telling ghost stories. All that time spent with her old friends turned out to be a waste of time, so what good would indulging in such trivialities do her now? Not to mention there were certain people in the castle who she was expressly forbidden to be alone with. Naturally it was easier to just avoid them like the plague. So far it wasn't too difficult, since the only keyblade wielders on the list were Aria... and apparently Takehiko. Go figure. And then there was Thalassa. Chrys was getting really tired of seeing the woman around nearly every corner, and she would be lying if she said she wasn't at least a little unnerved... or annoyed. Still, there was little that could be done about the situation, so she left the master to her own devices same as everyone else. Besides; Chrys hardly went exploring, so perhaps it should have been expected to see Thalassa a when she left the training rooms. It should also be noted that it wasn't as if she had avoided training with others: she actually did her best to do just that if she could. Knowing her teammates styles and behaviors in combat could greatly help her strategize. Still, none of that changed the fact she avoided others and quickly shut down attempts to be social in favor of conditioning her skills. Now was a good example as any, as she was beginning her newly acquired morning routine of getting in a quick breakfast with little to no words spoken before jumping right back into training, being one of the first to head over to the mirage arena every morning since she had nothing to distract her. Chrys entered the kitchen with little fanfare and went about making herself a very basic breakfast in preparation for the day ahead.
Steel Attacked With Vorpal Blitz! Used Ninja Vanish!
Chrys couldn't help but stare at the hand offered to her for a long moment. Despite her words to Thyella, Chrys was hardly comfortable being friendly with anyone just now. After all, a willingness to work with others and actually trusting them were two very different things. Qamar in particular was pretty close to the top of the list of people she wasn't all that fond of at the moment. Having seen the girl be particularly gleeful about the death of her former friend had hardly won her any brownie points. The complete 180 from that point in time helped her to trust the girl even less. Still, the girl wasn't being actively hostile, so there was no reason not to train. It seemed Lumen wouldn't be joining them though. "Hmmm... We'd better get started then." Chrys turned away from her new training partners outstretched hand and headed for the terminal to punch in whatever scenario the two would choose. All the while she mentally filed Qamar's comment, the one about having been misled before, away for later analysis.
Steel Attacked With A Combo! Unleashed Tempered Fate! Used Bullet Burst! Attacked With A Combo! Attacked With A Combo!
"Yes." Chrys stated simply. There was no reason to argue with Thyella, since Chrys herself had come to that same revelation. Though she might argue whether or not being able to say some flowery speech made her master material. After all, the man who had given her the exam had no issues with tossing her out like garbage the next day and was quite beyond reason. Regardless, her first attempt at an aggressive approach in some time had failed spectacularly, and there was no denying that she was a pathetic excuse for a master. "I still have a lot to learn." She couldn't help but be disappointed in herself, but there was no time to wallow. "I'll... try and see if anyone will be my partner and get back to training." With that, Chrys made to go and look for someone who didn't think they were too good to be her training partner.
Chrys will spend: 2 Points on HP 2 Points on MP 1 Point on AP 2 Points on DEF 1 Point on FOC 1 Point on SPD
Steel Attacked with 3 Combos! Steel Used Barrier Surge!
Chrys was a little unsure of how exactly to respond to the harsh words of the master that had approached her. She mostly just raised her eyebow at the woman. What the heck was wrong with training solo? As had been so graciously pointed out, she had hardly been the only person to do it. Unlike the blunt words of the master Kiao, this woman just seemed more interested in putting her down, and seemed to have done no real analysis of her behavior. Her criticism was based solely on being hurtful and was not constructive in the least. She could only look up in puzzlement at how this could possibly be a constructive teaching method. She also wondered how much leeway she had in this situation. She had no intention of actively provoking the masters, but could she even explain her own methods without it coming off as disrespectful? She was on pretty thin ice with the entirety of the castle... perhaps Thyella was just making assumptions based on her history. Chrys decided to try and say... something. "You're right. Teamwork is an inevitable necessity. I've done it before, and I've accepted I'll have to do it again. Still, I can't help any team if I'm too caught up in my head to make use of my own strength... and... other people aren't always around. I challenged myself, to see what I could accomplish on my own... and now I know what I can do better. There's nothing wrong with that, I can always train with someone else in my next session. I can't speak for the others though." She turned and walked out into the room, noticing some of the others that had finished their training simulations.
Chrys was understandably and undeniably more than a little upset as she woke up on the floor of an empty white room. She pounded her fist against the pristine floor with a low growl. How could she have been so idiotic? For all her desperate struggling, it was hardly as if her situation had been hopeless. Had she been thinking, it would have been mere child's play. There was still plenty of power left for her to have drawn on. As she felt a steady connection to a cold and unwelcoming light, she readily admitted that it probably wouldn't have been that power. Why the link hadn't already been severed, rather by her own state of mind or one of the masters in the castle, she didn't really know. She was at the point she would rather die than call upon that power though. Still, she had other options. Either of her drive forms would have been ideal, especially with the extra healing and protection they provided as per her specialty. Even just using her Guard Crush earlier than when the opponent was just at it's weakest would have been a wiser tactic. Instead she had wasted her opportunity or a reckless gamble. It used to be that she would save her abilities for what she believed was the opportune moment; being full aware of them, but waiting far too long to use them in hopes that they could serve as some sort of trump card. Now that exact opportunity had just been given to her and... she had completely forgotten it was something she could even do. How exactly does one forget they can tun into a glowing blue flower woman? Needless to say, her transition to a more aggressive fighting style was not going as smoothly as she had envisioned. Still, this fight had merely been a loss, not a defeat. As infuriating as it was, she could still learn from this. True, it might not work that way in the field; but what else was training for? Her air now more of one who was contemplative than angry, Chrys exited the room while muttering about the strategic use of flower petals. She was already planning for her next training session.
Chrys was sent reeling by the most recent blow. She was doing a lot worse than she had hoped to be. Still, she wasn't down for the count yet. Her initial plans were still well on their way to fruition, even if she had taken quite the beating in the process. Making good use of the magical power she had siphoned off of the Demon Tower, she readied a healing spell and renewed the enchantment on her sword once more. As she felt the healing light wash over her, she took a deep breath. "Just a little more." She mused, right before she charged towards the monstrous swarm again for her next attack. Chrys Casts Cura and Ruin Saberga, and Attacked!
At first, Steels first thought when he next had an opportunity to strike was to continue to string together blows against his opponent. However, he quickly felt that had already charged up a surprisingly large amount of power in the middle of attacking. He considered how best to use that power and swam back from Ursula a small distance. It didn't take him long to decide on how to use it. He felt the sun's power growing within him before he released into the form of a gigantic fireball. One that, despite the water all around it, did not flicker or vanish. The quickly elevating temperature of the water quickly cooled when he charged the sea witch with a Vorpal Blitz as soon as the fireball connected, seeing as the ice attack had worked rather well for Beuce when he had used it earlier. Steel Attacked With A Combo! Steel Unleashed the Trip Around the Sun Limit! Steel Used Vorpal Blitz!
