Jade nods, "Exactly, it is a personal journey. No one can help you with it, but you know you will have my morale support along with the others. Even if you hear us clapping or cheering you on, don't look for us keep your attention on the Pattern walk. I wish you all didn't have to do it. That is how dangerous and serious I take matters involving that Pattern. Yet at full health and well fed, all I can say is try to prepare mentally and spiritually too. All my cousins are amazing ! I am sure you will succeed."
This message was last edited by the player at 23:15, Mon 21 Dec 2020.

*nods* "With your advice and Ballad's, I am confident that I can make it." *smiles* "Besides, I have something worth coming back to, to fight for and protect.  Something more than just country and home." he looks away blushing slightly. Then clears his throat. "But don't worry, I appreciate the advice and take it very seriously."

Internally he sighs and thinks to himself "What is wrong with me."

Jade stops her studies for a moment fully turning to Jon. She smiles and rests her hands on his shoulders. "I have no doubt you and Ariadne will make it. I will be here when your done and as soon as you are awake and ready all of us can celebrate."

She looks down a moment, "The only one I really worry about is Lance. He needs his confidence back. I tried to help him, but I am not sure that I was able too fully. I told his mother that he needs his confidence back. Please don't say anything about that. Aunt Florimel is a proud woman and I don't want to make her feel bad in anyway, and I didn't want to embarrass Lance. I just wanted some help from her to boost his spirits. If you can in some way try and help. He might need it. As I said I can help as much as I can with advice and personal experience but the Pattern is a trial one makes alone."

Jade's eyes seem to capture the patterns light.

"I just hope even if Lance needs a year or two that he stands strong and proud at the center of the Pattern. I have no doubt he will, I just know he will need to believe in himself. If he could do it sooner all the better. The Gray Men are our generations enemy. They came after us and our elders are dealing with them. We should face them yet we need to do so united. Our tests and trials unlike on the Pattern, we can take together." She smiled.

Then she turned to re-engage with her studies. She wanted to get a familiarity with Amber's pattern as she had with Rebma's.

Ariadne walked into the room, slightly flushed and sweaty from "all those damned stairs!!!" and looked around, catching her breath.  She put her hand on her still healing stab wounds, cursing under her breath and wishing all flavors of death and pain on "those grey bastards".

Looking around the room, she blinked in surprise and gasped audibly.
"What....THIS is the Pattern?!?  I....this is....wow....."
She hadn't really known what she expected, but this was more massive and impressive than she every could have imagined.  It was pulsing with life and power in a way that she couldn't have conceived of, in her wildest dreams.

Jade smiled seeing Ariadne's impression at seeing the Pattern.
She made sure to include her in on the speech about the Pattern and how it works and it's dangers.

Smiles at Jade's comment. "I will and I know Ari will do our best to not let you, Ballad or Lance down."

He feels her pain as she talks about Lance. "Don't worry, I won't say anything.  I too look forward to him having his confidence back and successfully walking the pattern.  I am sorry that there isn't more I can do to help.  But based on what you said, I might make it worse."
He gives her a quick, but comforting hug.  But then is momentarily speechless as he meets her gaze as the light of pattern play over it.

*smiles* "I have faith in Lance, even he doesn't have it in himself at the moment.  And I know that we will come together and unite to face this menace. But, I am also looking forward to learning and exploring."

As she turns back to her work, he can't help but smile fondly. to himself he thinks "She is so kind and caring.  Worried about us.  She has a calming presence." Jon is slowly becoming more relaxed, he is still alert for danger, but he isn't as stiff as he has been.  Feeling safe and comfortable for the first time in days.

*smiles* "It is amazing isn't it?" he says to Ari.  "Are you OK?" there is a hint of concern.

Ariadne looked at Jon with a rueful smirk.
"There's nothing even remotely like this on Earth.  I mean, we have power sources, ones that can light up an entire city, but they're deadly to touch casually.  They're nothing we can literally tap into personally with out bodies, or whatever."

The talk of Lance gets her to sigh and shake her head.
"Part of me feels like as a fellow Earth 'refugee', I should be able to talk to him and relate to him more than anyone else.  On the other hand, just being from Earth can give someone a variety of anxieties that I can't even begin to understand.   Still, I'll try to intervene when I can.   He needs to know that I'm  sympathetic ear, if nothing else."

Jade nodded as Ariadne spoke.
"That is impressive Ariadne.  The Pattern itself generated the countless worlds between here and Chaos."

She lowered her head nodding.
"Thank you Ariadne, he could use a friend. You know about nuns and other things Lance spoke  of.  I am sure if all of us give him support he will find that even if he doesn't have confidence in himself, we do.  I do hope that turns  him around. "

Jade kept moving as she studied the Pattern.
She stopped and stood on the balls of her feet and got just a wee bit of a better look.
Notes were scribbled down with her focusing on the Pattern again.

*nods* Jon continues to stay close to Jade, in case action is needed, but not close enough to crowd her or be in the way.

"Ari, you have a great grasp of the fundamentals.  I'll be honest, I was a bit worried when you said that most of your training was for stage fighting." *smiles* "I am glad, my concerns were unfounded." *chuckles* "With a little fine tuning and practice to build up stamina, you are going to be a terror on the battlefield.  Especially if you use that Axe of yours." *grins* "And with even more practice, I think you could become an excellent blade dancer." thinking he has given Ari a compliment.

Jade sighs a bit, "Wish I had brought a ladder."
Back on her tip toes studying further into the Pattern.

She looks at Jon and Ariadne but is too embarrassed to ask for a piggy back ride so she can see even better into the Pattern's interior. Her pale cheeks showed a blush.



OOC: Just a note to my fellow players. Jade is going to be in the Pattern room a while and I don't want you to get bored with her studying the lines.

Noticing how she is trying to hang over the pattern, he *chuckles* at her Ladder comment *smiles* "Jade, do you want to sit on my shoulder's to get a better view?" he looks over at Ari, "With your help to balance her, she should be able to get a good view. And lean pretty far over without risk of either of us falling."

Jade will move to the stairs and after walking up to a certain height she smiles nodding to herself. The better vantage really did help. Though in the future she might bring a ladder or even small stage put in for future studies.

Here she started to take more notes on what she was feeling as well as certain mystic qualities that she could. Her little journals pages were filling up.
This message was last edited by the player at 17:15, Tue 22 Dec 2020.

Ari was amused by Jade getting on Jon's shoulders, but helped them nonetheless

"Alright this is great for research. Wonderful."

Jade smiles brightly at her cousins, "So what do you think of the pattern Hmmm ?"
This message was last edited by the player at 23:29, Tue 22 Dec 2020.

In reply to Jade (msg # 19):

Ari looked up with a confused expression
"The potion ?"

*Smiles* "So what are you researching, Jade"
This message was last edited by the player at 00:19, Wed 23 Dec 2020.

((I corrected it to Pattern))

Ariadne shook her head in almost dismayed wonder
"I can't help but feel a little weirded out, lo like this thing is watching me, and maybe even judging me."

"It does judge you, you will feel that when you walk it. That is why I really want Lance to have his self confidence. Though if your not worthy of the Pattern, that is not something you feel bad about because you won't be around."

Ariadne winced
'Wow....THAT'S  not creepy at all"

"Sorry, just want to be honest with you." Jade looked back at the Pattern.

"She didn't mean it."

Ariadne lokked at the Pattern, mildly alarmed
"Um....yeah, no offense intended, of course "

*smiles* "Now can anyone walk the pattern?  Or only Royalty?  That wasn't really clear to me." he asks.

"Only those of the royal blood of Oberon. If nonroyals try they perish. So no trying to get a servant to walk it, no matter how much you like them. It was somehow made just for our family to walk. Likewise if you find someone you love, and they are not of the royal blood don't try to walk them on it to extend their life. It would only result in heartache."

Ariadne nodded, still a bit mystified by the entire process.