9458/Water Magic

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Water Magic
Date of Scene: 05 January 2022
Location: E06 - Garth's Room - Titan's Tower
Synopsis: Terry continues his quest to ward against holiness by consulting magical people. Next on the line: Tempest
Cast of Characters: Terry O'Neil, Garth
Tinyplot: Path of Glory


Terry O'Neil has posed:
The Cheshire cat stands outside Tempest's door and presses the chime, gently. He looks rather frazzled, for it has been a bit of a frazzled day for him. While he usually enjoys the Atlantean's presence for its own sake, this particular time he has come with a very specific purpose.

His phone buzzes, and he takes the few moments before Garth's response to send a message back to the Daily Planet, and then another one to Diana.

Garth has posed:
Garth answers the door in his costume, having been preparing to do a recon swim around the nearby sea and make sure everything's going well. With panic in the air in New York and the other variety of disasters that are usually plaguing the surface world, he has a responsibility to make sure someone's looking after the sea life. He's already begun to warn some creatures to steer clear of NYC harbor in the coming weeks.

"Hey there," he says with an easy smile, his dark hair pulled into a tight ponytail at the back, "C'mon in. I was just about to head out. Something on your mind?"

Terry O'Neil has posed:
The Cheshire cat leans in and the first thing he does is wrap his arms around Garth in a hug, followed by a quick peck to the cheek, "Hey! I'm glad I caught you," he says, letting go of the Atlantean and walking into the room after him. "It's the whole New York debacle, Garth." He glances over at his team-mate, looking at him from head to toe, "It looks like you've got somewhere to go, though. If you don't have any time for me, I can come back later." The New York situation, after all, is taking up so much time out of everybody's lives. A lot of preparations have to take place.

Garth has posed:
Garth shakes his head, "Nothing too pressing. Mostly just regular patrol business. I can make the time. What's on your mind?' he asks. He gestures for Terry to come in, smiling at the momentary hug and going to take a seat on his yoga mat, folding his legs beneath him and gesturing for Terry to do the same so they can face each other. "It's always one thing or another around here, isn't it? But I suppose that's what teams like ours exist for."

Terry O'Neil has posed:
"Very much so," Terry says, sitting on front of Garth and giving him a warm smile. "Still, I appreciate being able to rely on people. Without you guys, I don't think I'd be nearly as together as I am. And I'm a fucking mess." He laughs, and shrugs his shoulders.

"I wanted to consult with you because..." the cat looks embarrassed, "I am nowhere near knowledgeable about magic as I should be. And that's on me. There's something that happens to me when I get exposed to order or holy magic, Garth." He reaches over and places a hand on the mat, "I basically trip balls. Because I am comprised mostly of chaos magic. It doesn't /hurt/ me, it just makes me... incredible inhebriated. And because of what we're about to face..."

Garth has posed:
Garth nods, "You need to see if you can find a way to be grounded," he says softly. "You have nothing to be ashamed about. Magick is a complicated legacy, one that you, I suspect, had pushed upon you a bit. In some ways, so did I. I never imagined sorcery as part of my future until I had to learn it to survive."

"So, it sounds like what you need is a method of centering yourself, to allow yourself to exist within the chaos and keep your sanity. The trick is to do so without blocking the chaos itself. Else it might cost you something in your effectiveness. Something like that?"

Terry O'Neil has posed:
Vorpal nods slowly, "Something like that. There is someone who is elaborating a talisman to at least deflect /some/ holy magic away from me, but that's only going to be so effective without me being an actual sorcerer."

"I was told that I could use a weapon as a sort of focus for my chaos magic to counterbalance, but that things like that usually took some time to fully develop, since it grows with use and practice. So I'm finding myself on the spot, needing temporary bandaids to long-term problems because there's no time to do anything else. And I just can't stand in the bylines while people I love risk their lives to keep this world from ending."

Garth has posed:
Garth nods, "Of course not. There's too much at stake and it's definitely an all-hands on deck situation," he sighs. "The weapon or talisman as a focus is a good idea, especially in the long-term. In fact, most of what I can imagine would be long term solutions. A lot of it is going to be mental - you have to imagine it the way a surfer might or the way a lot of Atlanteans have to do living underwater. You need to find a way to let the wave and the rhythm sweep over you without letting it carry you off. And you have to do it without fighting so hard that you thrash around and disrupt the energies flowing over you," he says. "I suppose the yoga mat is appropriate. How much have you investigated meditation?"

Terry O'Neil has posed:
"Yes, my sensei has put me through it for months. But now I am thinking I should probably have learned how to surf, too..." the Cheshire smiles a little. "The hardest part is the physical sensation. I physically feel drunk."

He frowns, "How much of that do you suppose is mental and how much actually physical?..."

Garth has posed:
Garth considers, "I think that would depend upon the magick. The powers you wield are different than the ones I tap into. And what Dr. Strange or Dr. Druid or Zatanna or others wield isn't the same as what I utilize. Do you know anyone who uses magick that has a similar wavelength to yours? Any magic users to whom you felt an immediate connection or synch? I'm trying to think of anybody who had an aura that reminds me of yours, but I've been mostly underwater for the last six years or so, so my memory is a little rusty..."

Terry O'Neil has posed:
Terry thinks about this hard and long, his mind coming up with names here and there, but then at the end of a very long list, there is only one name that comes to mind.

"It's not like I've actually /met/ her. It's more like... I have seen her. At a distance. At the zoo when things got super Wonderlandy for the first time... but the Scarlet Witch. There's something about her aura that I felt drawn to." He taps his chin, "Do you know much about her?"

Garth has posed:
Garth shakes his head, "I know she's a member of the Avengers, but not much more than that. Arthur might have had more dealings with her than I, the League works with the Avengers now and again, especially in times like this. I believe she has some ties to the mutant community, too. Which is a whole other thing for me, now that Namor has declared Atlantis a mutant haven and refuge. Not that I disagree with him, I just...don't trust his m otives."

"Still, maybe you could contact her through the Avengers? Donna probably has connections there. Or Nightwing might."

Terry O'Neil has posed:
"True, but they are both busy with this mess... I could just, you know. Pop over there. Front of the mansion with a fruit basked and a grin. Who would send this punim away?" he grins, wiggling his nose for effect.

"I don't trust Namor's motives, either. Nobody who looks like a frigid Mr. Spock can be trusted, the man looks like he could bore laughing gas to tears."

The cheshire leans back, supporting himself with his hands against the mat. "Okay... so seek out Scarlet Witch as a potential strategy. Do you have any trinkets that you think might help me? Even if it's a one-use thing, as the weakest member of this team I need all the help I can get!"

Garth has posed:
Garth bites his lip, "I'll look into it. Honestly, we have all kinds of talismans at our disposal in Atlantis - centuries of treasure ships sunk will do that. But Atlantean sorcerors also hoard like dragons, so finding a piece that's free to use isn't always easy. But I can check. I know there's a Troll market coming up on the surface soon, if you can find it."

"If I find something, I'll let you know. Whatever happens, it's going to be okay. You're not going to be alone. If you end up a little drunk on power, well, you've got a lot of designated drivers."

Terry O'Neil has posed:
"That makes me feel better," the Cheshire cat says, and begins to stand up. "I'm going to need every driver on board if I get hit by a big angel wave... in fact..." he walks over to Tempest and puts his hands on his shoulders, "I am going to need you to knock me out if I get /too/ drunk and start making things worse. I need you to promise that you'll give me a big sock across the jaw. Think you can do it?" He grins.

Garth has posed:
Garth smiles and pushes up to his own feet, just in time to meet Terry and laugh, "I've had to punch my surrogate dad in the mouth a few times. I'm pretty sure I can manage anyone. Although Arthur's face almost broke my hand once," he admits. "I could maybe just spell you to sleep, though. Might be a little less easy on the pretty face."

Terry O'Neil has posed:
"Flatterer!" Terry says with a laugh, a hand coming up to brush against Garth's cheek. "I appreciate your wise advice, oh wizard of the sea. Now, you should get yourself to your patrol before I get distracted," he adds with a wink, before nodding towards the door, "I still have things to do. Like try to figure out how to keep my mother and cousin safe while all hell breaks loose. April is refusing to leave because it's her job to report the news, and my mother has decided she's fricking Sarah Connor and is joining her and Harley with a shotgun."

He rolls his eyes. "And now you know where I get the crazy from."