Today’s lesson was to take place in a great exaggeration of the previous amphitheater—an arena, bordering on a coliseum, carved straight into the top of a mountain. All the entrances were a good distance from the open area, connected by dim, torch-less tunnels. The tunnel eventually opens to the spacious arena, staggered stands beginning about twelve feet above the floor. Pacing atop the wall dividing the arena floor and the stands is Ambition, arms behind his back. "Ambition." Keria bows. He glances to the side and says “Ah, you’re here,” in acknowledgement—shortly before a veritable army of circles and glyphs work appear in the air and railgun a pillar of silver at Keria with incredible force. Keria waves her hand as a shield of blue energy appears. The pillar slams into the shield with a sound like ground zero of a thunderbolt. The air is pushed outward as fifty thousand PSI is immediately halted. "Well. That's interesting." “Hmm. Strong, but limited. We’ll have to work on that.” Ambition drops to the ground, the black shapes hanging in the air dissipating. "Man I gotta learn how to do that." Keria chuckles. "Today we will begin magical defenses. You clearly have one or two at your disposal; what do you know on the subject?" "Well. My shields are powerful, but just brute force. They aren't discriminate, that's mainly why I fight alone." "Mmh. Well, there are three *practical and efficient* ways to properly shield yourself without expending so much energy. Those being self-sustainable barriers, spatial manipulation, and redirection of energy." "Like manipulating reality." "Small elements in the bigger picture of reality, yes. Obviously, the extent and efficiency of each of these is going to be relative to one's own affinities, and they can be swapped between. Apparently you have quite the affinity for crudely shoving power into a circle." "Well that's the thing Luck, I'm a literal loose cannon." Keria chuckles. Ambition furrows his brow. “...right. Anyways, should you wish to properly protect yourself, it just so happens that you’re well within range of one of the three options. Your adept control of magma, ice and abyssialite could produce a unique and power defensive magic; each of these elements can be augmented by your own power.” "Huh. Hey. Abyssialite magma. Why didn't I think of that?" Keria chuckles. He holds out a hand. “There is a reason many magical armors are so ostentatious. The heat and magical energy of the magma will inherently strengthen the protective capabilities of your defenses. So, for instance, while Luck may be able to incase himself entirely in silver, it would be more practical and efficient to add in one or more of his other affinities as well.” "His?" “His affinities, his armor. You should see him relying entirely on fate manipulation; it’s certainly interesting.” "Really? Like prediction?" “Something of the opposite. Rather than predicting the course of fate, he alters it in his favor. The details are... complicated, though I’m sure Luck would simply tell you it is what it is. “We digress. Back to the topic of *your* defenses. You can conjure these defenses in many ways, though finding the correct shapes and allocations is a crucial first step. Did you have anything in mind?” "A shape? I just do whatever comes to mind really." “Hm. With time, you’ll hopefully begin to develop some familiar patterns; these will be easier to create and consistently stronger. Go ahead and try to form defenses, imbuing them with some of your affinities. Don’t worry about how much energy you expend.” "Ok." Keria makes a small wall of Abyssialite, which crumbles into magma after a few moments, then she forms a magma ball around herself. Shortly after Keria is enclosed in darkness lit warmly by magma, great explosions of force begin rocking the sphere, pounding it like the inside of a drum. "Well this is fun..." Keria chuckles, and sits still in the sphere, as she pours power into the armor. As moments turn into minutes, it becomes clear that this has become a test of endurance—monitoring the efficiency of the barrier, more than anything. After about twenty minutes of relentless pounding--more than enough to give one a headache--the assault stops. Presently, the barrier begins to diffuse as strange magics unravel the energy keeping it together. Blotting out the now-harsh light of the sky, is Ambition, leaning back against the arena wall. "Well that was fun." Keria chuckles, and sways unsteadily. Before she can fall, space itself seems to solidify next to her, bracing her as she retains balance. “That was good,” says Ambition, “Very efficient. With such a strong magma form, however, I think you could do very well to create something more compact.” "Good...point." Keria chuckles. Ambition responded with a dry stare. “Why don’t you try something like armor, or a shield? Something that can be moved with while taking hits.” "You mean like a shield? Like a knight's thing?" He raises both hands and steps back. “Whatever that shield is to you.” "Hm. This'll get interesting." Keria stands for a moment, and forms two small disks of Abyssialite, but razor sharp with a glowing edge. Ambition’s apathy breaks as his eyes narrow with interest. He approaches in a swooping arc examines the disks. Two fingers reach out and tap one, and a huge striking force slams against the surface. Keria stumbles back, and tosses the disks into the air, "Shoot something at me!" Ambition’s eyes follow the disks and he snaps his fingers, causing three shards of silver to appear and launch forward at incredible speeds. The disks streak through, chopping the shards out of the air. "Woah..." Keria titters quietly. Ambition raises an eyebrow. “Was that... reflexive?” “Now *that* is a powerful tool. Highly efficient disks capable of stopping several projectiles simultaneously. Concentrating on nothing else, how many do you think you can create before you control fails?” "Depends on the target. If I had to guess, at most 8." “All at individual targets, where possible?” "I think then I could manage 8 all intercepting individual targets." Keria shrugs. Ambition raises an eyebrow. “That should prove quite suitable for both offense and defense. Not that you don’t have the tools for both already, but any Gray Lord—or Lady—knows the importance of variety and style.” "I think it'll work well really. Variety is important." “*Almost* as important as style.” "I'm thinking that style could be attacking and defending while doing nothing see-able." The other eyebrow raises in unison. "See-able? Anyways, it would certainly seem possible. Cards played correctly, you could easily trick a less perceptive victim into thinking they are of a different individual--or individuals." "I could use illusions with them too..." Keria grins, an idea playing across her face. “Depending on how much you’ve been practicing illusions—as you should be—yes.” "Ooh. That may just work." “Practice effectually maximizes independent gains, as the saying goes. For a Gray Lady, however, I expect practice to make no less than perfect. Dismissed.”