Incantations to the Mother [Closed]

Really now? Where IS he!

Like a ghost in the night, Zuqetta moved swiftly; her power hidden by her magic, her movements more silent than a leaf in the wind. Her prior visit to the planet granting her caution far beyond what she would normally demonstrate, and an awareness of her surroundings that typically oblivious little monarch never displayed.

I told him we could go together on MY ship, but he just leaves!? His ship's in orbit, he wasn't on it... so he has to be SOMEWHERE 'round here!

She kept quiet, the only sounds besides that of what lurked in the night being that of her thoughts as she searched the globe for her cousin. Ironically, the magic she used to keep herself safe from outside influences, also being what kept her from sensing the energy of others. She'd arrived on the planet by what could roughly be described as "legal means"; though she kept her status secret, her connections with the Arcosian Emperor opened enough doors to get beyond something s simply as a planetary blockade.

If I just dropped my veil, I could-- hm? What's that??

While she may have docked in a city, she didn't expect the same of Lottus; such was what brought her to the wastes of Earth. A desolate, sandy landscape similar to the wastes of Plant, but lacking in the department of Saiba-Creatures. It seemed a fitting first place to search, it would be an easy location to fight, and knowing Lottus, it was likely the first thing he'd want to do.

A curious sight however would distract Zuqetta in her search, that of a rather unnatural light, one that emanated not from the bright full moon above, but from the ground below in an otherwise obvious display compared to the rest of the blackened night. Caution failed against curiosity, and without hesitation Zuqetta would make her way to the scene. She'd be quickly upon the strange display, taking it all in with increased curiosity, everything being a complete mystery to her.

Her flight being of magic rather than ki, there was no pressure or sound in her approach, no kicking up of dust or buffeting wind. She intentionally sought not to disturb whatever was going on, her eyes wide with interest as her body felt a strangeness in the atmosphere. She landed a distance away, remaining as a ghost as she approached, but made no inclination to hide herself. She'd be upon the one who stood furthest, Skuld, a few steps away and doing well to keep from touching any part of the circle they'd drawn. A lack of information would finally overwhelm Zuqetta, and with a tilt of her head, she would speak.

"What's goin' on here?" she'd ask, glancing up towards the moon, "Are you guys doin' some kinda dance?"

Now in the view for all to see, the dancing lights would reveal the girl; as opposed to the gaudy royal attire she would usually be found in, Zuqetta was already dressed for her participation in the tournament. A hooded cloak hid most of her form, but even with the hood drawn over her head her black hair peeked out from the edges. If the spiky black hair wasn't a giveaway to her heritage, the rather obvious tail behind her might have been, especially considering its size compared Zuqetta herself.

Any other facets of her outfit that could be seen would seem rather ordinary, if not completely mismatched. Simple white shorts and shoes wear coupled with black stockings and a pink shirt, something that would've implied a rather casual appearance. Yet besides the cloak itself which already stood out, this simple outfit was paired with vambraces, greeves, and a breastplate which all seemed out of place, not to mention a mask upon her face which sought to hide her identity further.

One gave an explanation, though it didn't really help to fill Zuqetta in. Another approached with a playful tone, while a third did much the same. They threw verbal jabs at one another, though it seemed to be in good fun. Then came the fourth, her seemingly kind voice spoke out, addressing Zuqetta with a bit a curiosity...

Were they done with their weird dance??

"Hi, nice ta meetcha!" Zuqetta would immediately greet, no wariness to be had or sense of self preservation despite the obviously suspicious group or rather tall, girls up to who knew what in the middle of a desert, "I just saw the lights and got curious, and..."

Something was strange... strange and, nice? Zuqetta closed her eyes, breathing lightly; the atmosphere felt nice, like she was brimming with more energy than usualy just by hanging around. It was strange, she never felt like this anywhere... no, that wasn't entirely true...
She recalled the somewhat lighter feeling at the Lookout, the feeling of tranquility when at the temple with Patience. Then she remembered Plant... the Amalgamite, the explosion, and...

"Magic?" She questioned, opening her eyes and lifting a hand, "There's magic in the air here, is that what this "rite" you mentioned is about? The one to you... mom??" It was clear she didn't truly understand what was happening, but she was quick to pickup on the unseen details.

As Meara spoke, it was clear how invested she was in... well, whatever it was she was explaining! The animal girl only became ever more intense in how she spoke when the point of Magic was brought up. Whatever this ritual was seemed to give them power, that was what Zuqetta was catching from this, but what one thing had to do with another in all of this was beyond her. She'd give a soft hum before shrugging rather passively, "Can't say I get none of, I've never had a mother, sorry." as she said the words, the face of that aggressive woman she and Lottus had met would play back in her mind, but she'd disregard the thought.

It seemed however, that the mother the faun spoke of wasn't of the typical variety, but was the Moon above of all things. Though as she explained even though, the woman seemed to becoming lost in worrying thought. The tallest of the girls would remark on their sisters behavior, something that would elicit a small laugh from Zuqetta before she'd return her attention to the Faun.

"Can't say I understand why you're callin' the moon of all things a "mother", but I think I getcha well enough!" she'd remark, looking up towards the moon, her near invisible pupils upon her obsidian eyes dilating wide, "So your ritual to the moon is given ya power? Ya sure you're not harvesting blutz waves?" she'd question, her body shivering a bit as every cell in her body resisted the Oozaru transformation.

The explanation Meara would give would go over Zuqetta's head more than any explanation she'd been given before. Lines and pacts, losing their magic without a ritual, it was all so foreign and strange that Zuqetta simply couldn't comprehend it. She simplified it as best she could, whoever these bloodlines were and whatever the ritual was for, the point was they needed to do it to have power, as rudimentary a summary as that was, it was all Zuqetta needed.

When Meara followed up with her confusion on blutz waves, Zuqetta couldn't help but laugh.

"Hehe, well then that makes two of us!" she'd remark, "I guess blutz waves are only taught in Sadala... then, I suppose ya don't know what an Oozaru is either, huh?" she'd question, her tail swaying playfully behind her, "Ehh, not like I care ta explain it, it's nothin' all that special. I just thought your ritual and Oozaru's might've had somethin' in common." she'd explain with a shrug, "More curious is what you just said, how're you getting power if you're givin' it? That doesn't make much sense ta me!"

She crossed her arms, her eyes closed as she contemplated the whole idea. Rituals and circles aside, they had magic by way of giving their power to their moon mom, but if they were giving their power to the moon mom, she wondered how exactly they came out with a net positive in terms of magic. On that same note, Zuqetta was once more reminded of the magic she felt in the air. She sniffed lightly, the magic that ruminated tickled, it was strange to feel and at least to Zuqetta, was entirely unnatural.

"The last time I felt this much magic in the air... well, it wasn't because of anything good." she'd remark, opening her eyes and giving Meara a suspicious stare, "Can't say I understand why ya gotta do all this ta keep your magic, I don't need somethin' like this for my magic... but, are you sure you're not up ta no good here?" she questioned, looking between the four, her tail smacking the ground behind her with a mild bit of aggression.

Her mind couldn't help but to return to the idea of the group harvesting Blutz waves, and if that were true, then they were doing something Zuqetta had long since made illegal. The dangers of forcibly distributing blutz waves onto another through some unnatural means was too great to allow the kind of machines she'd seen being built before. A Power Sphere was fine, as it released blutz waves evenly in all directions to be absorbed naturally; the blutz cannon she'd encountered before however channeled blutz energy directly into a subject, sending the resulting Oozaru into a blind rage...

Still, this was Earth, not Plant... she couldn't very well challenge someone who might've been doing such an elicit act while on they were on their own home turf, but neither could she turn a blind eye either...

Zuqetta tilted her head with a clear curiosity, one that replaced her concern, the showcase of magic so casually by Meara garnering her interest. What followed however, would be sheer excitement. Zuqetta's eyes widened, her heart raced, her energy rose and fluctuated wildly like a saiyan child's before the girl would rush forward, nearer to Meara, disregarding all else.

"What did you just say!?" she'd question, no longer even paying any mind to her prior concern, even as Meara went ahead to assure her that nothing nefarious was in place, "Kk, I believe you!" she'd say quickly, "More importantly, what was that thing you said!?!" she'd question once more, her excitement only growing.

It'd been so long since she felt THIS particular excitement, something fresh, something new, something not yet learned!

Whether she read it, heard it, saw it, it didn't matter, she would never forget it. Her condition was a blessing and a curse, but made her who she was. Be it a persons name, or the entirety of a manual for a ships construction, she retained it all. This however, was a word she'd never heard, and evenmore interestingly, was something that was somehow tied to the Oozaru form!

A new word, a new THING, something to learn and retain!

"Lycan... thropy? Am I saying it right?" she'd ask, her tail swaying from side to side in her excitement, "What is that? How is it tied to Oozaru? It sounds like a health condition, is there medicine for it? Do you have it? Is it something involving the moon? Did your mother make it?"

It seemed for a moment as though her barrage of curious questions would continue, but luckily, Zuqetta would come to a stop with a suddenly flinch, realizing what she was doing. She'd quickly take a step away from Meara, waving her hands in front of her defensively.

"Gah! I.. I'm sorry, I don't know what came over me..." she'd remark, a nervous laugh as she spoke, though her expression didn't reveal any shame despite her apology, "It's just, I've never heard that word before, I dunno what it means!" she'd remark, a slight blush as she smile, still very curious to know more, "I've read a ton of books, both here and on Plant, but have NEVER seen that word! Do you... know a lot of secret stuff like that?"

While what Meara mentioned may not have necessarily been something one would consider a "secret", it was no less a mystery to Zuqetta herself. Her curiosity overflowed, her excitement almost palpable. She'd nearly even forgotten that Meara's sisters were still around, but as her gaze shifted away from Meara, she began to wonder if the others held bits of knowledge that only they knew as well. Fun, new things Zuqetta had never heard about!

Zuqetta was like glue upon every word Meara spoke, the idea of there being wolf oozaru people... wolfzaru? Whatever they were, it was so strange in intriguing! Meara expressed not being such a creature herself, seemingly against the idea of it affecting her already part animal appearance. Zuqetta imagined little wolf ears and a tail, perhaps some fur here and there; though if it was as close to an Oozaru transformation as it seemed, the final outcome was sure to be something much more monstrous.

"Hehe, not a fan of fur?" Zuqetta would remark, pulling her own tail around front and giving it a hearty hug, "A wolfzaru sounds kinda cool though! I bet it'd be somethin' my cousin would love!" she'd say, thought Lottus would likely want nothing more than to fight it, "Can't argue with ya though, fur can be such a hassle ta clean sometimes!"

Such was especially true for Zuqetta, who had what was technically considered a bad habit amongst her kind, constantly leaving her tail swaying about. Adults learned to grow accustomed to wrapping their tails around their waist, and did so the majority of the time; ironically, this was usually to keep their weakness out of reach. Zuqetta with her mutation simply didn't find it comfortable, and having no tail weakness of her own, there was no sense in keeping it wrapped around her waist other than for official business.

Meara went on, not stopping with merely an explanation on Lycanthropy.

Fates? Music, emotion, writing, this was all so different from what Zuqetta understood about magic! Not only was there a clear difference in how the sisters actually acquired their magic, but the use was so entirely foreign as well. The only one that seemed vaguely plausible was Verthandi and her written magic. Zuqetta had seen it with Zriracha when the woman was first teaching her magic; she'd drawn runes upon some parchment, each with different effects. Was this the same though? It was impossible to say, but Zuqetta as curious as she was now, intended to find out.

"I've never heard of any of that!" she'd begin, "And none of it sounds even a lick similar to what I can do... but wait, I just saw ya pull your stick outta nothin'! Does that have ta do with your special magic? Ain't that just typical materialization??" she pondered, her tone not accusatory in the least, but filled with curiosity, "Are you four the only ones with your magics? Haven't ya ever seen anyone else use any magic the way you guys do?" she'd remark, her attention shifting to Verdanthi, "Like, I know someone who was able ta write magic runes and glyphs and stuff, isn't that the same?"