* It's early morning. Very early, in fact. The sun has yet to rise. Tiffany wakes as something sharp pricks her in the shoulder. OUCH! * Tiffany's voice does not sound. * Tiffany opens her eyes quickly and turns to the source of the pricking. * The large and rather scary face of Draghmal is leaning over Tiffany. Strangely, she can't hear anything. At all. * Tiffany stares in shock for a few moments before remembering her circumstances. Remembering her circumstances, she quickly throws the covers over herself in a less-revealing fashion. * Draghmal rolls his eyes and turns around. * Tiffany rolls quickly out of bed and puts on the rest of her clothing as quickly as possible. * Tiffany completes this task in record time and turns back to tap Draghmal on the shoulder. * Draghmal turns around and holds out one clawed hand to Tiffany. * Tiffany looks at the outstretched hand for a moment before drawing a deep breath. She tries not to notice how odd it feels to do so in a soundless environment and then takes a firm hold of his hand. * Draghmal says a few words which sound loudly in the utterly silent room, and quite suddenly you're not in the room anymore. You're in a somewhat cluttered room, littered with all sorts of strange chemistry equipment. * Tiffany surveys the surroundings like a queen looking over her peasants. She slowly takes in every piece of the room and files it away for future reference, her gaze steady. You've quite a manner about you. * Tiffany speaks slowly, determining if her voice will come out this time. "I like to be prepared whenever possible. I'm sorry that I was not awake for your arrival... for that reason as much as because it was rude of me." Don't be so hard on yourself. I don't sleep so much anymore. I am sorry to hear that. Where I come from, medical science could help one with such issues. Sleep is a luxury for me, generally, and one I'll give up for such an opportunity as you're affording me. * Draghmal chuckles. "Well then, perhaps we should get on with it. Are you sure you want to be tested?" * Tiffany gives Draghmal a wry smile. "You ask that as if there are consequences you haven't let on. Not that they wouldn't have to be pretty bad for me to not do something like this for the others." So be it. Tell me, have you ever meditated? * Tiffany crosses her arms gently in front of her. "Not that I recall." Well then. Go pick up that crystal ball over there and bring it to me. * Tiffany turns toward the aforementioned crystal ball and walks over to it. She reaches out for it gingerly. * A spark reaches out and zaps Tiffany's hand. * It hurts. * Tiffany hops back a bit. "YEOWCH!" Turning back to Draghmal, Tiffany rubs her hand. "Would you mind informing me if this is a test of strength or one of wits? * Draghmal grins, baring nasty fangs. "Yes." * Tiffany turns back to the crystal ball. * The crystal ball is on a small, circular wooden stand about an inch high, which is itself sitting on a table about four feet in height. The rest of the surface of the table is covered with glassware. If a dragon tells me it's possible, then I'll bet it is... so... * Tiffany takes off her dress jacket that was so hastily put on. Wrapping it around her hands, she then reaches for the ball's wooden stand, hoping for a buffering effect. * The shock certainly doesn't seem buffered. *zot* OUCH! * Tiffany emits a low growling noise as she puts the jacket back on. She contemplates just grabbing the ball, pain be damned. "Do you mind if I move some of the other glassware? Assuming I can touch it, that is?" You break it, you buy it. More like I work it off, I think... but I understand. * Tiffany gently tries to move some of the other pieces of glassware off of the table and onto another close surface. * There's not a whole lot of unused surface around, but they sit on the floor comfortably enough for a while. * Tiffany takes off her jacket once this is completed and sets it on the table next to the crystal ball. She then scans the room for some object of a few inches in length that could be used to poke the ball onto the jacket. * There are more than a few sturdy glass stirring rods around, and measuring sticks, too. * Tiffany picks up a wooden measuring stick and walks back to the ball. * Draghmal grins. * Tiffany goes to poke the crystal ball gently with the stick, not intending to move it, but intending to see if she can even touch it without a shock. * The wood doesn't seem to impair the shock at all. *zot* NNGH! Da... ARGH. * Tiffany sets down the wooden rod and looks straight at the ball, as if intent on glaring it into submission. She then reaches out forcefully to pick it up, and attempts to hold her hand steady through any impending shock. * The shock keeps on keepin' on. It doesn't become any more bearable as you go on holding it. * Tiffany is eventually forced to let go. * Tiffany grabs her hand and plops gently on the floor in one of the few empty places, clutching her hand and trying to rub out the pain. Grrr... You really look to be enjoying yourself. * Draghmal grins even wider. "I am. Are you ignorant of the true nature of sorcery?" * Tiffany works hard to keep the anger out of her voice, and focus it in her gaze. Without looking away from the ball she responds "We don't have such a thing as sorcery in my world. So yes. I think I am." But you've been practicing it all your life, even if you don't realize it. Sorcery is making the universe around you do your bidding. Does that tell you how to keep the ball from shocking you? * Tiffany finishes rubbing her hands and stands up, her gaze not leaving the ball. "I make the universe do my bidding by working at a problem until I reach a solution. I didn't say I was giving up yet... I just need a new approach..." I can't touch it, and I can't touch anything that touches it. That about sums up the problem, I think, as I could touch the other glassware. * Tiffany taps the table gently, just to prove to herself that she can do it. * The table does not zot Tiffany. * Tiffany wraps the measuring stick in her dress jacket and goes to tap the ball gently with it, testing her new theory. * Tiffany gets zotted. NNNNNGH. There has to be a logical way to get the ball. There has to be. What is it...? The logic lying behind magic is difficult to fathom. * Tiffany leans gently on the table. She contemplates dragging the whole thing over to Draghmal, but decides against it. * When Tiffany thinks of moving the table, she gets zotted. *zot* YAH! * Tiffany looks back at the table and ball, and this time her eyes are wide, shocked with epiphany (literally). Ok. So you're telling me that I should screw logic and try to use 'magic'. If I think of my task, I get shocked... no matter how I try to do it. * Tiffany continues to talk to herself, her voice quieting down as if it was a surfacing of her inner monologue, "So do I think of something else all together, or just visualize the result." * Tiffany takes this opportunity to put back on her now very wrinkled dress jacket. "Let's go with the result." * Tiffany closes her eyes and thinks about Draghmal having the ball. She tries to forget picking it up and moving it. * Tiffany discovers that not thinking about something is much harder than she thought. *zot* AAH! DANG IT, Draghmal, I wasn't anywhere near it that time... * Draghmal points to where Tiffany is still touching the table leg. "You weren't?" * Tiffany "Harrumph"s and takes a step back. Well, I'm starting to believe that the ball isn't really shocking me, as it seems that anything at all shocks me when I think about using it to move the ball. * Tiffany returns to her visualizations after she's sure she isn't touching anything. She barely whispers "The ball does not shock me." * Tiffany moves forward and doesn't think about picking up the ball, she just picks it up. * Draghmal chuckles loudly as the ball zots Tiffany again. "Maybe you ought to tell that to the ball." YAH! Darn it! At this rate I'll prove I have no useful potential at all before I make any progress. * Tiffany stares at the ball and envisions how happy she'd be if it shattered into a million pieces right there. Her gaze is ice, her anger manifest. * The ball stares back at Tiffany. Well, I'm used to getting tutored before I take a test like this... I want to complete your test but I don't think I know how. * Tiffany turns expectantly to her half-dragon friend. How do you get anything to obey your will? It depends... A horse, by teaching it. A teacher, by learning from it. A friend, by bargaining with it. Yes... but once you have taught the horse, and bargained with the friend, and learned from the teacher, how do you make your will known? By... Getting what I wanted? My will is known when I can ride the horse, or get the grade I wanted. You're missing an essential component of all those interactions. When you have figured out what it is, then you will be able to move the crystal. Essential component? What essential component? Make my will known? How? hrrrmmm... You told me before to tell the ball that it wouldn't shock me... is that how I would make my will known? * Draghmal raises his hands in a shrug and smiles enigmatically. * Tiffany turns back to the ball and concentrates on it. "You will not shock me." * The ball stops shocking Tiffany. You WILL NOT shock me. You DO NOT shock me. You CAN NO LONGER shock me. * Tiffany moves to pick up the ball, determined to succeed this time... determined that there will be no shock this time. * The ball does not shock Tiffany. * Tiffany brings the ball to Draghmal. "It just needed to be told who's boss." * Draghmal takes the crystal. "Precisely. Sorcery is just a matter of telling the universe what you want it to do, in no uncertain terms. You just have to know the right terms." You make it sound like a piece of cake... I'd believe that if the cake was made of copper and had current running through it. Well, you've got the potential to learn how. I never said it would be easy. I'm fairly sure I said the opposite, in fact. The fact that a task was difficult has never stopped me before," She moves her gaze to the ball, "and it won't now!" Yes, well... the task may have taken you a bit longer than you thought it did. It's the early afternoon already. I suggest you go meet your friends and get some equipment. Come back and see me after you do something about those goblins, hmm? * Tiffany looks a bit shocked. "Wow. That is longer than I expected. I'm sure it'll be all right, though. Thank you for your help... now where's the exit, as we didn't enter through the door..." * Draghmal points behind Tiffany, where the top of the door can barely be seen behind a bookshelf. * Tiffany heads out slowly, thinking about her experience. "Thanks again Draghmal. I promise I'll be back." I sure hope that promise is kept.