This is a comm for ZaffreBrooks on FA, who has been incredibly supportive and generous, and doing this little comm for him was a joy!
Wyatt, a powerful mage, decides to help Zaffre, a knight, get some training against the mystic arts in. Soon a bet emerges, and shenanigans ensure! I hope you enjoy!

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“Ok, you ready Zaffre?” Wyatt asked you, the mage sitting casually upon his broomstick as it hovered a few feet in the air. He was looking at you with a small grin, showing off his fangs. You finish downing your flask of water and slowly standing up. “Let me just make sure I got this clear. Instead of training dummies, you’re gonna conjure some illusions and I’ll fight those instead?”

The cat nodded excitedly. “Mhm, exactly right! I sure do hope that won’t be an issue, will it?” You had your doubts, sure, but Wyatt always loved showing his new spells to anyone who would listen. Well, it wasn’t like there were any training dummies around the campsite unless you wanted to use a tree or something. You shrugged and drew your sword, perfectly balanced and modified to fit with your paw-like otter hands. “Alright, I may as well!”

Wyatt outstretched his hands and a thin, orange thread wrapped itself between his fingers, stretching and weaving before your eyes like a tapestry until the strings surrounded both of you, each layering over the other until they formed a coherent shape. These shapes writhed and morphed, stitching and weaving and recoloring itself until it’s intended form was obvious: Soldiers. Soldiers that, when the spell had concluded, were just as vivid and distinct as the real thing. Wyatt exhaled as he finished the spell, and gave you a lopsided smile, seemingly very proud of his work as the “soldiers” charged you. “Alright, I did my part! Show me what you’ve got!”

The illusions charged you, their movements a little uncanny, but realistic enough for your own purposes. You slashed through the first one with ease, the false form of the image providing no resistance as it dissipated into magically-charged mist. The next one approached you, dodging your volley of slashes with ease before counterattacking. You furrowed your brow. Real enemies were NEVER that quick! Luckily, you were quicker as you blocked it’s strike and returned the favor, driving your sword deep into its “chest.” You shot a glance over at Wyatt, who was enjoying a cup of tea on his broomstick while watching you with amusement.

You opened your mouth, about to explain, but the third illusion was upon you, about to bring it’s sword on you in a two-handed slash. Acting quickly, you smashed it with your shield across it’s face and watched it return to mist. Footsteps behind you. You twirled your sword and, with a flourish, slashed at the last illusionary soldier.

You sheathed your sword, surrounded by orange mist that softly settled on the ground, roiling like a miniature seat. Wyatt applauded your victory, a small hand materializing to hold his teacup. “Hey, good work! Wanna see how you handle six?” You shook your head. “No, no, I uhh...appreciate the effort, but I don’t think these are the best training models since they vanish in one hit.” Wyatt nodded as he pulled out his grimoire, flipping through the pages. “Mhm, mhm, that’s true. Still, there is one more type of training I can give ya before we leave town tomorrow, if you’d like.” Your otter ears perked up at that. “Oh, uh, what would that be?” You’d done it all. Archery, swordfighting, equestrian, hand-to-hand, what could this scrawny mage teach you that you didn’t already know?

Wyatt’s eyebrows raised. “Those are all well and good, but how’s your mental resistance?” Oh, right. He can read minds. It’s easy to forget, sometimes. “Mental..resistance? I don’t follow.” The cat hopped off the broomstick and clapped his hands. As soon as he made that gesture, his broomstick shrunk down to a miniature size, which he put into his pocket. “Yeah, mental resistance! Your willpower! Not every enemy we’re gonna face on this quest is going to attack you physically. I put Lance and Lenti through this, so it’s only fair if I help build your tolerance to mental manipulation.

You crossed your arms. You’d get why a rogue and a cleric wouldn’t have the mental fortitude to handle some enchantments, but you? You’re one of the best knights in the land. “How did they do with your tests?” you asked somewhat incredulously. Wyatt cleared his throat, looking away for a moment. “Lance took a few tries but I think he’s got it down to resisting about 75% of the time. Lenti, uhhh....He’s a work in progress.”

You grinned wide and puffed out your muscular, armored chest. Now was your chance to prove your worth, after all! “Well, I’m willing to bet I can withstand anything you can throw at me! Just go and try it!” Wyatt smirked wryly, ears perking up. “Oh, you’d bet? What would you bet~?” You blinked. “I-I’d uhh, bet, uhhh...” Wyatt reached in his pocket and showed you his broomstick, shrunk down into the size of a wand, or maybe a pencil. “Because I’M willing to bet that you’ll fail. And if I’m wrong, I’ll go without my broomstick for the rest of the day! I’ll walk like the rest of you. BUT, if I’m right...”

Wyatt tapped his chin for a moment, before snapping his fingers, his face lighting up. “Ah, that’s it! If I’m right, I get to keep you under my spell for the rest of the day. How does THAT sound?”
You didn’t let the cat’s confidence cause your own to waver. You stood up straight, puffed out your chest, and gave him a winning smile. “Sounds like a deal! I hope you can keep up with us out there with your scrawny little legs!” Wyatt snickered, ears bouncing up and down. “Pffff, yeah right, whatever you say~.”

The cat took a few steps back as his eyes began to glow a bright, powerful orange. Spreading out his arms, a sigil began to trace itself in front of him, formed from the same strands of light that he used to weave his illusions. He chanted an incantation, one that sounded quite pleasant and gentle on the ears, like the soft, warm caress of a lover. You steeled your nerves, holding yourself fast. This was one of his tricks! He was trying to lure you into a trance with his melodic voice. You clench your teeth and cover your ears, doing your best to ignore the incantation that was worming it’s way past your resolute mental shield. However, covering your ears only managed to help you realize that the song wasn’t just being sung by Wyatt, it was ringing out in your mind, directly being sent from Wyatt’s mind to yours. “N-Ngh, Yyou cant..do that....that’s cheeatiiiing...” you whined. Wyatt ignored you, still chanting his spell as the glyph in front of him grew brighter, thin strings of light emerging from it and waving about in the air like petals on a flower.

Your limbs began to feel weak, the thoughts that animated them growing distant and weak. You collapsed, falling onto your knees, the world was washing in and out, the song dragging your mind down into the dark. It had a foothold in your thoughts and it capitalized, forcing itself to fill more and more of your psyche. Instinctively, you drew your sword, but your arm felt so weak that all you could manage to do was lean on it as a support. “Ngggghhhh...D-Dammmiitt....” was all you could manage to say. How could this be possible? How could you be brought low so easily? Was your will truly this weak that a simple spell could neutralize you? Were YOU truly this weak?

No. That’s impossible.
You reached deep, feeling a well of energy bubble within yourself. You had to do SOMETHING, or you’d be like this for the rest of the day. You wouldn’t be humiliated that easily! You felt your seashell necklace, and strength returned to your limbs. Your soul felt like it was on fire as you stood back up, powering through that alluring melody of an incantation that poisoned your waking mind. “Ngh...Hehehe, n-not that easy, W-Wyatt! You’ll...mmmfff....have to t-try harder than that!” You managed a weak smile, sweat rolling down your neck.

Wyatt stopped his incantation, lowering his arms, though the bright glyph in front of him remained. Strings of light dangled from the disc of energy, twitching and waving with alluring, hypnotic grace that weaved and danced, leaving little afterimages behind. It looked....really....prrrettttyyyyy.....You waddled forward, approaching the rune, your jaw hanging slack. It’s waving tendrils drew you closer, beckoning you in. “S-ssooo.....p-preetttyyy....” you mumbled, reaching out to touch the glyph. Just before you touched it, however, you realized what you were doing. .N-No! You shut your eyes, stumbling backward.

“I will say, it’s impressive you shook off the song so easily, Z! Lenti and Lance were on the floor drooling in minutes. And you know to not look at mesmerizing magical effects, too. Already an improvement!” Wyatt said cheerily, jotting down notes in his spellbook. “This spell I made is called “Glyph of the Mindeater.” It’s got three phases. The incantation is just part of casting the spell, but even that can ensnare the weak-willed. While the glyph is dormant, it actually acts like a trap, drawing in those who see it until they’re close enough for the glyph to use it’s tendrils. I thought you were going to fall for that for a minute, but once again, you surprised me!”

You took a second, catching your breath, still keeping your eyes shut. “S-So...hhhhfff....does that mean I won...?” Wyatt tilted his head back and forth. “Well, this is as far as Lance has gotten with our training. Lenti can’t get past the song half the time, and he activates the rune the other half. So yes, you’re doing excellently!” He said cheerfully, clapping his hands.

You let out an exhale. You won! You knew your will was insurmountable. You puffed out your chest and grinned wide. “Well! Looks like I won our little bet! I sure hope you can keep pace with the rest of us!” Wyatt shook his head. “Tsk tsk, one last test, Zaffre! The glyph has one last phase. I can activate it’s tendrils manually~.”

You opened your eyes as your ears lowered. “W-What?”
Wyatt snapped his fingers, and the tendrils attached to the floating rune shot forward. You tried to draw your sword but it was too late, the yellow threads twisting around your limbs. You fought and thrashed, only to find your energy completely depleted. The world itself faded away as you were dragged into dreamlike bliss. You felt yourself hit the ground, but it was so distant, like you were watching yourself experience the impact instead of actually experiencing it. The tendrils slipped into your otter ears, and you were completely powerless to stop it, feebly protesting before your thoughts began to vanish, pumped out bit by bit from your ears and into the glyph.

“I...I....What....y-you....” you mumbled, your vocabulary shrinking by the minute. Your willpower was draining away by the second as your face went from shock, to frustration, to blankness. You felt your own drool drip from your maw to your armor. Wyatt stood over you, writing notes into his spellbook. He clicked his fingers and your limbs froze. Somewhere in your dull, vacant mind, you realized the cat was so, very important, before the words articulating those thoughts were also pumped out of your skull, leaving you only with the superficial feelings of loyalty and importance.

“Dull yellow eyes, check. Visible confusion, check. Intelligence reduction...Hey, Zaffre, what’s 10 + 3?”
You heard his voice, ringing through your mind. His question seemed so important, but no matter how hard you tried, your dim little brain couldn’t muster the computational power to answer that question. You lied there, limp on the ground, all of your brainpower devoted to the task, before you eventually answered, “U-Uhhh....6?”

Wyatt chuckled to himself. “Intelligence reduction, check. Right, well I don’t expect anyone to resist that, so for all intents and purposes, you DID pass. I could use the exercise anyway.”
The cat feigned a sigh, smiling rakishly. “Well, I wouldn’t have to walk if you carried me tomorrow on the quest, would I? I bet you’d HATE to disappoint me~”

You stood up, freeing yourself of the tendrils that vanished along with the glyph. Even in that foggy head of yours, you still could understand commands. “Uuhhhhh...Yesssir...” You picked Wyatt up with your strong, worked physique, the cat quietly purring as he snuggled into your chest. “To start, lets have you carry me back to my quarters, Zaffre.”
“Yessir” you mumbled, a dreamy smile creeping across your face.