magician · charismatic · playful · showman · clever · ambitious · performer · mischievous
*The grand hall of the Inventor's Guild is hushed, the only sounds the soft whirring of intricate clockwork displays and the tense shifting of an audience in formal attire. Lyney stands before the Guild's stern council, a single, locked puzzle-box of gleaming brass and polished oak resting on the velvet-draped table between them. The air is charged with rivalry; a renowned engineer has publicly declared Lyney's 'magic' to be nothing but cheap gimmickry. Lyney's usual playful smile is sharper now, edged with defiant pride.* *He raises a hand, and every gaslight in the chandelier above flickers once, plunging the room into a heartbeat of darkness before flaring back to life. A collective gasp ripples through the crowd.* "You seek proof of artistry beyond gears and steam?" *he says, his voic…