Steps toward Perfection (Rayage) {Guest Moded}

[Alric Wilmot]

88th Day of Fall 511 AV HD approval The silent halls of Sahova's public laboratories seemed to echo in an unwelcoming manner. And it did so for good reason. Very few of the persons residing within its halls were eager for company. However, there were a select few who were actively waiting. Although, even these precious few were hardly eager. Parsimny Karte was among the few waiting for another, although calling him eager may have been far too lenient with one's language. He did not pace or tap his foot, such things were beneath him. Instead, he prepared the day's leson. He had already laid out the alchemical ring, and laid out the meridian keystones. He resided within the well-stocked, well-lit lab 45E, waiting for the Nuit who called himself Rayage. He had entertained the idea of leaving after the chime signaled the established time that was agreed upon, after all this meeting wasn't for his own benefit. If Rayage felt as if this appointment wasn't within his interest, then there was no reason for Karte to stay now was there? Still, he was actually looking forward to the day's events. Today he'd be reviewing some of his favorite techniques. And whether Rayage showed up or not, he would be proceeding. These techniques were not easy, and if not reviewed within certain time frames, it was likely that one might get a little... sloppy. And Karte was not going to allow his skills to slip. Not after so many years of excellence. He proceeded to test the Keystones polarity. He wouldn't be stopping for Rayage's sake. But he thought he might slow down for a chime of two. Let it never be said that Karte was not generous.

[Rayage]

Rayage again was lost. Sahova it seemed was just too big for him, too bulky, and too complex to get anywhere in a reasonable amount of time. Not to mention his lab was forty-five floors under. Yes, lab 45E was the lab generously gifted to the nuit by Lector Qiao himself. Though even having a certain amount of ‘ownership’ of the place he still had a hard time finding the place after leaving it. It wasn’t because the lab itself didn’t stick out, with the huge doors metal doors that looked fit for a vault it was kind of hard to miss, but because of the nuits own incompetence. How long would he have to stay here before he could get the route to his lab down? It made him never want to leave it, and granted this was where he spent most of his time, but he had to drop off a request at the office and so that made him venture out of his lab to drop it off.

Cursing under his breath as he took another flight of stairs down he swore one day he would get a golem to do all his running about for him so he didn’t even have to leave the sanctuary of his lab. Yes, that was a solution, a good one indeed. He nodded making note to take that idea down to paper soon before it would slip his mind. It was genius it really was. He smiled to himself, then again he was a genius. With that mental note placed he kept on going, kept on walking, trudging down the stairs making his way to the lab, or so he hoped.

He knew his little trip there would take longer than he thought but yet he failed to leave early. Now, now he has gone and left his Master waiting on him. He knew of their little appointment, and he was trying to hurry back. If the ancient nuit was willing to share alchemical secrets with him then he would be crazy to ignore this little lesson. He found himself lucky to have a teacher who not only was amazingly skilled in Alchemy but also shared his passion for the creation of homunculus, but there was one little catch. Karte has successfully made a homunculus whereas Ray has only spliced animals together. Still, progress right? One step at a time, one step at a time, one step by step by step he will climb the ladder here and become a renowned Alchemist respected for his knowledge and power.

Soon enough though he found his lab, the giant doors greeting him as he reached a hand out to push them open, once inside the lab he was sure to close the door and look towards his master, ”Ah, Karte,” he started, ”I assume you are good and ready them?” he asked eager to get down to the lessons for today. It just filled him with excitement to find out something new about Alchemy. He hoped that equipped with this new knowledge he would be able to take some strides in his research and become an even better Alchemist.

Stepping toward the circle he began to observe and take mental notes of what exactly he was doing. Even though the lesson hasn’t started yet it was best to get ‘in the zone’ beforehand as to not miss a thing that his master was going to teach him.

[Alric Wilmot]

Karte heard Rayage before he saw him. His steps were rather loud and echoed badly in the hall. It seemed he had yet to learn how to take soft steps. Or, far more likely in Karte's opinion, he did not care. That might prove problematic in the future. The right to be obtrusive was earned, and Rayage had not yet earned it. The large doors opened much less intrusively than Karte expected, and he was able to finish his testing rather quickly. He began to put away all the testing instruments and leftover material to prepare the floor for Rayage's participation. As he finished he was greeted by his... partner in crime, as it were. ”Ah, Karte,” he started, ”I assume you are good and ready them?” he asked eager to get down to the lessons for today. Karte could have struck Rayage for his joviality. As Rayage entered and spoke his mind, Karte was having difficulty keeping his mind to himself. Not that he had to, mind you, but if he did the procedure would be delayed for a good day or two. "The right to be jovial is earned by punctuality, and seeing as you are a chime late, you have not earned it. However, for the sake of lost time, we'll ignore it for now. Now, as you can see I've already determined the positive and negative polarities. In addition you may notice the size of the circle is a good size larger than average. I'm not going to give you the precise measurements, by now you should be able to guess well enough." Although Parsiminy Karte did not communicate the exact circumference of the alchemical circle, it was clear that it was larger than 5 feet. Karte walked to the outside of the circle before continuing his lecture. " Now, we are going to start with the creation of a charger that absorbs your own Djed, thereby giving it your signature. It isn't as hard as it sounds, at least, not when you know what you're doing. However, I'd like to hear what you think we'll be doing before I give you a demonstration. It will be interesting to see if you can correctly guess the procedure." Karte had a feeling that Rayage had his own idea of the procedure, whether or not it was correct, of course, would prove entertaining.

[Rayage]

The nuit observed the excitement fading with his masters response. Hm, a chime or two or three late was nothing. Though he knew that he did not like to be kept waiting. It was partly his fault that he did not arrive on time. He was still getting used to Sahova and its layout. The place was huge and it was easy to get lost in. He thought about asking for a golem to lead him around, but he did not want to appear as a fool. Instead he wandered the halls pretending that he knew where he was going. That was easy enough to do, at least, until he actually found where he was going.

Nothing the circles size he wondered if he could handle such a big circle, but such things as size have never stopped him before. Carefully noting the size he took a couple steps closer to the circle while Karte was talking, ”You want to know how I would accomplish such a task?” he asked as his mind was already pondering how he could give the object, the target, his own djed signature. ”Would that require putting a part of yourself in the equation?” he asked Karte a little fearful of the idea. He was a nuit after all. He could not afford cutting off a part of himself to put in the alchemical flow. He began to think about it more and more musing the idea. He could do it in that barbaric way, chopping off a part of himself to add.

Shanking his head not satisfied with the answer he got the alchemist looked to his fellow, ”There must be an easier way than cutting a part of yourself off.” he told him. There must be, and he was sure that Karte knew how. Though the question remained, would he tell him his secrets? The conclusion that Ray jumped to was so elementary, so simple, so using the basic principles of Alchemy. Though the basics were the foundation to a greater understanding he was not fool enough to believe that basics worthless after you find something higher, more advanced. No.

[Alric Wilmot]

Karte couldn't exactly say he was impressed, mostly because he wasn't. However, he was not quite as disappointed as he had expected to be, so he supposed he should be grateful for that. In all honesty, Rayage wasn't too far off. Though, he was off. Which ,really, he should know better by now. "Well, I'm not exactly impressed, but I suppose your ignorance is forgivable for now. However, I had hoped that you would prove more competent, but I suppose that even I make mistakes." Karte stepped over the ring and close to the instruments on the other side of the room. He rummaged through the scattered instruments as he continued to lecture. "Now, you weren't too far off. And normally I'd say such a thing would be absolutely fine. Except, in this instance, I actually don't want you to die. Granted, as a nuit, it would be much slower, but losing a limb is detrimental to any being's health. Now, I will say you are correct in your assumption that you need to use a part of yourself. However..." Karte stopped rummaging then, pulling up what appeared to be a long coil of D-wire. "You were incorrect in thinking the limb need be severed." he quickly and deftly made his way to Rayage, making sure to avoid getting tripped up on the ring on the floor. "When you severe a limb, the Djed it contains instantly attempts to escape, within a few seconds, so much Djed has escaped the offending limb, that the signature has altered completely. Rendering it completely useless. So, to fix the problem, all we need to do is use the limb in its entirety." As Karte spoke, he held up the coil of D-Wire to Rayage. "Here, wrap this around your arm and infuse it with as much Djed as you can, the initial feeding of the reaction will use the stored up Djed, allowing you to build up to when it starts to feed off of you. In addition, the D-wire will be the material to lose its identity and structure, so you'll be able to use you limb afterward. It will be painful at first, and during, and after. But I trust you'll do fine." Karte stepped back, observing Rayage with a calculating eye. "Now, do you know what might make an effective Filter?"

[Rayage]

Kartes words cut the silence like a hot knife through butter, as he went on the years of experience, the years difference between the two became more apparent. He knew that Karte was ancient, how old exactly was still a mystery, but the Alchemist before him have been through a lot. He was sure that the master’s experience and knowledge of not only alchemy, but the pre-val world and its knowledge, dwarfed his by a long shot. Really, it’s sad, that most knowledge of the world before that valterrian was fuzzy to him. But to Karte, he was sure the master could pull out facts that he could not even dream of. That was the fact that amazed him the most. All the knowledge that the nuit has all stored away in his brain should be put to use, so why not pass it on?

Although it was apparent that the nuit before him knew much more than himself it did not stop him from guessing and questioning his masters words. The only thing he found off about the lecture was about the escaping of Djed from a severed limb. Though he wrote it off and focused on the core, the real lesson, that he was trying to teach him. Watching the nuit cross the room and dig though a bunch of appliances, Rayage crossed his arms wondering what in the world he was getting. The stuff over there was not exactly useless, but it didn’t seem to house any alchemical secrets. Though sometimes the best secrets are the ones hidden in plain sight.

Taking the coil from Karte he wrapped it around his left arm. ”Pain is nothing.” he told his master, ”for the discovery or learning of a new skill or ability. Knowledge is the ultimate power, and that is what separates that great from the poor.” he said as he started flowing the Djed into the coil. It felt just like when he was forcing his djed into the animals he was experimenting on, only slightly different. Smiling some, he could not wait to test this out. He could give something his own djed signature. He laughed at the thought of what that would do to anyone with auristics viewing the creations and himself.

Feeling the wire fill with his energy as he continued to charge it he thought over the question that was presented to him. The answer was obvious. If one wanted their Djed signature in the equation, and they used this method to produce the effect, then the smart alchemist would use more D-wire or the same item of any other charged item as the filter. Liking that answer, his lips curved to a soft smile, ”Well, karte, one would use more D-wire as the filter.” it was following the same logic he used when he was creating his alchemical monsters, H 1-A, and H 2-A. Basic alchemy for more complex results. It made him happy to possess this knowledge.

[Alric Wilmot]

Karte, despite himself, smiled at Rayage's words. They were the words of a true scholar. Not of an egotistical upstart, but of one who truly sought to learn. And while Karte had never said those words verbatim, he had shared these sentiments in his youth. He hoped that Rayage truly believed what he spouted, as he would soon be practicing what he preached, so to speak. As Karte listened to Rayage's answer, he smiled once more. It seemed as though Rayage actually was learning. Thank Uldr. "Excellent. It seems you aren't quite as incompetent as I had thought. Yes, we would indeed use un-charged D-wire. Now, this is not only because it negates the properties of the charged D-Wire, but also of your arm. The reason we don't need a corpse's arm is because the D-Wire will filter all solid material. This includes your bone and skin. However, due to the incompatible color scheme, you might inadvertently discolor your subject. However, that isn't really of much concern to us." Karte's smile vanished as quickly as it came on, as he stepped back and out of the circle. "Now, the question becomes, what do you wish our subject to be? I will warn you, I will not go through this procedure with you again. So, if for some reason you wish to infuse something important, it may be in your best interest to choose it now. Just in case you make a mistake in your future attempts."

[Rayage]

Ray was glad that he had answered right and just made a fool of himself. Yes, he was learning, slowly. Though the ideas he used were simple the uses and objectives were more complex, much more complex. Nodding he knew the reasoning behind his own theories, if he could even lay claim to them. Half of him wondered if his methods were too simple that any old buffoon who knew about Alchemy could replicate his work. Though simplicity was desired he wondered the fact of being too simple, while thinking of the questions which were asked of him.

Looking around the place he smiled looking for the perfect subject. His eyes strayed over to the cages which had collected in his lab over the course of his stay. Within one of them was H1-A, his pride and joy. Going over to the cage he grabbed the creature quickly from it before advancing back to his master. H1-A would squirm a little until it wiggled out of his hand and climbed the nuits cloak till it perched up on his shoulder. That was the lizard for you. Smiling at it he picked at it again, before placing it in the circle.

”H1-A will be my subject.” he told his master with confidence. The pet stayed there as it had been trained to do, its mind broken by hypnotism. If anything deserved to have his Djed signature, it was his creations. Stepping back, the device in his hand charged with his he advanced to one of the keystones. Crouching down the nuit took a knife and pricked his finger gently, ”I am assuming that you want me to continue with the reaction?” he asked waiting for his master to put D-wire onto the opposite side of the alchemy circle. He was ready to do this. He had to, and he had to show his master what he could do. He needed to show off a bit.

[Alric Wilmot]

Karte waited patiently for Rayage to survey the room. Unlike Rayage's arrival, he could forgive the fellow Nuit for taking his time. After all, this was one of those rare cases where a superior would be overseeing a personal triumph with the inclination to help, rather than scrutinize. Karte followed Rayage's eyes as they darted about the room. When the finally ceased in their movement, Karte followed their gaze instead. He found Rayage eying the collection of cages. However, as Karte continued to look on he became aware of what truly held Rayage's attention. Rayage's greatest success, at least in Karte's not-so-humble opinion, was H1-A. And it seemed as though Rayage agreed. Karte watched with amusement as he retrieved the furry little thing, grasping it so loosely that the creature was able to escape his grasp and climb upon his shoulder. "H1-A will be my subject." said Rayage, confidence in his voice. "Most wise. It seems you are more intelligent than the average pupil. I believe you are the first to have ever chosen a living specimen for their first try. I applaud you. Let us hope you are as competent with the actual process as you are with your selection." "I am assuming that you want me to continue with the reaction?” said Rayage. Karte nodded, "You assume correctly." with that he took an exaggerated step towards the filter and placed the uncharged D-wire within.

[Rayage]

Nodding the nuit began the transfer. Actually plugging oneself into the equation was rather odd if he didn’t say so himself, but nonetheless he trusted his masters judgment and started the transmutation. The circle was loaded, and now all that needed to happen was for it to be charged and then activated. This was going to be a simple one. With only one filter and then, well, himself, or rather his Djed stored in the D-wire. Very interesting indeed. Without further to do he activated the circle.

Mentally preparing himself he counted slowly one to ten. Once he hit ten he would go back to one and start over again, but this time counting a little faster. Once he hit ten he would start over again and count even faster and faster and faster. This was how he paced himself and eased himself into a transmutation. Even with a simple one like this it would be foolish not to pace or have a method to properly control the energy going around the circle.

Willing the energy to move as he counted at first it started out slow, oh so slow, as with his counting. One…. Two…. Three… four…. Five…. Six…. Seven…. At the point of ten he felt comfortable willing it to go faster. As one can imagine this was a slow process, even for a simple transmutation, but he did not want to make a fool of himself in front of Karte. No, that would be undesirable. So he kept this pace going throughout the entire process. He concentrated solely on the energy and the nature of it all. He wanted to feel it. Oh how did alchemy make him feel powerful. It was a feeling like none other to command energy like that and promote change. Yes change… the most powerful force in existence. Even more powerful than fate, even more so than any of the gods. Change is what drives the future onward. Change and through transformation will he finally show the world that the gods are not the answer. Change the lifeblood of innovation, and he, the agent of change, he will change the world.

It was through his own blood that he was able to control this circle. What power! Who knew that blood could be so powerful? Perhaps it holds a secret or two? He shook his head and continued to count getting back control of the energies he was commanding. Even if this was a simple reaction he couldn’t afford to be distracted too long. Again he sped up the circle and started his count over, by now the numbers seemed to echo in his head, being the only thing he was concentrating on. Smiling he felt the energy speed up again as he reached ten, now it being more like a natural reaction than a trained one.

Soon the energy had reached its peak velocity and he couldn’t command it to move any faster than that. Now he counted downward from ten to zero readying himself to move away from the circle and will the energies into H1-A. Hitting zero he quickly stepped backwards taking his hand and the D-wire contraption around him as he forced the spinning energies into H1-A. A little cry could be heard, and a small flash as the energies melted into the subject. When it was over he looked to his master, ”It worked?” he asked looking at the subject but not advancing towards it. Djed was still thick in the air. ”Karte,” he addressed him, ”Why did you bother to teach me this?” the entire process seemed kind of trivial and expensive. There had to be a better way to do this.