Solo [Sanctuary] Point of Origin (Training/Research)

[Elem Bree]

38th of Fall, AV 512

Having spent most of the day weeding, Elem reired to his quarters soon after Dinner, his mind as hungry as his body was a bell earlier. He had happened upon Kavala's personal collection in the Sanctuary library a few days ago and was enthralled with the small selection. Each topic was vital to him in some way and yet, one tome remained on the edge of his curiosity. It perched there at the forefront of his mind like a hawk seeking purchase in the fields. The book was called The Art of Morphing - Djed Shaping Change. While there were other magical tomes present, he had just barely skimmed the contents of this particular book and it brought many things to mind.

His belly full and physical hunger sated, it was time to consume knowledge. Sitting at his desk in his room, Elem had one of his own blank books out, full vial of ink and fresh quill at the ready. Opening the tome, he began to read, carefully copying each page as he read, though the deeper he immersed himself in the book, the longer the ink had time to dry with each passage. His initial ignorance of magical subjects most likely had come from his fear of the Asylum in Zeltiva, filled with power hungry Magi who had gone insane with their work. He recalled that a group of such individuals had escaped and caused quite a disturbance in the City, in fact.

It didn't do much to curb his desires once he started to absorb the material presented, however. First, he learned of Djed properly. He had heard the term used before and had a vague understanding that it was a subtle energy that supposedly all things were made from. This fact alone piqued his curiosity to the Gnosis mark on his right hand. His finger traced over it, imagining that he was using a form of this stuff when he healed others, though it was being borrowed from Rak'keli. he then, could have a supply of this stuff himself to manipulate, although it had to be inferior to that of the Gods.

The next passage he read rang deeply somewhere inside of him, resonating like an ancient bell that had been left unused for longer than his lifetime.

You are not your body. You are not your mind. You are the quantified representation of Djed. You are Djed. You are not even you. You are the your in the previous statements, the eternal existing energy which lives and moves in everything on Mizahar. That being said, the art of Morphing focuses primarily on the body's use as a tool for your own purposes. Within it lies the form of every other living thing that has ever lived or ever will live.

Elem's mind reeled and languished in this statement, his quill drying in his lifted hand as his mind moved through every bird, every fish, every person and beast that roamed the land. Everything he had heard and everything he had imagined. The idea that he could become any of these things was incredible. The quill dipped into ink again, the words began to be scrawled out onto the pages of his book as he read further.

[Elem Bree]

Elem wanted to remain measured in his copying. He knew that his enthusiasm could easily lead him down the wrong path. While statements like the previous one had excited him, there were often many other warnings which warned of getting ahead of one's capabilities.

While your body is your tool to use, do realize it is the only one you will get in this lifetime. While change is welcome in the heart of the Morpher, it is always understood that some changes are permanent and irreversible. I do not write this to dissuade the reader from pursuing this Art, but always with full sobriety, never with lust.

.

This was not lost on Elem, who made a decision then and there to practice things in the book slowly, taking one day at a time. He had plenty of time to work and live at the Sanctuary. It was imperative that his enthusiasm for this new discipline remain a discipline. He would no more start trying to run the length of Cyphrus or lift house sized boulders than work from the back of the book to the front. The beginning exercises spoke of separating the mind and presence from the body in order to present itself as a canvas of sorts, rather than the identity itself. Sealing his vial of ink and placing his quil away, Elem closed the book after reading a few pages, his copy open to dry.

He closed his door and secured it, shortly thereafter doing the same with the one that separated he and Serrif's rooms from their shared privy. looking around the room, he realized at once that his next purchase would have to be a large full length mirror. Maybe a few. Until then, he disrobed until he stood in the cavernous space nude. He looked at his body in detail, stretching his arms and legs, noticing every mole, every little scar, the shape of his large nose, becoming intimately aware of his own body. It was the canvas and clay he had been given to work with, after all. He looked around the room, deciding clearly that he would need some mirrors, for sure. He couldn't turn his head around the wrong way and see his backside. Yet.

[Elem Bree]

With his general appraisal of himself complete, Elem made his way to his bed, pulling the covers off and dropping them into the floor, so as not to have a wrinkle or wad of cloth bunched up beneath. Stretching out on his back, he spread his arms out to his side, palms flat against the soft surface. His eyes closed and his breathing began to slow. His mind was buzzing with the anticipation of where he was going to go or what was supposed to happen. Elem attempted to counter this with a deep focus on the darkness of his eyelids.

He was staring intently into that darkness, seeing nothing. When a thought would appear, he would put it in that darkness, drown it until there was nothing left but the inky surface. Fortunately the time of night and the early rising schedule removed most sounds that would distract him further. Only the sound of his breath remained. Once he felt that all was well, he moved on with the exercise he had read about.

With the knowledge of his body, Elem's attention moved to his toes. His thoughts did at first, an image of his digits wiggling appearing. Into the dark tar that thought went. No visual anything. Just the simple awareness of his toes. Once the mind had quieted to a point where the body could speak, he could feel the slight drafts of the room moving over his toes. Remembering their appearance and feeling their sensation, his attention then began to sweep inward toward the rest of each foot, the heel's weight pressed into the mattress.

Once this initial process had begun, it moved easier, with more fluidity. He could follow along, feeling his ankles, his thighs, his buttocks. Once the line of awareness reached the middle of his torso, his fingers started to be alive, the same process that had occurred with toes replicating itslef. Easier though, since the fingers were more often used and more familiar to Elem. Like some invisible sheet of body awareness, it moved up and over his chest, its rising and falling with air, the subtle beating of his heart.

Before Elem could focus, he had already reached the top of his head. His entire body now was a sensation, its mass being pulled by natural forces into the mattress at various points with various pressures. He moved this curtain back along the length and width of his body, the direction back to the point of origin. the process was quicker, yet it became more in depth. The level of relaxation he felt was sublime, as muscle groups that generally remained tense began to loose their hold.

He wasn't counting, but the process moved back and forth, a slow fan of diagnosis which didn't miss a nook or cranny of flesh. Along the way, one thing remained a constant: Regardless of the amounts of thoughts that drifted into sleepy darkness, Elem's mind...no, Elem's awareness, it seemed completely independent of the process in total. His mind was a concept, perhaps his body was as well? This was a thought and gurgled beneath the blank blackness. Its lesson remained.

[Elem Bree]

Elem's eyes slowly opened, the darkness behind his eyelids giving way to the dark stone ceiling of his room. He felt groggy, though it wasn't really like being sleepy. It was a strange sense of connection meeting disconnection. His self inventory complete, he found his mind still floating free and his body even heavier than normal as the connections between the two seemed to waver. It took several minutes for him to sit up on the bed, his eyes slowly blinking and taking in more ambient light.

His mind was very quiet now. The random thoughts that distracted him prior were gone, leaving only silence. He held his hands out in front of him, palms facing up. If there were books on the topic and an asylum of mages in Zeltiva, then it was all very true. This also meant that the many powers and abilities that everyone who studied magic used were available to Elem as well. He was made of Djed. No wonder it was so easy to channel the divine power of Rak'keli.

Elem's hands turned slowly on his wrists. He watched the flex and pull of the muscles inside, looked at the blue veins just under the flesh, felt the sensation of the movement. It was all so simple and these movements were basic, yet they took so many complexities to happen. He knew that his activities would have to increase now, much more than before.

To be the canvas on which to practice Morphing, the medium would have to be pristine. This also rang true of his devotion to his Goddess. To restore a body to perfect health required the body be in this state naturally. Otherwise it would only return to its last known form. Elem had much work to do indeed. he slowly slid back into the bed and pulled the covers over himself. As his eyes fluttered closed, his mind slipped away into the darkness.

[Gossamer]

. Character: Elem Bree Experience: +1 Copying, +2 Researching, +2 Observation, +2 Meditation Lore: All Things Are Alike In Djed, Morphing Can Be Dangerous – Change Permanent and Irreversible, Studying One’s Body In Full Detail, Awareness Of Body Motions & Locations Additional Note: Interesting take on doing the initial steps to learn Morphing. I liked how he decided to learn his body intimately before he decided to learn how to change it. .