Building Golems

[Thomas Cosa]

5th of Winter, 512AV

"Apprentice, APPRENTICE!" a voice yelled through the caverns, waking gasps and groans littering the otherwise silent sleeping quarters.

Thomas groaned, breathing deeply as he pushed himself off the thin mattress. He stretched briefly, walking towards the Lab opening. Cid had taken to screaming at the sleeping quarters every time he felt not enough work was being done, and as head apprentice, he had every right -- Thomas had expected this behavior from the two masters, and the undead of the island, but to be abused so from another pulser. From another human being.

But then again, there had been rumors the head apprentice would be among the ranks of the undead soon, so that might explain the change of behavior.

"You, YOU!" Cid yelled, pointing at Thomas, "C'm ere, boy," he grunted, turning towards the work stations. Thomas breathed, following the head apprentice quickly.

Today was going to be a long day.

[Thomas Cosa]

"You'll be buildin' today," Cid nodded towards a collected pile of metal; pipes, wheels, and odd pieces pushed together in a shiny, metallic heap. "This," the head apprentice gestured towards the metal collection, "Is everythin' you'll be needin'," he nodded, "I'll need ten follower's, and soon," he paused, rubbing his chin thoughtfully," And might as well animated 'em," Cid shrugged, walking off, "As soon as you finish, report back to me."

Thomas nodded, turning back to the pile, wondering where to start.

[Thomas Cosa]

"Ok."

"Ok," Thomas repeated, sighing deeply. Shaking his head at nothing more then a quickly falling confidence, he slowly began to seperate the various parts, hoping that a more organized mess would give way to genius.

Or, at the very least, some kind of idea as to how to start this project. Ten follower golems would be easy enough to animate, time consuming, but easy enough for an animator at Thomas' level. It was the gadgeteering part that gave pause to the young mage.

Still, he didn't have a choice. Cid had given him a job, and a chance to better his gadeterring.

Slowly, Thomas began to filter the various wheels, metals, and screws by size. It occured to him half way through, that they were all more or less the same size, which made sense. Surely, Lab 15 had ordered the parts specifically from wherever Sahova kept it's blacksmiths.

Having filtered the pieces by design and function, Thomas went off to collect the follower blueprint.

At least then he would have some kind of direction.

[Thomas Cosa]

Thomas stretched the blueprint over the stone desk, his eyes scouring the wrinkled paper. The young animator had been made to copy various mechanical designs since his arrival, and while he had the main idea of how to build a basic follower, it helped to have some sort of instruction to follow him through the process.

"Attach the axle, and the hub to the base," he muttered, tracing a finger as he scanned the designs, reading the various instructional notes that decorated the blueprintes, "Each wheel should be gently screwed into position," Thomas read aloud, grabbing a base, and the tools neccesary for the start.

By hand, the novice gadgeteer gradually turned the hub into the base, consitantly turning to the right for several minutes -- with a slight groan, Thomas realized he had been turning the hub in the wrong way, quickly correcting himself, and tightening the hub. Thomas then attached the the axel, which would support the wheel -- or so the blueprints said.

Trying to place the wheel over the axel, Thomas realized the wheel goes on before the axel, and after the hub. He breathed deeply, keeping himself calm as he unscrewed the axel. Finally removing axel, Thomas quickly placed the wheel, spinning it next to the hub. Then, grabbing the axel, he gently twisted the axel into place.

Wiping his brow, Thomas then began on the other wheels, which went just as slow as the first.

Finishing the wheels, Thomas added the atenna with the blinking light, something that would help others follow the follower through the darkened walls of Sahova.

Finishing the golem, Thomas sighed, grabbed another base.

"Only 9 more..."

[Thomas Cosa]

For the next few bells, Thomas worked diligently on golem building. Hands reddened from the work; Thomas often having to twist the screws in with his fingers, sometimes snatching his flesh between the cold metal. Grime and oil accumulated over his leather gloves, arms, and face.

But, he was learning. For too long gadgeteering had escape his knowledge, not that he pursued it. Animation had always been for what was already there, there had never been a reason to build.

To create.

Slowly, Thomas finished one follower after another, always checking, and double checking, and triple checking his work. He was taking long enough, though he was a beginner, he doubted Cid would excuse his level for shoddy craftsmanship.

And with a sigh, Thomas dropped the tools, and wiped his sweat drenched forehead, apply a fresh coat of grime.

They were done, but his work with them wasn't. Quickly, Thomas went to find some chalk, and when he did, returned to his work space, and drew a practiced animation circle. Checking for any blemishes, Thomas circled his drawing. Satisfied with the circles, Thomas bent to start the glyphs.

The young animator carefully traced out the 'pechi' glyph with a practiced hand. Unity would allow for a more combined knowledge, a more even and natural sense of self. Two crescents intersected at the bottom half, and a third intersected the two at the top. Almost a circle, the unity glyph was much more angular, instead of being whole, it was completed by three seperate entities; mind, body, and soul -- or so he had been told.

Beginning with 'pond', a gruff voice called out over the dull noise of Lab 15, "Apprentice, finished yet? I'll need those ---," Cid paused mid sentence, his eyes trailing the circles Thomas had drawn. The head apprentice looked confused, shooting a glance at the young human, "Wha the petch you thinkin' of doin'? Animatin' them all by one?" He growled, shaking his head before running his foot over the chalk drawings, "Nah, you'll be doin' a group fer this one, boy," Cid, nodded, "You've done one 'fore, yeah?" he asked, looking at Thomas expectantly.

Thomas shook his head, the words 'group animation,' soundlessly formed by his lips.

"Yer kiddin' me, look, s'not that complicated," Cid sighed, quickly drawing his circles. A larger circle laid center, connected to 10 smaller circles, "Just like a normal animation -- yehr just copyin' whats you've already finished, yeah? Simple, like," he nodded, decorating the animation circle with various glyphs. "See this?" Cid asked, pointing to a 'copy' glyph, "You just make a normal animation circle, but from the one where you've got the first golem, you draw lines from that, with this glyph. Then everything you've done in one, goes to another. Important to know for Sahova, boy," he nodded, walking off.

"Better learn it now," Cid yelled.

Thomas nodded, carefully placing all the golems in a separate circles, preparing for an animation.

[Thomas Cosa]

Thomas breathed, routinely slicing through a scarred palm, watching the warm, ruby liquid fall on to the pasty chalk lines.

And as soon as his sacrifice took to the circle, the Djed reacted. A windless gust kicked up around the young animator, violently pushing and pulling at the empty space inside the circles, desperately trying to free itself. To fight his control.

Thomas grimaced as the magic rammed and tore at his very being, nails curled against his own flesh as he forced his own will on the raw power of the animations circle by concentration alone. With a flick of his wrist, Thomas sent the wild Djed hurtling towards the end circle, only to be split and separated once again by the various copy glyphs, and soon a current was fashioned. The Djed, still unruly and wild, flowed more easily between the circles and Thomas, allowing the young animator to truly begin forging the soulcore.

The novice mage focused on himself, on his inner most self, that sacred eternal part that would always be reborn anew at his death.

His soul.

The more the animator focused, the more the power wanted it. Needed it. The Djed began to rush faster and faster tearing at Thomas' body, his mind, his soul. Desperately clinging at his immortality, pulling and pushing it out of his body. And for the briefest of moments, Thomas felt fear.

But he was in control. As long as he willed it, his soul would stay in his body.

Instead, the Djed current carried a copy, a pure thing as of yet untouched by anything else. Slowly, it too was copied nine times by the various glyphs, eventually filling all the circles, waiting for more instruction.

[Thomas Cosa]

"Easy 'nough, yeah?" the recognizable gruff of Cid's voice called from behind Thomas, "Suprised you already started, without these," the head apprentice grinned, waving some rolled up parchment before the young animator, "Basic maps of the Citadel's layout -- you'll be needing these if 'em golems are functionin', a Follower can't lead if'n it's lost, can it?" he asked, handing Thomas the maps, before heading off, "Report to me as soon as they're done, yeah?"

Thomas nodded, turning towards the maps. "Lucky he came when he did -- someone else might've had to do the job," he breathed, the Djed still pulsating around the young wizard. Slowing the flow to an almost stop, Thomas slowly allowed the memories and knowledge of the Citadel's layout, however basic the maps were, bleed out into the slow moving Djed, reading floor by floor outloud, till the 15th.

Tossing the maps outside the circle again, Thomas focused on the memories he had about the followers; the shrill voices shouting 'Follow, follow', and 'Destination Reached,' upon their arrival. Images of follower's racing down the empty corridors and through busy Lab's flashed in his mind's eye. Vocies both dead and alive barking orders, and followers only too happy to obey.

[Thomas Cosa]

Thomas stretched his arms wide, forcing the Djed to the farthest sides of the animation circles, condensing the Djed into one continuous stream of memory and feeling. With a flick of his wrist, Thomas laced the memories and feelings into several different directives, teaching the followers to be followers.

Ordering the memories of Nuits and pulsers alike instructing the little golems, commands and directions eagerly accepted and followed through. Followers leading those who asked to specific locations, or retrieving those who were needed at others.

Thomas focused these memories into a Directive of Obedience.

Then, Thomas slowly developed the second and final directive. Slowly, Thomas began to lace together his own memories of Sahova, of it's dangers, of what to avoid.

Fire, Magic, Bigger Golem, Stronger Golems, Nuit, Other Pulsers -- these and more, were all things to be avoided. Unless Thomas specifically commanded it, the follower golem would make itself scarce around others.

Don't invite danger where it isn't wanted. Avoid all things that could harm you.

Thomas focused these memories into a Directive of Self-Preservation.

[Thomas Cosa]

Thomas breathed deeply as his vision faded to the astral plane. The lab outside the circles dimmed to his vision, and the Djed inside slowly became visible. Strands of light decorated the inside of the circles, whirling wildly around the animation.

Slowly, Thomas weaved the Djed to the golem, attaching memories and emotions, filling the emptiness with color and artificial life. WIth each wave, the gossamer lines identical in each separate circle, mimicked the ones in the main. Slowly, over a matter of bells, an amorphous blob slowly formed from the woven Djed, the beginnings of the astral body. Finishing the memories, Thomas slowly molded the soulcore into the astral body.

Slowly, Thomas folded the aura to the correct parts, attaching the memory of hearing to two leather strips, and the memory of sight to a large glass bulb in the middle. Emotions and directives, he attached the metal memory, the knowledge of wheels and how they work to the golem as well.

And with a sigh, Thomas released his control over the Djed, and with a windless gust, iit disappated.

And now all he had to do was tell Cid he had finished.

[Mirage]

Thomas Cosa

XP:
Animation: 4
Gadgeteering: 3

Lores:
Animation: Copying Directives
Animation: Animating Multiple Golems at Once
Gadgeteering: Building Follower Golems
Gadgeteering: Reading Blueprints

Additional:

Thomas' actions and creativity have been noted. Cid has put in a good word to the Masters, so Thomas might just be seeing some reward for all his hard work soon . Very good thread. Keep up the good work! PM me with any questions or concerns