Completed Book Work (Castor)

[Tsaba]

Tsaba was silent, her face blank, for almost a whole chime as she digested this information. Eventually, she said, "Thank you, that information will be valuable in future interactions." She made a mental note to consider the appeal of a second edition of her book -- one 'Things about the modern world' book for Sahova, and one 'A nuit's perspective on the modern world' book for the mainland. Perhaps she could help combat some of those perceptions, at least in academic circles. "I suppose it makes sense for mortal people to naturally dislike what is essentially a reminder of their own future," she said thoughtfully. "I grew up in Sunberth, and we kind of got that we weren't supposed to talk about my father's 'condition', but I always assumed that was a result of the local dislike of magic. I don't really see why a nuit would murder their loved ones, or murder at all. If we were a race of murderers, we would've been wiped out by now.

"The thing to understand about nuit," she added slowly, thinking carefully about each sentence before she spoke, "is that we are not, compared to humanity, all that threatening. I have met some nuit who do not value human life very much, because it is so brief; I've also met people like my father, who extend that life through their medical arts and, in certain cases, the Daek-Nuit. It never really occurred to me that nuit might kill to create new bodies, but I suppose that some probably would. There are also humans that don't value human life very much, and I strongly suspect there are humans that don't value nuit life at all and would kill all nuit on sight if they could. I think..." at this point, Tsaba started taking notes to muse on later... "I think it's important to remember that nuit are, as a whole, weak and slow. A nuit against a human of similar age really isn't a contest. Older nuit could be dangerous if only because they have time to perfect magical arts and soforth, but that's about it. Nuit also have much less reason to attack people. The only human resource that we have an interest in, besides perhaps knowledge and preserving salts, is bodies. Humans kill each other all the time, constantly, for food or land or money. Money means less to a nuit because time means less and our needs are lower; we have no need to food at all. We could still conceivably kill for religious reasons or whatever, but we have much less motivation to kill humans than humans do. The fact that our needs are directly linked with the death of others doesn't make them linked with more death than human needs.

"Most nuit, I think, would prefer to get their bodies via above-board means, if only because it would be pretty difficult to cover up a murder if you have to go around wearing the victim's body. Sahova imports bodies from the mainland, for instance. I've seen humans tricked into death on Sahova, but only to extend their lives by turning them into nuits. The concept of nuits as nightmare-haunting killers is... new to me." And probably, come to think of it, why the others thought her plan to leave Sahova was ridiculous. "This is largely our fault, I think; it is a consequence of exactly the sort of insular behaviour that I came here to mitigate. If we communicated with others more, perhaps we'd be less mysterious and therefore less terrifying." Although the Archwizard could just as easily be playing up the mystery on purpose. If he cared about what happened on the mainland.

[Castor Riley]

Castor saw that Tsaba was taken aback by the new information for a bit. He also saw how she distanced herself from the subject and considered it objectively, analytically. As a person who appreciated accurate knowledge, her stance was one that he highly approved of. He only hoped that more people could be as impartial in their judgements. He listened attentively as she analyzed the misconceptions and debunked them, all of her arguments incredibly convincing and reasonable. He noted an unfamiliar term during her description, the Daek-Nuit, and bore it in mind to ask when she was done. He was a bit surprised to learn that Nuit were as fragile and weak as Tsaba described, though he supposed it made sense, as they were essentially walking corpses. Truly, it seemed humans were the real monsters, and the truth of it dawned on him chillingly, accepting the truth of her claim that there were probably many who would kill a Nuit on sight by mere virtue of its race. When she finished her speech, Castor felt much better informed and was even forming a resolution to try to fight against these prevalent misconceptions, using the arguments that Tsaba had put forth. "Tsaba, you are a very brave and admirable person. I am of the same mind that people should travel forth and expand their horizons, in order to better understand the world. Thank you, for reminding me that such a journey is both physical and mental," he replied, a look of earnest appreciation in his eyes. "Oh, and if I could trouble you with another question, you mentioned a term that was unfamiliar to me: the Daek-Nuit?" he asked the question he'd been waiting to, before quickly adding "If you're bored of this topic, though, we could move on to Auristics, if you prefer." Whichever she chose, Castor was eager to hear her views.

[Tsaba]

Tsaba couldn't help but laugh at Castor's claim that she was 'brave and admirable'. After a moment, she calmed down. "Mr Riley, a lot of adjectives have been used to describe me over the years, but 'brave and admirable' are very rarely among them. Nevertheless, I am relieved that this discussion is constructive for the both of us." She nodded at his hint that he wanted to move onto Auristics, pulling her book forward again. "The Daek-Nuit is the ritual used to create Nuit, our method of reproduction," she told him. "It involves separating a soul from a body -- in the normal manner, in case you're curious -- and then binding it back in, as a Nuit. It takes a master Animator to do it; I'm told it's functionally similar to binding a soul template to a golem, but not being an Animator, I can't confirm that." She bit her lip (not hard enough to break it; she'd long ago stopped making stupid mistakes like that). "It's a difficult ritual, and sometimes things go wrong. Most people tend to survive, though, I think. I don't have exact stats for you.

"You have a much greater theoretical grounding in Auristics than I, it would seem; my knowledge is highly specialised and practical. How do you think we should go about this?"

[Castor Riley]

"Please, call me Castor. My father was Mr Riley," was Castor's response, his ears still a bit red at having caused such a bout of laughter, yet simultaneously pleased to have witnessed such a display from a person that seemed to always be reserved and collected. Castor wondered if it had just been his imagination, thinking that Tsaba's tone had... changed in some way as she finished her description of the Daek-Nuit. Then his attention was taken by consideration of how to proceed in their study of Auristics. "Well, I think you've got the answer right there; ask me any questions you might have about theoretical Auristics, and I'll do my best to answer them as fully as I can. And if you could enlighten me as to the details of your own practical experience of using Auristics, that would be greatly appreciated," he offered as a solution to their problem. He'd also have to ask her what other magics she might have come in contact with, but he'd leave that for a later time.

[Tsaba]

"I suppose... well, I've been taught Auristics for a very specific purpose; diagnosing human injury. I guess the most obvious question is, what else can it do? How broad is Auristics as a field? A few of the Aurists on Sahova claimed that they could trace a person's steps with it; Introduction to Auristics credits it with everything from sharpening one's senses to reading intentions, some of which sounds frankly unfeasible. What sort of things, beyond medical work, are Auristics used for?"

She dipped her quill in ink and fixed Castor with the same focused look she used to give Craun when he guided her hands around a broken bone. "Introduction also claims that there is no connection between Auristics and physical touch, but I have always laid hands on patients and found that this gives me better results. Could this simply be a focusing technique, or is Introduction wrong in this regard?"

[Castor Riley]

Castor remained silent for several ticks as he considered how to best answer Tsaba's questions. At last having reached a decision, he began: "I guess it would be fair to say that there is little in the realm of perception that Auristics can't do. One of these is see into the future. Another is to look through objects as if they weren't there. As I've identified in my research and as you must have surely read in the Introduction, its uses can be identified in six broad categories: Physical properties, internal structure, feelings, magical activity, residual activity and intent. Now, from what I understand, you are most familiar with the first two of these categories, particularly where the human body is concerned," he paused shortly here before moving on. "So I'll leave those two aside for now and concentrate on the rest. The identification of feelings performed by Aurists is one of the reasons that they are barred from many gambling games. They can tell when someone is feeling a particularly strong emotion, and, if they're skilled or concentrate enough, can even identify that feeling. They can also use this to supplement interrogation techniques and arrive at the truth. By identifying magical activity, they can recognize magical objects, traps, and, at extremely high levels, the signature of a specific magician's work. Similarly, with residual activity, the Aurist can figure out whether a specific person has been somewhere, as you were told in Sahova. At lower levels, only that someone had been in a location is identifiable. As for intent, it is generally used in combat; I once read of an aurist who felt a burning sensation wherever his opponent intended to strike next. "As for uses of physical properties and structure, you are familiar with the use that combines the two. Others might include perceiving the taste of food before eating to check against poison, or perceiving the temperature of an object so as not to get burnt. You might also be able to perceive the aura of an object hidden within a different one, if you can distinguish their auras. Your question about the connection between touch and Auristics that you experienced while using it in medical work is one that begins to touch on the practical side of Auristics, however I have formed the beginning of a theory as to what that is. As you know, an Aurist perceives the auras of other objects and beings in a unique way, that is most instinctually suitable to express information. I believe, though I am by no stretch of the imagination certain, that by putting your hands on the patient, you aided your Auristic perception in filtering out the surface aura in order to concentrate on that of the bones and organs beneath. This is of course mere conjecture and likely to be proven wrong in the course of future research," he looked at Tsaba expectantly. "Do you think this a reasonable explanation, Miss Tsaba?"

[Tsaba]

Tsaba took quick, short notes as Castor spoke, and kept writing a for a few moments after he finished, drawing little arrows and adding two-word comments. Auristics as a whole seemed... vague, difficult to pin down. Examining physical characteristics, that she could understand. Garnering something as intangible as intent, well, that made less sense. But she supposed that, as in everything, the higher levels of usage would make more sense as she attained those levels. It was likely that a few bells' worth of reading wasn't quite sufficient preparation to master an entire magical discipline.

"Yes," she said, "I think I understand your meaning in everything you said. So using Auristics to taste or feel temperature -- these Aurists can determine which specific characteristic they want to see? I ask because my father always advised me to," she put on a dryer, weaker voice to imitate him, "'feel the flow of energy on and in the body', which... hmm, I'd never actually considered..." she shot Castor a sidelong glance, before looking away. "I'd understand if you were to refuse, but... if we expand on your conjecture that physical touch may have acted as a sensory filtering element... would you permit me to briefly examine you with Auristics? I would test it on myself, but if my suspicions are correct then I believe I may need a living subject."

[Castor Riley]

Castor blushed slightly at her suggestion, before answering her questions. "If you mean, whether these aurists are able to direct which sensory information they desire, then that is correct. Aurists can extend any of the five senses to perceive an object's physical characteristics, and they can direct this process by channeling djed to the appropriate sensory organ. "And... uh... I suppose it would be fine to examine me. I'm also interested in finding out whether my theory actually holds any water. Just... be careful not to over-exert yourself. I'll warn you now, if I think you're overextending your capabilities, I'm shaking you out of your concentration," he said, a note of concern in his voice. "Do you want me to be doing anything?" Castor felt a bit anxious about the use of magic, yet he also relished the opportunity of watching an actual aurist using the discipline he'd been studying so extensively.

[Tsaba]

Tsaba nodded. "I will be careful. It isn't necessary to do anything; most of my previous subjects have been sedated or otherwise incapable of doing much." She didn't mention that she'd used very little Auristics in the past seventy years or so. There weren't many humans to diagnose on Sahova, although she had helped with occasional accidents. With the background she now had on local perceptions of Nuit, she was very careful to move slowly as she laid one gloved hand lightly on his collarbone, low enough so it didn't appear that she was reaching for his throat. She pulled djed into her sight.

The normal chaos that she'd been taught to look at appeared. His body temperature was normal. His pulse was a little high, probably nervousness. He was pulling air in and out of his lungs. And the flowing energy moved like...

"Blood," she said quietly, taking her hand away and ceasing to channel djed. "Blood and breath and... and other body fluids, I think; the movement of heat and energy. That's what he taught me to see. Argh, why does that stupid old man never explain anything! He seems to think that saying the bare minimum, the exact practical result you're looking for right then, is somehow..." she shook her head furiously, as if to clear it. "Thank you, Castor. I suspect that my mentor taught me to see the flow of fluids in the body, to diagnose by the pooling and interruption of such things. In which case you are probably right in your estimation of what type of Auristics it is. So to see inflammation and, and breaks..." she frowned. "I suspect I would've been a lot better at it if I was better at medicine in general. But that's probably not important. As far as using touch as a sensory filtering effect, it is possible that being able to feel the patient's pulse is what helps." She looked down at her hands. I will need some volunteers, she thought, but it might be hard to find people here willing to be touched by a Nuit.

[Castor Riley]

Castor felt a flutter of nervousness hearing Tsaba describe her patients as "subjects", but chalked that down to a slip of the tongue. He noticed that she was being very careful, putting a glove over her hand, and touching his collarbone, right above his heart. The contact made him conscious of its beating and he felt awkward as she focused. His knowledge of Auristics and understanding of djed made him aware that the woman would be staring directly at the core of what made him himself. Even though she was too inexperienced to truly interpret it, he felt exposed. Before he could start feeling uncomfortable, however, it was over. She removed her hand and, judging by her tirade against her mentor, had understood an essential piece of information the man had neglected to share. It made him smile to see her like this, railing against a man who wasn't there, and it took away the remaining vestiges of embarassment. "Well, that was relatively easy. Practical application really can provide an incredible level of insight," he commented, off-handedly. "I think it's my turn to ask some questions now," he stared at her curiosity filling his eyes. "How do you perceive auras? As I said earlier, I've read in my research that every practitioner has a different way of interpreting the information they receive through Auristics; some hear notes, others see colours, or mists, smell aromas, or get sensations. What's it like for you?" He then added, as an afterthought "And, since you just took a look at it and everything, how was my aura perceived?"