[The Undeniable Interests] It Goes With "Capacitor"...

by **Razkar** on August 4th, 2013, 5:40 pm

48th Day of Summer
The Undeniable Interests
15th Bell

"Goddess... Aya would go love this place..."

Whispered words in a tongue born far from Syliras echoed softly around the tall but tiny room. Razkar almosr fancied that he could see the wind from his words buffet a few of the millions of pages on display, though it was probably the door closing behind him. Gawking, eyes staring up and up like some yokel seeing the Stormhold for the first time, he tried to see the peak of the mountain of literature... and couldn't.

"Or it would drive her mad with options, perhaps."

It certainly looked like the place Gene Duval had told him about. A bell before he'd been in the familiar decadence of the Spinning Coin, slapping down a handful of gold mizas onto the bar when the bearded human wasn't being as forthcoming as he wanted.

"A place to learn... what was it?"

"Thing called Flux. Akalak I know told me. Something to... make fist strong. Something with wyrd."

"Y'mean djed?"

"Whatever you call it, you know where I can learn?"

"Well... I dunno..."

Razkar smiled as he walked slowly before the chaotic shelves, packed with tomes and talismans, remembering that tone in Duval's voice that made him sigh. He wasn't so clueless that he didn't know when he was being baited, and the acquisitive gleam in the human's eye was unmistakable.

"Maybe... five miza help you know?"

"My memory doesn't really clarify for anything less than ten."

There was no jingle of coins; it was a heavy, angry clunk as Razkar slapped a handful of gold onto the bar. Unperturbed, Gene smiled, counted each one... and nodded, sweeping them into his purse.

Then he gave him a name, and a rough location.

"'Undeniable Interests'..." Razkar whispered to himself again, fingers tracing over the thick coating of dust on one shelf, taking them away... and seeing his skin almost change color. "Not that undeniable, since most of this junk has been here for-"

Something that sounded like a papyrus avalanche erupted from the other side of the room, behind a set of shelves. The Myrian's hands slid to his weapons, instincts smooth and automatic, but in this place he was... oddly calm. An oasis of learning and erudition. Hardly a place for a Myrian, may would assume, but... it reminded him of... her.

He inhaled sharply and expelled his concern with the exhale. Aya. His first and perhaps greatest love... but now a memory. Perhaps. He shook her free from his mind and walked closer to the source of that commotion, past shelves lined with dust-covered nick-nacks, trophies and djed-empowered item the likes of which he would never understand. And books. Mountains of them, towers, spires, hills, valleys, parchment overflowing from every shelf and corner so that when the floor creaked, it was not just with Razkar's feet.

He reached out and brushed away a cobweb nearly as thick as cotton, a fat and indignant spider running aside, undisturbed for months until now. Razkar peered beyond it... and saw a round pair of buttocks waving around, figures upper body buried under a pile of books older than most of the city, perhaps.

"Goddess..."

Razkar immediately went over and hauled the cursing fellow free, one hard jerk revealing a round, lined face framed in a wild grey beard and centered by a bulbous nose. Eyes that were rheumy but still sharp in the same way Gene Duval's were stared out at him in confusion and gratitude both... questioning...

"Er... you are... Dominac?"

Receipt-10GM

by **Radiant** on August 4th, 2013, 6:29 pm

The extremely old man was just laying around, minding his business, and reading a rather disturbing book by most human standards... in his dreams for he was in fact, asleep beneath his pile of books. Dominac was not in the mood for disturbance, any disturbance at all. But no, the gods just seemed like to mess with him today. He found himself being jerked by and he literally jerked himself awake.

"Huh? Huh? What what what?" His old eyes slowly flickered to life, his slowly focused to see the mug of a strange tattooed man, the bronze skin immediately told him of this particular disturbance's ancestry. The Myrian seemed to ask his name, Dominac seemed to be slowly processing the question for a good five seconds before speaking tiredly. "Yes...yes, I am, I am Dominac, now... leave..." and *THUD!* just like that, he went to sleep, on top of the mess of objects and books beneath him.

by **Razkar** on August 4th, 2013, 10:18 pm

"B-But-!"

*THUD!*

"... shyke!"

The old man fell back in a cloud of dust and terrified spiders mourning their broken webs, parchment fluttering around him. The Myrian just stared in awe, shock, disbelief, mouth open and what in the hells was this human not afraid?!

Because he is old, and has seen much. What is one Myrian compared to a long, long life that has seen more than you ever have?

"Oh, I don't bloody think so..." He leaned down and patted the bearded, wrinkled cheeks lightly. "Hey? Hey?! Wake up!"

"Gods and demons, boy!" The human batted him away and tried to turn over, not even deigning to open his eyes. "It's... lunch hour!"

"It is fifteen bell, not twelve!"

"Late lunch, then."

"I have gold for you!"

Ah, well, that at least got one eye open, narrowly focused on him through a slit even as the rest of the robed figure got comfy on a stack of ancient tomes.

"For what?"

"I want to learn djed that makes punches stronger. Ah... Flux? I think it is called Flux. People say you know of this."

by **Radiant** on August 5th, 2013, 4:05 am

"Flux, eh?" Dominac rubbed his eyes and slowly shifted to a sitting position with a loud tired yawn. "If ye want Flux... I..." He rubbed his temples before grabbing Razkar's shoulder with his dirty hands to heave himself up, he then patted his dusty clothes and coughed to clear his throat.

"...I have just the book... it's right around..." The old man then rather impolitely shoved Razkar out of his way and made his way to the maze of books and random objects, mumbling something to himself. The Myrian looked annoyed but he followed the strange ancient human nonetheless, suddenly.. "Aha!" He stopped and Razkar unwittingly bumped into his back. Dominac didn't even seem to register the impact and just turned to face the bookshelf then he reached up and pulled out a dusty book.

"*Cough! *Cough!*" He coughed as he flapped the book and got rid some of the dust clamoring on it, then he flipped the book open and skimmed through it "Ah 'Introduction to the Art of Flux', here it is... I will give you this for... hmmm..." Dominac seemed to be thinking, his eyebrows tensed and relaxed at random intervals "One hundred gold mizas, how's that sound?" The surprised look on the Myrian's face told Dominac that perhaps he charged too high, but did he care about that?

by **Razkar** on August 5th, 2013, 11:41 am

"Bloody crotchety old man..."

Razkar had been raised since birth to respect his elders almost as much as he had females, and this male that doddered and mumbled before him was probably older even than Mayla, the Witch of the Wilds who was already old when his mother was young. That was the reason he tolerated his prodding and shoving, following the waddling figure as he led the Myrian-

"Aha!"

A thin but ancient book was presented to him and after enough dust to coat a statue was shaken off, Razkar's eyebrows bunched together and he frowned down at the elaborate script on the front, under a stylized glowing fist.

"'Introdo...duction to The Art... of... Flux'..." His finger followed the words and everything seemed to click with him. He opened the first page and a weathered claw of a finger clicked over the cover before he got the chance. "Excuse-"

Then he heard the price. Black eyes bored into fade grey ones but that bulging proboscis just sniffed, unimpressed by the savage visage. Razkar frowned a little less violently, if such a thing was possible, lips twisting from side to side, appraising the whole cost-versus-benefit in his head.

"And... for gold... this let me do Flux?" He held up the book, voice serious. "Just by read and do what I read? Not need to have someone... ah... in-it-ate?"

by **Radiant** on August 5th, 2013, 2:19 pm

One thing that Dominac didn't like was people asking him whether they would succeed or not in whatever shenanigans they were planning by reading the book he sold. How in Rhysol's butt would he know? He just sell the books, not practice them... well maybe some books, but definitely not all.

"Lookie here... I..." He yawned again for a good five ticks before rubbing his belly and looked sleepily at Razkar, seemingly forgetting what he was going to say "I don't have any bloody idea, okay? I sell you book, you do what it tells you to, if it tell to be initiated by some other person then it's your problem, eh?" He shoved pass Razkar and found a worn-out old chair and sat on it "But, since I'm feeling generous today, I'll give you a bonus info, Flux doesn't have an initiation process like Reimancy, eh.... you can self-taught it through that book, there, pretty neat eh? Now... pay up!"

by **Razkar** on August 5th, 2013, 11:47 pm

You could just kill him. Make it look like an accident. Fire seems pretty plausible...

The thought was pleasant as it danced through Razkar's mind, complete with visual aids in the form of Dominac screaming for mercy... but it did not last long. The Myrian's eyes narrowed sharply, as much at himself as at the rotund shyster who showed not an ounce of fear towards him.

Slaying an elder? One who has amassed knowledge and now offers it to your for a fair price? Unthinkable... even if he is an arsehole.

"Thank you for... bonus." Razkar eventually said through clenched teeth, filing away that crucial bit of information for later use. He hefted the book in his hand and re-read in cover again. "An Introduction... To the Art... of-"

"Of Flux, yes, now," another jaw-shattering yawn and Dominac became suddenly fascinated with the contents of his nose, courtesy of his index finger, shuffling on his little couch of winkling paper, "One hundred gold-rimmed, if ya please, Myrian."

"Seems... steep."

Now it was the human's turn to narrow his eyes, shoulders squaring a little. Razkar couldn't put his finger on it, but he certainly felt his hairs tingle as the old man seemed to... hum, with energy, getting to his feet and looking... well, up at him.

Learned, venerable and no pushover... but still five-five, at a pinch.

"This look like the bleedin' Bazaar to you, mate? We bartering over knick-knacks from Wind Reach. No. This-" that hum again as old and gnarled fingers moved faster than they should have been able to and snatched the precious tome out of Razkar's hand "-is a quality repository of renown and proven knowledge. Now, I don't expect you to know what all those long words mean-" Razakr growled; Dominac ignored it "-but you do need to know, the price for it, is one hundred gold-rimmed."

"I give you eighty. Book might be missing pages."

Dominac seemed to grow another inch or two through sheer indignation.

"Sir! I do not sell incomplete volumes!"

"Pages all over you floor say different."

"Those are naturally incomplete!"

"Eight-five, then."

"Ninety-five and not a copper less!"

"Ninety."

Dominac took a deep breath and Razkar took the moment to smoothly untie his purse, jingling it merrily so the human could hear the plethora of coins making it all fat and happy. And that could be making him fat(ter) and.. well, if not happy, then less of an arsehole.

Maybe.

by **Radiant** on August 6th, 2013, 1:49 am

"Ninety it is" Dominac held out his hands and Razkar dropped the coin purse to him. He then gave Razkar the book and patted his shoulder "Nice doing business with y- *yawn* you..." With that, he stumbled back to his chair, flopped down, and... went back to the dreamscapes.

Razkar :

Notes :

My radiance is not bright enough?

If you have any questions or concerns regarding your grade, beam me a PM and we can work it out.

Skill	XP Earned
Negotiation	+2 XP
Rhetoric	+1 XP

Completed [The Undeniable Interests] It Goes With "Capacitor"...