Closed Rendezvous In The Darkness

[Aerius]

Winter 25th 516 A.v 9th Bell
The Courtyard




Would she arrive at all? Perhaps she had forgotten about their arranged meeting; time continued to tick away and moment by moment he grew more impatient. The immortal waited here all day long, and a lengthy period of time into the night as well. He wished that he did not have to wait for her, but he had faith for once in a century. The Sorcerer only hoped that she made the correct choice, and if she came to him not only would he turn a profit; she would fulfill her end of the deal and officially seal the pact she accepted in the forest. He would make use of the large sum of mizas in several ways both beneficial to her and to himself. Aerius would not only fund all of the equipment he needed for the magecraft product, but she gave him the opportunity to practice and perfect his craft.

All at the cost of course at selling her items half priced in comparison to majority of the other sellers. Three times the standard price was ridiculous, and rather than take more than what he needed he only required half. Simply because of the fact that while mage-craft was not a cheap discipline, but it turned quite a bit more profit than it appears to on the surface. The item in particular that he offered her would require a mere one hundred coin to make under normal circumstances. In exchange for ten days of consecutive work without a break he would receive 5100 gold mizas. What an outrageous price for an item, although it was magical and as he stated to her before magical items were never cheap; not even in the case of small changes in properties.

He tapped his feet against the ground, and noticed how easily the sound echoed throughout the closed space. After all the citadel was large, but in the courtyard the walls had a tendency to reflect sound incredibly well. The meeting place was empty due to the choice he made in time; most of the Nuit were in their research facilities. Majority of them spent days on end tirelessly working and tended to their projects during both the day and the night. The Court yard was generally filled with various displays of magic, but at this time most of the apprentices were stowed away as well. Aerius would have her teach him the magic here, but of course when she brought the coin to him he would not allow it to sit in the open.

Despite the fact that the isle of the undead and its residents did not value Miza; if it were left open someone certainly would make an attempt to steal it. Aerius might've been a somewhat strong Sorcerer, but he was no fool. He waited patiently, and continued to think about what uses the ring could potentially have for her. However, for the most part he had already explained that it would be a weapon of great offense or defense to her. Hopefully she would not misuse it, and for her first purchase as his “Business partner” perhaps it would impress her.

“Alija, Where are you?” He spoke aloud, but not too loud as to not be heard by anyone or anything else that could be nearby.

[Alija]

Date

The Sorcerer or the Immortal, whichever he chose to call himself, was a mystery all of his own. She had tried asking around - asking the nuit, asking Pulsers, asking whoever she could find. As expected, most had ignored her her hadn't known who she was referring to - they weren't names, they were descriptions of the majority of Sahova. The few who had recognised the name as a name had nothing much to say. He was a hermit, she could figure that much out. Not a great wizard, or if he was, he kept it very hidden. No one could tell her that either.

As for descriptions... she had heard of him wearing black skin, or looking so different to the man she met that she wasn't certain if he was the same person. If he was, she discovered, it was possible to change his appearance with morphing. Next time they met, she would keep a steady eye out on his aura for the magic that made him change shape.

In her small, dismal room, she unlocked her coffer, quickly picking through the coins and counting the amount, overwhelmed by the sheer quantity. She pushed them into her bag, wrapping it tightly in another to keep them together. Her eyes fell on the knife in the box as well, and she picked it up, tucking it into her boot, the only place to carry it. It wasn't reassuring, but it was better than nothing.

Then she strode her way to the courtyard, money on her back. The courtyard, of course, was empty, apart from the lone figure expecting her. Before he could spot her, she snatched up his aura, recognising the cold blizzard that formed it the minute she saw it. Was he using magic? It was impossible to tell, but she kept watching, trying to make sense of the wild swirling of snow. This time, she kept a broader look as well, not wanting to limit herself on just magic. She wanted to know more, so she could get the upper hand too.

"I am here," she finally said, stepping out to greet him. His aura pulsed and she could feel the awful feeling emanating from it, almost warning her to back off. But she didn't want to. She was far too curious - about what he promised to make her, about what he was.

"But first. Show me your true form," she began, wondering whether there was something monstrous behind his normal, perhaps morphed, exterior. Even if there wasn't, she had to know what he looked like, so she could know how to find him. "And your real name." If he refused, she couldn't force him, but she could try to convince him now. "So I know I can trust you." She shifted the bag on her back, letting the money clink against each other so he knew she had it. She was here for business, and it would help if she could trust him.

ledgercoffer (high quality):1.5gm
amazing lock: 150
amazing key: 75
total: 226gm 50sm

[Aerius]

Finally she had stepped out and spoken; if she had not Aerius probably would have exited the area disappointed that she did not uphold her end of their pact. The moment that she had spoken in a split-tick she asked him yet again what his real name was. She teased him with a shake of the bag which obviously held the coin; he heard several of them collide with one another. Why did she insist upon knowing his name; was it truly of that much importance? He believed that it was not, and he certainly would not tell her quite yet. Aerius had quite literally saved her life just the day before, and if she thought that she could not trust him she was a fool. Had he wanted her dead he could have killed her himself, or simply left her there to fall victim to The Glannoch.

The immortal concentrated for a moment, and an incredibly small amount of djed began to collect in his eyes. He made sure that she made eye contact with him, and then he released it all at once to implant a “thought” within her mind. “Is it really that important?”, and then The Sorcerer parted his lips to speak in response to her two statements. “ I thought that you were not going to show up for a moment, Alija. “ as per usual in his obviously soothing, and deep voice. Why did she care so much about something so insignificant; for all she knew he had multiple names. Perhaps he should deceive her, and make her believe that his name was something other than what it truly is.

“Crow”

He spoke to her in a soft tone, and although that was not his name perhaps it would suffice. He wanted to tell her what the truth of the matter was when he made the item. However, she still did have a deal to uphold; she told him that she would teach him this “magic” that allowed her to detect other magic. It allowed her to see things that he could not, and he wanted to make sure he had it by the time that they left these grounds. “Anyhow, I will tell you that I am making all of twenty-five actual coin from this transaction. The cost of production is so high with mage-forge that I am literally making nothing. Hopefully in the future you will continue to work with me.” He spoke again and nodded his head only to shortly after ask for what she promised. “Now, that magic I would like it if you do not mind.” He gave a simple statement, and hoped that she would follow through with her own words.

Perhaps she would uphold her end of the deal, but the very uncertainty that she would not diminished in his mind now. She brought along the coin, and obviously she knew very well that if he wanted to take it from her that she could. The likelihood that she would lie to him from this point forward could be deduced to none. Why was it that Hypnotism immediately became one of his favorite magics despite his very little experience and practice with it? Maybe his favoritism was due to the fact that it allowed him a massive advantage in his favor in any negotiation like this one. He awaited a response patiently and continued to lock eyes with her while he simply scoffed when she mentioned true form.

“I did not have time to change forms when I met you, and I am sure that if I hidden my identity you would have seen right through it. This is my true form.” He spoke again.

[Alija]

Was it really that important for her to know his name? Yes, yes it was. The very thing that made it important was that he wasn't giving it to her. If he had simply shared his name with her when she had asked, she wouldn't have cared. But because he was avoiding giving it , she couldn't get wonder why he didn't want to.

He spoke before giving another name. Crow. Was that really a name too, or another alias he gave himself? She couldn't tell. "I told you I'd come, why wouldn't I?" she replied, moving closer towards him so she could see him more clearly, "And if you weren't happy with the profit... You shouldn't have agreed." You never agreed to twenty five mizas unless you were fine with such an amount. Feeling a little braver, she added, "Besides, you also get a magic, which is priceless."

He claimed he did not have time to change form. That meant he could. And she couldn't see anything in his aura that suggested he had used magic to change, although she wasn't certain what she would see. The aura wouldn't fit, she supposed and this one seemed to stick to him like a glove. Perhaps he was telling the truth. His aura didn't say lying either.

"Auristics," she began, wondering how much he wanted. The name, an initiation, instruction in it further? She would move to where it stopped naturally and wait to see if he asked for more. "It is like any other personal magic at its core." How would she know? She didn't know them, but implying she did gave her some sort of upper hand. It was only words she had heard when she had first learned. "You focus and use your djed. In this case, you might bring it to your eyes, let it settle and synchronise, and you focus onto another person. Or object. Or anything. You focus on it - you don't look at it, you ignore the outer shell of the body. You look deeper, and let your djed guide you to their aura. When you see it, you can focus on it more clearly.

"With auristics, you can see the person as they are. It is a delicate art of defining the traits of the aura and matching them with the traits of a person. You, " her eyes moved in on him, in almost a mocking tone although she didn't mean it, "Would not understand the vast variety of subtleties that can be grasped from an aura." Neither could she, she had to admit, but she knew much more than he did. "If you wished to learn, it would take years of practice. Not to get better, but to recognise what auras mean. No one can teach you that. Every aura is different."

[Aerius]

Mortals were so easily convinced that they were in control of situations, and why that was of course he could not understand. Aerius did not bother to ask any further questions, and he saw the expression on her face change yet again. Of course he had not agreed to twenty five mizas, but what she did not know was that she would pay for everything he needed to complete the project. Such a thought brought a smile upon his face, and she mentioned that a magic was priceless. Nothing on Sahova comes without a price, and if one asked for a favor from another wizard or anyone else they were likely to be subjected to torment. She was obviously new to the area, and knew nothing about the disgusting truth which laid beneath the surface of the isle of the undead. She suddenly named the magic, “Auristics” that was what it was called.

He listened as she explained to him exactly what it was, what it was capable of and why this “Auristics” had so many uses. She compared it to any other personal magic, but obviously he had never seen her practice anything other than this particular magic. Which made him wonder whether or not she was truly capable of advancing to wizard. She explained to him the fashion in which to use djed; to bring it to the eyes and focus on objects, or people or anything for that matter. The sole purpose of such a magic was to do nothing more than read auras. The immortal did not care to see people as they are; because in his eyes they were useless. Without multiple centuries to learn and perfect their craft mortals were fools. If they were to join him and become undead; they would become some of the wisest and most intelligent beings known to the world.

He made several mental notes of each and every word that she spoke to him so that he could later write some of the information down in his journal. The Sorcerer grew disinterested in an explanation of the magic, and wanted to learn it rather than waste time. She had a payment to make, and he a job to do so that she can receive her service. He did not bother to respond to her first statement; as he did not want to do anything to “burn the bridge” of their relationship in it's weakest state. All that he had to say at this particular point was “Teach me, give me this Auristics, Alija. Not to mention not all magic is priceless on Sahova. If you attempt to learn magic from many wizards they will cut you open, examine your gut and perhaps insert worms. Perhaps they will include you in an experiment that could very well kill you, and only if you make it out will they teach you. Be watchful of that.. “ he spoke to her softly, and continued to lock eyes with her.

Perhaps she was far more wise than he initially thought of her to be. She could negotiate quite well, and obviously knew one thing; business. Just who was this young lady with a slender figure and strong arms; perhaps she was more skilled than he thought.

[Alija]

Date

"All magic is priceless," she repeated again, after he had spoken, having listened quietly as she had talked. Magic was a greater form of knowledge, and all knowledge was priceless too. Of course, anyone could pin a price onto it, whether that was money or being a test subject or knowledge in return, but it was impossible to truly value. And if he had meant that as a warning... "I am not stupid. I know what wizards here do." She knew where she was valuable. She knew where it was dangerous to go.

Then again, her little venture into the graveyard had been stupid, and she had known it was dangerous. Still, she hadn't needed a warning to stop herself - she went anyway. She was stupid, but not in the sense that she was ignorant.

A slight chill overcame her, and she became aware where they were standing, in the middle of a graveyard, alone, and suddenly seeked refuge inside. Her eyes flickered to where the citadel rose around them, longing for the shelter of the cold stone walls. She didn't ask, however. She wasn't brave enough, and she knew in business that it wasn't her place. Then again, both were doing something for each other, so maybe it was...

Before she could lose herself in a mental argument trying to convince herself to speak up, she instead decided to focus on the task at hand: instructing Crow or whatever his name was in auristics. She wasn't the greatest teacher. She knew that. With a magic, it was even harder. But she would try, and try much harder than he would realise.

"Close your eyes." Her words came simply, expecting him to do what she asked instantly, no hesitation, unlike her reaction if the situation was reversed. "You know magic. You know how to channel djed, do it. Focus on something, your breathing, perhaps, if you dead things even breath. Channel it towards your eyes, but as you do, feel it. Feel the magic, and actively. That is what you need to look for. Focus. Then open your eyes."

She was describing her process, the deeper one, one she had to take so long over at the beginning. Was that how she learnt? The moments of first sight were blurred in her mind. If it didn't work, she'd just claim it took time and make him try again.

"Then look at me." She had nothing to hide from a nuit who couldn't do the magic. "Focus on me, but not on the physical body, but on the magic inside me. See what is there, but your eyes don't let you see. You must focus, let the djed see for you. You won't understand anything, your focus will on finding my aura and maintaining it in your vision. Try it now."

If it worked, things would be easier. She knew the rest and how to teach it. It was just getting it started. There wasn't a special initiation or something, was there?

[Aerius]

Aerius listened to each and every word that she spoke. From the nonsense about whether or not magic was priceless, to the moment she told him to close his eyes. He shut his eyelids somewhat tight, and attempted to concentrate on her words. She told him what to do, and it seemed easy enough; all he needed to do was focus his djed. “Channel it toward my eyes” The Immortal thought to himself while he listened to her, and focused on the ground beneath him. Aerius felt the djed rise from within his body, and flow toward both his eyes simultaneously. Was he supposed to command it, or will it to do something as he did with Reimancy? Was he supposed to let it sit and saturate itself within his eyes? Aerius was absolutely clueless, and despite the fact that he had seen this particular magic performed multiple times he lacked confidence in himself. The Immortals worst fear began to materialize in the form of his frustration surfacing.

“Petch what is it I'm supposed to see!?” He exclaimed and the very moment his eyes snapped open he noticed how blurry his vision became. The Immortal silenced himself just as quickly as the aforementioned statement had been made. He saw something within her, and took several ticks to blink only to look again. She told him to focus on what he saw within her, but not what he saw of her outwardly appearance. The Sorcerer did not know what it was he needed to look for, and certainly was unsure about what it was he saw in that moment. He looked toward her and saw an array of colors, but could hardly identify what any of them meant.

Yet, he noticed that the closer he looked at her; something surrounded her and it had a color of its own. It was not blue, not black, not red but something in between. Purple, and although he did not know what it meant he could indeed see it. “This... This magic is based solely upon an individuals ability to observe their surroundings.. To see the djed that exists within the surroundings..” He thought to himself and continued to concentrate for a moment while a headache developed quickly. As a result of his previous experimentation with leeching he experienced quite a bit of pain. Yet, he had to endure and pretend that the use of magic did not hurt him at all.

“I see... Purple... You, are surrounded by purple. “ He spoke to her slowly, and his speech seemed to have been parted. Quite a few ticks were taken for him to complete that sentence, and as he continued to see things he told her everything. “It's blurry.. Red now, No.. blue!” He spoke again while he studied each and every one of her features. Was this the extent of this magic, and the furthest of its capabilities? Perhaps he had just barely scratched the surface of what it meant to be an aurist.

[Alija]

Date

There was impatience in the Nuit's voice, something clearly there. Of course - the woman wasn't expecting much more. He was greedy with his magic, and he wanted it now. No waiting, no long struggles as he got to grips with finding his auristics sight and used it to find auras.

But then there was silence, and she could see in his eyes that he had seen something. She couldn't quite tell what, but she could recognise that almost dazed look, blinking, looking at her, but almost through her. She had seen the look on herself too many times. On others too, although that was far less frequent. And now, with him, and slowly, she smiled, glad to have got it right somehow. That was her part of the payment done, was it not? What else did he want?

Purple. She was purple to his eyes, and she wondered what it could mean. To her purple was... what was purple? There was never just purple - perhaps the aura would be stained purple, like a painter who dabbled with colours rich and rare; or it would be a soft violet, from a herbalist who slept with flowers around her head; or the purple of a swirling storm, static with lightning and pure power, of an electric person at the edge of their tether. And her purple would never mean the same to anyone else, as Crow's purple would never mean anything other than what he saw it as.

It went blurry, then red, then blue. She couldn't tell what he was seeing, and he was far too novice to tell her anything. As much as she wanted to hear about her aura, about how he perceived her, there were two things that stopped her. One, he couldn't tell her anything. Colours. Basic shapes and structures. No meaning, no in depth feelings that came from it. He could tell her nothing. And two, she didn't want him to be able to see. It was rude, and terrifying, to realise someone else could look into her soul. Just like she could see theirs. Her secrets were hers to keep - and she made herself promise to find a way to hide her aura unless she wanted it to be seen.

Instead, she instructed, taught like any teacher would. "You must practise. Find auras, and spend as long as you can observing them. Note the colour, the exact shade and how it changes. The shape of the aura, how it fits the body of the wearer, how it moves around them. Don't stop practising until you can hold an aura in your sight, and describe it so a blind man could see it." With a deep inhale, she continued, her hand secretly curling around her cloak to steady herself. "But be careful. It is rude to read anyone's aura - and a wizard's especially." Hypocritical, perhaps. But it was true.

Sighing, she took a step back, closing her eyes in an attempt to picture her own use of auristics. "Now, these colours will mean little to you. But slowly, over time, they will begin to form meanings. Maybe you will figure it out - maybe every angry person you come across has a green aura, for example. But it will always feel right. But that is for when you have practised far more than now." Even Alija was still discovering auras and new meanings. But at some point, you stopped learning single words, and began to understand sentences as a whole. And, in her eyes, she was beginning to do just that. "Do you understand?"

Because, somehow, despite the graveyard, despite her fears, she was okay with staying. Because this was auristics, and when she was lost in her skills, she was well and truly lost.

[Aerius]

The immortal made a careful note of each and every word that she spoke. Different shapes, sizes and various colors meant different things. What was to be discernable was determined by the user, and while Auristics could be useful it was a double edged sword. From what he could see it offered little to no use in combat, and thus hardly any use to him. However, if it did offer the opportunity to help determine the difference between a wizard, and a normal person he supposed it was helpful. Until he became skilled enough with this “Auristics” however, he would have to be hesitant and study extensively in order to become proficient. For now he needed to leave the area with the coin: The initiation had been completed, and he had no need to remain in the graveyard.

“I will complete your work, and you will join me soon in its creation. Thank you for complying with the payment. I’ll assure you that you shall be pleased with the end result of the product. This auristics of yours may be helpful in the creation of your craft.” He spoke to Alija again, and this time with a bit of a smirk upon his visage. Not only did she provide him with enough profit, but enough time to craft her creation, and he secured a business partner. Alija was quite an interesting character, and although he saved her from certain death she was useful. Not every mortal was a fool, and although she obviously did not value her life: She did value coin. Gold Mizas was enough to make Aerius talk, and business motivated him even more-so. The next set of steps he would take were simple.

The first of the three steps would be the most difficult to accomplish. He needed to make a deal with the famous Thelma Jenkins. She was rumored to be among the best mage-crafters on the entire island. Although there were many, she was one who was not only talented, but resourceful. If he could gain access to her laboratory temporarily: perhaps in exchange for favors or experimentation, the remainder of the tasks were not difficult at all.

The second of the three steps would simply be to spend several days working on the project, and allowing Alija to watch the work. If she could see the work first hand perhaps she would be far more inclined to do further business with him.

So long as she could assist him in improving upon himself she was the ultimate resource. Alija was new to the island, and she was a pulser; there were benefits on both ends of the small deal. He could assist her in gaining access to several resources such as texts, and perhaps instruct her in some nadar-canoch. If she continued to prove her value to him: Aerius would assist her in dominating the island if he were capable. Shortly after his statement, “Crow” waved her off and returned to his quarters in order to act on the third step which was simply to return the item to her.