Living Among the Dead

[Ialari Pythone]

While the nuit's gaze caused Ialari to inwardly shiver, his growing display of emotion despite his fading existence reached deep into the isur and lightly tickled something that had been slowly buried over the many days she had spent in the citadel. Her encounter with the mental trap left by Drainira had caused many changes in Ialari; slow and methodical at first , becoming more insidious as time passed. Her own cruelty and focused tormenting was also not solely directed at Rawass although his assumptions of her still scraped her patience like a jagged rock on flesh.

For the moment she allowed herself to answer the dying nuit's questions if only to be able to get whatever else he had left to give.

Her grip loosened on his arm and she released it before stepping back a pace. With a soft sigh, she spoke softly, the poison gone from her voice, "I am not like Drainira and I am not doing this out of some misplaced greed. You think I am filled with only hatred and a thirst to control everything around me? Hardly." She reached down and moved the urn away from Rawass before continuing.

"I do love. I love my family, my clan, my people and my god. I love my home in Sultros. I love the mountains, the tunnels the caverns, yes, Rawass, I do love. As much as I love them all, I still see how the shattering of the world has hurt them. We were once a proud, prosperous people of beauty, creativity and industry. Others saw us as friends, teachers and providers. Even the great Alahean Empire thought highly of the Isur and Alahea and Izurith cities were close friends and allies. All that changed when the humans angered the gods and in turn had their kingdom obliterated for their transgression. As you are well aware, the devastation did not end with Alahea." Ialari's voice shook a bit before she stopped and took a deep breath.

"First, a short history lesson for the ancient. Before he died of an age greater than many of our kind, my grandfather told me the stoy of how Izurith was destroyed. The mountains around it and the ground beneath it exploded. Entire families, even whole clans were consumed by the destruction; burning in the flames and crushed by the very place they called home. Perhaps in your isolation here beneath the protection of your great citadel and vast magic you could not know the fury that the humans brought down upon us. What few survivors there were, left the ruins of Izurith and fled west and further into the mountains. There they battled yet more unfathomable horrors released from their worldly prisons by the divine chaos and suffered even greater losses before finally finding a new home. It has only been five centuries. For humans, that is an eternity and most have forgotten what happened. For us the wounds are fresh and the vivid memories remain. We are a people who must stay isolated from a world that once came to us for guidance for now they look to us for treasure and wealth. Both of which we do not have. Our people, once united as one, now live in five different fortified cities beneath citadels rivaled only by this one." As she spoke of the humans and what she felt they had driven the Isur to, Ialari's voice took on more poison than she had displayed to Rawass thus far.

"Crave power? Power for power's sake is empty. Does anything lie beneath my hatred and the scaled pattern of my plans? Yes, I have a purpose. It is the love for my people and the immeasurable sadness I feel at knowing my people suffered for and to this day, continue to pay for the sins of the humans. Thoughtless, short-lived insects whose greed and ignorance though not destroying, succeeded in crippling my people. Still more, their brutish descendants now seek to raid and pillage us into little more than a tattered, burnt page in one of the few fractured pre-Valterrian texts my people still possess."

The poison in her voice subsided again, this time replaced by determination, "Izurdin teaches us patience; patience that all will be as it is intended. However, for me, patience is not hiding in a hole and hoping that the humans will learn from the past, especially when none of them remember it. No, patience is actively working to restore balance knowing that with dedication and focus, you cannot lose. It is keeping your focus regardless of setbacks. It is taking all of those little steps needed to reach the pinnacle of your goal. Patience is waiting until an opportunity presents itself and seizing it. I didn't plan on coming to Sahova. I didn't plan on standing here in this room with you, bleeding you dry and searching for answers that I am still forming questions for. Yet the opportunity presented itself."

Ialari paused, a disturbing thought occurring to her. Was it possible that she had become too focused one what she was doing that she was beginning to actually lose sight of her real purpose? She was looking for a way to enslave a nuit to serve as a pawn in her farther-reaching goals yet in the process was actually losing touch with those goals. A slight grinding sound could be heard as she tightly clenched her metallic fist. This nuit still deserved what was happening to him; he was a criminal, a murderer, weak and foul to the core.

"An opportunity that until now, I have not fully realized. I will learn all that is necessary from this place and gain the tools needed to help restore my people. I am not like Drainira in that I have a purpose of my own choosing that is about more than just myself. Now, what about you, Rawass? What was your purpose as you entered eternity?"

To Ialari, Rawass was becoming less of a sentient being and more a book to be read and learned from before closing and setting aside. She knew the end of the book was near but as she read, she was quickly seeing that it held more for her than she first thought.

[Tarot]

Rawass listened to Ialari's tale of the Isur and her personal crusade to solve the 'human problem' that threatened her race. His body was getting weak, but his mind still seemed lucid and attentive. His unblinking eyes were glued on her, a dark obsession in them. He was, at least, close to that freedom he so craved. "So, you walk the fine line between the protector and the avenger…" he murmured. By now, he was struggling to keep his head up. This was death to a Nuit, a slow deactivation. The boundary was much more blurry than it was for the living.

"I am but a small vein in your tree of life, Isur. One day you will be faced with true sacrifice… true choice. Time, there will be time. Yes, Tanroa has a way of making things happen at the right time. I have been Rawass long enough; it is about time I started anew with a clean slate, unblemished, ripe with potential. Perhaps it will be better this time around, or maybe I'll just get stuck as a worm for a century or two. Who knows? I wouldn't mind the novelty either way." Rawass gave a slow grin. "I have made so many mistakes. I didn't see the forest or the trees. What I saw was so pitiful in retrospect, but if it is what you desire, Isur, then let's have it your way."

"As soon as I was kicked out, my life might as well have been over," he reminisced quietly. "It was the worst possible dishonorable discharge in the world. No-one would hire me knowing my record. They would turn the other way and pretend I wasn't there. I was a ghost. I lived a life of petty crime with what little magic I had. They were rough times, but I hadn't killed anyone just yet. Just stealing here and there, what I needed for my bare survival. Until he found me. He was one of the Seven Robes. His name was Amir Berliotz. He sought me specifically like he did others. Talented nobodies without a place in society, desperate to be worth a gold miza. He collected us like stamps. We did the jobs he couldn't have done without compromising himself and his standing. And boy, was the man ambitious. Hungry for magic… more so than Mashaen, Pycon, even Sagallius. He wanted it all."

He lifted his head, and it cost him quite a bit effort. "Have you ever heard of the 'lost disciplines' of magic? Extinct magic forms, forgotten or purged from the world? Sometimes one god or another regretted teaching a few neat tricks to mankind and decided to set things straight by removing their practitioners, of having their followers do so for them. Other times, a magic form was deemed too dangerous and the ancient humans waged wars on their users to protect themselves. So much knowledge plunged into oblivion… or not. For memories never truly die.

Berliotz knew how to recover memories from someone's previous lives. He somehow could figure out who was most likely to have something about such forbidden magics, buried deep down in their souls, invisible to mostly everyone. We just had to kill them to recover a bit of information here and there. What he was specifically after was a forbidden world magic… governing the folding of physical space. Imagine being able to create space-in-space, borrowing space from the Ukalas and connecting it to the physical world. No wonder the gods did not approve of it.

The name of this science was… Dominion."

Rawass grinned broadly at Ialari. "End of the line, Isur. Best of luck to you." As he died, he made a rude gesture with the finger of his shackled hand. Defiant to the last.

[Ialari Pythone]

Ialari could sense the waning strength of the nuit and by the sound of his voice and drooping posture, she could see that he was soon to exit this world for the next. She listened intently to his story; noting his opening words that she would one day be faced with true sacrifice. She already knew that at some point in her quest she would be forced to make sacrifices. While it was not an idea she welcomed, it was one that she acknowledged. As he continued to illuminate the reasons of how and why he became a nuit, Ialari found him ever more pathetic. She couldn't imagine how he could have allowed himself to be framed in the first place; an incident that led him down the path to what would not end well. Dealing with the type of individuals he described should have told him something to begin with. At least he was smart enough to fall in with another who could offer him opportunities; opportunities it seemed now were squandered.

His mention of "lost disciplines" however peaked her interest almost immediately along with the name, Amir Berliotz. Dominion, it was called and if Rawass was telling the truth; he had little reason to lie in these final moments, one could effectively link pockets of divine space to the physical realm. The possibilities would be endless with such access. There was one thing though that kept Ialari from immediately seeking out this, Amir Berliotz. The fact that he was able to use others so effectively and get them to kill for him told her that he was quite dangerous and not to be trusted. She would have to approach this little bit of forbidden information cautiously.

Rawass stopped speaking and grinned. Ialari watched emotionless as he then said his final words, gestured rudely, and was at long last greeted by death. As much as she despised the rotting corpse, she did not revel in his passing. Celebrations of death were reserved for those who deserved honor for their deeds in life. Whatever life Rawass had, ended lifetimes ago. This was merely the fading of an echo.

After a moment of silently gazing at the now truly empty shell, Ialari capped the urn containing the nuit's soul-vector, picked it up and carried it back to the table. She would take care of disposing of the rest of the remains later. With a soft sigh, she took another moment to compose and prepare herself before turning to Shalla. This one would receive a different approach.

"I did not wish for his demise, merely his cooperation. As I said before, I am looking to learn from you and would prefer not to destroy you. Shalla, I was being truthful when I said that part of my experiments involve restoring the appearance of youth, beauty and vitality to a nuit. While being able to truly sustain the unliving body is well beyond me, I think it is possible to at least maintain the appearance of such things without the need of heavy cosmetics or potential overgiving from the use of morphing. The body would still fail but at least one such as you could return to the living world with a chance to fit in. You were already going to return to it as a rotting corpse. Isn't this a better option? From what little I know of you already, you are not the monster that Rawass was. Thus I wish to offer you the opportunity to assist me without the need for interrogation and torture. You unlife has effectively been given over to me to do with as I please. I would prefer not to end it." Throughout everything so far, Shalla had been silent. She would not be easy to break but if Ialari played it right, she might not have to break anything. She truly needed an assistant, one with experience, skill and knowledge of unlife.

[Tarot]

Shalla blinked slowly and opened her mouth for the first time. "You are really new at this, are you not? Torture, I mean." Her voice was smooth and almost seductive, yet impossibly cool, as if a gust of frost exited her lips with each word. She had observed Ialari all along, forming judgments, watching her deal with Rawass. Now she spoke. "Not to brag, but I would have been able to make him spill a few more secrets before killing him for good. Of course you will have to forgive me if I do not share my 'persuasion techniques' with you, for obvious reasons."

The woman's body was pale and raven haired. It had been a lovely human woman, perhaps with some Vantha ancestry. "Perhaps we can indeed cooperate. I have no interest in vanity or beauty or vitality, myself. That is not to say I have no interests at all." Shalla closed her eyes and smiled. This one was clever - Ialari could be sure of that. She had that spark, the demure innocence of the water that ruins the bridge.

Her next words were not spoken; instead, they were only mouthed. Shalla exaggerated the motions to let Ialari read her lips without difficulty. The things she said were quite unsettling.

"Act naturally. Keep talking. There is a listening device in this room. They are spying on you." Her eyes indicated the far end of the room, and she reverted to speech.

"I am not sure how useful you will find me, however. I am a rather boring wizard. Barely mid-level, in fact. My main highlight, aside from being a secretary to better wizards, is a background in psychology. Zarik Mashaen thought it wise to have me on the team to deal with the most negative effects of unlife on someone's mind. You would be surprised at how many people here call me 'doctor'."

If Ialari looked carefully, she would notice that one brick on the wall had been replaced with a strange box roughly of the same color. It was clearly artificial, and carried glyphs on its hidden sides. It felt warm with magical power.

Shalla smiled. Things were indeed getting interesting.

[Ialari Pythone]

When Shalla finally spoke, her words were fell on Ialari like a blanket of snow upon a green field. Not sure what to have expected out of the female nuit, Ialari was somewhat surprised at the lack of poison in her voice compared to that of the late, Rawass. When the nuit silently informed Ialari of the extra set of ears in the chamber, she was not all that surprised. Ialari knew that Qiao would be keeping tabs on her but what had been unknown was how he was doing it. By revealing this, Shalla tickled Ialari's interest which combined with the rest of what was said, told Ialari that this one would indeed be something of a challenge.

Without speaking out of the ordinary, Ialari moved to the odd brick and examined it. She noted the glyphs and the warmth of magic within it. Returning focus to Shalla, Ialari gave a nod of acknowledgment.

She continued the conversation with the no-longer-silent nuit. "Perhaps I am something of stranger to torture however that is not to say that my efforts did not prove quite fruitful. If you are the master of the sentient mind like you claim, then perhaps you can appreciate the value of observation? You see, it wasn't Rawass' words that I was solely intent on garnering information from. Among other things, I know now how fragile your bodies are; how easily they could be destroyed as if crumbling a brittle piece of dried parchment. When surrounded by a plethora of otherwise immortal beings, there is some amount of comfort in knowing that you are superior in at least one way.

Ialari did not trust the nuit regardless of the revelation of the presence of the listening stone. If indeed Shalla was skilled with navigating one's mind, she would certainly use such skills to try and escape.

"So you claim no interest in beauty or vitality yet you elude to other interests. You simply can't be foolish enough to open yourself to interrogation in order to discover those "other" interests?" Ialari then mirrored Shalla's non-verbal communication by silently mouthing, "Good start. Play games though and I will turn you over to Qiao." While threats of harm done by Ialari herself would probably mean little to Shalla, not to mention get them both nowhere, turning the nuit over to Qiao was a threat the isur thought might give a little more weight to words.

"So tell me, Shalla, do you have anything of real value to offer that may buy you a bit more time?" While playing along with the "charade" of interrogation for the moment, Ialari motioned with a jerk of her head toward the listening device as if redirecting the meaning of her question. Perhaps Shalla would be willing to share a way to fool the device or avoid it altogether without giving away knowledge of its existence.

This nuit was indeed too valuable to eliminate too quickly. Anyone with insight into the unliving mind surely held knowledge that was more than just a little useful.

[Tarot]

"Point taken," said the Nuit, her voice retreating ever so slightly. "We are not the immortal savants we'd like to be; you could say there is something inherently pitiful to our condition. Unlike others, I am not deluding myself into thoughts of superiority just because I happen to be very old."

The Nuit mouthed a few more words at the Isur. "Device is not transmitting; just a golem with ears. Can edit recording. Smudge top glyph to stop."

And indeed, Shalla would stop speaking until Ialari performed the required action. "Much better now. Tampering with ear-golems, or 'hacking' as we call it, is a pretty basic skill with my background. Qiao suspects I'm a spy; that he still only suspects after five hundred years of watching me is a nice endorsement of my skills. I stayed silent on purpose; it will make it easier to hack the golem, or just delete my part of the recording… whichever you may want, Pythone."

Shalla may not be a great wizard, but there was certainly more to her than met the eye. "So, let me be terribly frank from now on; I am not in any hurry to die, much less by your hand. You are moved by a quest for power, whatever the reason; me, I've never been one for abstract things. When I was alive, I worked for the money and the thrill of danger. Never was much of a leader; I followed my orders, got what my employer wanted, and returned for the next assignment. My drive now, is to see certain events come to pass."

"Mainly, I wouldn't mind seeing Qiao dead." She smiled coldly. "Difficult task, but there's never been as good a chance as now. Surely I can get you to see that it's in your best interest too? You are a tolerated guest here, Pythone. You could be much more, with the right allies and without Qiao. You could get a real foothold, gain access to the actual loot. You know, the Vault and all. Plus, there are a lot of people here who hate Qiao and would be very grateful for his demise. Why don't they take it upon themselves, you may ask? It's quite simple, really. Isolation. Desolation."

She made a little melody out of her shackles. "Most of us don't know each other past the most superficial layer. Divide and conquer has been the Archwizard's strategy from the start; he recognized that with so many power users gathered in one place, leadership could only be accomplished in the long term by keeping everyone close enough for scrutiny, but distant enough to prevent alliances. A wise assessment, if I may add. Each of us is an island, barely connected to the rest. Didn't Drainira say something to that effect, too? And she certainly knows us best."

"But of course, if there is an outside force at play… that throws a big wrench into the clockwork." She gave a slightly devious smile. "I told you, I'm a follower, not a leader. I worked for Mashaen, though he was merely the last in a long series. I've never been fussy over my employers; no matter what kind of power-hungry schemes you're concocting you can be sure you wouldn't be the worst of them. And I am pretty good at what I do. A new body is all it'd take for me to blend in Sahova. This entire place relied on Drainira for security, and now that she's gone it's like the Ukalas of espionage. Give it some thought. Surely the possibilities are endless, if we can get over the matter of… trust, no?"

[Ialari Pythone]

Ialari heeded Shalla's instructions and brushed a metallic finger across the glyph on the stone, disrupting its function. When that was taken care of, she listened to what the nuit had to say. Ialari couldn't help but acknowledge that the "death" of Qiao could be a good thing. She wasn't particularly fond of the wretched shell of a "man" and his demise would leave a rather pleasant taste in her mouth. She also knew quite well that her presence was merely tolerated and would remain so until her worth proved less than the trouble of having her around.

"I have never been fond of Qiao; he disgusts me. We have a tentative understanding and agreement for the time being but I offer him no loyalty beyond that. Maeshan, while I admit he is gifted, allows himself to be used." Shalla's words had got Ialari's attention and had for the moment turned her focus from her experiments.

"You say though that you're a follower and not a leader. You are attempting to play on what you feel I want in order to buy yourself some level of freedom. In a twisted sort of way, I can respect that to some extent. As well, I believe I know where your "change of clothes" is kept but understand if I am not so quick to get over this matter of trust as you put it. Now that is not to say I am immobile in this matter. Like I said, the recording device was a good start but something else of immediate usefulness would go a heck of a long way in convincing me to acquire you another body before we go any further?"

Ialari grew up in a culture of industry where deal-making, barter and trade was commonplace. In this situation, Shalla had traded one piece of information for Ialari's consideration of her words. If Shalla wanted a new body and with it Ialari's trust, she would have to provide the isur with something of equal value in order to seal the deal.

During it all, Ialari couldn't help but think about the void that was created by Drainira's departure. For so long, the Supervisor was relied upon for security and information. Now that she was gone, there needed to be someone to fill that void. While Ialari did not wish to rule over a glorified crypt, she was certain there would be others who would and in that she could gain access to secrets far beyond any she could currently imagine.

[Tarot]

The Nuit gave a slight nod, acknowledging Ialari's request. Shalla was no fool, and knew that there was a time for giving, and one for taking. This was most definitely a time for giving. "My magical powers, as I said, are not impressive and mostly support my other talents. I know enough Animation to hack golems. I know some Voiding, Spiritism and Projection, but I was hardly a valedictorian back in the Academy. I have other… gifts, though. Like a penchant for knowing old secrets and discovering new ones. Let me share a few with you as a token of good will, Pythone."

The woman's voice turned colorless, coldly delivering data acquired throughout the ages by a variety of means. "If you'd kept my colleague alive a bit longer, he might have told you Amir Berliotz died around the same time when he was captured and put on trial. Berliotz was a Morpher of such incredible skill that he could copy anyone or anything after seeing it even once. He didn't get the nickname 'Amirror' for nothing. But, he flew too close to the sun, and he got burned. Specifically, he began combining the rediscovered Dominion with his Morphing and somehow… cloned himself. Split his own soul like a slain god. Slowly, he - or they - slipped into insanity and the ten of them killed each other. The confidential records I've read mention quite a gruesome scene."

There was a short pause. The Nuit were not accustomed to speaking this much, and Shalla in particular was much more of a listener than a talker. "Shortly afterwards, it was discovered that the Ten still haunted Mizahar as ghosts, their shared knowledge intact. Their existence is such a paradox that they cannot even move on. They are locking each other out of the cosmic cycle - a fitting punishment, perhaps. Now it gets interesting. Master Farke - a member of Qiao's council but the only one whose allegiance is truly neutral - was once sent to Nyka, in Northern Sylira. The mission was unrelated, but he came back with reports of sighting several of the Berliotz Ten. Apparently Nyka is a hub for paranormal activity, and attracts strange creatures like honey. If you're interested in Dominion, you've got your lead now, Pythone."

"Now, if you'd like to know more, like for example the origin of Qiao's blight-hands, or which ones of Areesa Tallshade's artifacts are in the Vault, or how to crack the most common cyphers my colleagues tend to use… well, I'd expect a gesture of good will from you, as well. I can hack the ear-golem to make it sound like you killed me, too. Think about it… we both win, right?" Shalla sounded sincere right now, though of course what thoughts may occupy the mind of a five century old being was a matter to be considered.

[Ialari Pythone]

Ialari had hoped that Shalla would recognize the idea of a business deal but had no idea of the value inherent in what Shalla said next. The information provided was more than Ialari could have ever imagined and the possibilities posed by the nuit went far beyond any that the isur's ambition could have hoped for.

"Shalla, I have to say that of all of the nuit I have met up to this point, you are by far my favorite. That is saying something considering I would rather see most of the others end up worse than Rawass." Ialari considered the idea that Shalla was being so cooperative only to save her own rotten skin, however she also knew that strange circumstances often lead to even stranger bedfellows.

She took a moment to consider what Shalla had said. If she, Ialari, were to travel to this place called Nyka and find the Berliotz Ten and learn the secrets of Dominion, not only would she have an immensely powerful tool to use in her grand quest, but she would also have power enough to influence Sahova itself. While she didn't care much about the idea of ruling over a tomb, using such influence to acquire a few more boons from the undead was only good business and would serve to put her in a better place overall.

"So, a deal is a deal, Shalla. I will get you a new body. In fact, I will intercept one of the shipments from the mainland and bring you a fresh one if you are so inclined. Following that, I will take you up on the offer of sharing more information. Of course, in exchange for continued assistance, I will make certain that you share in the benefits that such a partnership will reap." Ialari was more than willing to make a deal with the damned however she had a few things in mind to ensure that such deals were maintained. That was for later though.

"Now, your in the know of things. When would the next shipment be scheduled? We must begin preparations for our journey."

[Tarot]

It was clear that the prospect of escaping certain death pleased Shalla. She gave a wide smile of anticipation. "You will not regret this, Pythone. This much I can guarantee." The matter of the next body shipment gave her something to think about for a few seconds. "There are three main shipments of bodies every season. You can never second-guess the sea, of course, and the waters around Sahova can sometimes be treacherous and delay the ships for a few days. Usually, bodies arrive at the harbor around the 5th, 35th and 65th day of the season, plus some unscheduled shipments. We keep a rather large stockpile in cryo-storage on the lowest levels, as well. It used to be huge, which is how we survived the Valterrian without going for each other's throats over spare bodies. That and we are merely one fifth of the original workforce. The rest died exploring the new world or were... not fit for Sahova." Or for its rulers. Ialari's work here was proof enough.

"We should prepare carefully if you intend to brave Nyka. I hear it is a dangerous city that thrives on the mysterious. It was built around a large fissure in the ground that leads to the buried ruins of ancient Nykalia, a city destroyed before Alahea and Suvan even came to be. We have lost a few Sahovans to madness after they tried to pry magical secrets of old from that place. Which is why Master Farke had to go out there and assassinate them, by the way. I recommend caution." Of course, it couldn't ever be easy. As usual, Ialari would have to spit blood over every tiny bit of progress she hoped to make.