An Initiation Like No Other (Eryss Waldu)

[Eridanus]

Day 60, Fall of 511 AV 45 Chimes after the 23rd Bell Northern Woods, Sunberth Eridanus was not sure what the time was, for far away from the time-keeping devices in the city and lacking a device on his own, he only knew that it was close to the time when he was supposed to be here. Leth graced the sky, and his mortal form shifted to his celestial one accordingly. He had made sure to inform Anthony of this when he heard of the appointment timing to prevent himself from being set on fire or transformed into a frog or Leth knows what kind of things a paranoid mage can pull out of his magical bag of tricks. He knew a thing or two about wizard psychology, and one thing he certainly knew was that magic practitioners were very secretive about what they can do, and possessing a little grasp of one of branches of personal magic helped the Ethaefal to understand it as well. He always worked the Flux paths when it was at a time that no one would notice, or he usually did not do it at all unless it was an emergency. The survivors of his workings would attribute his victory to superior physical skill, and well, the dead were not apt to talking. At least not most of the dead. He was not meeting Anthony though. After their fateful encounter in the midst of certain death they had built some sort of respect for each other, and strangely the both of them could sense some sort of difference in the their djed as compared to non-magic users like Zenai. One did not need the art of reading auras to sense a simple difference like that, and thus magi were apt to recognize each other, although most usually pretended like they did not. He had started talking to the rogue and not long after he had recommended the instructions of one of his friends who apparently was his teacher in one of the branches of personal magic. Intrigued, he chose to pursue the matter further and clinched himself an opportunity to learn from his friend as well, which explained his current situation and place. The man's name was Eryss Waldu, and his name did not ring familiar for Eri was new to Sunberth and would not know many people. Through Anthony, he decided on this god-forsaken location far away from the little comforts of civilization as well as this ungodly hour when most people were asleep. Most normal people, that is, which automatically excludes at least half the population of Sunberth who made their living at the expense of others. And violence was typically part of the equation. Eri understood his paranoia though, for it would be for both of their own goods that this matter was kept between them. He had no doubt that most of the humans on Mizahar viewed magic as a wondrous but devastating art, for it was magic that destroyed the world. However, he personally believed that the art did not deserve its negative stigma, for magic was merely a tool and the arm that wielded it should be the one to blame. A few other wise-men had agreed with him, though they cautioned that prejudices like these would take a long time to change. Strolling between the two tall trees that served as the landmark for the meeting location, the Ethaefal was deep in thought, alternating between thinking about the implications of magic and focusing on the djed streams in his body in order to get familiar with it. He did not know many branches of magic, but he did know that magic generally required either a user's own djed or someone else's, but either way the djed had to come from somewhere. He wondered if what he would learn would manipulate his astral body the same way flux did, and excitement coursed through his veins at the thought of learning something new.

[Eryss Waldu]

[Ethaefal were rare in Mizahar, they were amongst the more limited species as far as numbers were concerned, and the average individual had likely never seen one. Maybe they were more common in Sylira but it wouldn’t be a surprise to learn that a number of people had never seen one. Eryss himself had never met an Ethaefal , or if he had it was not in its natural form, which meant he only had the stories he had heard from others to paint a picture of what this individual would look like in the back of his mind. He’d heard this Ethaefal had wanted to learn something, Reimancy likely as it was the Mages specialty, though there were other skills that Eryss was capable of teaching with some competence if not total expertise.] [Being a Mage of significant power though and callous nature Eryss was also somewhat paranoid. When he learned the location of the rendezvous he had intentionally arrived several chimes early so that he could conceal himself several yards away from the trees that were to act as the meeting place. From where he had placed himself Eryss could watch as Eridanus arrived and observe him for several moments before deciding whether or not to approach. He took his time and only when he was sure that the Ethaefal had come alone would he make the decision to approach and emerge from where he had concealed himself behind a large tree some distance away.] [Unless Eridanus was looking he probably would have missed Eryss as he stepped from around the tree and began moving towards him. His footsteps came slowly, he wasn’t actually trying to close the distance stealthily but Eryss was curious as to how close he could get before he was noticed, he walked with one foot over the other and took his time. Dressed in the robes that were as much a trademark of his appearance as anything else Eryss would have watched Eridanus from beneath his hood, concealing the majority of his features especially in the night, until he was sufficiently close to make himself known and his footsteps became more casual.] [It seems likely that due to a base desire that fuelled his own self importance Eryss would have intentionally arrived several minutes late as well. There was something oddly fulfilling that others should wait just a little longer for him after all. Egotistical maybe but effective nonetheless more often than not.] [Once he was within sufficient range that he could be easily seen and heard Eryss would raise his right hand, outstretching it towards Eridanus, and remark...”Greetings Ethaefal.”...he referred to Eridanus by his race rather than his name seeing as how he had not asked Antar for it when this meeting was arranged. Surely the Rogue would have mentioned something but Eryss main concern was the when and where knowing that the other blanks could be filled in as required. Now that he was closer as well Eryss made no attempt to hide the fact he was slowly inspecting Eridanus without the least bit of concern it could have been mistaken as offensive though he would have commented again...”Why don’t you tell me why I’m here.”...again Eryss had some idea of the reason but he liked to hear it personally and from the source rather than make any such assumption.] [Looking away from Eridanus then the Mage would have surveyed the surrounding area as though he were searching for something before realizing what he sought was right in front of him in the form of the two tall trees that designated the meeting. Nodding once he would then glance back towards Eridanus, his curiosity sated for the moment, and wait for the introductions to conclude so that the both of them could talk about the business that they had with one another. In his own way Eryss was tied to formalities. He liked to entertain many of the common pleasantries when he was able though he was just as capable of ignoring them when it suited his needs equally well. Others often found him cold but the Mage thought of himself as quite efficient, even more so when he was lucid and not as tied to his more malignant behaviours such as now.]

[Eridanus]

Eridanus strolled, deep in thought, and he stopped several times to look around and see if his contact had arrived. It was only after a moment that he realized something was odd, and while on his patrol-like walk between two trees he suddenly stopped unnaturally, and heard a single soft footstep before there was silence. Glancing around, for he could not tell the direction of the sound due to it being too soft to tell, he began walking in a greater berth, increasing the radius of the circle as he patrolled its circumference, senses alert trying to find this mysterious intruder. "Greetings Ethaefal", a sombre voice punctuated the silence, and Eridanus spun around to find that he had been looking in the wrong direction after all. In front of him was a robed figure that covered all but his eyes. It was the typical mark of a paranoid wizard, and he knew that from his little understanding of wizard psychology that only a normally paranoid person or a sufficiently advanced sorcerer would reach this level of paranoia. The man seemed to his contact, for he acknowledged the reason of their appointment, and he openly studied the Etheafal, not bothering to hide his curious stares. Eridanus was used to it, for it was normal for other mortals to be attracted to his supernatural glamour, and he did not feel unease. The unease actually came from the presence of this man, for there was a kind of intensity that seemed to surround him. He was no aura-viewer, but his little understanding of magic screamed that this man had a highly advanced understanding of djed manipulation, and a small voice inside him warned him of his safety. He supposed this was why wizards were so highly viewed with suspicion in society, for even as a magic practitioner himself he already felt this growing unease that he tried to suppress, and he tried his best not to let it show on his face as a mark of respect. A friend's friend was a friend, and he would do well to trust that Anthony would not want to visit harm upon him. "Eryss Waldu, I assume?" The Ethaefal directed at the cowled mage. "My name is Eridanus, and the reason for us being brought together by our mutual friend was due to my interest in his fledging abilities." "We were involved in a... conundrum and in a tight spot he used some sort of magic that I do not fully recognize, nor comprehend. After the scrape we had gotten talking, and he revealed that it was Reimancy. And when I delved further into the topic, he recommended his teacher. You." Eridanus had done some research on the topic, and as information was hard to find, he discovered only that it was a form of magic that involved secreting one's own djed, instead of merely manipulating it within the body like Flux, and that it requires a mentor to activate some sort of trigger with the acolyte's body in order for the acolyte himself to wield the magic. "I require initiation, Master Waldu, and will gladly learn any instructions you deem fit to instruct me on", he peppered his words with an honorific and a tinge of respect, for it was custom to submit to a teacher.

[Eryss Waldu]

[Nodding once so that he could confirm that he was who Eridanus had assumed Eryss would listen, first as the Ethaefal introduced himself and then after when he told the Mage why the both of them had come together for this meeting, it seemed a simple matter once he had heard many of the facts that were presented to him. Eyes had focused on Eridanus and Eryss was busy committing him to memory while he explained how Antar had recommended him as a teacher which Eryss didn’t altogether mind even though he often wasn’t content to have his name brandished about. Anonymity to the Mage was key and the fewer people who knew him the better in his opinion though others might have argued Eryss was quite paranoid.] [Whether Eryss would turn the Ethaefal down or not was a mystery best left alone though he did appear satisfied when Eridanus addressed him as Master Waldu, a completely unnecessary title, and seemed to entertain the use of pleasantries many others did not. Contemplating momentarily Eryss would eventually reply...”Very well. I will initiate you into the mysteries of Reimancy young Ethaefal but know that the pain will be great and the price will be high.”...he speaking primarily of the initiation itself which was quite taxing, painful and had, on occasion, left individuals dead in the past. Of course had another thing in mind as well but this was best kept to himself for the moment. Better reveal more when the time was right then too much and to soon.] [Looking at Eridanus, Eryss would draw his right hand into the cloak he wore before removing a Dagger which he held in his palm. Clearly showing it to Eridanus he would begin by telling him...”You will be cut on the hands to begin with. Then I will suffuse you with my own res over a span of several minutes that will be both painful and exhausting before draining it again.”...pausing Eryss would then give Eridanus a moment to consider this information before adding...”Do you agree?”...which was also a roundabout way of asking if Eridanus felt he could handle the procedure. No point in going through the entire process if the Ethaefal did not have the will to see it through after all; if he did not let Eryss complete the procedure the chances of his death were quite high and even were he to live it’s likely he would suffer some kind of mental trauma.] [Putting himself at such risk would beg that Eridanus also revaluate the question of whether a friend of his friend was also a friend though. Were he to displease Eryss then the Mage might decide that Eridanus was a greater boon to him as one of the dead after all.] [Despite that they had only just met it was clear that Eryss did not like to waste time or beat around the bush. Nor did he believe in useless small talk that droned on for some time. However as paranoia dictated he did believe in taking precautions and he already knew that were he to begin the initiation it would leave him in a vulnerable state which is why he had come up with a failsafe to ensure his own safety.] [With his right hand still clutching the Dagger Eryss would motion towards Eridanus and state...”If you agree to the possible risk on your life then take a knee and we will begin.”...the alternative being that Eridanus decide that the possibility he might not fare well was to great and decline. On that note and with the warning offered Eryss would wait for Eridanus to make his choice while beginning to generate a thin translucent veneer that covered his body but took no further form as he started channelling the djed of his body throughout himself. This was not a form of Reimancy but something else, whether Eridanus recognized it or not, and Eryss had only begun to focus his inner djed so that he could create what he desired while holding it in check; the answer of the Ethaefal would dictate what occurred next and whether or not Eryss took what he was doing a step further.] [Outwardly Eryss looked quite calm as usual, he was focused for sure, but his focus was not born of any kind of serenity like it might have been were the meeting to take place with another. Maybe Eridanus would get the sense that the Mage wasn’t altogether in his right mind being so near to him, maybe as he charged his djed the hairs on the back of the Ethaefals neck would stand on end, or maybe nothing. He hoped Eridanus would accept though. Initiating him would be agonizing and Eryss did so enjoy seeing the pain in others as he worked.]

[Eridanus]

The Ethaefal gulped when the mage outlined the initiation process into this Reimancy, which was apparently the official name of the magic that allowed one to craft the elements. Instantly, he began to reconsider his options. It was not that he was afraid of pain, for he had suffered more cuts throughout the decades than he cared to remember. He realized that he would be putting supreme trust in a man that he had only met for a few chimes, and there was nothing to stop this mage from destroying him right here when he stood with no repercussions at all. Then again, if there was no risk there would likely be no gain, and Eri reasoned that it was a calculated risk that he had decided to take, for he felt that he had not offended Anthony and had proved himself a worthy comrade to the rogue. There should not be any reason for the man to intentionally harm him, and so after a brief thought process Eri approached the mage, going down on a knee and offering his hands palm up. "I agree, Master Waldu. Proceed as you will", Eri declared, sealing his fate in the hands of Anthony's master. However, the Ethaefal began to hear some sort of low hum and he instinctively wanted to turn around to detect the source of this sound. He did not do so for fear of making sudden movements around this paranoid wizard, but instead took a second to realize that there was no sound in the physical world. What he was hearing was a result of his holistic training of djed detection by Master Redrux of Denval and he began directing little trickles of djed into his head but first focusing on his hearing. The hum grew louder, and the direction of its source became more obvious, pointing to the person right in front of him. Eri resisted the urge to face-palm. Of course any source of magical activity would be Eryss, what was he expecting, another mage in the vicinity doing something else? The chances of that happening in that case would be too rare to discount as a coincidence. The djed naturally flowed into his other senses and he could taste a little of the wizard's aura, and he resisted the urge to spit for it tasted bitter like bile, but with a tinge of spiciness that represented a hidden anger ready to burst out at any moment. The bitterness of Eryss' 'taste' temporarily blocked Eri's nose from 'smelling' anything, and so he relied on sight and he saw a distinctively black mist curling around the mage. It seemed that Eryss was building some sort of djed-formed blanket around him, and he wondered if it was some sort of Reimancy that the mage was using. If it was not that, the only other art that he knew that would require one to externalize djed this way would be Shielding. To Eryss, the Ethaefal would be waiting patiently for him to proceed looking at him with a controlled and blank expression, though he would notice Eri's open use of Auristics only if he had focused on Eri while building his shield.

[Eryss Waldu]

[Eryss was quite an observer, anyone who knew him for long would learn that he loved to watch, so as Eridanus eyes took on their transformation the Mage would have taken note even while he was preoccupied by the internalization of his djed. Auristics he had thought almost instinctively, Eryss knew of many magical arts though he was not experienced with them all, what he knew of the discipline was that it effected the eyes of the practitioner not unlike Hypnotism though Eryss assumed hypnosis required a verbal component as well. Regardless Eryss didn’t mind if Eridanus could read his aura, it would reveal exactly what the Ethaefal had already seen, perhaps he would understand just how deep the darkness went in the Mage if he could look that far into his soul.] [With Eridanus down on his knees offering his hands Eryss had only to complete the Shield he had begun to weave for his own protection, and out of his own paranoia, before he began and as the hum that Eridanus heard grew louder the Shield would manifest as an eruption not as a flicker. Expanding itself outwardly the Shield would go from the internal to the external as Eryss forced it away from himself as a thin translucent layer that grew to encompass Eridanus as well and continued out until it made a dome over both Ethaefal and Mage leaving them inside. The Shield itself would extend twenty feet around both of its occupants and raise a total of twelve feet in height, its walls were thinner on top than the sides but remained mostly consistent. This Shield had but two tasks; the first to deny entrance to biologics which meant that no one who could not breach the Shield would be able to physically enter though both occupants could leave if they desired and the second task was to absorb light trying to exit the area, essentially creating a grey zone for anyone that would attempt to look into it, it made the threshold beyond the Shield look static and grey to anyone seeing it and rendered the actions of those within unseen.] [Now that he had finished Eryss took a moment to breath. Shielding was not an especially taxing or potentially fatal magic and Eryss could have cast many spells afterwards having a good knowledge of his own djed but he preferred to take a moment and collect himself when possible. Looking at Eridanus too, who presumably remained down on his knees, Eryss would nod his head and show him the Dagger that he held one more time so that there was no mistaking what would happen next and that it would not be a pleasant occurrence. Thus was the price that needed to be paid though.] [Without warning Eryss would take Eridanus right wrist in his hand and pull it closer to himself before plunging the Dagger that he held into his palm. Stabbing the bladed weapon into the palm of Eridanus Eryss would carve away at the flesh of his hand until he had cut a literal opening into it and blood poured out freely. Releasing his hand once it was done Eryss would have turned his attention to the other and taken Eridanus left wrist. Much of the same followed as the Mage stabbed with the Dagger before using it to slice and cut open Eridanus palm until blood flowed freely and then, like before, he released his hold before stepping back.] [Averting his eyes to the Dagger covered in the blood of the Ethaefal Eryss would wonder quietly before slowly returning the blade into the robes he wore without cleaning the crimson away. A bit of blood the Ethaefal wouldn’t be needing anymore but perhaps something that Eryss himself could experiment with at a later date to see whether or not the vitae of an Ethaefal held any special properties of its own. It would be educational if nothing else.] [As he looked back towards Eridanus Eryss would have told him in a clear and concise voice...”Open your mouth. Keep it open no matter how much pain you feel. You wouldn’t want me to be unable to remove my djed from you. Your head might explode.”...whether he was being serious or telling Eridanus this as a sort of black joke was difficult to decipher even if the Ethaefal was still looking at his aura. One thing was certain though and that was that people did die during these initiations so it was reasonable to believe that Eryss had told Eridanus this for his own benefit.] [It was then that Eryss began to internalize again. Channelling his djed and manipulating it within his own body until a thin sickly emerald gas began to emanate from him. He exhaled it from his mouth and it seemed to waft from his nostrils, slowly curling around his body as it built, as Eryss generated enough of it to do what was intended.]

[Eridanus]

As Eridanus continued looking, it seemed that the aura he was looking at was not technically that of Eryss', for how could it be when it seemed to start expanding gradually around the wizard? With a jolt, he realized that it was definitely shielding, for the art required one to extrude one's djed and use it to form the desired shield. The shield would hold an essence of the wizard who built it, like a sort of personal signature, and to Eri the wizard's characteristic djed from what he could read was a midnight black with a hint of sulfur. It was not a very nice feeling. He continued gazing at the shield around him as it first wrapped around Eryss' body, and it continued to expand. The growing shield soon began to approach the Ethaefal and the smell of brimstone became stronger as a result of Eri's holistic use of Auristics, the humming increasing sharply as the shield touched him and continued expanding, now including him inside the dome. He coughed and fidgeted uncomfortably as the shield passed by him, something that would not go unnoticed to the observant wizard. After a while, the tapestry of djed simply stopped expanding, and it seemed to weave among itself, the strands of djed forming a certain pattern, something that would fulfill the purpose its architect intended it to fulfill. He frowned as he squinted at the thin layering of djed that formed a dome around the two of them, trying to decipher its purpose as he continued to consume djed in order to fuel his magical sight. After a while, he began to see a certain pattern in the djed that would be meaningless to another except him, for everyone would see different things with Auristics, and whatever one would see would be the thing that most made sense to the individual. Of course! Eryss would want to block sight, and he could see the shape of the intricate threads of djed around the shield that signified the pattern of disallowing light to enter. That was not all though, and Eri frowned, for the design was simply too intricate to fulfill this on purpose. There must be another task designed for this shield, and as he strove to discover what it was, he was quite suddenly interrupted painfully. The Ethaefal's eyes briefly flashed red and his djed-fueled examination of the shield stopped, his magical sight of the shield's aura disappearing as his concentration was quite painfully disrupted by Eryss plunging the dagger into his palm. He gasped as the wizard continued to mutilate his palm such that more blood would flow, and his every sense screamed at him to tumble away and draw his blades against this scum. It took all the self-control he had to override the instinct borne by years of combat and continue kneeling there, willingly allowing the wizard to cut deeper wounds into him. Eri gritted his teeth as he tried to cope with the pain. It was not as if he had not suffered wounds before, and he had indeed suffered worse wounds before. However, said wounds were sustained in the midst of combat, and the adrenaline at that time had helped to numb the pain and overwhelm it with the excitement of violent combat. This time was completely different, for he was like a sacrificial victim, sitting here and experiencing the full extent of the pain as he voluntarily suffered. It was a completely different experience. He summoned whatever concentration he had left and began to systematically clear his thoughts from his mind, for he had remembering reading somewhere that meditation would help to cope with pain somewhat, and he began to consciously ignore the warning flags planted by his mind to avoid further damage to his body. As his mind began to clear, the pain dulled somewhat, but it was still actively assaulting every sense that he had. Eryss seemed to be satisfied with one hand, and he grabbed Eri's other hand to continue with the same. A single tear rolled down the Ethaefal's eyes in reflex as he blinked, desperately ignoring the sharp stinging from his hands and focusing only on clearing his mind. It helped somewhat, though he was simply not good enough at entering meditation that it would help to lessen the pain significantly. Still, it was better than nothing and afforded the Ethaefal something to do instead of 'relishing' every second of hurt. There was no other words for it, it was excruciating physically and psychologically. He felt the sharp edge of the knife finally leaving his hands, and the wizard seemed to be done with this part of the ritual. Eri fervently hoped that the painful part was over, though he doubted it. There was no doubt that he would be in for worse, and a small part of him wondered why he subjected himself through this torture just for the sake of knowledge. ”Open your mouth. Keep it open no matter how much pain you feel. You wouldn’t want me to be unable to remove my djed from you. Your head might explode", Eryss Waldu informed him. Woah. Deja vu. Eri remembered that when he first learned Auristics from Master Redrux of Denval's Lyceum, a form of research institute cum gathering of scholars and magicians, the old master had warned him of exactly the same thing, except that it was his eyeballs that would be exploding. He had not found out if ol' Red was jesting or serious, though he had no wish to do so. The Ethaefal's thoughts were wandering, partly because of the searing burn on his palms and he tried to jolt himself back to the present. Right, opening my mouth. That was pretty awkward, kneeling down and opening one's mouth in front of another man. He resisted the urge to giggle hysterically and simply complied. The wizard had warned him, and he locked his jaws in place, making sure to keep his mouth opened even if the next Valterrian should strike at that moment. Turning his thoughts inwards, he tried to escape the trauma of the present and sought refuge within the comforts of his mind. Utilizing another form of meditation - the books in Sunberth library were delightfully informative - he felt his external physical senses dulling somewhat as he retreated into his mind. As he felt less in-tuned with his external senses, he began to see the djed streams of his astral body in his mind, but he resisted any urge to activate the flux for fear of messing up the initiation process for Reimancy. Instead, he satisfied himself by simply observing the streams of raw energy throughout his body, familiarizing himself better with his astral body and occupying his mind with a task to distract him from the unease of the present.

[Eryss Waldu]

[Maybe Eridanus thought that Eryss would do was trapping him inside when the Shield passed both of them by but no he was ensuring the both of their protection. He’d have ensured no one could see what they were doing and no one could walk in on them while they were in the process of doing it. Ironically if Eryss were to say that over in his own mind it wouldn’t sound altogether to reassuring with Eridanus down on his knees but were some voyeur able to see them it wouldn’t be long before such lewdness was dashed from their minds as they witnessed what this was really all about. As for being ill at ease, well the Ethaefal was feeling something that was only natural.] [Looking down at Eridanus afterwards, after he had cut into his palms, as the man opened his mouth as instructed and remained on his knees Eryss would allow him a moment to center his mind, he could meditate if he thought it would mitigate some of the pain, though the Mage himself could have reassured him it would make little difference. Notions of pain were quickly dispelled in situations such as this. After all what was the worst pain that Eridanus had suffered? Was he stabbed? Beaten? Bludgeoned? Maybe being born was his worst pain? None of that would matter in a few moments times as the Ethaefal would have discovered.] [As Eryss looked down at Eridanus the gaseous djed continued to emit from him as tendrils of smoke, winding itself around the body of the Mage as he exhaled it or climbing higher and becoming a cloud that hovered over his head, but with a simple mental control of it he would have caused it to begin hovering closer to the Ethaefal. Winding its way closer to Eridanus at first the smoke would have licked across his face as though it were a slimy tongue drawing itself over uncharted flesh, it was acting as though it were alive and looking for something. Indeed the thin gaseous strands of djed would search the body of the Ethaefal as though they were looking for something until at last tendrils of the emerald smoke would have discovered the open palms of Eridanus and pressed against it, mercifully slow to begin with which was merely the precursor to worse things to come.] [Not more than a moment after Eridanus would have felt the tendrils of smoke pressing against his bloody palms would they dive into the holes carved into his flesh and enter his body. Piercing his body via the holes that Eryss had stabbed into his it would be as though two nails had just been hammered through the hands of the Ethaefal when the tendrils of gaseous djed forced themselves into him, inserting themselves deeper and deeper into his wounded hands. Were that all it might have been bearable but as the tendrils dug themselves deeper into his arms Eridanus would feel the veins travelling throughout them come alive as though lightning in a bottle and yet that was not all, his bones would ache and his skin would crawl as though it were trying to retreat away from him.] [Yet through his pain Eridanus had not suffered the worst of it. Once Eryss had begun to insert his djed through the ritualized wounds delivered to the Ethaefal’s palms he would cause a large column of the gaseous djed that had wound itself around him to rise up into the air before descending like an avalanche into the opened mouth of Eridanus. It was like a floodgate had been opened. Pouring itself into his mouth Eridanus might as well have felt like he was being suffocated on fire that burnt its way down his throat and pooled in his stomach where it must have felt as though it were burning him alive from the inside out. Were he to think he was going to die it would have been quite understandable as his body might well have felt like it was being reduced to shadows and dust and nothing more than that but he would still live.] [It was not nearly over yet either. After the djed had begun to force itself into his hands and mouth the last remaining smaller tendrils would shoot into his nostrils and ears. Virtually every major entrance into his body was invaded by the gaseous djed that would have no mercy on the Ethaefal. Only his eyes were left alone and so if he could continue to command his Auristics Eryss himself could have only imagined what he might have seen. Watching Eridanus the Mage himself took a certain satisfaction in the momentous amount of pain he must have been inflicting on the Ethaefal, Eryss could still remember how painful his initiation was, this would be an event that would likely stay in his mind for the remainder of his life.] [Whipping his hand out quite suddenly too Eryss would grasp for the throat of Eridanus and move his fingers to latch beneath and ensure the mouth of the Ethaefal remained open while the djed continued to saturate itself inside of Eridanus body. Tilting his head to one side he spoke quite clearly then so that Eridanus could hear him through all the pain he was being forced to endure...”It hurts, doesn’t it? Not to worry you only need to endure for minutes yet.”...only minutes, not hours or longer, it was a price that needed to be paid for power unimaginable.]

[Eridanus]

Eridanus continued his internal musings, when he felt sudden sharp pain in his palms. It like someone was intentionally stabbing at the gaping wounds on his hands created by Eryss but doing so with the intention of creating as much pain as possible, and he briefly wondered if he should open his eyes to see what was happening. He twitched involuntarily as his body shuddered as another wave of pain struck him and he decided against it. There was no doubt that if he opened his eyes to actually see what was happening the mental torment would be far worse. Gritting his teeth, he stubbornly focused on his mind-map of the djed streams within him, repeating a senseless mantra in his mind over and over again. The Ethaefal's body shuddered again violently as he felt as if two huge claymores had been driven into both palms through the wounds, and even know he had his eyes clenched shut tears were beginning to freely fall from his closed lids, his body finding some way of expressing its weeping at the torture that it was going through. Eri refused to submit mentally, and though his body was responding as it ought to, he refused to allow his mind to break down from the overwhelming pain that was assaulting his senses, using pure will alone to sustain himself in chanting the same set of nonsensical words over and over again in his mind until all his thoughts knew were these words and the mind map of this djed streams. He forced himself to eyeball his mind map of the djed streams such that the image began to mentally sear itself into his memory, for he did not want to think about anything else. He did not want to even think about the inconceivable devastation his body was going through, and this mentality helped him to cope with the torture. A little. If he felt that the previous instances were the worse, he would be nastily greeted with a fresh set of experiences that would redefine his notion of what maximum physical pain truly meant. Eri felt an unnatural yearning to suddenly jump around and participate in some sort of grotesque, macabre dance, prancing around like he was on fire, for he felt exactly that, but many times worse. It was like being on fire, from within and there was an unnerving itch to claw at his skin until he could unearth this fire that was invading his veins in order to grab it and pull it out. It wouldn't hurt right? Since he was already hurting this bad. Before he could consider any such self-destructive thoughts, his mind temporarily flashed a blank white as he lost consciousness for a split second when Eryss' gaseous tendrils of Res entered into the various orifices on his face, leaving only his eyes. He sputtered, refusing to close his mouth from having locked his jaw muscles in place. Now on top of the excruciating pain he felt from palms, there was the inner fire that was traversing his very veins, and the latest addition to the cauldron of nastiness was this. He felt like he was drowning, except that he was drowning in some sort of poisonous flames, which was many times in magnitude worse than water. There was no other words to describe this, and he began to choke, his mind having second thoughts about closing his mouth. Maybe if he closed his mouth and moved away he would be able to escape this pain. Maybe this wasn't worth it after all, and the mental anguish of not knowing what else to expect gave the Ethaefal a series of irrational thoughts that became more exaggerated and ridiculous as he began dreaming them, the final thought ending with one channelling all the djed into his legs so that he could jump really high to fly into the heavens and enjoy wine with the Gods. This final hallucination was interrupted when Eryss grasped Eri's throat to ensure that his mouth was kept open, and on hindsight the Ethaefal would have appreciated this gesture for it might have been the one action that saved himself from fatally disrupting the initiation procedure, for his mouth at that time already had notions of closing and proceeding with his suicidal plan. His eyes fluttered open as he looked at the wizard who assured him that he only had chimes to go before his torment was over, the tears still rolling and glistening in the moonlight for his arms ached too deeply for him to wipe them away. He was slightly ashamed at showing this sign of weakness to the wizard, but at that point of time he did not care, for all imaginable form of his senses were being invaded, overwhelmed by the inconceivable torment Eryss' expression of Res brought about during the initiation procedure.

[Eryss Waldu]

[Agonies the likes of which Eryss himself could not well imagine were passing through the body of the Ethaefal and though the Mage himself had gone through a similar initiation his master might have been a tad more lenient than Eryss himself was being. After he had clamped his hand around the neck of Eridanus the Mage would tilt his head as though he were observing the reactions of the Ethaefal, even then as he permeated the body of Eridanus with his own djed he watched, perhaps he was looking for something or checking for some sign that the body of Eridanus could take no more. No, it couldn’t have that simple because Eryss could have forced enough of his djed into the Ethaefal to overwhelm him beyond even the inconceivable limits he experienced now.] [Of course it went on just as Eryss had said. It went on for what seemed like an endless amount of time. Ironic how minutes can seem like they’re much longer when you’re in an excruciating amount of pain but such was the price of progress Eryss was convinced. Ensuring that his mouth would remain open for awhile longer Eryss eventually drew his hand away from the throat of Eridanus, releasing him, and then stepping backwards a few paces while finally concluding the initiation slowly. It began when the djed saturating Eridanus ceased to fill him and entered a state that was similar to a stasis and though the next part was not altogether painful it may well have been unpleasant to experience.] [Inside Eridanus the djed that Eryss had filled him with in a gaseous state became the epitome of the Mage’s Res, what he used to create the effects of his Reimancy, and letting it just sit there momentarily inside of the Ethaefal was the most dangerous part of the initiation because at any moment Eryss might decide to transmute his res. Imagine then if it became fire and literally burnt Eridanus from the inside out, it seemed the most likely scenario, though Earth and Air were equally dangerous. At last however Eridanus would feel the thin gaseous substance begin to slowly remove itself from his body in a prolonged and slow procedure.] [The Ethaefal’s hands were the first things to feel any relief, as the res slowly wound itself out of his wounds, followed by his nose and ears. Finally all the would be left was the res that had drilled down into the mouth of Eridanus and ventured down his throat to fill his stomach with its permeating presence until it to was felt retreating and leaving the Ethaefal empty. Not completely empty though. Were the Initiation successful and Eryss was quite confident that it was he was certain that Eridanus would feel somehow changed, different, and able to harness his own djed for creation of res to use in what might have been the most powerful magical art known to Mizahar. It was all fine and well to say this, to feel it even, but now Eridanus had another long road to venture down if he were to desire it.] [Looking at the Ethaefal Eryss would tilt his head to one side before asking the question...”How do you feel? Alive?”...the last bit had been a somewhat malicious pun seeing as how Eridanus had likely felt a certain desire to meet death during the initiation. Inspecting the Ethaefal from a short distance away though Eryss was expecting that Eridanus was exhausted from his ordeal, it wasn’t uncommon to be left the way after all, though it seemed as though the Mage was most interested in mentally assessing and observing him as compared to lending him a hand. When Eryss was satisfied that Eridanus would live however he continued by adding...”Your body is changed. You will be able to create res but it will take practice and initially you’ll be limited to very small amounts of it. Do not test your limits unless absolutely necessary; Reimancy is not the most forgiving discipline.”...the last piece of advice was free considering new practitioners of Reimancy were sometimes seduced by the Sweet Whispers and rendered unto their own oblivion thereafter.] [Now there was more of course but Eryss wanted to give the Ethaefal a moment to process everything he had just been told and maybe take a second to clear his mind as well. “What do you think your first element will be? It’s a mystery to some until they discover it through cause and effect. Mine was fire; I was attracted to the beauty of it.”...and that was not all but he didn’t seem to want to reveal too much to Eridanus during this nostalgic moment nor did he intend to. Eryss wouldn’t stay with Eridanus much longer, he wouldn’t coddle him, and there was no point in trying to give a lesson in what was likely the current state of the Ethaefal but the Mage now had at least a moderate investment in him so he remained a few moments more.]