Can the Spirits of Two Be Spirited? (Caoin)

[Auldwin]

22nd day of Fall, 511 AV

It wasn't long before Auldwin took up Caoin's offer to visit her. It was a strange feeling, going out of his way to visit someone of the living. He had never felt any true connection to anyone with a pulse in the last few years, and in fact often found himself drifting further and further away from Humanity. Auldwin knew well enough the stories of Ghosts that had lost themselves completely, given in to the nature of the existence they now occupied. Some became monsters, some faded back into the cycle, some simply disappeared completely. That was something of a burden to bear, the thought that one day Auldwin might simply vanish. Not now though, not yet. There was still much to be done, and although the sight of his goals were still shining brightly before him, he determined it was best to take some time and genuinely get to know the people whose land he was now occupied.

These Drykas seemed like a good people, although Auldwin felt a strong blur between his lines of good and bad. He sometimes felt the strong, resonating thoughts of evil cross his mind. Thoughts about using fear and pain to get what he needed. He had fought those away and replaced them with the idea of befriending the living in the hopes that through mutual aid they could benefit one another. It seemed to be working so far. At the very least he had met one person whom he could interact with. That was good enough for him. Understanding the typical Human associations, getting acquainted with one person opened the door for opportunities with others.

It took some time to find Caoin's tent, but time was something a Ghost had plenty of. If you possessed the diligence to use that time appropriately you could accomplish basically anything, given the freedom of a Ghostly lifestyle. Eventually Auldwin came across a pavilion toward the outermost circle of the Endrykas. It was just as she had said, far enough outside to have space for the animals she cared for. Her connection with animals was something Auldwin felt a bit envious of. Although he connected with them internally, it was a rather forced and one sided connection. Otherwise, animals basically hated Auldwin, or at the very best, reluctantly tolerated him. Something about being a Ghost just set animals off, made them wary and displeased with his presence. Among the more sensitive Humans, Auldwin found the same was true.

Floating toward the pavilion, Auldwin took the time to solidify his form with Materialization, and his form would be found to be much more coherent than previously. He was working with a fully rested Soulmist, compared to the tired, more utilized Soulmist from when they had previously met. The great deal of practice he was having with Materialization had been helping as well, and he could feel the transition from nothingness into something becoming more and more reflexive. It seemed Materialization was much like his other abilities, it just took a bit more practice given his resistant nature when it came to focusing on only himself. "Caoin? Are you about?" he asked. It was early, approaching the noontime, and so he wasn't truly sure what sort of chores or tasks she had during a typical day.

[Caoin]

Caoin was standing out in front of her family’s kennel, five of her canines lined up in front of her. Shasta wasn’t allowed to be around the rest of the dogs since Caoin still wasn’t sure if she was pregnant or not. She was going through training drills with them, so to speak, practicing their responses to non-verbal commands so that they didn’t begin to slack off or grow stubborn. She held her hand up, as if she was indicating for someone to stop, her palm facing the dogs and watched as they assumed the sit position. She lowered her hand, dropping it to her side and the dogs dropped to their bellies, laying down for her. “Good job, guys, now stay” she praised them as she walked over to stand in front of the first, her male silkena, Sharan. She bent forward, extending her hand to him and waited for him to lift one paw and place it in her hand. She shook the paw gently and released it before patting him on the head. It wasn’t a particularly useful trick for the dogs to know, but it was a trick that she could use when she was working with them to keep them trained. She started down the line of dogs, having each one perform shake and rewarding them with a pat on the head.

The Drykas woman was on her fourth dog when they all rose to their feet and started to bark and growl in agitation. “Oi,” she called to them, “Quiet. Sit.” The dogs sat and stopped their barking but they all continued to whine, except for Sealgaire who was a little more behaved than the rest. Caoin looked in the direction they were whining as she heard someone call her name, and reaching up to shade her eyes and wipe her brow, she looked to see who it was that was calling for her. “Over here,” she responded to the familiar, not so solid figure. “Auldwin, right? The ghost from Rothos’s pavilion?” Yes, her voice indicated that she was asking for confirmation, but it was rather difficult to actually forget meeting a ghost. She did remember his name and that he was a spirit. She seemed quite excited to see him again, though in a different way than her dogs. She noticed that all but Sealgiare seemed to be shivering uncontrollably in their excitement. The trainer shook her head, “Kennel,” she ordered them. “Sealgaire, heel,” she issued the command to the one dog who seemed to be able to control himself. The rest of the dogs reluctantly marched off to their individual runs within the kennel tent.

“It’s good to see you again, Auldwin,” Caion said as she started walking to meet the ghost, Sealgaire sticking close to her side. As they neared Auldwin, the dog seemed wary of him. He circled the spirit, sniffing at his soulmist. While curious, Sealgaire didn’t seem particularly agitated by the ghost, likely because Caoin was so calm in his presence. If Caoin was calm, then Sealgaire had no need to be anxious or frightened.

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[Auldwin]

With a fresh gout of Soulmist at his disposal, Auldwin went forward and replied in Caoin's native tongue. His gestures were now more easily replicated when performing the Pavi language, and the overall opaque quality of his image seemed improved from the last time they met. His voice was oddly off centered from his figure, and was slightly echoed, but otherwise easy enough to understand. It's volume and intonation was correct, but there was some type of interference with it, as if something was keeping it from being naturally crisp and clear.

He looked for a moment at what she was doing with the canines. Before he watched her perform some hand signals, and it appeared as if the animals were responding to her, quite obediently in fact. That was interesting to Auldwin, who never claimed to have much skill with animals in life, a quality which only became worse in death. "You can order them, and they listen?" His words came out as a question, but really he was stating his observation. It appeared one dog in particular wasn't even that fearful of his supernatural existence. In response to the animals bravery, Auldwin did his best to keep his Soulmist as static as possible, reducing the amount of as well as the intervals between his fluctuations.

"You have many animals. Never had one in Syliras. Space was too small. Worked with them, that was all. Mostly horses, mules, and oxen. Never dogs." he remarked. The Ghost had pet a stray cat that often hung around Syliras, greedily looking for scraps now and again, but he and his wife lived without any real animal companionship. Not that they had enough money or space to take care of such a creature. Out in the Sea of Grass, Caoin had almost limitless space at her disposal, quite a difference from the walled in enclosures of the Castle City.

"This is what you do then? Are trained dogs valuable out here? In this place I mean." he felt it necessary to clarify. The Drykas had a strong emphasis on hunting and existing with the wild, and Auldwin could only imagine a trained dog could perform at least some of those tasks. His head cocked downward as he looked at the one dog, Sealgaire, coming close enough to nearly touch his Soulmist. Auldwin never knew if he had a scent or not, as he possessed no actual sense of smell anymore. He had heard that certain Ghosts emanated odors simply from their presence, but whether the actual Soulmist had such a quality, he did not know.

[Caoin]

“If they’re trained, yes, I can get them to do certain things with visual and verbal commands,” Caoin responded to the ghost’s question. “You just have to learn to keep the dogs focused on you when you’re working with them. They’re harder to control if their attention is diverted to every new thing that enters their environment,” she explained, “Of course, there are some things that it’s just harder to divert their attention from, such as real threats, and apparently spirits.” The Drykas woman chuckled at that last bit, she’d heard somewhere before that animals were sensitive to spirits and that most reacted adversely to their presence. Caoin watched as Sealgaire sniffed at Auldwin’s soulmist and returned her side, seemingly uninterested in the ghost once he’d completed his investigation. Caoin was unsure of just what the animal had gotten from his examination of Auldwin’s soulmist, but it didn’t appear that anything about the spirit’s presence worried the hound. The dog curled up on the ground next to Caoin and she nudged him affectionately with her boot tip, rubbing the leather against his side and ruffling the fur there. She seemed to enjoy the ghost’s curiosity as he began to ask her more questions. The least she could do was answer some questions for Auldwin after all the questions he’d answered for her on their first meeting. It had been a rather interesting meeting and she’d kept the ghost around in his more physical form for quite awhile after he’d already exhausted much of soulmist, as he called it. Though, from the sound of it, he would grow stronger the more he did and be able to maintain his form longer as he practiced, so if he could stretch his use of his soulmist for a longer period every time, then perhaps it would help him in the long run.

Auldwin continued to speak, noting the number of animals she had been working with, and then explaining that he had also worked with animals when he was alive. His work seemed to involve mostly animals used for riding and pulling loads, work and pack animals. He had never worked with dogs before, had never owned a pet. It was something that Caoin wouldn’t be able to understand, having been raised in a family where there were always animals of all kinds around, in a society where animals were such an integral way of life and so highly regarded, especially horses. To the Drykas, animals were like an extension of the family. To Caoin in particular, the animals were special. She respected and worshiped Caiyha above all other divine beings and Caoin worked hard to make sure that Caiyha’s children were treated as Caiyha would have them treated. It wasn’t easy to do though; the animals still had to be treated like animals, for their own well being, when often she wanted to treat them as if they were humans. That wasn’t to say that she didn’t enjoy talking to them as if they were conversational partners, and often time she would speak to them and her mind would fill in responses for them. She had invited Auldwin to use Sealgaire in his attempt to learn possession, and she was relieved that the dog seemed to be unafraid of the ghost. Part of her was uneasy about the arrangement though, unsure of how Caiyha would feel about such a thing. She wanted to ask Auldwin some more questions about how possession worked and how it affected the animals. The horse had been physically uninjured, but she wondered what it was like for the animal mentally, to lose control of their body. What happened to the animal’s spirit while the ghost was inside? If the animal could fight against the ghost to maintain control, did that mean that the animals did not like it?

Caoin shook her head in response to Auldwin’s question, “Not really, it’s more of a side project at the moment,” she started. She looked around for a moment and then motioned for the ghost to follow her, realizing she had been standing in the middle of her family’s camp and that if anyone happened along, they might find it strange to see her talking to a spirit or possibly thin air if they couldn’t see him. With a gentle tap of her hand against her hip and thigh, Sealgaire rose and followed at her side as well, his tongue lolling out of his mouth, as he panted to keep himself cool. Caoin started walking towards the edge of her family’s camp site, once she made sure that Auldwin was following, keeping an eye out for any of the rest of her family, just in case. “This is what I’d like to do eventually. I’d like to train animals for people and breed dogs and horses. Trained animals are valuable anywhere, there’s nothing like having a trained hunting or guard dog. Their senses are better than ours; they can sense a predator coming long before we can,” she explained. Hunting and guard dogs were important anywhere, but especially to the Drykas people. The grasslands were dangerous and all forms of early warning were invaluable to her people. “When we’re out on the grass, these guys tell us when predators are approaching that we can’t see,” she motioned to Sealgaire as she spoke, “and they help us to locate prey that we might not be able to otherwise, prey that provides our people with food. The Emerald clansmen are very close to their hunting dogs and cats, a good pair of human and animal can provide well for a family.” She looked down at her down dog, “Sometimes, I think I’d be lost without my babies,” referring to the dogs of course.

As Caoin waited for the conversation to drift around to the offer she had made to Auldwin, she found herself thinking about how to address the issue and formulating a further addition to her plan. She wasn’t sure if Auldwin would go for it, but she wanted to know what the animals went through when they were possessed, she wanted to understand it more so that she would know what they were feeling while being possessed and how they felt afterwards. It would help her to treat them afterwards and to better understand what they would need afterwards to recuperate from the ordeal. She was hoping that the ghost wouldn’t have a problem with her request, though it hadn’t been part of the original plan. But she would cross that bridge when it came, first, she wanted to make sure she answered Auldwin’s questions.

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[Auldwin]

Just as that lone hound watched him, Auldwin watched the canine. It was interesting that the creature wasn't whimpering or barking like the many other creatures Auldwin had met. From what he had seen basically everything living hated his presence. The only thing different with Human-folk was they could be reasoned with, for the most part. Even then his presence and especially his touch was very unwelcome. People had described being near him, and touching him as many different things. The cold was the most prevalent thing, Auldwin could never be sure why but the stark drop in physical temperature seemed to carry about him where ever he went. He wasn't the only one of course, a Ghost in Black Rock that specialized in making ice cream probably found that quality to be most useful.

The touch itself, the interaction with Soulmist was worse. Auldwin had heard that his Soulmist was burning, even though it was cold. Others said it was like rubbing wool and then brushing against something metal. Almost like a tiny lightning storm. Nothing injurious came about dealing with the Soulmist, no one truly got burned or frostbitten, but Auldwin knew of stories where the mere touch of a Ghost caused grave debilitation, or even death in the living. The Ghost couldn't even imagine how that was possible, he had personally never experienced such a reaction. Could Soulmist really be so...allergic to everything living that it sucked the very living essence from whatever it touched? He hoped not, Auldwin wasn't looking to needlessly slaughter the living. Certainly there were those that deserved it, he wasn't a saint or the champion of some righteously good God, but he'd prefer the ability to interact with the living without killing them, just as he was doing right now. Fear itself was a powerful enough tool, and he'd met his fill of people that feared his very nature, as well they should. Through that fear he had accomplished a great many things. There was...the occasional time he had to provide something further, something beyond fear to get what he wanted. That wasn't something he would ever bring up with Caoin, however.

Auldwin listened to the various things Caoin spoke of. A side project, was it? So her ambitions reached further than this immediate set of skills she was displaying, not bad. Auldwin met a great many of the living, and those that sat amongst their peers and demonstrated no discernible life goals reminded him too much of his old self. That reminiscence made him uncomfortable. Conversely, people that displayed talent and drive brought out the inner resolve within him. They were essentially the medicine for this dead condition. They couldn't remedy it, not immediately anyway, but those types of folks made it much more tolerable to exist in the way Auldwin did.

He followed just as Caoin gestured. Though in his Materialized form he did indeed have two separate legs, as opposed to the vaporous mist-like cloud that he typically floated up, he still simply followed beside her without actually taking steps. That skill, Materialization, gave him the means to appear to the living as one of their own, but it didn't change the fact that there wasn't anything left to him anymore. He had no weight, no true mass, only Possession could change that, and only for a short time. "That makes sense. Is very true. Have seen dogs work the fields in the past, the great fields of Syliras to the south. Very important place, Knights and animals keep people and creatures away. I have seen animals notice my presence before people." he remarked, deciding to throw his own input into the situation.

Oh how useful it would have been if he had a little warning before getting killed out in the Sea of Grass. A dog notifying him of a predator would have been spectacular, but would it have changed the outcome? With his body unable to respond to his wishes, would he have simply had more time to fear his own demise? Though he didn't wish it, his thoughts seemed to maneuver toward those dark days, regardless to his current time being spent with Caoin. Quickly he tried to push them away, shove them back down at the bottom of his memories. There would be a time to call upon them, call upon the flame they provided, but that time was not now. Life as a Ghost was an emotional one, and emotions could indeed effect the abilities of a Ghost, but they could also drive you crazy. When you were dead you didn't have much to do a lot of the time but recall all those past memories. It was like having something traumatic happen in your life, and then spend every waking moment recalling it, reliving it. It wasn't healthy at all.

"Emerald? Yes, I have heard of these terms much in Endrykas. Emerald, Opal...Diamond I think was one? Have heard that certain Drykas are a part of different ones." he remarked. Supposedly the man that had a talent in Spiritism, Zeal Aldercraft, was a part of the Opal clan, whom were apparently healers and the like. Auldwin couldn't claim to know much about the other castes of the Endrykas though. He could tell that Caoin greatly cared for her creatures though. It made him feel a bit guilty for agreeing to take Possession of them, assuming she was still able to fulfill that agreement. As far as Auldwin knew, Possession wasn't inherently traumatic. Of course, his was, but that was a different story completely. In parts of his Possession only certain parts of his body were Possessed, and that posed a two-fold problem. Not only did it mean that he was fully awake and coherent during his own Possession, but he got to experience the terror and helplessness of struggling against his own body.

Despite all of the time and effort Auldwin had put into Possession he had never been able to accomplish such a feat. All of his Possession targets were either Possessed completely, or rejected him, and indeed he had been rejected on more than one occasion. It was best to target the sleeping or the young, although for animals it was a bit different. Some would initially reject Auldwin all throughout the Possession, but more often than not an animal would recede away from that direct confrontation. It was like covering an animals eyes and watching them become more passive. "Never had that kind of connection in life. Seems nice. Don't think it could ever happen now, dogs don't seem to like me. That one seems strangely ok, though." he extended a Ghostly finger toward Sealgaire, taking note of the canine's seemingly unwavering bravery. Just why did that dog experience such a different reaction? Was it due to the breed, Auldwin wondered.

[Caoin]

Caoin, the dog, and the ghost walked… well, the ghost more or less floated… towards the edge of her family’s camp where it was quiet and more secluded. There would be more room for them to work without being disturbed. As they went, Caoin seemed thoroughly engrossed in the conversation she was having with Auldwin, listening to what he had to add to her portion of the conversation, and occasionally reaching down to ruffle the wavy fur atop Sealgaire’s head. The dog, though not aggressive, had instinctively placed himself between Caoin and Auldwin, with his attention focused more on their surroundings than the two of them. Ever the vigilant guardian of his mistress.

Auldwin began to speak of the clans and Caoin noticed that he seemed to have a limited understanding of them. “Yes, the Drykas people are divided up in family groups, each family belongs to a clan that is named after a color. Each clan has its own specialty, mmm…” she thought about how best to explain it. “Each clan specializes in a certain thing that is needed by our people to survive,” she continued to explain, “Such as the Emerald clan consisting of mostly hunters who provide us with food and supplies from the animals they kill. The Opal clan is where most of our healers our found. And my family is part of the Amethyst clan, we are primarily known as the horse breeders. We provide the Drykas people with the striders and semes that are so integral to our way of life.” There were quite a few clans and it could be hard for someone who was unfamiliar with the Drykas way of life to keep them straight and learn them all. The longer the ghost was there, the more he would come to understand, that much she knew.

The topic of conversation turned back to her relationship with Sealgaire and her other dogs, and Caoin couldn’t but smile. The smile faded quickly as she reminded of Auldwin’s plight. “Mmm, I have heard that animals are sensitive to the presence of spirits, more so than humans,” Caoin noted to the ghost, “I asked my father about it and he said that there were stories of animals who had warned their masters of spirits, and there is a breed of dog that is especially sensitive to your kind. Though I have not personally worked with any of them.” The jivaltus ghost dog, or something along those lines, she couldn’t quite remember what breed name her father had given her. He was far more knowledgeable than she in that area, since she hadn’t yet worked extensively with even all of the breeds that could be found within the Cyphrus region. Her thoughts returned to Sealgaire and Auldwin as the ghost pointed out that the quarni seemed undisturbed by his presence compared to most other dogs and Caoin nodded in agreement with the ghost’s observation.

“It’s probably because he and I have been together so long that he responds better to my temperament. Because I am calm around you and don’t fear you, he is calm and feels no fear,” Caoin began to explain. This much she knew, so long as she showed no fear or weakness in the presence of the ghost, Sealgaire was responsive enough to her own feelings that he would maintain a calm demeanor in her presence. Had she shown any sign of fear towards Auldwin, the dog would never have remained so calm; he likely would have reacted like most other animals would. When Auldwin reached out to touch the dog, he remained where he was for a moment, until the ghost’s finger drew to close. The dog could feel the cold of the soulmist now that it was closer to his own body, and he didn’t like that cold. He wasn’t afraid of the ghost, but he instinctively knew that the spirit was something unnatural and wasn’t sure he wanted to be touched by Auldwin. With the finger drawing too close, the dog moved away, pressing against Caoin’s leg a little as they walked.

As they neared the edge of her family’s camp, Caoin decided the broach the subject of the offer she had made. “Auldwin, I realize you are probably here about the offer I made, and I am still willing to hold to my offer, but I have a request.” Her gaze turned to the ghost, her face wrinkled slightly with her concern. “I would like you to possess me first,” she stated her request before going on to explain her reasoning behind it, “I want to know what it feels like, so I can have some sort of understanding of how it affects the animals. This way I am better able to help them when you have finished.” The Drykas woman looked at the ghost, hopeful that he would agree to request. She was also somewhat curious as to what it would be like to be possessed, what it felt like to have someone else’s spirit inside, to be unable to control your own movements. It was a fascinating train of thought.

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[Auldwin]

Opal, Emerald, Amethyst, so they were all named after precious stones, interesting. At least now Auldwin had some elementary knowledge of just what it was he was dealing with. Of course existing around the Endrykas for so long he had heard several terms before, but he had no idea that they had a history of being known for something particular. It made him wonder if you were born into one clan, did that mean you had no choice but to follow the way of your people? Did all Amethyst people learn the ways of horse training, or did those with the ways or horse training become part of the clan instead? A question for another time, too much information would jumble inside of the Ghost's already delicate psyche. Many a time had Auldwin lost out on valuable information because too much of his attention had to be devided at one time.

Most people didn't know, but a Ghost's attention was divided at all times, that's what it meant to interact with the real world. To a living person it would be like...having to remember to breathe every few seconds. Existing wasn't simply reflexive for a Ghost, and it wasn't something you could do without focus and concentration. A lack of focus meant a lack of purpose, and as far as Auldwin knew, that meant disappearing into the cycle. He wasn't ready for that sort of thing. Some people believed then, once in the cycle they would experience paradise compared to the difficulties of being a Ghost, but Auldwin was more pessimistic than that. If he was a Ghost, then he was a Ghost for a reason, and if he was going to stop being a Ghost it would be on his terms. He didn't have a choice about how he died, but he was damn well going to have a choice about how he re-entered the cycle.

To think though, a special breed of dogs specifically made for sniffing out Ghosts. "Ghost dogs? Huh, guess that could be useful." he admitted. When it came to snuffing out the lives of the living Ghosts certainly had the advantage. To think about it, realistically how many people within the Drykas could even defend themselves against Auldwin? A handful at best? It was a luck that he wasn't a malicious Ghost, he had no reason to be. Not yet. That was a hand of cards that sat on the back table though, Auldwin wasn't above using less than honorable means to get what he wanted, but he didn't see any reason to resort to violence except in one case, and in the end it didn't seem to work regardless. What a loss that had been.

"So, you calm and he calm. I think they call that empathy?" his thoughts came out into his words. So the dog could sense the disposition of it's mistress, perhaps Auldwin underestimated the mental capacity of the creatures. He had always thought them to simply be dumb beasts that did as they were told. Were they capable of a higher understanding, or was it just some instinctual connection? Obviously dogs got scared or angry, but to think that simply the demeanor of the one giving the orders could have that kind of impact to override the instinct to dislike Ghosts was intriguing.

Auldwin turned slightly as he floated, picking up a bit of speed and moving in front of Caoin as she brought up their previous conversation. The topic brought up on that day was his potential Possession of her animals. While he was interested in doing that, it wasn't his only reason for appearing on that day, "Yes and no. Still interested yes, but to speak with the living is also important. Just to be around the living helps." He could have never prepared for what she had to say next.

Did she just request that he Possess her? His Pavi wasn't perfect, but that's what it sounded like, "You wish me to Possess you?" he confirmed with her. Sure enough, it was indeed what she wanted. Auldwin looked conflicted at first, he hadn't really ever Possessed a Human being on their whim. No one ever looked to get Possessed on purpose. That was a strong level of trust there. The only way he could even fathom it to happen was if a talented Spiritist wanted to lure a Ghost into their body so that they could capture them indefinitely. That wasn't it though, Auldwin couldn't sense the slightest bit of Soulmist upon Caoin's person.

Ah, because of the animals. She cared about them that much. The spirit before her brought his hand up to his mouth for a moment, as if he was rubbing his beard, even though such a thing did not exist. In truth it was just a tic he had in life, a way to sooth his thoughts while he contemplated something. He never even knew he was doing it until his wife called him out on it during their time together. "Might not feel like anything for you." he said finally. "Will feel tired afterward. Reason? Ghost has no feeling while inside. No reflex. Must concentrate hard, concentrate on simple things. Blinking, breathing, muscles. That focus is tiring to the person. Maybe body reflex is to remove Ghost? Not sure. Ok though, I make it as easy as can. Think it...might feel like going to sleep, going to want to stay away but must relax totally. Think you can do it?" his voice seemed to be fairly focused on making sure she was prepared and understood the unusual feelings that might come over her. Getting Possessed was something most people would never experience regardless of how long they lived.

[Caoin]

If Caoin had any thoughts about the dangers that ghosts posed to living beings, she didn’t really let on that she was thinking them. As far as she was concerned, Auldwin was just like any other person she had met and he seemed trustworthy enough to her. She had no inkling of the thoughts that were running through his head, if she did, she might have actually been a little worried about their arrangement. As it stood, She seemed to have placed her full trust in Auldwin, a foolish and naïve move for anyone to make, but her curiosity outweighed her sensibility in that particular situation. She was dealing with her first ghost and it was turning out to be a very interesting learning experience for her. Her own safety didn’t seem to be much of a concern for her as the small group arrived at the edge of her family’s campsite and she turned to look at the ghost. She nodded in agreement to his comment about the ghost dogs, “Yeah, I suppose it could be useful if you needed to know that there were ghosts about.” She wasn’t really sure why anyone would specifically need to know that though.

“Yes, it’s something like empathy,” Caoin started to explain, “They use our body language and the tone of our voice, even the scent we give off, to determine whether we are calm or frightened, that sort of thing.” She motioned for Sealgaire to lay down and the dog stretched out beside her, his head resting on his front paws. “So long as he understands that I am the alpha of his pack, and I remain calm, he won’t be disturbed by your presence,” she finished explaining. It was the best explanation she could offer to the ghost of the way dogs and their pack mentality worked. “Instinct is an important part of what drives animals, and they’re simply following their nature and instinct when they follow a human master because it’s like following an alpha dog to them.” She hoped the ghost understood what she was trying to explain, because she felt like she wasn’t doing that great of a job explaining it. He seemed to have a decent grasp of it though, so she’d stop her explanation there, before she confused him, and possibly herself with her rough explanation. Instead, she turned her attention to his next question, she wasn’t surprised that he seemed to be shocked by her request, but he did seem willing to grant it.

Caoin nodded every few minutes as he explained to her what it might feel like for her while he was possessing her body. It didn’t sound as if it was anything that should worry her, and she’d seen what it had been like for the horse, and the horse had come out fine. Though, she imagined that there were some slight differences between the experience for animals and humans. It seemed that humans had more capability of fighting back, even those who had no experience with ghosts, than animals did. She could sort of understand that she would feel tired afterwards; the ghost’s attempt to move her body probably affected her muscles and internal systems more greatly than the unconscious effort that usually kept things running smoothing. And he made a good point about a person’s efforts to repel the ghost. He did also offer to make it as easy as he could and if she could relax and just allow things to happen naturally, perhaps it would be a more smooth process. If it was just like going to sleep, that didn’t sound too bad at all. She thought carefully about it and whether she felt like she could properly relax and do what she needed.

“I think I can do it,” she nodded in affirmation, trying to instill confidence in herself and assure the ghost at the same time. “Let’s try it.” She was as ready as she ever would be. “How should we do this? I suppose I should start much the same way I would with webbing, sit down and relax,” which she promptly did without waiting for the ghost’s input. The Drykas woman settled onto the ground next to Sealgaire, sitting with her legs crossed and letting her body fall into a relaxed position. She took a few deep breaths before nodding to Auldwin, “I think I’m good to go.” Of course, whether she was really capable of handling it remained to be seen, because completely relaxing in the face of something so new wasn’t easy. She was doing her best to remain calm though, mostly for the sake of keeping Sealgaire calm. Caoin couldn’t deny that she was a little excited and anxious about it though, and the dog picked up on that. His ears perked up as he lifted his head and whined softly to her. She reached up and motioned for him to lay his head back down and be quiet, and the dog fell silent once again. With a gentle pat on Sealgaire’s head, Caoin nodded to Auldwin, “Let’s do this.”

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[Auldwin]

Auldwin did well to listen to the various bits of information that Caoin was giving up regarding dogs and their behavior. The Ghost might never know when having such knowledge might be a benefit. Who knew, perhaps with enough skill and practice he could shroud his Ghostly identity so much that animals wouldn't fear him quite as instinctively as they currently did. To think that the creatures could read body language and place a Human as their alpha was unexpected, but Auldwin knew so little about animals that nearly everything Caoin had told him was unexpected. With those words aside though, it seemed that she really was planning on going through with the Possession. The girl had some guts, he had to give her that. Especially when Possession had been the downfall of his own mortal body.

Auldwin hovered around her slowly, his figure becoming less and less distinct as he released the bonding of his Materialization. The mists of his Soul became more easily distinguished from his formerly solid outline, and anyone's view could look straight through his body and see to the other side. The translucence that normally accented his form was back, and that was important since Possession took so much energy and focus that he needed to be in his most relaxed form. It could be said that while Caoin was relaxing in preparation for something she could have never comprehended before today, Auldwin was trying to keep his Soulmist as calm as possible as well. He wasn't lying, he would try to make this as easy as possible, assuming such a thing was within his realm of capabilities. He wasn't some unskilled Ghost though, he had to have faith in his abilities. Possession was one of his most veteran skills, he could do this.

"Yes, let the mind blank. Like meditation. Think of nothing, feel at ease." he mentioned to her, his voice now less distinct since he had lost his previous Materialization. This was his first time coaching another person through the process of Possession, so he could only hope that the information he was giving her was in any way valid to what he was about to do. He was going to make contact with her physical body, and in a way overpower all of her practical senses in order to make him his own. He allowed her a few moments to collect herself in mental preparation for such a taxing supernatural experience. When he finally heard her proclaim, Let's do this he decided the time was finally right.

Raising up one ghostly hand he extended a reach of Soulmist from his palm, the mist traveled slowly across the distance between the two of them, perhaps two or three feet at most. Then, all at once that part of Auldwin's very being touched Caoin's forehead. It was cold, there was no denying it, it was almost like having a pail of cold water splashed across her face. Typically one would have imagined she could have pulled away from it, but immediately there became a numbness following shortly there after. A slight tingle, as if that part of her body had fallen asleep let her know that her face and head still existed upon this plane. If she attempted to raise her eyelids she would have found it extremely difficult.

Everything inside was very dark. Did people experience hallucinations and visions while being Possessed? It was possible, and to Auldwin's knowledge the very best Possessors could even share knowledge and thoughts with those they Possessed, but his skill wasn't quite so finely honed. Instead of precision and a fully symbiotic relationship Auldwin had to rely on brute force. From the outside the volume of his Soulmist began pouring into Caoin's body, thick wisps of otherworldly smoke smashing into her form and then absorbing themselves into the membrane that was her skin.

Like a thick web of ink Auldwin's Soulmist reached deep into every part of her body, even those she would most likely never get the chance to see. That Soulmist touched her hands and feet, her eyes and her lips, but also her organs, her blood vessels, every part of her that was necessary in order to function. Would she resist, would there be some level of panic? That was up to Caoin to decide, but once Auldwin was in fully resistance became more and more difficult.

The Ghost did find that having a willing and relaxed subject made the transference of bodily power from the host to the Ghost much easier. He imagined that having a truly willing participate would probably reduce the taxation upon the body as well, considering the person in question wasn't spending all of their power trying to expel the thing inside of them. It was then that Auldwin finally felt the hold secure itself onto Caoin's frame, and the next time her eyes opened they would not be her own. The sights that Auldwin viewed were from Caoin's own vision. The stretch he had in his limbs were from Caoin's own muscles, and even the breath that he now breathed was from Caoin's own lips.

To anyone looking from the outside Auldwin was Caoin. He took a moment to sort through his surroundings, taking into consideration any physical ailments that Caoin was secretly battling, such as poor vision or a lame limb. It didn't appear anything like that infected this Human body, that was good, it made acclimating to the person he was Possessing far easier. Auldwin was a man in life, and so taking over the body of a female did have a slightly foreign feel to him, but otherwise that feel was simply a personal preference. Inside of the body of another Auldwin couldn't feel a thing, not hot nor cold, not pain nor pleasure. He simply wore the body like a pair of clothing, except he had to keep everything in check and all at once. The breathing, the blinking, all of the things people took for granted as a person.

OOCThe true sensation of Possession is really up to the person, so I'll let you determine exactly what the experience is like. Auldwin will be out in the next post, so don't worry about not having control of Caoin for too long .

[Caoin]

Auldwin encouraged Caoin to meditate, to allow her mind to go completely blank as she relaxed. The woman did just that, her body relaxing completely as she let her thoughts drift away, exactly as if she were meditating to prepare for a journey into the Web. She no longer thought about her surroundings, the dog laying next to her, the ghost before her, or even what he was about to do. She thought of nothing as her eyes closed and there was only darkness. Caoin simply floated in that infinite darkness feeling it envelop her like a warm blanket, until she felt a wave of cold wash over her face. Her body gave a slight twitch before she felt her head go numb. Her eyelids were heavy and they refused to respond to any command given to them. That cold water that had splashed against her face and enveloped her head began to move through the rest of her body, snaking its way into every part of her being and it was like she was sinking into cold water. Her body and mind reacted instinctively, trying to regain control, like a drowning sailor fighting to reach the surface of cold, stormy waters.

‘Relax,’ Caoin thought to herself as she tried to fall back into that meditative state. ‘Auldwin is taking control; he will control my body for me. It’s just like being in the Web.’ Only it wasn’t really anything like the Web at all, because Caoin was still technically in her body and all she could feel was that deep, biting cold. When her eyes opened, she would still be seeing what her eyes saw, instead of looking at herself from outside of her body, or looking at the Web. She felt herself starting to relax again though as she relinquished control to the ghost and at some point she began to lose her ability to fight back even if she had wanted to. It was almost like going to sleep, a cold sleep, and she was dreaming. Everything around her seemed far away and foggy, the sounds around her came to her as if through the heavy cloth used to separate the rooms in Drykas pavilions, muffled and distant. She couldn’t feel anything that her body touched, not the ground beneath her or the warmth of the sun, there was nothing but that numb cold. It was a somewhat frightening experience.

Caoin wondered if Auldwin would be able to read her thoughts while he was in her body. Would he be able to hear what she was thinking? Would she have any awareness of what he was thinking? Could they talk to eachother? ‘Hello,’ she projected the thought-word out into that blanket of darkness. The voice that she heard in her head sounded drowsy and slurred, as if she were talking in her sleep. ‘Auldwin,' she called out into the dark, wondering if he could hear her. It seemed a silly notion that the ghost would also be able to hear her thoughts.

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