PM to join A New Perspective. [Astrid]

[Annalisa Marin]

52nd of Summer, 513 AV

It was odd walking into the Worlds End Grotto this morning, or at least it seemed that way to Anna as she strode through the doors. After her initiation to Voiding, very few things seemed the same any more, it was like someone had doused her with a bucket of cold water and somehow changed her perspective. The young wizard's expression lacked its usual arrogance, instead there was an unsettling calm about her. Her grey eyes looked less bright and alight with pride and more cold and possessed a calculated gleam about them. When someone brushed past her shoulder she didn't glare at them, she merely continued on her way.

To those who knew Anna before becoming a professor they might compare this to how she had been before. A seemingly normal person who looked average and was easily forgotten. The arrogance was still there, it was just buried beneath the surface, it was not bright and flaring any longer but rather cool and sure of itself. It was a change but strangely it didn't really bother Anna in the slightest, she possessed power that most mortals could only dream of why bother advertising that to the world? Did she require some validation?

The young wizard walked into the main dinning area of the Worlds End Grotto, her grey eyes taking in the sights with a slightly changed perspective. She noticed the few patrons here for an early breakfast just the same as her. Normally she would have gone to her usual table but something that day made her go over to the bar and sit on an open stool. This early in the morning things tended to be slow for the Grotto, not many people in Zeltiva were looking for a Kelp Beer at 7th Bell.

Anna sat in her stool and simply waited for someone to approach her, there was not rush here. Patience was a virtue she needed to try and recover, rushing into situations never helped anyone. All events would run their course in time, one simply had to position things correctly and wait. The emptiness of the Void might be the finality but there was much time before she needed to address that eternity.

[Astrid Ismosia]

Astrid despised working the breakfast shift, it was always the slowest shift… Astrid almost considered it the boring shift. She spent the time cleaning and organising behind the bar. Astrid began to sing softly, she would be here until the twelfth bell wasting a perfectly good morning where she could be padding along the docks in her ‘fur’.
At around the7th bell someone approached the bar and sit down. Astrid had to admit she started bouncing like an excited puppy, waiting a little while so she didn’t seem desperate she bounced over where the person was sitting. The person looked like a young student, it made Astrid wonder if she would ever be able to attend the collage, if she would ever be able to read…
Shaking the thought she beamed at the woman.
“Good morning! Can I get you anything? A drink? Some food? Someone to talk to?”
Astrid laughed slightly and leant on the bar in front of the woman.
Astrid

[Annalisa Marin]

Anna regarded the young woman who approached her with calm grey eyes, ones that looked at though they were weary of everything in the world. In a way her initiation had opened her eyes to many things, the most prominent was how very insignificant she herself was in the grander schemes of the universe. She was nothing really and while the thought itself frightened to her she knew it was relatively true. Her arrogance was now tempered by this rather humbling knowledge, though for how long only time would tell.

The young wizard nodded slightly at the offer of a drink, though she doubted the ear of this woman could grasp the complexity of her current trials. Though, perhaps she needed to talk to someone, to get at least some of her troubles out there. Anna hated whining, she also hated talking to other for extended periods of time. Truly she was a solitary creature.

"A glass of water." She said with a nod.

She was not feeling particularly hungry as she had already gorged herself the day after her initiation but something to drink might soothe things. The young wizard looked around to ensure that there was indeed no one nearby before she decided to speak. Her tone was low and her gaze a little more dead than it had been.

"Have you ever felt that your existence was indeed insignificant in the greater scheme of things? That everything you are doing has no point or meaning to it, compared to a vast entity beyond mortal comprehension? It is a sobering realization to reach, one I would have laughed at until recently." Anna said.

Okay that had definitely come out much more doom and gloom than she had intended, but that was how she felt. What point was there in practicing magic if it didn't matter in the grander scheme of things? It might just rush her towards the emptiness. This was rather like realizing her life itself was pointless, for magic was indeed her life. It was rather depressing and near devastating.

[Astrid Ismosia]

Astrid turned to grab a freshly cleaned glass and poured the water into it, turning as the woman spoke again, Astrid frowned slightly. This woman seemed to have an aura of gloom? Around her. Astrid sniffed the air slightly, feeling her neck pickle slightly she lost her smile for a second but she brought it back up dismissing the thought.
Skipping over to the woman with her drink Astrid flipped out a coaster and placed the water on it with one swift movement. Resting her head in her hands she leant on the bar and looked up at the woman.
“So you do need someone to talk to?”
Astrid turned her head to the side before shaking it and looking back at the woman, frowning slightly again she realised that she had been relying on her animalistic traits on detecting danger, or even socialising. She would have to work on her human socialising.
Astrid

[Annalisa Marin]

Did she need someone to talk to? It was an odd question considering the rather gloomy words that had escaped her mouth. Annalisa herself looked to have seen better days, her eyes were rounded with dark circles and her skin looked unhealthily pale. Her hair possessed a few loose strands, and occasionally there was an odd tiny spasm in her left hand. The toll magic had taken on her had been heavy indeed, even now she felt the whispers in her brain waiting beneath the surface to grab her and pull her into complete insanity. Anna was, for the first time in her life to this point, questioning the decisions she had made up to the point.

She had felt rather terrible before this but now her Voiding initiation had just brought everything to the forefront. It all was coming crashing down around her, and Anna was failing to see the point in it all. Why was she putting herself through all this? Was the path she had chosen truly the correct one? Did any of this possess a single bit of meaning in the grander scheme of the universe?

"Yes, I suppose you could say I could use someone to talk to. I suppose you could say I'm having something of an... identity crisis at the moment." Anna said, chuckling hollowly at the words.

It seemed so simple a term to indicate her suffering, but gods that was what it felt like. She was forgetting who she was, and at the moment she was finding that she did not care enough to try and recover it. But how could she put all this into terms that a person, who had never done the things she had done, could understand. It was maddening really.

"I have been experiencing rather negative... changes as of late that are due to doing things that I have been doing for a while. These things have been a part of who I am now for a long time, but I cannot help but wonder if the cost is too high at the moment. I fear that if I don't do these things, I'll lose part of who I am. If I do continue to use them, I wonder if there will be enough of me left to even care." Anna let it all out, slowly articulating her words.

It felt odd to just lay out all of her troubles before a stranger like this, but it was indeed helping as her mind was becoming a bit less filled with turmoil and was beginning to calm down.

"After discovering something else, I am even wondering if anything I do has any kind of meaning in this life. That, compared to the grander universe I'm nothing but a speck, grain of sand on a large beach." She said.

"What do you think?" The tall woman asked, finally sipping at her drink.

[Astrid Ismosia]

Astrid listened intently to the woman’s words, frowning slightly Astrid stood up.
“Your not a human are you?”
she coughed slightly,
“Well I mean it’s a depressing way to think about things and usually humans are too simple to notice.”
Astrid ran a hand over the bench before bending behind the bar to grab a cloth. She was always wiping down this bench. But then again drunkards were always spilling their ale. Astrid noticed that another customer was waiting she held up her hand to her tall friend and went to go serve the other costumer, when she returned she frowned slightly.
“Well, that is a sad way to look at it however I do believe you have gotten yourself into a runt,”
Astrid mimed dancing,
“You need some excitement, or possibly even a change in jobs for a month or forever!”
Laughing Astrid smiled and looked back at the tall woman, she looked drained, almost faded. Turning Astrid stuck her head in the kitchen
“A cake of some sort please”
Spinning around she smiled and clapped
“Or maybe you need a pet!”

[Annalisa Marin]

Human? Was she human any longer? She was marked by the blood of Rhysol and a manipulator of Djed, recently Anna had looked into a whole other dimension. Normal human's did not do those things, they lived normal and happy lives and died content with their achievements. They did not worry if the use of power would corrupt their very being or consume their soul. Anna wanted to say yes, she was human if only to reassure herself that something about her was still familiar and the same.

Judging from her words, this girl was not human herself. She certainly looked human, but on closer inspection Anna noted a few telling traits that gave away her inhuman nature. The young woman had also been around Kelvics for long enough to notice one right in front of her, it was a fair assumption considering her words and her almost completely human looking appearance. Normally Anna would be interested in gaining another test subject, or at least confirming her suspicions. Today, however, Anna found that she cared little for what this girl was.

A rut? Perhaps so, but when it came to magic there was not lack for passion in her. Everything else seemed so dreadfully normal and trivial compared to the power and rush of casting. Unfortunately, that same rush was the reason she was hesitant to practice her magic. The consequences were the reason she looked so terrible today, the hallucinations weren't so lately and her nosebleeds were under wraps. The loss of balance and vertigo was more common, but she was able to conceal that for the most part.

Anna was fairly certain that a pet was the last thing she needed, already her housemate was driving her to the brink of irritation. Uschi was nice to have around every now and then, but she was far too concerned for her own good. A pet would simply get underfoot and disrupt her work, not only that they cost money to upkeep.

"Switch professions would not be good at the moment, I'm a professor at the university. My issue has more to do with who I am and less of what I do." Anna said.

She quickly downed the rest of her water, slipping two silver mizas on the bar. It was a mistake to come here, Anna couldn't afford to doubt herself now. She needed to get home and rest more, to prepare for more research. There was nothing this woman could offer her in the way of advice at the moment.

"Though, I suppose it is unfair to expect you to properly understand what I'm going through. Thank you for the talk anyway." The tall woman said, starting to stand.

She leaned slightly on the bar for support, just in case her balance was completely off.

[Astrid Ismosia]

Frowning Astrid left from behind the bar to stand next to the woman
“Are you alright?”
Quickly pulling of her apron Astrid, signalled the chef that she was leaving for a while before she reached out to the woman
“I might not understand your work or problems however I understand your need for assistance”
Astrid quickly looked around the tavern, the regular morning clients were eating quietly. She had been working since the early bells however Astrid was still on full alert, all her senses told her not to go near this woman, but what was she to do? The woman needed her help.
Astrid, as long as she could remember, had always helped others from nuits to other Kevlics. Once an injured Kelvic had turned up on her doorstep, without a second thought she allowed them in and took care of them. Blinking Astrid meet the eyes of the woman
“Come on ill help you to where you want to go”

[Annalisa Marin]

The young woman was not letting up, though Anna supposed that was her own damned fault for allowing herself to pour herself out like some drunken wastrel. The wizard was disinclined to accept the woman's offer of assistance, she could stand on her own two legs. Though gravity appeared to be in an especially evil mood today as she soon found herself nearly falling on her face, managing to catch herself on the bar. She despised how pathetic this sickness had made her, the young wizard vowed once more to never let it happen again.

Anna sighed and gave the woman a sideways glance, really would she be thought less of if she accepted the woman's shoulder to her home? Her pride was what had caused this to occur, the Void had granted her some clarity of mind but still she had some things holding her back. The wizard grunted slightly as she glanced down at the floor.

"My home is near the University, I would... appreciate your assistance in getting there." The woman answered quietly.

Truly this was one of her lowest moments, right next to Uschi treating her like a scared child and losing to Tallis. Still, Anna did not like her odds of getting to her house all on her own so she accepted the assistance out of practicality. The tall woman felt her pride whither all the same, it was very much pathetic.

"We should be away quickly, I have some business I still need to attend at home." She said.

Hopefully the young woman would not keep her somewhat chipper attitude the whole way there, Anna did not know of her stomach could handle it. She might very well end up cursing the woman terribly the whole way back, already some horrific ones were coming to mind. The girl was just so helpful, she almost reminded the wizard of Velia. That alone merited at least one curse. She was so stupid and trusted, the perfect victim for Rhysol's curse. The thoughts of the horrors she might very well inflict on her brought a slight grin to her face, hidden from the young woman's gaze.

[Astrid Ismosia]

Astrid lifted the woman’s arm placing it over her shoulder, with that single touch Astrid’s muscles tensed and her skin prickled, attempting to ignore the feeling she began to take small steps towards the door. With each step the feeling nagged at her more, yet this woman seemed “So near the University? You must live around my house.”
Astrid looked over at the woman before stepping though the door. The sun almost blinded Astrid, she had been in the darkened tavern since day break, Shayra padded around the corner the as the pair rounded the same corner, Smiling at the excited puppy Astrid indicated with her head to the tall woman
“I don’t like her”
Shayras warning bark seemed to echo through Astrids ears… Her feeling wasn’t just a silly feeling it was true.
“Excuse me not to pry, but what do you do?”
Shayra’s and Astrid’s caught the light in the same way, turning their hair into shiny beckons that shined brightly. Her animal side had granted her hair the colour of midnight and what seemed like a sixth sense, one that was telling her to strip change and pick Shayra up and run for her life but she couldn’t just leave this poor woman all alone…