[Flashback, Cosette] Home is where your grave is

[Tarot]

Timestamp: Summer of 508 AV

"So, let's go through the instructions once more, Cosette," said Master Farke in his calm baritone. The landscape was rolling around the two of them as they sat on the automatic horseless wagon, en route to the citadel of Sahova. The visit at the Docks had been a short one - the golems never really approached a ship with one of the Masters on board. They were above the rules for common mortals, and were free to do as they pleased around the Docks. One word from the Masters and they could be turned into scraps, assuming said Master did not take matters into his hands and physically "reformed" them. These golems could only experience a handful feelings, but fear of the Masters was one of them.

Master Farke, Sahovan wizard. He had introduced himself so. He seemed to be a jack of all trades as far as magic was concerned. He had displayed no particular preference to any magic type, and one could only wonder where his talents really lay, or why he had joined Sahova. Most of his colleagues tended to specialize quite heavily in one discipline.

His body was relaxed, more accustomed to journeying outside than most Sahovans were. While not overly fond of his current body, slightly too burly and unresponsive for his tastes, he still carried himself with some grace. This one seemed like a middle-aged human male, with short blond hair - Nuit experienced no hair growth and he had no wish to correct that with Morphing. The entirety of his body from the neck downward was covered in long, flowing green robes that he had covered with a black cloak while on the mainland. Not an inch of skin was visible aside from the pale face; clothing, gloves and boots covered it all.

"As I said, there is no guarantee that they'll take you in; ultimately, it's the Archwizard's decision. He is a good man, but he has seen many things over the centuries. Nobody knows what's really on his mind, so he can be kind of unpredictable. He will question you thoroughly, as he usually does. Answer truthfully, do not try to come up with the 'right' answer. He is smarter than the both of us, so he'd see through your lies. If he chooses to take you in, I will tell you about who's who on Sahova - the people you can trust, and the dangerous ones. For now, just remember you are entering a place where time stopped 500 years ago. This is the truth we have all chosen to ignore."

[Cosette Merryweather]

If Cosette still had a beating heart she was certain that she would've been clutching her chest in an effort to still it but fortunately for her that was no longer an issue. Instead of hyperventilating like she did before whenever she was nervous the girl forced herself to calm down, she had come a long way from the lost lamb that she was months ago. She was finally, for the first time since taking on this miserable existence putting her fate into her own hands. Biting her lips she muttered a silent prayer and clenched her hands tightly into a fist as she gazed at the citadel that was looming in the distance.

There, in that ancient building was sanctuary and possibly the means to recover what she had lost - her past, her life. Of course she was well aware of just how impossible her goal was, Farke probably thought she was an idiot for entertaining the idea but there was no way she would let go of that dream. After all, Cosette still had a family to return to, her parents were probably worried about her. She had long since stopped sending them letters and it was heartbreaking to have to lie to them again and again, if she was going to send them another letter she would do so once she could return home again but she knew it could take years, even decades...

The girl sighed and felt a surge of sadness wash over her. It seemed even little miss sunshine could only take so much before she grew tired and she was fast approaching her limit, this place was her one last hope. "I understand Master Farke..." she understood but she was far from ready to meet such a legendary individual. "I'll do my best so I won't disappoint you... I already owe you enough as it is. Thank you for taking me with you..."

[Tarot]

"Don't worry about that," Master Farke replied dismissively, though the slightest tone of worry creased his voice. Farke had been quick to help Cosette as soon as he'd found her, though upon making the choice to take her to Sahova the girl was always left with the impression that he'd withheld something from her. Not a lie, not really... more like she was missing a few pieces of the puzzle that was Master Farke.

For one, Farke knew the mainland, at least better than one would expect of a Sahovan Nuit who supposedly left the citadel once in a blue moon, if that often. He knew places, he had travelled around, and his knowledge was definitely post-Valterrian. He was carrying nothing back to Sahova, no reagents, no strange crystals... nothing but Cosette herself. This in itself was strange.

The wagon stopped in front of a heavy portcullis, the only visible entrance in the citadel's outer wall. They blended into the mountain, making Sahova extremely easy to defend - a single point of entry, leading into outer fortifications and then into the mountain itself, where the majority of the bastion had been excavated from the naked rock of the extinct volcano.

"Welcome back to Sahova, Master Farke," an ethereal female voice chirped with no mouth or tongue to speak the words. "I hope you had a pleasant journey. And I see you brought a little guest..."

"Yes, Drainira, this is Cosette," the Nuit did not seem surprised in the least by the friendly voice that had addressed them. "Cosette, this is Drainira. She is the Supervisor of the citadel, a golem built into Sahova to control its inner workings. She is, without a doubt, the most advanced magical intelligence left in this world."

"You are making me sound scary, Master Farke," said the voice, and the portcullis creaked open. "Nice to meet you, Cosette. Ask me any question you may have."

"While we are at it, Drainira, please take a good aura scan of her. I suspect her awakening was poorly performed. What can you see?" The wagon moved into the inner courtyard, a place all but claimed by wild vegetation, as the portcullis closed behind them. "You are a recently made Nuit to be sure, Cosette" Drainira answered, "you are going through your first or second body at most. But, there is no damage to your synchronization with your body... nothing I can see. It will take time before you adjust to your new condition, though."

"There is a 99% probability of your having become a Nuit against your will. Is that right, Cosette?"

[Cosette Merryweather]

When the wagon stopped in front of what hardly appeared to be the grand entrance to a castle of immortal beings Cosette was underwhelmed. She had been expecting a dark castle, twisted leafless trees, bats numbering the thousands covering the sky and a moat complete with an alligator... or were those crocodiles. The last thing she expected to see was an entrance that was so unimpressive that she was at a loss for words.

The voice came from nowhere but Master Farke hardly seemed bothered by that fact at all. Cosette tried to scan the landscape for a source to of that voice though she was failing at the attempt.

When the Master introduced her to the supposed magical intelligence and when Drainira welcomed her in turn she was for a few seconds stunned when the portcullis opened. Was Drainira Sahova itself? Before she could ponder on that thought her manners kicked in and she curtsied at the entrance, her head bobbing down in respect. "Its a pleasure to meet you Miss Drainira... Wherever you're talking from..."

"An aura scan...?" she glanced at Master Farkes suspiciously. Sure she didn't feel anything from what Drainira was doing but being scanned didn't sit really well with the young nuit.

"Yes, I never wanted this... and that's actually the reason I came here to Sahova." Would Master Farke find what she was about to tell Drainira foolish? Better yet would Drainira laugh at her for what she was about to say? "Master Farke told me that it was a magical ritual which turned me into a Nuit... I've been contemplating on this possibility but... Is it also possible to do the opposite? You see Drainira... I want to live again."

[Tarot]

Neither Master Farke nor Drainira laughed at what Cosette said. It was obviously something both of them had heard before. The horseless wagon stopped in front of a large door on the mountain itself, at the end of a large inner courtyard surrounded by fortifications. "This is as far as the vehicle can go, Cosette," said the Nuit, and a single motion got him off with a leap that would have been considered only slightly athletic among the living, but was quite a feat for the undead's somewhat unresponsive bodies.

The door slowly swung open as Drainira commented on her words. "To live again... I think most of the masters here must have entertained the thought at some point or another. I may not be the most apt at answering you, as I was never born into a body of flesh and blood, but I think it is the nature of mortals to desire what they have not, and want to be what they are not. Their gift, and their curse, so to speak. A number of the living wish to be like the Nuit, so as not to have to watch the sands of Tanroa's hourglass tricke down with horror. And yet, once their wish was granted, they would likely long to be alive again, to feel the warmth of their bodies once more."

"Most of them give up after a while, though. See, Cosette, it is easy for the apple to fall off the tree, but for a fallen apple to climb back to the branch is another matter entirely. The very thought seems preposterous, doesn't it? There are rumors that someone once made it, and those rumors will get one's hopes up, but then there is no progress whatsoever. After a while, a century or two, you start procrastinating, because you have all the time in the world, right? Not like you are in a rush. Slowly, little by little, you forget why you wanted to be alive in the first place. You still long, but not for life anymore... just the memory of it. Then even the memory is snuffed out, and you think being undead is the greatest blessing, because you no longer have anything to compare it with. Forgetfulness is really the Nuit's greatest blessing."

"At least, that is what I think. It makes Master Qiao mad at me, though, so you won't hear me say that in public." Master Farke gestured for Cosette to follow him into the long, dark corridor that opened beyond the door, excavated from the mountain - the entrance to the citadel proper. "Good luck getting your life back," the Nuit said, "I will not teach you whether you are right or wrong in your thinking. You have the advantage of time... you can think over things as long as you want. Time will be your teacher, Cosette, as it is for all of us."

Master Farke's eyes narrowed ever so slightly. The hollow sound of approaching footsteps steeled his body - a strange reaction, considering he was "home". A robed figure emerged from the dark, only illuminated by the bluish glow of two rows of crystals lined up behind glass panes on the walls. He was a Nuit as well, tall and skinny to the point of almost looking like a dried up mummy. He had what looked to be a ponytail of wirey grayish hair and bulging black eyes.

He grinned with pleasure, but Master Farke did not return the feral greeting. "Ah, nice to see you came back in one piece, Farke. And what a beauty you've brought back. What is your name, little one?" He chuckled, bony fingers entwining contentedly. "I am Master Aelobius, chief Voider of Sahova. I look forward to getting to know you."

"Let's go, Cosette," Farke passed him by without so much as a second word. He had spoken of dangerous ones, and obviously Aelobius was one of them.

[Cosette Merryweather]

Cosette was crestfallen by Drainira's words. Did they really believe that she would change her mind given enough time? Even as the artificial intelligence spoke she could feel the inklings of anger bubble up within her chest. She wouldn't stand that the woman would classify her with these Nuit who probably only saw a second chance at life as a distraction, to Cosette it was an ultimate goal, the only thing keeping her from jumping off a cliff to end it all. No matter how logical Drainira's arguments were, regardless of how weak she was, even if her chances at succeeding was next to nothing she wouldn't accept this kind of life... this disgusting existence wasn't something she would grow used to, she didn't want to.

"Don't classify me with them, their quest for life is nothing more than a passing distraction to them! I... This is much much more than that for me!" she exclaimed, her voice rising only an octave higher despite her best effort to sound angry. Clutching her throat Cosette almost cursed at how pathetic she sounded with that lisping voice of hers, there was no was she could even sound angry with her throat the way it was. "This is my reason for living! My sole reason for living!"

After a short moment of silence the unpleasant expression on her face faltered and she was suddenly conscious of herself. Bowing her head the girl looked at master Farke and then where she suspected Drainira to be. "...I'm sorry."

If she still had tears, Cosette suspected that they would have already fallen. She wasn't usually like this, she was normally a model of composure and amiability but there were things she couldn't help. She made the journey here looking for hope but the first thing she was told hardly helped to stoke the flames in her heart. It only took the briefest discouragement and those emotions she'd bottled up spilled over without warning.

Before Cosette had the opportunity to feel worse though, her master responded to some kind of imminent threat and she didn't fail to miss the unusual shift in Farke's gait. Barely illuminated by the magical light, a Nuit who filled all the classical descriptions of what undead necromancers were suppossed to be appeared to greet his instructor, the wizard introduced himself as Aelobius, a master voider.

Cosette immediately recognized the wizard to be a dangerous individual. If Farke's demeanor towards him was any clue of his personality, she suspected that Aelobius had to be a frightening individual to threaten her master. A rustle of her dress followed by small but quick steps brought Cosette behind Farkes and she was clutching his robes like a child as they passed the voider. "Are we going to meet the Archmage?"

[Tarot]

"... but you are not living," Drainira protested weakly, and then, upon Cosette's apology, she added, "don't worry about that. I am just equipment, after all. You do not have to believe anything I say."

Aelobius, on the other hand, said nothing more than he already had. He merely flashed an impossibly wide grin at Cosette and continued on his merry way. "Never trust that man, Cosette," Farke warned her, "he is twisted in many ways. When he was alive, before the Valterrian, he used to be a professor at the largest magic academy in the country. There were countless disappearances throughout the campus, and he was the chief suspect in every single one, but nobody ever collected enough proof against him, and that was a time when wizards could more or less do as they pleased anyways. Keep your eyes open."

"Yes, we are going to meet him right now." Farke took her by hand and led her into the labyrinthine underground corridors of Sahova, up and down staircases, around corners and through long, deserted halls. In the end, after several minutes of quiet walking, they came across a door. The plaque read 'Zarik Mashaen, Archwizard'. Farke knocked on the door and a calm voice replied from the inside, "You may enter."

It was a smaller office than one might have expected from the leader of such a place. The furnishing was mostly mahogany, which reflected its luxury - normal wood could not have withstood the centuries, so it had undergone expensive treatment to ensure its durabilities through the ages. A large bookshelf occupied the wall behind the Archwizard's desk, which was littered with documents and magical blueprints.

Zarik Mashaen had a refined quality to him, carefully combed black hair and chiseled facial features that seemed too well-sculpted to be random. His eyes had the glaze of undeath to them, but other than that and a hint of dark rings under them, he might have been mistaken for a living man. He was wearing an elaborate, though practical robe. He dropped his quill as the duo entered.

"Ah, Farke. You have returned, and in good company, it seems. Your mission?"

"Accomplished," said Farke. "On a different note, this is Cosette; she went through an unwanted awakening, and not by my hand. I think it would be best if she could stay here from now on."

Mashaen nodded gravely. "Please, do take a seat, both of you." He took a closer look at Cosette, his head tilting ever so slightly. "So, tell me about yourself, little Cosette," the Archwizard began. A diminutive frown crossed his thin brow as he exchanged a quick look with Farke.

[Cosette Merryweather]

Zarik Mashaen didn't look anything like what she was expecting. Considering the reputation of this man she was under the impression that she'd meet a seven feet tall imposing figure of a man clad in an ornate but frightening cuirass of black steel and a glowing sword of destruction that was as big as he was tall. When her gaze fell on this ordinary figure of a man she felt herself visibly relax. The Archwizard looked human, he even sounded like a reasonable fellow from how she perceived his short exchange with her teacher and that was always a good thing.

With some reluctance Cosette occupied the nearest chair and straightened out the fold of her skirt as she did so. "A little over a year ago I met met a man at the tavern I was working at, he was a handsome but pale stranger and he was very charming..." she had never shared this story with anyone but Farke and to be honest she didn't want to share it with the Archmage either but she wasn't about to lie to him, the last thing she wanted to do was get unto his bad side." I had no idea that he was a Nuit and for some reason he singled me out and decided that he wanted me as his partner..." Cosette's eyes were no longer focused on the Archmage's face at all, it was almost as if she were looking past him.

"I tried to resist him but he had this weird gaze, I was compelled to do as he pleased and I was forced to participate in this ritual that turned me into this... I somehow managed to kill him after the ritual... he was hysterical at the time, he was laughing so hard... he didn't notice me, he didn't even see the sword coming down." the girl was absentmindedly wringing her hands together and they were visibly shaking from repressed rage, the emotion that should've filled her otherwise emotionless recollection of her tale. "If he was one of yours I'm sorry... at the time I was consumed with anger, I was blinded by it."

"...I'm sorry, I should've told you about myself, I shouldn't have shared my story... I'm Cosette Merryweather, seventeeen years of age. I've been taught a bit about morphing by Master Farke but other than that I have no real abilities... Though some have told me that I have a knack for cooking..." as if anyone in Sahova could appreciate that. "I'm also trying to find out if its possible to bring Nuits back to life... does Sahova have any records about Nuits becoming human again?"

[Tarot]

Mashaen looked at Cosette, or past her as was his custom. If he felt anything out of the ordinary while she told him her story, he did not immediately show it. Then again, most Nuit rarely made a big fuss out of anything. When your unlife was soaked in boredom, you wanted to savor each little surprise slowly, so as to make it last longer. "I see," he just said.

He picked up his quill and repeated the name, "Cosette." Then, he let go of the quill, but - perhaps surprisingly - the feather did not drop. Instead, it started to move of its own accord, with no hand wielding it. It scribbled the word 'Cosette' on the parchment, and it finally laid itself on the table once the task was accomplished.

"So, where to start from? Yes, you killed one of ours," he spelled out slowly. "His name was Horatio Welsh, in case you care to know. I am not expecting you to. I had sent him on a retrieval mission, but he never came back. Eventually, I learned he committed atrocities on the mainland, and sent Farke out to dispose of him. It looks like he found his job cut out for him... by you."

The Archwizard bent forward ever so slightly. "That is the short version of the story, Cosette." If there was a long version, he did not care to elaborate on it. "It is remarkable that you managed to kill Welsh, even though you were certainly underestimated, and he had most likely gone into major overgiving. However, this fact alone is not enough for me to grant you shelter at the Citadel."

Farke sat motionless. The conversation was going exactly as he had foreseen. "So you are interested in returning to your former state. I may or may not have information on what you seek, but you see, this is restricted knowledge... and more like knowledge about where you might obtain more knowledge. But what do you have to offer? Skills can be learned, but the things I really look for in people cannot be trained - you either have them, or you do not. If you join Sahova, you will join a collection of many among the most powerful wizards left in this world. There are many who would rip their own hearts out and offer them to me on a silver platter in order to join us. And my answer is almost always the same - no, no, no."

"So, what makes you special, Cosette? What is it that you have that the next girl does not? What is it that you lack that the next girl has - aside from a pulse, that is?" Farke knew this question would make or break Cosette, and hoped she would manage to intrigue the Archwizard enough to accept her. If she failed now, she would be on her own.

[Cosette Merryweather]

"I'm just an ordinary girl sir, nothing more than that and I have no illusions of grandeur." the confession was painful, it crushed her spirits to admit that truth but Mashaen would've seen through her if she tried to lie. "You're easily one of the most, if not the most powerful wizard alive and have been so for the past hundreds of years. I doubt most people seeking education in Sahova have anything to offer you, if they somehow do then they're probably already beyond teaching. I won't overestimate myself, I know what I can and I cant do... I'm nothing special."

"I don't have the drive to succeed like your colleageus, nor do I have prodigious potential, what little magic I have took me weeks to learn and I probably wouldn't have learned as quickly as I had if a lesser wizard had taught me." Cosette smiled at Farke, she was indebted to him for his patience with her. Before they even started she believe all there was to magic was knowing the proper incantations but fairytales were a far cry from reality.

"I apologize..." she stood up then and there and bowed at the archwizard. Mashaen's answer wouldn't come off as a surprise to Cosette anymore, she definitely wasn't special enough to belong here. If there was anything she was grateful for about being a nuit one of them was the fact that she no longer had tears to shed, at the very least she would be able to leave without looking pitiful. "I took up your time, you're a very busy man... this was a mistake, I'm sorry Master Farke..." she turned towards the man who was instrumental in keeping her from killing herself and also gave him a bow. "If its possible I would only like one request, if could I be allowed to hitch a ride on the next ship leaving from Sahova?"