Closed Watch Me Flux!

[Russell Wood]

26th Day of Spring, 514

Russell took in a rather deep breath as he prepared to show a demonstration of what his current flux level was. He was currently within his master’s home, and he was trying to get some advice on how to progress from here on out. ”I don’t use this very often, I’ve never had to use it, but I’d prefer to be careful if you understand what I mean sir.” He took in another deep breath as he got into a stance of some sort. It was a pretty basic one taught to him by his grandfather.

Russell raised his arms, and clenched his fists having them cover his face as his arms protected his body. He turned his body a little so his left side was ahead of his right. It was rather rigid and basic, but it would do for what Russell wanted to show. He threw a few quick punches with his left arm, simple jabs. ”Those are what my normal punches are like, now this will take a bit of time, which is what worries me about this.” Russell then started to mutter underneath his breath as he concentrated on flowing the djed to strengthen the muscles in his upper left arm. It took a little time but it moved there.

He threw a number of jabs once more, they were both faster and stronger than his earlier punches, Russell could definitely feel the strain on his join as he used it, he didn’t tend to fight a shadow very often, if at all. He released a large breath as he stopped punching and began to shift his weight from one leg to the other. ”Now these are my kicks, it’ll be easier to notice the difference here.” Russell moved the sitting djed from his upper arm to his left leg, strengthening it.

A few kicks were made, rather powerful and fast as he aimed them higher than they needed to be. ”That was with me using the flux, rather hard on the body.” It was a generally slow display, had this been a fight Russell could have been killed hundreds of times over. He then let the djed dissipate. He took in another deep breath as he kicked with his leg a couple of more times, this time it was easier to notice the loss of speed within the longer limb.

”So Miro sir, have you got any ideas as to how I could possibly improve the speed of the transitions?” Russell was no longer in a stance but was rather standing up straight, he was wearing a new set of clothes that he had bought himself a couple of days earlier, most of his clothes were now made of fine cotton and coloured black with white leather shoes, the only article of clothing that wasn’t was his shirt which was white. It made for a good contrasting picture. Russell seemed to be a little more relaxed than he was the last time around.

[Miro]

Miro watched the display his student gave with some moderate form of disappointment. The foundation was all there, but none of it was refined. Russell was a fine Voider, but his mastery of the Flux left much to be desired. It was simple enough to see where the student was at in his understanding, and obvious as to what must be done. There was a lot that a successful practitioner of the Flux needed to learn. This might take a while.

"I see Russell, very good. You understand the basics, but you have a long way to go before you master them. Let me start with a spoken lesson, things you likely already know, and then I will give you a practical exercise. First I will give you a major hint, a tool that will help you in your magical career. Whenever a wizard is in need of a bit of added concentration, a gesture or incantation can do wonders."

It was a simple enough concept, but one especially useful for a novice. Almost necessary in some cases. "Proper form and set up is important, especially when one is still learning them. However it is important to make a magic your own, add your own style and touch to it. A certain gesture made before a spell is cast, or an incantation spoken, they should be used in training." Though eventually such things would become mostly obsolete, it was a necessary step.

"We will get onto that later, and I will explain your exercise in detail, but for now a lesson." Miro cleared his throat and stood tall and spoke clearly. "The Flux is a magic based around the pathways in the body. The Djed of the astral body flows through these channels within the body, and the Flux user is able to hold some influence over them. This I am sure you already know. But you must remember, however simple the magic may seem, its use is quite complex."

"The key to the Flux is balance and discipline. One must understand the mind and body, master the relationship between the two. Learning to coordinate thought an action is only part of this. One must also know the limits of their body, know how much it can handle. Learn to keep their mind clear, free from being lost in the rush of the magic. To have insufficient discipline puts one out of balance, and when balance is lost we slip past our limits."

The magic was one that found its niche in combat, but was most dangerous when used for such an application. Often the user would be so focused on their goal that everything else is lost. The magic masks pain, flows adrenaline, focuses the mind on a singular thing, combat. If one allows themselves to become lost in this, they can lose control, or simply become a bit too reckless. The magic allowed the body to break its limits, but these were limits for a reason.

"When using the Flux, always cling to reason. Keep your mind focused on balance, staying within the limits you have learned. At times you may push further, explore beyond, but only when the mind is ready. Meditation before such things is always advised. As with most magics, the basics are of great importance, especially in Flux training. Everything builds upon a foundation built as a novice. I will show you"

There was a simple enough way to learn the concepts of the magic and put them to practice. Especially the discipline of mind and body. This way was how the master learned, through practice in the martial arts. "The perfect way to learn the magic is through training in the ways of the body. Mundane methods of training, bodybuilding, running, acrobatics, these are great. Though none are better than martial arts training."

[Miro]

The undead took his staff in hand and looked over his apprentice. It was time to teach him how to do things. "Take a fighting position. A steady stance, feet spread, knees bent, poise held in the back, eyes focused ahead, arms drawn to the hip. Keep your form tight, your body ready to react. Take your stance and find your balance." It was a simple enough training method. It trained a very important concept, precision.

"When your stance is complete, I want you to begin a simple meditation. Just a visualization, something to keep in mind. I want you to close your eyes, feel the bond your mind, body and soul share. I want you to focus on your pathways, the streams of energy within you, as a whole. I want you to see the way every part of your body is connected. Keep this image in mind as we continue with our exercise."

Next came the instructions, the actual exercise, though this was where things got a bit complex. The wizard kept his voice firm and steady, anxious to keep his student in line. "Next I want you to begin throwing punches, alternating with your left and right arm. However, each time you throw a punch, I want you to start with some gesture or incantation. Start slow, keep focus, your mind must remain sharp."

This did not seem entirely too complex, however such things were not as easy as they sounded. To hold poise, visualize the body's pathways, and then punch with an incantation, it was a bit to juggle. However this was a part of the exercise itself. It was the main theme to be learned. Eventually the magic would become like instinct to the user, but not without first programming the mind. Eventually these things that the mind struggled to task itself with would become natural.

The magic hadn't come yet though, and that was truly the hard part. Miro waited for Russell to show confidence in what was established thus far before he continued. "Now we will begin to use the Flux, though you will need to listen carefully. There is a specific way you must redirect your Djed. A specific order to the redirections placed on the pathways within the body. This will take some time to get used to, so start slow, very slow. Eventually you will get the rhythm and pick up speed."

This was quite complex to hear at first, but nothing too hard once understood. "While you first punch with your left arm, redirect Djed from your right leg to enhance it. Then with the following right arm punch, redirect Djed from the pathways in your left arm to your right. Then I want you to guide the gathered Djed from your right arm down the pathways leading to your left leg. After a kick, redirect from your left leg to your right, kick again. Then from there the Djed is guided from your right leg back to your left arm." This was all there was to it, a redirection cycle.

This was all that Miro asked of his student. The Djed that would initially be redirected would guide itself from one attack to the next. From one stop to the next, one redirection after another, the Flux was a constant flow. When finally the stance, incantation or gesture and redirection cycle were natural this part of the training would be complete. Though a student must always be monitored. This was the type of training that was usually honed over several sessions, day by day. However the basics of the exercise could easily be learned in the first session.

[Russell Wood]

Russell found himself drawn into the explanation on the workings of the flux; it had been a while since he had heard it. It was certainly still the same information, worded a little differently but that hardly affected its meaning. Russell already knew he needed to use an incantation, it was still something he disliked doing. It was due to one thing and one thing only. His pride, he knew it was something reserved for those who were new to something….Inexperienced; Russell hated being inexperienced. He’d have to grit his teeth for now though, Miro expected him to use it, and Russell wanted to avoid angering the man.

Russell listened carefully to what the man was saying, he had a good point and he knew he needed whatever help he could get when it came to using the flux; it was dangerous as any magic is, he hadn’t ever felt the risks with this as he hardly ever used it, a secondary skill would be too big an honour for this, or so he thought. ”I see what you mean sir, as a magic it obviously has dangers associated to it, could I ask you to tell me what would happen to one who pushed far past his limits and the warning signs to look out for?” Russell did need to know this, to prepare for the possibility that he did have to use this. Meditation was also something he’d have to improve on, although he could see that happening very soon.

He listened to the different ways to train his body; he’d certainly have to look into using these in the future, hopefully the near future. He also had to improve his fighting skills, it had been a while since he last used it, and back then it was only a spar….Never had he expected an old man to beat him up in such a way.

Russell listened to Miro and right away began to get into a better stance. His legs were spread apart, half of his feet off the floor. His arms were then raised up, similarly to before, but more fluid; his elbows were bent a little more and his arms weren’t tensed up. He bent his back a little and began to shift his weight around a little between each leg to see whether he had gotten it yet. Before he moved into another stance, he faced forward completely this time around; his back was straight, knees bent and feet fully touching the floor. He wanted to see the difference between the two stances and to remember the feeling of his old one. He draw his arms back toward his hip, and took in a deep breath.

Russell then listened once more, so a meditation. He closed his eyes and continued to listen to his master. He was expected to feel out his pathways, the whole inner workings of the body. He could definitely do that. Russell began to feel the flow inside, it was like looking for a river within an ocean, a hard job to finish, but he had been able to do so in the past and was sure that he’d be able to do so now. He could almost hear the movement of djed throughout his body. His concentration was falling apart every time he listened to Miro, it was rather hard concentrating on the outside world while still trying to feel what’s within, even with voiding Russell tended to have this sort of trouble.

Russell seemed to be forgetting the key to this exercise, it was visualization and with that realization he managed to focus a little easier. All he had to picture was a scene very similar to the city he was in, his body covered with canals. Almost like blood vessels, they touched everywhere yet he knew that he definitely wouldn’t be able to control finely; it would cause him too much pain. Russell listened once more. Punches needed to be thrown, that sounded a little more difficult, but he was using incantations this time around. He knew what words to say, it almost flowed naturally to him, almost like a poem of his magic giving form. ”Open the gate, allow the rivers to flow freely and corrupt the mind…” It would hardly make sense to others, but to Russell it was clear as day. He’d be able to use this fine, he repeated it. Losing the image in his head, it was hard to do the two things at once, but he concentrated on the image as he kept on repeating the word.

The incantation was something that had come natural to him at the moment, the same one he once used for voiding, it was the visualization that was hard, it wasn’t simply clearing your head and allowing your voice to do what was needed to be done. It came to him soon enough, Russell then threw a punch, the visual he had in his head blurred, but he repeated the incantation. Then his right arm followed another blur. He was slowly getting the hang of it, one punch at a time. They came in long intervals at first; one minute of time difference, half a minute, then ten seconds. Soon enough they seem to be coming right after another. The visual in his head wasn’t gone, in fact repeating the incantation almost made it easier for him to visualize, although that might have just been his imagination.

Russell then listened to Miro as he began to explain the next step of the training, this would certainly make things a lot harder. Russell gave a small nod, he didn’t want to speak, that would risk throwing off his visualization. He began saying the incantation once more, and repeated it constantly as he began to guide his djed from his right leg to his left arm, the transition was far smoother than before, it was still slow, and Russell was having trouble keeping the image, the incantation was something that came natural to him after having used it for years. Once he felt the djed strengthen his arm, he punched out. He then guided that djed to his right arm as he repeated the incantation, the visual he had for his pathways was getting fuzzy once more. Russell concentrated on picturing it and the flow to his right arm began to slow to a crawl.

Russell sped up the flow of djed at the cost of the visualisation it was a rather hard task, he noticed that straight away, but he could feel his right arm strengthen after a while. He then punched, before guiding it to his left leg. At the same time he began to visualise the image of his pathways clearer, feel it move through his body, it came to his left leg rather slowly, but once he felt it become stronger he kicked. Russell then began to move it back toward his right leg where he ended up at square one once more. The mental image he had was blurred, but he concentrated on that once more, while keeping a portion of his attention on the djed flow, which slowed down. Russell felt it move to his right leg, and then kicked out with it. It was a tedious process which he had to repeat once more.

[Miro]

Miro heard what Russell asked before the exercises began, but ignored the man. Instead he just watched carefully, ready to judge every movement. He could tell the exercise was causing some issue, but it was being worked through. The process was long, slow, plenty of time to evaluate. So far everything was fine at least. The form was stable, poise was kept, concentration apparent. It was obvious that the apprentice's mind was tasked with all it was supposed to be.

However by the time the incantation came through, the wizard was thrown off slightly. It was too long. At least it was true to the man. Honestly, a single word, a simple motion, was that too simple? There was only one thing more that could be done to observe the trainee. Auristics, magical insight, the only way to see more. It was a magic not well developed, but still useful. To make his point, the Aurist would begin his casting with both a gesture and incantation.

The undead forced his eyes shut and concentrated his Djed on attuning himself to Russell's aura. He clenched his eyes shut and tapped firmly his staff against the ground. The process of attuning to the aura was strenuous, but with a clear mind somewhat easier. The whistles of a singing aura began to reach the Aurist's mind. He forced his eyes open and spoke firmly, "Hea!" It was one of the few words learned of the Ancient Tongue. It meant to look for or to touch.

Miro concentrated intensely on Russell's aura, unlike any aura reading he had before. So many times in the past he had hit a wall, a point where he could not discern much more. Often his focus was broken when he attempted to search beyond this, but not this time. He began to receive the most basic understandings, physical properties and feelings. The focused aura of the apprentice remained mostly still, only to bustle with excitement with every punch.

Each time there was a redirection of the Flux, an incantation, a punch thrown, the intensity of the aura increased. At first it would cause some confusion, but in time the Aurist learned to compensate for such things. He began to feel the heat emanating from the trainee's body, the sweat running down his form, the stern concentration it took to continue training. But there was more, he was able to see something else.

Miro looked deeper into his target, able to gain an inward sight from the aura. He could see the internal flow of Djed within his target. Each redirection a burst of activity that flowed along the body's natural channels. He could witness each redirection as it happened, view the Flux actually being cast. Indeed the flares in the aura matched each spell, and it was apparent that the training was being done correctly.

Though the fatigue was growing heavy, and concentration was hard to retain. The focus on the aura was let go, and a weakness came over the wizard. He slumped down and put his weight on his staff to support himself. By now Russell had been going for a while, and had even gained a precise rhythm to his redirections. It was still quite slow and clumsy, but a marked improvement for the novice. An order was given, "Okay, Russell, that's enough."

The Chained One was very pleased to see his student able to follow instructions and benefit from them. It was a good start to things. But perhaps now would be the proper time to explain the risks of overgiving. "Let me tell you a bit about overgiving in the Flux. A wizard lost to the magic begins to feel invincible, no pain, no limits, just an urge to destroy. After a while, there is no concern of body, of ally, you just want to kill."

It was something that the master had experienced firsthand. Something that haunted him still, though it had happened when he was young. "You lose yourself when you let the Flux take over. The Sweet Whispers drown out your rational mind, your body surges with power. All you can feel is a rush of destructive force." A person lost to the magic ceased to be a person, but instead a monster. It was this lesson that cemented the importance of discipline to the teacher.

Miro became slightly withdrawn as he looked away from his student. His voice was sullen as he spoke the words that brought an old pain to heart. "You don't want to experience this. An overgiven Flux practitioner is dangerous because they have lost all sight of discipline and limitation. It happened to me once, though I was just a kid. I don't remember much, but when I got a hold of myself I was covered in blood. Somebody who gets to that point should be killed then and there." There were times the wizard wished he had been the one who had died.

"That day I killed my first master." He understated what he had done. She was more than just his master. "A powerful wizard, one who knew better than to let me rampage." But feelings got in the way. She could not kill Miro, for she loved him too much. "When I snapped out of my rage, I realized I was covered in blood. It wasn't my blood, though I had broken a few bones. It was her blood, my mother's. She didn't have it in her to kill her own son, so instead she was torn apart."

Miro's voice slowly began to grow more grim, even quiver at times. He always felt so weak when he relived the experience. "I trained too long, let myself go too far, gave into the pull of the magic." Suddenly the volume of his voice increased. "I killed my own mother, the only person I had in life!" His voice dropped back down again, filled with obvious regret. "Without her I was all alone. I should have died then. But I didn't. This is why discipline and balance are key in the magic. You will learn."

[Miro]

The Reimancer had learned so many lessons in his magical career. He was raised a professional wizard, one meant for great things. He was born to Djed, raised in Djed, killed by Djed. Everything in his existence was wrapped around this once concept, and it was all he knew. The truth was that Miro was born a monster, meant for his fate, doomed to this existence. No amount of love and guidance in the world could have kept him from it. It had long since been written in Lhex's book how things would go. And for this reason there was no turning away from that destiny.

The wizard took his staff and tapped it against the ground firmly, all traces of emotion wiped from his person. Once again his voice was stern and powerful. "If you are going to learn discipline and balance, you will need to start with your mind. By this, of course, I mean meditation. You will learn to keep a focused mind even when everything else screams for your attention." Basic meditation was too simple, though a fine place to start. Everything started with the basics. Though this would quickly evolve from there.

"Let us start immediately. Sit yourself on the ground, a comfortable position. My preference is legs crossed, hands in lap, back straight, eyes closed. I recommend you take a hint and do something much the same. In meditation, it is important to learn to shut things out. Indeed here incantations and gestures are useful too. Though, if you'll allow me to say, an incantation or gesture should be brief. A single word, or movement, but with meaning behind it. A word or movement, while not necessarily proper, charged with intent."

It was the intent of the action that caused the concentration. To have a meaning beyond what was actually said or done. For that brief moment, everything else would fade away except for that one thing. It was a way to bring yourself back to center, to clear the mind of all outside disturbances. "Meditation allows a wizard to keep focused, and focus allows you to keep control. One must learn to separate the mind's intent, its true desire, from everything else weighing on it. To separate truth from lies, action from reaction."

This is where things got a bit complicated, where the actual training began. Meditation was important not only for a kinship with the body, to understand it fully, but to keep the mind in check. Both of these things would be emphasized through this exercise. "You are going to concentrate, study your body. Feel the burn of the muscles, the flow of Djed through your body. You will think about the Flux, the discipline it requires, the concept of balance." But there was one catch, the true difficulty in the practice.

While the apprentice would meditate, the master would cast Hypnotism. He would tempt the mind, sway it, break the balance it worked so hard to maintain. "You will sit and meditate for as long as I say. You will not know when it will end, and you must not think of such things. The true challenge in this practice is that, while you are thinking, you must remain absolutely still. Difficult in a simple situation, I will be using Hypnotism on you to only make this more difficult." Though already, even without casting, the wizard had posed the first obstacle.

The mere mention of being cast on, something Russell did not like, would cause some anxiety. Simply being watched was enough to throw off many. The burn of watching eyes was indeed a powerful weapon. And to not know when the exercise would end, that too would cause some strain on the mind. Sometimes there was no end in sight, and despite this focus was to be held onto. This was another trap the Flux held. "Now sit, close your eyes, ready yourself. If you move, give into the urges, then I will force you to start again. We will start when you tell me you are ready."

After the apprentice was settled in the proper position and the okay was given, the master would just wait. His Familiar knew to remain quiet in such situations, as they often required great focus. Though in this instance, the wizard wished to open communication to pass a bit of time. "I can feel the sadness you hold onto, after hearing that story. I know it is one you have heard before." It was true, most things about Miro were known by Ender by now. Though to feel some hint of true pain and suffering in the Chained One was moving.

The Irylid admired the display of emotion. He admired that such pain could be relived if for the benefit of another. That somewhere deep in there was a decent man who was only conscripted to darkness. This was also what caused such sadness in the creature. It made him wish for a way to save his partner, the wizard that saved him. The icy bracelet dispelled his feelings before he responded. "Yes, I have heard it before. And I can only imagine the pain it must have caused you. Sometimes I just wish that things could be different."

It was a dangerous thought for Miro to have. He knew that there was nothing that could change who he was now, what he had become. To deny his path would only cause him certain misery, for he was bound to his actions. He feigned a smile and dismissed his partner with a nod. "I do not. I have everything I could ever want here. Truly I am glad for everything that has happened." At least there was some truth to the statement. However by now the apprentice should have prepared. The master took his staff and placed it gently on the back of the meditating man's neck.

Miro began to flow Djed through the staff, to regain the insight of the aura formerly witnessed. The process came much more easily through Ionu's Light, especially as the aura was freshly viewed. Only the basic facts were revealed, as the concentration was not nearly as great, but instead split. But the ability to observe physical properties and feelings was readily available. The rest of the wizard's focus was directed towards Hypnotism, various spells. He would not cast them all at once, but over time. These sporadic manipulations would come randomly over the chimes.

The Hypnotist knew just what to do too. He would keep things simple, though he knew that it did not take much. Various emotional responses and suggestions sent at random. The feelings of anxiety, fear, restlessness, doubt, panic, embarrassment, all to rise in slight at random. Various subliminal suggestions to taint the mind, "I am uncomfortable, I need to itch, I can feel his glare, I am tired, my stance isn't proper, he is tricking me, I need to leave," they would all nag at him to shift position. It was a test of willpower. A well tuned mind could mean all the difference on the battlefield.

[Russell Wood]

Russell stopped once he had been told to, he had grown a little tired and could feel a sort of heat build up within his limbs. Using Flux wasn’t something he was used to, he didn’t dislike it, Russell just hardly felt he had a use for it, nor did he like his level of skill with the magic. He was having his question answered, Russell had never pushed himself far when using the flux. He listened quietly as Miro explained to him about the dangers of overgiving with the flux. Russell found it a rather interesting case, not like with void or hypnotism. It made sense of course, someone who used a magic strengthen their body would gain that even after overgiving, but at the cost of their mind. Equivalent exchange was once more doing its job, and Russell felt the weight of the dangers of magic once more.

But the true weight was only felt by Russell after Miro had begun to tell Russell of his own experience. At first Russell was puzzled at who his teacher had killed, but once he found out his eyes opened up wide for an instant before going back to normal. So even a master wizard can lose themselves, it was a very grounding story. But Russell didn’t feel pity, nor did he feel sad for the man, but rather at the possibility of losing his own mind to the magic. Still; Russell could tell the emotions behind the story, how would he react had he killed his own mother? One thing Russell did know was that it would certainly affect him, and in a negative way too. Russell didn’t feel as if he should say anything about the story and simply nodded once more, telling the man that he was sorry wouldn’t do much. It wasn’t his place to offer succor either.

Russell merely listened, keeping a calming mind would certainly be important, and meditation would possibly help out. Too bad Russell had never been good at it outside of Voiding, he did need to practice, so he followed orders and got into the said position. His legs were crossed, his hands on his lap with the palms facing upward and back straight. ”I see, thanks for the information sir, my incantation was rather long, a shorter one would be easier to remember.” Russell took in a deep breath, he was still tired from the Flux exercise, his muscles were burning and he was still a little out of breath, his skill with that magic really did need to improve. He cleared his mind, Russell certainly felt he was gaining a lot from being apprenticed to this man, while listening to orders bothered him, if it was going to be for power, he didn’t care all too much.

Russell listened to his task, and grit his teeth; he was seriously going to be cast on? The urge to just get up and leave had set in already, as much as he liked gaining power, he wasn’t as open to it as to allow himself to be manipulated. Even if it was to help him gain strength, he grit his teeth, he’d just need to keep his mind clear and calm, any foul play and Russell was prepared to leave. He took in a deep breath, he’d gotten this far and still kept his mind, maybe a bit of trust was deserved. Still, Russell’s distaste of having hypnotism used on was apparent. ”I understand, let us begin.” He spoke faster than he usually would have. Russell closed his eyes in preparation, and began to shut the world away, to concentrate on the flow of his djed.

Russell felt the staff placed onto the back of his neck, he tensed up but then relaxed once more as he exhaled. This meditation really shouldn’t be this hard, but no matter how many times he told himself that, it didn’t work. He slowly began to doubt why he was even there, he had already gained Reimancy now it just needed work, he had practiced the rest of his magics on his own, plus this was just embarrassing. Slowly being reduced to a quiet little apprentice, Russell felt more and more like he should leave. He could get stronger on his own, and then gain recognition just as easily, he could be outside looking for possible allies right this moment. Russell sighed; and then realized his meditation had just been broken. He grit his teeth and began to clear his mind once more. ”Empty.” Incantations could help him clear his mind; he took in a deep breath as he said that word, slowly he’d get the hang of this.

It was almost like he could feel eyes on the back of his head, he felt uncomfortable too. Was the man tricking him? Slowly trying to get into his head? Russell didn’t know, but he had a task in front of him, he could deal with any problems afterward. He slowly began to clear his mind once more, but could almost feel his shoulder itch, could he scratch it? No. He would end up losing concentration, it was at that moment Russell realized he had lost concentration once more, and grit his teeth even harder.

He was playing with himself, and that frustrated him, how could a task this simple get so hard? Hypnotism alone couldn’t do this right? Russell shook his head, and exhaled once more only to take in another deep breath. He looked within, at the flow of his djed, the muscles that had only just cooled. He needed to calm down which he did fast enough, he had to become nothingness as he did when opening a portal, while also watching the things that stayed within that emptiness. Russell felt the itch once more, and clicked his teeth while scratching his shoulder only to realize that he wasn’t even itchy. He was being played with, did he even have to take this shyke?

Just as he was about to get up, Russell realized this was for his betterment, continued growth and began to laugh. He got back into the meditation position and waited until his laugh died down before he began to talk. ”That was well done sir, extremely so, I was just about to leave before I caught on. Although I do have a request, would you mind if I opened up a little portal to help me concentrate?” Russell felt that when voiding it became easier to clear his head, maybe it was the allure of the infinite darkness. Perhaps it was due to the connection he felt with the void, either way Russell did truly love that magic, more so than any other thing on this world.

[Miro]

It seemed that Russell had struggled as much as expected, perhaps even more. It had frustrated the apprentice to the point where he was near to leaving, before finally he understood the trial. This was half of the exercise, to understand the distractions that limited the mind so that one might clear them away. But now that the Hypnotism was understood there was no further point in using it as such.

As well Russell made a simple request, to help him focus he asked permission to practice Voiding. Miro twisted his staff against the back of the man's neck and cast a spell into the slight tinge of pain. A powerful charge of confidence and tranquility was flown across it as the wizard spoke to his student. "You may do so, however you must still focus on your body, on the astral pathways within it, on the Flux."

No more magic was flown through the staff, and the slight twist was reversed to let relief overtake the apprentice. However Ionu's Light was not lowered, it would still serve a purpose. Russell had no way to know that the distracting spells were no longer being cast. The undead hoped for the best of his student. Now without the burden of magic he could reach his potential.

Whether or not the Voiding would be detrimental or beneficial was undecided. Russell though it would help, so it was likely in some way it would. But to cast like that split focus. The next step in the process would be for there to be no other distractions, and the Hypnotism would instead guide the meditation to help reach a new level of understanding. "Open your Void and continue the meditation."

[Nemesis]

Miro

Knowledge :

Skills

Skill	XP
Auristics	+1
Hypnotism	+1
Observation	+2
Storytelling	+1
Teaching	+3

Lores

*Teaching: Using Auristics to Assist

Micellaneous :

Injuries

*None

Loot/Expenses

*None

Russell Wood

Knowledge :

Skills

Skill	XP
Skill ?	+?
Skill ?	+?

Lores

*?
*?
*?

Micellaneous :

Injuries

*?
*?

Loot/Expenses

*?
*?

____________________________________________

Notes

*Russell, if you decide to return, please update your ledger to reflect play and PM me, and I will post your grade.

Feel free to PM me with questions, comments, or concerns, if you have any.
Also, remember to either delete your grade request or edit it as 'graded'.
Thank ye!