Unfamiliar Hope [Panna Cotta, please]

[Eris]

5th of Fall, 510 A.V.
The Karbin Road (Day's ride from Zeltiva)
Late evening

Eris paced along the side of the road with long, quick strides, trying to keep her impatience under control. How could she ever have deluded herself into thinking that the Nuit would show up? The entire situation was just too perfect to ever work out. Here was a man who had known Joel and by extension, might have known her father. Not only was he useful in that regard, he was also skilled in Familiarity and could provide her with the elusive companionship she so craved. She threw a cursory glance around the area for what must have been the hundredths time – as if the Nuit was simply hiding from her. Barren trees littered the side of the Karbin Road, wrapped in the remnants of their summer colors. It had taken her a day’s ride from Zeltiva to get here - a ride wasted thinking and hoping.

Rhine let out a low whine, obviously catching Eris’s edgy mood. The woman petted the mare’s head absently, her attention still focused on her thoughts. The entire concept of familiarity baffled Eris. She could understand forming a bond with a horse like Rhine, but she could not understand bonding with a creature that could actually reason and speak and give advice… Oh, how she sometimes wished that Rhine would be able to voice an opinion on Eris’s actions. Alas, the horse was only good for emotional companionship and even that often felt lonely and somewhat pathetic.

To have someone to trust… Eris swallowed a lump in her throat and continued pacing. The agreement to a meeting had been so tentative that it may not have been there at all. Maybe Eris had imagined it all in a fit of insanity. She would have never even thought of asking Gurvonesk for help if she hadn’t realized that he had been acquainted with Joel. Something clicked in her mind when she first saw the Nuit – a memory from a time when Joel told her about dealing with the undead. He had mentioned a Sahova Nuit who was an expert summoner and had even hinted that he and the Nuit had carried on business transactions of some sort. And if the man had known her teacher, he might have known her father as well… But no, that was already too much to hope for. For once, Eris’s desire for something personal – namely, a companion - outweighed her zeal over finding her father.

She finally drew to a halt and let out a resigned sigh. Either he was coming or he was not. She could not allow herself to wait – and hope – forever.

[Panna Cotta]

OOCOh wow, I forgot to put this in my thread list and it slipped my mind!!! I apologize a bazillion times, please do not hate me

It was rare for the wizards to leave the Citadel unless they had some pressing reason to do so. Even if some of the Nuits were blessed with social skills, there were only a select few who had acquaintances far beyond the occasional merchant. One such Nuit was Guvronsek. Tonight's meeting was fated by a higher power, a God whose existence and influence was revealed upon Eris during that misadventure in Sahova. Perhaps it was just another side story in the life adventure of the lost and desolate Eris. But every side story was an arc that helped form a circle, without which Eris would never be complete. A woman such as Eris was someone whose purpose in life was fueled by her past. To her, finding her father defined her goal in life. Oh but humans could be defined with many other things, many other motives that they have yet to learn and discover. And in this story, Eris was about to let her soul grow. She had grown almost independently. We say almost, because even when she could claim that she was a self-made person, one could not deny the existence of forces that pushed her around: her father, whose absence motivated the spite in her heart; her mother, whose insanity defined the development of her childhood; her mentor, who helped her become who she is now. While not socially inept, Eris had barred herself from having close relationships with other people. It could be partly an occupational hazard. Hired killers were not really the friendly type. But that misadventure in Sahova taught Eris that there were still convenient relationships out there. Convenient. That was the word that Guvronsek used to describe his relationship with Joel. It came no surprise to Eris that her mentor knew a Nuit from Sahova, although Guvronsek was very vague about the nature of said relationship. It could be easily inferred that Joel could have been a hired killer by Sahova at one point in time, or it could be that he had sold the bodies he had "disposed of" to the Nuit wizards. It was more likely the latter, because it was like getting paid twice for a job you've done once. Guvronsek's arrival was silent as the passing of the twilight. He was carrying his skull-decorated staff across his shoulder, and he appeared from out the corner of Eris' eye like an apparition. The Nuit barely spoke and they continued down the road quietly, two random strangers who happened to walk side-by-side. A patrol of Knights arrived and passed them by silently, there was nothing shady about a woman and a Nuit. They were just two more people among the crowd who were probably trying to make it through the road before winter hits the skies of Mizahar. But Eris and Guvronsek did not have a definite destination, only a definite purpose for meeting together. The human and Nuit continued walking, sharing nothing but glimpses and a meaningful silence. The movement was sudden, but at one point Guvronsek shifted and pointed away from the nearby bend in the road - they were going to leave the path. The woods started to thicken. Leth finally appeared in the sky. Deeper into the mighty forest, Eris could see flickering silver-blue flames. It was a ritual ground, well-hidden from other people. Guvronsek then waved his hand at Eris, motioning her to head towards the site. Everything was already prepared when they had arrived. The Nuit was still silent, not even a grunt or sigh since they met. Guvronsek decided to spare Eris the lecture about getting a familiar. She had requested it, and he had assumed she knew what she was getting into. The Nuit flashed a knife before Eris and asked, "Does your soul gather light or darkness?" With quick movements, Guvronsek drew his staff and drew lines inside the summoning circle. He pulled Eris' hand and swiftly swiped the knife upon a finger, releasing her blood into the summoning circle. Lights flashed and gravity pulled both of them towards the opening portal. Guvronsek gripped her tightly and stood firmly by striking his wand at the ground. The voice from the other side of the world was calm, collected, and curious. "Two moving objects before me." Guvronsek shoved Eris towards the portal, pushing her with his staff. She bent over the summoning circle and was faced with an orb possessing an attitude as cold as it looked like. "Woman, have you come to release me?"

[Eris]

“Darkness,” Eris responded without missing a beat, knowing that while her soul might at times reflect light, it would never gather it.

She did not flinch when the blade drew across the skin of her finger. The sensation was familiar – reminiscent of all the times she had pricked herself with her own dagger during training. It seemed silly now to think that she had at one point been so clumsy with a blade. The pain in her finger had signaled at one time a beginning to her training as a fighter. Now, it seemed to signify a beginning of a different kind.

Eris watched the portal intently, her eyes wide with awe. She had been exposed to different kinds of magic over the years – reimnancy and morphing among them. But never had she seen something like this. When faced with the orb, she schooled her features to reflect nothing but cold determination. She cleared her throat before speaking, making sure that her voice would not shake. “Well, that certainly depends on you.” She had come prepared for this, knowing that she would need to ask just the right questions of a potential familiar before accepting it as her companion. Likewise, the familiar would need to understand who she was and what she did. The last thing she wanted was a familiar who would ridicule or scoff at her line of work.

“I am Eris. What is your name?” she asked and paused before continuing, “I require a companion who would be loyal, but also be willing to speak out against me if I am on the verge of making a bad decision. Would you do that?” Another pause and then she tacked on a question which was among the most important criteria, “And how do you feel about killing?”

[Panna Cotta]

Guvronsek receded into the woods, observing at a distance. He had put up illusions around their secret meeting place. There was nowhere else to meet, nowhere else to summon familiars. It could be better if the contract was done outside cities, where anything that goes wrong could be immediately resolved with a void. The portal before Eris was a fragile glass that divided Mizahar and Fyrden. The planet was a low-world, a place where all the inhabitants have no issues about leaving. It was getting cramped in the Lightface and the Darkface, and most of the familiars just want to ride the first familiar bond out of the boring world. The creature before Eris was an Irylid, known in the wizarding community for having a limited instinctual form of Reimancy. Its voice was icy as it answered Eris' question. "I am called nothing." It was floating, glimmering silver and blue. Eris could almost see her own features reflected upon it. "A companion I can be, loyal I cannot." For a while it was still, deliberating upon Eris' words. "A voice of reason and logic I am capable of." The rough androgynous voice followed with, "I have no care for life other than that of my own." The familiar was just as silent as Guvronsek. It was a creature of few words. What Eris did not know yet was that it was a great observer. It was capable of seeing everything in its surroundings and its logical mind greatly complemented its eye for detail. Already, the familiar was wondering about the muted presence of the second person. Eris had offered him freedom in exchange for companionship. If it boiled down to just that, it was more than glad to. "I accept to leave this world." It was almost effortless on Eris' part. But would she trust the creature so easily? Still waters run deep, Joel's voice entered her ears. His voice echoed a multitude of warnings. Getting a familiar was entirely up to her, however. Or entirely up to fate.

[Eris]

Eris suddenly realized that before the creature had spoken she had not differentiated between companionship and loyalty. To her, the concepts had been one and the same. She had been loyal to Joel when she was his apprentice. Her horse, Rhine was a loyal companion to her now. Did the creature have it wrong or did she? She was not sure whether she had a problem with this or not and she might have accepted this familiar if it were not for its response to her second question.

She could never share her deepest secrets and hopes with someone who did not care for any sort of life but its own. It was true that Eris had killed more people than she could count, but each life she had taken had come with a price that was not only monetary. Joel had taught her to value life and to feel that pang of sadness when it was destroyed. When she was little, she used to think that Joel did not care for any life but his own. Now, Eris understood that he had cared for her life as well.

Beside the moral qualms she had with the familiar’s answer, the creature’s response also presented an occupational hazard. She understood that a familiar would value its companion’s life, if only to stay alive itself. But, if he would never truly come to care for her, how could she ever trust him?

“Thank you,” she replied in a voice to match the familiar's cold tone. “But I do not think you and I would be able to work together.” It came as a relief to Eris that she had choices beyond this particular familiar. Certainly, there were certain aspects of it that would be useful – such as its cold and calculating disposition – but its lack of identity unsettled Eris. She turned her head slightly to catch Gurvonsek’s glance among the shadows. “May I speak with another one?”

[Panna Cotta]

In another circumstance, Guvronsek would have closed the portal and assisted Eris in opening up another line into the Darkface. But today was special, and the portal was special, the line he drew was special. The first Irylid floated aside, and from the nerve chilling darkness of the window to Fyrden appeared yet another Irylid. By all accounts it did not look different from the first one that they had summoned. There was difference in the shape and size, but it was so subtle that it was invisible to Eris' eyes. Even the voice was the same frosty androgynous voice. "Woman, why do you deny my kin? What would be the answer that would please you?" These familiars, hundreds and thousands of various kinds, all of them willing to leave Fyrden at the first opportunity. They have learned to accept that summoners don't always immediately take a creature out of the low world to be an attachment to another unsuspecting wizard. And so they have learned to try and become what the wizards want them to be. "What makes a companion desirable?" There was a tone of the same icyness upon the second Irylid, same observant nature. It was obvious, however, that it was the more intelligent of the two. Just a little more circumspect than its brethren. It wasn't really summoned, wasn't really actively looking for a master. But Guvronsek had opened one so near an Irylid colony. Some of the nearby Irylids were attracted by the djed trimmings. A third ice orb could be seen glinting in the distance. A woman have come to set one of them free. What did she want? Eris could open up another portal using a different Darkface coordinate. But there was no guarantee that she will find the same kind of familiars. She was unsure of the Irylids, cold, calculating, and no doubt manipulative. It could get worse. But they have opened up a conversation with her, and it was her chance to get more out of otherwise reticent creatures. Guvronsek stepped forward, knife and staff in either hand. "I will be willing to help you find other citizens if you do not wish to acquire any one of them." He shook his head silently. Pulsers nowadays thought that choosing a familiar would actually make a difference. They may be made of different elements, with different voices, and different personalities, but they were all the same. All the same.

[Eris]

Eris licked her lips, her eyes scanning the creature thoughtfully. It seemed to be more crafty and manipulative. Despite the logical conclusion that this sort of trait would be undesirable in a potential companion, Eris was mildly impressed. It would have been the kind of thing she would say in an unfamiliar situation. She would answer questions with questions and try to get an idea of what was wanted of her before committed to anything. Perhaps, this creature was enough of kindred spirit after all.

“Now, it would hardly be fair if I told you,” she said, arching one eyebrow. “You might simply lie to me in order to cross into this world. That’s certainly no basis for a relationship.” She paused for a few heartbeats, contemplating the best way to go about this. She raised her voice slightly to address the creatures lurking in the background. “Any of you who wish to join me in this world may answer this however you see fit and I shall pick one whose answer is most to my liking: If I were to tell you that a certain person had done something to deserve death and that I had to be the one to kill him, what would you say?”

She shook her head at Guvronsek. “No, I believe these creatures are after my own heart. I shall find a companion in this portal,” she said with mroe confidence than she felt.

[Panna Cotta]

"Some of us despise this world so much that circumventing the truth is almost always a convenient ticket to leave this world." It chose its words carefully. "I would like to tell you that although we are pleased to leave this world it does not necessarily mean that we are pleased to have ourselves linked to a creature from the other side of the portal. The disadvantages are greater to us." It paused, weighing its own answer to Eris' question. "Do you sincerely think that what you do would matter to the familiar that you would take out of this world? One moment you disagree to a brother who had no pretenses about putting no value to life, and then you ask us what we think about you having to kill someone who deserves death." Beyond this conversation, it appeared that the Irylid worked completely with logic. Eris had the vague sense that this one knew how to evaluate the people who speak with it. She might suspect that the creatures were not behind trickery to get what they want, but a thought had lit in her head: perhaps these creatures thought the same of her? The Irylid continued, "If you are so keen in having an amicable relationship with one of our kind, why don't you tell us what we could get out of our relationship with you? Maybe that would provide all of us with a better perspective?" There were audible murmurs from behind, incorrigible whispers that told Eris the Irylids echoed the opinion of the one who spoke. It was at this time that Guvronsek tapped Eris' shoulder. In whispers he said, "There is honesty with that Irylid, and I say so because it does not hide what it does not want you to know. Choosing a familiar is a blessing for those who have the liberty to do so. You have that choice, and I suggest you exercise your liberties wisely." It was unclear what Guvronsek was trying to say, but at the moment everybody was giving Eris mixed signals. And then there was silence from the other side of the portal. The opinionated Irylid made it clear: They want to listen, not to talk.

[Eris]

“Fair enough,” Eris said, a ghost of a smile passing across her lips. She was starting to like this creature. It spoke frankly and with great attention to logic. She has the sense that it was evaluating her just as she was analyzing it. What’s more, Guvronsek seemed to be convinced that the Irylid was honest. Honest, but capable of lying. Those were all certainly positive characteristics in a partner.

As always, Eris was hesitant to talk about herself. It did not pay to be talkative and open in her line of work, and she was unused to disclosing personal information. But she understood that her potential familiar needed to learn about her as much as she needed to learn about it.

So, she drew in a breath and began, “I do not own a home, nor am I tied to any one particular place. As I understand, your kind are not exceptionally familiar with Mizahar. I travel a lot. If you wanted to learn about my world, you would certainly have the opportunity to do so and you would see many places in the meantime. I was an assassin, perhaps I still am. It has been a long time since I killed for money, but there is no telling whether I have closed that door for good.” She attempted a nonchalant shrug, though her shoulders felt weighed down. “That is why I ask what I ask. I place great value on life, if only because I have served to end the lives of so many.”
After a moment of silence, she prompted, “Does that satisfy you? Ask whatever else you wish to know and I will answer.”

Eris began to understand that she could learn as much about the creature from the questions it asked as from the answers it gave.

[Panna Cotta]

"It seems to me that you live your life alone. Why would you want to bring a familiar along with you?" On the side of Mizahar, there were many reasons for summoning a creature from Fyrden: Wizards want unlikely slaves, apprentices deserving of a reward, magical research. Not that the Irylid was concerned, but it deemed Eris worthy of an intelligence check. Was she a pushover? Was she easily bullied, controlled? Perhaps what was important is that the Irylid wanted to read the person with whom it will share its life with. Eris was circumspect in presenting herself, a wise move because it kept the Irylid interested. At the same time there was enough time in between the two of them to gauge one another. "I could care less about what you do and why you do it." There was a cold nonchalance to the Irylid, but it was still unclear if there was more to its psyche. Blunt and direct to the point, it told Eris, "I just want out of here." On the side of Fyrden, a familiar's reason for leaving the cramped and boring world was as plain as wanting freedom from a jail. There need not be a purpose for wanting to leave. Should Eris offer, the Irylid would accept the bond. There would always be time to form agendas later. So much for having no pretenses.