[Flashback] Revisiting the Auras (Solo)

[Talya]

Timestamp: Summer 80, 513 AV It was nearing noon, and the city of Ravok once again found itself to be comfortably warm. Unlike with the previous day, the sky was a marginally deeper, darker shade of blue, filled with a smattering of fluffy white clouds and while others were a pale shade of grey. The bright yellow sun ran between them, and soon lost itself from the sight of the world that rested far down below. Talya sat on the roof of her apartment building, on top of the small ridge that added more depth to the architecture of the building, if such could be said, as she always found it to be a rather simplistic design. Her body was bathed within the sun's light, which added a golden streak to the blackness of her dress. Her dark eyes narrowed as they swept over the city which rested beneath her- the weavings of canals and apartments, the coming and goings of various people, with faces and forms, but no names. Unlike yesterday, she didn't idly wonder who they were, or where they were going, she simply wanted to use them to practice her magic. For this, she was happy to be alone again, and to have found a quiet corner where she was unlikely to ever be disturbed during her practice. A place where she wasn't likely to be found by those down below, as not many ever bothered to look up, and take in the entirety of their surroundings. A place where she wasn't going to face any hardship for being whom and what she was. A place, where she could experience a sense of serenity. To begin her practice, Talya took a deep breath in through her nose, and out through her mouth, before looking down at all the people down below her, walking across a nearby bridge, which led from one end of the canal, to the other as she had done the day before. These folks, she decided, would be her subjects for the day as others had been yesterday. At first, the people seemed to move to fast, as though they were in a great hurry. But finally, they began to slow, and Talya took hold of her first target. A large, gangly looking 20-something year old, who had yet to sprout facial hair that could match the unruly flaxen locks atop his head. He wore a simple tunic and trousers, over which a cloak had been laid. Talya took another deep breath, and then, set her eyes upon him. Letting them bore into his skin as she intensified her level of concentration until his aura appeared. She would describe it as a swirling vortex. A rough circle, whose perimeter seemed to jump, while small shards broke away. Sort of like bits of flesh from a dried, dead leaf in the midst of fall or winter, his aura seemed to break. Or give the illusion of breaking; fragmenting. Perhaps, Tal thought, this had to do with the state of his mind, or at least her perception that he was not all there. Since, she supposed, auras could not only tell what a person was, but what another thought they were. Or at least that was her theory, especially in the rare case that an aurist could pick up on the few layers of an aura that her teachers had once described. The more Talya studied the aura from her distant place, her heart beginning to beat a little faster as she did so, the more her mind likened the man's aura to an old leaf, given the wispy appearance of an image from a dream. For its shade was a muddy brown, laced with runny bits of black toward its center. It looked entirely earthen, in an otherworldly sort of way, if such a thing made any sense at all. But it didn't smell as though it belonged to such a realm. As it carried a musty scent. One which reminded Talya of what the forest was like just after a rainfall. But as soon as that wave washed over her, she caught also the scent of burning leaves, blown to her by the winds. A repugnant, smoky scent that caused an occasional flare of her nostrils, although at least, they did not redden in irritation. This, the girl supposed, might have been an allusion to the sort of magic the man possessed or perhaps his work in the forest, or with food or plants, but she wasn't sure, and knew there was no way for her to find out for certain, and as such, let the aura fall so that she could study someone else.

[Talya]

It was a few minutes before Talya noticed another person crossing the bridge. This time, she noticed an aged man, who she supposed was somewhere in his late seventies, although she couldn't be sure, as she wasn't particularly familiar with the rate at which most if not all of the other races of Mizahar aged. Anyway, the fellow was stooped over; his back the shape of a rough crescent. He walked with a cane that clicked idly on the wooden boards that comprised the bridge as he shuffled across; his gait slow, wobbly, and uneven. His skin drooped from his bones; his frame to narrow to support it all. It was covered in speckles that resembled freckles, although a number of them were a bright red, like blood, while some looked a tad closer to purple in shade. It was dry skin, flaking in some areas, as though he didn't take proper care of it. His eyes were a bland brown, and his white hair seemed as though it could be blown off the surface of his head. His attire simple, trousers bound by a belt at the waist, an oversized shirt that looked as though it had seen better days.It took another moment's worth of concentration, the narrowing of her eyes, for Talya to pick up on the man's aura. A neon green vein pulsed idly against her temple; pushing against her skin as the vaporous entity appeared around the man. A grassy green in shade, with darker, more foresty undertones closer to his body. It felt to Talya as though it had been awhile since she had seen a green aura. An aura which was associated with healing. In this case, she supposed it had more to do with the man returning to a slightly healthier state than before, (as he didn't seem as though he were doing to well, simply based off his outward appearance). It was then that she sniffed at the air, to see what else she could glean from it, and noticed that there was a scent that hadn't been there before. A scent that she couldn't quite place. It wasn't a pleasant smell, in fact, it made her nose wrinkle, and as opposed to being one thing, it seemed to be made up of many smaller things. Or at least, it had different hints and notes to suggest as much. She thought she smelled something salty; like sweat dampening one's clothes. Something pungent, like piss or dung, and something else- maybe put simply, the general scent of sickness. That horrid smell that followed you around whenever you wound up in a sickbed, in a clinic or your own home. The scent of the food of the diseased. The scent of the others who were ailing, and those that tended them. Just general, unpleasant sickness. Which led Talya to again, confirm her previous conviction that the man wasn't in the best of health, and was simply out in a last ditch effort to take care of himself. Satisfied with what she had gleaned, Talya let the aura go out, allowing a sense of exhaustion to instantly wash over her. Her eyes felt heavier, her breathing became more labored, and her heart beat faster and faster, but she was determined to keep on going anyway, which may or may not have been the effect of her magic toying with her mind. In any case, Talya waited for the old man to finish crossing the bridge, and for a few more people to cross its length, which gave her a few moment's respite, before choosing her next target. This time, she decided on a little girl, who was tearing the petals off a daisy he held in her hands, and tossing them uselessly aside. She wore a simple white dress, with little white shoes with buckles to match. Her hair was long and flaxen, and was woven into braids, which tumbled down the length of her back, before stopping at its center. Her eyes were a pale blue, her nose cute as a button. Talya took a deep breath in through her nose, and out through her mouth, doing her best to block out everything but the girl- sights, sounds, smells- so that it would be easier to concentrate. Within a few seconds, her aura appeared as well. The girl's aura was a mixture of colors. Predominately, it was a bright shade of yellow. But there were squiggles and bursts of deep orange within it, as well as flecks of a rosy red. Talya took this to mean that the girl was vibrant in nature. That she was full of life- the endless, boundless energy of a child. That she was the sort of person still within a stage of life where their innocence kept them sheltered enough where they knew no hardships, or of them minimally, and were essentially, terminally happy until someone stole their cookies out of the jar, or some other such petty thing of the like. She supposed the girl had a big, in your face sort of personality, that the orange added to what the yellow meant, and that the red hinted a passion of hers. But for what, Talya couldn't be certain. Maybe it was a hobby she had- drawing, coloring, baking, jumping rope. Maybe it was something complex, maybe it had something to do with the flower? She had heard humans performed a stupid game with them sometimes, to determine if someone loved them or not. Silly creatures. Maybe that was it, or maybe she was off base. She couldn't be sure unless she asked, and as she didn't intend to, she would simply have to let the aura fall and move onto something that would hopefully, be far more clear to her.

[Talya]

The Ethaefal let the aura fall, and again, felt rather tired, but ignored this in favor of studying a few more auras. She waited another few breaths, before choosing to study another individual. This one she could not tell the gender of for sure, but the size of them, over six feet tall, suggested a male. As did the gait, and the shape of the body- the lack of a curve about the hips, the thickness of the thighs. Then, there was a lack of hair poking through the bottom of the hood, where the neck shone through. A pale stretch of skin. But still, she couldn't be sure, as the clothes the person wore, (which she supposed would make them terribly hot in this weather, and not at all inconspicuous, as they may have wanted), were items worn by both of the sexes. In any case, Talya found that the cloaked nature of the person drew her to them, and made her want to find out more about them, as the concealment was intriguing. So, she took another deep breath in through her nose and out through her mouth to help steady her tiring self, and concentrated on the blackness of the cloak, the way the hood was draped over the head, until an aura came into view. It was faint- not as large as some other auras she had seen, and for the most part, tucked rather tightly against the man's body. It didn't seem to have quite the billowing, smoky nature that many other auras had. Nor did it seem to flow the way other auras did. In fact, this aura seemed almost stagnant, as though it had no life to it whatsoever. At least, she felt, it lacked depth, as she supposed the thinness of the aura, coupled with its smaller stature, suggested that it had fewer layers. Fewer dimensions. Some of course, she supposed she may not be able to see yet, as she was new to the craft and still learning, but still, as she had seen more in others, she supposed she should be able to see more within this one as well. During her studies at the institute, Talya had heard it said that some rather gifted aurists, (masters of the art mainly), could conceal their auras from onlookers, or even, obscure them in some way. This would only work on practitioners of the craft who weren't as experienced, or in some case, even other masters, although they may be able to pick up on the fact that something with their aura was amiss. Now, Talya had never encountered a master of the art before, and was never able to see or experience what had been described to her first hand. Thinking back on what was said, and what she saw now, she came to the conclusion that this man was not a master of the art of auristics, nor did he study it. For, she determined, if the man was a master, and was working to conceal his aura, he would do so completely. He hadn't, obviously, which meant he was ok with others seeing it, otherwise he would block it permanently right? Even from those who he may not know were watching. Those who he couldn't see practicing, and thus view as a potential threat to his person. Not to mention, there wasn't that spark to his aura to suggest that he used magic, that sense within her core that made her think that in some ways, they were one and the same. So, Talya dismissed the theory that she was being blocked, and studied further as the man continued to cross, drawing all the more near. What then, could the aura mean? Judging from its color alone, as Talya could not pick up on any taste, further sight within the aura itself, or smell from it, she determined, as the browns within the aura were a rustier tone, that the person was tougher in nature. That they were the no-nonsense sort, who wasn't about to let themselves wade through the petching messes that others made around them, or presented them with, as much as break through them. A sort of person who was relentless when it came to tearing others down and doing anything else it took to attain their goals, and do whatever it was they felt they needed. That the person was aggressive in nature, and wouldn't back down from a fight, and more than they would take the word "no" for an answer. And yet, she felt this person had a softer side as well, for some reason, although she could be wrong. A side that wasn't the front they presented to the world; hard, and cold. Shiny as the most well-maintained armor. A person that was more sensitive, and wanted to hide this. A person that didn't really want to be seen, hence the cloak she supposed. She shrugged, there was something that annoyed her about auristics- all the guesswork and speculation, but there was nothing she could do about it, and did her best to let it go, as the figure turned left after crossing the bridge, and headed down the way. So far, that they fell out of range and became increasingly difficult to concentrate on, to the point where the aura collapsed naturally, and disappeared from sight. Leaving Talya without the light. Without her second vision. And so very tired. So much so, that her eyes drooped, and then shut, and didn't open again for quite some time.