The sixty-ninth day of summer, 515 AV
"Master Relos?" Keene raised a hand to the door, finding that where he had expected resistance there was only the gentle give of the simple iron as it easily slid open. Taking a moment to stare into the carefully constructed maze of doors and segments of walls, Keene stepped inside, eyeing the strange set-up the lab with a contemplative blank stare. There was enough obstruction that, if Master Relos were present, he could not see him from where he stood. Stepping forward, Keene began to wander through the structures, finding that some paths led to dead ends, requiring him to spend a fair amount of time of walking in what were essentially circles until he came across a flicker of movement at the corner of his vision. Pausing, Keene called out once more, his quiet voice drifting into the open air with a cool rise of tone. "Master Relos?"
There was a brief moment of silence before a figure stepped into view. A placid visage met with an equally neutral one, neither seeking anything more than the confirmation that the other was paying attention before the nuit replied in his own quiet voice. "Warden." Keene followed behind the shielder who gestured he do so, neither saying much as they navigated through the maze until Master Relos waved a hand towards a chair as he made his own way to sit behind a neatly kept desk. Taking his own seat, Keene moved to speak, but Relos was slightly faster. "You're back to finish our lesson, I presume?" Keene blinked before nodding. "I see." There was a pause as the nuit stared at Keene, an expression that the young man found familiar.
Taking a slow, steady breath, Keene drew his djed up and through him, running it along the familiar pathway so that it flowed into his senses, augmenting the world around him. Relos' aura was different than those he had seen before. It was massive, similar in scope to Keene's own, only there was not beat of life throughout it. Steady, silver light emanated from him, a light that was difficult for Keene to look at, as it was incredibly bright, more than he was used to. There were more things about the aura that was focused about the nuit's arms, other colors varying in size and depth, but Keene found himself drawing away, forcing the magic to fade as he flinched back, unused to the intensity of such an aura. Relos nodded, seemingly expecting the reaction. "So you've learned auristics as well. I would caution you on the speed of your magical acquisitions. Magic is no game, Warden, nor is it something to be so quickly collected."
Keene frowned, a ghost image of the light still burned into the corners of his vision. "Do you disapprove of my progress, Master Relos?"
The Nuit shrugged, as impassive as the young man he spoke with. "You have come to me for lessons in shielding, is that not correct?" Keene nodded. "It is a magic that depends heavily upon the user's discipline and forethought." Master Relos raised a brow, "And I am merely reminding you of that. What you do with your time and where you invest your efforts is your choice, Warden."
"...I see." Keene found the Master's manner of speech refreshing. "I have more specific questions this time, if I may ask them?" The nuit's head dipped in confirmation. "When we last spoke, you said that shields could be given multiple tasks. Can a shield be given tasks after its initial creation, and if so, how many?"
The nuit sat back into his chair, folding his hands over his lap as he stared back at the Warden, eyes as shielded as the magic he worked with. "A shield is more than a simple spell, like a reimancer's flame or a voider's portal. They are living creatures, extensions of our own djed. A child who is too young can only be taught so much before one must wait until it has matured. Shields are similar in this way, in that the longer they exist or the more complicated they are at their creation, the more they can learn and the more readily they do so." He paused, his head tilted slightly in question. "As shielders, we have the ability to alter the djed of the shields we create. When you task a shield, you weave the djed in such a way that the entity it represents knows how to handle djed that is similar or identical. A single task is a single lesson. A shield can learn as much as a shielder can teach it. Does that answer your question?"
Keene nodded, a slight frown about his lips. "And how do you teach a shield? I have... altered weaves to incorporate new djed, but it is a lengthy process."
"Yes, I imagine so. The more complex the task and shield, the greater the time required to craft it accordingly. Though," He tapped his bottom lip, the only physical expression of contemplation he offered, "If the target djed is available you can train the already present shield to recognize it and subsequently create a task involving it."
"So one does not have to involve however many tasks within the primary creation nor patch with new tasked djed in order for a single shield to have multiple purposes?"
Master Relos nodded. "Correct."
"Master Relos?" Keene raised a hand to the door, finding that where he had expected resistance there was only the gentle give of the simple iron as it easily slid open. Taking a moment to stare into the carefully constructed maze of doors and segments of walls, Keene stepped inside, eyeing the strange set-up the lab with a contemplative blank stare. There was enough obstruction that, if Master Relos were present, he could not see him from where he stood. Stepping forward, Keene began to wander through the structures, finding that some paths led to dead ends, requiring him to spend a fair amount of time of walking in what were essentially circles until he came across a flicker of movement at the corner of his vision. Pausing, Keene called out once more, his quiet voice drifting into the open air with a cool rise of tone. "Master Relos?"
There was a brief moment of silence before a figure stepped into view. A placid visage met with an equally neutral one, neither seeking anything more than the confirmation that the other was paying attention before the nuit replied in his own quiet voice. "Warden." Keene followed behind the shielder who gestured he do so, neither saying much as they navigated through the maze until Master Relos waved a hand towards a chair as he made his own way to sit behind a neatly kept desk. Taking his own seat, Keene moved to speak, but Relos was slightly faster. "You're back to finish our lesson, I presume?" Keene blinked before nodding. "I see." There was a pause as the nuit stared at Keene, an expression that the young man found familiar.
Taking a slow, steady breath, Keene drew his djed up and through him, running it along the familiar pathway so that it flowed into his senses, augmenting the world around him. Relos' aura was different than those he had seen before. It was massive, similar in scope to Keene's own, only there was not beat of life throughout it. Steady, silver light emanated from him, a light that was difficult for Keene to look at, as it was incredibly bright, more than he was used to. There were more things about the aura that was focused about the nuit's arms, other colors varying in size and depth, but Keene found himself drawing away, forcing the magic to fade as he flinched back, unused to the intensity of such an aura. Relos nodded, seemingly expecting the reaction. "So you've learned auristics as well. I would caution you on the speed of your magical acquisitions. Magic is no game, Warden, nor is it something to be so quickly collected."
Keene frowned, a ghost image of the light still burned into the corners of his vision. "Do you disapprove of my progress, Master Relos?"
The Nuit shrugged, as impassive as the young man he spoke with. "You have come to me for lessons in shielding, is that not correct?" Keene nodded. "It is a magic that depends heavily upon the user's discipline and forethought." Master Relos raised a brow, "And I am merely reminding you of that. What you do with your time and where you invest your efforts is your choice, Warden."
"...I see." Keene found the Master's manner of speech refreshing. "I have more specific questions this time, if I may ask them?" The nuit's head dipped in confirmation. "When we last spoke, you said that shields could be given multiple tasks. Can a shield be given tasks after its initial creation, and if so, how many?"
The nuit sat back into his chair, folding his hands over his lap as he stared back at the Warden, eyes as shielded as the magic he worked with. "A shield is more than a simple spell, like a reimancer's flame or a voider's portal. They are living creatures, extensions of our own djed. A child who is too young can only be taught so much before one must wait until it has matured. Shields are similar in this way, in that the longer they exist or the more complicated they are at their creation, the more they can learn and the more readily they do so." He paused, his head tilted slightly in question. "As shielders, we have the ability to alter the djed of the shields we create. When you task a shield, you weave the djed in such a way that the entity it represents knows how to handle djed that is similar or identical. A single task is a single lesson. A shield can learn as much as a shielder can teach it. Does that answer your question?"
Keene nodded, a slight frown about his lips. "And how do you teach a shield? I have... altered weaves to incorporate new djed, but it is a lengthy process."
"Yes, I imagine so. The more complex the task and shield, the greater the time required to craft it accordingly. Though," He tapped his bottom lip, the only physical expression of contemplation he offered, "If the target djed is available you can train the already present shield to recognize it and subsequently create a task involving it."
"So one does not have to involve however many tasks within the primary creation nor patch with new tasked djed in order for a single shield to have multiple purposes?"
Master Relos nodded. "Correct."
