[Flashback] A crossing of paths (Rayage)

[Reaver]

[Winter 302 av]

Reaver found himself practicing magic today, something he didn't do often. Even more rare, he found himself outside as he practiced. He sat at one of the few edges of town that wasn't a dock, and muttered his incantation, focusing his energy, and moving his hands in front of him like he were working on a small clay plate. Opening his eyes, he found a black disk in front of him. Standing, he admired his work. "Almost makes me want to put a drink there."

As he turned around, he found he had an onlooker. Looked to be a young boy, but all the same, the expression on his face wasn't one of wonder. As the boy ran back to town screaming, Reaver noted it was time to go. Dissipating his portal swiftly, he made his way around the outside ring of the town, hoping to avoid guards looking for trouble. A few onlookers he passed were swift to move out of his way, but also likely to mention the strange person to the guard.

It's not like blue armor is common, it wouldn't be hard for them to track him unless he could take a darker route. As he turned through a couple darker passages, he found a quiet place and stopped for a moment to listen. He could hear a faint noise, similar to a person. There were no doors or windows nearby, nor anyone in eye-sight. A ghost, perhaps? Maybe something through a wall. As Reaver tried to find the source of the sound, he leaned up against a wall nearby. Unfortunately, this wall had actually been a secret door, and opened up suddenly with the addition of his weight. Reaver lost his balance, and fell through. He found himself in an unknown room, confronted with an unknown person.

[Rayage]

The nuit could only smile at the thoughts of what was to come. Nothing was as thrilling as ideas coming together and thought coming into reality. No, not to him, and he was sure that many would agree with him. Not that he was looking for that, no, he cared not for anyones opinion other than his own. They will all have to learn eventually that the undead were superior to the living in all ways. Well, close to every way. They did have weaknesses, but those could be overlooked, or rather, overshadowed by what the undead did possess. He looked about the room, his laboratory, and where he does all work that he considers important. Everything was in place. Nothing was going to stop him this time to transmute and possibly finish his research. No, his lab was hidden enough, and was just big enough to accommodate him, the alchemy circle, which had man sized portals, and a small desk set aside to one end of the room which was cluttered with papers. The walls of the place covered in all sorts of ominous looking runes and symbols. Sure, there were more rooms in this lab then just this one, but it was big enough that he didn’t bother filling in everything. The space will be used in time, and right now, the smaller the better, the less conspicuous. There was a door behind him, simple wood, and that lead out to a small hall, just big enough for an average sized person to walk though. Nothing too special other than it leads to his workshop. Looking back at the circle before him he again smiled at it. Everything should work out, but so far everything ended in failure. This time he has a sneaking suspicion that everything should turn out as planned. Though experience has told him time and time again that it just wouldn’t work he just liked testing the limits of Alchemy and what it could do if the right circumstances were to be applied. In the center of the circle, the target was a young girl looking no older than eight, and at all the fonts and filters sat lizards, totaling up to four of them. His goal of course was the successful merger of both species. Enhancement and working towards the ‘perfection’ of things he thought of himself as a grim artist, and like any artist he was going to make the future and be remembered for his glorious work. Oh, the girl brought back memories of past experiments, of past attempts, and of past captures. He got his children, and most of his test subjects, the experiments not having an age limit, from the streets. He lured them in with thoughts of free food and shelter. Suggestions of a better life, and empty promises. Of course the decpetion wasnt found out, if at all, untill it was too late and the deed has been done. Surprisingly he noted that younger people are more likely to survive the procedure, and so the streets have been his hunting grounds for quite a while now and his work instilling a fake hope within his victims. Making his way to the desk, for he didn’t have any time to loose, he grabbed a loose knife and made a small cut on his left pointer finger. Then as quickly as the nuit had made it to the desk he found himself at the keystone and with a moment’s hesitation and look at the young victim, the sacrifice for the art, he placed the ichor laced finger to the keystone, and with that, his seal and placement of power the process of transmutation had begun. Clearing his mind he called upon the mental connection the ichor gave him with the charges placed around the ring. He slowly began to feel the djed within each charge and with sheer force of will, along with a little practice and skill from previous transmutations; he commanded the djed to begin to move. At first the movement was sluggish and the force seemed resistant to mental push that he was giving it. He could feel the djed but the process of getting everything going, moving; advancing was always the hardest part of the entire process, in the nuits opinion. Within minutes of concentration and frantic ordering of the djed to move he was finally beginning to feel the slightest trickle of energy going about the circle. Growling a little at himself for taking so long he began to will it to move faster, but with anything and everything that too would take time. He was just lucky that he got it started. Now that it was started it would be much easier to move the energy because it is much easier to move a moving object than a still one. Soon enough the djed was moving in such a steady rate that the circle itself glowed with power, but the nuit knew that even though it glowed it wasn’t near the speed it needs to be for a successful transmutation. No, and with one order, one thought in mind, faster, faster, faster, he commanded the energy as he had so many times before. The rush that it gave him, controlling effectively such large amounts of djed at once was just as exhilarating, if not more as it was when he was in fact living. It felt great and as the djed slowly picked up its pace so did the mental rush the nuit was getting. Such a feeling made him feel alive again and was worth the cost of precious ichor. Eventually the ring of moving djed radiated from the wires and it was obvious to any onlooker that the flow of magical energy was quite fast, and at these speeds the nuit was having difficulty controlling it, though it hardly concerned him for it was just about time to get the sweet release, to activate the circle and see how everything will play out. Holding onto the charge for a bit longer a stray burst of djed flew across the room in a violent spark; connecting with the desk the raw power blew a nice sized hole in it and papers flew everywhere lit aflame by pure magical energy. Cursing to himself as he tried to regain control of the djed he then forced it to the center of the circle, willing it move with all of his might, and representing both a physical and mental strain he let out a yell before removing his hand from the keystone as he backed away, more like stumbled backwards, but all to the same effect. The energy contacting the target created a great flash of light as the djed of the charges mixed with that of the target hopefully making what he so desired: a modified life form. Though when the light faded he frowned at what had become of the little girl in the middle. He had thought for sure that this would work. Scratching his head he cursed, so multiple charges at once wasn’t the answer. Looking at the distorted and rather disgusting result of the transmutation, the energy having torn parts of the girl apart and replaced it with scales… It was barely recognizable as human. Splotches of scales covered the body, which was mutated and deformed by the massive amounts of djed and of the high speed and intensity of the energy. He cursed again and turned away from the girl to look at the damage done to his desk. “Weak…” He muttered to himself, “Weak, weak, weak, weak, weak.” He yelled almost throwing what seemed to be a childish fit. Loosing his composure he looked at the remains of his desk and the bits of paper that were left. “It has to be the charges…” He muttered to himself, “Or some defect in the target…” His thoughts were racing trying to figure out what went wrong. Theory, theory was perfect; the outcome was evident based on the formula, based on the theory, based on facts. Why then didn’t it work? He had tried it a million times over it seemed and every time it came out the same. Failure. Pacing frantically about his room thinking he stopped when he heard a noise from the outside hall. Head turning towards the old wooden door he advanced to it and opened it; breaching the doorway he closed it behind him. Still rather mentally worn out from the alchemy he looked at the person who had so conveniently stumbled upon his secret lab, his look intense and cold, and his voice quite bored and emotionless, ”Hello. Can I ask why you are trespassing?” He tried his best to leave work at work and not let any of the anger and rage and disappointment of his failure filter out onto the other as he talked to him. The nuit already looking down on the other as nothing but a worm, nothing can compare to his intellect and to his work. He let silence invade the hall as he waited for a proper response. Usually he wasn’t this friendly, but he had to try to distract himself somehow and he just felt he needed to stop thinking about work for just one second.

OOC Note: First time using Alchemy. If there was any problems at all with it, or with the post in general please intervene and correct me. Its much appreciated for I'm just learning and willing to admit to my mistakes and grow from them. Thank you

[Reaver]

((Sadly, I am rather new myself, and not prone to such craftsmanship. I saw no problems with the post, and I shall add it was a thrill to read such fine work. With a lot to work from, I can respond to a lot more material, I find myself joyed with the idea of being able to RP with you.))

Reaver found himself in a dark hallway, with a very familiar feel to it. Taking some time to place where this presence had been felt before, he realized it was not that unlike the last lab he had accessed to practice animation. His thoughts were cut short as he quite audibly heard the screaming of a female, who sounded rather young, followed quickly by what could be described as a lightning bolt. As he closed the door behind him, he heard another yell, this time from another source. His eyes began to adjust to the dark, save for past one door, a door that had quite a glow behind it.

The glow at this time was fading, whatever magic was at work had been done. He went to the door to listen, not one to barge in any more then he already had. It seamed this mage hadn't had a good run, what type of magic was it... charges, target, not animation, summoning wouldn't have a target? Must be... at this time he noted the pacing was moving rather close to the door, and he moved back, only to realize it was moving away again.

...or was it? Chain mail once again doing more harm then good, the noise seamed to alert the mage. He did what he could to make his way back to the door he had entered from, as to not be the brunt end of the target's fury. He had made it half-way when the door to the experimental area had opened itself, and out stepped a Nuit, who hid his emotion rather well. If he hadn't just heard the fuss, he'd have no idea.

"Hello, Can I ask why you are trespassing?"

Reaver did what he could to seam polite, drawing his cape to the side and making a short bow. "I must apologize, for it seams to be no other reason then my fortune. I shall hope I am not too terrible an inconvenience." Reaver knew the odds, no chance of trust, no guarantee of his safety, his instincts told him to do what he could to leave. ...Yet, he felt compelled by what he could only describe as a spark of life. He found himself once again taking unnecessary action. Standing up, he raised his left hand to his mask, covering most of it, but not his eyes. As dark as they were, they held all the look of his interest. "I'm sorry to intrude, but I hear you only live once. Being fortunate to have a second chance at it, mind if I try and learn something while I am here? You seam to have knowledge's I do not possess. Know that I'm always willing to return the favor."

A Nuit, if it had been human, he may have had a chance of striking his attention in just the right way. The odds were slim indeed, but even if there was only one Nuit in the world that would take up that offer, he felt he had to try and see if this was that Nuit. He thought of that line, and noted if it were true he'd quite certainly be looking for himself.

[Rayage]

((Oh wow, thank you. I’m glad someone would enjoy to RP with me . I just hope that you are having as much fun as I am))

The nuit held his gaze at the intruder as he watched the slight ‘performance’ that was put on. The bow, how formal, made him want to puke. Though he kept his thoughts to himself mostly and thought of the best way to conduct himself. Hearing the other go on his eyes glazed over as if he were somewhere else already growing bored of the company of the other. It was hard to keep his thoughts on the invader of his space because he valued his work next to any god. His goals were his obsession and his obsession his reason for living. So, it is understandable to have such a distracted nature. In his head he was already brewing up his next experiment. He would need some more test subjects along with just about any living animal he could get his cold dead hands on. The dream already seeming plausible to mage he nodded to himself, not at the question that was asked of him. The other was already tuned out for the most part, his words hitting deaf ears. Well, for the most part. Coming back to reality Ray looked confused as if he had just woken up from a dream. Shaking the muddled look from his eyes his attention was now on his intruder. ”Fortune you say?” the words rolling of his lips had implied a much darker connotation to the question. What an interesting thing to say, but then again he was in the presence of a rather odd looking individual, but he it wasn’t like he was one that room to judge. No, people usually sought him mad, and he was rumored to be missing perhaps one too many silver pieces to be called a gold miza. Hearing of the second chance that the other talked about was rather intriguing, he was either ‘saved’ by the gods and highly religious or maybe he was another nuit. Chances were equal for each, but despite what exactly the stranger was, to him he will always be second rate, and even though he hadn’t gotten to know the person standing in front of him the nuit still considered the other a pain and inconvenience. Though he had no room or authority to judge he did so anyways, usually much harsher than anyone else cared to be, but he strived for the truth and so would openly think the truth to himself about others, and even, sometimes, reveal it to their face. ”You wish to try to learn something while you are here?” that only made him laugh, but it was followed up by a brood silence complete with a cold, calculating stare as if weighing the individual for his worth, ”Stranger, your words are bold, but what could you have that I would possibly want to learn?” Turning his back he began to walk away from the person, he had better things to do, ’If you wish to learn I wont deny you that right.” He called over his shoulder entering the lab once more. If the other would come or not is up to him an him alone. Though he was going to see his lab he doubted that the other could possibly understand the circle in the room without a proper explanation, and thus he felt safe that his research was safe from prying eyes. Maybe it was for the best that he didn’t know Reimancy, or rather people refused outright to teach him the art. It was probably in their best interest that he didn’t know it anyways. He would have used it maybe one too many times. Oh there were a lot of people on this world that he would wish to bury in a landslide of earth or just sadistically watch burn. Crossing over to his desk he further examined the extent of the damage done to it. Sighing at the sight of pages and pages of research and notes gone he bent down and picked up a half burned sheet of parchment. Looking at with an almost sad look he let it go again, falling to the floor he stepped on it and turned his attention to hole in the desk. Hand running over the edges he turned and looked at the mess he had made in the center of the alchemical circle that he had spent so much time constructing. Cursing to himself he picked up what was left of the lizards and threw them next to the desk and burned papers, ”Trash.” he would say as each lizard hit the stone paved ground making quite the disgusting squishing sound on impact, and each time he would say ‘trash’ the word got angrier and more intense. Finally when the last lizard with the other ‘trash’ he looked towards the wooden door to see if he was followed, finally acknowledging the presence of the other after a couple of minutes of being in his own little world. That is, if he was there. Letting out a rather frustrated growl of sorts his eyes once again fell onto the transmuted girl, poor thing didn’t stand a chance of survival. That much, if known before, could have possibly been prevented if he knew how every experiment would turn out, right? But the world is a much darker and cruel place than that, and if he knew all the answers to his questions, like he was trying to figure out he certainly wouldn’t be here nor would he be taking to some trespassing stranger. Well, focusing on the body again, it could still be used for animation. That thought had crossed his mind more than once, or possibly malediction if one so desired. Though of those arts he knew neither, he was a specialist with other magical skills used to augment and compliment his alchemical abilities and formulas. Nothing was more important to him than completing his ‘mission’ and fulfilling his reason for being here in this world. As the stranger said, only live once and he was going to use his second chance at life to be something truly amazing.

[Reaver]

Reaver was quick to note all the evidence of a very distracted person before him. Usually not a good sign, but he seamed reluctant to take any actions at the moment. Maybe he also likes to finish his thoughts. Nodding, maybe he was listening? Then the gentleman snapped out of the stupor and responded.

”Fortune you say?”

Reaver almost jumped at the sudden change. He supposed it was only natural for his trust to be lacking, but perhaps there was something more to the comment. But it didn't seam to take long for this other Nuit to drift back to whatever it is that goes on within his mind. This time, Reaver was more prepared for him to snap out of it.

”You wish to try to learn something while you are here?” and a short laugh. "”Stranger, your words are bold, but what could you have that I would possibly want to learn?” And he promptly turned away. Reaver kept his comment to himself, having felt he had learned something of the individual before him. And this Nuit went back to his lab... but as he did so, a very unexpected comment. "If you wish to learn I won't deny you that right.”

Reaver found gold, a jackpot of knowledge, all he had to do was sit and wait, and knowledge would come to him in strides, if short ones. Reaver followed promptly, and noted the giant single circle in the room. Summoning circles, if he remembered clearly, did not need a physical circle built, but a drawn one much like his own art. That left, Magecraft and Alchemy.

He observed as the Nuit threw the results of his work into the corner, then studying what info he could on the construction of this circle. When the other Nuit would finally look up to see Reaver, he'd find him already trying to learn, having placed himself along it's outer edge, though taking a moment to pause, note he had attention, and nod back. Reaver stood back a bit, and studied the surrounding area.

Reaver had already moved to the circle by the time the other was distracted by his desk. A lack of Glyphing, that left, Alchemy? Perhaps, and in the center, the source of the scream, now with, some odd additions. He made his way in the circle, and examined the person, no-longer living. He pulled some paper, and his quill, and carefully balanced his ink on his leg, and made some proper notes as to the circle's construction, the magical scarring, and what he could gather from the results. With those done, he'd look to the other Nuit, to see what he proceeded to do, as not to be in his way.

"You asked what you could want to learn from me? I have no proper answer for you, as that would be entirely up to you. I'm sorry to insist, but I think there are two things, one of which you may want to learn. I could either teach you something to do with your failures, or perhaps a unique way to remove them. Both take time and practice, but only one of them could drive you insane. Beyond that, what killed your victim but as that wouldn't pertain tot he process itself, I doubt you'd be interested." He almost burst out laughing, that would get him kicked out right quick. This gentleman had clearly lost his grips on reality already. But it's a different kind of insanity, so the comment wasn't wrong. How long was Reaver just like him? Mindlessly plotting along with only one goal in mind. He still has one goal, a much stronger one, in mind. But now, he's willing to watch the world go by in addition.

Reaver would make his way to the desk, not awaiting an answer from the other. He thought this other Nuit wouldn't be happy with words, if he was even listening after the second sentence. Such a long line was to bring the Nuit back to his mind, as to give Reaver the time to demonstrate what he may be able to teach. Reaver picked up the lizards, and stacked them on one side of the desk. Noting the burnt papers, stacked all he could on the other side of the desk. "Sorry, this takes time. Carry on, I'll have a partial answer in a minute or two. I hope not to distract you any further then I have already, but my skill isn't as potent as it should be." He knew it didn't take that long, but the other Nuit was rather unlikely to enjoy watching anyway. Maybe to him, it would feel like an hour. Standing to the side, on lacking a proper chair, he'd begin his casting process once again. Twice in one day, maybe I'm not being as careful as I'd hoped. No matter, others at my level have been known to cast much more.

((Unsure as to if I should have carried on with the casting process or not. I think I shall, but my post beyond this point will be moot if your character would do anything to change Reaver's actions.))

Reaver began this process as he had so many times before, He starts his muttering, repeating the formula they taught him so long ago that no-longer holds any meaning in his life. Repeating it under his breath, time and time again, he brings his top two fingers together, sliding them quickly together to make a spark. He knows he doesn't need a physical spark, but the Djed responds better when he applies it. With that touch of Djed applied, he closed it into nothingness. The whole of the meaninglessness of his formula, the will of nothingness being poured into that spark, and from it his nothing came. It began to invade the area before him. He moved his hands around the shape he wanted it to fill, and worked with the shape of his nothing much like he would if it were a physical something. The shape, where anything inside was to become nothing. Flat, simple, and almost too small for the lizards. He had to focus, keep his concentration. He repeated his formula again, and again, and kept his hands working on that shape. He worked hard to place this nothing, and let it only grow to proper size. His Djed wasn't at full capacity, and he had to be extra sure not to let it exceed this capacity. His physical body was beginning to tire, not exactly a good thing, but mostly from his running earlier rather then his Djed this time.

A X to the power of B becomes A multiplied by B X to the power of B minus one, A X to the power of B becomes A multiplied by B X to the power of B minus one, his focus held, his hands working as if possessed on their own, his mind filled with a strong grasp of what nothing truly is. His effort was growing, a linear progression, everything was as it was supposed to be. How long had it been, twenty seconds? He kept at it, for time was all it took. Time seamed to lose meaning anyway, as he continued forth. Lost in himself, he continued without responding, as if part of another world. Nearing it's completion, so close, and then it was finally there. What if it isn't big enough? I could make it bigger, always bigger. NO! That's... the thought itself proves I should stop there.

The end was so simple, yet it's power difficult to comprehend. Ending his speech, his hands stilled, and he carefully moved around his work. "Sorry, but this is one of the things I could teach." He reached over, grabbed the lizards one by one, and dropped them in. Reaver glanced back, to see if he had the Nuit's attention now, and gestured to the burnt papers. With any given indication to do so, he'd drop those in as well. Regardless of the fate of the papers, he'd then stop feeding his Djed to the portal, and it would bring itself to a close. The nothing closing into what it always was, and what existed taking it's place. "The other, takes a physical preparation, rather then a mental one." Reaver had one last concern on his mind, how ready was this other mage to see another? Would he respond well? He already had no trust, I suppose it would be amplified now. Well, Reaver attempted to mentally prepare himself for whatever sort of reaction this Nuit would hold.

((Bonus points to you if you can identify what formula he uses. With that, I have a post I feel holds close your length and style. ...ignoring what additions my own hand wrought.))

[Rayage]

He only looked at the other nuit grimly as he found him all too eager to learn. Though he liked the enthusiasm he found it annoying at the same time, but he found everything other than his research to be annoying and a waste of time. A bad habit? No, not to him, he found it quite productive to be so dedicated to his work. Though the lack of results got to him sometimes, like earlier, he always found himself working out the same problem in his head over and over and over and over again. A thousand times over and with the same results brought productiveness and creativity into question, but it seemed no matter what he did the problem wouldn’t work itself out. As annoying as it was it kept his mind busy and perhaps it is his dedication to Alchemy that kept him at least somewhat sane. Well, it should be given all the credit if not most, but such dedication is also a personal trait, and one to be sought after. It is not common for one to seek a goal for little over two hundred years. Seeing the other produce some parchment and a quill along with some ink only earned him another disapproval look, but it was for the sake of knowledge so he didn’t air any of his opinions of such things out loud. Though it did thoroughly annoy him that his set up was being copied he made no move towards the notes scribbled down on the paper. His work was important, and he was sure that if he couldn’t crack the code to the modification of living things though Alchemy the one before him couldn’t either. Rayage was only half listening to the others rather drawn out talk. Two things… No proper answer… All of it jumbled up in his head as he tried to decipher what the other was saying. Words, language was so cumbersome it too was annoying. Though he found his attention grabbed with the last parts of other nuits words. A unique way to remove them… That only brought a smile to his face, as if he had any ideas that could possibly be helpful. Though upon further thinking of the subject he thought it would be nice to have a second opinion, maybe a fresh outlook on things. Yes, he nodded as the other was finishing up his little spiel on what he could teach. He actually liked what he was hearing. ”You are right about one thing. I don’t care how she died only the fact that she did. Though perhaps your insight on what could be done to alter the course of my work and reduce the failure rate could be interesting.” he said in a rather disconnected, half-assed sort of way. It seemed even when he was talking about his work and how it could be approved upon he still was bored. It was true though, he was bored with the problem that he was bent on solving, but that didn’t mean that he couldn’t or wouldn’t solve it. It kept him busy, and that was the important thing. He needed to feel like every second of the day had meaning and this was how he was getting, how he was counting the meaning. Alchemy had been his life and is his life. Rupert Pycon once said that the Alchemist is everything, but to Ray Alchemy is everything. A slight difference in thinking, but even the slightest difference can make the biggest change such as going from impossible to possible. Everything mattered and through that thinking his existence mattered and so did his work. He continued to stare at the masked individual to gain any knowledge that might be obtained from watching the others movements. Though normally not much can be gained from nuits movements one has to look beyond the meaning of the movement and into what it is leading to. Carefully observing him as if he was his new test subject he watched him curiously stack the lizards on one side of the desk and the ruin of paper on the other. Curious as to what he was up to he kept his gaze fixated on him. Another amused smile would cross him as he heard the other apologize for what he was about to do taking time. Everything takes time, but he kept his silence and let the nuit fill in what he was thinking for himself. He found that to be truly amusing, how others think he thinks. No one can understand him the way he does and even sometime he isn’t sure he truly understands himself. He kept watching and if he could yawn he would. It wasn’t good enough. He was about to tell him until he gets better at whatever it is he wanted to show off he shouldn’t really be showing off because it is rather boring to watch. He liked drama, and that was one of the reasons he liked humans so much. They, especially the younger ones, seemed to crave it. Drama made things interesting, and this boring display of hand movements and mental strain, well this wasn’t interesting at all. If you are going to show off at least make it a little more spectacular. Put on a show, and maybe you will capture more of the nuits attention. After moments of the painful observation and careful note of the technique used, basically hand signs and gestures he saw a blackness come to being. The two dimensional shape hovered there it was created, the disk was a curious sight to behold but he scuffed at it, unimpressed. That is until he saw what it did. Watching the lizards and the paper disappear into it he smiled thinking it figured out, “A portal.” and although it was a statement it seemed very much so like a question. “That is indeed interesting, but it seems… taxing, and it takes a lot of time to create. Though it could have its uses…” he stopped himself, falling silent again he watched it disappear and the space it occupied seemingly undamaged. It could be dangerous though, “Where does it lead?” he asked, though at the same time trying not to sound too interested. He was sure it was magic, and then that meant the nuit was a wizard or mage of some sort. Ray fancied himself an Alchemist. He wondered what this person thought of himself. “This means you are a mage…” he stated the obvious, but he found with stating facts aloud it was easier to remember them, especially trivial ones such as that. He had no interest in other mages, and didn’t really find them a threat unless they threatened him or his work. This revelation at the same time changed how Ray thought of this newcomer. Perhaps a partnership, though given reluctantly, could be made. Yes, he nodded at his own thoughts, a fresh start on an old project. Moving to the center of the alchemical circle he poked the girl with his foot, “Think you can dispose of this trash as well?” he asked the other and looked his direction. Perhaps not the brightest idea, for the body –should- be cut open and studied for any changes along with the changes in the aura. Perhaps two hundred years of research he needed a partner. Though he wouldn’t voice his opinion quite yet for he still had to see what exactly this mage could do, and if he indeed was trustworthy or not.

(Very impressive, but you dont have to try to mirror me. Write how you feel comfortable, and alas Im not getting those bonus points because I have no idea )

[Reaver]

((I mirror writing styles because it's fun to be diverse. I'm quite comfortable trying new styles of writing. I'm just new to taking such a long time to post myself. Now, to prevent myself from backtracking a bit, he'll move forward from here. Sadly, not backtracking reduces my post size.))

Having disposed of the lizards, he decided to address the issues brought to him. It seams this person in front of him was, being lenient. He would be an easy person to learn from, indeed. In order for this to work out, he'd need to be useful, and this person had little reaction to the art.

“Where does it lead?” "It leads to another place, larger then the world as anyone has discovered it, and filled with nothing but what mages put there." Again, he seemed disinterested. “This means you are a mage…” Reaver almost answered, but noted it was not a question. He decided to stay his words. As he let him think, he brought up another point. “Think you can dispose of this trash as well?” Reaver almost pouted, but held back on account of the other's lack of outward emotion. He took a moment to decide on how to approach the situation. "That word again. It's worth more then nothing. I'll take it from your path, should need be, but such a thing holds information I desire. You mentioned reducing failure rates earlier, perhaps I can compare it to the process I do know from my art. As they are not the same, my opinion could suffer. Perhaps you would be kind enough to run a demonstration with simple objects? I would need to know how you control the reaction."

Reaver will examine the exterior of the body in the circle, unsure as to what had transpired within. It seamed, physical aspects from the lizards had replaced various parts of the person. As he went to move her, he noticed the weight was completely off. "Do you have a spare room? I'd rather not make a mess in such a place. Perhaps I should return with my research materials?"

Reaver's eyes were now filled with a spark of his lost humanity. He pondered, if once in the later stages of his own research, could he use this art to seamlessly apply his efforts? It could solve the hardest part of the replacement process. It might even make construction of the devices simpler. He knew the later stages would be years away, but he always had to be learning, so he could reach those stages.

((And about the bonus, aX^b -> abX^(b-1) is used as a shortcut in Calculus, if I'm remembering it correctly. The second part being the derivative (slope) of the first part. Reaver doesn't know what it means, just what he used it for.))

[Rayage]

A larger world filled with things only mages put it in. Sounded more interesting than how it looked. Responding to his explanation he asked, ”Is there a way to retrieve things from this ‘other world’?” From Rays standpoint knowledge is power and who knows what objects could be floating around in there. The possibilities were already fascinating and captivating his imagination. He could only wonder what kind of objects could be floating around in that other world where his trash was sent to. Though, he reasoned, he would only find trash there himself sense if he were to command those portals that is what he would use it for, garbage disposal. So in Rays mind it is a world filled with the trash of others, but as some say one mans trash is another’s treasure, but then again the nuit wasn’t the type to dig through trash. Its called trash for a reason. He frowned at the other as the nuit tried to correct him, saying that word again. He would use ‘that word’ as he saw fit, and that failure laying on the ground taking up his precious working space was indeed trash. Isn’t that the definition of trash: something useless that takes up space? Crossing his arms he scuffed again, “You can do whatever you want with the body, but remember once you take it,” He paused to be sure he would be getting the point across, “It is your trash” he put extra care in saying the word ‘your’. This would be good. If the other could learn anything about the body, anything at all it could possibly benefit his research. “A demonstration?” that word brought a smile to his face. He wanted a demo, a run-down on how alchemy worked and the process behind it. He laughed, that amused him to no end, but he nodded “Alright.” and with that eyes scanned the room for objects to use for a simple demonstration. While searching the place for something simple he could do he nodded at the other question presented to him, “There is a spare room to the left.” he pointed to unopened door to the left of the room, well his left. The door looked almost the same as the one used for entry into the hidden lab, but it had a nice big black rune of sorts painted on it, “Ill get the door.” he smiled at him going towards the door and opening it himself. The fact was he needed something from the spare room anything. Going in and coming back out he had with him a simple cup of water. Heading back over to his desk he sat the glass down and looked at the body face contorting with disgust at his project gone bad. Going to the body he grabbed it loosely by one of its arms and dragged it off slowly to the other spare room. “You can examine the body in there if you’d so like.” he told him in a buisnessy kind of voice. “But,” he used the word to catch attention again, “You said you would like a demonstration.” he grabbed a loose piece of parchment, and vile of extra ink off his desk. “Watch carefully” he instructed setting the parchment in place of the girl and the ink as a charger, more specifically a fount. “Parchment, black ink, and water.” he listed off the three things that were going to be used in his simple transmutation. Pouring the water on another charge, as a filter, he stepped back, “Simple enough for you?” he asked. Again taking the blade from his desk he cut another little gash in another finger on his left hand. He was going to show it first for it much simpler to show rather than tell and explain all the mundane details that went into alchemy, his art, his everything. Placing the wounded finger on one of the keystones that lay dividing the circle into halfs, a positive half and a negative half, he began the alchemical process once again. Mentally he began willing the djed in both the water and ink to move, and as in previous experiments the process was slow. His mental command of djed was lacking, and he just found it hard to get started. Everyone had a flaw, and that was his. His art was not perfect because his form, his process was not perfect, his concentration was not perfect and therefore he cannot hope for perfection, but this demo was simple enough that even the most dim witted of alchemists could do such work. Easily, if he could add in his two cents. He found working with inanimate objects to be below him, oh so far below him… Though this was only a demo, he had to keep that in mind. Maybe the other nuit will learn something from by it, and if not, then this was a grand waste of time. Soon enough Ray judged the djed to be spinning fast that a reaction would occur. Now forcing all the energy to the center and towards the paper he took his hand off of the keystone and stood there watching the simple reaction take place, there still was a flash of light but it wasn’t as intense as the previous one. Perhaps that is because little effort was put into this transmutation and he only span the djed fast enough so he would get a reaction. When the flash would die down and eventually fade into the wake of time ever-marching, the parchment would no longer be its original pasty, tanish color, but black just like the ink used in the transmutation. Again he would repeat himself, “Simple enough for you?” he asked eyeing the parchment in the center of the circle. “Feel free to examine that if you will, it is no trick of the eye.” he reassured the other.

((Ah calculus. I had no idea, but it did look familiar. Then again I have no affinity for formulas, or remembering them. Oh, and I don’t see it as backtracking, but further reinforcing what happened and filling in the blanks of how your character reacted. But that is only my opinion.))

[Reaver]

”Is there a way to retrieve things from this ‘other world’?” A simple smile crossed Reaver's face, hidden by his mask. "Of course."

My trash, or rather MY trash. Maybe I'll need to build a lab here, how much are parts? “A demonstration?” A laugh, a nod, and “Alright.” This was a great day. Reaver thought of how hard it would be for him to try such a process on something so complicated. Humans were full of many small parts and wonders.

As he began to ponder his ability to learn such an art, his other question was addressed. “There is a spare room to the left.” "Ah, yes." As the nuit went to the door, he swiftly glanced to the size of the room, how hard it would be to hold a second circle there... and then, water? He had to watch carefully, even the preparing steps. Parchment, and ink, much like the ones carried on him. “Watch carefully” As if he needed reminded. He had poured ink on one spot, and water on another. Simple, did what go where matter? “Simple enough for you?” Reaver nodded, content to walk out with more then he entered.

A simple cut, and he touched it to the circle. Not instant, but after a bit, he noticed the water and ink began to react. The reaction picked up speed, and continued. Before not terribly long, the reaction changed again. Something changed, drew his attention to the center, and a flash of light. As it left, the materials on the ring were diminished, drastically, and the paper in the center was now a new color.

“Simple enough for you? Feel free to examine that if you will, it is no trick of the eye.” Reaver moved within the circle, and examined the parchment. It still held, much like parchment should, it didn't even feel soggy. Though, the new color rather defeated the purpose of the page. Maybe it would be fun to use white ink for a change of pace? Regardless, he had seen the process successful. Simple, yes, but left many more questions.

"This opens many new opportunities. I'd hate to waste your time and talent, how hard would it be to construct one of these rings? I have many of my own questions I could answer without being in your way. Should I get one of these rings, all I'd have left to ask is what I'd need to actually do to make the process work. If magic taught me anything it's not to assume." Speaking out of turn, again. He'll probably be mad again. Maybe I'll think of a proper way to repay him, minus somehow aiding him in this research of his. "In the meantime, would there be something I could do to assist you while I'm here?" Reaver was getting anxious, never a good sign. He wanted to see the results of what this did to a human, and now wishing he hadn't tossed ALL of those lizards. A waste of life, yes, but how many lives has Reaver wasted by simply not knowing enough? Now that I'm thinking about it, coloring my armor would be a breeze with this method. No more wasted ink from water damage.

((Had to end on a positive thought. Rah, my mind is shutting down right now. I'll post better when I can think clearly. I'll hope this is sufficient this time.))

[Rayage]

The nuit listened to the others words as he watched him examine the paper. Sure it was black and not very useful right now, but again, it was only a demonstration of what Alchemy could do, and a rather good one if he didn’t say so himself. “How hard would it be?” he repeated the question while he thought about it, “Well, as you can see the layout is pretty simple.” he told him with the ever arrogant smile on his face. He started pacing back and forth, thinking. He didn’t know why but pacing helped him think and helped him clear his mind. When he paced it seemed, from his point of view, he could view the world and his problems more clearly. He wanted to answer the other nuits question, he admired and greatly held high the desire to learn, and he loved, if he could feel such a thing, that learning was a priority of the other. “What you need…” he started, sounding like he was talking to himself, but he was actually addressing the issue brought before him, “To get started…” again antoer pause as if he was choosing his words carefully, but the reality of the situation was his thoughts were running by him and it was hard to keep concentration for long on one subject. Yes it was, when his mind was still trying to solve the problem he set out to solve over two hundred years ago. It seems his thoughts always shifted back to that, and that lead him to look distracted, and he indeed was, but it was a good kind of distraction. “After obtaining and building a circle, of course…” He stopped pacing and placed a hand on his forehead as if he felt pain there, “You need ambition.” that was probably the most important thing to being an alchemist. “You need to be driven not to accept failure, but deal with it. You need a goal, but you also need a good imagination and problem solving skills. If things don’t turn out the way you want them to ask yourself why and go to solve that question. Of course,” He said the ‘of course’ part in an almost mocking way, as if what he was about to say after it was challenging the other in a way, “You already knew that from past studies of magical arts, right?” he turned to him and looked him in the eyes, “You hide your face in a mask.” he pointed out, going off topic, but it didn’t seem to faze him and he made it sound like it did indeed fit into what he was talking about. Turning again he faced the wall and put his hands behind his back, one hand grabbing the other as he continued to pace as if addressing some great army, it was obvious he was having trouble with just normal conversation and answering questions. “To learn Alchemy you must be driven” Now he was just repeating himself, to make a point or he simply didn’t remember saying it was up debate, “You must remember anyone can learn Alchemy, but to be truly great at it.” his voice rising as if he was remembering some great triumph, “you need to devote yourself to the art, and question everything. You must then, when you realize what alchemy truly is, push to do what hasn’t been done before. You must be innovative, and cunning.” he abruptly stopped there, but continued pacing as if now totally lost in his own little world. His world of thought was indeed more potent, a more real world, than the one he existed in currently, the one bound by time and the rules of the universe. This silent pacing continued on for some minutes before he stopped again and his eyes lit up as if he had found the answer he was looking for, “Youre still here?” he asked sounding surprised, “If you want to help me then why don’t you go examine that body like you seemed so eager to do.” he waved a lazy and dismissing hand at him, “or perhaps help me find another suitable for transmutation.” he suggested. The more darker side of his work showing, and perhaps with those words the purpose of the other room, the one with the black rune on the door, became clear. Nothing was by accident, and everything has a purpose, even though sometimes the purpose is more easily discovered than in others.

((Its always nice to end on a positive note. I mean we are talking about some dark things here, and its always nice to see a bright side.))