< The Three Lights | Sol Invictus Logs | The Moon's Test >
Summary: Cerin and Zahara (and Marku) investigate the essence flows in Relovia, to aid in the construction of essence blocking collars.
XP:C1, M1, Z1
Zahara sits in the 'lab' of the manse, surrounded by bizarre looking equipment , books and scrolls, all laid out on the table before her. It's a big table, enough to seat 10 if 10 people were so inclined. Mainly it's large to provide a proper workspace. A forge lies off to the left, quiescent for the moment, but ready to bring to life the myriad dreams and bizarre trinkets that they can think of.
- Markuran lounges in a chair at the table, his feet up in a second, hands knitted together behind his great shaggy head. "Well, if we're going to make these, you should look through all those fancy books of yours and decide what we need. It's never easy to get."
- Cerin sits across from Zahara, looking at the materials infront of her, impressed
- Zahara looks up at Markuran, "I've been looking through them all night, Marku. I think I have figured out the basic structure, but I'd like to study some actual essence flows before I commit to a design. Would you mind calling Relova in here?"
<Markuran?> "I'll send one of the guards to fetch her." Taking a deep breath that gives the other two warning, the big Solar belts out an ear-hurting bellow instructing the guard, standing on the other side of a stout wooden door and stone wall, to fetch Relovia.
- Zahara lays out the sketch she's carefully painted before her on the table. "This is what I have so far." The design is simple so far, a basic ring, about an inch tall, and a quarter wide, with a lock that blends seamlessly into the band when engaged. She's sketched out some possible rune combinations below it, as well.
- Cerin pays little attention to the design of the collar though he takes it in, more to the runes, eyeing them interestingly
<Zahara?> "The hard part is going to be to get it to align to all five elements. I'm planning to melt down the Air Immaculate's blades for the basic collar, but we need to combine it with something that will flavor the essence flows."
- Cerin nods "They all have such a distinctive tang"
<Zahara?> "With all the Dynasts who keep sending Wyld Hunts after us, we have a bit of a jade stockpile." she laughs lightly. "Too bad they don't wear more Orichalcum."
- Cerin grins "That would make things a bit to easy..."
<Markuran?> "We have the meteorite, if it really is Starmetal. But orichalcum doesnt fall from the sky, nor grow on trees."
<Zahara?> "No, but someday I'll make a forge to purify it out of gold. Dynasts wear a lot of THAT too. Except the monks. There's a sketch in one of the books I went through."
<Zahara?> "Speaking of monks, what's taking that girl so long? She OWES me after the 'friendly fire' from the last engagement."
<Markuran?> "You sure you can make that? You're not really all that good at making things. Remember, you tried to make that suit of armor that time.."
- Zahara glares at Markuran, "I've been practicing. Besides, that's why I called you in here. I was hoping you'd help with the actual creation."
<Markuran?> "I will, I will. I still remember that soldier howling when he put it on and found you
<Zahara?> "Cerin, do you know anything about creating artifacts?"
<Markuran?> 'd forgotten to file some of the needles down...
<Markuran?> "If you call that living.."
- Zahara whips a paperweight at Mark
- Cerin shakes his head, ignore Marku "Only simple things, such as charms and wardings, nothing even as simple as a hearthstone amulet.."
- Markuran ducks the paperweight..
A guard knocks at the door:: "I've brought Relovia as you requested."
- Zahara leans back, assuming a 'i didn't just throw things at Mark' look. "Ahh, you're here. Good, sit over there, please." She indicates a wicked-looking chair with leather straps that would fit across the chest, arms and legs.
- Relovia looks to Marku for confirmation, then goes to sit in the chair
- Zahara chuckles as the girl hesitates, looking scared, "Don't worry, girl. I won't hurt you. Not this time. I just need you to be immobilized so I can study your Essence flows without you moving around and shifting things." She walks over to Relovia and fastens the buckles tightly, though not harshly.
- Markuran nods that Relovia should listen to Zahara
- Relovia sit quietly in the chair with a trusting, confident look that she generally has when told to do things by the Solars, Markuran in particular. After all, how can anything they tell her be wrong?
- Cerin walks over to Relovia too. He smiles faintly, looking her over with his own essence sight, before picking up the nessesary jade needles
- Zahara looks her over, then reaches behind the chair and brings forward another strap that binds her forehead back as well. "There, that's perfect. Comfy? I want you to start spending Essence slowly, but not enough to flare your anima." She steps back, and surveys the girl, and the markings on the chair which should light up in the presence of essence. It's one she'd used to discern if a particular assassin was also an Exalt a year
- Relovia slowly starts activating a few minor abilities, hardening her skin for a moment or two, deepening the ruby tones of her skin and the smokey black of her hair. Dark puffs emerge from her nostrils as she follows Zahara's request
- Cerin looks to Zahara "You cant see her essence, can you?"
- Zahara looks up from her rough sketch, "Not directly, no. I'm inferring it from the chair. Do you have a better method?"
<Cerin?> "I see essence flows" he smiles "Thats how I hunt gods"
- Zahara lifts a brow, "You can see the essence flows directly? I can only see the gods themselves."
<Cerin?> "Gods, charms, the dragonlines..."
<Zahara?> "How fascinating.. I must learn how to do that someday... In the meantime, here." she hands over a fresh sheet of parchment.
- Zahara continues to do her own sketch, to compare the two when finished. "That's good, Relovia. Keep it up."
- Cerin starts to draw out a rough sketch, then fills in details as he goes along. the details include things like 'immaculate initiation channels' 'low level anima flare lines'...
- Relovia hesitates a moment as she tries to find more things to do without burning her anima. She continues simply using basic charms, her skin showing vague scale-like patterns as she enhances her natural defenses
- Zahara bites her lip and studies the patterns of lights on the chair, "Alright.. when you have no more personal resources yet, let me know, and we'll do a study of the first few levels of your peripheral resources."
- Cerin's sketch looks really quite detailed by this point
<Relovia> "I will have to start using peripheral essence now."
- Zahara offers Cerin a new page, and takes a fresh one herself. "Commence."
- Cerin looks to Zahara then nods. He starts to sketch anew.
- Zahara looks at Cerin thoughtfully after a few minutes. "You can see the flows, so we could take her somewhere that's not flammable, and you could diagram the flows at her highest levels of anima flare, couldn't you?"
- Cerin's pencil captures her essence as it flows and evolves and the glow expands. He looks to Zahara, and nods
- Zahara's smile widens, "Perfect." She crosses the room to the chair, and releases the straps and buckles. "There's a marble courtyard. That should be a fine place for it."
- Cerin nods "That would work"
- Zahara leads the way
<Zahara?> "If this works, I'd like to build one to contain other sorts of essence, as well. Would you both be willing to help with that?"
- Cerin nods "Of course. By others you mean Solars and Abyssals I take it?"
<Zahara?> "Yes, and Lunars, if we can catch one."
<Cerin?> "Lunars are hard to catch"
<Zahara?> "Ahh but that's the point of the collars, isn't it?" she grins. "Perhaps we can befriend one."
<Cerin?> "If we can find one..."
<Zahara?> "All beasts are trackable."
- Cerin smiles "There are few in Creation I have not..."
<Zahara?> "I see little boredom in our future, Cerin. But now.. a little more work." She positions the Immaculate in the middle of the courtyard, backs well away, and commands, "Begin increasing your anima one level at a time, pausing for one minute in between."
- Cerin also stands well back, pencil at the ready. as she flares he notes down details, careful mark lines as 'internal control flows' 'conducting channels' ' defence charm?'
<Cerin?> ::The diagrams he draws expand and get more complex with each minute that passes
- Zahara peeks over his shoulder, impressed.
- Cerin finishes his drawing, the flames near filling hte courtyard now "Thank you Relovia" then he turns to Zahara "I think these will be detailed enough"
<*Relovia*> "May I leave now, Solars?"
<Zahara?> "You are amazing, Cerin. Thank you for your help." She looks over at Relovia. "Relovia, stay here until your anima will no longer hurt anyone or burn my manse."
- Cerin shrugs "Your project interests me"
<Zahara?> "Come back to the lab with me, for a bit? I'd like to see how to work these into the design." She turns, assuming he will follow, and returns to the lab.
- Cerin walks by her side, easily keeping pace "It would be a pleasure"
- Markuran gives Relovia a small nod before returning with Cerin and Zahara.
- Zahara lays out the various papers neatly on the table and looks at Markuran, "Help me figure out how to put all of this together, on this." she taps the original circle.
- Markuran glances at it. "Take the various magical bits you give me, smash them in assorted ways and beat them into the jade."
- Cerin laughs softly
- Zahara sighs and looks at the drawings, "The magical bits, I'm afraid, may have to be Elemental. See, here, the patterns the Fire makes?" she traces the patterns lightly with her fingertip. "I think those will shift, depending on the Element the Dynast attunes to. The basic lines should be the same, but we need to incorporate the elements."
<Cerin?> "On the later diagrams, the ones from the courtyard, I marked those that were specific to her aspect, and to the immaculkat etreatment, as well as the general dragon lines"
<Zahara?> "I see.. Maybe we could divert them, here.. and here... Do you see this spot here, where they converge before diverging again? We need to use that."
- Cerin studies the diagrams, and nods "That would work, yes"
- Markuran sits himself back in his chair and idly scratches at his armpit, standing out there in the courtyard next to the firey Immaculate made him all sweaty.
- Markuran yawns.
<Cerin?> "Perhaps secondary points here and here?" he points
<Zahara?> "We could create an infinite loop here, the feedback should only be painful, not lethal." She starts marking up the original diagram, making notes on the side, and painting in the proper directional runes, as well as marking spots where the five elements should end up.
<Zahara?> "Yes, good idea.. we wouldn't want it leaking out in unexpected places." She grins and moves onto a new piece, covering it with notes and calculations, filling in the details on the original again.
- Cerin looks over the notation "That would work I think, yes"
- Zahara taps the second paper. "Our shopping list. Most of it should be easy, though."
- Markuran pulls his shirt off, wraps it in a bundle and puts it behind his head. "Wake me when you're done talking about all this and ready to do work."
<Zahara?> "you know, it's a good thing you never try to make artifacts of your OWN design, Marku."
- Cerin sighs softly and shakes hs head at Marku. He looks over the shopping list, taking note of its contents "This should work...as much as I know about the actual craft of artifacts"
<Zahara?> "We'll need to find Elementals of each type. The more powerful, the better, but I don't wish to annoy the Spirit Courts too badly."
- Markuran gives a snore in response to Zahara's baiting.
<Cerin?> "I'm sure for an appropriate consideration they would donate some parts to us...especially if you used your sweet tongue.."
- Zahara chuckles, "My tongue is better at sharp than sweet, but I believe you're right."
- Cerin laughs "The other things should not be too hard to find...most any occult market can supply them"
<Zahara?> "Then, do you wish to visit an elemental court or two?"
<Zahara?> "or would you prefer I summon some here?"
<Cerin?> "There are I few courts I would be ...cautious about entering, but in your presence.."
<Zahara?> "I think if all of us show up, there will be little dissent. After all, I'm sure rumors have spread about our last encounter with Gods."
<Cerin?> "It is not the dissent I worry about..."
- Zahara lofts a brow, eyeing Cerin.
<Cerin?> "There are faces I would rather not see again"
<Zahara?> "If you would prefer not to go, just say the word."
<Zahara?> "But I am interested in why."
<Cerin?> "Some other time, perhaps"
<Cerin?> "I will go, it would be btter for the design to get powerful elemental blood, and they would be hard to summon I imagine"
<Zahara?> "Harder to summon than the little ones, yes. I'm sure they'll agree, since the end result is less dragon bloods able to lord over them."
- Cerin nods in agreement