[The Wizard's Thumb]The appendages of wizards?[Closed]

[Clyde Sullins]

Certainly, the woman was bossy, and felt entitled to be listened to. If nothing else, he could tell that from her speech. Though it was a bit hard, to tell any more than that. He was not the best at reading people. Regardless, it did not matter to much if she liked him or not. He was here to prove his competence, and use his magic. Not to play around, or have fun, or make friends. Though obviously, it would be useful to have powerful friends within the magical community. "Perhaps I said that wrong. I did not mean lead as in in charge of one. I apologize if that is how it was taken. I simply meant to lead as in to guide, in case it was a route you had not taken. Not everyone after all knows how to make certain things, which I might have made before." Clyde did his best to smile, and seem like he was not being rude or haughty about his abilities. He of all people knew it was best to be careful around mages, as to how they reacted. Especially after all the time he had spent learning under Lazarin. Clyde looked at the pedestal she stared at, and took int he ingredients used in their craft... It seemed they were well enough supplied... "Well, as I said, I do know how to make a magic staff. Though for that we will need additionally a large coil of d-wire, a non-metal staff of good make, and the special clamps the process requires. Though, I am open to something simpler. Perhaps reinforcing a dagger to be more durable, or to swing faster. Or if you have the blood of a creature from around here, perhaps we could make it a weapon against one. It depends on what extra ingredients you have. I am open to whichever you want to do."

[Liar]

Azura remained quiet for another long moment. She was prone to such silences when she wanted to make her underlings uncomfortable, but few could tell the difference between intimidation and contemplation. Both prideful and powerful, the archmage expected the same from others; this backtracking visitor seemed to be one and not the other, and so required further scrutiny. “I might like to see a staff crafted by someone like you.” By that she meant foreigner, and punctuated his otherness with a wave of her hand. The gesture pointed him to a small collection of wooden staves leaning against the room’s curved wall, each crowned on its upper end with an expertly cut jewel from Nyka’s own quarries. Most of the wood was old but in good condition, all but worshipped by the men and women who had used them before they made better versions, or died. “There are some D-Wires in the closet,” she mentioned, apparently meaning the door adjacent to the staffs. “Unless you require gold. Those I can get for you. They are expensive, and necessitate special care.” But Azura had already decided that she would not be the one to choose his project, and so obliged the other options. She stepped to a small box on the table opposite the display table, where the dog-dagger lay. She spoke of the box’s contents before she had fully opened it, revealing a careful arrangement of small glass ampoules within an enchanted ice lining. “We have the blood of a fox, two days old, and some of a stag’s from this morning. We’ve still half a phial of inioman blood, but it is rather volatile and nearly two weeks old.” She turned to him with the creature’s black-blooded sample still in hand. “Up for a challenge?”

[Clyde Sullins]

The woman's lengthened moment of silence did not bother Clyde. True there were many a thing that did annoy him, and set him off, but this was one of the scant few that did not. Patience, was both a skill he had learned from magic, and a skill needed to be practiced to perform it. He had long since realized, that taking ones time before setting off on a path, to think out the options clearly, and make a good decision, especially when messing with such powerful arcane forces, that patience was key, and taking an extra moment to decide could mean the difference between success and failure. And when failure meant death often enough... He had made himself learn patience, and respected when others took their time. "They should work well enough. Fresher made materials are usually best, but we can make due. We will just have to be extra careful, especially since we are only doing the base enchantment, with no further enhancements. Though that is more to do with using the finished product, than the actual crafting, which should be relatively safe at such a low level." Clyde took a few moments to ponder things, scratching at his chin distractedly, as he thought. Finally, he came to the decision, saying it out loud. His eyes did dart once to the weapon mentioned by the man in the hallway, and he wondered further of the truth of that story. "Well, I think a staff would be best. Turning it into a magic staff. Though since it is not really used directly as a weapon, I do not see much point in also using blood from something. In a weapon like a dagger yes, but not in a magic staff... So I suppose we do not need it then. That wire should be fine. I doubt such a low level staff, has need of such high level magical conduits. I doubt the staff could handle the level of djed usage, that would require." Clyde would head over to the staffs, running his hands over them in turn, checking for imperfections or damage. After that he would head over to get some d-wire, to make sure they had enough to wrap around the length of the stave. As he did this, a sudden thought popped into his head, arising a question he had to ask. "I almost forget to ask, do you know any personal magics? In its enchanting, we must use the staff as a conduit for a personal magic, each a different one. I know a few, but we can only do this if you know one. Do you one?" If not, they would need another person in on the magecrafting, or need to do a different project. In its uses a magic staff enhanced and focused personal magic. Perhaps due to that, in its crafting, it required someone both a world mage, and a personal magic user.

[Liar]

So he did intend to make the staff. A prying aurist might sense in Ilune some delight at the prospect. And she smiled at his little lesson, giving no indication as to whether she was already familiar with that which he hoped to explain. That he would assume to know more than a self-proclaimed archmage was a prideful enough gesture to warrant her attention and respect. In any case, it was the proper question to ask. “I am familiar with most personal magics at a basic level.” Azura nodded, closing the iced container in favor of a large flask of mineral powder. Clamps were stored on shelves above the D-wires, and he would find them well enough. She had given as much help as she liked, and now was ready to observe how he collected and used the materials available to him. “They are of little use to me outside of my work with world magic, but for staves I have used auristics, flux, and shielding.” Sometime between her first impression and his quaint clarifications, Clyde had convinced her to change her mind about his leading the process. She had not seen him work, could only assume his power from his tendency to explain it, but that was enough. Curiosity had gotten the better of her, despite her inherent prejudices. Even someone as great as she knew the benefits of a stranger’s knowledge, untouched by local propensities. It was better to add to the Thumb’s wisdom that to spread it thin by exposing it to a foreign mind. Guarded by this fact, Azura would be easier to guide in actions than in mind. She would follow his lead, though would be hard-pressed to share what she knew. She trusted that this would not be a problem for a talent such as his. “Do as you will,” she offered. “And I will do as you ask. You will create this first-level staff and leave it here to be tamed and processed by Nyka’s finest. If you prefer a more powerful personal mage to help your channeling, it can be arranged. Though with me, and the equipment here, I suspect you might finish before tomorrow is out. “It is your choice,” she added with a grin.