Solo Six Times Golem

[Maewrath]

Morning on the sea was always the same. Shouting above deck, shouting below deck, the rolling of the ground with the pitching of the boat, the stench of too many people crowded together for far too long... The Akalak sighed as he roused awake before many of the other passengers. Pulling the rough, itchy blanket from his form he threw his legs over the edge of the bed and dropped to the floor a ways below.

He had learned quite some time ago to never expect his own room. With so many people traveling on the trading ship, he was piled into a room with twenty or so others piled on bunk beds. Maewrath reached back up to take his backpack from the bunk. He removed a comb of bone and as his bare feet padded his way towards the exit to the room, he gave his prematurely whitening hair a quick care for. For the most part it was still black, but there were a few streaks of white. Perhaps from psychological strain, but he had no knowledge of psychology beyond "wise men have white hair" to back that up.

He had plans today, big plans. His backpack held quite bit more mass with a new article stuffed inside. He had just one part of the equation though. The body. Maewrath knew he had many hours ahead to dedicate just to the more delicate workings of his project. There was only one problem; privacy. His plans all depended on it for success...

Where to? Storage? They sailors hide there to shirk duties... Crow's nest? That is too open. I don't hear any suggestions from you! Cargo hold? I just suggested that! You said storage. Petch you, Maew. Let's just go.

Maewrath sighed. After the moment of consideration, he continued down the hall and turned towards the center of the ship. He passed a few sailors, but none bothered him much. He peered down at one of the men every once in a while, but if they met his eyes they just hurried along. Perhaps it was something about the red eyes that frightened humans? Whatever it was, it was useful in moments like this; keeping others from stopping him to ask questions.

After a wrong turn, the Akalak managed to find his way to the cargo hold. When inside the large open area, he peered around. It was empty... and for good reason. Much of the cargo on this ship was for Sahova. There was no telling how much of it were corpses or other foul odds and ends for the Nuits. All in all, it was perfect.

Maewrath shuffled the pack from his shoulders and opens the top. While he walks down the isles between cargo boxes, he pulls out a few things. The first being a well used bar of soap wrapped in a scrap of cloth. Next was the bulk of his possessions; his new scarf. He laid the folded material over his shoulder while his eyes roamed for a decent place...

It took a moment of roaming the large room before Maewrath found a nook between a few large crates. It was just big enough, he surmised... Wiggling through a crack, he found it a bit difficult to get to, another bonus... "Perfect," he breathed to himself. Dropping his bag to one side, he knelt and unwrapped one side of the bar of soap. He pressed it to the floor and slowly drew, leaving a thick chalky white line behind.

It was a simple circle, roughly as large as a barrel's base if a bit larger. It was not very large, he noticed, but it would have to do due to lack of space. Sliding back on his knees till he was crammed in a corner, he drew another circle, roughly the same size. The circles were not perfect, but he made sure they were close. To finish off the setting, he added final touch... a line from one circle to the other to connect them. He made this mark slowly, focusing on the flow from here to there.

Dropping the remains of the soap bar to the side, he then took up the scarf carefully. He laid it in the receiving circle. The knot was near the outer edge with the mask facing the outgoing circle. He carefully laid the arms in crossing motions in front of it for easier focus later. As a final touch, he slid back over to his backpack and removed the brooch he bought earlier. The teardrop set red gems would make perfect eyes. With care, he pinned the brooch to the knot in the center of the arms.

Why in the back? I thought you would know. I would kn... Oh, petch, I didn't think of that! Which is why I am the brain and you are the brawn. Alright, stop patting yourself on the back and let's get this started!

[Maewrath]

Maewrath took a seat in his circle and exhaled. "Step one," he said to himself. "Soulcore, the spark of life and center of the being." He knew this step easily enough but reciting it helped focus. His hands rested together in front of his form as if he were praying. Head bowed, eyes closed, he focused.

He focused on pooling worldly djed into his scarf, the would-be golem. This part was supposed to be easy... and in essence, it was. He focused on drawing worldly djed in at a steady pace and with a mental effort he compacted it together into a core, a matching soulcore to his. It was not fast, but it was not hard to pick up on. Gather, condense, shape, done.

When his eyes opened again, he looked over his creation. A smile drew to his lips as he pondered over the spark of life he had just given. This'll be a great battle companion, mark my words! That is just the attraction factor, Wrath. It will be adequate, hopefully it will help us pass our Judgement. Bah, have a backbone, once they see the uses of this, everyone will want in on our project! Let us hope so. Even if we don't we'll just get stronger while working as a Warden! Remember what the book said? Pulsers often work in the DANGEROUS testing grounds... Win/win! Maewrath sighed under Maew's exasperation. Sometimes his brother soul was so careless...

[Maewrath]

Maewrath paces around the adjoined circles taking deep breaths. It was tough, trying to imagine every step, every requirement of Animation. He knew this already from doing what few books written for the beginning wizard... unlucky for him, those wizards were not masters themselves. Quality information was hard to come by in Riverfall, but he loved his craft. He loved magic enough to live among the undead Nuits, after all.

"Step two, persona. Loyalty to us, for one. Both personalities, just to be sure." It was hard to tell which was in control, their need to pace blended, their words were shared with mutual interest. It was Maewrath, one of those moments where they blended perfectly. "Survival, and defense of course." With a sigh, he took back to his circle and sat.

Bowing his head, placing his palms together and closing his eyes; Maewrath eased himself into an almost meditative reverie. He focused first on himself, then passed that directive onto the golem-to-be. Obey. The first was for loyalty. This was first and foremost. Obey. It was the highest directive, one that would override everything. There was a bond between him and his golem to its very Soulcore. He believed firmly it would never forget him and this directive.

To reinforce this, he opened his eyes to peer at the golem in the other circle. For a moment he allowed his djed to flow through his gaze. It was just a trickle as he implanted the same word and the knowledge of Hypnosis suggestion. This was the first time he had ever tried this... perhaps it would recognize hypnotic suggestions... It had to, or he would be in need of finding an ear for it later, he suddenly realized.

It was difficult not to curse himself for his forgetfulness, especially now that he was trapped within his own mind with two halves that could easily feud over such a little problem. He allowed the emotion of conflict to inspire his thoughts, however. He fueled the Golem's persona with the idea of two individuals along with the unified presence of Maewrath.

The djed flow stopped, leaving his eyes aching and that headache back in place. He had not held it too long, but his inexperience was obvious. He wanted to rush, but he knew better... Instead he moved quickly to the next step. He projected the thought of the golem itself, the body he had made for it, the essence he had created for its existence... Protect. To fortify this time, Maew focused on transmitting the idea of defense, the knowledge of what it meant to defend to protect one's self. Wrath did the opposite, projecting the knowledge of offense of attacking and hurting another. It was crucial to know what it meant to protect. Protect.

And finally, he replicated the idea of protection for himself. Defend. Again he projected a sense of himself. Perhaps it was an emotional transfer, but he transmitted his own desire to protect his creation as a template. Synergy, as it were, was vital in both Maew's and Wrath's perspective for different reasons. Defend.

And then he was done... his mind ached as the day grew old. From the portholes down the outside of the large room, he could see a mass of light filtering in. Syna must be at her peak already... Had he really focused so long on the simplest parts of this golem? He near dreaded the last part...

[Maewrath]

Time for the intelligence. Right, I'll do conflict, you do.. whatever shyke you want. Everything else, I suppose. Maewrath sighed as he fell into that meditative state again. It was becoming almost easy... or perhaps he was simply drawing closer and closer to sleep as he tired himself out.

Maew's consciousness focused on kindness first. Friendliness. Peace. Passivity. He wove thoughts of defending one's self without causing damage, or subduing others without doing them harm. It felt strange to try and impart so much knowledge, as if he were trying to organize a flood. He knew it was best to keep it simple, keep it structured. He offered along with it the sense of companionship, of helpfulness.

Wrath, on the other hand, poured information on everything he could think of. Anger, vengeance, the thrill of a challenge. He tried to pour an understanding of conflict in all aspects, from victory to the sufferings of failure. Physical pain, was one aspect he strained. The thought of inflicting it and receiving it. The best ways to harm a humanoid or how to kill by wrenching somethings neck.

Just as they were finishing with the dual concepts of conflict and peace, Maew verbally commented to his brother spirit. I have an idea for primary function. Though Wrath did not reply, it was clear he was curious. Maewrath began pouring in information on very basic anatomy, a fact which confused Wrath.

Maew pictured the general features of a face. At the bottom is the chin, above that is the mouth; a horizontal slit with protruding bits of flesh above and below - lips. Then the nose, a pointed or rounded virtex of three lines, one for each nostril and one for the bridge that leads up to the brow. The brows, a ridge above two sunken regions where eyes rest. Eyes, circular orbs set inside sockets of flesh, usually with an iris and pupil. Why so detailed?

Instead of answering, Maew continued on. He imagined a hand. Fingers, usually five with one set to the side meant to help grip objects. The hand curls to grab things... Seriously, why?

Again he pushed on. This time it was metal. The color of steel, the shine when polished and the grime and gray when left dirty; he imagined it very well. He then focused on thin lines of metal, flat and sharp and pointed. Blades. He then imagined a sheath, long pieces of wood or leather the blade slides into. Sheathed. Unsheathed. Sheathed. Unsheathed.

As a final topping, he added the concept of Warning. If a face is aimed towards the golem or its owner, and if a blade is drawn, that the golem should warn its master, as conflict may be near.Oh, I get it! Hah! No Jakri will sneak up on us! Facial recognition and recognizing an unsheathed weapon means even if only the eyes are exposed, we should be warned if we are about to be attacked from the back. I get it, I'm not a fool... Sometimes you need a little extra detail, even when you do not admit it...

Before Wrath could argue, Maew was adding another concept. The concept of wind. The way it feels, the way it moves. For aesthetics... He imagined the golem moving like a slow wind and thought the idea very appealing. Six moving arms? Could be just as threatening with the right oomph. Good. I think we are finished for now.

Maewrath took a deep breath as his mind returned to the real world. His eyes opened. Blinking, he had to slightly squint as his eyes adjusted to the light. With the session ended, he glanced to the window. It had been a few bells for this session, at least. The sun must already be at its peak, or later. It was shining bright in through the porthole window.

[Maewrath]

Maewrath did not continue on into the final stretch of Animation. Instead, he rose from his circle and paced carefully around that of his golem's to his backpack. The Akalak sat with his back to the wall, half the time staring at his creation while the other half he spent rummaging through his belongings. Eventually, his sluggish mind drowning in idle imaginings finds what it was looking for; a meal. It was half a loaf of stale bread, a small chunk of cheese and jerked pork. It was a simple meal, but after using some of his own djed to make a Soulcore for his first real animation he was starved.

While Maewrath bit into the bread, he considered many things. First off, he thought of the capabilities of his creation. Both personalities favored strength and dexterity over intelligence beyond that of simple companionship and protection... but could he really instill so much strength into a form so thin? The arms were only cloth, six inches wide, not even an eighth thick.

It will make a great distraction for a foe. We'll know it's abilities, but they won't. This is true. And I read somewhere you can upgrade Golems after initial creation. I remember something about that. We shall just update it when we find a flaw. Or make it more powerful as we advance! Teach it magic and hand to hand! Teach it to wield a sword and shyke! Easy Wrath, one step at a time. Yea, I know, I know. The reward is in victory, the fun is in the effort. A verse Maewrath's father offered long ago. Both souls found it powerful and correct in just about every aspect of life.

Their minds separated into two individuals again as the headache returned. It was hard to constantly explore one another's emotions and thoughts. Instead, Maewrath glanced around indifferently. The nook in which he broke his bread and animated his new ally was small, hardly enough for the two circles and a breath's space outside on either side but it was narrow, leaving enough space on each end to sit comfortably. On the left was the wall, on the right was a pile of boxes. The same came for both behind and in front of him across the stretch.

The silence was overwhelming with nothing but the corpses in crates to keep him company. He worked in silence. He rested in silence. He ate in silence. It was... peaceful. Even Wrath enjoyed the lack of disturbances while working towards the would-be masterpiece.

After he finished with his meal, he stuffed the remnants of his food back into his backpack, wrapped and tidy with the usual organized tendencies of the lighter soul. Maewrath took a breath and quietly exhaled. With a full stomach, he felt revived and relaxed. Listening through the piercing silence to the waves outside was enchanting to say the least. It was hypnotic in a way he hoped one day he could be.

We shall sleep here for a few hours before attempting the final process. Wimping out? Heh, to be honest I could use a nap. This headache might be a distraction we cannot afford. I agree.

Maewrath crossed his legs and rested his back against a crate. It was not strange to sleep sitting up like this; many times in his childhood he would often fall asleep meditating. His father had once commended him for his dedication until he realized this truth. Maew enjoyed the thought while Wrath found himself annoyed by the reminiscing. After offering a good night back and forth between himself, Maewrath rested his head against the crate and emptied his minds so sleep may come.

[Maewrath]

Waking up to the sound of silence for a change was welcoming to say the least. Having to share a room with countless other passengers was bothersome to both personalities. Wrath wanted to rip at least half of them by now while Maew just hated so many people cramped into one place. Maewrath glanced around for a long moment to take in his surroundings. It looked no different than yesterday, and still the cargo hold held no sounds he could pick out as abnormal. Welcoming? He would go so far as to call it perfect...

Rubbing the sleep from his eyes with a thumb, he took in a deep lungful and exhaled in a hearty sigh. Though hushed, the sound still felt awkward as it pierced the air. For a change it was Wrath who controlled the body today. He snagged up his bag rather harshly if only to add more sound to the world around him, before reaching inside for what he had only a few hours prior just placed inside. Again, he dines in the silence of cargo and half-animated golem... A few chunks of cheese, a quarter of his remaining bread and to wash it down a few short swigs from a waterskin hung to the side of his bag.

It was all so routine, Wrath found himself breezing it off soon enough. He rose to his feet then, grunting as his stiff legs threatened to give out. Meditating with his legs crossed for several hours was not too pleasant to recover from. With a grunt, the Dark soul Akalak preforms simple stretches to help the flow of blood. Bending one knee and keeping theo ther straight, he nearly sat on the heel of the leg with the bent knee. After bouncing a few times to really stretch his muscles and joints, he switched to the other side. Though a simple stretch, it was most effective at untying the knots from the slumber.

"Time to finally finish this project, it seems." He spoke mainly for the sound, the delight he had over controlling the body, even out of combat, was tremendous. He thought everything more fun when he did it himself. Today, he would claim the final stage of animation as his task.

Sliding around the receiving ring where his golem lay, he found his place back in his own circle. Wake up, Maew. It's time to get started. He could have guessed Maew was already awake, even though his counterpart said nothing. Many times, Maew would almost drop off his internal radar. That silent personality of his was not something Wrath tended to focus on too often.

Speaking of focus... Wrath took a deep breath and tried to relax every part of his body. It was difficult at first, too many stray thoughts entering his mind... Eventually, he imagined just straight black. Now, open your eyes to look at the Golem. We need to see the body. Wrath did as Maew asked with no objections.

The golem's six limbs were each five foot in length joining at a thick, complex knot even he hardly understood. In the middle of those six appendages rested a hidden brooch of two blood agate stones set in copper tear-shapes. On the other side of the knot was a multiple layered mask meant to cover the lower half of the face. The design was so simple in theory, yet so complex in design. Still, it was time to make the Astral body.

Deep in his reverie, Maewrath started by drawing Djed from the circles to use and shape. First, he layered it around the body, slowly intertwining the remnants of the new layer with the physical one, Wrath was already itching to concoct ways to use the body. Bit by bit, he layered more and more of this layer over the delicate soul he had created. Bit by bit, he drew in djed to work over his masterpiece.

Wrath focuses on bringing in worldly djed to create the body while Maew focuses on smoothing out the crudeness of Wrath's lumping and layering. The two distinct tasks helped forge what they hoped would be a strong astral body. Both thick and smooth, dense like muscle and yet agile and flexible. Perhaps they only imagined the qualities, but each mind tried to suit the ethereal body to make up for what it lacked in intelligence.

As they universally agreed for the next step in the sequence, the two minds began working on the first of six limbs. They focused on sharing thoughts to work closely on the same project. Together, they worked on teaching the limb various types of motion. First, curling along the flat of the ribbon, like fingers curling into a fist, only repetitively. They imagined it like a snake coiling around on itself again and again, only much, much tighter coils... Then, twists and swirls and snaps. Wrath focused on teaching it quick, jerking moves to better surprise a foe; tensing and releasing resistance of its astral body to start itself into motion. Maew focused on slow, hypnotic range of motions for mesmerizing or intimidating others with mysterious potential or the sheer beauty of the creation....

Then they moved to the next arm. It was just as time consuming and mentally strenuous as the last, but neither personality complained. Wrath already knew the challenge to Animation, while Maew was eager for his beautiful friend to awaken with all these gifts. The second arm was taught to move just as fluidly as the first with just as much strength and precision as the minds could manage.

Then the third... then the forth... the fifth... and finally the sixth. The arms were taken down one by one, as if fighting a line of simpleton foes or reading book after book. Time consuming, not all that difficult physically, but mentally taxing, if only because of the former fact. The arms were many, and so their need the greatest in complexity.

And then it was time for the eyes. Or perhaps he should have done the eyes first... Maewrath considered the lack of foresight and frowned at his repeated clumsiness. For this task, his eyes again open so he may stare at his creation. One hand rose in the shape of a fist. From the fist, a single finger rose. While his mind focused on the two gems sat in that copper brooch, his eyes stare blankly into the brooch, both seeing and unseeing.

He focused both on what was in front of him and what his peripheral vision rested upon. He focused his gaze onto the gems then, tucked away in their secret hiding spot. He took note of how his peripheral vision lacked focus but his primary sight became much clearer. He unfocused again to see the broad view again... then focused once more to insinuate the difference.

Then, his gaze flicked from the brooch to that finger held in mid air. It was almost in the line of site, making the switch only a difference of depth. While his finger had been blurry before, it was in focus now and the brooch was blurred. He switched again, and then back for the concept of depth perception.

Finally, it came time to connect the pieces of this puzzle... Maewrath went back over the astral body to fine tune the coordination between the appendages and the brooch eyes. He tried to add a bit of "common sense" to the motor skills. Primarily, the common sense to move an arm out of the line of sight when something needs to be seen. He anticipated having to update its persona later to include that. For the moment though, he felt he was done. All he had to do now was activate it.

[Maewrath]

With Wrath in control of the body, he wasted no time. He had almost given the demand to awaken when Maew stopped him. Are we sure there is nothing left? If there is we'll add it later! Wrath was eager as always but Maew resisted his drive. It was enough to infuriate Wrath, but Maew was one of the only people he would control his temper around. Pushing ahead, he stares at the creation before him. "Awaken." The word came with a mental push to activate the golem in the other circle.

In the other circle, the animation twitched. The crossed arms of cloth rippled slowly, rising and falling as the automaton seemed to come to terms with new life. Within a moment, the animation's arms were writhing on the floor like beautiful red snakes. It was hypnotic, like waves across a sea of blood...

With the transfer finished, the process of animation was done. With it safe to move the golem, Maewrath slid forward on his knees and reached for the golem. Careful! Wrath did not reply, but he did slow his approach to tenderly pluck the golem from the wood flooring. It wriggled in his hand, not quite hostile, not quite docile, just moving to move.

He turned the mask portion so he could look into the eyes of the golem. They had a particular shine to them. The blood agate looked alive now - or was that just a figment of Maewrath's new attraction? Either way, he felt a wave of pride as he lifted the new golem and slid it over his head. He gently pulled the mask into place and rested the knot at the back of his neck. He could feel the arms brush against his back one in a while, but for the most part they were airborne and dancing.

This seems very flashy. As much as walking around with an ax or hammer. This is true, I suppose. Relax, it's pretty! I thought you liked pretty things! It is aesthetically pleasing... not "pretty." Yea, yea, you and your big words. It's great as it is, just get used to it!

Maewrath plucked his backpack from the ground and idly began walking away from the soap-drawn circles. He had to squeeze through the narrow passage between crates again, but after two days in the nook he had chosen it was the open space beyond that felt almost strange. What are you doing? Relax, we worked hard on it, I'm just enjoying the rewad.

Before Maew could say anything else, Wrath brought Maewrath's hand up to stroke the scarf's arms at their base, gently pushing them down. Allowing the expenditure of a portion of his djed, he passed through contact a suggestion. Rest your arms. With his suggestion, the scarf slowly grew limp so that the arms rested at his calves. See? It's all good. You are still an idiot... Yea, yea, bark and no bite. Wrath grinned as he walked as Maewrath out of the cargo hold. "Let's go grab something to eat, I'm starved."

[Mirage]

If you come back to the game PM me and I will provide you with your grade