Closed Interesting Company[Aoren]

[Kamilla]

Kamilla Circe Gordon

13th of Summer, 517AV

Valkalah Library, it was one of the very few places in Riverfall that the young sorceress frequented which, despite being something she enjoyed, still felt like a bit of waste in such a beautiful city. She'd been in the akalak's city for almost an entire season now and it still struck her as magnificent every morning, afternoon and evening. Having spent several seasons on the dead, dry and cultureless island of Sahova, Riverfall remained the polar opposite, beautiful, lively and so very colorful. It was what Sahova had been lacking and yet now that she was here it seemed she spent most of her time either in the library, at work or in her room at the Kulkulkan Inn, she would have to endeavor to find newer, more refreshing places to study, perhaps somewhere outdoors so that she could bring Yen, she was beginning to feel bad about leaving the yowlwing cooped up in her room all the time, taking care of other living things was still new to her.

Despite spending so much time in the library, not much had changed since her time in Sahova, her grasp of glyphing had improved somewhat in the past season but other than that her progress in her other magics remained stagnant, much to her frustration. She suspected the problem was that her method of studying had become too monotonous, too much time spent alone with her nose in books doing more theory than practical study, she needed to change things up but she wasn't sure how, or where, despite Riverfall not being vehemently against magic, she doubted its citizens would be thrilled by blatant displays of it and that along with her Sunberth upbringing ensured that practicing magic was always at least somewhat of a secret with her.

Upon entering the library Kamilla had made her way straight towards the section containing its books on magic, offering only the slightest hint of a smile in the direction of the akalak who ran the place as she passed by. She wore her usual sleeveless short black dress, its longer lace tail dancing behind her as she moved, long waves of dark brown hair fell freely down her back and over her shoulders and her bag containing some writing utensils and her own journals slung over her shoulder.

The young sorceress made quick work of selecting her books for the day, grabbing a familiar one on glyphing which she had yet to finish reading along with a book on the basics of shielding, a magic she'd been intrigued by since her first day on Sahova two years ago but had still not managed to learn, but the hope was always there. She considered taking a third book on malediction but decided against it, it was early afternoon already and she doubted she'd even get through the remainder of the glyphing book, let alone two more.

With her books in hand Kamilla made her way straight past most of the sparsely populated desks, finally taking a seat at one of the furthest ones which was positioned right beside a bright window. Less than a chime later, both her journals and utensils rested on the desk besides the book on shielding and her deep brown eyes were focused on the pages of the glyphing book where she'd left off. She was now confident enough to actually try using a basic sigil but wanted to make sure she hadn't missed anything important. For the time being, Kamilla was completely lost to the outside world.

[Aoren]

The library was becoming a place that Aoren frequented in days of late. It held a wealth of knowledge that he intended to take full advantage of as often as he could. That it was open to the public was a blessing that he was thankful for in so many ways. Passing through the entryway he nodded and waved at the librarian before heading to a section of the library devoted to craftsmanship. Aoren took his time scanning through the various books on the shelves. He picked up a book devoted to the work of jewelers and browsed through the pages. Immediately he frowned getting the impression that the contents of the book were meant for more advanced practitioners of the craft. He set the book back on the shelf and continued searching. Grabbing a brown leather bound tome he carefully took it down from the shelf opening its cover. Reading through the first few pages, Aoren smiled. While it was not entirely what he was searching for it would help him in his endeavors if the idea that was floating in his head was correct.

“Sword and Shield: Smithing for War”

With a nod he tucked the book underneath his arm continuing his search. Gingerly he brushed his fingers over book after book until one drew his attention. Plucking it from the shelf he opened the cover and was pleased at its contents.

“The Jeweler’s Guide to Basic Crafting”

Sifting through a few of its pages he was relieved to find that he could at least wrap his head around a few of the bits of information that were scrawled onto the paper. It would take many hours of both study and practice but at least he was headed in the right direction. Aoren had been visited by a bout of inspiration that was beginning to take shape in his mind. He couldn’t quite place it but there was the lingering feeling that whatever path he was supposed to walk in this world, for whatever reason, he was headed in the right direction. He was going to follow that feeling until he found what he was looking for. The past few years had seen him stagnate, wander and become lost. He was still finding himself. Truth be told, he didn’t think that quest would ever end. Nevertheless, something about crafting resonated with him. It just seemed…comfortable though it was difficult to explain why.

Content with his findings for now he began making his way through the library intent on finding Zandar but stopped short when he saw someone that made him stop in his tracks. Furrowing his brow he paused quirking his head at the woman seated comfortably at a desk with her head bowed over a heavy looking book. Stepping closer, Aoren’s mind began searching through his memories. For a moment he thought he saw someone familiar, a woman he’d known several years ago but who was now gone. Was it her? Part of him wanted to believe that it was. His past seemed to be intent on coming back to haunt him this season given what he’d been experiencing ever since setting foot in Riverfall.

“Excuse me…” As soon as the words were out of his mouth and he got a closer look at her, Aoren knew that it wasn’t her. It wasn’t his Raven. That was made more evident when the woman met his gaze. He closed his mouth and rapidly began searching for a reason to have interrupted the woman’s study.

“I..uh…couldn’t help but notice that you are studying a work of Shielding. Are you learned in the discipline or are you just starting on the path?”

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[Kamilla]

Kamilla Circe Gordon

Skimming over the last few pages of the book that she'd read during previous visits to the library had revealed that she had indeed not missed anything important, it seemed she was knowledgeable enough to attempt her first sigil. Safety was of course the most important thing when it came to experimenting with unfamiliar magic processes followed by secrecy. She'd make her attempt in her room at the Kulkukan by trying to store a tiny wind spell within a scroll of her own creation, air seemed the safest element to use, or at least it seemed far less dangerous than using earth. With everything planned out and her research bases for the experiment covered, Kamilla decided to read further into the book and see what else she could learn.

A few pages deeper the young sorceress had learned that sigils could be arranged in any shape, meaning the barriers in particular did not have to be circular so long as they surrounded the focus they were to enclose, the information was new to her so she made sure to record it in her grimoire. With the glyphing tome and the blank pages of her own book open side to side on the desk before her, Kamilla began to copy down some of the basic examples of the variations of sigil structures into her own book. The four illustrated were a sigil with the regular circular set up which, up till then, had been the only she'd known of and therefore didn't copy over, one with a triangular barrier set up, another with a square shaped barrier and finally a sigil with very intriguing and complicated looking six-pointed star barrier set up. Those particular examples in the book did not include any actual runes, instead simply making use of a 'F' to represent the focus, a solid line for the barriers and a 'T' for the trigger, so copying them over didn't take too much time, though her lack of drawing skill and determination to portray them clearly in her own book did add a few extra chimes.

Kamilla had only just finished the final drawing when her ears were greeted by the low voice of a man, causing the young woman to turn her head in search of the source of the interruption. At first her gaze was met with the sight of a clothed torso but as it rose to find the head belonging to the body, brown orbs met with beautiful blue ones housed within a handsome face with an unusual mark covering part of it and topped by light hair. The man was most notably of all handsome and not an akalak, though the pleasantness of his appearance told her nothing about why he'd seen fit to interrupt her during her studies.

Her red painted lips had barely had time to part in order to enquire about the intrusion when the the tall stranger began speaking again, Kamilla's gaze following the man's downward to the title of the book on her desk before returning to his face. So the title of her book had caught his attention? That still did not tell her why he felt the need to speak to her, was he surprised by her choice in books, or did he have something against those who practiced magic? The latter was an instinctual thought, one that was understandable considering her Sunberthian origins, but his voice had not held with it any recognizable hints of animosity so, she hoped, that wasn't the case.

The sorceress took a brief moment to compose her thoughts before finally answering the handsome stranger's question, "Neither, I'm merely standing at the gate, wondering how to unlock it." her words were stated matter of factly, shielding had been a discipline she'd known of for a long time but as with all magics, the first step was the most difficult, as could be expected when it came to learning something one was previously incapable of doing. "What about you? How far along are you on the so-called 'path', if at all? Or are you simply intrigued by the arcane but lacking any knowledge of it?" she was evidently curious, curious about whether he knew anything about magic and if not, then she'd be curious about why he was curious about her interest in it.

[Aoren]

Aoren felt a little embarrassed at having interrupted the woman in her studies due to a case of confusion on his part. She didn’t seem particularly perturbed by the interruption however which made pressing onward with the conversation easier. Stepping closer to the edge of the desk, Aoren peered down at what she’d been pouring her attention over prior to his interruption. Recognition settled in on the Drykas man’s face as he saw the makings of Glyph sigils. While he was no master of the discipline, Glyphing was a field of magic he was familiar with. Setting his own books down he examined the woman’s work from a distance for a moment. The glyph was rudimentary from what he could make out but it seemed to have a solid foundation at a glance. His attention was drawn back to the woman at her question. Giving her a smile he answered plainly.

“I have studied magic. I’ve found myself at the beginning of enough disciplines to know that had I known what I know now, I might not have gotten involved with magic in the first place.” Shrugging his shoulders, he unshouldered the pack that he carried on his back. Resting it on the table, Aoren retrieved a few rolled pieces of parchment, a well of ink and a small brush used for more detailed work allowing finer control. Wordlessly he unrolled one of the parchments in front of him setting the inkwell and his books in the corners to act as weights. Uncorking the ink he dipped his brush into it and began drawing.

He began with a simple circle at first but in short order, Aoren began tracing runic markings around the outer rim of that first circle. In the center of the circle he drew a triangle with pathways connecting to the circles surrounding it. In the corner of the parchment he made a few light symbols for the activation of the magic intended to be stored into the focus of the Glyph. The instructions were simple detailing nothing more than for activation to take place when the command phrase was read.

In little more than a handful of minutes, Aoren had completed a functioning glyph. All he needed to do was place a magical effect into the scroll itself. Removing his weighted objects, he turned the scroll around so that the woman could see his work clearly.

“I can remember the hours my teacher once spent drilling into my head the importance of details when it comes to Glyphs. As for Shielding, I am practiced in it. It can prove rather useful when combined with the right parameters of Glyphing.” Placing his brush down, Aoren clasped his hands behind his back stepping back a little making a nod to the parchment inviting the woman to take a closer look if she so desired. Aoren had always enjoyed working on the World Magics, the few that he practiced. There was something fulfilling about concentrating on a project requiring more detailed thought and work than largely instinct. That was not to say that the Personal Magics weren’t as complicated at times but there was much more instinctual drive behind them than mechanical set-up.

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[Kamilla]

Kamilla Circe Gordon

Taking advantage of the moments between when one of them was speaking, Kamilla used the time to examine the stranger in more detail, deep brown eyes gliding over his form before returning to his blue gaze once more. Despite her more in-depth investigation, the only information she'd derived from his appearance was that he was indeed a tall, well-built and handsome man, even the strange marking on his face somehow added a hint of mystery to his pleasing appearance. Had these been her teenage years, before she'd fled Sunberth, she might have swooned at the sight of him, conceived some scheme to gain his affection, but that version of her had long since been forgotten, now the sorceress was far more interested in what the man knew of the arcane and whether it would be of value to her.

"I have studied magic. I’ve found myself at the beginning of enough disciplines to know that had I known what I know now, I might not have gotten involved with magic in the first place. ”

So he did know something about the arcane arts, multiple disciplines too, in Kamilla's mind the handsome man had just become far more interesting to her, though there was something else in his words that did not go unnoticed. Deep brown eyes narrowed slightly as her features took on what were the beginnings of a frown, had she detected regret... aimed towards magic? She didn't understand, couldn't even, despite magic being part of the reason she'd lost her family. "You sound as if you regret it... resent even." Magic was what gave her life value, what made her different... special. If not for her magic what would she be? She thought on it for a moment before the answer came to her, she'd be her mother, a beautiful powerless fool.

Despite the odd and unexpected turn the conversation had taken, Kamilla's curiosity began to climb once more as the handsome stranger placed his bag on the desk and began to retrieve several items from within. She watched silently as he set up and began to draw what she could only assume would be a glyph or sigil, remaining seated while still carefully watching his movements and methods while trying not to seem too interested. His actions were unexpected and unrequested but Kamilla found herself waiting for the end result with baited breath.

"I can remember the hours my teacher once spent drilling into my head the importance of details when it comes to Glyphs. As for Shielding, I am practiced in it. It can prove rather useful when combined with the right parameters of Glyphing."

This man was growing more interesting by the chime, not only was he practiced in Shielding, a discipline she'd been interested in learning for years now but evidently, he was also experienced in glyphing and she couldn't even begin to conceive any ideas of how one would use the two magics together. At his invitation, Kamilla rose from her seat, hands planted flat on the wood of the desk as she leaned toward his freshly created sigil, taking in as much detail as possible. As expected his runes, sigil and overall structure were entirely different to her own, glyphs seemed unique to each mage after all.

It took Kamilla at least two chimes of intense investigation to try and understand the sigil and its purpose by identifying each of its glyphs and their meanings, it seemed like a more solid version of a sigil designed to store a magical effect, something the sorceress had been intending to attempt very soon, though while she saw no flaws in her own basic sigil, this man's was certainly an improvement. "You must have had a good teacher..." Her upper body still hovered over the desk, but she managed to shoot him a side glance through the locks of long brown hair that had fallen across her face.

After a few more moments and once she was sure she had absorbed as much of the practical details of his glyphs as possible, Kamilla straightened up and turned to face the mysterious stranger. Even at her full height he towered over her, something she'd been forced to get used to since moving to the city of the akalaks. "I'm interested in learning what you know..." Her words were straight-forward, pure business, her time on Sahova had taught her not to dance around a request. "... I'm Kamilla by the way." her name was added as an after thought, fingers sliding across her forehead to hold a few strands of hair out of her face so she could maintain eye contact.

[Aoren]

“Regret?” Aoren paused for a moment. Did he regret taking up magic to the degree that he had? In some ways, yes. Being a sorcerer made him a pariah in many parts of the world. People would always feel some measure of fear when interacting with him once they found out. The only understanding and companionship he would find and not be judged would be with others mages. Other mages however were often secretive, insincere in their motives or of such differing opinions than himself that Aoren seldom cared to associate with them. Thus it was largely a lonely path that he walked for even those he loved and cared for held him at arm’s length to some extent.

“Yes. There is some regret. I imagine that my life would be much different had I not become the mage that I am today. On that same note, I also likely would not have met the people that I have along the way. So, regret? Yes. There is some. Resentment? No.” Aoren would have been a fool to resent the power at his fingertips. He had the ability to manipulate the world around him in astonishing ways that both awed and fascinated him. While there was a price to pay for the things that he did, it was one that had thus far been worth it. He’d protected others with his abilities, he’d killed, he’d pursued innovating things with his gifts. Life was made better in many ways by virtue of his magic, he understood that but in the deepest part of him he knew that even without it, his life would still be an interesting one.

Watching the woman inspect his glyph, Aoren plucked at the strings of his djed drawing her aura into focus. The first thing that became evident to him was the focus, curiosity and hunger that drifted through the folds of her aura. There was a great desire for something that made itself plainly evident. It didn’t take much guessing to deduce what it was that she was hungry for. Narrowing his focus, Aoren searched for signs of magic use. At the moment she didn’t seem to be using any and he had to wonder if Auristics was a discipline at her disposal. Carefully he gauged her intent through the ripples making themselves evident in her aura but he sensed no ill will.

“My teacher taught me what he could. The rest I have learned on my own but he made sure I had a solid foundation on which to stand.” Vividly he could remember the time he’d spent with Leoshan. A twinge of melancholy brushed over his mood as he recalled the crotchety old man.

“Kamilla.” He repeated her name before giving her a curious albeit friendly stare. “I am Aoren. I appreciate your straightforwardness. What I have to teach however…” He chewed on his words, observing her carefully. “…it would take a great deal of time to master.”

Aoren was not a hoarder with his knowledge but he was careful in whom he revealed to the full depth of his affinity for the arcane. He was keenly aware that he was a bit of an oddity. Even while studying at the College of Djed, while he’d met some very studied and practiced wizards, few of them had been as varied in their disciplines as himself. He’d heard whispers of another place where magic was prominent, Sahova, but as he’d never been there he had no idea the caliber of mages who dwelled there.

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[Kamilla]

Kamilla Circe Gordon

The handsome man's response to her comment about him sounding regretful seemed quite honest to her, perhaps unusually honest for a conversation between two strangers who had only just met a few moments ago, though now that she thought about it, she realized that he had responded similarly throughout their short conversation, blatant honesty was an unusual quality, especially amongst mages, or at least that was the precedent set by Sahova. Despite his honest demeanor, Kamilla felt that his answer was entirely relatable as she thought on what her own life would have been had she not been introduced to the arcane. She shuddered at the very thought of a mundane life, but there was one aspect of her life they MIGHT have been different had she never delved into the manipulation of djed, she might have still had a family.

The sorceress' thought back on what she herself referred to as 'The Worst Night', the night she'd lost her mother and grandmother in the fires that raged through Sunberth, or the anti-mage riot SHE had sparked, she was not even certain which had been the cause of her families deaths since they'd forced her to flee, though in hindsight, had she never learnt magic it was entirely possible that she may have perished in the inferno along with them. It seemed that her magic could very easily have been the cause of her families deaths and/or her own survival and having no way of ever telling which, Kamilla simply decided to continue being grateful for it... but the fact remained that she understood the handsome man's words completely. "Regret but not resentment... I can relate to that, completely." Although spoken aloud, the words were directed toward herself far more than to him.

The, now very interesting, handsome man went on to specify that while he had made much of his progress in shielding on his own, his teacher had been the one to ensure he had a good understanding of the basics, confirming that he had indeed been fortunate enough to have a good teacher. Kamilla couldn't help but wonder where the man had been taught and by whom, she doubted she would recognize either, since the only openly magic practicing places she even knew of were Sahova and the University of Zeltiva, but curiosity never adhered to reason.

Once again the man spoke, and finally, Kamilla had a name for the intriguing character before her, Aoren. His answer to her blunt request to be taught puzzled her slightly, a confused frown threatening to reveal itself but ultimately failing at doing so due to sheer force of will. "Of course I don't expect you to teach me without some form of compensation..." she began, hands crossing firmly beneath her bust and matter-of-fact tone noticeably present in her words, his reluctance to teach her seemed like he'd assumed she wanted something for nothing and Kamilla had to remind herself that there were people that didn't subscribe to the Sahovan mindset of 'Nothing for Nothing, "Besides... Aoren... I think you'll find me both diligent and experienced when it comes to working with djed." She realized she was speaking as though he'd already agreed, but seeing as this was a negotiation, she saw no reason for him not to, unless what he requested in return was obscenely unreasonable.