[Scholarly Abode of Intellectual Pursuits] Fanatics (Solo)

[Vizyous Aconitum]

5th of Winter, 510 AV The house had been staring at him for quite a while, beckoning him to come forward. The day before, Vizyous had taken notice of the large and odd looking house that seemed, in some way, important. It had demanded his attention and kept it, leading the man to lurk opposite of the establishments door and give chase when the building layout changed. Not many people had gone in and out of it's door, but the few Vizyous did see visit were greeted cautiously and discreetly. The Symenestra hadn't been able to see exactly who answered to the timid knocks, making him all the more interested. Was this an important place in Alvadas, perhaps religious? Surely if the building was religious, the owner would answer the door with much more confidence... however, this was Alvadas, and the two days he had lived in Alvadas had brought many things that were unexpected. No, this building seemed to be holding some sort of secret-- and Vizyous couldn't stand secrets. His eyes carefully watched the many massive windows facing the lonely street it had been placed on that evening, taking in the shadows behind the dim glass to see if there was any movement inside. He wouldn't be surprised if there was a secret door for it's visitor's to leave from unnoticed and wasn't sure if anyone was home. Vizyous had been sitting for a very long time along the opposite side of the street facing the house. His rear ached from being rested on, legs and especially knees stiff from immobility. With a deep breath and clenched teeth, the man flexed his fingers then pushed against the dry stone beneath him with his palms, bringing himself forward to squat. After letting out a small and barely audible huff of wariness, Vizyous straightened out his legs and stood, the Symenestra wincing at the stiffness of his joints. He just wasn't in the shape for stalking anymore, he really wasn't. Once a brief but needed moment of stretching his muscles and cracking his bones was dealt with, Vizyous began walking towards the strange house, only feeling a bit tired and much curiosity. His three knocks rattled against the door were strong and loud compared to the quietness that seemed to surround the house. Vizyous stood at the long, narrow door way, waiting for someone to answer him. It almost seemed to him that the only reason this establishment wasn't the most avoided in Alvadas because of the interesting building he'd found before this one with a sign on it warning visitors away. Passerby's seemed to glance at in disdain, those who seemed to know what it held either scowling or looking away in amusement. Certainly, within were secrets and mystery. Vizyous listened intently, hearing the sounds of approaching foot steps. There was a quiet rustling sound and then in his peripheral vision, Vizyous caught the quick motion of the curtain within the massive window to his left shifting and then sliding back in place. Whoever had been peeking at him was gone by the time his eyes fully focused on that spot, but then the foot steps returned and Vizyous could only guess he was going to be ignored or recognized.

[Vizyous Aconitum]

Victory! With the rustle of a few locks being undone and the turn of a doorknob, the entrance into the building was slowly opened, the door hinges creaking loudly as they worked. As Vizyous had seen done to earlier visitors, the door was left open only a crack, but from that point on the Symenestra wasn't sure what to expect. Would he be asked a password? The visitors had spoken to whoever answered, of that he was sure, but Vizyous had been too far away to overhear what was being said. The crack revealed only half of a very old face that was most definitely male, and human. The old man's eye stared at him, looking into his own for a long while, but no words were spoken. Had Vizyous been wrong and stumbled onto an uninteresting, residential home of an old man? The Symenestra stared back, a slightly unimpressed look crossing his features. "Well?" Came a raspy and very impatient voice, slightly muffled from both his mustache and half of his face being hidden behind the door. "What do you want?" Vizyous stared at man in slight confusion, his mind racing to figure out the correct words to say. What did he want? He wanted to know what this building in Alvadas was, to find out why it was so avoided by some and yet visited eagerly by others. "I want to come in." The Symenestra said simply, tone sounding as if his motive should have been obvious. The man continued staring at him, seeming to become more impatient by the second. "If you desire to enter, young man," and the word young was emphasized on as if it was also an insult to his intelligence, "you must prove to me that you truly want to learn about the city in which you live." The old man's already dark eyes became more unfriendly, staring into Vizyous's own as if he could read and predict his every thought and every word spoken. The Symenestra wasn't phased by the man's words though. If entering this establishment meant learning more about Alvadas, he would get in-- no matter what. As to how the old man knew of where he lived, Vizyous would ask later but assumed that perhaps he had knowledge of who owned what in Alvadas. "I knocked at first in curiosity of what this building held, but now that I know you hold knowledge of Alvadas, I will get in." His voice was borderline both respectful and intimidating, eyes piercing into the old man's in threat. "I came to this city to learn as much as I could. I won't leave this doorstep empty-handed." Whether the intimidating words phased the man or not was unrecognizable, fear not once crossing his old face. Something seemed to become more focused in those impatient eyes though and the door slowly opened to reveal the old man fully, the half of his face Vizyous had seen not much different from the other half. He was wrinkled with a receding hairline spouting gray-white hair alike his own, with untrimmed eyebrows and a heavy gaze. The old man stood slightly shorter than him. "Enter now," He told Vizyous, his voice not welcoming at all, sounding more resentful than pleased at the Symenestra's words. "before I change my mind."

[Vizyous Aconitum]

The weather had been chilly that day, the breeze painting his cheeks a light pink and numbing his fingers. Vizyous's sigh of relief after stepping inside the warm house was cut off by the abrupt movement of the old man to pull him further into the house and shut the door behind him. The look in his amethyst eyes was one of warning, not at all liking his personal space being invaded so suddenly, however the old man again scoffed at his silent threat. "If you want to learn anything here, young man, you best keep your temper to yourself!" Before Vizyous could respond, the old man continued, briskly walking past him after locking the door,"Serenity must have lost her wit letting you take residence in this city-- just look at you! If your hair didn't give you away, your name does. Vizyous Aconitum," He had continued into the other room, leaving the confused Symenestra in the entrance. "The things that woman lets in, it's just asking for trouble!" The house itself was large, but the space within was taken up mostly with bookshelves and the odd table or sculpture. Any free space left on the wall was covered with maps, scenic pictures, diagrams-- making even the entrance hall seem to be ready to collapse. Vizyous felt if he knocked into one object, it would make all the others fall. He quietly stepped into the room the old man was now pacing in, finding that he was practically being ignored. Perfectly content with being paid no mind, Vizyous focused on absorbing as much of the building's contents as he could. His hands were kept to his sides, although his fingers itched to trace along the spines of the books lining a particularly interesting shelf on Illusionary magic. His footsteps against the bright colored rug were nearly silent as he slowly walked further along the wall, moving on from the book shelf to a framed picture. In the background, the owner was still talking, however he had noticed that his visitor's attention had gone elsewhere and quieted down a bit. The insolent Symenestra had gone to a painting of Alvadas, one that appeared to be painted in the hottest day of Summer. Syna lit the sky brightly, illuminating the white stone paving the city so much that it almost hurt the observers eyes. If one studied it closely enough they would see grains of sand spread across the stone, small piles lining the buildings walls. "Doddel Asperenus, owner of the Scholarly Abode of Intellectual Pursuits. Don't touch a thing in this house, not one thing, without permission." Vizyous just barely heard the man's words, recognizing a few moments after they had been said that the owner had finally introduced himself and given a name. Doddel, he'd said? A fitting name for one that babbled so much. The Symenestra kept his eyes trained on the painting for a second longer, having noticed that the shop signs all looked familiar, which mean that either it had been created semi-recently or that the shops have been around for a long while. "Vizyous Aconitum, but you already knew that." he said in return, looking at Doddel over his shoulder now that he seemed to have calmed down a bit from his ranting about Serenity Barrel of the Sanity Center. "How long have you been here?" He asked quickly, the words escaping before properly being thought out, "I mean, how long have you been collecting things on Alvadas?" Usually Vizyous was more eloquent with his words, but Doddel had bored him and consequently made him disinterested in conversing.

[Vizyous Aconitum]

Doddel seemed flabbergasted at the question, although his visitor was too distracted with looking at the spines of the books nearby him to notice. His face flushed just the slightest in indignation, and he recovered face before responding. "This collection began many years before you were even born, young man." Doddel's voice was laced with contempt, earning only a warning glance from the Symenestra. "I may be young," Vizyous coolly informed Doddel that was obviously still sore about his race, "but I've survived since 18 on my own, old man." Before any angered reply could come from Doddel, the Symenestra continued, finally turning away from the bookcase to face him. "Never mind how I got in, I came to learn about Alvadas, not be repeatedly insulted. Just because I have these," He held up the thick, black claws extending a good ways from his fingers, "doesn't mean I will tear up anything that I touch. Now will you please be of use or leave me be?" Vizyous walked to the opposite side of the room, towards another bookcase against the wall that had two massive windows covered by thick curtains. Although he could go to the library, the books here on Alvadas were collected conveniently into one place; before Doddel could fully finish his sentence about how delicate the items in this house were, the Symenestra had picked up four of the books that had interested him and was carrying them to the small table set in the north east corner of the next room. "You, those are--" Doddel sputtered out, his steps seeming to follow after him in a hurry before he realized that he could do nothing to stop the Symenestra from touching them lest he wanted a gut full of claws. His face was once again stained an angry, ashamed red, and finally he let out a drawn out huff of defeat. "Berrel will definitely be hearing about this." Doddel hissed out before sitting on a couch opposite of Vizyous, eyes boring into him like a snake stalking it's prey. The table he was headed to was made specifically for reading and writing, Vizyous setting the books atop the small shelf attached to it and sitting in the wooden chair that was too short for his legs. Cramped as he was, he scooted in and scanned over the spines of the books he'd picked up, deciding which one to read first. He carefully retrieved the smallest book from the bottom of the stack, titled 'Illusions'. It seemed to be a journal, and Vizyous felt he should have expected that it was written by none other than Doddel Asperenus. He pulled the worn cover open, finding neatly written words staring back at him and with a deep breath of patience, the Symenestra began reading. My study of illusions at first seemed impossible to begin. How could one apply logic and technicalities to something as free form as illusion? After focusing more on those who use illusionary magic, though, certain things started to stand out to me. I once met a thief native to Alvadas that used illusion to trick others into giving her money. After following her throughout a handful of days, I witnessed her victim's senses being assaulted in many different ways. The thief had made a fire appear, small and seemingly innocent, and convinced a man that if he didn't give her his money, she would unleash the flames on him. Another time, she simply made this horrible, screeching noise arise from nowhere, making her victim drop to her knees while the thief made off with her bag. I noticed that throughout each encounter, the thief had never once assaulted two different senses at the same time. Although she had made a fire appear, the heat that should have come with it was never felt, and although she'd made such a horrible noise, we never saw what was screeching. After researching other users, I found that my theory was correct: those blessed by Ionu could affect only one sense at a time... ... or so I thought, until I found a woman that could change anything she'd like into anything she'd please. The transformation could only hold up for so long until the illusionist tired, but what she created was magnificent. Her favorite illusions were those that made her house look beautiful; she would invite friends over and have them sit atop the most exquisite, comfortable seats, and then only a day later the illusion would dissipate and return back to a simple, plainly-cushioned chair. Her secret, was that she had been blessed not once, but twice by Ionu. The only individual I've met touched three times is the head priest of the Temple of Ionu, but I've never once seen him use it. Perhaps such power is too magnificent to use unless necessary. If those marked twice can transform whole objects into what they desire, I imagine that those marked thrice can transform entire areas.

[Vizyous Aconitum]

Vizyous stopped reading for the moment, intrigued by what he'd discovered. "Doddel," He called over his shoulder, glancing back after a second to look at the old man. All threat that had been laced in his voice prior was gone now, "You keep speaking of being touched, blessed, and marked. Are you speaking of gnosis?" Those blessed by their God or Goddess-- the Symenestra had met those who were blessed by Viratas in Kalinor, however he'd never considered what Ionu may gift his followers. It only made sense that they'd be granted the power of illusion. The old man seemed to have cooled off a bit after seeing that the Symenestra wasn't clawing up his property, but his voice was still wary when he responded. "Ionu's gnosis grants illusionary magic to those marked," Doddel straightened up a bit, "if you're favorable to him. I wrote that when I first began studying illusion. Read on if you desire, but I could tell you everything and more than what that journal holds." Although the man's words seemed to be those of bragging, Vizyous shut the journal and turned his chair towards Doddel. To be on Viratas's bad side was a horrible fate, resulting in a beating that would continue until blood was spilled and a wound that would never heal. He couldn't imagine what Ionu would do to those he disliked-- perhaps torment them with monstrous illusions. "What does Ionu do to those he despises?" Doddel's heavy eyebrows rose a bit at his words, "Despise?" Although a small laugh came, there was no jest in what he said, "If you're lucky, immunity to illusion is all that Ionu curses you with. However, if you continue to anger Ionu and your cursed once again, details start to fade away." The old man seemed to be reveling in being paid attention and listened to, apparently used to being ignored. "If you push Ionu any further, a sense will be taken away, be it eyes, ears, or tongue. But, despised?" He laughed once again, "Such a fate is worse than death. Sight, smell, touch, hearing-- all taken." Vizyous suddenly saw a new side to Ionu, not even able to imagine losing every sense. Would all he be able to experience in that state be his thoughts? He shook off the feeling of dread that had captured him, absentmindedly delivering the journal back to it's place on the bookshelf. The Symenestra remained quiet, having had enough of speaking to Doddel for the moment considering he was still having a hard time absorbing what the old man had said before. His hand reached for the book highest on the stack automatically, and Vizyous began to wonder if all of the books he'd grabbed were journals written by Doddel.

[Vizyous Aconitum]

It turned out that the old man had been quite like him when he was younger. The journal described his days of simply exploring Alvadas, and inside was detailed descriptions of the shops in it. Some Vizyous had recognized, such as the Sanity Center and Matilda's Jewels, however others seemed to have been no longer existent, showing how old Doddel must be. Further past the descriptions of the stores and it's owner's were landmarks, not necessarily businesses. Perhaps worse than the Maze of No Return and Verlyna's Emerald Pond is the striped red and white tent owned by a Konti that makes her living off of trickery. I found this despicable tent by accident, and upon entering was approached by Okana, who claimed that she could predict my future. I'm ashamed to admit, I gave her a single gold miza out of curiosity, only to be told that I would end up a lonely, solitary man. Needless to say, I will never return to that tent or let any of my followers do so. The Symenestra snickered and gave a quick glance at Doddel, wondering if he still felt that Okana's prediction had been wrong. Was the man lonely? He didn't see any of his followers around. Vizyous set aside the journal and moved on to the next, brows raising at the title. "Citizens?" He repeated out loud, tone one of disbelief, "Does Serenity help you with this or do you just constantly watch the Sanity Center?" He opened the neatly organized book, finding plenty of names that caught his interest but scanning only for one. Vizyous Aconitum, there he was, profiled simply as a 6 foot Symenestra with long gray hair and no occupation. There was a note at the bottom of his page which read, "Possible trouble." The Symenestra looked over at Doddel, a brow raised as his claws tapped against the page. "You have a severe problem with races other than your own, old man. I've not done one bad deed in this city and I intend on keeping it that way." His gaze narrowed, "However your testing my patience." Doddel shrugged, for once not taking offense to Vizyous's threats. "Many citizens here aren't the most honorable, I simply like to help keep it safe." His eyes seemed to darken even further, "Murderers and those participating in Harvest aren't new to Alvadas." There was a tense silence that filled the room, and Vizyous felt a deep frown coming to his face. He'd satisfied his curiosity and discovered what this building was-- it was the Scholarly Abode of Intellectual Pursuits, a place where knowledge on everything related to Alvadas and Ionu was desperately gathered. Although there was more to be found, the Symenestra felt he'd learned enough for the day. He returned the journals to their shelf, being watched by Doddel who had a tired look on his face. "I expect you'll be back later." The old man said, gaze trailing him as walked from the shelf towards the entrance hall, feet following once he was near the door. Vizyous remained silent, contemplating whether he would return or not. His visit had been useful, interesting even, but Doddel Asperenus was a man he couldn't tolerate very well. "Possibly," The Symenestra responded before opening the door himself and stepping outside into the cold wind and rain. Doddel shut the door for him, locking it and moving to the window to watch the Symenestra. As much distaste as he had for the spiders, Vizyous had seemed genuinely interested in illusion. The curtain swung back into place and Doddel disappeared into the house, Vizyous now out of sight.

[Cadence]

Vizyous   Skills Intimidation +2 Scoialization +1   Lores The Interior of the Scholarly Abode Being Insolent and Getting Away with It The Technicalities of Ionu’s Gnosis Additional Notes: Fascinating thread. I especially liked the excerpt from Asperenus’s journal. It feels exactly like something I would imagine him writing. Modding the NPC for the length of this thread was fine, but if you plan to have Vizyous return to the Abode in the future for any longer, more involved interaction, drop a note in my office, and I’ll mod him for you. I really enjoyed this – great utilization of the Abode and its resources. ")