Mysterious Chaos (Reaver/Rayage)

[Verilian]

Timestamp: Spring 22, 303 AV Ravok, a city ruled by the god of evil and chaos, and yet it was said to be a safe haven. There was a price that all who dwelled within that city paid for that safety. The price was Rhysol. They must, each and every one of them, allow Rhysol into their hearts. But not everyone did so, and from time to time certain people would rise up in protest or even rebellion against the god and his dark queen, the Voice. These uprisings were usually quelled immediately, and none had been successful so far. Ravok was still a young city at this time, but it was growing and it was already known by many. It was said to be a beautiful place full of art and knowledge, and it was. Ravok drew many curious minds, as well as those seeking refuge from the dangers of the rest of the world. It was home to scholars and mages, thieves and beggars, nobles and common folk, and it was all kept under control by the Black Sun and the infamous Ebonstryfe. Reaver lived in the city, and back then his house boat was still fairly new, or at least newer than it was today. Reaver was a strange case, a Nuit who was allowed to practice medicine and pretty much had free access to corpses. He rarely had trouble finding new bodies, it was as if the gods themselves provided him some times, and in a city like Ravok he had countless opportunities to further his research. But never had he come upon a case like the one he came upon that day. Reaver had just gotten home and on his table/coffin was a body. A body that had not been there when he left. Now, it might have been explained easily enough as the guards dropping off an unwanted corpse for him to dispose of, but one glance at the naked man on his table and Reaver knew this was probably not the case. Covering his chest and stomach was a series of strange writings. It was a language Reaver could not read, but it was not something he had never seen before. The language seemed to be repeating itself in many places, the same words being used over and over. It was almost as if he were looking at some sort of code or cipher, but where was the key? Little good it would do to him, Reaver could not read the language, but he knew someone who did. Reaver could recall seeing similar script in his visists to Rayage's lab, though the nuit also was fluent in the common language. But surely he could read whatever the strange language might be. Rayage was not like Reaver. Bodies were not randomly delivered to him by the city, and in fact few other than those he allowed into his trust even knew the location of his laboratory. So it was likely with great shock and surprise that Rayage entered his lab to find the body of a random naked woman on his table. She was dead, but there was neither blood nor signs of a struggle meaning she had likely been dead long before she arrived. There was another sign to indicate that she had been dead upon arrival. Covering her body were fresh stitches where incisions had been made. They were on her hands, legs, face, everywhere. Where had this body come from, and more importantly who had brought it? Was it perhaps from Reaver? A gift, a new canvass upon which to study his art? Would Reaver bring such a thing into Rayage's personal space without invitation or warning? It seemed more and more likely that someone else had entered his home and left the body there, but why? And why had she been cut so many times? If he looked closer he could see that there was no blood either, and the incisions had likely been made postmortem. The stitching was obviously done by a professional as well. Other than all the incisions there were no other wounds and it was impossible to determine the cause of death just by looking at her. But who was she? And why was she there? OOCAhem.. So obviously one of you will need to seek out the other.

[Rayage]

The day for Rayage was all but normal, not that he minded. Normal consisted him walking about Ravok in the pursuit and study of the many people that inhabited the place and called it home. He was well aware that this place in particular has strong ties into chaos and evil. It was ruled by the god of such. Though again, as long as he was allowed to do his research the question of where had no real preference. It was only when people would figure out his reason for being here and chase him out would he ever leave. Though, so far, Ravok has been more than accommodating. That fact alone pleased him.

He was glad that he got to study his art almost undisturbed. Sometimes there would be bumps in the road, but so far his lab was left undisturbed save those who he trusted and allowed in. Those select few, with the exception of the people and things he brings into the lab to experiment on, knew the location of his hidden lab and home.

Having been so secretive with his whereabouts it came to great surprise that he would find a body in his house. A hand rising to his face as the thing, the body, set on a table. Slowly the shock wore away as he looked over the body. Taking notice of the stitches he grinned, could Reaver have dropped this off? No, he quickly crossed that thought off as the sutures in the body seemed way too… professional. Not that Reaver couldn’t do a good job, but this, this was on another level. How extraordinary it was.

Stepping closer, over to the table he leaned over the body to further observe it. He lifted the arm and observed the sutures, the stitches in the arm. What art. He laughed as he observed it placing a hand over the delicate over the carefully done work of art. What a piece of work. He could only imagine how she died. Pulling the chair up from his desk he sat there in front of the table placing an elbow on the table. Just sitting there he stared at her, could she have been bleed out? What a way to die.

He laughed as he kept on thinking of the slow way she died. Could one be so sick to have cut her slowly, and then stitched her up after making the incision? Then, he thought, only to cut her again, stitch her up, and then make another cut. The process itself would slowly allow her to bleed out. Or perhaps it wasn’t torture at all but a bizarre experiment of magic gone wrong? But what kind of magic, besides his art, would allow the alteration of the body like this? Surely nothing he knew.

Although as interesting as this was the fact that the body was here was also quite disturbing and unsettling to the nuit who valued his secrecy and privacy. Surely no one he trusted would sell out the location of his lab. Getting up he stumbled over to his desk where he kept notes and observations, conclusions of various aspects of his research and started to look through them to see if anything was taken. Usually a body didn’t just appear. What could be missing? Going through his papers he looked for anything, any little thing that could be missing.

Smiling he thought of the lock that Reaver had made for his house what good a lock did when a mysterious body was in his house. Though, in reality, the combination for the lock, the right amount of knocks, wouldn’t be that hard. No, not hard at all especially when… Then it hit him. Could he, was he being watched by Ravok? Did the city want to send him the message that they could get at him at any time? What would the fools do with his research?! They would misuse it and abuse his discoveries. Luckily, as a precaution, the majority of his findings are written in what scholars now call the Ancient Tongue.

[Reaver]

In a city ruled by fear, fear itself was essential to maintain security. But not everyone can simply be frightening. Those that cannot rule become ruled instead. In this, Reaver found a haven in Ravok. The people feared him for what he was, and such he gained some power in this strange city of art. That fear brought him solace, peace, and strangely enough in this city, opportunity. His research was in full swing, by merely observing the world around him, he could gain limited insight into what was and truly is evil or not. Not something anyone could gain anywhere. But, with interaction, that learning increased heavily. How contrasted can one be? How much good must something 'evil' do to become otherwise? How many mouths can a murderer feed to become something good? How many people must a criminal's income dress? How many people must an abomination save? That last one held a personal significance. Is it possible for evil to become good, for the opposite was clearly simple and easy. He found one answer, perspective. He can become 'good' to the eyes of few, but to the rest he is unchanged. Is it possible to change them all? How hard would it be to change them back? Can he make others who are one extreme or the other change as well? Do more extreme actions have a more lasting effect? Or does a accommodation of minor ones work better? One way to find out, and that is to simply do so. Today was... less successful then he had anticipated. His research into how to extend the life of those who hold onto it was rather lacking in research material. He even had someone in need of such action further their injuries in order to escape him. It shouldn't anger him so, but losing emotion would only make the research all that much harder, so he became angry. That anger seamed to permeate through his whole day, making it harder from then on. It was a hard thing to adjust to, was it always like that? Perhaps further research on these things was needed as well. He finally reached his house, a pleasant place, for him at least. He took a moment to marvel at it's sturdy structure. Every piece of art needed to be appreciated, after all. Carpentry and construction were no exceptions. He entered his home, and like a museum it had an article on display. He frowned once again as he found this piece didn't need his aid, and was gone once again. Though, he forced himself to think positive this time, perhaps some good emotion would be a nice change. Research on the dead produced faster insight then the living anyway, while trying to maintain this 'good' change in the city's perspective on him. He can't let them die when he can help it, or they'd just see him as more evil. As he looked over this new body, a smile crossed his face. It wasn't at all what he expected. A positive outlook was indeed much better, for now a complication had become a riddle. What purpose did this strange new body serve? Did it have a message hidden upon it? Someone had put great care into writing on this person... was it the person himself? He noted he was getting ahead of himself, rather unlike him. He looked around, and then again around the outside. He didn't see anyone who seamed interested in what he was doing... beyond what he usually got. He checked inside, everything was still in place. Opening his containers, the contents were even all sorted still. The riddle got even better. He looked carefully over the drawings, to find they weren't arbitrary, but writings in fact. It was of course, not something he could read, but it had a familiar look to it... he pondered where he had seen it before. His mind became bright with insight as he recalled another researcher with similar writings in his lab, another person working on the study of life, though a different aspect of it. ...or different aspects? Reaver was studying two, after all. ...Life being the second. There was even a chance this other had left the body for him. Well, if so, he'd be disappointed. Reaver decided to pay him a visit. It was time to get some answers, even if the social call would annoy him. Reaver took some pages, and drew what he could of the characters. His copies, he was sure, wouldn't do justice to the fine work here, but he couldn't go about dragging an entire body around. Besides, whoever left it here wouldn't go about stealing it back... he hoped. He decided to lock it into his coffin afterward, just to be sure. Not taking precautions in a city following Rhysol is like trying to eat the outside of an animal, never a good thing. Securing his house the best he could... which was to say not well, he set forth. He had grown accustomed to taking the few things of value he had with him, as his fear protected him. Even the bold don't cut people open to look for money. His pockets didn't hold nearly what they hoped for. Even those that take his medical supplies have a habit of leaving most of them in the nearest section of lake, with most of his supplies. It was, safe enough, he could afford the setbacks without too much trouble. He's never been robbed twice, for that he was thankful. He made his way twords that other person's house, and it went rather simply. Reaver almost hoped for an event, as it only furthered his protection once they found how little he 'had' on him. Perhaps the thieves had bigger targets today, as he got there without incident. He went to knock on the hidden door, only to recall he had a password set. He took a moment to think, the other's name was... Rayage. Rayage... yes. He remembered, and knocked on the door. His lock worked perfectly, and he opened the door swiftly, the bolt locking itself just after he opened it. He smiled once again, it was always pleasant when his work lasted. It was in fact, a lock he bought and made magical through his own hands. As long as the leather held onto the lock, it would work for quite a long while. He made his way inside, and unlocked the bolt long enough to close the door. It locked itself fantastically. He just wished it had the strength to overpower his hand in that regard, though it could overpower small things, which was the real point. He breathed a heavy breath, it truly smelled differently from his house, but yet many of the smells were all too familiar. Like two connected sides of a box, perhaps? No matter, it would be rude to simply barge in. He called out, though not loud... it was a small place. "Greetings, it is Reaver once again. Do you have time to answer my other questions today?" Reaver pulled his book from his bag. He decided to ask his questions regardless of the answer. He came all the way here, after all. Pulling out the loose pages he had written on, he put the book back. He waited for a reply, making his way twords Rayage after his wait. "I was wondering if you could make sense of things such as this. I found a body covered in them left in my house." He would hand the pages over, almost forcing them into Rayages hands. Rayage seamed such a like mind, Reaver doubted he would truly deny him such answers. He would look about the lab, surely he would see some similar writing to compare around here... and something new. "Now that's... distracting. Practicing something new today? Very impressive work there. I have a book full of information on the inside there, all you need is to ask. I have it on me today, as luck would have it." Reaver was rather curious as to this sudden change of occurrence, but he figured the answer would come soon enough. OOC 1So you know, I decided to answer the true nature of Reaver's research in this post. V had asked, but got an incomplete answer. My CS says something rather different from my answer, after all. OOC 2I saw two long and wonderful posts, perhaps I just felt like trying to improve upon it. Did I go overboard? I imposed a bit there, however. If you would like parts of that conversation to go differently, or parts cut out entirely, feel free to PM me and I'll change/remove it without complaint. As a point of reference, the second two comments were nearly back to back, with only a small delay.

[Rayage]

Still pondering the meaning of the body placed in his home he sat there and gazed at almost meditating with it. The body of course being the focus. It seemed as if the nuit thought if he stared at it long enough then he would figure something out, then the body will tell him all the answers and why it was there. Unfortunately for him this was not the case, and such a spectacle of the body revealing anything to him seemed rather far-fetched and really just wishful thinking.

Hearing the call out he turned from the body but he didn’t get up, ”Reaver…” he said as he laid eyes on him baffled as to why he would come all this way and he had questions. Ray had questions of his own but he just stayed put, silent, waiting for what was going to be presented to him. He watched the other dig out the loose pages from a book and smiled hoping this had something to do with the guys research. If so, it could benefit him if he could answer the questions.

Accepting the papers he looked them over nodding lightly at the words scrawled across the page, ”These were on a body that you found in your house?” he asked trying to confirm the fact. The words would reveal various body parts, Right Ulna, Pancreas, and Forehead. ”These are quite interesting.” he said setting the papers down on table beside the body, ”What is also interesting Reaver is that I found this body when I came in. You didn’t gift this to me right?” he asked just to confirm his suspicions that it wasn’t Reaver who placed the body here.

Right Ulna, Pancreas, and Forehead… What could that mean and more importantly why were they written on a body and then set in Reavers house. Getting up off the chair he took a quick look around again, opening the door to make sure no one was listening and then closing it tightly. He then went into the storage area and looked around. Satisfied he sat back down in his seat, ”I think we are being watched.” he announced still looking around even from his seat, ”I don’t know who or from where or even why, but…” he gestured towards the body on the table, ”This was laying on there,” ‘this’ being the body, ”when I arrived home. You said that you had the same thing happen to you but it had words on it.” he grabbed the papers and lifted them towards Reaver, ”Was that all the words because it seems like an incomplete list.” he told him, ”This one” he held the paper in front of the other, ”Says ‘Right Ulna’” lifting a finger he let it drop to the floor keeping the two in place, ”This one says ‘Pancreas’” he informed him before letting that paper too drop to the floor, ”And this one says ‘Forehead’” he finished dropping the third and final paper. ”Any clue on what that means?” he asked turning his attention away from Reaver and back to the body.

Again he stared at it, pondering, wondering what and why. The numerous stitches on her made him wonder why, why, why… His thoughts being distorted with the words that were supposedly scrawled on the body at Reavers place why were there words? Where there more? He observed the body and kept on thinking of the words…. Was this somehow connected? Did someone want them to find something out?

[Reaver]

It felt darker in Rayage's place of residence, darker then his own. The it didn't take someone who knew magic to feel the unsettling aura in this room, just someone observant would sense the signs of danger. It was the smell, a smell of death that lingered. Unlike Reaver's home, this smell wasn't complimented with the light smell of healing herbs and various other things Reaver attempted to use when he had the money. Still, that sort of thing never hindered Reaver, he already lived once, after all. Reaver had come to Rayage for answers, as that was always in stock there. However, that stock only lead to many more questions. The answers themselves were in fact, questions. Reaver kept to simple replies, without a word. He nodded and shook his head as appropriate. His eyes rather focused, for once. "I found this body when I came in." struck Reaver particularly odd. Two men with secrets just had their secrets revealed to not be a secretive as they had thought... Reaver began to wonder if his own secrets were safe... he saw no evidence that his magic was known. As if their minds were linked, Rayage began looking the house over, and Reaver thought very carefully about the situation. Reaver looked at the other body with more concern, how much could one know from simply observing where they live? From Reaver's house, he left little to no evidence of magical knowledge, just a single book with circles in it. Just circles, nothing more. He even drew other abstract things in there to make it look like a hobby of drawing. His small knowledge of medicine was easy to ascertain, in along with his vast anatomy knowledge. He looked around the house he was in, and it was obvious he did alchemy. He even had notes and messages written all over, perhaps one could simply decode them? Rayaged finally stopped checking his house over, and made a comment that didn't quite settle right. ”I think we are being watched.” He then listed his reasoning behind it, but Reaver was already considering that. He then swiftly answered the main question, he did know what they meant. He even went so far as to say the translations. Reaver's emotionless voice finally rung out, and he then spoke a lot. "Sadly, they don't need to watch us to know as much as they have revealed. Simply entering our homes would reveal all the information I have seen they know of us so far. A careful eye could discern everything but our connection to one another. They don't need to 'watch' us, as much as sort through our houses when we leave. The connection to us could even be revealed with certain magic. I hear that information about things can be obtained through it, and a copy of my soul is sitting on the inside of your door. Think of it as a test, then. They want something from us, and it isn't our lives." Hardly the words of assurance he thought Rayage was hoping for, but he didn't feel like hiding his own opinion on the matter. He thought about the pages now laying upon the ground, all parts of the body. "I had actually planned on having you visit the body in my home, to save me the work of dragging it. However, I do have a clue as to the meaning now. With this new information, perhaps they refer to points upon the body in your residence that I would then need to search. It's like a game, but I do wonder about the rules. I didn't copy everything, because I didn't think I would be capable of copying it correctly. I could start searching now, but it could just as easily be places to look upon my own corpse. So, feel like a walk? I really don't want to think about what they'd do to convince us to play their game. I'll assume more then one, as worst scenario should be the one we prepare for." He looked to the body present, the forehead specifically. Did it seam to hold any secrets? Under that was a skull, and that wasn't what was written. All the same, an incomplete list wouldn't be the one to start with. Perhaps a rule or two was written on the body as well? Reaver was actually doing his best not to think of the 'worst' situation, as he had already prepared as much as he could. The only thing he could do to hide anything else would be killing everyone he was in contact with, but that would start his research over from scratch. Perhaps, it was research from a third party that was driving them now. Maybe they'd earn a favor from playing along. Someone of this caliber could aid his research rather swiftly. Perhaps, it would be too sudden, though. He had to consider how to treat outside 'aid' carefully.

[Verilian]

Though no evidence of trespassers or watchers, except for the body itself which was evidence enough that someone had been there, could be found it was still quite unsettling to think about. Who could have done it? Who could know about the connection between the two Nuit, other than that they shared the same race? And what did they want. Reaver looked to the body present, the forehead specifically, and what he would see was not some obvious answer but simply another clue. The forehead had been slit open, and then sewn back shut. If he looked to the other parts listed he would find similar slits, a long one on the arm and another incision where the pancreas would be. But there were more cuts all over the body, many many more, all of them sewn back up as carefully as possible. As they walked back to Reaver's house each Nuit had the unsettling feeling that they were being watched by someone unseen, hidden in the shadows. Perhaps it was just paranoia, or perhaps they really were being watched, but no assailant leaped out at them, no stranger revealed themselves, and they arrived at Reaver's house unharmed. Everything was as it was when Reaver left, and it appeared he had had no new visitors. The body was still there as well, of course. Rayage would find the body did indeed have writing on the chest, as well as on the man's forehead and his leg, and it was all written in the Ancient Tongue, Nader-canoch. While the chest was covered in the names of different organs, the forehead and leg had simple messages on them. The forehead reas simply, "Abase Roza Pachi," thought the writing on the leg had a bit longer message. "Abase: djunn daeq pechi. Roza: Sutla Abase. Randjaq-roza. Randjaq-abase. Djunn-djas nen-abase, daraq-roza. Daraq Ala." Lastly, the chest read: OOC: Not the best post from me, I know, but I figured I'd give you a bit to work with. I pushed the two of you along back to Reaver's house, so Rayage feel free to make some translaty type posts before you guys do whatever you want to do next. Oh, and the non-english words up there can be translated here

[Rayage]

Ray watched, staring blankly at the other mage as he talked. There was so much that he was saying that made sense, but none of it answered any questions, none of it answered the big why. Still deeply unsettled by the whole situation he would twitch slightly in his chair and turn his attention back to the body, did the answers lie within? Why were there so incisions and sutures? The sight of such a body was both beautiful but at the same time darkly disturbing to the alchemist. He has seen worse, sure, much worse but this… This had a deeper meaning all in itself. One that he had to figure out, and maybe answering the little questions, the little whys, would direct them towards the answer of the big why.

Nodding his head at Reavers words he turned back to him, ”A game, you say?” he asked smiling, almost laughing at the concept, ”Sure,” he got up from his chair, ”We can take a little walk.” he was still laughing inwardly from the game that they were playing. This game though, he knew it, would turn into some dark twist of fate. It always happened like that; especially in a city like Ravok. He would play their ‘game’ if only to win and know why. Perhaps it was a good thing that Reaver didn’t copy down everything that was on the body. Yes, it was a good thing because the gods only know what he could have screwed up on if he had attempted to do so. This, walking there, was better, as is seeing the body in person. There was so much that can be gained from personal experience alone with the writing. He wondered its meanings and what he would find.

To his dismay the walk there was quite boring really. The whole time he was looking out for something suspicuious but nothing stuck out to him. No mysterious shadows watching from the distance, no person appearing and threatening him, not even a single thug or Black Sun member. Ordinary, or quite extraordinary depending how you look at it, was the walk and it made him wonder even more. Was there a reason nothing happened?

Upon arriving Ray still couldn’t shake the feeling of being watched, the feeling made the already on edge alchemist look about the house more than usual and distracted him a bit. Finding the body he smiled at it, ”How fascinating” he exclaimed seeing it on the table. Walking up to it he took a brief moment to look it over, ”Very mysterious…” he would say with a smile and look at him, ”and you have no idea where this came from?” he asked, but the question was mostly to himself, [b]”Whoever they are must be pretty old or pretty intelligent to know Nader-Canoch.” he said pondering who might it be, but also why?

Undead eyes looked at the forehead and started to work their way down the face, the neck, the torso, the abdomen, the legs, ”it seems to be written all over,” he noted to himself fascinated, ”Its been a while since I have seen anyone else use the Ancient Tongue.” he inspected the forehead and pointed at it repeating the words out loud, “Abase Roza Pachi” then he translated it, “Life and Death United.” That sounded right, a cold hand coming out to touch the words as he read them over to make sure he got it right.

He continued on observing the body skipping the chest for now for it seemed to only be random body parts. Looking at the legs the words caught his eyes and he read them aloud the best he could “Abase: Djunn Daeq Pechi. Roza: Sulta Abase” then he would translate it to common ” Life: A craft shaped from copulation. Death: That which spans life” He stopped there and looked up giving his friend a quick smile, ”I think we have a poet on our hands.” he joked, ”There are many translations to that sentence, but bear with me on this, ok?” he said unwilling to recite all the translations that his mind could come up with. They basically mean the same thing anyways.

Moving on ” Randjaq-Roza. Randjaq-Abase.” he again looked up from his work, hand still touching the words keeping his place, ” Chained by life. Chained by death. Or” he offered another translation because he wasn’t sure ”To end that which limits our freedom. To end life.” both sound gruesome and he wanted to give Reaver some choices. Continuing from where he left off he picked up again, ”Djunn-djas nen-abase, daraq-roza” A slight grin appeared on his face as he read that and then he again translated, ”I craft new life, equal to death.” He was sure on that translation and therefor did not offer any alternatives.

Finish off the ‘poem’ if you could call it that he read two simple words, but those words would reveal a lot about the writer of this and how they thought of themselves, ” Daraq Ala” He paused to think about this translation for a minute, ”Identical to that which is unreachable or, possibly, equal to the heavens” He laughed thinking the writer nuts before he read the Ancient Tongue altogether for Reaver:

” Life: A craft shaped from copulation. Death: That which spans life.
Chained by life. Chained by death.
I craft new life, equal to death
Identical to that which is unreachable “

He let the words soak in a bit before laughing again, ”This person has some ego.” he pointed out, ”Identical to that which is unreachable. It’s like whoever this is has claimed to do the impossible.” he laughed not bringing up the other translations or possibilities into the picture. This was interesting indeed, ”Do you think what is written on the forehead is the title?” he asked his voice now blatantly making fun of it, ”Life and Death United.” Though he had many thoughts on this subject he looked to the words on the chest, ”What do you think of that?” he asked as his eyes translated the words on the chest, ”They seem to be in no particular order.” he mumbled to himself. ”Can I have some parchment to copy this on?” he asked Reaver. If he would receive some he would get to work making a rough sketch of the torso and writing the words down, in common, in their proximal placement on the body in case location mattered. As he would do so he would say the names of the parts aloud.

OOCUm, yeah I just assumed that you would give me something to write with. If not PM me and I can change it ^.^ Thanks. Oh, and those translations are probably the best couple I came up with. If Im totally off don’t shoot me.

[Reaver]

Reaver walked in silence, or as silent as anyone walking around in bright blue leggings could be. Anyone who passed on the street would always look his way, but they wouldn't normally keep looking. Just another crazy. That's the usual thoughts, yes? The feeling of being watched was never new, but this time it was... far more present. All the same, it didn't change anything. Reaver was still going to play the game they had made for him. It was rather unsettling to think up what would happen if they didn't, after all. Reaver arrived home once again. Sliding the door open, he looked about before entering, as if expecting something new. Everything was still there, and in place. He almost sighed, it was somewhat disappointing. All the same, this was the part that got interesting. After Rayage took a similar look around the abode, he moved right to the body. His curiosity was clearly caught, which only made Reaver all the more curious. Reaver simply nodded to the question sent his way, as if to say 'of course.' His face turned to one of concern upon hearing the phrase 'Nader-Canoch.' He didn't recognize the term. He decided to wait a moment, perhaps the question would answer itself. Reaver waited as he examined the body, but hardly patiently. He decided to take another look outside his door to see who might be watching. Having done that, he heard the answer to his question. ”Its been a while since I have seen anyone else use the Ancient Tongue.” Reaver smiled to himself, Rayage was always good to have for answers. Questions were barely needed. Reaver continued to listen in silence, keeping track of what he said before and after. Perhaps if he kept listening, he'd even learn a little 'Ancient Tongue' of his own. Such knowledge could hardly betray him, other then a lack of enough of it leading to a wrong conclusion. All the same, he listened. It was never a bad thing to learn, no. Such learning may change the fate of the world, and change was not to be feared. Reaver was clear to note the parts that were harder to translate, he had to be sure to not assume that translation would always apply. Though, as each part was translated, it drew darker and darker thoughts to Reaver's mind. He had very little information on the matter, but even so, couldn't rationalize it any other way. Upon hearing the finished poem, he almost shuddered. He had an idea of just what sort of man could find an interest in the both of them. He hoped he didn't intend on spreading that interest unto them. Once the 'poem' was recited in its entirety, Reaver took a moment to clear the nasty look off his face. He didn't like the game nearly as much anymore. But he wouldn't stop playing, after all. There was so much that could be learned, and his research might just take a bound forward after all. It was then Rayage laughed, perhaps he didn't have the same thoughts. He listened quietly to his comments, carefully thinking up how to word his response. He may have found a key clue as to what was going on, but was reluctant to say it was a sure thing. There were many factors to consider. At least Rayage wasn't taking it badly, but it was no joke from his view. It was a horrible opportunity. Reaver smiled, and then laughed, but at himself. He was the foolish sort of man to take that opportunity. He then moved to the chest, and began asking questions on it, as if he ignored it altogether. Perhaps it wasn't part of the poem, and where the list of body parts he wrote down came from? Reaver handed Rayage one of his empty books promptly. It never hurt to have a couple on hand. He began to say various parts of the body. Reaver contemplated the information, it was very strange to have attached to a poem like that. "I suppose, he may simply be referring to impossible work done before. I told you I make non-living things move. In fact, up until a particular entity supposedly involved himself in the process, something studied was impossible. The Daek-nuit was in itself life chained by death. The Nuit could be called life equil to death, could it not? Giving life an act of the heavens or gods? Perhaps, it is a poem of Uldr's Daek-nuit. To write such a thing, it may be they have found interest in two products of such a ritual, more so then who we are in ourselves. Well, quite interesting. What bothers me, is it is written as if from Uldr's perspective, of that of the man who created the ritual. Perhaps someone found their own version, I hear there were many." It was hard for Reaver to keep himself from shaking. He was quite excited, could this be a challenge to see if they were worthy of learning something from Uldr? He tried to laught the thought away, but it stuck somewhere in his mind. At best, logic claimed a follower with a plan. The odds of them being taught anything was rather slim, but he intended to learn anyway. There was always a chance he could play this game better then the person who invited them, after all. He wasn't playing the same rules. "As far as the chest, I'm far more convinced. I think, there are words hidden within your corpse there, and a small chance in mine here. Words everywhere, but we use the words listed here to find the next part of the game. It may be a clue, a poem, a challenge, a silly nothing. I intend to find out all the same, and there is no reason to assume you would say otherwise. After all, a fan of Uldr may know secrets to life that we do not." Those secrets could very well make a man a hero, or an even grater monster. Rayage could play the monster, should it come to that.

[Verilian]

The poem was unsettling, and hinted at darker or greater things. After Rayage read it the feeling of being watched intensified, but still nothing happened to make either Nuit believe anyone was actually in the room with them. Perhaps they were just being paranoid? After Rayage wrote down all the words into Reaver's book it can be assumed that both Nuit returned to Rayage's lab. As Reaver previously stated, he believed there were clues hidden in the woman's body. As for the male, what they did with the body was up to them, but it would remain wherever they left it and be waiting for them if they felt the need to examine it. When they did arrive back at Rayage's lab they found it exactly the way they had left it, just as Reaver's house had also been undisturbed. The body was still there, still waiting for it's secrets to be unlocked. One thing Reaver might notice when he examined the body was that, in addition to cuts over the mentioned body parts, there were still many many more all over. It is likely that Reaver, following the line of his earlier statement, would begin to investigate the body parts mentioned on the man's chest. Assuming that Reaver went in order he would first investigate the tibia, the thicker of the two bones between knee and the ankle, and in this case the left one. There was a long incision, sutured back up of course, alone the inner part of the leg. If Reaver cut the suture open the first thing he would come across was a strange, pale green, viscous substance in place of blood that smelled faintly of mint. All the blood in the body had been replaced by the strange substance, which was not unlike ichor, but was also something else entirely. Getting back to the bone, if Reaver cleared away the liquid to examine the bone itself he would find engraved across the length of the bone a bunch of strange symbols and glyphs which, if he showed to Rayage, the alchemist would eventually realize was some sort of coded formula. In addition there were three letter which Reaver would recognize, they were written in Isurian: C, H, M. While there would likely be some discussion between the two Nuits over what the letters and formula could mean, it is safe to say that eventually Reaver moved on to the next body part in the list, the right eye. There were no marks or cuts on the eye, and if Reaver did open it up he would find nothing inside the eye itself. In fact, he would not find anything until he looked behind the eye to find thin, almost rubbery film lodged behind it. Flattening the film out revealed, written in very small black in, another formula and three more letters: Z, E, J. Inserted inside the body's pancreas was a coin, one side with formula, the other with the letters G, L, Q. The fourth word was the forehead. Opening it up revealed three more letters, K, P, U, a message written in the ancient tongue, and more formula. The message read as follows: Daek-nuit radjud. Daek-nuit randjaq. Djas djunn nuit dala. Djas djunn alvina-daraq. Daek-Alvina. OOCOkay, so I figured I'd stop it here so you two can discuss your findings so far. If you replace the body parts with the letters found you will reveal the next part of the puzzle. See the spoiler below for an image, because I was to lazy to make a table this time. Images : Before After

[Reaver]

The poem left an odd silence in the air, along with a strange pervasive feeling. Reaver simply let it be. It was no use hiding from it, or trying. Perhaps, if he was lucky, the secrets to solving his research in one fell swoop would be found here, in this new information. His hope was shining once more, and that shine was piercing the gloom. Tried as he might, it was getting harder to assume things would not go as well as he hoped. Even if it was a single clue to finding the answer to his research, it was one clue he didn't have before. He wanted no-longer be simply cast aside as 'evil,' and make that choice for himself. This, was a sign. It said, 'look over here,' and he planned to. his voice rang out, cutting the air. "Well, I suppose that means we need to move on back to the body in your lab then. This one doesn't look nearly as well prepared on the inside." He almost didn't wait for Rayage to follow, he had a secret to find, and one he would likely keep. He left a simple note on his door, one he didn't usually leave. It read quietly and simply, "The doctor is out." He was rarely there, honestly, so it would be an odd thing. He left it, because he wouldn't be checking back soon, he suspected. It might be hanging there for a couple days. He took his tools with him, and his books as well. That would probably be the best thing. Once inside the alchemist lair once again, he swiftly moved to the body. Reaver didn't delay, he started cutting the stitches apart. He noticed the green fluid-like thing within the body swiftly. He took off his glove, and felt it. It felt familiar, yet so strange. He took off his mask, and smelled the substance. Mint? He licked the goo right off his fingers to test out the taste. Interesting. "This may take longer then I thought." Reaver made a simple cut along the back of his leg, somewhere that wasn't previously cut. He had to test if that strange substance had truly replaced his blood, or ichor if he was previously undead. Replacing ichor, that's an idea. Like a blood transfusion, perhaps? He moved back to his first cut, setting the leg back down. He moved carefully, the cut really went right to the bone? He noticed it wasn't smooth like it would normally be. Wiping away some of the green, he came to the symbols. Were those, glyphs as well? As he went to show Rayage, he noticed that he actually knew a few of them. Isurian? "This may be an odd question. You wouldn't have any knowledge of Isrurian then, would you?" He knew the answer before it was stated. "I haven't used it at all sense coming to this city, yet, I find it here. Either they have a cruel sense of humor, or they know more about me then I care to remember. I would be reluctant to think I managed to get a god's attention. Not this god, anyway. Though, just letters. I suppose the rest of it is for you." Reaver wrote down the letters he recognized, and pointed them out to Rayage. "C, H, M. Let's write this down, translate what we can, and move on. I have a whole body of research to do." He let Rayage study the incision as needed, before moving to the next one. It was very unsettling, but he had to move on. If he HAD caught the attention of a god, perhaps he'd be so fortunate as to learn something from him. He just hoped it was a lesson he wanted to learn, rather then only one the god felt he needed to learn. Next, in his order, was the eye. A curious thing, the eye itself was unaffected. He cut open as needed, to remove the eye without damaging it. He was shocked, the man must have been dead before he put this there, but a film had developed over something behind his eye. More bad evidence, he supposed. Bad, but exciting. He peeled the film away, and examined it. He wrote down what he knew once again, and pointed them out. "Z, E, J. The rest is yours again. I'll continue, as this time I could remove the formula." He put the eye back in place, no need to let it roll around. He was curious as to if the green substance was in fact, an embalming fluid. He moved once again, and went to the pancreas. This time, not a bone, or a sheet. He had a full coin wedged in there. He smiled to himself, forgetting he didn't have his mask on. Someone went through a lot of effort to forge a coin with this information on it. He showed that to Rayage, once he looked ready for the next clue. He held up one side, and wrote down the letters. "G, L, Q. The other side is for you." He had an almost cheery ring to his voice. He handed over the coin, and went back to the body. He cut away the forhead, the skull would have something even more strange, or so he assumed. "And here, K, P, U. This part looks different. More language, perhaps? Translate it as you can, and I'll continue to search for clues. It may be a cypher to help us with our letters and glyphs. Though, I wonder..." Reaver looked to one of the many. many stitches found elsewhere. He cut one open, and looked for a clue. Messages, letters, signs. If this were a proper riddle, he'd have false clues in the wrong spots. He was, too curious to pause with partial information now... but that message in the head, it was by far the only one so far. It was also the only real clue they had, until he managed to get the rest of it sorted out, anyway. After he had checked an 'incorrect' place for clues, he even wrote down the wrong clue on a different page. He wrote a quick title on that page, 'unused information.' He also logged where he found it. He continued with the rest, he had to. It was once he had the rest, (or so he told himself,) he would pause for answers. He was far too excited, it may have been years sense he'd felt it like this. Even if they couldn't solve it, remembering such an emotion was in itself a gift. OOC 1Sorry for the delay, ace! I had trouble starting, but once I had managed to do that, it all went smoothly. I think I know how to solve it, but Reaver isn't going to second-guess or waste time until everything is in that little book he's been writing all these clues into. OOC 2However, Rayage as a character is left out of Reaver's thoughts, but the player does not need to be doomed such as well. I suspect we form words from the letters. Such as, using the middle letter in each word down the top of the chart, we can form the word "Help" quite neatly. True or not, he wants all the letters to confirm this suspicion. Otherwise, we need to translate that message, and find a cypher for the 'coded formula' Reaver left to you.