Closed Buying and Selling (Uryelia)

[Annalisa Marin]

7th of Winter, 513 AV

Anna currently sat in her room in the Quarters, hand outstretched before her as she started up a low chant in Nader-Canoch. Her face was a mask of pure and utter concentration and the Glyphs adorning her right hand provided focus to her task, also granting her a somewhat mystical appearance. Her teaching session with the Summoner girl Felicia Gamora had ended earlier, and currently she was attempting to kill time in a practical manner until it came time for her next task. Testing her abilities with Voiding seemed a good way to do this.

"Sutla Gug. Gug Sutla."

"Sutla Gug. Gug Sutla."

"Sutla Gug. Gug Sutla."

The Sorceress focused within herself to that pool of energy that made up her very identity, the wellspring of her Djed that made Annalisa Marin who she was. Djed in many ways was her, it was what she spent every time she cast a spell and what she recovered with rest, meditation, and food. Recovered... perhaps that was the wrong word, once Djed was gone there was no getting it back it could only be replaced. Voiding was the perfect way of exemplifying what one was losing when they used magic, a pit into nothingness that devoured everything one could be just to function. It had become her most recent obsession after mastering the four elements, for she felt it had so much untapped potential.

She focused her Djed underneath her hand to the Focus drawn there, willing it to move upwards and empty out the space above her hand completely and utterly. At first nothing happened, but Anna held her concentration, willing the action to take place. A bridge between This Side and The Other Side could only be created when complete and utter emptiness was brought into existence. Bringing it into existence through sheer force of will was no easy matter.

After about roughly thirty ticks Anna felt a rush of energy stolen from her body, a tiny black pinprick forming in the air above her hand as it hungrily stole her Djed. The tall woman was quick to feed the hungry construct, channeling more and more energy into it in order to stabilize her connection to the Void. She was separated by dimensions from it, but she managed to hold the bridge through complete concentration.

Anna steadied her breathing and locked her grey eyes solely on the black dot, it made up her whole existence now. There was only it, her, and of course the silent insidious urge whispering sweetly into her skull. It granted her visions of armies screaming as they were cast into the Void with a mere flick of her wrist, cities reduced to nothing but rubble, the world consumed by nothingness. She resisted this urge and gritted her teeth as she carefully willed it to expand.

The swirling inky blotch of midnight expanded slowly from its point of origin, its cold chill radiating out to Anna as it grew steadily. She concentrated solely upon the tasks of both keeping it open, and expanding it in a controlled manner. The amount of drain upon her was directly proportional to how large the Portal was, as well as whether it possessed a Pull. Anna had never attempted a Pull with her maximum sized Portal, fearing what might occur. She was ever the careful sorceress.

The Portal grew until it reached Anna's maximum size, about the size of her hand when it was fully stretched out. The urge screamed in her mind for her to keep it growing, to consume everything around her into a dark and endless abyss. She gritted her teeth against it and opted instead to carry out her necessary task for the day. The tall woman moved her free hand next to her and produced a rolled out sheet of parchment she'd taken from the Common Labs.

Carefully the woman moved the parchment to the edge of the swirling vortex, slowly inserting it into the Portal that part of it might enter the Void while the rest would remain on This Side. From here she counted up to one full chime, ignoring the slight numbing chill that overcame her gloved left hand. Once she finished counting she withdrew the parchment from the Portal, which had started to fluctuate slightly as her concentration became split slightly.

Her eyes were met with the sight of a frozen and brittle part of the parchment, the grey orbs widening slightly at the sight. She had known the Void to be cold, but that degree of cold seemed almost impossible to her. She imagined that were she to smash that end on the ground it would break like glass, which was an interesting possibility.

Now she started her next test of the Void, inserting the same end of the parchment again the Sorceress willed matter to fill the core of the Portal and collapse it. As the Portal collapsed Anna noted with widened eyes that the end inside the Void was completely sheered off. A slight ripple existed in the air where the Portal had been, before returning to normal. Her breathing felt slightly more cold and heavy, and a headache was threatening to rise in her skull but she felt she had cut it off well before she fell into danger.

That had yielded... interesting and unexpected results, namely the fact the part inside the Void had been sheered off. It certainly made her wonder exactly how the Void could be utilized in her own research towards weaponizing Glyphing. Perhaps in the future she could expand into Voiding, building traps and the like. This new knowledge was certainly sending her mind whirling with potential applications.

Anna shook her head, realizing it was probably time she head out to the Harbor to meet the ship. She needed to check and see if there was any stock they were carrying worth her money and her time. The tall woman stood, tying up her tattered cloak around her neck and slipping on her leather sandals. This accomplished she headed out of her room.

_________________________________________________________________

The tall Sorceress found that she was not the only one to meet the slaver's vessel at the Harbor, noting an assortment of Apprentices and Wizards, even a golem or two were gathered to gather new stock. The dark haired woman counted herself among them, though she suspected she had less cruel tasks in mind for a slave. Or perhaps not depending on one's definition of cruel. Being a pulser there was some small amount of sympathy for the creatures, but being a Chaon and Amaryllis' Apprentice besides that only allowed for a small amount.

Regardless the woman made her way to the Harbor proper and immediately started looking for the merchant of these slaves. When she located him she strode right up to him and met him with a downward glance from her nose and stormy grey eyes. Intimidation often helped in making a good first impression when looking to not be cheated. She made very certain her bronze Apprentice Ring was displayed openly and proudly, the symbol of two crossing needles a powerful thing. It marked her as belonging to Chief Embalmer Amaryllis, though whether this man would know this or not was unknown.

"So, prey tell sir, what have you here that is worth my Miza's and my time? As well as those of these others assembled here of course, I'm certain we are all rather curious to see." Anna inquired, her eyes fixed upon him.

Hopefully this wouldn't be a waste of her time, she rather disliked it when her time was wasted. It meant that her research was being stalled and she hated when her research was stalled. Still, she supposed it would be good to find some kind of extra hands for her. Though, coming from Zeltiva, she had never actually owned another person. It was a somewhat foreign concept to her, buying someone else like they were a common animal.

Were they then really people anymore? Did she want to look at whatever souls here as people, or would that make her a poor mistress? Was she supposed to look at them as nothing more than pets? Possessions? Things to be used and abused as she saw fit? That tiny part of her humanity was a little uncomfortable at that prospect. Her upbringing refused to vanish no matter how much she might wish it, thus it was difficult for her to simply imagine another person as merchandise. Killing them was another matter, as long as it was either for Rhysol or defense then it was justified.

Part of her reason for being here was to get used to the idea of slavery, it was rather rampant in Sahova after all. Osd had been the first slave she had ever met and had prolonged interaction with, but meeting a slave owned by the Citadel and threatening his life was different than owning one. It was another part of understanding life outside Zeltiva, a learning experience really. That didn't change the fact that the idea seemed somehow wrong even to her, a feeling she crushed mercilessly.

Any slave she should take should feel grateful, she rationalized, as she was not looking for a test subject and more for something else. Perhaps pleasure? Or an extra pair of hands for projects? Nothing horrific, right? She wasn't a Nuit, she wasn't needlessly cruel or inhumane. Right?

OOCSorry about the long intro, the first part is just Anna's Voiding practices the second part is what matters to you. I'm assuming you'd be okay with NPCing the slaver for this?

[Uryelia]

The slaves were all lined up in the back of the ship beforehand, spectators just then coming down from the Citadel. Some were nervous, others held their heads high, some simply wanted to jump off the boat. The auras of each individual mixed and mashed together, a whole melting pot of emotions emitting from the group. One common characteristic between the slaves, was that they were uncertain about their future. Would they be sold to a crazed wizard, driven by madness? Bought as test subjects and guinea pigs? None of them had the slighest clue of what Sahova was about, its history, anything that could be considered "good news" or even remotely interesting. All they knew was, it was full of dead people that could talk and that the living were seldom welcomed in their walls. Unless of course, they served a purpose and served it well. The ages of the slaves ranged from 16, male and female, to about around 27. Some had notable talents that would raise their stock, others were interesting athletic specimens worth studying. Capable of hard labor, they could fit in those areas that lacked strong arms, until falling dead from over-working. Day and night, exhausted and bruised. A fate of forever no one found appealing to endure, for a reward of nothing except escaping an untimely death and letting time do its task. Not exactly far from Rye's mind, but she was nervous for other reasons. Only being trained in Calligraphy and in Philtering simply cooking recipes, her own options were limited in what a possible master would see in her. Personally, her worth she thought wasn't high. Light skin turned to a paler shade cause of the treatment on the boat. Rye looked like she could eat a bit more, not very appealing. Her hair was cut shorter to give herself comfort. However, it did not stop it from becoming greasy. Shaking her head at the turn of events, she was pushed to the middle of the line with the other slaves, guided off the boat on to the pier and then lead inland. There, the bustling crowds and menacing golems dominated her vision and focus. Rye was introduced to a whole new world. The skinny, blonde slaver looked at Anna with a piqued interest, a single finger tap on the hilt of his rapier while turning his attention to her other assets, looking back up at her face, "Ahh, you look like the one. I've heard your Ama-whatever's apprentice? We got some merchandise for you. Best one worthy of note is a female writer and philterer." A creepy smile donned on his face like a mask, concealing his inner lust and apparent infatuation with the sorceress. Looking over his shoulder, his thumb pointed at Rye where she stood. Out of instinct, while surveying the vicinity, she stopped and gazed at the two conversing. The beauty of the woman mildly gave a reaction of awe. It was obvious she took care of herself, as Rye did before being captured. "I could think of a thousand different beasts I could be sold too, more pleasant than her," thought Rye, gloomy over the prospect of being bought by her. Even though it was bad to judge a book by its cover, this book looked like bad news bears all over.

[Annalisa Marin]

The first strike this slaver earned was his apparent inability to keep his eyes on her face, instead choosing to admire her other qualities. Anna was not overly fond of members of the male gender after her being hunted and hounded by Darren Marlow last season, petching hypnotist filth. Unfortunately it looked as though this slaver was unlikely to change her opinion anytime soon, though there was always hope. After briefly toying with and discarding the idea of blasting him to pieces with lightning, Anna instead crossed her arms as he addressed her.

Her eyebrows rose ever so slightly as he made mention of her Mistress, Chief Embalmer Amaryllis. How the petch did this slaver know about her? It seemed out of place, though perhaps the Embalmer was getting her bodies from individuals similar to this one. Just how long reaching a grasp to Amaryllis have in this world? Of course, perhaps Amaryllis had possessed dealings with this slaver in the past, who could say? The Nuit was ever the enigma.

"I am indeed the Apprentice of Chief Embalmer Amaryllis, sir, I'd suggest you keep her name and title firmly in mind. Your familiarity and lack of decorum mocks her, and she is not a person one should mock." Anna said, her words articulate and cutting.

She glared at the slaver before turning her gaze upon the girl he had mentioned, noting her skills with mild interest. She was shorter than Anna though that was hardly a surprised and she definitely did not look like one suited for physical labor. The trip had obviously not been kind to her, though Sahova would likely be even less kind considering how poorly slave ate normally. She remembered the sight of those broken looking human men Amaryllis had ordered about, they had looked pathetic beyond imagining.

Still, the skills sounded rather useful to a Glypher like Anna. An assistant possibly or failing that she was certain that Amaryllis could always use and new slave. That line of thought jarred Anna a little bit, seeming like something the Nuit herself might say or think. Oh how very like the Chief Embalmer she was becoming, the sorceress noted with no small amount of bitterness.

"Best you say? She looked rather like she has missed a few meals on the way here." Anna noted, quirking and eyebrow at the slaver.

"Still, I suppose since she looked serviceable to some degree, and I'd prefer not to waste my time here longer than I must, I might be willing to take her off of your hands. Name a price, sir." The tall woman said, deliberately belittling the woman in an attempt to bring the price down from whatever outrageous sum the slaver had likely been thinking.

Sahova was turning out to be a land of firsts, her first real mentor, her first life or death struggle, and now her first slave. Idly Anna wondered what other secrets laid just around the corner, hopefully ones far more pleasant than the others. That was probably wishing for far too much.

She felt a little bad for the woman really, if Anna were in her place an had been dragged to an island where the undead ruled she would have been terrified. Now her fate and life were being weighed in cold unfeeling Miza's and the whims of cruel strangers. Her future uncertain at the hands of whomever bought her, be it Anna or some other wizard. It was rather tragic really, though the Sorceress kept telling herself that whatever she had in store was probably better than the hellish Forge or some mad Wizard's testing chamber.

[Uryelia]

An unexpected chill permeated the slaver's bones, involuntarily shaking and shivering for a moment. He indeed had no intention to show respect to the Chief Embalmer. He really had no care either, having rudimentary knowledge of Sahova and how there own system within worked. All he wanted to do was make coin. Being within its waters was an unsettling journey to even the most experienced navigators and ship captains, none prepared for the scent of corpses and barren landscape. Nerves would be on edge with the appearance of the mechanical golems, the outlandish atmosphere. Only the Nuits understood their natural habitat, their living space and only they knew about the truth of their rituals and inner workings. Staring down at Anna, not suspecting her advances to be bluffs, he took a step back mentally. He would make it a constant note to not make any more mention of the master. Focus was to hook the coin, he would love to be out of here within a couple of hours. Full cargo or not, he had no intention of staying the night. "Yeah, yeah, I didn't mean physically. She is tough as nails mentally though," the slaver mentioned, a beckoning gesture to a crew mate that signaled to bring the slave to the meeting. Rye looked at him with disgust, powerless against his forceful pulling and gripping. All the bent up anger she had ; It would not be held in much longer for as long as she was about to be bought. "Ain't that right cutie? You like pictures and liquids? I'll give you her for 450 gold mizas," taunted the slaver, ready to cup Rye's face with his left hand. They were grimey, under his nails was bits of dirt and debris, accumulating a nasty looking fungus. The last thing she wanted to do was have a parasite grow out of her face. Once the slaver's companion relaxed his posture, all she could think about was a little payback. His hand about a few inches from her face, she made a half-hearted effort to bob her head out of the way. Raising her foot, she stomped as hard as she could on her foot. It wasn't much, but she had gotten lucky with the angle. She got a good piece of his big toe, him jumping around as he cursed and damned the short-haired Calligrapher. "You piece of--!" started the slaver, interjected by Rye rather swiftly, "Oh shut up, your the skinniest maggot I've ever seen." The other crew mate was stunned by the whole thing, stuck in place. He wanted no part of it for now, so Rye would need to get in some quick negotiations before he got his wits about him once more. "Make it something reasonable, jackass. I could eat your family line right now, the way you been feeding me," griped and commanded Rye, talking out of her mind right now. It was absurd how ridiculous her own lack of a filter was. "Just take her for 200 gold miza, shes too much trouble. Shoulda left her rotting in whatever pit the gods thought was fit for her," he complained, setting on the price, backing up. Him hobbling on one leg was the most entertaining Rye witnessed all year. Hopefully, she rose her stock then lowered it.

[Annalisa Marin]

Anna listened to the rather high price, raising an eyebrow at the sum the slaver requested in surprise. Sure she was buying another person so Anna was not exactly the going rate for human beings, but 450 seemed a tad high to the young sorceress. There was that, and the fact Anna didn't quite have that much money on her person. Therefore it seemed she'd need to employ a little bit of persuasive negotiation to get a fair price. Perhaps she could work him down to a little less than that, 300 hundred seemed comfortable to Anna. She pushed aside the odd feeling for negotiating the price of a fellow human and opened her mouth to retort.

She never got the chance to speak, as the woman assailed the slaver and demonstrated a decided lack of obedience. Now that was something Anna was certain was unwise for a slave to have on Sahova of all places, quite the tongue on her as well. That little trait was something Anna figured would need to be beaten out of her right quick. Mostly for her own good naturally. Sahova was not fond of those things that were not useful, neither was Anna all things considered. Though, she was fond of pretty things.

The slaver named a lower price, once far beneath Anna's expected price and allowed an amused smirk to cross her lips. Disobedient, but useful for now in saving the sorceress a good chunk of change. After a brief moment of thought she shrugged and handed over the requested sum without complaint, effectively signing over the girl to her custody. That had been... far easier than what Anna had expected, though no doubt breaking in the girl would be a tad more challenging.

Anna looked at her new property with an appraising eye, first things first, best to make her completely aware of who was the Mistress in this new relationship. A quick thought sent purple translucent liquid forming in her right hand at an ungodly fast speed. She flicked her wrist in the direction of the woman and sent the res speeding towards her neck with incredible speed and accuracy. If all went correctly the liquid would wrap around her neck in a ring before solidifying into smooth purple earth, the sigil of twin crossing needles neatly engraved on the new stone collar. The action had barely required conscious thought on Anna's part, a slight thrill of pleasure shooting briefly through her mind.

Her logic for including the same sigil that adorned her bronze apprentice ring was that since the woman now belonged to her, she also belonged to Amaryllis. At least until Anna managed to gain her Wizard rank and hopefully move into a proper lab. A nice subtle little display of where the sorceress' loyalties lied, she so enjoyed these little games played on Sahova. Part of the tall woman did feel bad for collaring her like a dog, but at least she wouldn't be getting tortured or experimented on.

"Come." Anna said, grey eyes cutting away from the slave as she turned on her heel and started making long strides towards the path to the Citadel.

"My name is Annalisa Marin, however to you it shall be Apprentice Wizard Marin around others and simply Mistress when in private. I trust you have a name as well? Or shall I simply refer to you as slave?" The sorceress said imperiously, not even glancing to see if the woman had started to follow.

The tall woman felt a little wrong in doing this, in taking another's life and making it into her own personal plaything. Who knew what else this girl could have become had she not been enslaved? She probably had a family somewhere wait for her, a loving mother and father, perhaps even a husband. Instead she was reduced to the value of 200 gold rimmed Miza's, collared and then subjected to the whims of an icy sorceress. Unfortunately for her, the collar would only be the first of her shackles at the hands of Annalisa Marin. As uncomfortable as Anna was on the inside, she wasn't going to let that prevent her from ensuring obedience.

Fortunately for the slave, the duties Anna had in mind for her personally were hardly stressful. Or perhaps they would be depending upon one's point of view. Whatever the case was, the sorceress figured this wouldn't be overly difficult.

"Also, I wouldn't recommend trying to run away before we get to the Citadel. I control that collar around your neck, you see. So the consequences would be rather... unpleasant." Anna said, leaving that threat hanging between them.