Completed Magic Man and Brown Bear Too

[Artur]

Magic Man and Brown Bear Too
Spring 55th 514 AV, 12th Bell
Location: Lakeshore of Ravok

Thank Oriana! After bells spent adrift across the calm surface of the lake the boat finally docked at its destination to allow Artur off, with much haste of course the Kelvic rushed on towards thr route he took before as he felt his stomach overwhelmingly queasy to handle any more. It'd been a difficult trip for him as the bear always found himself quick to be sick upon travel acrosd water, at least in the form of boats and ships anyway. Artur went as far as be could from the outpost where eyes wouldn't pry, but when he couldn't hold anything in anymore the bear finally submitted to the lurches in his stomach as huge heaves pressed the cotents within to the only exit that remained open to travel. Then came the taste of stomach fluid as the breakfast he'd has just several bells earlier refused to settle in, and wound up on the ground before him as the burning after taste of the residue fluid remained in his mouth and throat. He hated boats. Hated to travel in and on them, something about them just made his stomach uneasy upon each venture.

Now to... find those herbs. He reminded himself after a few heavy pants and minor heaves, once he felt in control of his body once more the Kelvic looked to the change in scenery ahead, trees and overgrowth would be inbound when he would find it in him to start moving once again. Last time he did this he wound up being hunted like an animal, and that in turn didn't end well afterwards. Gyatt was certainly worried upon Artur's return and all the more hesitant in sending the bear on another trip, considering the first not only proved to be a waste but danger to the Kelvic. Yet Artur insisted. He wanted to serve Gyatt and repay the wonderful kindness displayed, cooking for him would be the best way to do it and for that Artur needed herbs.

As he made his way through the undergrowth and wiggled his way through into a clearing he found himself at a lost, the failure to trace any familiar scent of a particular herb he was after present on his mind. His nose was strong but not as strong as it would be in his animal form, which could only mean the fastest way to do this was to shift into his animal form. A little nervoud about the end result he checked his surroundings a few times to make sure he was alone, so far he seemed to be since no other trace of smells permeated the area. A little more convinced he then rolled the black shirt he had up to take it off and then unfastened the beige shorts he wore. After he slipped his shoes off the shorts would then drop as the Kelvic then proceeded to shift.

Better to make this quick! He noted as a glimmer enveloped on the Kelvics skin, within a moments notice that glimmer turned into a bright flash that enveloped the human form of Artur and expanded to meet the matching form of a bear. With the sudden fade in light the fur that once looked highlighted took on the brown hues that colored the waxy fur of the large bear, and then Artur sunk down to his forepaws to be on all fours with curious eyes still engaged on the undergrowth. He took a few strong and powerful sniffs with his nose until he thought he'd traced some sort of recognizable scent. From there he went on to poke his nose around in search for parsley that might've grown in the area.

[Miro]

Miro had left the city in search of knowledge. Not the kind that was found by exploring the wilderness, but the kind that was found best concealed in the wilds. And while being concealed was a necessity, as well was a bit of space. The wizard found a nice clearing to operate in, and left his Familiar on watch. He worked in a corner on a stone plate created by his Reimancy. He had a plan to study a race from another world, one he had recently become quite obsessed with. His partner remained high in the air on watch.

The Chained One insisted that in the woods they were concealed from people and no beast was truly a threat. The Irylid insisted otherwise, ever cautious as he was. With what they were doing, it would be best if none saw. Summoning held some serious risk when dealing with certain worlds. Especially Zaiden, the world obsessed over currently. It help a certain race of mutated people known as the Diverse. They held great potential, but needed be studied through experimentation.

So the Summoner began in on creating his circle. He took from within his sling a pot of inscribing paint and began to draw using his finger. He made the outer circles and coordinate fonts first. Two rings formed an area where sixteen smaller circles were around around the outer rim of the circle. He consulted the book laid down beside him and entered the coordinates to Zaiden next. From the top going counter-clockwise, one, zero, six, nine, zero, zero, two, five, eight, three, five, eight, two, one, zero, four.

When finally the sixteen astral coordinates were entered he moved to the circle itself. He decided the harmonic eight circle would be the best choice. He flipped to the page featuring the design and began to draw it. The circle featured an octagram, which was admittedly difficult to make. He started at the top font and counted down six more fonts. He drew a line connecting the two and repeated the process. From the latter font he counted six and drew another line, then from that to the next, until finally it was completed.

Now all that was left was to complete the innermost circle and connections. In the very center of the circle a smaller circle with a stylized rune was produced. Around it eight lines connected the circle to the corners of the octagon that surrounded it. His Summoning circle was completed, but not yet activated. And that was where difficulty came in, for the Chained One had no blood to donate to activate it. He however did have a way around this, if he could manage to produce results. Morphing was a discipline that always gave him trouble.

Miro held his hand in a fist before him and concentrated his Djed to it. He envisioned blood, a trickle of it, as if cut. He focused on the consistency of the liquid, its appearance and feel, taste and scent even. The Djed was concentrated even further, now to his finger tips. The Morpher focused on the image of blood and began to rub his fingers together vigorously. He imagined his dried skin becoming looser, to melt, run like water. He continued to knead his Djed and skin, but the magic was difficult for him. He kept at it with all of his focus.

It took a few chimes, but slowly he started to get a feel for it, a sense of something happening. The undead began to focus his Djed to a single point at the tip of his thumb. He squeezed it tightly with his finger and forced a transmutation of his skin to change consistency and become a liquid. It was slight, just a drop, but enough. He took and pressed his thumb to the plate and focused on activating it. He was nervous to take the role of the Summoner.

The inside of the circle turned to a black swirling votex. The Summoner produced a small amount of Res and left it on the ground near the circle and backed away. He took a deep breath through his nose and enjoyed the oily smell the circle produced. A few stray rays of yellow light shone through, but nothing crossed for well over a chime. The Diverse were not as eager to cross as the Fyrdenese, even with an attractive circle. Though in time a red aura began to rise from the circle. A figure followed it and began to appear from beneath the swirling vortex.

Miro stood and watched the Diverse rise to stand in the circle, its leash holding it in place. The mutated Human stood at over six feet tall and was well built. It had strong features and long dark hair. The Chained One began speaking to it immediately. "Welcome to Mizahar. You are a Diverse, one who has come to serve me for reward. I am sure you wish to fight, and you will, but for now listen." He kept the leash tight and began to push his Res from his skin as an aqua colored gas.

The Reimancer continued to produce Res and speak. "I have Summoned you and you are going to fight me. But you needn't worry about the leash, it won't be bothering you for very long." He called the Res by the circle to transmute to lightning and cut the leash. "Looks like you'll be staying here. But don't get too excited, you won't have time to enjoy it." The Diverse felt the connection to the circle break and began to charge at the Summoner with a roar.

The undead was prepared for this and guided his aura of Res at the man. He guided the substance into an ice spell that froze the Summon in place. It was frozen from its neck down to its feet to the ground. The amount was not thick enough to keep him from breaking loose, but long enough. He grabbed the Diverse by the face and began to focus on drawing Djed from inside of him through Leeching. The instinctual pull brought with it a euphoric feeling.

The Summon quickly ran dry of Djed and the Leecher released his grip. There was little chance of it breaking free of the ice now. "So sorry, but I can't take any chances. I need you to be still. Though I must warn you, this will hurt." A small amount of Res was produced and transmuted into a sharp stone spike. Miro tapped his Ice Reaving mark to reveal the Summon's hands. The palms were sliced open and Res began to flow from the wizard and into the wounds.

The Chained One began to create more Res, force it into the body and lungs. To initiate the create it would take several minutes. The grunts of pain began almost immediately. Luckily in its weakened state the Diverse's moans remained muffled. Miro stood close to the creature and began to focus on attuning to its aura. He needed to watch this part of the experiment closely. He grasped the Summon by the head with his thumb on its forehead. Slowly he gained sight of the aura.

The wispy white glow around the Summon was frantic and faint. He could see the stress in the body fighting against the foreign substance pushing through the body. The empathetic sense of suffering was unsettling, but at the same time satisfying. Again he began to drain through Leeching, but this time he would take all of its Djed. The flow was weak, and it took a great deal of effort to pull anything more. The Summon's aura weakened further and became extremely faint.

Eventually the Diverse was drained completely dry, fully initiated. It was no longer conscious and the aura was calm and weak. Though the longer the Res stayed in the more it seemed to fade. To even keep focus on it became a struggle in itself, and eventually the strain was too much. The Aurist's mind clouded and his ears rang. The effort was short lived, but quite uncomfortable. Both initiations at once seemed to be a bit much.

Miro tapped his Ice Reaving mark again and the ice melted. The Summon fell backward onto the ground with a heavy thud. The undead placed his hand on its bare chest to feel for breathing or a heartbeat. There was none. Both a Reimancy and Leeching initiation at once was too much for it. However it did seem that the magics were taking, that it was happening. It seemed that the Diverse were not so different from Humans when it came to learning magic.

Perhaps as well that was true with undeath and gnosis marks. They would make fine servants to Uldr. He had only began to experiment on them, but ultimately wished to turn them induct them to the Returned. He would need to perform more Summoning to complete his studies however. Though there was a sense of shock that disturbed the undead. His Familiar had been surprised by something.

Ender had seen something, a flash that had caught his attention. He focused on the area where he saw the light. "Miro, I saw something, look." The wizard focused on his connection to his Familiar and began to see what it saw. There was some movement, a figure that moved behind some trees. At first it was hard to tell, but then it became clear. "It is just a bear Ender, nothing to worry about. If it tries to threaten me, you will kill it." There was still experimentation to be done.

[Artur]

Artur stood on his hind legs as tall as he could and took a long hard sniff at the air around him to try and find any small means of a scent in the air, hopeful that the aroma of parsely would fill his nostrils right then and there as he concentrated on the thought of its scent. Nothing. At least not in the form he thought to find it, then again he didn't remember parsely smelling like... whatever his powerful nose picked up. What did he smell anyways?... Better to not dwell on it, for all he knew he could be smellling the "darkness" of Ravok. He preferred not to...

At any rate the tracking of parsely proved failure by air, so he did a second attempt by soil. With bix exhale he'd dropped to his forelegs and knelt his head down towards the ground to where he would then deeply inhale once more through his nose, yet still not a trace of parsely was detected in the few changes of positions he made. He cursed in silence at how he couldn't seem to pick up the damned herb, then again not even cumin was anywhere around here... which he thought it would be considering it was relatively close to where he was last time...

Perhaps he had to go further out. Either way he was bound for collecting herbs for the kitchen and wouldn't return home without some this time, thus the bear took gathering his clothes and the bag he brought in a pile, and then placed a small portion of his teeth on the pile as he lifted his head up to carry his things with him. Now all he had to do was follow his nose elsewhere until.... By the Goddess just what exactly did he smell? Best way to describe it was the smell of... ass? Maybe... if Artur honestly knew what ass smelled like to begin with. He couldn't struggle with the thought anymore though, he had to figure out just what exactly this... scent that permeated the air here was.

Sure enough a peek into and through some of the undergrowth led him to discover something.... something that had taken place right next to where he was, that proved to be interesting yet at the same time nerve wrecking as what seemed to be a human was amidst the scene. A tall and thin human no less... with a large circle like.... thingy? It was in the ground that much he knew, and then of course there was.... what the petch was that? He'd never seen something like that before! Then there was... a floating blue ball? What in Mizahar was this? Had he by chance stumbled into a weirder version of Ravok's lakeshore or was this actually for real? He was curious now, curious and yet agape in awe at what he saw. Enough to where the clothes and bag between his teeth fell onto the ground as his jaw dropped, big brown eyes bulged in wonder as he remained frozen right in place.

He'd likely been seen.... no. No he'd been seen alright, there's no doubt his presence here wouldn't be unnoticed now. What was he to do? Should he turn tail and run? Should he... shift? No... no he had to keep his ability a secret, nobody else was to learn about his secret. Yet he's a bear! A bear can't talk to a human! Was the guy even human? By the smell of him Artur couldn't really tell, then again the thing inside the thingy smelled odd too..... By Oriana everything here just smelled weird.

[Miro]

Miro could not care less about a bear. It was the kind of thing that Ender was to deal with. The kind of that that was of no concern to a master wizard. Magic, now that was worth his time, worth his focus. The Diverse held such potential to serve, to be given power and be dominated. They could offer so much to the Lord of Undeath. Living they were fierce fighters, savage, but fierce. Simple though they may be, they could be tamed, trained, given the tools to become a powerful weapon. With Uldr's mark they would be the perfect servants.

Though the initial research on them was hardly concluded. The Chained One suspected their minds could be tamed, but had no proof. They seemed similar enough to Humans in many physical regards, but their mental similarities were unexplored. So far the only thing known was how simple they tended to be. Perhaps this was due to an inferior soul, which would certainly make them flawed. A mere animal would not make a suitable Returned. There was a way to find out however.

The Summoner knelt before the circle and began to prepare to Morph again. Again he began to rub his finger tips together, focus on the friction, the point of contact. He flowed his Djed to the point on his thumb he wished to transmute and began visualization. He pictured a flesh colored drop of liquid falling from his finger and repeated the image. He recalled the feeling, the sting of the spell, the heat of his fingers rubbing together, the uncomfortable manipulation of his flesh. This time it only took but a chime to create a drop of flesh.

The leaking thumb was pressed against the Summoning circle and its activation was willed. The transmuted skin was not exactly blood, but still established the necessary Djed-link to the circle. And again the marked stone plate turned to a swirling black vortex. The strong oily smell was Miro's favorite part by far. Such a unique and powerful scent, it brought him back to time spent with Shale in the Colosseum. It was not long before an aura sprang forth from the portal and signaled a being had begun the process of crossing the portal.

It seemed that the harmonic eight circle was quite appealing, even without added stability Glyphing. Though perhaps the runes did not play much part in a circle's appeal, but rather in its function. The things the book talked about, its stability, the amount of time it could remain open and the control it offered. This time the wizard would use his control over the leash to his advantage, discover what he could of the natural use of the art. Perhaps there was some advantage in maintaining a leash. Perhaps not in restriction, but instead in leverage. More control could be issued to gain trust.

This alternative was much better than the shock of a severed leash, but only if one intended on actual negotiations. The Summon rose from the black vortex, a large humanoid, mostly naked, unarmed, with long knotted hair. The Diverse sure were ugly, especially in their faces, their so broad and pronounced. This being stood tall, taller than the undead, and possessed a massive build too. The oily smell in the air was replaced by the stench of sweat and filth. The presence of Djed was still heavy in the air though.

The leash that bound the Summon to the portal, it was odd, the connection the Summoner held with it. The Diverse stood completely shackled in place, unable to move by the tight restriction given by the circle. The appearance of the leash, that was perhaps the most strange thing. It was not as if the wizard could see it, but instead he could sense it. As he looked, he saw its presence, its existence, an ethereal chain that enveloped the Summon, but knew he could not truly see it. For once he attempted to control the leash, he took a step back and weakened its hold.

The Diverse did not step forth, but instead spoke. Its voice was loud, the words pronounced in a harsh dialect, though still in common. The Summon's lesser intelligence was immediately apparent by its speech. "What Summoner wishes from me? Me kill things good." Could such beings truly be of use to Uldr? There was only one way to find out. The Aurist began to channel his Djed to attune his aura, to heighten his senses, to read the Diverse's aura. The process was slow, still quite difficult and strenuous.

Miro needed to respond to the creature, but he found such a process quite difficult. To maintain a leash, to view an aura, already it took all of his concentration. To attempt speech on top of it would be too much. Something had to give. The leash's pull was further reduced, and the Summon was given a great deal more freedom. Nearly complete freedom in fact. "Welcome to Mizahar. I am Miro, your Summoner. For now I need you only to remain near to me, still if possible. I would like to study you, do some research, test some theories."

The Diverse scratched himself and stared at the undead with blank eyes. "Me no understand you mean." Of course, that should have been expected. The urge to bring a palm to the face was resisted and the request was attempted again. "I want you to stay still. You stay still, I watch. I watch, you remain still, then you will be rewarded." The promise of a reward was a tip the book always mentioned. It was why the creatures even crossed a portal. The Summon replied, "Me want reward now. Me kill things good."

The issue with dealing with such a creature was becoming all too apparent. It was going to take more than Hypnotism to fix such a weak mind. Luckily being smart wasn't a requirement for becoming a Returned. And to communicate with the damned thing took so much focus the Auristics use was going nowhere. He hadn't even the ability to perceive the tone of the aura yet. "No, reward later. No kill, stay still." But the creature looked angry at the comment. He began grunting as if he was upset. "Me kill things or me kill you!"

Miro attempted to tighten his control on the leash, but alas no, once loosened it could not be made taught again. Instead he would need to negotiate or handle things by force. He would try the former first, then resort to the latter if necessary. "Fine, new deal. You stay still, I watch. You kill a bear, big mean bear, then I give you big reward. Big, big reward. But you must be still!" The creature seemed to calm. "Okay. Me be still, then me kill, then me get big rewards." Finally the study could begin.

The Aurist reforged his concentration, this time steadfast in his efforts. He opened his senses, listened for the aura, as he had learned to do. Each new aura sang a new melody to him, though this was unlike any he had witnessed before. It was like a rough percussion, subtle, unrefined, yet so savage. The dissonant melody slowly increased in complexity, adding more musical layers to the sound. The information of the aura slowly became knowledge in the Aurists mind. The aura of a Diverse was somewhat simpler than a Humans, but much more complex than that of an animal.

Yes, it seemed that the Humans of Mizahar and the Diverse of Zaiden were not so different. Their minds and feelings may be simple, their physical appearance more brutish, but still they seemed perfectly viable candidates for Returning. The focus on the Summon's aura was ceased, but the aura's presence would not disappear entirely. Much of it was replaced by a ringing, but still its melody hummed lightly in the Aurist's mind. Hypnotism may very well be more viable on such creatures, if only the Hypnotist could simplify his messages effectively.

"Okay, I am done studying you. Now it is time to kill." Miro pointed at the bear, or at least its general direction. "There, the bear, your target. Though you have no weapon. Are you sure you want to try to kill it?" The Diverse grunted loudly and flailed his arms into the air. "Me no need weapon, me kill good with hands." The Chained One could not help but to grin. "As you wish." And the Summon charged at the bear in an attempt to kill his foe with his bare hands.

The undead decided now to speak telepathically to his Familiar. "There Ender, my Summon will now kill the bear, so there is naught to worry about. Come back to me, there is no reason now for you to be away. My research is done for today, we can head back home." The Irylid began floating back, but was hardly pleased with the Summon that charged toward the bear. "The Diverse hasn't even a weapon to fight with. It is going to die." Miro laughed with no attempt to hide the outburst. "I know. And it's going to be fun to watch too."

[Artur]

WHAT is that SMELL?! Artur’s mind screamed as his nose nearly drove him mad; the air was so thick with what seemed to be the scent of some form of oil…. Yet there wasn’t oil around! Oil and ass…. That was the prominent smells no less, and the air itself felt a powerful sort of charge that Artur had truly never felt before. Something was taking place here, something he had no idea existed up until now. Upon watching the works of whatever this circle was his eyes bulged widely in amazement, he never knew such things like this were possible and didn’t even exist but yet… here it was. Magic! The word was something he’d only heard murmur’s about, yet never found any sort of meaning to in the end. After all he was a Kelvic, and little did he understand of the world and its mysteries.

Oh my Goddess! Just… just what is that thing?! Whatever had appeared reeked of the smell that permeated the air around them, so that pretty much narrowed it down to why Artur could smell what he smelled in the air… except for the oil part. That remained a mystery to him as well, though he began to assume that it had something to do with mystery man who conversed with this… creature. Study? Test? Research? He sounded like a doctor, one of the lunatics at KRF. This definitely intimidated Artur then, even if he would be of no use back there. He hated and feared KRF, more so feared than actually hated, and would do anything to see to it he would never wind up back there. The being in the circle threatened the lunatic on the outside, which all the more intrigued the Kelvic and led him to wonder if such a thing would occur.

Would it kill the lunatic? Did the lunatic fall into Ravok’s darker side? Did said lunatic deserve to be killed? Such questions brought Artur to dwell on his thoughts from earlier, and in turn question whether or not if he really wanted this lunatic to die… he felt bad then, bad to where he took back what he sa- er… well thought anyway. But what’s this? A deal to kill the bear? There was a bear here? Where? Artur looked around to see if he could find where this bear was located, forgetful about the fact he was a bear until the weird thingy finally charged out the circle in his direction. Wait! Not me!! He veered back in fear as the creature roared in its approach to kill him, already panic stricken by the change of events he couldn’t help but act instinctively now.

Artur stood tall on his hind legs and let out a massive roar to try and intimidate the creature in its approach, no good came of it though as the creature proceed to attack him with a tackle that would send the two of them reeling backwards. The bear lost train of thought then as he tried to regain what balance he could with in his mind, yet already the creature was first to go about and try to strangle him. Caught in an arm lock the bear struggled and groaned in terror as he tried to throw his assailant off, yet nothing good came out of it as he was practically slammed down onto the ground next. He was dazed for a moment but had he no body fat to cushion his fall then he would very well be disoriented instead. A shake of his head brought him to find that the creature was about to stop on his face, which led the Kelvic to do the one thing he knew would help him next. Shift. Momentary blindness would save him from this; it was all he could do in an effort to survive if he were to save his kin.

Artur’s fur became highlighted suddenly and within a moment the bear was surrounded by a flash that veiled his entire body, bright sudden bursts of light surprised the creature as it fell back with hands over it’s eyes. Then the light died out and where there was once the bear, a very much naked human was in it place. "Aaaaaaah!" Artur screamed as he tucked to his left to get on his stomach area, he was quick to push himself away while he was still on the ground. Terror was clearly evident in his face now, as he had no idea how to fight such a horrid creature.

[Miro]

The Diverse went after the bear alright. No reservation at all, he wanted to kill. Apparently to be rewarded to kill was akin their race's dream job. Though interplanetary assassin sounded far too sophisticated a title for a people so primitive. No weapon and no fear, this thing was really going to try to take a bear down with its bare hands. Not even a roar from the beast could deter the Summon. It seemed maybe this would be a fair fight. Perhaps a weapon was not needed.

Miro was surprised at the fierce warrior he had Summoned. Yes, there was no doubt, there was potential in the Diverse. It tackled the bear and actually managed to drop the beast to the ground. From there the Summon actually seemed to handle things quite well. If he really did kill his prey, definitely he would earn a reward. Ah, and it seemed he would, but wait, that flash of light. It was something the undead had seen before, a Kelvic transformation.

Okay, decision time, kill or let be killed. It seemed a simple enough decision to make. To get another Diverse was as simple as to Summon another up, as it seemed an entire world of them existed. But a Kelvic, it was not every day that they were seen. True they were commonly kept at the KRI and as slaves, but rarely if ever without a master or shackle. Without hesitation the Reimancer concentrated his Djed to his hand and began to push it forth as Res.

There was no way the blood-crazed Summon would stop his assault, so he would have a new opponent. One that had mastered arts beyond the comprehension of such a feeble mind. A somewhat large orb of Res was hastily made and cast forth with great speed. The Kelvic yelled in terror and backed away, but its assailant would be quick to end things now that his target was in human form. There was no time to waste, it had to be now, the wizard transmuted his spell.

The only element fast enough to bridge the gap and reach his target was lightning, though it was an unstable element, hard to control. Miro held his arm out and clenched his jaw to direct the path of the spell, but found it strained his mind. There was a loud crack and an arc of lightning burst forth. The fleeting amount of control was difficult to hold onto, but there was no way he would falter. The spell landed successfully with a direct hit to its target's back.

As per the typical results of being struck by a lightning spell, the Diverse began to convulse. The Chained One advanced upon his fallen prey and knew that it would not be long before it regained composure. The shock of lightning tended not to only be physical, but mental too. The victim's eyes often turned hollow and blank as their body helplessly shook. Those who survived the attack, often enough their minds were effected, sometimes permanently.

Finally Miro came upon the downed Summon and drew his gladius. "You failed your task, but I shall still reward you." It lifted its head to stare blankly at the Summoner, a look of confusion and betrayal in its eyes. The wizard drew his blade skyward and focused on the pathways within his core and right leg. He began to channel Djed to redirect streams of energy to his arm and strengthen his muscles. He felt a great surge of power within his blade-wielding arm.

The wizard forced his blade down on the neck of the Diverse. He stumbled forth with the cleave, down to his knee, but held true his strike. The powerful downward slash cleaved clean the Summons head from its neck. The blade sunk into the dirt somewhat and the head rolled forth a bit before it settled. The Chained softly muttered, "Your reward is a quick death." The blade was uprooted and cleaned before finally sheathed once again. It seemed the Kelvic was kept safe, but likely frightened.

Miro was not even sure how feral the thing was. Perhaps not at all, some slave out of the city. Under what circumstances could only be guessed at, but in the end it hardly mattered. As long as the thing could communicate things could be sorted out. Chances were the thing had some value, in one form or another. "Kelvic, do you speak Common? I am sorry if that frightened you, but you are safe now." This was the first time Ender had ever really witnessed a Kelvic up close.

The Familiar was utterly surprised by such a transformation. Of course he knew of the race, but truly he did not know what to think. To hear of their shifting was one thing, but to witness it firsthand was another entirely. The icy bracelet spoke to its master telepathically. "Do not let any harm come to this creature. It interests me. I had wondered why it carried a pack. Perhaps there is some complexity to it." The Irylid was very curious of the naked man before him.

Miro was not intent on doing any harm, but perhaps to abuse the creature. Not as in physical harm, but instead in exploitation, if at all possible. A reward for return, or sale, or perhaps to be kept as his own personal slave. The apprentice pulled his badge from his sling and displayed it. "I am Miro, Ebonstryfe of Ravok. I have a few questions. Are you a citizen of Ravok? Do you have a master? Tell me of yourself and what you were doing. It's okay, you'll be safe with me."

[Artur]

As sudden as the shift was it still didn't halt the advance of the creature that rampantly tried to dispose of Artur, thus the bear kicked back in desperation as he tried to scoot further away from the creature with desperate eyes fearfully locked on the relentless thing that assaulted him. Then the air felt different, a sort of charge feeling tingled the hairs on Artur's neck as he heard what first sounded like a crackle. Not like crackle of wood but crackle of energy, some form of spark that came to life on it's own to give sway to the monster before Artur. It was sudden but powerful when that crackle turned into a thunderous boom that flashed behind the creature, which then fell to the ground in convulsions as though he were shocked by some supernatural force that saved Artur from a dark demise.

The bear kept his scooting back up as the thin man he thought to be a lunatic approached the fallen creature, a heavy looking sword then raised high with just one hand before the final words were said. A quick death is a reward? This man... he was definitely a part of the dark side, the darkness of Ravok that the bear had to watch out for less he fall victim to him in some form or fashion. The blade fell quickly and in turn decapitated the creature, all while Artur sat with his back to the trunk of a tree in horrid awe. What a kiling force he had, nothing had prepared the bear to witness such a swift and sudden execution as that. He felt like he would've been sick again, had he not already lost his breakfast just outside the outpost he'd arrived at earlier. Still he feared this man, feared that he may be next in line.

Then of course the man addressed him, asking him if he knew the Common Tongue. Safe?! Yeah, right! Like I'm safe here in front of you!! He thought to himself as he looked frightened towards the man, even if he was honest in assurance there was still that smell about him. That oily yet decayed scent the bear started to pick up, and then of course the weird tricks he could do like bring creatures from some other world and shoot lightning from his hands... such things weren't normal for the Kelvic and seeing them happen now, they surely intimidated Artur to the point where he would've wet himself given the circumstances. Questions then followed, questions that led Artur to believe he was now yet again a hostage... of a sort. It was much like the time he'd been caught by the cane man, the one that thought to threaten Artur into submission for a sort of "deal" he had planned out. Gyatt wasn't happy about that, but even then there was little that could be done.

Thus Artur was to be more cautious from now on, and always be aware of who might be around him when he was out. Off and on the architect wondered if he should have Artur wear the color and debated it with himself mostly, yet hadn't take action yet as he still felt it conflicted with what little freedom Artur did have. That would likely change after today, seeing as how Artur was yet again in a position of danger no thanks to his curiosity. "I-I-I'm Artur sir! M-M-master Gyatt is a citizen, he rescued me from KRF! I was just collecting herbs for the kitchen, I-I cook for Master Gyatt as a servant so that I may repay his kindness! Please don't hurt me sir! I won't tell anyone about this I swear!" He pleaded in desperation. Whether it was out of straight fear or desperation Artur held a pleading look to the man that stood above him, hopeful that he would be released from the man even though he weren't a captive.

It's all that Artur seemed to know nowadays, being a captive if not a servant to someone. Yet no matter what when it came to times like this it was when his human mimicked side would serve as the counterpart to his animalistic nature, in which he would prove to be a total coward, just like now, towards something because he felt inferior to them. Puny. Not worth anything no thanks to the treatment he'd recieved in the walls of KRF, even if he had little confidence in himself before he hardly questioned it then... but now... now he was here, at the mercy of yet another man that likely resided in Ravok's darker side.

[Miro]

Miro listened to what the Kelvic had to say, Artur, apparently. One of the Kelvic Research Institution subjects that was sold off. Bought by a "Master Gyatt", a citizen with a bit of money it seemed. Likely a kind heart too, to rescue such a creature. A bear that could not fight a man, that would cower and scream. He couldn't even talk to the undead properly. Cowardice was only a minor affliction of the mind though. Nothing that couldn't be fixed. It was obvious why somebody might want a bear who could shift into a bear.

The Chained One saw great potential in Artur and wanted to own him. It would be too hard to simply take the Kelvic, but perhaps it would be possible to pay for ownership. Though there was always the issue of attachments and if this Gyatt liked the softhearted nature of the beast. To have such feelings always complicated things needlessly. Money was what people in Ravok were supposed to put stock in. To remain attached to other things, petty sentiments, that was dangerous. It was usually best to just take the money and run.

But it seemed Artur could cook and was out here for that reason. The key to all of this would be the right manipulations. First on the naked man before the Hypnotist. "You needn't worry at all Artur, I won't hurt you. It is a pleasure to meet you actually. It is not often you see a Kelvic wandering about with a collar, but that is not an issue. It is alright if you are not a citizen, as long as your owner is. You have nothing to worry about. I am not much for gathering herbs, but I would be willing to escort you. Make sure you can get find what you need and get back home safely. As long as I am with you, nothing bad can happen."

It was likely not enough to break the fear the Kelvic held, but a start. It was not easy when one appeared as Miro did. His horrid mask, inhuman claws, dead arm, everything really. Beheading a Diverse and performing magic hardly helped the situation. At least up until now that was. The wizard focused on his presence, the commanding force of his soul, and he willed it to envelop Artur. He pushed the most simple of hypnotic spells into his target, emotional response. A subtle subconscious calm that would settle into the mind.

Miro only set the mood with this spell, a way to clear away troubled feelings for his next manipulations. He now focused his Djed to his voice and spoke in a soft calm town, the voice he used to persuade. His voice ripe with magic, his words would first inspire simple spells, another emotional response and a suggestion. These effects imprinted much less subtly than the previous manipulation. The feeling of trust coupled with a subliminal message, "I can trust him." The caster's words crept softly and with haste from his lips.

"Artur, I know I look scary, but I am not a bad man. I protect people, help them, make the bad people go away. Like the one that tried to hurt you, I stopped him. I saw you were scared, saw you needed help, so I protected you." A shift in his manipulations occurred again, the intensity increased. The final spell he cast would again be carried by his voice, though first he moved a bit closer to his target. This spell, a sudden thought, a message implanted into the conscious mind this time. It was a much riskier, as it could lead to detection if performed incorrectly.

The Hypnotist smiled charmingly behind his mask, though such a thing could not be seen. He charged his voice with Djed and spoke in his most charming voice. "You are very special Artur. I like you a lot, and I would like to be your friend. If you were my pet, I would give you everything you wanted. I'd give you all of my attention and never let anything happen to you. You know, if it were not for me, you would be dead. If Gyatt cared about you he would buy you things to cook with so you didn't have to be put at risk." After he was finished speaking Artur would think to himself, "I should be safe with him."

To manifest a thought was not a risk often taken, but it was unlikely a Kelvic would know any better. The hypnotic seeds had been sown, though it would still be a while before any rewards could be harvested. For now he hoped that Artur would turn back to the city soon, but such a thing would not be forced. The longer the two spent together the better. It would allow a bit of bonding to take place. After a while most people got past Miro's outer appearance. "Whatever you want, I'll listen. I just want to see you happy Artur. So what should we do?" Hopefully even Ender could be pleased with such a performance.

[Artur]

With the way the slender lunatic spoke Artur found himself in a mix of both disbelief and yet belief. Part of him wanted to trust this maniac for some reason! Yet that was the part of him he knew was the old Artur, the naive bear he always allowed himself to be when it came to facing his everyday troubles. Here he had to be smart about everything, here he had to use his head and decide which was right and which was wrong. This man belonged to Ravok's dark side without a doubt, therefore the Kelvic had to remember everything Gyatt told him and in turn decide what was truth and what was a lie.

So... he wants to help? How can he help? Why protect me when he thought to have me killed, and in turn killed the thing he sent to dispose of me earlier?! Simple logic it was but that gave Artur reason to believe the intention wasn't all so true, yet something happened as he started to feel differently. Deep down Artur felt his fears start to dwindle as he basked in the presence of this... not so horrifying figure. Something deep down transitioned him to believing the very same thing he would, were he the same fool that he struggled to literally not be half the time then... no he was that fool. Even now he couldn't help but feel a better sense of naivety take over as he felt the frantic rush in his heartbeat cease some. I can trust him... The impulse was sudden but it felt normal to him, unrecognized by what others would say was a foreign sense.

He was by far under an influence that felt otherworldly to him now, even if he were unaware of it Artur fell right into the state of ease this man wanted. Indeed this Miro... had helped Artur in the moment that made a difference, saved him from the dark thing that attacked him for no reason. "You saved me from the monster, that makes you a good person. Not a bad one like the cane man." He repeated in his clueless stupor as he found himself more relaxed against the tree, a wry smile developed on his face as he continued to listen to the alluring words Miro spoke to him. He liked Artur and wanted to be a friend, that was rather sweet of the man. Artur found himself amused with a chuckle to boot as he continued to watch the "not-so-scary" mask Miro wore to cover his face.

"You're right. I'd be dead if you didn't save me, you're a great person compared to Master Gyatt." He complimented as he found himself enthralled to the idea of Miro being his new caretaker, new stuff to cook with so he didn't have to travel across the lake? How could he think that a bad deal in a bargain! Wait... they weren't bargaining anything were they? No.... but still. Miro was a pleasant fellow to take a liking to, he had the right idea in knowing how to make Artur feel better about himself. Which was odd because nobody else here really thought of him like that, in fact the only one that did think differently of Artur was Gyatt but only to an extent... "I should be safe with you after all." He quoted from another sudden impulse that suddenly formulated within the thoughts of his mind.

Next came the question that brought Artur back into a slap happy form of reality that made him realize that he was still naked, naked before the man called Miro as he was asked what came next. What did Artur want to do exactly? Hm... Nobody ever really worried about that, not even Artur now that he thought more on it. He... still had to collect herbs did he not? The last venture didn't end so well, but this time would very much turn out differently since he had Miro to tag along. "I know," He pointed with the "light bulb on" expression, "You can help me find parsley and other herbs around here. There should be plenty of herbs we can pick that'll be useful for cooking." He stated as he scooted to where he could push himself off he ground using the tree for support, he was rather surprised that Miro wasn't at all awkward with the whole nude Kelvic thing since others generally remarked on it.

"I can track smells better in my other form than in this one, so long as I have you along I shouldn't have to worry about other things coming along to attack. Right?" He checked with hopes that he would find reassurance from Miro, although he was already highly convinced that Miro was going to keep him safe already.

[Miro]

Miro was glad to see the Kelvic finally coming around, though he could tell only just barely. Luckily his type was not the kind to question such feelings, otherwise there was little doubt he would have been found out. Such manipulations were still foreign to the Hypnotist. He found it hard to sympathize with such an animalistic mind. But in the end everything came together as it should. Though there was still more to be done. Picking herbs was not going to happen.

The undead spoke in a calm and friendly voice, the kind a father might take with his young child. "You know Artur, that is an impressive thing, your sense of smell. And though I am sure you could find all you need, I am not much for the wilds. I can keep you safe, but we may very well find ourselves lost. And we could spend all day in search and find little. Instead I know a quicker way, an easier way. Much more fun too."

The sooner they went back to the city, the better. After bells out of the city, the scenery here had grown drab, definitely lost its pleasantness. Funny how easily one became attached to cities. It did not seem that Artur had been here long, and it seemed about the right time for the ferry to have arrived. Perhaps if the two hurried they could catch a ride back into the city. If not they would be forced to wait long before another way back presented itself.

"You just got off the ferry I take it. If we hurry, we can take it back to the city. I know a shop where we can find all of the things you need. I'll let you buy all that you need, my treat. We can even buy you a lunch. I'll bet you're hungry, huh?" It was a suggestion he sincerely hoped would be taken, though he was not about to use magic to enforce it. The offer to spoil the Kelvic was something he was probably not accustomed to. Who could turn down free food?

The wizard looked down at the naked Human form before him and let out a soft sigh. "Hurry and dress yourself. We will need make haste if we are to return. I'll lead us back to the Post, and then we will have a long ride back. When we get to the city, I'll get some money, then we can go shop. Once we finish shopping, I'll take you back home. Sounds like fun, right?" Though the Chained One left out a few details. He had money enough for groceries on him, but he needed more for what he had planned.

Everybody has their price. Master Gyatt had his, which mean that Artur did as well. A simple Kelvic like him, he was likely purchased out of sympathy. As long as Miro could appear to provide a better home, offer a better life, ownership could be acquired. The guise of master and pet, that would only be temporary. Trust needed to be gained, then loyalty could be implanted. Though it was always harder to train an old animal. Especially one who had been abused.

Again the undead communicated with his partner through telepathy. "Show me the way back. Just tell me when." He held his arm out and began to slowly rotate until he received a response. "Stop. That is the direction." He lowered his arm and smirked. "You sure?" Ender was always vigilant, never one to lose track of the details. "As if you need to ask. I am always aware of my surroundings. It takes more than that for me to get lost."

The amusement between master and Familiar was shared and amplified through their bond. To have such a feeling doubled over, it truly was pleasant. Seemed more and more that the duo were in sync with each other these days. They no longer had fights, but instead mere disagreements. Their teamwork was near perfect when a situation called for it. All that truly stood between them were differences in morality. The truth was that in these beings without true emotions, the closest they came to love was in their feelings for one another.

It was those feelings that made their differences so hard. Ender was Miro's greatest asset, his closest ally. The only thing that could truly be considered a friend to him. For the Irylid, he once hated his master, almost regretted their bonding. As time passed the Familiar found that he enjoyed his master greatly. The thing he hated were the chains that bound him to such despicable actions. Were it not for Uldr's cravings, the two might have had a perfect life. At least for now such tensions remained buried.

But as for the Kelvic, there was no way to be sure how that would play out. A pet, perhaps even a Chained One could find some amusement and care for it. Though it was more likely Artur would end up the same as most everyone else, a means at power and domination. An investment. Nothing more, nothing less. For now there was not even a way to be sure would the Kelvic agree to go back. Miro would do whatever was necessary though. He was ready to go deeper into the wilds or head back to the city. "Whatever you want to do is fine by me Artur."