[Common Labs] Can You Speak a Little Softer I Can't Hear You

by **Sorcha** on June 20th, 2014, 2:09 pm

38th of Summer, 514 AV
6th Bell

Sorcha’s mind was still wrapped around the judgment that would be happening two days from now, she already had one item to show to the judges and now she planned to make a second one. She had no idea if she needed a second one, she wasn’t sure if she would only need one or if even two wasn’t going to be enough. Malediciton wasn’t flashy like Reimancy was or jaw dropping as she assumed it was to watch a voider display his talents. She could have focused her apprenticeship on her projection even that would probably have more of a stage presence. No, instead she chose a much subtler form of magic – not to say that Malediction didn’t have its pop but it took a different type of mind to appreciate its beauty.

She had spent the last day trying to rest, little good that did her as she couldn’t stop thinking about her future and if she’d be able to hone her skills under a proper Master or if she’d be cast out and have to find help somewhere else. A few hours rest was all her mind would allow her before she was up and about again, with a full stomach she headed back into the Common Labs to create her last bracelet charm. She had already decided that she was going to use the bat skeleton and what she would try to focus it on, she just hoped that the skeleton would still be there and not used already.

Jasper was locked up in her quarters again, she had exercised him a bit in the past day so she hoped he’d be patient again with her long day away from him. The shelves seemed untouched from the last time she was here, a few new things perhaps but she wasn’t even sure there was so much to look at it could have easily been missed. Although there was the possibility that they just had an endless supply of animal bones to provide to those who needed them. Either way she was entranced by all the options again, she looked at many skeletal sets before she settled back on the bat with an inner grin. Picking up the remains carefully she brought them over to the same area she had used to create the rabbit charm bracelet and she set down the bones delicately.

Next she’d move to look for paints again since she was still working with small frail bones and she didn’t have the confidence in herself to not damage the bone by trying to carve into them. Again she found the same colors as before: red, yellow and brown. There was also a few different brushes to choose from and she picked up two this time wondering if she could take a bit more time to decorate after she created the focus circles that were so important in malediction. While she was looking around Sorcha also grabbed some twine again since it had worked so well with the rabbit bones so she hoped it would work just as well with the bat ones.

Taking up a seat on a stool the Eypharian set out all of her supplies in the background for now because she wouldn’t use them until she could plot out the way the bones would string together in her mind. With deft fingers she held the spine in one hand and the skull in the other before she pulled much like she had on the rabbit bones. Unfortunately, what didn’t occur to Sorcha was that a bat’s bones are much more brittle then a rabbits. Part of the spine cracked beneath her fingers and splintered to the table top she was working on and the sound from the skull did not inspire confidence in her one bit. With wide eyes she focused her attention on the skull, looking it over in hoped that it was tougher then the small vertebrae or that she was at least gentler with it. Fingertips brushed the ivory surface and then she held it up to her eye line to see if she would notice any hard to see fractures in the bone. Her heart pounded and just as she thought she escaped and the skull would work her eyes narrowed in on a small fissure extending from the hollow where the bat’s eye would be.

“Petch!” she cursed rather loudly earning her unnoticed glares on the back of her head. Annoyance radiated through her at her stupid mistake and she pushed the bones to the side with a growl. Running her hands through her hair the tall woman stood and marched back over to the available bones to work with and she searched for hopefully another bat. It took her several chimes before she spotted one, hidden behind a row of mice and some other skeletons she didn’t recognize at first glance. This time she would be more careful, this time she would sever the skull properly but what she needed were tools not the brute force of her fingers.

Plucking the bat skeleton from its hidden place on the shelf she held it in two left hands careful not to jostle it, really she was probably being overly careful now but she didn’t want to waste anymore skeletons or come up with a new idea then what she was already imagining. There were available tools everywhere and her mind spun with the possibilities. What would be small enough to work on a bat, delicate enough not to damage the bones again and strong enough to actually make her plan work? Some type of saw would naturally be her first choice, not that she had any experience with them but when you thought of breaking through tough materials saws were definitely a go-to. Even an axe could hold its own in the world of hacking through material though she found that idea to be a bit more barbaric then even the saw. No, what she needed was something else.

Typically bones in malediction were worked on with carving tools to prolong the ‘life’ of the magical item, maybe the chisel could be used to separate the bones as well if she practiced with the already damaged bat. With free hands she grabbed a few carving tools and a small hammer, if this didn’t work she’d just have to make use of the entire skeletal frame of the bat though she didn’t really want something that bulky to wear into the Judgment. Already knowing this process was probably going to take longer than the rabbit Sorcha turned back to her work station and hunkered down to get to work.

by **Sorcha** on June 20th, 2014, 3:07 pm

8th Bell

The undamaged bat was off to the side and once again she pulled the damaged spine towards her, only a few of the pieces had been broken and while she wasn’t planning on using the spine the original plan to pull bones apart had damaged the skull which she definitely planned to use. Trial and error, that’s what the learning process was about. She had erred and now she was trying a new way to see if that worked. Lifting the spine up for a better view she rotated it slowly trying to see if there were any spots between the vertebrae to wedge a chisel in safely. Between each bone she could see small gaps, she was worried that the chisel she had picked up might not fit but within the tools she had collected she had a small pick that was meant for more precision carving. The point on the pick seemed like a much better choice to accomplish what she was trying to do.

Well here it goes …

Lightly supporting the spine between careful hands she used a third to precariously position the point of the small pick into the gap. It didn’t enter far but her hand slowly tilted to pull up leverage on the bone she was trying to separate from its linked partners. With a held breath the time felt like ages to Sorcha and then the tool slipped from the bone and scratched the surface but there was no cigar just yet. Again she placed the pick back into the same link and added a bit more pressure hoping that would hold the tool from sliding out of where she wanted it to stay. The world seemed to fall away from her, all sounds were distant and almost nonexistent as she focused on her task and finally some god must have been looking out for her because rather the slide and scrape of metal on bone she heard a crack and a pop. The pieces of bone came apart in small separate pieces and she smiled at her accomplishment.

She tried this with a few more sections of the spine in hopes that the practice she was preforming would steady her hand in the more important procedure of severing the skull from the spine. A one of the pieces she worked with she ended up cracking and a second she somehow managed to just completely demolish but three of the five she did after the first success seemed to turn out just fine. She was at least above a 50% success rate so she figured she’d turn her attention to the new piece. The trick here would be to end up on the positive side of the 50% with the new skull and rather than an unfavorable one.

The broken spine of the original bat she had accidently mangled was now pushed away out of her mind and she brought the new one back to her attention. With the same care and delicate finesse she slowly perched the pick between the top of the spine and the base of the skull. Her fingers held the skull in place as she tilted the pick in spot though again she realize this would be a bit different then the spinal column as there was a hollow within the skull she hadn’t accounted for. Couldn’t this just be easy? Nope, easy was boring. With a deep breath she moved the pick another rung down on the spine not wanting to take her chances of cracking the jaw, instead it would just have to have a bit of spine attached even though that hadn’t been her original plan.

Gently she tilted the pick and after a few long ticks she heard the similar pop and crack of the bone. With an intense gaze she examined the skull to see if it came out unharmed, luckily it was and she felt triumphant over her make shift deconstruction lesson she hadn’t planned on practicing. Setting the skull down she then looked at the rest of the bat to pick which other pieces she would use in her creation. The spine was too small to do anything with while also using twine strong enough that it wouldn’t break so she turned her attention to the finger bones that ran in the wings. They were long and thin as well but maybe she could use the smaller fingers to wrap with twine around her wrist like a band made out of bone. That could work.

by **Sorcha** on June 20th, 2014, 4:03 pm

10th Bell

Paint. It was time to paint and she had no idea where she wanted to start on this piece. The rabbit had been easy, she just needed to focus on a few simple words and well there she had it. The bat however she had an idea where to start she just wasn’t sure where to finish. Sorcha tapped the end of the brush handle against her bottom lip as she thought to herself. She wanted to enhance her hearing, so of course hearing would be one of the things she focused the djed of the bat on but she wasn’t sure if she should use strength or something else. She was worried that strength might get confused with something like muscles but she didn’t know what else to do. There was the possibility of just plain old ‘focus’ to focus the wearer’s hearing so they could pick up more subtle sounds?

Shaking her head she frowned at herself, this was where having a teacher already would come in handy so she could bounce ideas off them and perhaps they might even already have a way for her to create what she wanted. No bother, this was her time to shine so she would do the best she could – she had to get a spot as an apprentice. If the piece didn’t work the way she wanted she could just not bring it to judgment and only bring the rabbit charm. Unscrewing the tops on the paint she dipped her brush carefully into the yellow first and began her circles on the skull.

The first circle was primarily focused around where she imagined the ears would have been protruding from the skull. It was a bit obvious of a place but hey she wasn’t going for the most creative placement of circles award. With this circle she carefully traced the shape, taking her time to make sure it was perfect and there were no mistakes. Her mind was focusing on only one thing, the sense of hearing. In all her focus she let her own natural hearing focus on the smallest of sounds she could pick up around her. The sound of the stool squeaking beneath her weight whenever she shifted, the subtle wave of breath from her own lungs echoing in her ears and even the cough of a student behind her working on his own project. With the closing the circle she drew on the djed of the bat, telling it what she wanted from it and capturing it in the completed yellow ring fixated on enhanced hearing.

When she finally finished the first circle she began its twin on the other side of the skull, careful to keep her fingers out of the still wet paint so that she didn’t ruin the progress she was making. She repeated the process she had with the first allowing the sounds of metal on metal reach her ear as someone closed a cabinet door. Feet scuffed across the floor behind her and the tap of her brush in the paint container were all heard as she drew on the bat’s djed again and closed the second circle.

Time passed without notice to Sorcha as she gave herself over to the process of malediction, nothing else mattered to her now – even the judgment was forgotten while she worked. Dueling red loops were next, one placed on top of the other along the forehead of the skull. They were smaller in size, tighter in their design and with each she imagined the simplicity of strength enhancing the yellow rings she had already created. The djed was drawn up into these circles just as it had been for the first two and she willed the strength of the bat’s natural ability for echolocation to help the hearing of those who did not have that skill.

Finally she placed two more circles in brown paint, these were the biggest of the circles and they encompassed the hollows of the eye sockets on the skull. Focus. It was a simple command that was laced with these circles. Focus. Focus on this new heightened sense and embrace it. These final circles took the longest as they were the largest and they also were framing the odd shape of the eye sockets almost like decorative makeup. When she was finished with them she once more pulled out her gladius and pressed the sharp tip into her finger. One circle at a time she dropped a part of herself into the item through her own blood hoping to awaken the magic within it. Sucking the blood off her finger she put the skull off to the side so that she could focus on the finer bones and begin the construction of the bracelet.

by **Sorcha** on June 20th, 2014, 5:04 pm

15th Bell

Fatigue was setting into her bones, her eyes were sore with the focus she was using on her new item but with a shake of her head she grabbed the twine and cut it with her gladius to the length she thought would be longer then appropriate for the piece. She could always cut off extra later if she needed to. Unwinding the twine to make three smaller sections she used one hand to hold down the edge and then she began braiding it back together. One section over the next and vice versa so that it would have a slightly more appealing look to it and maybe the braiding would provide a bit more grip to the smaller bones of the fingers she was going to use.

With simple knots she would secure the ends from fraying one at the time and then she’d use the twine to begin a simple wrap on the smaller bones, almost completely covering them as she made a thin rope of the bracelet using two of the bones. It took almost a full bell to situate the first half of the bracelet so that it would bend properly around her wrist. By the time she was done with one side of the bracelet the skull was dry of both paint and blood so she turned to that piece next. Carefully she weaved the rope up through the open jaw and into one eye socket and out the next and then back through the jaw. She did this a couple times to makes sure she had a secure hold and the braided twine reminded her of a snake dipping in and out of holes with its flexible body.

Now she just had to finish tying up the last two pieces of bone on the other half of the bracelet so that she could complete the bracelet and move back to her quarters to test it out. Her hands were aching by the time she was done with the meticulous wrapping and testing to make sure bones nor twine slipped in the process. Her back ached from the hunch of her spine over her work and a yawn sounded from her throat. Victory was hers! At least it was hers in the fact she had finished her final item for judgment. Standing up she stretched from bare feet all the way to bringing her six arms above her head in a motion that seemed much like a tired cat. It took her about a half bell longer to clean up her mess and dispose of the bones she had unfortunately ruined but that was fine with her because now she could actually move about and not sit in one place. Gathering up her bracelet she headed back to her quarters figuring she’d start off small and see how much she could hear in the lonely space that she shared with her faithfully canine companion.

by **Sorcha** on June 20th, 2014, 8:23 pm

Date

Sorcha had been back in her quarters for a while now, her head had been so heavy by the time she arrived that she crashed on her cot and slept for a few bells before Jasper woke her up while he was in his own little sleep next to her. He was whining, he must be having some dream and part of her felt annoyance that she had been stirred form the sleep she had barely had since arriving in Sahova. Pushing herself from her bed she wrinkled her nose at the dog and then sigh. The newest bracelet was lying out in the open and she figured now was as good a time as any to test it and see how or if it worked at all.

Picking the bracelet up she moved to the center of the room and lowered herself to the floor sitting with her legs crossed and her spine straight. With deep breaths in and out she slowly forced her mind to clear so that she would be able to focus fully on the bracelet in her hand. She waited a few chimes, taking in in the sounds she currently heard such as Jasper’s deep breaths and occasional whining and the muffled sounds of people walking up and down the hall that she could only hear if she truly strained to notice it. Carefully she’d tie the bracelet around her wrist and hold her breath to see if there was a difference in what she heard without the item.

The sounds didn’t change at first and then when they did it was all at once battering into her head like she suddenly entered a crowded room. Jasper’s whining became more like an annoying high pitched stab into her brain and the muffled sounds from the hall became a banging echo with each footfall. The voices she didn’t hear before came to her in undistinguishable whispers now and her own breathing sounded like the thunderous rushing of waves when you were suspended under water. It was jarring, the unexpected intensity in which she was hearing the sounds she didn’t even notice before made her head spin.

Her room was quiet, quiet enough that she shouldn’t feel the coming ons of a headache like she currently did. Deep breaths once again, in and out, and she calmed herself and forced her muscles to relax to calm the ache in her temples from the heightened sounds. The Eypharian stayed like this for a quarter bell before she was able to slowly start focusing on the specific sounds one by one so that she could see how well she was actually hearing them. She could hear the specific steps of people outside her quarters now, she could even tell which way they were headed and that there were two, maybe three people. She still heard their muffled conversation but she couldn’t make out their actual words through the wall nor if one was a female or male or any combination of the genders.

Rising slowly to her feet Sorcha heard the usually quiet scrape of her skirt on the floor as if someone was scratching her head roughly. Her face scrunched at the unpleasant sound but she moved towards the door anyways, each bare step she took was like she was stomping on a drum. She needed to see how her hearing would be affected in a room that was not as quiet as the one she currently inhabited. Without turning around she heard Jasper’s breathing change from slow and deep as he woke up and stopped his incessant whimpering in his sleep. Pushing open her door the sounds of the murmuring she had heard a moment before were suddenly very loud and very unclear – they were coming from just down the hall and they weren’t the only sounds she heard as she opened the doors. More footsteps and more voices coming from all directions, the precision she had in knowing where the sounds were just a moment before was suddenly lacking.

The sounds now were so loud that she instantly shrank back into her room and closed the door with a slam that made her jump. Jasper barked and she jumped again swearing at him under her breath though the sound still was like a bullet going off in her brain. She quickly removed the bracelet and it was as if someone hit mute on the world at the sudden diminishing in her hearing. It wasn’t that she couldn’t hear, it was simply the startling difference in the volumes that shocked her. Perhaps she could try to remake the bracelet after the judgment, if it wasn’t for the horrible loudness of everything if she wasn’t in a quiet room she actually thought the bracelet could come in handy. Perhaps she would lessen the strength and the focus by half next time – maybe that would make a difference. For now it would have to do, only a day a half until the judgment and she just had to relax and figure out how she was going to present the bracelets to a crowded room. Placing the newest bracelet with the rabbit one she turned to Jasper and apologized, reaching out to pet him as she did so “Let’s take you out, you’ve been cooped up long enough.”