Wo+T+L-W=WoTL
That was the formula that the alchemist was going to use. Combing the two formulas into one also saved the citadel valuable resources. The initial “Wo+T-W=WoT, L+T-W=LT, WoT+LT=WoTLT” formula would use many times the resources as “Wo+T+L-W=WoTL”. This is because to get the initial WoT and LT reactions right, as in achieving the desired properties, it will take more than one transmutation for lesser alchemists. You’ll end up using three or four times the amount of T (Tar) to get WoT and LT just right. Just multiply the formulas by four each and, substitute the initial Wo and L for WoT and LT for reactions beyond the initial, and you have x4 the T and W used in each reaction. Add those costs together and you get x8 T and W. If you preformed the latter formula, Wo+T+L-W=WoTL, four times to get the desired results (again substituting the Wo for the result of the last equation), you only use x4 the amount of chargers instead of x8. You get more done with less, basically.
Grabbing a plank the alchemist began to load the circle. The wood would be the target. Tar and the Hardened Leather would go in to Fount slots and water would be in the Filter. The product should produce the water-resistant damage-resisting wood that the citadel was looking for, all the while keeping its ability to float in water.
Golems placed the tar and leather in the appropriate slots within the circle, and Rayage poured some water into the filter. Wood centered, the circle was ready to operate. One of the considerations the alchemist kept in mind was the simplicity of the formula. It needed to be able to be recreated by lesser skilled alchemists, this formula, would be easily achievable by most semi-skilled in the art of alchemy. The complete immersion of properties might be lacking, however the product Rayage could produce would be a model that the others strive for.
Squeezing some more ichor from her nicked finger, the alchemist placed her hand upon the keystone and began the transmutation. She felt the djed within the circle and willed it into motion. Her thoughts focused on the feeling of the djed moving, of the knowing that the djed will react the way she willed it, the physical sensation of being connected to the circle, and in extension to change itself. It was here in this circle that the Alchemist can accelerate change, and that was exactly what Rayage was doing. She would nudge and force change upon the object in the center. She needed this for Sahova, for Sahova!
The rings flow tickled the wizard as it passed the keystone she was touching. The flow of djed was a physical thing that she could feel, and it was enticing. The pleasurable feeling would radiate from the limb touching the keystone throughout her entire body. A sense of power, a sense of peace, washed over her, allowing her to fully concentrate on the reaction at hand. It was here that a dance would begin, a mental symphony would ring within the circle, echoing out towards the nuit. It was the music of change, something that wasn’t heard, but rather felt as the djed was ripped from the objects by the current the alchemist was controlling. It was a humming, and with it a sense of a buzz, a high from the flux itself. Its presence brought the alchemist so much joy, so much purpose, that she had dedicated many hundreds of years to practicing and refining the art. Within the winds of change she was comforted, as this too will pass. This too will pass, and everything could be changed, if so willed. That was one of the nuggets of gold that any serious alchemist would learn from just observing the transmutation.
Then again, not every change is instant, for change requires high levels of energy. That is why for some transmutations, if the energy isn’t raised high enough by the acceleration of djed, the desired properties that are to be parted onto an object will take multiple doors opening, multiple transmutations. Though for a simple transmutation such as this, by an alchemist such as Rayage, the desired properties should be apparent in this one charge. She would make sure of it, willing the djed to zoom around the circle faster and faster.
Many, many chimes passed as the alchemist focused on charging the circle. By not the circle was crackling with djed audibly, and the ring was emitting light from the sheer acceleration of the transmutation. The amount of times per second in which the djed sped around the circle was uncountable by the wizard now, and she was on her peak of control. She was walking the fine line between being able to control the transmutation, and losing control of it, but it was this moment that she had been waiting for. The moment where the djed flux has been accelerated as fast as she could spin it safely, and it was in that moment that she felt a shudder of pure pleasure run through her body. The mental trial of holding the djed in place, spinning it in a nice orderly fashion, and the song of change rang through her body. The humming of djed was a tune she could never tire of and the almost electric feel of the energy made her want to scream. This was it. She could go on no longer.
Giving into the energy she gave it one final push as she pulled away from the alchemy circle. The energy was directed inward, towards the plank of wood where it collided with a brilliant flash of light. The alchemist could almost feel the excess djed shooting off the object towards her, and waited for the heat of the fires of change to cool down a minute before approaching the item. Grabbing the wood she headed over to the vat of water and plunged the product in. A few chimes later, after she felt all the excess djed was dissipated into the water, she removed it from the vat and placed it on the table where she had her notes.
She admired the object she created, but it had to be tested. For that, she had ordered a specific golem. It was a strange contraption simply consisting of a large hammer on a pivoting joint, that can swing up and down to smash whatever was placed under it. To see an object that was within range, the golem had one jewel-like eye at its base, but nothing more. The golem had been programmed so that it would smash the hammer down with such force that it could splinter regular wooden boards. To confirm this, the wizard had placed the contraption on the ground and set a regular wooden board into place. The hammer then, immediately, descended towards the board. The results were splinters of wood everywhere as the hammer crushed the wood beneath it, the board broke in half.
Rayage would then place the transmuted meta-wood in range of the hammer golem and let it have at it as the Alchemist watched. The first strike there were no notable differences. The hammer moved up and launched again. The second strike no notable differences. The third strike, there was some crunching of the product, and the forth strike sealed the deal, splintering the ‘wood’ much like the regular wooden plank. The job done the hammer golem stopped and ‘reset’. Rayage then moved to inspect the results. The splinters were not as definite as with the regular wood. The damage seemed more compact. In fact, there was less flying bits of wood when the board finally cracked. All of this was good. Leather seemed to be a hard substance to crush, and the result was the fusion of the leather-wood.
Rayage moved back to the desk to record her observations and the results of the experiment. She made sure to note that results of lesser alchemists may very because of the differences in transmutations, and that to achieve a more desirable product that the formula may have to be repeated multiple times. She also noted the small ‘test’ she had done on her material, to present its ‘toughness’ to her master. At the end she included the formula along with the meanings of the symbols… Hopefully Sahova will be satisfied with this wood. If not, then its back to the drawing board.
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