PM to join New Horizons

[Kamilla]

Kamilla Circe Gordon

5th of Spring, 515AV

Four bells.

Four bells on The Undead Isle of Sahova and Kamilla was already beginning to second guess her decision to come. Well, her second guess had actually been upon arrival with the lack of an actual welcome at what the sailors had called Port Silence, the third had been during the long trek up the dirt road toward the Citadel and the fourth and fifth had been due to the lack of information provided and the appalling 'living' quarters in which she now stood.

Kamilla's brown eyes moved slightly between the contents of the room, which were countable with a single glance; a sorry excuse for a sleeping mat which was clearly going to be uncomfortable, a wash basin and a chamber pot. She stood there for several moments, barely moving as she tried to accept the complete lack of anything remotely inviting, she was in disbelief, when she'd fled Sunberth all those years ago, she'd sworn that she would never live in poverty again and yet, even their run down 'house' had been better than this broom closet. Already she longed for the comfort of her quaint cottage back in Zeltiva, but she wouldn't allow something as trivial as lodgings stop her quest for knowledge...and power.

Unloading her possessions and food, Kamilla grabbed the key found in the room, locked the door and returned to exploring the citadel. She'd hardly seen a soul since her arrival except for one or two dreary looking people that appeared far too exhausted and determined to get where they were going for her to have risked asking them any questions. In fact, even though she had seen these people from such a distance they did not look very healthy to her, she'd heard of the undead known as 'nuit' but wasn't confident enough in her observation skills to assume that the two beings she had seen were in fact the living dead.

Her next point of exploration was the one that finally, to her relief, contained more than a few lonely souls, allowing her to discard the growing fear that Sahova was almost completely abandoned. She saw now that her assumption had been entirely incorrect as this particular section of the citadel was completely filled with people who were all hard at work on various projects. Kamilla simply stood at the edge of one of the large rooms, not daring to venture any closer for fear of interrupting it's busy inhabitants.

Since her arrival, Kamilla had been doubting whether the island held any of the discoveries she was hoping to make, yet this single laboratory changed her opinion completely. Her eyes were wide with wonder, like those of a child who had just seen something new and amazing, which she had. There was so much happening in this one room that Kamilla could barely contain her excitement as she glanced from one group to the next.

Several of the inhabitants of the lab were using what Kamilla recognised to be reimancy, though most were using elements that weren't her own in ways that she had never even considered, while others did things that she could not even begin to explain. One particular woman, another exhausted looking one that Kamilla suspected of being a nuit, was focused on what appeared to be a large and completely ordinary urn. She had her hands spread around it protectively as if she were trying to embrace it or something. Growing quickly bored of the unusual woman, another man in the distance quickly caught Kamilla's attention as she noticed that his gaze was focused on a pair of swords that were floating in front of him. The swords seemed to be duelling on their own, which would have been remarkable had Kamilla not noticed the man and another man across from him both focusing on the blades as if they were the one's duelling, which she assumed they were.

With her mouth still slightly ajar at this new and amazing magic that seemed to allow objects to be manipulated remotely, a bit like the way she used her res attraction to throw boulders around. She wondered if they were using some advanced form of reimancy. As she tried to understand the secret behind the ghostly blades, her attention returned to the woman from earlier who was now pacing backwards away from her urn as if it were about to attack. Kamilla watched in anticipation, waiting for the urn to jump to life as the swords had but was instead shocked to see the woman launch a surprisingly powerful burst of flame straight at her precious urn that she'd been embracing only chimes ago. What was more amazing was the way the urn remained completely unaffected by the blast, simply shimmering for a moment before returning to it's unassumingly ordinary self only for the process to be repeated with jets of water, ending with the same result.

Kamilla's head was spinning with all the new discoveries, all of which transformed her dam of questions into an ocean. Sahova may not have been welcoming but it certainly was the place she'd been looking for, a place to learn and discover new things about magic. The excitement was overwhelming and yet in the back of her mind, she couldn't shake the growing anxiety of not knowing what was formally expected of her on the island, a question that no one seemed patient enough to answer.

[Kamilla]

Kamilla Circe Gordon

Having stood at the edge of the large room for long enough, Kamilla allowed her impatience and curiosity to get the better of her, forcing her body forwards in a decision to disregard her reluctance to interrupt, so that she could gather even the slightest bit of information. Even with her decision made, she still found it hard to pick someone to interrupt as most looked grumpy and focused enough to actually be offended if she were to question them. So, deciding to start with someone she at least had something in common with, Kamilla headed for the exhausted looking reimancer that was now standing, arms crossed, and staring at her urn.

"Excuse me, may I just say how impressive that urn is, to withstand something as powerful as reimancy with such ease."

Her voice was polite, though not falsely so, a difference she'd learnt during her time working at Yvette's Dresses For All Occasions. The woman merely glanced at Kamilla unenthusiastically, the dark bags under her eyes made it look as if she might just drop to the ground at any moment. Actually, now that Kamilla was much closer, she could see that the woman wasn't entirely human, or at least entirely alive, besides her exhausted appearance, her skin had a sort of old, sickly tinge to it along with many other things that made Kamilla ultimately decide that she must have been one of the 'nuit' creatures, people wearing the bodies of the dead. The thought made a trickle of unease permeate her curious state, though it was quickly cast aside.

The woman... the nuit woman, answered in a tone that matched her exhausted appearance, "Shielding..." she muttered with annoyance, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world, which, now that Kamilla thought about it, it was. The nuit who had seemed to discard any interest in Kamilla the moment she'd spoken turned her dreary gaze back to the young woman. "You, pulser, you're a reimancer?" she asked, or rather, forcefully inquired, to which Kamilla responded, "Pulser?" she asked, slightly confused. "Yes, one with a pulse...alive." replied the woman, waving her hand as if dismissing any further questions, "I asked if you are a reimancer and if so, what are your elements?" she was even more demanding than before. Deciding it best not to hassle the impatient woman with any more questions, Kamilla responded as directly as she could, "Yes. Earth and Air.".

It seemed that this news was the first to be of interest to the nuit woman as she creaked what Kamilla assumed to be a smile, though it was more like an expression lacking complete disinterest. "Good. Perhaps you could help me by trying to damage my urn..." she paused for a moment to observe Kamilla's uncertain expression, "...Go on now. Have at it." she added, both encouragingly and impatiently. Responding with a simple nod, Kamilla moved to stand a safe distance from the urn, the nuit woman taking a few cautious steps back herself, before she began readying herself to cast her spell.

Kamilla began drawing from the well of res within her, coaxing the magical energy into creeping its way to the surface, and as it reached her hands she willed it to escape. Slowly the glistening lavender substance began to emerge from the palms of her hands, hovering above them as they grew in size until there were two of them, each slightly larger than an apple.

Willing one of the glistening spheres to wait above her shoulder, Kamilla focused on the other, moving it between her two palms before she clenched her hands into fists and then opened them again with her fingers spread. The res responded to the action by splitting into ten lavender pebbles which she then transmuted into pointy-ish(her control wasn't quite accurate just yet) stone spikes, maintaining the res center for control. Then, with the simple gesture of thrusting her hands forward an inch, she willed the stones to shoot toward the shielded urn. The stone projectiles smashed into the urn, earning another shimmer with each hit, as the shield absorbed the attack before returning to it's dull usual self.

"Is that the best you could do. Never mind, I'll have to find a real geomancer."

The nuit's voice was audible disappointment, Kamilla had never felt so unremarkable, though she was not so easily discouraged. "Fine, I'll show you a real geomancer.", with her pride now at stake, Kamilla brought forth the remaining ball of res, determined to change the nuit's opinion of her talents. With the ball now hovering in front of her, she began shaping it into the form of a ring, using her hands to thin the edges until she was satisfied. This form, which she'd named the earth chakram, was one she'd practised and developed back in Zeltiva, not that she'd ever had a real excuse to use it till now. The density of the stone combined with speed(the secret being rotation) made it especially destructive, considering the size of the projectile. Kamilla had to contain her excitement at seeing how it would fair against the shielded urn.

With the chakram ready, Kamilla pointed upward towards it with her index finger, slowly twirling the digit as the disc turned to stone(mostly) and began rotating. It picked up speed, spinning faster and faster until finally, Kamilla released it, firing the stone disc with as much force as she could muster and transmuting its inner res, making it solid.

The earth chakram flew through the air towards the urn with perfect accuracy, at first, before it slowly began to drift to the side as it neared its target. Kamilla nearly died of embarrassment as her spell nearly missed the urn entirely but was relieved to see it sway back onto course at the last moment as it slammed into the large urn, a mere foot from it's original target at the center and a mere foot from missing it entirely.

The impact of the spell was made evident by the loud crushing thud that echoed throughout the lab, causing a few grumpy heads to turn whilst the rest continued working as if there hadn't been a noise at all, however, the urn held strong, it's shield flickering,(though more rapidly this time) before settling yet again. Kamilla turned her attention back to the nuit woman, a small smile of satisfaction trying to fight it's way through the look of disappointment that covered her face. On one hand, her spell had landed excellently, but on the other, it had failed to breach the shielded urn, which held not even a scratch.

"Excellent, the shield is almost completely uniform while the weave remains effective."

The nuit's analysis was completely lacking any of the praise that Kamilla had been hoping for and she let out a short sigh of disappointment which seemed to draw the nuit woman's attention once more. "For your assistance, pulser..." she started, turning to face Kamilla with her arms still crossed and tone monotonous, "...although I am in no way inclined to, I shall answer any one question you have." she said before waiting for Kamilla's question expectantly.

Slightly surprised by the notion, Kamilla's mind began to rush with questions, many involving this magic art known as shielding and several about the other magics she'd witnessed in the lab since entering, but she calmed her thoughts, not wanting to waste her one question on something that was of a lower priority than her current predicament. And so, with a bit of thought, Kamilla decided on one important question, "What is formally expected of me on Sahova?" she was certain that the nuit had already deduced that Kamilla was new to the island and this was the question which she needed answered most at the moment.

The exaggerated sigh that escaped the nuit's frowning lips was a clear indication that this was probably the most strenuous and uninteresting question that she could have been asked, but she'd offered an answer and she quickly did so. "Listen pulser, I'll say this only once. All visitors wishing to become an apprentice on the island..." she flashed her ring for a moment as she continued, "...are expected to participate in a Judgment which takes place on the 40th and 80th in the largest lecture hall. A show of your magical talent, whatever it may be, will be assessed and if successful you will be granted an apprenticeship."

The nuit woman offered not a word more as she moved back to her urn, effectively dismissing Kamilla from her company and although there were ample more questions Kamilla wanted to ask, she accepted the dismissal, moving quickly out of the woman's vicinity and out of the large laboratory. Her head was spinning with this new discovery, she was expected to participate in a Judgement? What would she contribute? Kamilla hadn't the slightest idea and even though this 'Judgmement' was several weeks away, she felt the seed of anxiety being planted within herself.

[Kamilla]

Kamilla Circe Gordon

Between all the excitement, the ten mile walk to the citadel and the slight exertion as a result of her use of reimancy, Kamilla was beginning to feel as if her energy was nearing empty. Her journey to the large laboratory had yielded some very important information, but she felt that she couldn't properly find a solution in her current state. She was going to have to produce her absolute best for the judgement but, currently, she had no idea what her absolute best was or would be. With a bit of contemplation, Kamilla decided not to get herself all worked up about the judgement just yet and at least allow herself a week to explore and search for inspiration.

As she stood at the edge of the large hall, she noticed what looked like a metal rat wheeling past her and quickly decided that it must have been yet another golem, though far different than the one that had come to greet them at the harbour, but only slightly less impressive. So far it seemed that Sahova was teeming with animated constructs, all of which interested Kamilla greatly, she was afterall, an animator, no matter how rusty she must have been.

There was so much to see on Sahova that it was almost overwhelming, golems of different shapes and purposes, undead mages and most of all, new and fascinating magics. Kamilla couldn't help but think back to shielding? Was it something she could learn? She'd have to find out sooner rather than later, but right now, she was exhausted.

Finally deciding that she'd done enough for one day, Kamilla made her way back to the quarters, using her key to unlock the door to the sorry excuse for a room on the third floor. Upon entering, she was filled with dread at the tiny and unwelcoming broom closet she was expected to stay in, it was going to be a challenge to say the least, though at least now she felt as if she understood why. The people working in the lab hadn't lost a beat the entire time she'd been there, too focused on their work to bother taking a break or eating and now that she'd seen the nuit, she figured it was because they probably didn't need to. She was at a disadvantage, it seemed that this was one of the astronomically rare times that being dead was better than being alive.

[Keene Ward]

Grades

“For there is nothing lost, that may be found, if sought.”
-Edmund Spenser, The Faerie Queene

Kamilla

Skills

Reimancy +1
Planning +1
Observation +3
Organization +1
Rhetoric +1
Land Navigation +1
Socialization +1
Investigation +2

Lores

Sahova: Port Silence
Sahova: The Quarters
Sahova: The Gug Andjak
Pulser: One With a Pulse
Shielding: Protective Magic
The Sahovan Judgement
Sahovan Rings: Apprentice
Nuit: Basic Physical Characteristics

Rewards/Consequences
None



Notes
Just a little note: Reimancy and other volatile magics aren't practiced in the common labs due to safety issues. If you want to practice these magics, the Testing Grounds are a much better alternative!

Very nice little thread! Your interactions with the nuit were prime, and it was a good way to wiggle in some introductions to shielding and projection! Looking good, keep it up!

If you have any questions or concerns, please send me a PM!