Flashback Learning to Make Staff Together

[Aedifalse]

505-SPRING-20
Pitrius Citadel

Aravon Blackhand Pitrius stood with his arms akimbo, the obsidian and pale limbs contrasting strongly, as he glared at the two bowed heads before him. He was one of the more established magecrafters of what was known as the 'magical clan' of the Isurs, and his forte was the niche of died wires and the application thereof, namely Magic Staves. However, he was also the distant uncle of two rather discordant nephews whom he was supposed to motivate due to a favour owed to their respective families.

Why do both of them have to call in the exact same favour at the exact same time? Aravon silently grumbled as he continued his chastising stare.

"Sorry, Uncle Aravon. I will stop fussing and work quietly," The younger of the two Isurs, Aedifex Aghanim Pitrius, piped up meekly. He was the main reason for this debacle, since he was used to working alone as the sole apprentice to any masters or teachers that he had, especially in the magecrafting lab. When faced with the appearance of yet another Isur to share his current master with, he had raised a tantrum.

"What about you?" Aravon directed his attention to the other Isur, demanding his affirmation of cooperation. Magecrafting was a highly sensitive discipline that required the utmost concentration especially during collaborations or the project was bound to fail. Better to do it alone than to do it with grudging partners.

When he was satisfied with both of their answers, his expression softened and he began to address the two.

"Your families have tasked me to instruct you both in the ways of Staffmaking. Since I am about to complete a small commission, I might as well take you both through the process. I have been informed that the both of you have received training in Magecrafting fundamentals, so I will skip straight to the real things," Aravon declared, leading his two nephews downstairs where his personal wizarding laboratory was situated.

Upon entering the dim cavern, both Isurs would see a circle of candles lighting up the centre of the room, where a single pedestal stood with a roughly hewn staff laid precariously atop of it. The pedestal seemed worn with age with its partially cracked marble, but multitude upon multitude of runes were glyphed around it like tattoos upon skin.

"Before we begin, I need to know what other forms of arcana do you know, and what level of mastery have you achieved? Honesty is very important here," Aravon began, his eyes contemplating the two youths before him as his tone conveyed the severity of his intention.

"Merunir? Why don't you start?"

[Merunir]

Merunir fought to hide a smirk as his cousin was properly brought to heel, and largely succeeded. His eyes twinkled still as he looked up to Aravon. "You never had any disagreements from me, Master," the older of the pair replied. He spared a glance at Aedifex. "As to working quietly, well, that remains to be seen."

Merunir already had some small experience with Magecrafting. His father utilized the art in his own way, but the Coldforge patriarch had proven to be a most dismal instructor. When Aravon declared the intent to instruct the pair in Staffmaking, he had to bite back a snide remark. Merunir's father had asked that he be instructed in magecrafting in general; that his relative specialized in staves made no difference.

He followed the magecrafter downwards, trailing Aedifex with purpose, his eyes sweeping over every detail of the chamber they were led in to, or such as what he could see from his vantage point. Candles on the floor, the staff on the pedestal, runes inscribed all over the marble surface; a far cry from the rough-shod compartment set to one side of the Coldforge smithy.

From his father, Merunir knew that magecrafting was both a delicate craft, and at the same time one of the safer ones around. A failed project was generally something that just didn't work; no pyrotechnics were to be had. As such, Merunir wasn't terribly surprised that Aravon wasn't teaching them down at the Silver Tower in Pitrius City, far below their feet. The Sentinels generally gave Magecrafters a wide latitude.

As Aravon began, Merunir's eyes were drawn back to the older Isur. "Auristics, Master," he replied to the inquiry. "I am a novice, to be sure, though my mother seems to think that I have a natural grasp of it." He paused, chuckling softly. "That, or she's a better teacher than my father."

With that said, Merunir turned his eyes to regard his cousin, patiently waiting for Aedifex's revelations. He was so much younger, and very much in that stage of rebelliousness that all near-adults go through. Merunir hadn't balked at the announcement of a partner. What better way for learning the strengths and weaknesses of others than by direct observation? Merunir had no intentions of undercutting Aedifex; there was nothing to gain. Not yet, at any rate. That could very well change in the future, and an understanding of the man as he was now would provide a foundation for understanding the man he would one day develop into.

Once their particulars had been established to their instructor’s satisfaction, Merunir turned his eyes to the pedestal. "What manner of enhancement have you been commissioned to apply to this staff, Master?" He was attempting to turn the topic of discussion back towards the task at hand: Merunir was far more interested in the practical demonstrations and hands-on lessons that they had to look forward to, than any amount of discussion about each other. True, their individual abilities had the potential of improving the resulting product, but one had to be able to do it before they could improve upon it.

[Aedifalse]

It seemed that the older cousin had a similar type and proficiency of personal magic as him. It was unsurprising, however, since the most common personal magical disciplines that tended to be paired by Magecrafting and other crafting-type world wizardry would be Auristics, Shielding and Voiding, generally in that order.

"Beginner's Auristics, Uncle Aravon," The adolescent said smugly, emphasizing his use of the term of endearment as a passive-aggressive way of inching himself closer to the elder magecrafter, and also to subtly place himself above the hierarchy among apprentices despite his younger age. Kids tended to be like that.

"Might I also mention that I know a little of runic scribbles as well," He added in an attempt to cement his position.

"That will not be necessary, Aedifex. I asked for personal magic because it will be relevant later on," Aravon almost immediately shut the kid down. As a fellow Pitirus, it would be inconceivable that he not recognize the political manoeuvring for what it was.

Turning to face Merunir, the magecrafter replied, "As a whole the entire project is a simple one. Two charges of upgrades, one of which is to create the identity of the staff. The other is a simple structural enhancement to reduce the chances of stored djed blowing up in the user's face."

He walked back to the pedestal, securing the quarterstaff in place as he adjusted the fragile array of optical lenses and bronze rings that were affixed above and to the side of the pedestal.

"Alright, let's start this slowly so I can get a real grasp of your proficiency," Aravon started. He needed to make sure that their claimed competency were really what it was, or things would go south really quickly midway into the crafting. "Aedifex, you initiate the charging spark."

Aedi immediately felt at home as he headed towards the pedestal. Finally, it was time for action, and he took comfort in simply doing rather than talking. He placed both his hands on the heavily glyphed podium, and began a shallow meditative process, clearing his mind in order to access the chaotic djed within his body. With a measured exhale, he gently pushed the arcane representation of his Will out into the pedestal, probing the enchanted construct.

With a little aid of his djed-vision, he blinked several times in order to get a better sense of the aura of the pedestal, and from his aura-perspective he read the astral map of the construct. Having uncovered the guidelines for the necessary spiritual path, he pushed through with his Will, navigating the astral protocols as he triggered the various points in the pedestal.

With a hum, the arcane podium came to life, and a brief white light flashed from Aedi's hands, before centering around the pedestal itself and lowering into a warm, blue tone.

Aravon nodded and he turned to Merunir as he gestured towards the set of runic glassware that stood beside the pedestal, "Why don't you tell me what you see, with and without Auristics?"

[Merunir]

Merunir stifled a sigh of exasperation at the youngster's transparent attempts at maneuvering. It might stand him well in places where deceit and favoritism held sway, but such was completely alien to the realms of djed manipulation, regardless of the discipline at hand. His own father had taught him that well before he had reached Aedifex's age. Djed was as black-and-white as a Pitrius could get.

As Aravon spoke about the manipulations that had been commissioned for this project, Merunir listened and tried to apply what he knew to what Aravon was saying, mentally at least. If he remembered the lessons his father had tried to give him, the structural enhancement should be simple enough. Identity, however, had been beyond the elder Coldforge's ability to teach.

With the instructions to Aedifex given, Merunir watched, tuning his sight into that which displayed auras. It was fuzzy, indistinct, especially at distance. What His cousin was doing, however, was clear enough, even for Merunir's myopic Auristic Vision. He was shaken out of his silent reverie by his uncle's inquiry. "I see the pedestal and the staff," Merunir said simply. He spoke as if that were all there was to be said, even though he clearly knew there was more to the answer that had been intended for him to give.

He grinned, nodding knowingly. "Apologies, Master." He wasn't sorry, but one had to mollify oneself to a superior when necessary. "The pedestal has been charged, as you instructed ... " He blinked several times, as if trying to clear something out of his eyes. "My skills with Auristics is limited. It is difficult to focus on the minute details."

The young isur moved back, squeezing his eyes shut for a moment before reopening them to normal sight. He took a deep breath, and then stepped around behind the magecrafting lenses. Almost immediately, the visual representation of the djed pathways within both the pedestal, the staff, and Aedifex sprang into view, with far more precision and detail than his Sight had ever allowed, even when getting up close to the object of his attention.

"With the lenses in proper alignment, I can see the ley lines within the objects within the circle," Merunir continued. "According to what little I've been taught, merely touching the staff at this point will effect alterations in the djed paths. Certain tools .... " he said, drifting off as he cast his eyes about the chamber. The collection of specially crafted tongs, tweezers, clamps, mallets, and hammers were soon indicated. "Ah, yes. These will allow a magecrafter the capacity to properly manipulate the object without undue disruption, and precisely alter the djed paths to achieve the desired effect."

So, he knew his basic Magecrafting Lore, as well as the various tools that went with the craft and their basic concepts of use. That sort of stuff was child’s play, especially when it came from an Isur hailing from a family like the Coldforge, known for its magecrafters. What had yet to be revealed, however, was how well he could APPLY that knowledge. Had he ever even used a hammer, or handled an object with the tongs?