Closed Branding (Nephti)

[Sayana]

Powerful. Makes you stronger. Sayana focused in on the benefits that this magic could bring and scarcely paid attention to the words of caution her slave mentioned. Sure it could be dangerous, but everything had its dangers. She just had to overcome them. Her lips quirked upwards in a smile when Nephti said that it would be easy for her, that she was already essentially doing it. Enter a trance… The Eypharian recalled someone in Alvadas who had seemingly been doing nothing, but perhaps he was merely in a trance and preparing for greater magic. It was boring, and hard to see how useful it could actually be, but maybe that was the key to unlock these powers.

Yet when Nepthi mentioned that it might take several days and nights staring in a mirror, Sayana was jerked out of her own thoughts. “Many days and nights?” She questioned swiftly. “No, you will teach me tonight. We will not leave until I have accomplished this. I must see that it is not some elaborate tale and that it is true and real.”

She continued to interrupt and speak over Nephti as the slave elaborated. “Instinctive, yes. Feel the magic grow, surge, overwhelm. And find the weaknesses, the cracks. Yes, yes. Let me begin.” There was impatience in her voice partly stemming from the thought that it might take her longer to learn this technique than she had first anticipated.

Sayana exhaled a long breath in preparation for what was to come. She had to enter a trance. Something to unlock this magic. Sayana first focused on Nephti, specifically her eyes. The soft shade of brown, the deepness of her pupils. For about a chime she simply studied the girl’s eyes, boring into them. It is said that the eyes are windows into one’s soul. Was that in reference to this magic specifically? Both Aren and Nivel had said that anyone could potentially do magic, and while initially being skeptical of such, Sayana was now determined to succeed in this.

A language of emotion… How does one transmit emotion? More often than not, Sayana used tone and body language to excite emotion, or even showing the emotion herself and letting its contagious effects take hold. With that in mind, she breathed in slowly and maintained her piercing stare. She started channeling her emotions. Instead of flitting from thought to thought she tried to focus on just one emotion to transmit. Which one should she pick? Pride.

Gathering her thoughts she focused on that sense of accomplishment. That possessive feeling of earning something for yourself. The surge in your heart when it is a success. Something that can’t be taken away and can swell within you and… The crackle of the fire distracted her and she shook herself out of the trance she had tried so hard to create.

“Well? Did you feel anything? What was the emotion?” Sayana asked while abruptly standing up. She had only been trying for a couple of chimes and already she was finding it hard. Even hard to simply focus for so long. Her attempt hadn’t even scraped her hidden store of djed, and if anything was accomplished at all, it was merely as a result of wishful thinking.

[Nephti]

Sayana was impatient. She rushed over it, and told her she would learn tonight. That would be impossible. Magic was hard. It wasn't something one could unlock with little work. Nephti knew that much. The feeling of impatience wouldn't just cover the learning part, she knew that as well, and that would be troublesome. If you were impatient, you would suffer the consequences of overgiving. Slow and steady, that was how it was done.

Sayana spent a chime staring into her eyes, thinking, breathing, before shaking herself out of the trance, and asking whether anything had worked. Nephti hadn't felt anything different. If she had, it was so weak and feeble, it had blended with what she already felt. Of course it wouldn't have worked. Sayana wouldn't have achieved anything with a chime of concentration.

If Nephti told her the truth, however, Sayana might not be happy. She was expecting something, and if she didn't get it, maybe she wouldn't keep her promise about not branding her. If she lied, there was a chance she wouldn't guess the emotion, and Sayana would find out later anyway. When she found out that Nephti would lied, perhaps the punishment would be even worse

"No," she decided to go with the truth, "Too short, must be longer." Her lower hands gripped each other under the table, slight anticipation. "It is hard, it must take a long time." She brought her mid hands down to the lower arms, holding them still as well. They shook slightly with fear, but she tried to hide it. Her mistress wouldn't hurt her again. Again. Sayana had already proved herself capable of taking the slave's neck in her hands. She was scary, when she didn't get what she wanted.

"You can do it," she smiled, trying to reassure her. The fire in the room must have distracted her. The presence of someone else too. Maybe Sayana would be able to do it quicker, but in the right conditions. Entering a trance was hard. Nephti had barely managed to do it. She had required silence and complete stillness. Sayana would too, if she remained impatient.

"If we leave when we accomplish, then we will never leave. Many distractions are here. It will take long time." But that would do nothing to prove that it wasn't an elaborate tale. "But it is real. I promise. You felt it. I can show again. You need to spend long time."

The amount of times she had said long time over the past few chimes. If Sayana hadn't got the point, she never would. It would be pointless to repeat it, because by now, she was tired of saying the words. There was nothing more to say - if she really wanted to learn, she would take the long process that Nephti had. That was all she knew, but it worked, for certain. Sayana simply had to have faith and hope in what Nephti spoke of.

[Sayana]

Sayana let out a sigh of frustration when Nephti said that it hadn’t worked and that it needed more time. Within the next tick she found herself pacing. She wanted to figure this out. She wanted to accomplish something great. She was vaguely aware of her slave’s words of guidance and encouragement. But mostly the message from her slave was time, that she needed more time. Time to do what? Nephti wasn’t saying how to do it.

She glanced over at the girl. Her slave didn’t seem entirely comfortable. But was that because the teaching wasn’t going as well as planned or because she was afraid that Sayana might discover the truth of her ‘story’?

Suddenly a thought occurred to her. Maybe she was simply approaching it wrong. Maybe instead of trying to pierce an emotion through to the other person, it was better to engulf and surround someone with the emotion. Maybe physical contact or being next to the person made it easier to use the magic. After all, a touch can sometimes evoke far more than a word.

“Nephti, come sit by the fire with me. I want to try again, but I need something soothing yet powerful to focus on.” She gestured for her slave to sit down first so that she might situate herself behind her. “I won’t hurt you,” she reassured as she knelt down. The fire held power. Perhaps she could use it to unlock her own. The Eypharian looked over Nephti’s shoulder as she gazed into the flame. Delicately, her high hands pulled at Nephti’s long silky hair and tucked her brown locks behind her ears. Her mid hands rested lightly upon the girl’s shoulders, and her low left wrapped around to press upon Nephti’s heart. There she might be able to feel any sudden changes in emotion, be it fear or excitement or anxiety that might cause the girl’s heart to race. It was a rather close and intimate position, for Sayana felt no need to maintain a gap between her chest and Nephti’s back while she stared into the fire.

“Let me try again with a bit more time,” she whispered softly into the girl’s ear and began to concentrate on the dancing flames in the hearth. A ‘bit’ more time was unlikely to suffice but she did renew her efforts to learn this magic. The reds and oranges of the fire flickered this way and that. It was steady movement, never stopping for a moment. It was like a dance, swaying and churning to the beat of its own music. She had to empty her thoughts and focus only on the fire before her. It was easier to focus on than Nephti’s eyes. It was always changing and kept her interested, rather than letting her thoughts waver to other topics. She could tune out her frustration and let the image of the flame engulf her. Engulf… She had to learn to engulf someone in her emotions so that they might feel the same.

Fire. The warmth. She imagined a general sense of warmth flooding her body. And not only that, but seeping through her hands and chest to blend and mingle with Nephti’s presence. The crackling of the flame calmed her, and she breathed in deeply focusing and repeating the process. Warmth, strength… the fire aided her in creating the imagery as she tried to push and engulf such feelings into Nephti’s mind. She held the girl more firmly, no longer delicate but with a strong presence instead. Most importantly she tried to feel for any changes with her hand upon the girl’s heart.

Passion? Sayana was momentarily distracted as she tried to add yet a third emotion. She exhaled hot breath upon the back of the Eypharian’s neck. It was instinctive, like second nature, but it was not magic. Besides the girl was young and might not have even encountered such feelings, especially during her slavery. Sayana’s body clenched involuntarily as she found herself growing frustrated once more.

“Anything this time? Surely you must have felt something.”

[Nephti]

After Sayana had time to think about what she said, she called Nephti to sit beside the fire. The slave perched on the floor, facing the roaring flames cautiously. While Sayana reassured that she wouldn't hurt her, Nephti remained vigilant, trying to watch the woman in the back of her eye.

The woman's hands moved to rest one pair on her hair, the other on her shoulders and the lower pair to wrap round to press her heart. Sayana moved forward, into the strange and awkward hug position Nephti found uncomfortable. Sayana could feel every movement, even breathing, and her heart beat, and Nephti found herself trying to regulate them, watching the fire as she breathed in slowly, before exhaling even slower.

Sayana whispered softly in her ear, so softly the girl almost mistook it for a fly and had to remember not to bat it away. The woman's breathing seemed to match her own as she began to focus, before her grip tightened. For a second, her mind flashed back to the tight grip around her neck, and the slave girl squirmed, before realising it was a firm grip, not a violent one.

A grip one might use with a friend or family member. Not a slave. A breath of warm air on her neck made her clench her teeth and sink into the ground. It was uncomfortable. This closeness - she had never had someone hug her like this. She was a slave, with no friends or even good acquaintances. It made her incredibly uncomfortable; so much, she broke free, stepping away quickly.

The Eypharian had felt nothing but her own emotions. She was almost certain of that. She hoped. What she felt she would have felt with anyone, and she knew that well. Sayana's attempt must have failed, for she would have known what was and wasn't her own feelings. It failed.

"I felt nothing, but my own emotions. I felt awkward and uncomfortable, and that was because of the way you sat, not magic. You did not make me feel that." What had she tried to create? What emotions had she tried to instill? Questions she wanted to ask, but wouldn't. Not after claiming that everything Sayana had tried had failed -everything Nephti was meant to teach her had gone wrong.

[Sayana]

Sayana fought to hide her frustration. Anyone could do magic. Anyone. Why couldn’t she? She had been close to Nephti and could practically feel her lifeforce, the very essence of the girl that she was trying to manipulate. And yet Nephti hadn’t felt anything, though she had certainly looked uncomfortable or awkward when she had stepped away. Could she have been lying? There wasn’t much incentive to.

The Eypharian breathed slowly and tried to keep herself calm and her wits about her. There must be something she was missing. Something more to this ‘hypnotism’. But even as she tried to think of some secret means to unlock this talent, she started looking at other details. There was an uneasiness to the girl. She could see it in her posture, scrunched up and tense rather than relaxed. She seemed genuine in her attempts, but also scared.

Sayana slowly rose to her feet with a new tactic in mind. There was a commanding sense of grace to her movement and she fixed her eyes in a long stare at the girl. “You do realize that we won’t be leaving until I’ve learned how to do this, right?” The threat was there in her voice, but she wasn’t pushing it quite so hard. She had to be more subtle this time. Yet she still had to set the stage.

Once more she gazed into Nephti’s eyes, boring into the rich brown. However, her gaze drifted to the side to look at the fire. Once, twice, each time purposefully to draw her slave’s attention. “Unless…” She left the sentence hanging, hoping that it would fuel the imagination. Her mid hands came together as she idly circled her palm, the palm in which she had planned to place the brand upon Nephti.

She took a step nearer to the girl, then another. A slow smile was forming upon her lips and she breathed in imaging what the smell of singed flesh would be like. She kept approaching, and soon moved well within the comfortable space people liked to have around them. Quickly, she raised a high hand and brought it towards Nephti’s face as if to slap her, but stopped at the last tick to gently caress her cheek.

“Fear, right?”

It was hardly framed as a question, and might not have even needed an answer. She turned abruptly and started heading for the door. “Nephti, we’re going now.”

Sayana had not even tried to use magic for the last time. There were moments where she had merely pretended to focus on some unknown force, but it was just part of her act. Whether or not Nephti knew that it had been through presence and skill alone, Sayana wasn’t too concerned. But there was one thing that the Eypharian was dearly trying to keep intact. Her pride.

Note to Grader :

Even though Sayana wasn’t successful in actually performing hypnotism (mostly due to the time constraints she set up), I would really appreciate it to either get lores on roughly how to do the initiation process or at least one point in hypnotism (due to learning the concepts from a teacher). I plan to write a solo where she is properly initiated into the magic but does it on her own and truly reaches that state of mind where she can access the magic. But from an OOC perspective, I’m not sure if I can do that without at least some sort of ‘proof’ that she knows the basic concepts of hypnotism. Thanks.

[Nephti]

Sayana scared her with the threat in her voice, rising to her feat to a position of authority. Her eyes bore into hers, before drifting to the fire, and confusing her. She spoke, but left it hanging, approaching slowly, smiling slyly. Nephti found her heart pace faster, Sayana coming far too close for comfort. She moved her hand and brought it to slap her.

Nephti tensed, all arms moving up in slight defense. It was fear, like Sayana had said. Fear, but there was no magic. She would have known. She would have felt it. A small piece of her doubted it, but it couldn't have been true magic. Sayana had spent no time learning Hypnotism.

She was an actress. Sayana was an actress, and this was something that anyone could easily do. Sayana had played with her emotions, not with magic, but with acting and actions. Nephti had felt fear, and it couldn't have been the Eypharian woman.

Nephti didn't want to believe it. As much as she respected the magic, she had a feeling if Sayana ever learned it, the woman would exploit it. The woman would become more dangerous if she did. Hopefully, there would be some time until that actually happened.

But they were leaving. And Nephti was glad about it. No more brand. A small smile escaped her lips. No brand. No brand at all.

[Fable]

As the women left, dark eyes watched their departure, a heavy frown upon heavy features. There would be no more of that in the forge.

S A Y A N A

a d r o i t . a c c r e t i o n s

❁ planning 1
❁ philosophy 2
❁ drawing 1
❁ persuasion 2
❁ acting 3
❁ subterfuge 1
❁ tactics2
❁ intimidation 2
❁ negotiation 5
❁ intelligence 1
❁ unarmed 1
❁ torture 1
❁ interrogation 3
❁ meditation 2
❁ storytelling 1
❁ hypnosis 2

e s p i e d . e r u d i t i o n

❁ Hypnosis: Initiation Theory
❁ Hypnosis: A Magic of Patience

r e c o m p e n s e . a n d . r e t r i b u t i o n

❃ Sayana and Nephti will no longer find themselves very welcome at Kitrean Krafts. Any interactions will be short and clipped, and they will need to pay 1.2x the price of anything bought from the shop.

d e t e r m i n a t i v e . d i c t a

Sayana is terrifying. Just saying. Also a couple small notes: while it's not game breaking, the chances of an Isur letting another race stay in his forge alone for any amount of time for any amount of money is very very unlikely. As for the hypnosis, it wasn't quite powerplaying, but it was close. I would say just double check anytime you feel like Sayana should notice, as from what I've seen, she's pretty easily distracted, which is usually something that lends itself towards getting hypnotized. That's more just something to think about, as Nepthi did try to get her to do something pretty against her character objectives ha ha!

N E P H T I

a d r o i t . a c c r e t i o n s

❁ childcare 1
❁ socialization 3
❁ investigation 1
❁ intelligence 2
❁ meditation 1
❁ hypnotism 2
❁ negotiation 3
❁ tactics 3
❁ subterfuge 1
❁ endurance 1
❁ persuasion 3
❁ storytelling 1
❁ teaching 1
❁ logic 1
❁ escape artist 1

e s p i e d . e r u d i t i o n

❁ Promise to Sayana: No Hypnotism
❁ Teaching: Repetition of Explanation

r e c o m p e n s e . a n d . r e t r i b u t i o n

❃ Sayana and Nephti will no longer find themselves very welcome at Kitrean Krafts. Any interactions will be short and clipped, and they will need to pay 1.2x the price of anything bought from the shop.
❃ Overgiving with hypnotism is now more likely to cause bleeding from the mouth and nose at medium overgiving and beyond.

d e t e r m i n a t i v e . d i c t a

Very nice! I see you working on your language proficiency. Thank you for doing that. Definitely keep it up! By the end it was much more in line her were abilities. As for the magic, especially at novice, definitely delve into the djed and the manipulation and will of it. I awarded you the points this time, but in the future, I will need to see clear descriptions of what the djed is doing, how she's doing it, and in what capacity. As she gets to competent and beyond, you can get a bit more lax with the descriptions if you want to just use the magic, but I'll always need to see djed manipulation in order to reward points from here on out. Thank you, and keep up the good work!

]