RP:An Angha is Born
Library of Arcane Knowledge
A Prior Conversation
Svilfon has been sitting in the same arm-chair since he wandered into the library after waking up from last night's ordeal. His robes are still ragged, a gaping hole in the front and back showing the terrible wound in his stomach. Every so often, the deceased wizard will finish with a book and whisper a few quiet words. It would float back to its spot in the shelf, before another would make its way over to his out-stretched hand. What he seeks to find isn't clear, but after the last few days his research topic may be obvious.
Kirien rather liked libraries. There was something about them that drew him in amongst their shelves; but whether it was the vast amount of knowledge all contained in one space, ready to be utilised; or if it was simply that he enjoyed the thick but calming air of such a room, he was not sure. Still, he was here now, slipping between bookcases, running his fingers lightly over the rough skeletons of books packed onto each shelf, clearly searching for something that'd catch his interest. The empath appeared to find one soon enough, a digit pausing on the spine of one before he'd be drawing it out from its place. Old tome in hand, he turned to head into the central part of the library in search of a comfortable spot to sit and try to read - Svilfon came under Kirien's curious scrutiny when he appeared out of the bookcases to flop down in a cosy high-backed seat opposite the wizard, wrapped in a heavy, white-fur coat. He sniffed. "You smell different again," he commented as though thinking it a fitting greeting, before the crackle of an old book’s spine being bent slightly filled the air.
Svilfon was caught within the words he's reading; an archaic tome written by an ancient mage. It explains in detail the drastic consequences of infusing young mages with too much power too quickly. Most die. Some... change... There was a time in the past when mages would do so just for the value of research. The truth of this time is hidden in secret within the Mage's Guild, and very few knew the names of the sorcerers involved. Luckily, Svil's love of books almost equals Satoshi's, and he knew who was responsible for the twisted experiments. So one of those, a vile creature, was the author of the book he reads. When Kirien makes his unique greeting, a flicker of irritation flashes across the wizard's brow, before he looked up at the empath. "It's been a... long night." His moment of brief frustration soon dissolves, though, as he sees the terramancer open the book. "You can.. read?" He is careful not to mock the man in his tones, though he finds the idea of a blind man reading quite amusing.
Kirien’s book was named simply, from what he’d worked out by its spine, ‘Act IV’. He’d no idea what exactly it was the fourth act -of-, as his fingers, deft as they were, had been unable to trace out any semblance of a title. Starting with Act I would probably be smarter…but only if he could actually read the books. The pages of the tome were cracked and dry and the first few were carefully skimmed over with a hand in search of indentations and anything recognisable; but Kirien’s frown only grew and deepened, until a brief spark of agitation from Svilfon had the empath glancing up and peeking sightlessly over the rim of his glasses. “Apparently. You feel…” A hand raised so as to wiggle long fingers pointedly in the direction of that wound in the wizard’s stomach and Kirien pursed his lips for a moment. “You feel…injured? There.” There was something about the flesh in that area that just didn’t sit right with him - probably because it was still healing and likely ragged in places, not as it should be. The question, though, drew his attentions away from the injury. “…No.” He frowned back down at the book. “Not this one, at least.”
Svilfon ignores for a moment Kirien's questioning motion at his stomach; the wound is vicious, though roughly strapped, it still leaks small amounts of blood. It could explain why beside the wizard was a corked bottle of blood-wine; something to hold off his always present hunger. The horrendous pain doesn't seem to bother the man all that much - perhaps because it reminded him he was no longer being consumed by the darkness within... He shakes his head, before whispering a harsh word into the quiet air. The book in Kirien's hand would lift suddenly, and assuming there is no resistance, it would float over to Svil's grasp. He places his own book down for a moment, and re-opens the book roughly in the middle. There he begins to read aloud, "...The mountains flew beneath me, quicker and quicker. There was freedom in this flight, yet also fear; the unending coldness so high was a problem I could not solve. Yet I am becoming more and more addicted to the potions. An eagle to fly, a horse to run, a fish to swim... The polymorphing effect is intoxicating. If only I could find a way to control it. Twice now I have been thinking about steaks and turned into a cow. Eating grass is about as unpleasant as it sounds..." The wizard snickers before speaking in his normal voice, "It speaks of an apothecary. He wrote many volumes about various potions. A fine choice, Kirien." With the same word spoken, the wizard releases the book. It dances across the area between them, before settling once more in the empath's grasp.
Kirien had allowed the book to fall freely onto his lap for a minute, busy tugging the collar of his coat up a little higher round his neck, creating a fluffy nest to bury his face in. White fur curled close round pallid cheeks and he found a sense of vague familiarity in the soft touch. When hands lowered in search of the book again, they found it gone; and the empath was almost fearing that it was one of those especially enchanted things and had grown legs and run off, when Svilfon started reading and white-tipped ears perked up to listen to the short excerpt. He only discovered that the man had somehow stolen his book when he finished, and it was returned to his knees - only to be quickly taken up in hand when Kirien stood, huffily, and moved to return it to its bookshelf. “Interestin’ it may be but I can’t read it, an’ that’s problematic for obvious reasons. She has to have somethin’ in here I can read…” He’d disappear for a minute or so after that mutter and would be heard shoving books around and wandering between cases, before abruptly the terramancer strode triumphantly back into view from the opposite side of the room as he’d left, three large books carried against his chest. “These ones feel different. Maybe I can read ‘em,” he said, falling back into that chair and opening the topmost tome. It screamed and he slammed it shut again, cutting off the ear-splitting screech. “…Next.”
Svilfon gets a small smile on his face as Kirien huffily gets up and wanders off back into the library. The deceased wizard uses this time to take a drink from his blood-wine, before leaving it loosely corked on the small table beside him. His book once again opened, the wizard resumes his careful study; wanting to learn everything he can about what was lurking within him. The triumphant return of the empath is met with a raised hand, "Don't..." Too late. The ear-piercing scream from the book echoes through the library, disturbing the ancient tomes and leaving the wizard with a ringing in his ear. "Those pox-faced books!" He speaks loudly above the insistent ringing. "God-damn mages thought it'd be a good way to catch sneaky magelings." The wizard shakes his head, causing his hat to fall somewhat off-centre. "Effin' morons. We trap the books with..." He stops and clears his throat; some secrets must remain in the guild. "There are books here written on gold - their letters carved into the surface to survive the ages... Find those ones, eh?" He grins, before picking up his blood-wine and offering it to Kirien. "Drink. Just not too much. I still need it for... this." He motions to his stomach, not even sure if the blind terramancer would see.
Kirien, though mildly shell-shocked, did make absent note of the lingering echo of that scream and the way the entire library seemed to whisper afterwards, just for a little while. He held tightly to the book as if he thought it might suddenly open up of its own accord and start yelling again, and stared across at Svilfon. “The -hell-. Why do you people booby-trap books like that?!” Indignant, and more than a bit surprised, he shoved the tome onto the table beside him and laid the other two atop it, just in case, before standing for a second time to go in search of the mentioned and utterly intriguing golden-carved books. They should not be too difficult to find, he figured, peering about the surrounding shelves before an offer of bloodwine came and Kirien stepped over to the wizard, plucking that bottle out of his hands in order to throw back a drink or two of it. It was handed back rather than set on the table, perhaps to occupy Svilfon’s hands as the empath leaned over to prod lightly at the seated man’s injured stomach once or twice, curious. “What exactly happened anyway?” he asked, then shifted away in search of gold books.
Svilfon snickers again - he did enjoy the empath's company. "To stop curious bastards like you learning all our secrets," his voice is good natured as he speaks, clearly light-hearted ribbing between the members of their coven. As Kirien goes in search, the wizard flicks through his own book. Not finding what he wants within the words, he drops it to the table beside him. There was nothing on this. Hands lift to rub tired eyes, before the terramancer returns to take a drink of his blood-wine. Svilfon is careful not to mention he was given it by Ilydia. No-one in their right mind would drink something given to them by that psychotic little weirdo. He takes it back from the empath, before having the horrible wound in his stomach prodded. It is not pleasant. But in light of his comrades condition he doesn't complain; the man has to see somehow. When Kirien wanders off in search of the golden books, Svil speaks loudly to him - uncaring of disturbing the peace, considering no-one else was in the great room. "Your sister happened, Kirien... She stabbed me with Asorial..." He lowers his voice to a whisper, "As she promised she would..." With a light shake of his head, the man carries on. "You are planning on going through with Kasyr's ritual? It is.. not pleasant."
Kirien might have huffed from somewhere amidst the myriad bookcases and packed shelves, “But I’m a mage too, aren’t I? I should be able to look at books I probably can’t read anyway without them screamin’ at me-- ohh.” The murmured exclamation he interrupted himself with was one of clear wonderment; seemed he’d found something of interest. He’d be heard rifling around and then, apparently, jumping up and down a couple of times, either in excitement or simply because he couldn’t reach whatever had caught his eye, though he wouldn’t elaborate on which it was if Svilfon bothered to ask. “My sister! Asorial is…Asorial is not as bad as Gospel at least! I think. Wrathful, and wicked, but…” He sniffed again. “Kinda wish she didn’t have to suffer that thing, you know? You can’t do much about it though, from what I can tell. Why’d she promise to stab you?” When he returned, the empath’s arms were weighed down with a good few black-bound books, their insides a teasing glint of gold and shimmers that his fingers were already itching to explore. Reclaiming his seat, Kirien watched Svilfon a moment, the pile of books balanced precariously on his thighs. “The ritual for…gifts? Or powers or somethin’? He mentioned them yesterday.” For a second, uncertainty was visible in the eye situated behind the thin glass of those spectacles, before he tugged at his coat some and shrugged. “Dunno. I guess so.”
Svilfon replies to Kirien as he's still huffing about in the shelves, the wizard's continued amusement obvious, "I don't bloody know! Are you? If you are..." He clears his throat, thinking Satoshi would have already offered to sponsor him into the guild. "You know," he ends lamely. Svilfon waits until Kirien returned with his treasure before he replied to the empath, not wanting his words yelled across the library, regardless of how alone they are. "She... grew a tail, at least. Black. Tell her it suits her, she might not mind it so much." Compliments from a blind person, Svil couldn't keep the sardonic grin from his face. "She promised me if I became.. too changed," he is not quite willing to speak the truth, though the empath may notice the hesitation. "She would kill me. Damn near did." He lightly prods his own wound, "But it was needed, Kirien, to halt the darkness..." The wizard shudders. They may have trapped Colton's malicious nature away for now, but the vampire can still feel it within; like a grotesque wound that continues to fester. "She did it for me because I asked..." The man clears his throat, before taking another long drink from his bottled blood-wine. "Beware of the ritual, Kirien, my brother... It is not what Kasyr thinks it is." He falls silent then, either in quiet contemplation, or because Kirien seems to be bursting at the seams to read his newly found books.
“I should think,” said Kirien a little absent-mindedly as he prodded at the first book’s cover, “ that I am a mage of a sort. Of a sort. You’d think -you- might know, bein’ one yourself. Of a sort.” Shoulders rolled in an idle shrug and he focused half on the book and half on Svilfon; the man continued to talk while he went about inspecting the his new finding from end to end, poking at its outer binding and running his fingertips over the spine and its indentations brought on both by unfathomable age and by the title carved into the leather when it was first bound. “Another tail? …She’s got four now? I’m sure it suits her just fine though.” Grinning faintly, he finally opened the cover so as to stroke his fingers lightly over the first golden page, inhaling sharply before exhaling in a relieved sigh, pleased he could read its words. He glanced up at Svilfon when the wizard mentioned darkness, his hesitance brief but acknowledged quietly. “I feel it.” He’d met the man’s gaze despite being blind, watching him intently as though he could still see out of that useless eye. “Because it’s so strong. It’s bitter, and malevolent. It’s not somethin’ you should have there inside you. Why did it get put there?” As he spoke, Kirien had leaned over some, eye narrowing as he analysed the other. After a second, however, he sat back, nestling in to the plush cushions on the chair with the book open and shining in his lap, long fingers tracing words, gaze still affixed to Svilfon. An elegant brow quirked when Kasyr was mentioned. “What exactly do you mean by that?” As intriguing as the books were, these were topics Kirien was also interested in.
Svilfon tips his hat to the man, "I'm a wizard, my brother. I don't know about the feckin' mages... Satoshi aside, of course." He flashes a gap-toothed grin. "But I can test you to see one day. Shouldn't be too hard... If you survive, you'll get membership." He speaks of this casually; death amongst people seeking membership is high - it's how they are sure only the truly devoted earn their staff. "And aye, she's got four. And it does. Though, my brother, I may be biased in that regard. It was created to save me..." As Kirien's blind eye meets the wizard's pale gaze, the vampire can't help but shudder. "You feel it..." There was a bitter little laugh, then. "It seeks to consume me, Kirien... It seeks to take control... Even now, hidden away deep inside me, it whispers promises... Do you hear them, empath?" The wizard leans forward, his voice barely a whisper, "Can you hear it demanding I take up my wand and destroy you? To flay the skin from your bones to feed its unwavering demands for blood and suffering? Can you hear that, Kirien?" The wizard draws a sharp breath, then. The process to calm him more than any need to do so. "Who put it there?" The deceased spell-caster begins to laugh then, a wealth of sadness in the sound. It is the voice of the damned, the forsaken. "Kasyr did. To help me avenge the captain he wanted me to be stronger.. There is no strength in betraying who you are just to win..." The wizard stops talking then. Satoshi didn't understand his version of honour, he doesn't think Kirien will either.
Kirien clearly had trouble paying attention to his book, no matter how utterly fascinating its contents might be, when this sort of conversation was going on; so he closed its golden pages quietly and set it and the rest of its shimmery brethren on the table before he rose from his seat for the umpteenth time. The subject of the Guild and survival tests was mostly passed over, the empath simply giving a silent nod, otherwise distracted by more pressing topics. He grabbed hold of a short table and proceeded to drag it over to the wizard’s current position, setting it in front of the armchair before promptly sitting down on it, peering at the man. “The promises of malevolent shadows are nothing but sugar-coated lies. You mustn’t listen to it.” Leaning in as though mimicking the other’s own movement, Kirien jabbed at one of Svilfon’s robed knees, only to inhale sharply and withdraw some. “…Hah. What I hear an’ feel is a sound I know all too well, Svilfon, so I can tell you it’ll do you no good to listen. I’ve my own shadows hiding inside but they’re no trouble now I’ve won.” He might’ve grinned faintly, tail swishing absently. A white-tipped ear flicked. “If you give in, it’s all over. Right? If anythin’, you gotta best it - bend it to your will!” Another jab, before he abruptly quieted; and when he next spoke, his voice was a murmur. “What you have is dark and terrible an’ I’m not sure it was a good idea to put that in you,” he said. “But whatever it is, this…Blackness, you mustn’t let it devour you. There may be ways to get rid of it permanently after you’d utilised its power in the way you need to-- but not if you give in completely.” His head canted slightly to one side, the hand that had been prodding the wizard lifting to scruffle up unruly locks some. “An’ I’d hate to see a brother murdered because he lost himself.”
Svilfon keeps his gaze locked on Kirien as he moves the table across the room. As the empath sits down and peers at him, the vampiric wizard meets his sightless stare with a wary gaze. They were brothers, of a sort. Family. He would trust the terramancer. "I ignore as I can, Kirien... Otherwise one of us would be dead..." The wizard feels a burning down his back as he speaks those words; the insidious nature of Kasyr's command probably meaning they were not quite true. "You have your own shadows?" Svilfon moves his hand forward, to poke at the man's knee, mirroring his actions. "I do not feel them. Surrounded I am by empaths, I wonder if my silence is a gift." That would be a question for another day, though. He dismisses it from his mind and carries on. "It is the sins of Colton Black." The name hisses through the room like a twisted spirit. "He lived for torture, his pleasure found only in pain. I hold my own demons..." The wizard hesitates for a moment; he hasn't spoken to anyone about them before. "I have killed before, my brother - I have taken joy in the pain this caused the man's loved ones..." He spoke of Lasarus, the man the wizard killed then decapitated - the severed head then given to Joliette Thorne as a present. "These I can hold in check. Honour and loyalty, my friendship and those I love.. these are the shackles which keep the beast caged." The wizard rubs the back of his neck briefly, "But this... This is something else..." The vampire shakes his head, "In her garden, Satoshi and I forced him to flee. To seek solace in the depths of my mind. He knows I will destroy myself before I let him lead me to destruction... I just hope I have the strength to see it through.. for all our sakes, my brother... for us all."
Kirien’s fingers twitched a bit, curling and uncurling, grasping at the air and all its intangibility. He mustn’t touch - mustn’t try to work out more than what could already be perceived just by being in the same room as Svilfon and the shadows of Mister Black. “Ignore it or overcome it, aye. Eventually you may have to do the latter, whether you like it or not.” He gave a surprisingly casual shrug, but it was more than likely covering up tension. The sheer intensity of the malice that swirled inside the wizard, usually so jovial, intrigued and unnerved him all at once. “Shadows get hard to ignore. An’ of course I’ve got my own. I got a lot of things I probably shouldn’t have.” Legs shifted some after that return prod then were drawn up onto the table and crossed over, the empath assuming a slightly more comfortable position atop the furniture. “It probably is.” Silence. A gift. “For you maybe. For me, it’s an addition to my sight. I can’t see like normal people, so it makes sense that I should be able to see things those with eyesight might not always pick up on. The world is beautiful as it is distracting, don’t you think? People miss the little things - like emotions, and the cracks in the pavement or in people’s souls.” Once again he shrugged, wiggled his fingers some in his lap, but managed not to touch again. His brows rose when Svilfon mentioned killing and finding joy in it, though he made little comment on it. “As I said, I’ve my own shadows too. I’ve killed for entirely stupid reasons, or no reason at all. People change you though, I’ve found.” A thoughtful sort of expression crossed pallid features then before, after a moment or two of quiet deliberation, Kirien raised a hand, palm facing the wizard; not to silence him, but rather in offering of something. “If it ever gets too much; if you need some relief from it - a little contact is all I need to help remove it. You’ve got family here, right? You needn’t do everythin’ alone. I assume you realise this.”
Svilfon nods his head in silence as Kirien speaks, his expression a mix between fear and gratitude. But when he finally talks his voice is layered with just a hint of bitterness. "Overcome it, my brother... So Kasyr can try something new?" The wizard shakes his head. No, Satoshi had spoken the truth. It was the whispers of the malice trying to tear apart the vampire's family. "That is not true. Kasyr wanted to help... I am sure of it. She promised." Voices laugh in his head at those words, but the deceased wizard drives them down until they're almost silent. He would not believe the words he spoke; that this group was brought together to be the pawns of Kasyr and Satoshi alone. "You see, Kirien, far more than those of us with sight do." The wizard gives a sad little laugh, "I wish sometimes I had of seen things more clearly before. But as you say, all people change. She said it too. It is how we deal with these changes that make us who we are. It gives us strength when we are weak. It shines a light in the darkness to lead us out." He nods then, firmly. "This darkness, the disease, it will not defeat me, Kirien." The wizard reaches out and takes the hand that's lifted, even though that wasn't its intention. "I would not damn you with this curse, my brother. Though, your words are enough to help ease the burden. We are family, of a sorts." The empath might pick up the strength the wizard gains in those simple words, "And of course it is true for me, too. I can not ease pain like you can, nor can I destroy the demons that plague us... But if you need me for anything, anything," he pauses for a moment, "you need just ask. Even if it is just someone to listen, to voice frustrations... or someone to jump from the clouds with." A literal thing for the wizard. "Call me, my brother, and I will come."
Kirien might have blinked a bit at the wizard’s tone of voice, bemusement clear in his eye, but brief. He leaned in some again, as though he thought that being closer and scrutinising him further might yield some hidden answer. “Do you hate him? Kasyr,” he asked, now seeming thoughtful again before abruptly he scoffed and waved a hand, sitting back. “No, that’s not the point. Whatever your answer to that, it doesn’t matter much - but I don’t think he’d be stupid enough to do somethin’ like that. The man knows what he’s doin, y’know? I don’t know how but he does. But he’s also sneaky, so maybe that’s just what he wants me to think. Ah! He’s complicated an’ utterly aggravatin’ sometimes.” Flinging his arms up rather dramatically, the empath had almost been making to stand when he found himself grounded, fingers wrapped round his hand; and a lightning bolt of something distinctly ominous shot through Kirien’s body, as if that darkness within Svilfon did not want him near. Kirien’s brows furrowed. “That is some…vicious thing, is for sure,” he murmured, momentarily distracted as his other hand raised to curl over the wizard’s own. Goosebumps rose up on the tops of his hands and all up his arms, though those were mostly covered by his heavy coat, hinting to the fact that he was probably feeling far more than he should be right now, but could not quite find it within himself to let go. “Aye.” It came out softly, somewhat strained in its undertone. “We’re family.” Jump from clouds? The vampire honestly didn’t know what to make of that comment - but then, he figured, perhaps jumping from clouds was fun, in the same sense that leaping off of cliffs and into the unknown was. “Of course I’ll call.”
Svilfon nods his head to Kirien in solemn agreement. "If doing this was him knowing what he was doing..." the wizard falls briefly silent. "I do not hate him, my brother. Perhaps when this is done I will even thank him... But not yet." The vampire leaves it at that. He had no wish to sow any doubts within his family; he can feel Colton's malevolent spirit enjoying it far too much. As their hands are joined, and the empath's other joins the grip, Svilfon can feel the screams raging in his mind. Demanding he draw clear of the terramancer and his corrupted touch. But he doesn't, not yet anyway. He defies the will within him, even as he sees the empath's distraction as he realises the truth of what was forced deep inside the wizard. "Vicious... It is... But it will not win." The wizard pulls back his hand, freeing Kirien from the troubling touch, from sharing the burden, brief as it was, of the beast within the spell-caster. "Thank you, Kirien..." Of what exactly he thanks the man for is not made clear, but the words are earnestly spoken. "We are our family. Together, nothing can stop us. That is the point of it all, isn't it?" He'd laugh then, the sound a little forced. "Durable. That is us, my brother... always."
Kirien gradually began to seem a little jumpier the longer his hands remained clasped round Svilfon’s own and caught in close contact with that malicious spirit lingering beneath the surface; so he was quietly thankful when the man made to pull back and he found it within himself to release him and allow it. Once or twice he looked down at his palms as if he expected to feel corruption and decay spreading across his skin. There was nothing, but the paranoia and the lingering sensation that haunted him prompted a few concerned glances to Svilfon, who he knew would still have to deal with that feeling even now. After a long pause in which he felt mildly disappointed in himself for not being able to siphon any of that vicious thing away, he rose and nudged the table off to one side, returning to his own chair and falling into it, glad for even the slight extra distance between himself and that residual aura flickering about the wizard. Even though he wanted to help, that feeling was…strong, and entirely unpleasant to be around. Arms folded and unfolded, and legs did the same, until he was mimicking the cross-legged position he’d taken up on the table, only now he was snuggled back amongst the cushions with his fur-lined coat. A golden book was plucked up again and thumbed through, and Kirien lapsed into brief contemplation. He nodded, though. “He might be there, inside, but he’s got no control of your body unless you allow it. If you win, if you don’t allow yourself to be tricked, you’ll be fine.”
Svilfon spent a long moment staring at Kirien; feeling his discomfort as he finally realized the truth of what resides within the wizard. As the empath makes his way back to his chair, the vampire leans over and picks up his own book. It is not the one he wants to read, but he is not yet ready to wander away and find another. This was the last one he'd marked with his spell; no more would come to his arcane call. He spends half his time reading the useless words, the other half staring across the gap at his brother of sorts. When he eventually breaks the silence it is with quiet words, "He took control... it is why Satoshi drove her blade through my stomach." The wizard flashes a grin, before leaning over to pick up his discarded blood wine. He takes a deep drink of it, before speaking quietly again. "I will survive, my brother. And for all its faults, the spell had its uses. I feel... strong. Quick." His smile shifts to a sardonic grin. "Maybe it will prove to be a fair price for such gifts..." With a hopeful nod the wizard falls into silence and resumes his empty reading; the words hardly making sense. But he is more relaxed after his talk with the empath... He just hopes the feeling will last...
Kirien had trouble sitting still sometimes, by the looks of things. Whereas on some days he could happily remain utterly motionless for hours on end, just listening to the roll and rhythm of the earth beneath him, right now he looked uncomfortable. Reading tended to be a difficult and occasionally frustrating process for him, even using indentations carved in gold or stone or paper; a sigh in the following quiet and the empath repositioned himself, still in the same chair only now with his legs drawn against his chest. Moments later and he’d swung upside-down, legs hooked over the back of the chair and head dangling off the cushion, torso bent at an odd angle. He seemed more comfortable there and returned to reading, staring blankly at the legs of chairs and tables nearby, his concentration clearly more focused on the contours and markings his fingers were picking up as they skimmed the book’s pages. “You mentioned she did that to seal him or some such? Hopefully it shouldn’t happen again, aye?” he murmured distractedly, now getting a bit caught up in his book. “Maybe. Like vampirism. Maybe he’ll go away eventually.” Though Kirien was unsure of whether or not it was possible, or if it could ever happen, it’s a hint of required optimism all the same.
Svilfon is oblivious to Kirien moving on the chair; he stares at his book without reading it, his thoughts far away. So when he is spoken to, it's with quite a start he looks over to see the empath's heavily socked feet sitting where he head once was. "Uhhhh." He lowers the book further to see the man's face, and cannot help but grin. "Comfy," he says with much amusement in his tones, before carrying on. "She scared him... Or rather, Asorial did..." The wizard shrugs, "He was more potent... more loud. He took control and I demanded she end it... but her sword had different ideas. It consumed part of his malevolence, and in his terror he fled deeper inside of me. Whether or not he stays there, I do not know. But both myself and Colton's evil fully realises that if he takes control again, she will not hesitate in destroying me." There is hope in that rather bleak statement. "It will keep him chained... Like all tyrants, Kirien, he is a coward. In that, I think, I can draw strength." As the words fade, his book is lifted again. He resumes his blank reading, letting his mind flow through thoughts that yes, he would one day be free of this... one way or the other.
Kirien raised a hand to wiggle his fingers idly at Svilfon, the action far too eerily similar to the same wibbling movements made by Maladroit’s many-jointed, gnarled digits. A light smirk crept across the empath’s lips. “Incredibly,” he answered with the same tint of underlying amusement lacing his tones, turning a page in his book as he spoke. “Asorial is greedy an’ I don’t like it very much, but…it’s useful. It’s helped me out in a similar way like that, though I doubt it intended to help me.” Laughing softly, he paused a moment to read a couple of lines etched into the gold before continuing in a lighter tone of voice. “I challenged my shadow, once. Not sure what happened but I think Satoshi had some kinda internal fight too since she started feedin’ from me. I couldn’t move an’ the fox couldn’t move me either - Asorial sneaked in, consumed part of it, an’ I overwhelmed it when it was weakened. Useful, see. Now it’s no longer a bother.” Inside, he felt the fox huff but managed to contain a snort. “You’ll be fine~.” That said, he also resumed reading, tracing patterns and words and humming to himself, a quiet whisper.
Svilfon chuckles lightly at Kirien's words, though when he speaks of his own conflict with Asorial the wizard listens intently. At the end he simply nods, not that the empath could see the gesture, before he speaks again. "Time will tell, my brother... time will tell." He falls into silence again, resuming his reading while quietly contemplating the empath's words. He wishes they were true, he hopes they are - but regardless of how much he believes the man, he is surely comforted by his presence. They were family. There would always be strength in that.
Kirien felt the nod more than saw it; however it was perceived, the empath knew what the movement was and what it meant, and grinned in response. “Indeed. Let’s hope we don’t have to wait too long though, aye? Who knows what…” He waved a hand, and slipped some from the chair in the process, “What that thing might do to you if it’s there for too long. I’ve never felt something like that. Never.” That said, he wiggled around a little until he’d found a more comfortable spot again, thumbing through the gold book as he read whatever on earth had been carved into its pages. Whatever it was, it certainly seemed to interest Kirien enough that he actually shut up for a short while.
Svilfon grins behind his book at the empath's words, "For good or ill, Kirien, it will be done soon..." He offers a vehement nod in the wake of his words, taking great solace from the simple statement. "We will see..." The wizard falls silent, too. His book was useless, his blood-wine almost empty. But here in the snow queen's library, hidden from the world by cliffs and ice, he felt as content as he could. His stomach still hurt; such pain before he was turned would have driven him to his knees. But to the wizard it is a sign of what he almost lost, and what may be lost again. He would live with it, he would learn from it... Because damnit, he doesn't want to have to go through that again... But sitting in quiet contemplation with his brother or sorts near, the one who also understood what he had, he knew again he wasn't alone.
Kirien nodded slowly, distractedly, turning his book upside down as he gave a low, “Mhmm…” in agreement with the wizard’s words. The book was twisted about a bit and a couple of pages were turned before he resumed reading properly, fingertips scrolling across each line and sentence. Though he was paying little attention to much other than his shiny reading material, Kirien did feel that underlying sensation of malice beginning to mellow out as contentment and contemplation faded in to blanket his mind, allowing it to slip momentarily into something easier and less troubled. It was an unfamiliar feeling of late and it was only due to the fact that he’d not experienced it in so long that the empath even noticed it. He blinked, once, before he made to throw his head back and laugh - as he was currently upside down, he only succeeded in tumbling off the chair entirely, hitting the floor with a thump but mostly cushioned by Christian’s thick coat. The book landed on his face, however. “…Ahaha. It was a good idea to come here.” He murmured this mostly to himself, words muffled under those golden pages.
Kirien waved his legs around a bit, as he was still kind of upside down, balanced on his shoulders.
Svilfon bursts into laughter as Kirien falls on the ground, his muffled words barely understood beneath the golden pages of his ancient tome. "Comfy indeed! Ha!" He'd snicker away, the movement painful, but the release in tension very much worth it. "I am glad you did, Kirien." Come here, that is. "There is something in these snowy hills... Freedom, I think." He'd nod then, before leaning his head over the book to look properly at the sprawled empath. With another snicker he'd resume his reading; deciding he very much enjoyed the terramancer's company.
Kirien flailed about a little before managing to upright himself, the book sliding off his face to fall into his lap instead, the sounds of laughter filling his hearing. It’s a nice sound to bear witness to and it prompted a smile from him in return, even as he picked himself up off the floor. For a moment or three the empath stood in silence and stared blankly into the distance, into the rows upon rows of bookshelves out beyond this inner circle of comfort, and he looked a bit contemplative; abruptly though, he’d be swinging round to face Svilfon, all smiles and donned in white fur, and a flicker of mithril ring on a chain. “I’m glad too.” He sank slowly back into his armchair, flicked an ear absently. “Just gotta figure out how to protect Nameless against the cold. He whines about it an’ I have to share my coat.” His coat. This coat. Whoever’s coat it was these days.
Svilfon flashes Kirien a grin, "As you offered to help me, my brother, I can maybe help you... Or Nameless" The wizard would have shown what he meant with a minor fire spell, were he not as protective of books as almost anyone. He would never cast fire magic in so fine a library. So instead he explains in far more mundane measures. "I have a few spells which could help... Though, they would have to be renewed every so often, they would surely take away the ice's bite. How do you think I first survived here?" He flashes a brief grin. "It can be taxing... And sometimes goes a little... astray..." Like when he made Kirien faint the first time he asked to be warmed. "But for something like Nameless, I think it could well help."
Kirien would probably have smacked Svilfon had he attempted that sort of wild magic in such a beautiful place, filled with so much precious knowledge. That, and they were located in Satoshi’s home, and neither he nor the ice magus were particularly fond of fire. He found himself rubbing his cheek some as he spoke. “That’d be helpful…he’d love you for it, I’m sure, if you could help him cope even a little bit better. He spends as much time as he can in the cave.” The warmed one, he meant, though Kirien hoped that was obvious. “I do have to say, though; much as I…feel nothing for and or loathe my fiancé,” he said, rolling his eye and wishing he could attach ‘ex’ to the beginning of the word, “I am glad I never returned his coat before he left, else I’d be freezin’ my balls off.”
Svilfon was nodding his head along with Kirien's words, a gap-toothed, fanged smile being bared to the man. "I will think on it a little, and then, with you of course..." There was no way he'd go visit the wyvern without the empath beside him, "I will give it a go. You will not have to worry, my brother. I will be far more careful with him than I would be with myself." Which isn't saying much, but he hopes it is some comfort. As Kirien speaks of his fiancé, the wizard can't help but turn his head to the side, his gaze curious. "You have a fiancé..?" The question is asked lightly, he is merely curious. And no offence would be taken if the man didn't wish to speak of it.
Kirien prodded at his book a couple more times before he closed it quietly and set it on his lap, giving a low, thoughtful sort of hum. “Aight, sounds good. He’s…better with fire than I am anyway, so if you go a bit awry and warm him up too fast,” he said slowly, smirking a bit at the memory of being thawed out far more swiftly than he’d expected to be in Frostmaw’s tavern, “it shouldn’t be too bad. He’d love it, actually, I think.” The wizard chose to ask a question Kirien had not expected then and the empath blinked, caught off guard; this was masked quickly with a small grin and a nonchalant shrug. “Unfortunately, aye. If he ever comes back, the first thing I’m doin’ is throwin’ this right back at him before I kill him.” Fingers found and held up that mithril and amber ring for Svilfon to see, hung on its dainty chain about Kirien’s neck.
Svilfon smiles warmly at the empath as he speaks of Nameless, the challenge of keeping him warm an excellent thing to distract the wizard. "You will learn, my friend, that often my magic goes somewhat... awry..." A faintly self-mocking chuckle is heard, before he speaks again, "But with fire it is often less so. And will suit me well as practice for Emiur. I miss that couatl. I want him to be able to visit." The wizard gives a small smile; him and Emiur were good friends, it was the saurian creature who helped convince him to come here, after all. As the ring is exposed, Svil gets to his feet for a closer look. A painful moan is suppressed as agony burns from his wicked wound, but soon enough the wizard is peering at it. "Hrmph," is all he says, before leaning back once more. "Why keep it?" He asks in simple curiosity. "Why not go to the nearest cliff, hurl it over the edge and be free?" That's what Svil would do... if he wasn't married to a large, angry and altogether menacing red dragon.
Kirien was toying with his ring now, as though he couldn’t quite stop himself now it was in his hands; he rolled it between his fingers and stroked its smooth surface absently as he listened to the wizard, nodding. There was a smile on his lips but it was fainter than usual, distracted almost as he peered sightlessly at his ring. “Well, hopefully you won’t burn him or he’ll have to eat you. We don’t want that, an’ he’d probably get ill anyway.” An obvious tease for it showed in Kirien’s tone, and he winked at his sibling of a sort. The ring was held up a little more for the man to scrutinise. “He got it ‘cause the stone’s the same as my eye colour. Hah. An’…” Pausing, the empath canted his head slightly to one side, bemused for a moment. “It’s a memento I guess. Of my…mistake? Clearly I didn’t listen since I messed up a second time but…” He shrugged. “Besides. I like the ring. It’s shiny.” And oh, did Kirien have a fondness for shiny objects, blind as he may be.
Svilfon chuckles again at the empath; his easy camaraderie infectious to the troubled wizard at a time when it was most needed by the man. "Bloody smart ass..." He shook his head, tempted just briefly to bring Percy in to cut Kirien back down to size. But he refrains from it - he has almost died too many times in the last few days to risk enforced-suicide at the hands of his parrot. "Shiny... not a trait I'd think you'd follow, my brother." He made a redundant motion towards his eyes, before lamely dropping his hand back to the cover of his book. "And.. second time?" The wizard hesitates at this, before drowning the question in a snickering comment, "And feck it, my comrade." The wizard inspects the coat with a whistle of appreciation. "Probably worth it for so fine a coat... one that would look much better on a wizard, I think." He'd wink then with a brief snicker, hoping the empath didn't pay attention to his earlier question.
Kirien’s smile widened out into something more resembling a mischief-tinted smirk than anything else. “Of course. With your…fiery tendencies, you’d probably give him terrible indigestion. Poor thing.” Plucking up another of the books (not the screaming one, but also not one of those black-bound golden ones), the empath tentatively peeled its cover open to peek at the contents inside, trying to judge whether or not he’d be able to read it. A whisper of song floated out from between cracked pages - marginally less terrifying than the shrieking book from earlier, at least. He thumbed through it, the melody subtly changing every time a page was turned. “I like shinies. They feel nice, an’ they look good to people who can see.” That question caused a brief pause and a sharp glance from Kirien to silently state that this topic was not one he was willing to discuss, not yet. He passed over it quite happily. “…Maybe worth it, aye. Got the coat, an’ some pretty good sex.” He wasn’t about to be anything less than blunt about that. “Kinda a shame he went and ruined it all.”
Svilfon bursts into laughter again at the man's ribbing, and even goes as far as lifting his fingers to his lips to whistle for Percy. But again he refrains himself. The snow queen may forgive the wizard of many things, but bringing that particularly pernicious parrot into her fine home will result in Svil adding important parts of his body to her rather.. twisted collection. As the sounds come from the book, the wizard tilts his head to the side, listening to the soft melody that would accompany the words on the pages; they would merge together, some used for spells, some used to entertain. But from hearing it alone, the wizard cannot tell which one it is. When the brief gaze is shared between terramancer and wizard, Svil would offer the faintest of nods. They would not speak of it yet, which suited him fine. He didn't mean to ask the question; but ever was he curious. To the rest of the rogue's words he can only laugh, "Ahh, Kirien, imagine being married to a dragon! Hot one, too... if you like the whole scales thing..." He coughs, "Doesn't help she's into eating her babies, either. But damnit, it's fun making them." Whether or not any of this is true is rather unclear, but having spent enough time on the Row, Svil is used to answering such statements, one way or another.
Kirien had to wonder where that morbid little collection of Satoshi's was even stored, and if his other eye was a part of it. It was unlikely he'd be asking to touch it if she had indeed kept it - he'd learned through experience that eyes did not feel particularly pleasant in one's hand. Actually they were distinctly gooey, and ultimately a bit disgusting. The book was prodded at occasionally, the empath's fingers tracing the pages and finding, littered here and there, light indents and thus distinguishable sentences; either someone had traced over words already there or added their own notes and ramblings. Being unable to properly see, he was mostly unsure of which it was. Ears perked up when Svilfon spoke again though they still continued to swivel in response to the tunes drifting up from the book's enchanted pages. "A dragon-- you mentioned her before! Your wife! Do you really-- wait I don't think I want to know." He blinked once or twice, seemed a bit surprised, then grinned. "If you keep that sorta thing to yourself an' don't scar me for life, I'll do the same for you~." Which was a serious remark, though spoken in an amused tone - it promised lots of detail regarding all sorts of odd experiments and situations Kirien had been in, if Svilfon decided to elaborate on the task of baby-making with dragons.
Svilfon nods his head in vehement agreement to the empath, once again ignoring the horrible pain such actions cause his stomach. He reaches over to take another drink of his blood-wine, before replying to the man, "Why does everyone always say that?!" He shakes his head, comradarie obvious as he looks over the blind terramancer. "We will agree on that, my friend... Some things are best left unshared." The wizard raises his hand to tip his hat to the empath, and offer yet another wink, "For now, though, I think it time I rested again." He looks down to his stomach, the hole in his robes showing a still-spreading stain of blood over the rough bandages. "Thank you, Kirien... For your understanding." Svilfon nods again, flashes a grin, before closing his eyes and drifting off to sleep - at ease within the room, his book still resting on his knees.
The Egg Hatches
Satoshi strides into the library while whispering quick, sharp words to one of the strange, fox-esque little humanoids that's rushing to keep up with its mistress' hurried pace. As she draws nearer, the words become audible, "No, no, -no- glue. Does it look like -glass- to you. Water. Pure water, drawn from the lake, if you can." The little creature yips worriedly at that and presses its paw-ish hands to its face before scurrying off, leaving Satoshi to finish the walk to her work table alone. If she notices the two covenmates present, she shows no sign of it as she bends over the desk and places an object upon it to be peered at anxiously. The once pristince orb of ice has been reduced to little more than a roughly hewn chunk, the cracks it'd received the night prior having deepened and expanded until there isn't a smooth surface in sight. Beside it Satoshi rests a handful of translucent blue shards, apparently fragments that have chipped off and she's managed to retrieve in hopes of repairing the worst of the damage.
Kirien could not quite withhold a grin at Svilfon's words, though he refrained from commenting anything else to him as the wizard seemed to be pretty adept at falling asleep quickly. Shrugging, his grin evening out into more of a contented smile, the empath returned to his whispering book, nestled comfortably in his chair and wrapped up in that thick coat. His peace would only be disturbed by Satoshi's abrupt entrance to the library; blinking up at her, or rather at the odd being following in the magus' wake first, Kirien remained quite still for a couple of moments before shutting the book and cutting off a soft lullaby. Rising from his armchair, he paced once or twice and then approached the desk, pausing on the other side of it from Satoshi and leaning to peer at the curious icy orb laid on the table. "…The heck happened to it?" he asked, before catching himself. "An' hi, by the way."
Satoshi looks up at Kirien in surprise--clearly she hadn't noticed his or Svilfon's presence in her distraction. "Ah. Bright Eye. Hi. And ah..." she looks down at the pitted ice then, prodding it with a finger and coaxing a soft bell's ring from it. "It got a few cracks yesterday, but they've gotten worse. I woke up to find it like this. If it breaks... what do I -do-? The Elementals gave it to me, you were there, they said it was a key for me." Even as she speaks the object twitches and another chip of ice falls away from the sphere to clatter upon the desk beside its kin.
Kirien felt the need to repeat his greeting, it seemed, and divulge potentially useless information at the exact same time. "Hi. One of your books screamed at me." He smiled though, before attentions dropped back to the block of ice, egg-shaped and strangely echoing in his vision. Fingers wiggled a little at the joints but he managed to momentarily quash the urge to poke at it in the same way she did. "Yesterday…" A thumb was jabbed roughly over one shoulder then, in the direction of the snoozing Svilfon. "Asorial? An'…that stuff? He told me about it." Unable to resist a tiny poke at it, Kirien reached to do just that; his fingertip only met the surface briefly but he blinked, suddenly bemused. "…I remember. They gave me the bell then. But, ah, a key, eh?" Head canted slightly, the empath's ears pricked up, listening. He placed a hand lightly over the orb. "Maybe it's…ah. No. Aha. Maybe I'm just tired." But he could have sworn…
Satoshi follows the thumb jab to Svilfon, blinking at the wizard dozing in one of her favorite chairs before smiling. Not all of her is pleased to see the man however, as is evident by her newest tail thrashing violently, a streak of angry black above the trio of placid white. The kit simply grimaces at that, all too used to her tails having a mind of their own, and a powerful dislike for various people. Instead, she returns her attention to the broken ice on her desk as it again wiggles and chimes plaintively, resisting the urge to rest her hand upon it while Kirien's own is hovering above it. "...Maybe what, Bright Eye?"
Kirien had heard a heartbeat. At least, he thought he had, but now he'd removed his hand from the ice, it'd dulled some, muffled. He shifted to squint sightlessly at the new tail instead though, observing its blurred, agitated movement behind his sibling. "Aha. You really do have another one," he murmured after a short pause, sniffing slightly before he wrinkled his nose a bit. "It smells different to the others though. Added malevolence…? Somethin' like that." It wasn't too difficult to guess why that would be the case, considering how it'd been created. Focus drifted from the new tail to the cracked orb again when she urged him to elaborate on his earlier words; Kirien frowned, shoulders drooping slightly. "I dunno, I just thought…" He pressed his palm to the ice again, its chill mostly ignored as another soft pulse ran the length of his arm. "…I thought I heard a heartbeat, is all." A laugh followed, awkward and mildly sheepish. "Probably hearin' stuff."
Satoshi forgets about her oddball tail then, leaning abruptly forward over the desk to hover over the twitching ice--and likely running the risk of accidently headbutting Kirien in the process, but only the Elementals' gift holds her attention by that point. "A heartbeat?! There's something inside...?" All her earlier suspicions over the months of carrying the object come back to her now, recollections of the occasional chimes, jerks, and responses, private guesses solidified by Kirien's remark. But... "what hatches out of an egg from an Elemental..?"
Kirien , unable to really see Satoshi coming, ended up knocked sharply in the forehead and winced some in response. Instead of pulling back or glowering, he simply rested their heads together above the orb which had garnered most of his curiosity and focus in the past few seconds with its jerky movements. He'd always thought it an odd little thing, but he'd never expected something like -this-… "Mm, sure feels like it," he murmured, feeling every twitch and shudder of the egg on the desk; when it rolled a little too enthusiastically, he placed an arm either side of it so as to save it from falling and shattering, some sort of instinct kicking in in the process. "Maybe a…baby Elemental? Er." Wincing again, this time at his own foolishness, the empath shrugged his shoulders. "I dunno. How are Elementals born?"
Satoshi takes quiet comfort in having her head pressed against the other fox's, a soothing to the anxiety writhing in her gut with each twitch of the now-most-certainly-an-egg. Anxiety that had originally existed at the thought of her destroying a unique gift from her teachers, that has now been transformed into a silent worrying over the creature locked within it. "I... don't think they're born this way. I don't think they're -born-, really." It's not something she's ever discussed with the Elementals, and she's always imagined they simply came into existence when a potent source of an element absorbed a spark of life. Either way, it's likely a rare occurence, just as the event unfolding upon her table is when the egg gives another violent heave and a thick fissure runs a jagged course down its length. "Think it's dangerous, whatever it is...?" Not that that'll cause Satoshi to back off, but hey, it's something worth thinking about.
Kirien did much the same, silently of course; contact had always been a comfort to him no matter how insignificant or fleeting, and Satoshi was one person who could calm the empath down just by being near, without even trying. He flicked an ear and quietly became her support, easing that growing worry in her chest either with his mere presence or by the subtle means of siphoning the anxiety out of her and swallowing it himself. "Then how do they exist…?" It's a question he didn't expect an answer to, knowing his sibling was quite caught up in watching the egg as it began to split and crack down the middle. Lifting his palm before whatever was inside decided to burst out and attack him, he shook his head some, ears nudging against Satoshi's own during the movement. "I don't think so…or at least it doesn't feel like it should be…?" Kirien paused, then grinned broad enough to show pointed fangs. "My gut feeling is -usually- correct." If it was wrong, well…they'd likely have their faces bitten off considering they were still hovering over the desk.
Satoshi does so love her face fully intact, yet she can't seem to bring herself to back away from the shuddering egg despite the tiny fragments of ice now being thrown in every direction with each movement. The chiming within grows more earnest by the minute and the sound begins to take on a steady rhythm as the egg begins to rock back and forth. "I hope your gut is right this time, Bright Eye," Satoshi murmurs seconds before the egg explodes in a shower of icy shards and glistening powder followed by a high-pitched keening of a bell. Satoshi, having flinched as a chunk of frost rocketed past her face, opens her eyes once more when the powdery mist begins to settle to reveal the egg's former occupant. Sprawled amid shattered ice is a sodden white shape, a wet mess of feathers and fur that struggles to be disentangled from its own gangly self. The tiny creature pipes out in protest, its voice like that of a jingle-bell, before it manages to right itself and struggle onto its four limbs--the fore of which sport lengthy feathered wings from wrist to shoulder, while the hind are oddly short and thick like a stoat's. Bright blue eyes are turned upon the looming foxes then and a querying ring given as it tips to one side its peculiar head, decidedly cat like in structure but with the added features of a thick black mane and two tiny nubs of glistening blue that are possible horns. To complete the strange package, the shock of black fur on its head courses down the considerably long path of its spine where it runs into a silken length of horse-like tail, framed by a pair of azure tail feathers not unlike a peacock's. Overall, it's a strange mixture of odds and ends that seems completely enthralled and amused by the pair of kits staring down at it.
Kirien :: "I apologise in advance if our baby ruins your face." Kirien was perceptive, and he knew how much pride his sibling took in her appearance, but that remark was probably more a sardonic jibe than anything else, spoken over the undulating chimes and rocking just as there came a frigid blast of air and the egg imploded. Shards of ice and unseen shimmers blasted outwards without warning and Kirien was quietly glad of the fact he was blind, else he surely would have jumped back in an attempt to escape the debris sent careening across the central circle of the library, coating the desk and area surrounding it in a soft misting of frost. Somehow, whether by luck or simply good positioning, he escaped impalement by any of those icy missiles shooting over his shoulders, though his cheeks seemed to have been dusted with silver frost during the explosion. He sniffed, then sneezed, muttering an apology to whatever might have emerged from that egg; or perhaps to Satoshi, who he was still close by. Their heads remained nudged against one another as Kirien peered down at the desk and the small creature now pining and chiming as it struggled about. "…At least it didn't attack us?" he offered quietly to Satoshi after a short pause, before reaching to cautiously brush a fingertip over the streak of wet black fur situated between the possible beginnings of glimmering azure horns. "Hey, little guy. He feels cute. Is he cute?" If the strange newborn (and Satoshi) allowed it, he'd be trying to pick it up into his arms, movements slow and careful, reminiscent of the days when Nameless was a chick and the vampire raised him alone.
Satoshi's dumbfounded silence is broken by a laugh when the hatchling blinks at Kirien and mimics his sneeze with its own bell-ish one. Neither it nor Satoshi move to stop the terramancer's hands then, the kit merely watching in interest as the little creature clambers clumsily into Kirien's grasp, feathers and limbs splayed gracelessly as it chimes in delight. Cautiously, Satoshi reaches out a finger to stroke the hatchling between its horns, earning her a ringing purr in response. "Ehe. He's cute. Strange, but cute. Looks sort of like a simurgh. Or an angha." While she continues to pet the critter, it seems determined to claim one of Kirien's fingers for chewing upon with tiny, needle-sharp fangs.
Kirien could not quite contain a warm, affectionate, 'aww' at that musical mimicry of his sneeze, gathering the little angha and all its ungainly and downright strange limbs up into the circle of his arms. He came to hold it lightly against his chest, the soft fur of Christian's trench coat slightly chilly due to the recent icy blast but likely comfortable enough for the creature. "I feel wings an' such," he said to Satoshi, one arm keeping the angha supported while the hand of the other came to stroke lightly through its wet fur and down its back. "He's kinda…like a fluffy wyvern in a way? Wings for fore limbs. Feels pretty strange though, aye." But adorable. Kirien didn't need to voice that; it showed well enough in his expression how much he already adored this odd, tiny thing, despite the fact that it was now using one of his fingers as a chew toy. "Ow. Hey."
Satoshi said to Kirien, "Fluffy wyvern's about right for what an angha is. Which I think he is." Gently she pokes the thing's pink nose, causing it to ring in protest and flutter damp wings--and forget momentarily about gnawing on Kirien. And the terramancer isn't the only one smitten with the little creature already, as is obvious by her continuing to run fingers through its thick mane. In response, the hatchling resumes its strange purring ring and settles into Kirien's grasp to nuzzle against the fur of his jacket. "He reminds me a little of Aeron, all long like a weasel and such. And the black and white. 'cept Aer doesn't have wings. He's more like Nameless that way. Still... never heard of an angha that has a voice like a bell. I wonder if Starling has..."
Kirien tried to extract his finger from between those needle-like fangs, small but sharp as they were and enough to hurt a bit; this became somewhat easier when Satoshi distracted the creature's attention with a prod to the nose, prompting the empath to snort in half-stifled amusement at its shrill protests. He nodded along absently to the magus' explanation, possessing little knowledge of anghas himself but clearly quite interested in information regarding the apparently fluffy and more feathery version of a wyvern. A hum escaped him as he stroked down the hatchling's long spine, movements thoughtful and more unconscious than anything. "Starling? I like his voice. It's all…melodic. An' maybe he should meet Nameless some time. Aha~. They might be…cousins of a sort. Several species removed." Glancing down quickly, Kirien's brows furrowed some. "Might have to tell him beforehand that he's not a damn snack though."
Satoshi's snickers then as the angha perks up at the word 'snack', something he's possibly learned from his strange incubation in the hood of Satoshi's jacket. "He's smart too, it'd seem~. I'll have to ask Starling if he's ever heard of this sort of angha before. Might even be a book in here with information, like... what he eats?" Still damp ears twitch at that and the hatchling cries out in excited rings, squirming in Kirien's hands. Satoshi murmurs a soothing sound then, once more stroking the patch of black between its horns while she begins to hum a melody along with the other fox, tune working to still the fussy creature. Even as its eyelids droop and a yawn escapes it, the angha fidgets in an attempt to fight the sleep taking hold, but it's a losing battle and in moments the furball is sprawled gracelessly across Kirien's palm and forearm. "Aha. Victory is ours~."
Kirien 's focus shifted briefly back to Satoshi, fine brows still furrowed in what was clearly a curious frown. "-Who- is Starling?" He'd be peering back down at the angha after this insistent question, however, fingers gently running through fur that felt to him, he thought absently, as though it'd be quite silky indeed when dried out properly. "Hah. I think he's hungry, aye, if that reaction's anythin' to say about it. Maybe he eats, er, fish? Nameless is pretty fond of fish…" he said over the pealing cries of the hatchling. Words trailed off though when Satoshi began to sing softly to the excitable creature in his arms and after a moment, Kirien joined in again, his voice somewhat husky but capable enough of stringing together the threads of a whispered lullaby to calm the angha down; and, twined with Satoshi's melody, it seemed impossible to fight off sleep, for he soon found himself holding a sleeping angha, its feline-like face half-buried in the fur of his coat. Kirien yawned despite himself, but blinked his way out of the slight haze that'd fallen over his mind during that song. "…Now what do we do. Book search?" Asked with a slight raise of brow.
Satoshi said to Kirien, "Starling is an avian scholar working for me. The one who researched the golems we're putting into Frostm- ...I... ah! I never told you about that~!" The kit gets highly animated by that point--a side effect of too much time around Kasyr--and begins flailing her arm while her tails writhe in a flustered dance. She'd purposely called Kirien all the way out to Frostmaw to discuss getting his aid in a massive project, and here she is only just now remembering that fact. To say the magus feels stupid is a tad understatement--not that she'd ever admit it. "Want to make a golem~?" At least now that she's able to discuss it with Kirien, she's straightforward about it. Points for that? "It'll be fun~. And dangerous."
Kirien canted his head to one side at the mention of golems, but was quickly stepping back some despite his intrigue when the magus began to kind of flail around a bit in clear excitement. He was glad for her enthusiasm regarding-- well, whatever it was she planned to tell him about when she actually calmed down enough to stop wiggling and start speaking, but he'd really rather the hungry little angha not wake up again and start demanding food. He'd prefer not to lose a finger if they did not have what it favoured at hand. "Ssh, you'll wake him back up," the empath hissed quickly with a pointed look down to the slumbering creature, shifting away from the desk if only so as to sink into wide, chair nearby - after he's brushed the ice shards on plush cushions off with his free hand, of course. "Make one?" Ears perked up and Kirien's head turned in his sibling's direction. "Me? That-- I'd like to give it a go, aye. But, er…how big are you thinkin'? I can't make…sentient ones? Not even little ones yet." Honestly, he looked a bit huffy about this - but in time, he thought; in time he might be able to give truer life to rock. "Just things that move as I do, an' as I tell them an' such. Dangerous and fun sounds good though.
Satoshi freezes almost instantly, her moment of embarassed excitement passing as quickly as it came on. A nod is given in response and she moves around the desk to the side Kirien is on so that she can claim its surface as a seat while he finds a chair. Once settled she begins in clearer tones than before, "Have you seen the big pillar of ice outside the fort? That's one of my golems. Starling... erm, Tirona is his name, helped me construct it, along with the wizard." With that she jerks her head in a nod toward the sleeping Svilfon. "I want one more, but of stone, which is where you come in. You won't have to animate it, that's my task as it'll have to obey my commands. What I need from you is to build its body. We've gathered boulders and fluorite to the work area for you already." An eager light enters Satoshi's eyes then, showing herself to truly be a mage that loves to push her limits and test old legends. These golems would be her crowning achievement and done with the aid of three skilled mages--well, a scholar, roguish terramancer, and a wizard, but mages is close enough.
Satoshi adds, "Afterwards, we can try to make you a smaller, smarter one, hm? Like my little ice one~?"
Kirien couldn't help but smile at Satoshi, finding it difficult to keep such an expression off his features right now, in fact. It was a pleasant change from forced grins, strained smiles and carefully-crafted masks that cracked so easily, but he couldn't help but idly wonder how long it might last. He'd have to think about it eventually, despite all the distractions Frostmaw and its residents offered. "I've not passed by the fort yet, I don't think," he said, looking thoughtful, "the snow is difficult to see well on sometimes but I think I felt somethin'…-big- in that direction? You're lookin' for big, aren't you." A soft laugh and a shake of the head and he relaxed into the high back of the chair, the little angha resting against his chest, sleeping soundlessly; his free hand had come to toy with that engagement ring. "…If you're animatin' it then it shouldn't be such a problem for me, aye. I can make big things! I think." Kirien looked quite ready for it, eagerness shining clearly in his eye as though it mirrored the excited glint in Satoshi's. In his mind, perhaps, this upcoming task would be a difficult challenge and if passed - he'd earn the right, in his own eyes at least, to call himself a true terramancer. Still a learner, of course, but when did one ever stop learning? "Oh-- a small one too! Definitely!"
[A grumbling goes out amongst the land, a harsh, raspy voice piercing into the lobes of all those able to hear. "Take what is mine, and I take what is yours. A bounty of fifty thousand gold pieces will be paid to the one who returns the wraithling to me..."]
Satoshi's look of elation quickly withers into a glower as the wisps of that land-wide statement are transferred to her by the cavern's guardian, the actual sound repelled by the ancient wards placed upon the area. "We should get to work, Kirien. The sooner we're done, the sooner we can focus on more pleasant things." Slipping off the desk, she steps forward to take the dozing angha from him, perhaps because she's yet to hold the little gift that had been lurking so long in the Elemental's treasure. A moment is taken to run her cheek over the drying fur and another to place a kiss upon the hatchling's mane before she whispers a single word, "Trebel."
Kirien found himself pausing as though something had caught his attention though he did not quite know what; a shudder passed the length of his spine and set his tail wiggling in agitation. The reason for such a queer, abrupt reaction and a brief flicker of nervousness was quickly explained when the message halted by the wards unseen by the empath was delivered by other means, but it didn't help to set his mind at ease too much. Frowning some, he shifted around a little to hold the angha up for Satoshi when she reached out for him, rising from his seat once he'd been relieved of the sleeping furball. "Right now? Or…" His cheeks puffed up some before a heavy sigh followed, and then a slight shake of the head. The engagement ring swung on its chain and clinked softly and prompted him to glance downward at it quickly, before he heard that whisper and managed to summon a smile. "It's a pretty fittin' name. Trebel."
Satoshi can no longer endure standing idle in the center of the colossal room and feeling like she's suffocating. Without a word she turns for the door even as Kirien speaks, and her steps hardly falter when she voices a half-whispered reply given as she steps out the door, "If you wish, I'll be there starting the work." And with that the kit is gone, presumably headed toward the fort where a veritable mountain of earth, minerals, and crystal have been gathered in preparation.