Don't Judge a Book

Katarya visits House Nyshasa, and learned a new trick as she explored the famous library.

Fellsgard is the foundation of Khy'eras' history and through reconstruction, it is now a vibrant and lively city. People reside here due to mild climate, opportunities, and safety and stability. Adventures often start from Fellsgard. Read more...
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Katarya Frost
Character
Witch
Level
04
46 / 46 HP
40 / 40 MP
0p / 0g / 0s / 35c
Race: Human
Class: Wizard
Posts: 315
Joined: September 27th, 2019, 12:09 am
Has thanked: 37 times
Been thanked: 21 times

Don't Judge a Book

Post by Katarya Frost »

It was on of those secrets that wasn’t really a secret. Of the four Great houses of Fellsguard, House Nyshasa was rumoured to be sympathetic to those who studied magic. Not only that, but the rumours also said that the noble house would even train certain people, should they prove worthy.

Katarya had always played it safe and had agreed with folk who gossiped about the place, nodding along as they said how disgusting it was that a noble house would ever train people in the 'forbidden arts'. Quite the hypocrite, as she would shut the shop up every day and go study the very magic they despised, night after night.

So, it was only natural that someday, she would find herself heading to that house to satisfy her curiosity and see if the rumours were true. She had, once, brought it up with her grandmother, who had been quick to shut down the notion. "If they indeed are more accepting of magic practitioners, that probably wouldn't extend to witchcraft. To the folk of this city, a witch is no better than dark wizards and necromancers! You stay well clear, do you hear me?" Kat heard her, even now, but Kat was also somewhat of an expert at not doing what she was ought to do and and went ahead with what she wanted to do.

You had better stay well out of sight, today. She said to Nyx, as she got ready for her little adventure. The raven sat atop the mirror she was currently facing, tying her hair into the well practised, intricate braid. "It might make tongues wag, and these particular tongues belong to some very influential people. The raven had squawked in response. "I'll be absolutely fine. Don't worry. She had even thrown on some lighter coloured clothing, and left her ever-present black cloak on it's hanger. She didn't want to attract the same looks she had gotten when she visited House Enlann to pay tribute as part of her affiliation contract.

She then fastened her shirt with a circular brooch of glittering amethyst - a gift from her grandmother when she had turned 16, and gave herself a final look. She wouldn't pass for a noble, but she might not look too out of place in the noble district. "Let's go!"

***

As always, the part of the city where the wealthy and noble denizens called home was beautiful. She took her time, despite wanting to run to her destination, to casually take in the sights, stopping at various statues and fountains, trying to blend in as best she could. Back in the west part of the city, folks might admire her appearance today, but here ... she felt like a chicken amongst peacocks! Still, she was basically ignored, and that was just the way she liked it.

The estate that was the House of Nyshasa looked ... older, than the others. It's brickwork and window design made it seem as if it had stood long before the others, though maybe that was just the aesthetic they were going for. Also, Kat couldn't help but draw comparisons between the name of the noble house, and the god she herself worshipped; Ny'sha. It was simply too much of a coincidence.

When she approached the gate, there was a servant manning it, along with the obligatory guards. They didn't take much notice of her as she made her way to the servants (they were hardly going to feel threatened by a young woman now, were they?). Good day, she said, cheerfully, and smiled when the servant looked up with a questioning raise of her brow. "I apologise if I am bothering you, I just ... she had practised this at home: "I was wondering if I might prevail upon you to allow me to study here today."

The tall woman, half elven by the looks of her slightly pointed ears, and being taller than most., looked down on her imperiously. "What is it you want to study?" She asked, bluntly.

Kat smiled. "I'm an alchemist by trade, and I'm always looking for ways to improve my craft. I was hoping that there might be something tucked away here that could prove useful to my work.

"Why not simply visit Enlann?"

Kat had anticipated this. House Enlann is a wonderful resource, but I want to do the very best for my patients, and sometimes, less ... conventional methods are sometimes needed."

The half-elf pursed her lips. "What 'unconventional methods' are you referring to?"

"Well, anything that will help me save lives. I believe that, as long as you do no harm, you should use every resource and tool available to you, in order to help others. Even those that some folks might find ... less than conventional."

Katarya held her breath as the servant looked at her for a moment. Then she nodded. "Name?"

***

Kat couldn't stop herself from staring, wide eyed, as she made her way through the halls of the estate belonging to House Nyshasa, following another servant whom the half-elf woman had directed to take her to the library.. She had never actually been inside one of the Noble House's holdings before, and it was everything everyone said it would be. Grandeur was everywhere; every nook and inlet held some statue, vase, flower arrangement ... the floors were tiled with stunning colours as her boots tapped over them. The ceilings were high and the place smelled of flowers, herbs and of course magic! As soon as Katarya had entered the place, the amulet she bore had begun to tingle against her skin, signifying there was indeed magic in this place.

When they arrived at their destination, Kat was almost open mouthed in her awe of the place. Great columns of books towered above her; workstations where people sat in either silence, or quiet, hushed tones, reading or tinkering with strange objects.

"You have two hour,s" the servant said, as he left her. Kat's heart sank a little at that. Judging from what she could see, she could spend days here and barely study a fraction of what was available. So she had to make good use of her time. There were a few people wearing uniforms bearing the insignia of the house, but she wasn't about to go up to one of them and outright ask to be pointed towards books on witchcraft ... assuming they had any. No, she simply had to do this by herself.

***

The first hour had passed, and though Katarya had come across some extremely interesting books, scrolls, parchments and the like, she had only found one book that she might possibly be able to use. "Conjurations of the Exquisite Forms And Their Uses. It had been the only book that had outright declared itself a magic book, for she had found many of the others to be studies of magic, or histories of magic ... none of them had actually been instructional, as that is what she was looking for. For appearance sake, she took a few more books off the shelves as she moved along, so as to throw off anyone who might notice her particular choice.

It was as she was heading down the narrow space in between two great bookshelves, that her amulet near bounced off her chest, and she had to force back a surprised noise!

Stopping, she gently placed the books on the floor, cast an eye about to see if anyone was watching, then took her amulet in her hand, and moved her other one in a sort of sweeping motion around her. When she was holding out her palm, she felt her skin grow warmer, and the tingling increased, until finally, it grew so much that her hand was almost hot. She let go of the amulet and looked at what she was pointing at. All it was was another dusty old book. Sh shrugged slightly, taking it carefully from its place on the shelf, and opening it. It had a worn title that she couldn't quite read, and by the looks of it, it had not been well kept before it had reached here.

Her eyes grew wide when, instead of simple pages of lore, a hole had been carved into the pages, and there sat within the book, a small figurine carved in the likeness of a male form, with a small sunburst on it's brow. Ristgir she said to herself. It had to be. She took the figurine out of the inlet carefully, setting aside the vandalised book. She knew better than to attempt to steal. The elf-elf had told her from the go that she would have to agree to a search of her person when she left, and stealing a gold figurine could (well, would) land her a place in jail. So she simply admired it, running her fingers over the small sculpture.

When her fingers touched the carved sun on the figurines brow, Katarya gasped as her mind was suddenly filled with light. It was the strangest sensation, as if she were stood outside on a warm clear day, and she could almost feel the sun on her face, even though she stood in a room that had soft glowing lamps to illuminate the darkness.

It lasted for a few seconds, and then faded. She cast her eyes about quickly, then set the thing back in the book and placed it back. Whatever magic it had, it certainly had a way of making its presence known, and she didn't want to draw any undue attention to herself. However, when she looked down at her hands, she noticed a faint glow around her fingertips. Closing her fist, then opening again, the light was gone but ...

Somehow, and she could not explain how, she knew that she could summon that glow again ... maybe even brighter than before. It was as if that carved figurine of the ancient god of the sun had imbibed her with the spell to summon light. Her heart fluttered as she thought about it. She couldn't wait to go home and try it, but she had to make use of her time, and it would look odd if she simply hurried out like that. The last thing she needed

***

Just before her two hours were up, Kat had thanked the servant at the door, then at the gate as she had her bag searched and her skirt pockets padded down by one of the guards. She was glad he hadn't been crude about it, but under the gaze of the half-elf, she doubted he would have dared.

As soon as she got home she had near hurtled up the stairs of the shop to her home, where she dropped her bag and went to stand in front of the mirror. She held out her hand and closed her eyes, summoning her will, strength, and the power that lay within her, focussing on the spell. After a moment, when she was satisfied she was properly concentrated, she spoke the Elvish word for light: "Cálë!" she said, aloud. And then smiled in utter delight as she found an orb of soft glowing light dancing slowly around her open palm. Her excitement broke the spell, but that didn't bother her; every spell needed practice, and she was definitely going to add this as one of her first additions to the Book of Shadows.

She couldn't wait until she got enough time off, and enough coin to go back. Who knew what other secrets the House of Nyshasa held for a fledgling witch, such as herself?
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"Now is the Time, now is Hour, mine is the Magic, mine is the Power"
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