Odd Shards

[*Selebius]

"I will prepare it Factor and ready a few iungots of both Aurorum and Morguth Iron. Shall we prepare some additional fluidic capacitator with Negative and positive energy as well?"

[*Selebius]

The forge is prepared, the metal ready as is the crystal- both devices connected with each other, surronded by a group of rather nervous godsmen.

Wards are cast, spells enhancig reaction times, skills and senses following- then everybody is ready and the experiment begins.

The metals are melting, reluctant to merge with each other- the usual result. As soon as the energies start to flow this changes, the metals becoming one, becoming.... there is a flash, a thunder, research assistants who are happy about their stoneskins and Resist Energy spells.

The factotum shrugs. "Temporary setback. We need to control the flux of power more tightly.", her aide says with dry voice.

"Another try!"

And this thime they almost suceed, almost.... but then the metals seperate again. The third try- more energy invested again and this time it is right.. almost right but..... for the energy eating away the resulting alloy from the inside.

Then, however, after almost 12 hours of experimenting and work a namer holds up an ingot of this new substance with his smithing pliers- perfected now, stable (or so it seems?), two opposites becoming one.

[*Hydra]

Kala observed and assisted as much as she could, among her fellow factioners she was always doing more than just sit back and observe. When the research was finally concluded and successful, she smiled faintly as she let the tip of her fingers caress the metal. She made sure her aide was promoted to factotum if he wasn't already.

- I think we have quite something within our hands... Now let's see if it can be shaped.

Kala took the metal and went to work it on the forge. She grabbed a hammer in her callous worker's hands, remembering the first days at the foundry with a faint smile. She weighted the tool for a moment before she let it rest on the anvil the then went to smelt the metal, putting it in a mold to shape it as long circular pole. Once it was done she carefully started to heart each part she wanted to work with, using the hammer and carefully hit the edges and shape it so she could more easily use the chisel and the grinder to shape the staff she wanted. It was a long craftsman job, something that probably took a few days of work as she patiently worked every details of the staff, decorating it with esoteric symbols associated to the elements. She also left enough holes for runes to be elegantly encrusted in the future.

[*Selebius]

Her aide retreats to see to the forge again- it has to be cleaned, to be repaired, the crystal empty of energies now.

Kala finds this metal difficult to shape, not brittle or too hard but oddly resisting to be crafted into a new shape, its inner dual and conflicting nature always trying to revert the changes, to return the ingot to how it was. She now realizes that it was not just skill but also quite a bit of luck that allowed them to succeed and that it might take a few years, perhaps even decades before thew Godsmen can produce this metal on a regular basis.

But in time she succeeds and the staff is made- a true one of a kind item.


(( As I suppose she will take 20 with this I just want to ask what her highest metalcrafting skill is. Just to determine the result...))

[*Hydra]

((Kala does have 32 in weapon crafting))

[*Selebius]

The staff is of great beauty- easy to enchant, to be used to hold spells and runes and gems.

However Kala also realizes that to get the most out of it she will have to maintain balance- while the staff can deal with conflicting energies, even combine them into something new it will alwys ewquite careful balance- or the staff itself might be damaged over time.

[*Hydra]

Kala studied her own creation for a day, she tried to spot the flaws, see if the staff could withstand the turmoil of various magics, she even tried to dispel it to see if it would be broken, such a cruel fate for a creation of her own she put so much efforts into it perhaps, but she allowed herself no room for mistakes no chances for error and would redo recreate it should need be, noting each details with care hoping that each one would be a step towards perfection.

[*Selebius]

The staff does not react to any Dispelling spells, Kala is even sure that a Disjunction would not affect it.

The material is a bit too brittle to make a good tool or weapon but it will serve its purpose as a staff.

In the meanwhile her team is trying to create more of the alloy, with rather mixed success. But they are learning, the process slowly getting more reliable.

[*Hydra]

[align=center]((Warning ! Wall of text. Its intended to be pure fantasy and nothing else.))[/align]

A few months passed, but they where fruitful as researches started years ago finally came to results. All these runes collected over the past years had allowed Kala to write and finish a book that was intended to be the beginning of something else...

[align=center]The secret of the Runes[/align]
[align=center]by Factor Kala Ta'Kan of the Believers of the Source[/align]

[align=center]He who would read the sacred runes
Given by the gods
That Odin set down
And the sage stained with color,
Is well advised to waste no words.
- Sayings of the High One
[/align]

The objective of this essay is to provide an explanation of what the runes are, rather than how they work. Indeed, Runes are often confused with alphabets as they come in many shapes according to the various cultures and languages and embraces many meanings, however runes are not simple letters, they wield power that comes directly from the Source.

Runic magic, is however one of the far less used forms of magic, as the knowledge to create rune is akin to the powers the druids are taught, its an esoteric knowledge transited from a master to an apprentice and cannot be understood and rationalized, thus making the Runes separate from the Glyphs wizards do use. While most rational people, wizards mostly, may believe this “esoteric” aspect as a mere trick to warp a practice in the coat of mystery in order to impress or keep people away from knowledge. The secrets of the runes hasn't spread through the multiverse like other forms of magic and cannot be learned through pure intellectual pursuits. Indeed, runic magic, as it is practiced on many prime world and especially in Ysgard is divine by nature, and not only it requires knowledge and mastery, but also the specific insight, one can only earn through faith.

Unlike most magic Runes do not need components or books as the runes themselves carry all the power needed, they are however complex creations and difficult to use on a day by day basis. Runes are the magic of the sage and the wise, the one who wishes to craft a powerful tool that can be easily wasted by an impatient mind. However, the process of rune making is simple, and only requires one to carve the right letter into small stones able to carry magical power. Each rune is a letter, each letter means is word that carry some power often linked energy sources and adjectives. To create a ball of lightning, one should combine the runes for ball and lightning. However, knowing the right alphabet and the right words of power is more complex, as runic magic tends to be fairly rare, the languages used for it tend to be either ancient or well guarded. The materials used to craft runes and how they're shaped are also important, as rare gems are used to carve the most powerful runes and flaws in the shapes can make them less potent.

Many sources are reporting that ancient artefacts, tomes many contain the right explanations on how to craft runes, but never how to grasp their true power, it is the combination of knowledge, insight and mastery of the art of carving that makes this magic complex and easily discarded as too complex by those who only see means to an end, rather than a deep connection with the Source. Indeed, from what I've observed while collecting runes for years is that they may come in a plurality of shapes and forms, however when one does focus on the essential, they all carry the same meaning, the universal language coming from the same Source.

The following chapter is a study of few prime worlds runic, including the famous Asgardian Futhark.

...The Asgardian runic alphabet is one of the most relevant and widespread among the planes but is especially well known because for a specific legend related to the helm of their pantheon : Odin, the all Father. He went on a quest for knowledge where he had to prove his worth to uncover the secret of the runes. As the runes held great powers, so was the sacrifice expected to acquire their knowledge and the god put himself towards great sufferings, handing himself, pierced by a spear for nine days, refusing any help as he stared downwards at the Well of Urd, at the center of the cosmos, where the world tree Yggdrasil grows. His call through his sufferings where not in vain, as he proved himself worthy enough to survive the runes revealed themselves, not only to his eyes through their form, but also to his conscience as he grasped the deepest meaning of the words of creation. He later recounted his experience in those words that are part of his the initiation rites of the members of his cult.

[align=center]I know that I hung on a high windy tree for nine long nights;
I had a spear wound – that was my work- I stuck myself...
They brought me no bread, no horn to drink from...
Crying aloud, I seized the runes; finally I fell...
Thus I learned the secret lore, prospered and waxed in wisdom.
Then I was fertilized and became wise
I truly grew and thrived.
From a word to a word I was led to a word
From a work to a work I was led to a work.
- Sayings of the High One
[/align]

Beyond the philosophical and mystical meaning of these words, we can see that they mean that Odin had acquired the ability of the one who posses the language of creation and uses it to shape.

[align=center]He learned chants that enabled him to heal emotional and bodily wounds, to bind his enemies and render their weapons worthless, to free himself from constraints, to put out fires, to expose and banish practitioners of malevolent magic, to protect his friends in battle, to wake the dead, to win and keep a lover, and to perform many other feats like these.
- Sayings of the High One.[/align]

This description of his abilities coming from the sacred text of the Edda, is a description of divine magic. Of course, the casters of the divine aren't the only one whom use words, as any wizard would gladly remind me at the first opportunity. I wish to put the emphasis on the sacred nature of the runes, in the sense they are related to the divine. While arcane “runes”, it is just a name after all, do exist, they are more of a systematic combination of words of powers than a direct the echo of the words of creation. Bardic magic, also holds a special status here, as it is also able to perform chants driving their power from the music of creation itself, but this isn't a matter I'll develop further as my knowledge of bardic magic is devoid of any practice. This also explains why rune-casters are all casters of divine magic.

The following chapter begin with a long introduction of the more complex and primordial languages of the multiverse, including celestial, infernal, abyssal and the elemental languages. Mostly focusing on the similarities between them, followed by a detailed study of the various runes related to these languages.

...As we notice, the common patterns between Abyssal and Infernal runes, we can notice that language, isn't a product of law, as the Fraternity of Order linguist Ratagus Emeler stated. Instead, language traces its origins in sentience and the desire for meaning, the extreme variations and flexibility of abyssal are just an example that while in the storm of chaos, meaning shifts and change quickly, it never disappears and remains a mental imperative. This points that if the Source of all languages, the “Well of Urd”, should it be an entity, is indifferent to law and order...

...Should one aspire to understand the language of the source, one should probably find a master or for the most ambitious follow the same path as Odin to the Well of Urd and be prepared to make the same sacrifices he did.

[align=center]“There stands an ash called Yggdrasil,
A mighty tree showered in white hail.
From there come the dews that fall in the valleys.
It stands evergreen above UrdÂ’s Well.
From there come maidens, very wise,
Three from the lake that stands beneath the pole.
One is called Urd, another Verdandi,
Skuld the third; they carve into the tree
The lives and destinies of children.
- Sayings of the High One.”
[/align]

Extract from Kala's own journal :
It is clear that after these long years of studies, I've only barely scratched the surface of the secret of the runes. I do believe there's going to be no progress without learning and finding a master, or tempting to follow Odin's path. However, I'm not yet a god, only immortal soul living in a human shape and I cannot risk death. However, Odin is known to be a good of good, and members of his clergy do not mutilate themselves, there's probably a way to seek wisdom in a less brutal way but not without sacrifices. I've learned the way of the druids and of the divine, I've glanced through the deep ocean of wisdom and gathered its fruit, this time is not going to be different. I've learned how to shape blades, I've gathered ancient knowledge and I've touched the divine essence of the source more than once as I've channelled it through my powers.

[*Hydra]

Kala was taking a moment to rest, her eyes faintly closed her fingers caressing the amber amulet she was wearing, stuck in a silent conversation with the stone. As she heard the steps coming closer, she opened her golden eyes and looked at the dwarf inclining her head softly before she addressed him with the same respectful tone.

- I am indeed Factor Ta'Kan, the one that published that short essay about the secret of runes lately. Welcome to the Foundry.