1st Ink [video | un: inkmetal]

[inkedspell]

[Sarona's not really someone who makes a lot of declarations on the network, but it's been a wild ride since they got here and she's got her own plans to put underway.]

So, turns out to get a job spreading ink around here, you gotta have a body of work to show off and tattooing yourself ain't enough. Anyone want a free rune or two so I can use them for my portfolio? Protection runes, strength runes, tracking runes, stealth runes, soulmate bonds, you name it, I can ink it--or figure out how. It's not that hard.

No blood-ink unless requested and I'll even make it a temporary one if you're that much of a baby, but the special paper for my temp tats is limited. First come, first serve there.

And no, I don't mind a challenge.

[If she needs a portfolio for getting into Ursula's and making sure they are on legit or not, then that's what she'll get.]

Comments

[inkedspell]

Uh...rune bonding? Where you combine the runes into one linked, cohesive spell instead of separate ones with different priority levels and control?

Rune-bonding takes more skill since you're linking all the spells together and I've only done it once on myself with smaller runespells.

[spiritwalks]

Wow. Very impressive.

[Vyng means it, too. He's not sure he's ever met anybody who could do something so intricate.]

Where did you learn to do stuff like that?

[inkedspell]

It's part of my training as a Runist. [Or well...her type of Runist.] It's not that different than say...a transmutation circle or a detailed sealing rune chain. The higher up you get in your skill the more detailed and intricate they get.

[spiritwalks]

[Transmutation circles...?]

Hm! Kinda sounds like wizard stuff.

[inkedspell]

Wizards aren't a real thing in my world, but mages and runists are close enough. We all use magic of some kind.

[spiritwalks]

You use transmutation circles, but wizards aren't real? How do you define a mage, then?

[inkedspell]

Transmutation circles are an alchemy thing, but wizards are just fictional mages. A way they used to talk about mages without talking about mages back when magic was more secretive. It's a fun trope so they keep showing up.

[spiritwalks]

Okay...

[Vyng speaks slowly, eyes squinting as he tries to parse through this new piece of information. As far as he's concerned, it's like somebody saying cobblers are fake, but shoe-makers are real.]

So "wizard" is a word non-mages made up in your world.

[inkedspell]

[That causes Saeri to take a pause.]

Hm...not sure exactly who started it. Could have been a mage trying to hide themselves but they wanted to tell stories about mages, so they called them wizards instead to get around all that bullshit. Magic wasn't always as accepted as it is now.

[And even now they have to know which communities to be careful around.]

[spiritwalks]

Hm! It's the opposite, where I'm from. A bunch of magicians pissed off the wrong people, packed up their toys, and left our world. Anything or anyone magic is probably gonna get locked up in a box somewhere.

[Once upon a time, Vyng would have bombarded Sarona with questions about how mages peacefully co-exist with other peoples of her world. Hoping for some insight, maybe, about where their own world went wrong. But there's no going back now. Trench is their home. So he lets out a quiet breath, and does his best to let that thought go.]

[inkedspell]

That is fucked up. My world can still be weird about magic, but they aren't locking up every mage, runist, or elemental. Just...shit that's fucked. Sorry that world is like that.

[She doesn't even feel happy about the fact some other world might be more of a mess than the one that used to be hers. Just sad at how so many worlds with magic seem to be so messed up.]

But how about we focus on the real topic at hand. You want runes, I can give you runes, and you just need to tell me what kind.

[spiritwalks]

[YES. Please, focus on cooler shit. They're supposed to be putting old-world stuff behind them anyway.]

What do soulmate runes do?

[inkedspell]

Ah...they're like the ultimate life partner type runes. You bind your souls into one. You draw from each other's strengths and share each other's emotions. You feel what they feel and are stronger together. It's something married couples or partnered mages would use--doesn't have to be romantic, just you binding yourselves to each other.

Of course, the drawback is distance weakens the bond and can cause negative side effects such as depression, fatigue, weakened magic, etc. Also if one of you die, the other is living with a halved soul or dying right along with you.

[spiritwalks]

[Been there, done that. No thank you.]

...I think I'll be pass on that one.

[He's not sure his body could take losing someone he's spiritually bonded to again. His hair would probably fall out.]

What about tracking runes? What do those do?

[inkedspell]

Tracking runes are tattoos that can help people find you, you find someone else, or both.

It's like having a GP--wait, you probably have no idea what that is. Yeah, so imagine always knowing where someone is, no matter wherever they are, like a invisible string you can tug on and follow right to them.

[spiritwalks]

[That's almost worse than the soulmate runes.]

You can, like. Turn it off, though, right? Sounds like a serious invasion of privacy, otherwise.

[inkedspell]

[Invasion of privacy? Maybe if someone did it against the other person's will, but it's not like she's offering that.]

Making them dormant without intentionally activating them is pretty easy. Not to mention, you'd be picking whoever the anchor is. Both of you would have to get the ink done, so it's not something you just do on your own.

[spiritwalks]

Ahh, okay. Handy!

[If Billie were here, he could see the two of them getting something like this. They would both respect each other's boundaries enough not to crowd the other, while having that quick line to pull on during an emergency.

Tuck, on the other hand, hates tattoos. Good luck getting him to be Vyng's anchor if it involves ink.]

What about stealth runes? I'm guessing those make you extra-sneaky?

[inkedspell]

You're getting the theme here. Blocks scent, the ability of others to scry for you, some are also capable of camouflage, but those are best as rune stones instead of going on the skin. Magic on them wears out fast and you'd use up a lot of energy keeping it going.

[spiritwalks]

Wait, does that mean...can a tattoo's magic wear out?

[inkedspell]

Depends on where the magic is coming from. If you use your own inner magic and just use the tattoo to direct it, then it lasts as long as your energy lasts to keep it going. A la, this one.

[She rolls up her sleeve to show off the long tattoo on her right arm. There's a scar that runs like a jagged burn through it, but the ink was still clear, as if redone.]

Now, if you're using an external source of magic, like putting the magic directly into the tattoo or connecting it to something like a stone or amulet, then the magic lasts as long as the external source has magic. Magic's not infinite, it's energy just like anything else. You have to get it from somewhere.

[spiritwalks]

[Vyng peers closer into the screen to get a look at the tattoo. He lets out a low whistle, impressed with the craftsmanship.]

The runes you're offering today don't get their magic from an external source? How do you know somebody has enough energy to keep the magic going, then?

[inkedspell]

Everyone has an internal energy source. [She pauses.] Well almost anyone. The undead and inorganics are a different story. But I always do a rune check first, see what kind of energy I'm working with. Not everyone has the same kind of magic so you gotta finetune whatever your doing to match them, anyway.

[spiritwalks]

Wow. You really know your stuff.

[He scratches his cheek, looking thoughtful.]

Back home, what most people think of as "magic" is manipulating an external field — but that sort of power is different from my stuff, and both energy types can end up canceling each other out.

But if you can create something that, like, matches my resonance...then it probably shouldn't mess with the runes I've already got, right?

[inkedspell]

[She doesn't puff up with pride even though she feels the urge to. You're practically an adult Saeri, get it together.]

It's my job to be good at what I do, but yeah, I can match magic to magic. Or at least create something that doesn't conflict with it. Decide what kind you want yet?