Learning the Path

[Jonathan Burr]

Unbeknownst to Zasalamir, someone had already tried that. Jon had been trying to convince Alistair that Aberration wasn't what the man feared it was. He'd tried so hard to get him to get along with his Harvesters. To hide the people he'd flayed or tell him that he wanted to target the evil in this world. Alistair wouldn't hear of it. Alistair, no matter what, was determined to hate that part of Jon and drive it out of him entirely. It was the one thing driving a wedge between them. He looked at Zasalamir, a bit sadly. Would Alistair crush that peaceful spirit of his just like he'd killed Daeva? Alistair wanted unquestioning slaves for his partners. He didn't want equal lovers. They were part of a harem, with only Alistair as their ruler.

Jon waited for Zasa to catch up and put his arm around him. He walked, quietly, thinking. "Do you really want this?" he asked softly. "I'll initiate you, but it will take time to set up and we'll need to prepare you. Hob will need to prepare you and so will I. It is violent, it is madness. You'll step into chaos and you have to keep your head. I remember mine." He looked over at Zasalamir. "I researched a lot into Aberration. I gathered every little scrap. Every wanted poster, every book, every little bit of news. When I was initiated, the dream took me into a room where everything I had worked was on fire. Everything I touched turned to ash. I could barely breathe. It was Daeva who walked through the flames and offered me a choice. Die there, or join her. I...I don't know if every dream is different but it sounds like it is."

He kissed Zasalamir affectionately as they walked. "I just want you to be prepared." he smiled gently. "Now...tell me more about the business you're trying to get going. My drug of choice used to be katomise. It's...either drunk or injected but I was fond of the latter." he spread his fingers, showing Zasa the tiny little injection scars between his ring and middle finger. "Fingers were less noticeable by my father. And most other people."

"Talkin"

[Zasalamir]

He nodded in regards to wanting this spark, even if it was hated. One thing about Zasalamir many who come to know him realized was his propensity to prove the norm wrong. You say Abarrency is an evil among mages, he'll no doubt show you that an abarrent can be a positive force. Placing him hin a box of one's own views and expectations is like trying to trap wind itself. It was impossible to say the least. Hearing his lover explain what would be require of him, what steps that would have to be taken, knowing him and Hob would have to have a one on one was a little overwhelming in its hints at danger, but what was life without out a little danger? He appreciated how much Jon cared for things to run smoothly for him.

After Jon kissed him, he inquired to what kind of drugs Zasalamir made, which caused a smirk to form on his face. "I facilitate all forms of drugs, but my specialty and masterworks come in the form of inhalants, edibles, and aromas. As i told you before they are a healthier version than what is currently on the market in most kingdoms. Once it hit your systems, depending on the base ingredient, it can have beneficial effect on the body. Though my current level is on a novice in terms of potency. I can formulate an endless list of uses and ways to make the, but the potency always dies because of that. I plan to expand my knowledge so this is corrected. As it stands now, my drugs only last a single break in a human's system where as if I could get the potency at the right levels, they could potentially last a trial. Once there I want to try my hand at poisons." He explained running his hand through his hair, tying it into a ponytail for the time being.

"Speech"

[Jonathan Burr]

"Every drug comes with a downside." Jon told him quietly. "Drugs can be used to help the sick or injured, but I'd be careful testing your healthier versions. A lot of addicts don't want what is healthier. They're just chasing the high. You have to be careful you're not stepping on anyone's territory there. When we're there, we're there to observe. Not to front or slink around. Just to walk through like we're not even there for anything else. Addicts know better than to attack someone well-armed, and I've taken care of things there on several occasions."

He had to admit, he was a little nervous taking Zasalamir to the Corner. Entering Ne'Haer was fine; he liked taking Zas through the streets. It was a beautiful day, and when they hit the city it was a bustle of activity. Men running to and fro, shops shouting wares, guards patrolling and the tolling of bells coming from the Temples. The soft sound of water from the Lochgrass gardens beckoning them to come take a reprieve from the heat, and the dark mouth of the Corner staring at them like some yawning cave. It was the last that Jon steered them towards. It was in a little less populated part of town. The Corner was well known as a place where addicts and dealers went, and it was the last place anyone respectable would be caught dead in.

The Corner was like a gigantic wound in Ne'haer. It was a large alleyway, dark with filth. So many things painted the walls that had been rotted and scraped over. The cobblestones were poorly out of repair, and several deep pot holes were starting to fester. Jon really didn't want to imagine the sort of horrors those wet potholes held. The buildings' windows were so greasy with the layer of grime, that they all appeared as yellow as tallow. Some of them had gone gray and fuzzed with mould. Water dripped out of poor drainage furrows along the roofs, adding to the spread of lichen and slime molds. Even rats forwent this place. Then there were the addicts, strewn around like broken dolls. Some of them living, some of them dead, and impossible to tell betwixt them. Jon paused a few feet inside the corner and glanced over at Zasalamir. "Don't make eye contact." he said quietly. "Keep on the path. Those little alleyways spiralling off the Corner are dangerous. But this...this is most of your clientele. Men who don't care about living."

"Talkin"

[Zasalamir]

The city was beautiful, definitely nothing like Etzos. He felt like a tourist as he walked the streets with Jon in Ne'haer. He took in the how the people of the city moved, their mannerisms, interactions with each other. How formulated and precise the formation of the patrolling troops was. To Jon and anyone else watching the blonde male, it would appear he was like a child gazing some new toy or dessert. In all actuality his fascination with his surroundings was far more calculating. His father did that to him, as he could never truly enjoy the beauty of cities. Instead it was an act, a more so a habitual mechanism. Learn the city and its infrastructure, learn the people, and cater yourself to fit their need. If he was to make this place a base for his future ambitions, he had to play the part well. "A city so beautiful, Im tempted to find a nice little place to call home here." He said, the words both genuine & apart of the facade he was painting. He would move here for Jon, but the practicality of the move would be to have a closer eye on his constitutes within the Corner rather those who meandered about the quaint city. As they went along Zasalamir could see the corner getting closer in the distance. His eyes focused on that area, even as they stopped by the garden, the sound of water cooling in his ear. Closing them he dipped his hand in the liquid, allowing his nerves and anxiety to dissolve and be washed away. It was right in front him, his launching pad to his ultimate goal. He wasn't going to allow nerves or thoughts of reconsideration to stop him now. It was a plan, a mission 16 arcs in the making. Suffering under his father's perverse and cruelty, exchanging his childhood and freedom for a legacy he never wanted. This corner of depravity would be Zasa's golden tree, and he was going to nurture that sapling into a mighty tree and ensured his golden seeds produced delicious fruit of destruction.

Entering the Corner the stench of death......was that piss? Maybe fecal matter or something of that nature. Whatever it was it was churning his stomach. Before they could go further in, Jon warned him. He was in a dangerous position, and had to play it rather cool for the moment. He nodded, fighting the urge to vomit. continuing further in, even as his sight remained on the path ahead, his pupils darted over every inch it could. The inhabitants of the Corner were definitely like his love had foretold. Their soul were gone, lost to the drug of their choice, being eaten away by the vice. He knew that in time, his drugs would do the same, but he would be better. The drugs distributed here were, deadly to say the least. Fiends looting or desecrated of those who have gone on in hopes to find a slither of high left to enjoy. His spirit and heart ailing he gripped Jon's hand, a signal for his lover to get him out of here as quickly as possible. He was aching to just be done with this place, seeing all he needed to see. He just wanted fresh air, and possibly to vomit as that stench was truly an affront to one's nose and the immortals.

"Speech"

[Jonathan Burr]

Jon enjoyed walking through the city with Zasalamir. For a moment, he could see it. A small apartment here, just a little abode they could live and work together in. Someplace quiet and full of peace. Perhaps even next to the ocean. Somewhere they could relax and enjoy one another, and abandon their worries. Jon had a much greater weight on his shoulders, with Zasalamir's dreams of breaking into the drug industry here. Why did someone so beautiful and peaceful have to want such a horrible thing? All his talk about his drugs being positive with no side effects Jon had heard from every pusher he'd ever met. Oh, its ok. This one's not addictive. This one won't turn your veins black or give you nightmares. There were always tradeoffs for the high, and Zasalamir had to learn that even if it was the hard way.

The Corner was a den of horrors but that was what Jon needed him to see. "This is the consequence of you going into this line of work." he said softly. He moved even slower when his hand was squeezed. No. He wasn't going to spare him this. He had to see it, and he had to understand it. "You are going to sow seeds for the dead and the dying. There isn't a question about it. You'll do it for money, and for status, but are you ready to accept what you'll reap?" he nodded to one of the smaller alleyways and pulled Zasalamir toward it. It was fine if he vomited. Sometimes Jon felt like being sick here too, reminded of what he once was.

He nodded into the small alleyway. "Look at them." he told Zasalamir. There were a few people there. A woman being rutted on by someone. Jon couldn't see if she was breathing. Two men weakly pawing for a needle they'd dropped, in a strangely slow but fierce race to get to it before the other. The stench was even greater here, probably due to an overflowing jug in the corner someone had thought to use as a latrine. "I need you to be strong, if youre going to do this to other people for nel." Jon said quietly. "Tell me what you see."

"Talkin"

[Zasalamir]

This was heart & gut wrenching even for Zasalamir. He could see far more than Jon could ever know. The symphony of purple, the shades dingy and decaying. It was truly overwhelming for the golden mane male. His stomach finally having enough, Zasa turned away from Jon and emptied his breakfast from that morning onto the alley way stones. Jonathan's words stung more than he would have liked, and it caused tears to run free from his eyes. "This was never in my plans, to cause such atrophy of the human soul. I truly believed that with enough practice and training I could make drugs that wouldn't turn people into this." He said as Jon forced him to look at the machinations of the Corner. His lover asked him what he saw and Zasa shook his head as he answered. "I see decaying and disgusting hues of purple as this place permeates the emotion of disgust at every turn. I see blues, despair and grief coiled along every tangle. I see burning and vibrant reds full of anger and rage for not being able to get another hit. I must be honest with you Jon. I lied when we first met." He said wiping the flood of tears from his face. "When you asked if I had a spark, I told you no, but that was not the truth. Im an empath, as my mother was. I can see emotions as clearly as you can see Hob. This place has caused me to reconsider this path of mine. Im not sure what else there is I can do. Ive gone so long being a drug runner I am perplexed as to what else is there for me to do." He said still gazing at the symphony of colors around him.

"Speech"

[Jonathan Burr]

Jonathan patted Zasalamir's shoulder as he vomited, rubbing his poor blonde lion's shoulder. He slowly steered him away from the mouth of the smaller alleyway and embraced him, holding him close. Gods, he hadn't any idea. An Empath? Who would bring an Empath to the Crazed Corner? He truly felt everything that was going on here. The misery, the suffering, the high and the sickness. He nuzzled against Zasalamir's neck and held him quietly for a moment, sighing deeply through his nostrils. "I had no idea." he said softly. "I didn't know you could truly feel this place. I thought you didn't know. Come on, let's get out of here." He slowly steered Zasalamir toward the end of the alleyway, where it curved up sharply from the miserable little infection in Ne'haer and back toward the bright streets.

"Come on. Let's go." he said softly. "Maybe you can come with me. I've heard there is a great Academy in Viden...you can come with, if you like. We can study together and you can figure out where your gifts will take you. For now, let's go home and rest. And get you some water." he nuzzled him affectionately. He felt guilty. Horrifically guilty. Poor Zasalamir! That explained why the other man was so empathetic, so spiritual and so calm. "I'm so sorry. I didn't know, and if I knew I never would have brought you here." he held Zasalamir's hand tightly as they walked. He stopped to get him a little bit of water, to wash his mouth out with and ease his stomach. "Are you alright? Let's go back to Kaelserad. It's much too hot to be out here anyway...and we can talk about what direction your life needs to take."

[Zasalamir]

The regret in his lover's voice was uncomfortable. He didnt like the feeling of Jon blaming himself for what transpired. He looked to Jon seeing the hues of blue and feeling his emotions. He remained silent till they reached the warmth of the streets. After getting some water into his system, he looked to Jon as he encouraged Zasa to come with him to Viden. Zasa heard of the place once before, but never thought to look into it. Maybe this would be good for him. He nodded in agreement, taking Jon by the hand as he embraced him. "I wont allow you to blame yourself for what happened. I am to blame for not telling you the truth, had i done so I wouldn't have had to deal with that. So dont beat yourself up for it, you had no clue." He said ready to return to Jon's "Yes there is much to discuss once back in the comforts of your bed. I could use a rest after experiencing that." He said, trying to truly fathom what he experience in the corner. He remembered feeling the similar sensation from when he was initiated by his mother. The emotion of the corner still lingered as he was still finding tears. This was a wake up call for Zasa, seeing his empathic powers were not going to make his goal easily obtainable. Realizing this he wiped his tear away, and would find another route to his goal. He came this far, and one setback wasnt going to deter him.

"Speech"

[Pegasus]

Hey both - an interesting thread in which you kept up a good pace. You both kept up a good amount of dialogue - but the one point I would make is how important it is to play to your skill level. To pick up a bow and shoot within centimeters of Jon's head with a skill of 5 is highly unlikely. Definitely something to pay attention to. Jon, also, I haven't given you knowledge in Empathy as a skill - since this thread doesn't warrant that for you, so I've put it as non-skill knowledge (so learning about rather than learning to) and Zas, same for you with both Empathy and Aberration. These can not be used as knowledges to progress the skills. Well done, both, this was an interesting and emotional read.

Jon

Points

XP: 15 (not for magic)

Renown:None

Loot

None

Knowledge

Skill Knowledge:
Seduction: Comforting a lover
Seduction: Gentle kisses
Seduction: Holding hands
Seduction: Playful wrestling in bed
Seduction: Waking up next to a lover.
Seduction: A little danger is sexy
Medicine: The side effects of addiction
Medicine: Drug addicts are dangerous

Non Skill:
Empathy: Empaths see emotion
Empathy: Empaths are far more sensitive to emotions.

Zasalimir

Points

XP: 15 (not for magic)

Renown: None

Loot

None

Knowledge

Archery: The first arrow is always a warning shot
Archery: Release the arrow as if were your own breath
Archery: Accuracy is Key
Seduction: Ignoring personal space means more touching
Seduction: A pleasure deferred is a pleasure enhanced
Seduction: That blessing glow, though

Non Skill
Abberation: The Bond of a Harvester
Abberation: Having Chaos at one's Fingertips
Abberation: An Addiction to Ether
Empathy: Drowning in the Feeling
Empathy: The Symphony of one's Emotions
Empathy: Become an Emotional Sponge