In Pursuit of Knowledge

[Hector]

TIMESTAMP: 2 Cinderfall, Ash 122
NOTES: -

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As much as Hector genuinely enjoyed learning and the pursuit of knowledge, he sometimes found it difficult to focus in a classroom setting. Such a thing was notably foreign to him and he'd had trouble adapting since arriving here. In this case, he'd made his way from his apartment to the Imperial Academy's library to collect a few more resources on Kathalan as a language. He was having…some difficulties maintaining the pace that his teacher wanted him to have.

Because Vergil was immediately employable and given work at Southside General Hospital, the expectations were a little bit less for him as there was an understanding that he simply had less time to dedicate to his studies. On the other hand, this was no such grace extended to Hector because he currently had no employable skills other than delivering swift death with tandem use of his aidolon and Vitalis. As a result, this endeavor was a solo one. Over time, it had become easier for him to exist apart from Vergil here, but that didn't mean he had to like it.

When he arrived in the library, it was not very crowded at least. It'd be peaceful and quiet even if it was, but sometimes the mere presence of too many other people made the elf uncomfortable. Knowing this building's layout well, he made his way over to the linguistics section which held a nearly overwhelming amount of resources regarding the nation's official tongue. Sifting through the shelves, Hector sought to find the particular texts his teacher had recommended.

From where he was, the library's foyer was still in eyeshot and he could see people as they came and went. He wasn't expecting anybody, no, but should somebody he recognize pass through he would certainly notice. Alternatively, this also meant that he was just as visible to others coming and going. Should anyone want to bother him, they very easily could.

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Aidolon Speech

'Thoughts'

"Kathalan Tongue/Speech"

"Vallenor Tongue/Speech"

"Common Tongue/Speech"

"Mythrasi Tongue/Speech"

[Anton]

University libraries had become some of Anton's fondest places over the past year. Or rather, one university library had his favorite retreat from the stresses of the world for approximately nine months. He had considered enrolling in the Imperial Academy after the chaos of Searing had finally ended, and was still somewhat on the fence about the matter, so this was both a homecoming, of a kind, as well as a way to experience what the institution had in store for him.

Fortunately for him, he had been fluent in Kathalan from more or less the same age he had learned Common, and had no need for remedial texts. He had intended to find some of the original scientific journals and treatises that he had only been able to read in Zaichaer as facsimiles and half-complete copies, hoping to at last learn the secrets that the Imperium had kept for itself. However, he had not expected for his senses to be assaulted almost as soon as he entered the building by an all too familiar aura, with its hungry strains relatively muted for the moment.

Shock froze Anton in place as he recognized the unmistakable figure of the vampyre he had unwittingly rescued from the Gobbler. Hector had been a quiet figure aboard the Every Waking Moment, and he had judged Vergil the more dangerous of the two at the time, but his aura was... different now. Larger, more bombastic, and with the chimes of magic now glittering all throughout - that hungry score muted, yes, but deeper than he had seen before. The Imperium had been a better place for the sickly seeming man than he would have ever guessed.

The fact that he had simply sat himself down near the foyer, making no secret of his presence, suggested that he had come to some sort of accommodation with the Imperium. Or was a fool. It was hard to tell. Nonetheless, Anton abandoned his plans to relax with a textbook and instead made directly for Hector, face placid.

"I see that you have taken well to the Imperium," he said in a neutral tone of voice. Glancing over the books that Hector had taken, Anton gave a small nod. "Planning to stay I take it. Do let me know if you find those helpful for you," he added. The last bit wasn't actually a jab, he truly did want to know.

Vanessa had to learn Kathalan somewhere after all and, ideally, swiftly.

[Talon]

T A L O N

His footsteps were measured as he made his way through the halls of the Imperial Academy. He paid little attention to the people walking the corridors around him. He had no reason to pay attention to them. The nervous clerk that was serving as his guide to the academy library combined with the presence of the two palace guards trailing behind him, gave him ample room to pretend he did not see anyone else. He wore the armor of his station undisguised. He had no reason to disguise it, there within the halls of a place so heavily scrutinized by the Inquisition. While among the broader populace, he would tend to wear clothes more fitting the station of a nobleman, in a place that represented the collective knowledge of the Imperium, he saw no reason to hide the truth. It was as much a product of the knowledge accrued in these halls as it was a secret from those on the streets.

“Here we are, my lord!” The clerk stepped into the library, moving to the side with a stiff bow. Talon gave the man a slight inclination of his head. “Is there anything I can alert the librarians to? The reason for your visit?”

“Volumes on Solunarium. Cultural practices. Religion. Language.” The clerk looked up and gestured to a nearby section that was within view.

“Linguistics is over there, coincidentally. I shall inform the librarians of your other requests.” With that, the clerk stepped away with a bow. The two palace guards moved off to the side, taking up positions near the entrance to the library but always where Talon remained relatively in view.

As his eyes scanned over the bookshelves, he caught sight of a familiar face. It was not an unwelcome face. It was not a welcome face either, for that matter. The Inquisition apprentice that he had met in the Cathedral of Saint Aegan was seated near the section that had been pointed out to him. Near him was a figure he did not immediately recognize, not that it mattered. Talon lifted and settled his wings, letting his hands fall to the small of his back as he made his way in that direction.

“Apprentice Inquisitor. Fancy meeting you here. I would say I am surprised but it is, in fact, not surprising to find an associate of the Inquisition in a hall of knowledge. Learning your trade, I take it?” He inclined his head to the elf before turning his attention briefly to the man beside him. He looked at him expectantly.

[Hector]

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He’d managed to get his hands on one of the texts he came there to find and shortly thereafter spotted the second one. As soon as his pointer finger tapped the top of the spine, a voice made him freeze. Hector could feel goose flesh on his arms and the back of his neck and his head turned slowly, like a rusted automaton to look at the person who’d spoken to him. 'What was this?'

Not that seeing the young noble again was particularly terrifying, he was just caught off guard and…socially inept. The vampyre didn’t quite know how to respond, so at first, he hesitated with an awkward countenance.

“Ah, haha…yeah. It’s…it’s something, alright.” He’s stuttering like an idiot but he can’t help it.

“...and yes, Vergil and I have nowhere else. We’ve been treated well, at least…if nothing else, we’ve been treated well.” The discordant nature of his speech had stabilized by now and he spoke quite a bit cleaner, his expression now more confused than anything else. “My tutor claims they should be, although this one contains mostly niche terminology, honorifics and etiquette relevant primarily if one were to pursue a career sociopolitical in nature. I…don’t know how useful that aspect is, truthfully…but don’t you speak Kathalan?”

Hector figured that since Anton had family in the Imperium that he would. Was he asking for somebody else, then? Maybe somebody on the airship?

Then, just as these thoughts swam through his head, another figure approached and the Acolyte’s eyes grew wide again.

'W H Y ?'

None other than the demi-god he’d harassed back in the warmer days. Hector had been nosy from a distance– eavesdropping and going places he maybe shouldn’t to try and figure out why the oversized dove was here; the two had not directly spoken since their initial meeting. The scattered bits of information he had managed to glean about the divine were fascinating, but to be abstractly approached like this was terrifying.

“Fancy that!” Sounding something like the chirp of a bird, this…was all he could manage to say.

A far cry from the way he’d acted the day they met, for sure, but frankly this was due to the fact that the young man’s headspace could rapidly shift even in the span of a few days. And it had been more than a few; his rage towards the divine was still present, but as time moved on, he had been forced to dull it in order to focus on more present matters. Therefore, Hector did not have enough to fuel quite as cavalier an attitude at the moment. There was that and there’s also a stark difference between when he chooses to approach somebody else as compared to…this.

Blinking a few times in rapid succession, he managed to somewhat stabilize. “...but yes. Because I have naught more than my training on my schedule, their…er…expectations for language acquisition are…high. I’m keeping up but it’s…a lot.” The young elf kind of rambled because he was still just…bewildered.

First of all, why in the world did he of all the souls in the Imperium care at all about the goings on of a baby Inquisitor? Second–

Actually, there was no second. That’s it. Just…wHy?

“So what brings you here?” Abrupt, but he did genuinely want to know.

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Aidolon Speech

'Thoughts'

"Kathalan Tongue/Speech"

"Vallenor Tongue/Speech"

"Common Tongue/Speech"

"Mythrasi Tongue/Speech"

[Anton]

A tutor? Of all the things Anton had expected to greet Hector upon his arrival in Gel'Grandal, that was not one of them. He supposed that made some measure of sense however, the vampyre had clearly grown in power instead of being imprisoned or killed, so someone must have found him a potentially useful asset. It made sense to educate him, and even moreso to try and teach the young man Kathalan. "I do speak it, yes. My mother taught it to me from birth." Briefly, he considered simply leaving the mage alone, his aura was filled with clear annoyance, a feeling that Anton knew all too well when his own studies were interrupted.

If he felt like being kind, he would've offered to help Hector learn the language, but he was not terribly concerned with befriending a vampyre.

From behind, another figure approached the Academy's library. In truth, there were several, but the others were so clearly deferring to the mundane aura at their head that Anton paid them little heed. There was something off about the man, very few details could be made of him aetherically. What was more, he seemed to be actively approaching them - no, specifically Hector, a thin and reedy refrain connecting the two, so faint Anton could barely make it out. He almost investigated further, tensing as he attempted to delve deeper into the newcomer's aura, but then he spoke.

"Apprentice Inquisitor?" Anton blurted out, the massive Avialae next to him entirely forgotten, as he instead stared at Hector in shock. This was... not what he had expected for the man at all, and the fact of his elevation concerned him immensely. Not to mention the fact that it forced him to reevaluate some of his prior decisions.

"My apologies, this is my first time speaking with Hector since we arrived in the city," he said, turning to the strange newcomer after his initial shock had passed. Anton could make out shockingly little of the man, a fact that only served to bother him. Despite being blind, it had been quite some time since he had worked with so little information about anyone. He once again toyed with the idea of thoroughly investigating the aura, but this was apparently an Inquisitor's acquaintance. "I am Anton Michaelis, formerly of Zaichaer. And you are?"

[Talon]

T A L O N

His eyebrows rose at the apprentice inquisitor’s reaction, seemingly flustered at his approach. It was not a reaction that he had expected but it was interesting to see. Did it have anything to do with the young man standing nearby? He supposed he would find out in short order if it did.

“Cultural studies. Much the same as you.” He was there to learn as much information pertaining to Solunarium as he could get his hands on. While the Imperial Academy had an extensive library, he was not sure how much it had readily available concerning the isolationist nation. As he thought about it, he considered bringing up the topic of language as well. If he was going to travel there, he would have to learn to speak as they did in order to blend in better. When the young man beside him made his exclamation, Talon’s eyebrows rose a bit more. It seemed he had outed the young Inquisitor in some way.

Oops.

The other man’s introduction made him momentarily frown. It seemed he was running into a lot of Zaichaeri as of late. However, given the recent destruction of their homeland, that should not have been surprising. He considered withholding his introduction from Anton. If the man was from Zaichaer, did he truly want himself known to him? Almost as soon as the thought crossed his mind, it was discarded. Hector knew who he was by name, if not by reputation. There was no sense in hiding.

“Well met, Master Anton. I am Talon.” He gave a slight bow at the waist. If this man was from Zaichaer, then certainly he would recognize a Kalzasern accent. That, if nothing else, would be more than a giveaway as to who he was. If the man asked for an explanation, then he would give one. If he asked for nothing, then he would leave it alone.

[Hector]

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Wildly flustered by this situation, Hector was a bit like an animal on edge, much of him wanting to skitter away with his books and slink back home. However, an equally compelling part of him wanted to stay, finding both of the men in question intriguing for one reason or another. The more curious side wanted to hear them out, see if he could glean anything that might interest him, as anxious as this particular meeting made him.

For a second, Hector would appear to be confused at Anton’s exclamation of shock. The elf was…wearing the emblem right on his uniform; it was obvious. Could…could the man not see? For somebody with family here, he’d have to know what Inquisitors looked like, so…how was he taken aback by such a thing only when Talon mentioned it?

Odd.

Mustering his will to respond, “Ah, yes! The…Semblers here saw my runes and offered me the position. I’m a Prior now, actually, I moved up faster than many of the other Acolytes. Isn’t that strange? I…actually don’t know why. Something about performance, I guess.” He genuinely sounded confused.

The Inquisition was moving him through on the basis of the fact that he rapidly mastered Vitalis shortly after arriving, Summoning not that far behind now. Those above him saw his talent and wanted to cut some of the red tape and allow him more freedom; freedom, of course, to exact their will in precise, vicious ferocity on any dissenters. Despite his mental instability, the young mage was projected to become a force to be reckoned with, and they very much wanted him in their arsenal.

“Anton, do you have any suggestions regarding Kathalan? I feel like I have a conversational basis, the grammar is…okay, but…trying to rapidly expand my vocabulary is hard.” A question asked sincerely, he really did want help, not wanting to bite the hand that currently sustained him by dipping below the Imperium’s expectations.

“And Talon…which culture? Have you not been here long enough to be familiar? Or…are you looking for something specific, perhaps traveling?” This time, his voice was curious, friendly.

Though Hector spoke smoothly now, one could still detect tension in the way he carried himself, locking his posture, almost. His nerves caused just the slightest wavering over his words.

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Aidolon Speech

'Thoughts'

"Kathalan Tongue/Speech"

"Vallenor Tongue/Speech"

"Common Tongue/Speech"

"Mythrasi Tongue/Speech"

[Anton]

Talon.

Kalzasi's divine prince. An archmage in his own right, imbued with the essence of dead Arcas, and heir apparent to their elected throne. And the man whose disappearance at his own wedding had sparked the war with Zaichaer. Well, this explained... very little, actually. If anything it only produced infinitely more questions. But at least it explained why his aura seemed so strangely muted. No doubt whatever binds that the Imperium had placed on the godling were themselves obscured and hidden, and Anton was wise enough to not attempt to peer through that aetheric trickery.

This was, all considered, not the ideal time for propriety and protocol, but Anton felt compelled regardless. The man before him had a bevy of titles to his name, but most of them seemed inappropriate considering the circumstances. There was one however that only death could take from the Avialae. "Daizoku," the human said, inclining his head in respect to the nobleman. Even if he seemed to be a pampered prisoner in an imperial goal. This was not something that he felt like he should investigate too closely, and so he didn't.

"Congratulations are in order I suppose, Prior. A very rapid rise indeed." He inclined his head at the notion of Hector learning Kathalan, something that Anton could actually help with. "My mother had a number of books she used when I was learning as a child. I am afraid that our copies are lost in Zaichaer, but I'm certain we can find them within the stacks. Books were most of how I learned, to be honest. My mother had to constantly correct my pronunciation." After all, there had been very few people who actually spoke the language within the family manor beyond his mother and those she had brought with her from the Imperium, along with the occasional doctor flown in at great expense from Gel'Grandal.

[Talon]

T A L O N

Emotions welled up inside of him at the use of his title. His body tensed as the memory of his father being gunned down, the devastation at his wedding, and the trials he had undergone since being imprisoned, they all rushed through him. His jaw flexed but he willed himself to calm. He inclined his head to Anton. That was proof enough that the man knew who he was. It was certainly an odd situation and one that he could not, would not comment on as much as he was allowed.

“I am searching for information regarding the Kingdom of Solunarium. My--” He paused. He stumbled over the word that was about to come out of his mouth. It evoked feelings of revulsion, pain, anger and anguish inside of him. He felt a raw fury and indignity rise inside of his whole being but before any of it could manifest, he felt it get swept away. The emotions were pressed down and subdued before they could take form in the world around him. He felt the influence of the armor tighten around his mind. He flexed his jaw.

“My master bids that I travel south. I am to learn things about them and their culture before departing.” He gave a rueful smile as he cast about the library. “Sadly, there is not much to be found. They are an insular country and have been for centuries.”

Vaguely he could recall a time when that was not the case but he was too frustrated to focus on the hint of old memories buried in his consciousness. When Hector spoke on Kathalan and Anton replied, Talon chimed in.

“I am versed in Kathalan. If you require assistance, I could perhaps provide some help as well. I learned it from--from my partner.” He was finding that this interaction was laced with unspoken pitfalls with the presence of Anton. It was going to be difficult to navigate given that both men were originally from Zaichaer. He had heard the news. His immediate reaction to the destruction of the City of Brass was smug satisfaction that the place had received its just rewards for its treachery. That was quickly replaced with shame and regret for the thousands, hundreds of thousands, of lives that were now in ruins. War had never been something he wanted. His father had worked his entire life to avoid it.

It seemed that the Age of Steel was beginning to show its true nature once again. It was an era that had been shaped by cutthroat determination and victories won through war and bloodshed. The steel of a sword and the iron of the forges had soundly proven the undying nature of the mortal spirit. Those very same steel weapons were being sharpened and drawn, it appeared. His very task, to stop a calamity, seemed indicative that the blades of conflict were near being drawn again. It made him wonder how, if ever, he would face the Northlands again. Would he return and seek peace or would he return and exact his wrath on a people who were already scattered and broken?

“What do you know so far?” He focused back on the subject at hand. He was not free to think on such things. He was not free at all and likely would never truly be again. Not after everything that had happened.

[Hector]

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Hector's eyes flit from man to man, taking in the stark differences between the two. One large and imposing, the other dainty and demure. And, he supposed, he was far more similar to Anton in that regard than not. There was always something unnerving to him about being around those much taller than he was, as if he were paranoid that somebody so large would move to squish him. While this paranoia was largely irrational, it nonetheless persisted into this interaction as well.

The words that the two spoke back and forth did interest him, although he had no context whatsoever for why they had been said. 'Daizoku' was a title Hector recognized from his proximity to Kalzasi, but he had been fully unawares that this title belonged to this….particular Avialae. How fascinating! But also, simultaneously, terrifying. It did not bode well for a 'Daizoku' to be at the yoke of a master, now did it?

And of Solunarium, Hector knew…precious little. In general, he never learnt much about the southern continent– not even Ecith. So in regards to the brilliance of that desert kingdom? Aside from their respect for magic, he knew ought else. "...well, the most I could help you with, there, would be to guide you around the library. I've spent a lot of time in it and do have access to some sections most do not. But as for Solunarium…? The only image in my head is glistening sand and great spires of gold. Which…I, um…don't imagine is useful." Maybe there was some text useful somewhere, but he'd have to actively go look- it wasn't a subject that had caught his interest on its own.

Learning Kathalan from either of these two was, most probably, a good idea despite the fact that one of them didn't appear to like him and the other one was…scary. Hector supposed he should get over himself in that regard, at least for his own sake.

"Um…my Kathalan is 'conversational' at best…but if people speak too fast, use specialized language, shorten things, use colloquialisms…metaphors and so…I find myself easily getting lost." And this was, ultimately, problematic because of his job. 'Conversational' simply wasn't good enough when people could still freely leave him in the dark about things by simple shifts of their diction. "So I would…appreciate any help offered by either of you, in truth." He looked somewhat sheepish, though his words were sincere.

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Aidolon Speech

'Thoughts'

"Kathalan Tongue/Speech"

"Vallenor Tongue/Speech"

"Common Tongue/Speech"

"Mythrasi Tongue/Speech"