31st of Frost, 120 AS
Lyra stared at the wall in the direction of the tugging sensation. Unconsciously she rubbed at the spot over her heart, eyes distant and unsure. More and more Lyra was coming face to face with her lack of information, her knowledge, and the fact that so much of her past was shrouded in fog. This season had been one of the intrusions, unwanted guests, and painful recollections. She was starting to wonder how much of HER was actually real, and how much was simply a fabrication due to the lack of her past. It was disconcerting to be confronted with this... feeling over and over again.
She stared for a short time more before she tore her gaze away from the sensation. There would be time enough for all of that. Right now she had more pressing matters to attend to. Her eyes drifted back over the naked form of Naila laying on the stone slab. The runes along the stone's surface glowed faintly, responding to the presence of the soul binders dagger and the reaction which was taking place within the woman's very being. There were 24 hours until she had to continue onto the next step, the most crucial step. She best gets to it.
Rolling her neck Lyra turned toward the pedestals that lined the far wall of the necromancy lab. On one in the center, there sat two gems, dragonshards just a bit smaller than 3 fingers wide. They were beautifully carved by a master dragonshard crafter, a runeforger most likely, and were rounded in shape though they had sharp edges. One was slightly purplish, a greater Aetherite shard. The other was blue and gave off faint sparks of electricity. Lytirisyte, a type of shard that Lyra was beginning to grow more and more accustomed to. Both sat within the specially made circle that steadily drained them of their aether, just enough to keep them stable and prevent adverse effects just by moving them bout.
Using her favorite carving hook Lyra picked up the stormgem first. Despite the glyphs of protection Lyra still felt a slight tingling sensation from touching the shard, the effects of a greater dragonsahard at play. She had considered for some time how to proceed with Naila. She needed her body, but a part of Lyra was curious... The possibilities of her work recently made her wonder just what all was possible with the Soul Space? How close could two souls become? These questions and more drove Lyra's decision, though her promise to Naila played a small role as well. If she were to completely cut her off from the world then Naila would not be able to fulfill her desire, and despite her reputation, Lyra kept her vows. The solution? Bind Naila's soul to her own, and then trap it inside of a soul gem connected to the body through a soul space which Lyra had primary control over. That combination would, in Lyra's estimation, allow Naila to still control the vessel when Lyra allowed, but if the need arose Lyra could assert her will and dominate the other woman to rest back control. With that decision made Lyra then had to decide on what to trap the soul inside of. Even with her limited insight, Lyra could tell standard gemstones would not be enough to contain Naila's soul... Thus a dragonshard was required.
Hefting the stormgem up Lyra reached into the pocket of her robes and took out the pair of aura glasses that had become her go-to tool. Through it she could see the fluxations of aether within the storm gem, as well as the shift in power as she began her steady carving on the surface. As with all soul gems Lyra began with the traditional pictographs. Contain, bind, entrap, enthrall. These were the necessary designs required to turn a gem into a vessel that would house a soul. These were actually the same symbols Lyra had incorporated into the Soul Space schema, creating a glyph that would expand upon the connection the circle of minding created and create a space within the circle for the two connected to interact to a greater extent. Lyra then proceeded to add the designs that wrapped the entire shard, the star-like pattern, and the grasping fingers toward a symbol at the bottom. These would let the soul gem connected with the larger soul space more efficiently and supply its own aether to upkeep space. At the very top of the gem, Lyra added one, final design. Her personal sigil, a snake with no eyes coiled in on itself. As the stormgems aether flooded in Lyra blew out steadily, wrapping the gem in her aether as she slipped in a portion of herself into the design. A whisper that was incorporated. It would activate when Lyra commanded it, impressing a strong desire to do as Lyra commanded, drawing upon the bond between Naila and Lyra to strengthen the compulsion and to press down on rebellious emotions. The whisper was a strong deterrent, and one Lyra wondered if she would ever have to use.
With that done Lyra set the stormgem aside and picked up the aetherite shard. This would be one of Lyra's greatest experiments. As with the soon to be soul gem Lyra gave the Aetherite shard all it required to interact with the larger soul space, however, she added extra layers to the pictographs that linked this gem to the larger design. She then began to progress around the other faces of the dragonshard, adding pictographs for 'awaken', 'learn', 'construct', and several more designs that implied the presence of a soul or learning. These were slightly modified versions of the pictographs required to turn a dragonshard into a core. There was an odd fluctuation with the aether in the gem as she completed this step, but they quickly settled and Lyra smiled. This Core would be the center of the soul space, the thing that Lyra and Naila would interact with to connect to space. But it served a greater purpose. It would constantly be watching, learning, and Lyra could slowly and steadily guide its growth. A long term experiment to determine the lengths to which one could take an artificial soul. Lyra paused as she began to set the gem, looking at it thoughtfully for a short time before adding one last diagram. The same coiled snake with no eyes infused with a very similar whisper as the other shard contained. One could never be too careful.
Everything would link and interact through the soul space. Lyra herself needed a method of doing so as well, and she needed to ensure that she was the one ultimately in control of the space. One look at Artur had told Lyra the answer. Several days previously she had prepared a new soul totem, and it was this that she now carried over to the gem station. It was a cold, icy thing compared to the other gems. Pale in color, the totem gave off a faint white mist that was the mark of tools of necromantic origin. It was as much a part of her as Lyra's own shards, and when she began to scrape at its surface she winced slightly. The Soul Totem, unlike the rest of the gems used previously, was already well within her control and influence. What she needed though was a way for it to link with and influence the soul space. She added her typical sigil, working around the pictographs already present as she gave the soul totem the traditional means of interacting with the soul space. She then added a new design, a crown-like shape at the 'top' of the gem that connected down to the point at which the totem would interact with the circle inside of the body. It was similar to a branching pathway design, like Lyra would use in schema to direct aether in one way or another based on another input. The input however was Lyra's very presence, and when it was active all aether touched or passed through this point. What that meant was that at all times Lyra herself would be in contact with the place which all aether flowed to the rest of the vessel, and she could interrupt that signal at any time.
She added a few more final touches and then stepped back, looking at the 3 finished gems that would be the foundation for her grande schema. It was not over, however, for soon the soul binding would be complete. Lyra looked over her shoulder at Naila's still form. She would need to remove the source of her malady, likely located in one particular portion of the body, connect her soul gem back to the vessel within the soul space, and then add all of the ancillary components that would ensure the entire glyph remained functional and active. Then there came the modifications... So much to do, and yet Lyra felt a thrill of excitement.
She smiled.
Lyra stared at the wall in the direction of the tugging sensation. Unconsciously she rubbed at the spot over her heart, eyes distant and unsure. More and more Lyra was coming face to face with her lack of information, her knowledge, and the fact that so much of her past was shrouded in fog. This season had been one of the intrusions, unwanted guests, and painful recollections. She was starting to wonder how much of HER was actually real, and how much was simply a fabrication due to the lack of her past. It was disconcerting to be confronted with this... feeling over and over again.
She stared for a short time more before she tore her gaze away from the sensation. There would be time enough for all of that. Right now she had more pressing matters to attend to. Her eyes drifted back over the naked form of Naila laying on the stone slab. The runes along the stone's surface glowed faintly, responding to the presence of the soul binders dagger and the reaction which was taking place within the woman's very being. There were 24 hours until she had to continue onto the next step, the most crucial step. She best gets to it.
Rolling her neck Lyra turned toward the pedestals that lined the far wall of the necromancy lab. On one in the center, there sat two gems, dragonshards just a bit smaller than 3 fingers wide. They were beautifully carved by a master dragonshard crafter, a runeforger most likely, and were rounded in shape though they had sharp edges. One was slightly purplish, a greater Aetherite shard. The other was blue and gave off faint sparks of electricity. Lytirisyte, a type of shard that Lyra was beginning to grow more and more accustomed to. Both sat within the specially made circle that steadily drained them of their aether, just enough to keep them stable and prevent adverse effects just by moving them bout.
Using her favorite carving hook Lyra picked up the stormgem first. Despite the glyphs of protection Lyra still felt a slight tingling sensation from touching the shard, the effects of a greater dragonsahard at play. She had considered for some time how to proceed with Naila. She needed her body, but a part of Lyra was curious... The possibilities of her work recently made her wonder just what all was possible with the Soul Space? How close could two souls become? These questions and more drove Lyra's decision, though her promise to Naila played a small role as well. If she were to completely cut her off from the world then Naila would not be able to fulfill her desire, and despite her reputation, Lyra kept her vows. The solution? Bind Naila's soul to her own, and then trap it inside of a soul gem connected to the body through a soul space which Lyra had primary control over. That combination would, in Lyra's estimation, allow Naila to still control the vessel when Lyra allowed, but if the need arose Lyra could assert her will and dominate the other woman to rest back control. With that decision made Lyra then had to decide on what to trap the soul inside of. Even with her limited insight, Lyra could tell standard gemstones would not be enough to contain Naila's soul... Thus a dragonshard was required.
Hefting the stormgem up Lyra reached into the pocket of her robes and took out the pair of aura glasses that had become her go-to tool. Through it she could see the fluxations of aether within the storm gem, as well as the shift in power as she began her steady carving on the surface. As with all soul gems Lyra began with the traditional pictographs. Contain, bind, entrap, enthrall. These were the necessary designs required to turn a gem into a vessel that would house a soul. These were actually the same symbols Lyra had incorporated into the Soul Space schema, creating a glyph that would expand upon the connection the circle of minding created and create a space within the circle for the two connected to interact to a greater extent. Lyra then proceeded to add the designs that wrapped the entire shard, the star-like pattern, and the grasping fingers toward a symbol at the bottom. These would let the soul gem connected with the larger soul space more efficiently and supply its own aether to upkeep space. At the very top of the gem, Lyra added one, final design. Her personal sigil, a snake with no eyes coiled in on itself. As the stormgems aether flooded in Lyra blew out steadily, wrapping the gem in her aether as she slipped in a portion of herself into the design. A whisper that was incorporated. It would activate when Lyra commanded it, impressing a strong desire to do as Lyra commanded, drawing upon the bond between Naila and Lyra to strengthen the compulsion and to press down on rebellious emotions. The whisper was a strong deterrent, and one Lyra wondered if she would ever have to use.
With that done Lyra set the stormgem aside and picked up the aetherite shard. This would be one of Lyra's greatest experiments. As with the soon to be soul gem Lyra gave the Aetherite shard all it required to interact with the larger soul space, however, she added extra layers to the pictographs that linked this gem to the larger design. She then began to progress around the other faces of the dragonshard, adding pictographs for 'awaken', 'learn', 'construct', and several more designs that implied the presence of a soul or learning. These were slightly modified versions of the pictographs required to turn a dragonshard into a core. There was an odd fluctuation with the aether in the gem as she completed this step, but they quickly settled and Lyra smiled. This Core would be the center of the soul space, the thing that Lyra and Naila would interact with to connect to space. But it served a greater purpose. It would constantly be watching, learning, and Lyra could slowly and steadily guide its growth. A long term experiment to determine the lengths to which one could take an artificial soul. Lyra paused as she began to set the gem, looking at it thoughtfully for a short time before adding one last diagram. The same coiled snake with no eyes infused with a very similar whisper as the other shard contained. One could never be too careful.
Everything would link and interact through the soul space. Lyra herself needed a method of doing so as well, and she needed to ensure that she was the one ultimately in control of the space. One look at Artur had told Lyra the answer. Several days previously she had prepared a new soul totem, and it was this that she now carried over to the gem station. It was a cold, icy thing compared to the other gems. Pale in color, the totem gave off a faint white mist that was the mark of tools of necromantic origin. It was as much a part of her as Lyra's own shards, and when she began to scrape at its surface she winced slightly. The Soul Totem, unlike the rest of the gems used previously, was already well within her control and influence. What she needed though was a way for it to link with and influence the soul space. She added her typical sigil, working around the pictographs already present as she gave the soul totem the traditional means of interacting with the soul space. She then added a new design, a crown-like shape at the 'top' of the gem that connected down to the point at which the totem would interact with the circle inside of the body. It was similar to a branching pathway design, like Lyra would use in schema to direct aether in one way or another based on another input. The input however was Lyra's very presence, and when it was active all aether touched or passed through this point. What that meant was that at all times Lyra herself would be in contact with the place which all aether flowed to the rest of the vessel, and she could interrupt that signal at any time.
She added a few more final touches and then stepped back, looking at the 3 finished gems that would be the foundation for her grande schema. It was not over, however, for soon the soul binding would be complete. Lyra looked over her shoulder at Naila's still form. She would need to remove the source of her malady, likely located in one particular portion of the body, connect her soul gem back to the vessel within the soul space, and then add all of the ancillary components that would ensure the entire glyph remained functional and active. Then there came the modifications... So much to do, and yet Lyra felt a thrill of excitement.
She smiled.
