11th of Searing, 121 AS
Location: Lyra’s Lab
Three stacks of infused parchment sat on the large workbench in the scrivening area of Lyra’s shop. Rean worked quietly at the desk against the wall, steadily working through a series of commissions that had come in recently for some journeyman level scrolls. Lyra had come to rely on the girl far more than she might have expected. True she was still lacking in experience, but she was dependable and talented at what she did. These were all qualities that Lyra herself highly respected.
Turning her attention to the task at hand Lyra selected the first piece of parchment that would soon become a magic scroll in its own right. The concept for scrolls was a simple one. Create focal point, a series of warding glyphs to contain the aether inside, a set of pathways that directed the aether to the areas one wanted it to go, and finally give it a trigger of some sort. That trigger could be almost anything. A spoken phrase, touching a specific place on the scrollwork, anything would do really. These however Lyra wanted to be works that could contain master level spellwork, if only for a one time use, which meant that there needed to be several layers of scripts involved.
The first parchment was infused for fire resistance, and contained its own trace amounts of fire aether coursing through its own artificial pathways. That meant it could sustain spells of a certain level, and even cast them several times so long as they were within its aether capacity. These current scrolls had enough aether to fuel several Journeyman level spells, roughly 3 expert, and only a single master level, even with the additional layers of protection Lyra intended to add. It would be enough though, and considering the cost of the materials the price was well worth the end result.
Lyra had prepared 3 vials of ink for this occasion, using a small amount of the crystalized aether to make special infused inks of Fire, Frost and Lightning. It wasn’t strictly necessary, but the additional aetheric stability would help improve the overall efficiency. Like most scrolls Lyra started with creating the focus at the center, branching off from there in spiraling pathways that lead to the first layer of warding glyphs. These were focused on containing the flowing magics within, and would help ensure that little aether was lost during the investiture steps that would come later. Lyra created three more layers of protection glyphs around the first, and then expanded the pathways outward in spiriling, vine like lines out to the very edges of the parchment. These pathways were given accents that pulled ambient aether from the environment, refining and filtering it through the fire touched aether within the scroll, and delivering it to the a specific rune learn the top of the page that acted as something of an aether storage area. This allowed the parchment to steadily draw in aether to replace the aether lost while casting a spell, and so long as the amount gathered and contained was not exceeded the scroll would remain in tact. That was the trick to creating reusable scrolls, aether control. Most magic scrolls were designed to capture and use everything all at once, but to Lyra that seemed far too inefficient. Of course it was impossible to continue to use a scroll indefinitely. It would eventually break down and become unusable, not just as the ink began to fade but also by nature of most alchemical goods the base materials would deteriorate as well. Again, though, that was fine. These particular scrolls would be used within just a few days, so she did not need them to last very long.
With the last few scripts completed Lyra turned her eyes toward the focus. This was the most crucial, yet deceptively simple, portion of the entire process. She had to allow the scroll to accept a spell from a mage to be incorporated into the schema. This would allow the scroll to be primed later, instead of right at its creation like she would normally do using Dragonshards. That was what gave true masterwork scrolls their reputation. Nearly any form of spell, so long as the mage implanting it into the scroll could imagine it, could be placed into the scroll and called on again at any point. It was simple. Lyra drew a loosely knotted series of lines around the focus, linked these back to the pathways, and finally lead a line from the aether collection and storage place back to the focus. Magic which was imparted by the mage would be pulled through the focus, spread throughout the multiple layers of warding in the scroll, and the affects written in the very aetheric pathways which made up the scroll itself. The only downside was that, once created, the scroll could not take in any other spell without a new focus being crafted.
Lifting the scroll Lyra smiled at her work contently before setting the parchment aside and beginning on the next one. She created 6 such magic scrolls for each of the 3 different types of parchment. The other 4 sheets she carefully stacked tougher with dividers and placed them into her bag which always remained close by. Later she would send the prepared scrolls to Talon and the pup so that they could do their part and impart their magics into them. That would give them a significant arsenal with which to work with within the depths, and the extra pages Lyra could use to create custom works quickly. Which reminded Lyra that she still had other reagents to prepare.
*****
Back in her lab Lyra set 2 jars of ink on the workbench next to the rest of her alchemy supplies. She eyed the jars for a moment before collecting the rest of the necessary materials. One of each of the crystalized aether pieces, and 3 vials of her own concentrated essence. She set these to the side and carefully opened each jar, being sure not to spill a drop. One of the jars Lyra carefully aliquoted into 3 smaller flasks, more appropriate for holding ink than the larger jar was. Then from a shelf she found a brush and, using the very ink she intended to infuse, dipped the brush and began to make symbols directly on each of the flasks. These where simple sigils of alchemy. Stabilization mixed with evolution, a blend of traditional and occult practices, but Lyra needed to ensure she got exactly what she wanted from this step. She then placed one of each of the aether crystals into the jar of ink and gently stirred them with the agitation rod she carried in her robes. The rod looked closer to a metallic wand, thicker on one end and carved with runes and gave off a strange energy that even those not attuned to magic could sense. It’s entire purpose was to encourage a reaction, and that was just what Lyra used it for now. That was it. She let the infusion carry on from that point, corking each of the flasks and setting them on a shelf where they would steadily integrate the aether over the course of several hours. It would only last for half a season at most, but again Lyra expected this ink to be used in the very near future.
Lyra brought her attention to the larger jar then. Once more she drew sigils and pictographs along its surface, but this time she only used those based in traditional Alchemy. This wasn’t a product she wanted to degrade too rapidly, so she would not force it like she did the other ink. With that finished she gently stirred the ink with the agitation rod and began adding vials of her concentrated essence. When all three were emptied Lyra waved a hand gently over the surface, noticing a few ripples but little more. She added another vial, and then another, and another. 6 vials in total were used, and then she simply let it stir. As the liquid steadily moved Lyra concentrated, frowning as she reached forward, sensing, feeling… She willed the ink to move, and when she released the agitation rod the ink continued to move in slow spirals without her intervention. She smiled and continued to stir with the agitation rod, and after several more long minutes she capped the jar and set it on a shelf. After the ink had time to adjust to the infusion she would aliquot it into smaller vials and keep some in storage. A few would come with her on the trip to the warrens, and she was certain she could find another use for it as well. It was bothersome that Alchemy caused things to deteriorate at a certain point… Perhaps it was near time to investigate runeforging to allow her to create more stable concoctions.
Location: Lyra’s Lab
Three stacks of infused parchment sat on the large workbench in the scrivening area of Lyra’s shop. Rean worked quietly at the desk against the wall, steadily working through a series of commissions that had come in recently for some journeyman level scrolls. Lyra had come to rely on the girl far more than she might have expected. True she was still lacking in experience, but she was dependable and talented at what she did. These were all qualities that Lyra herself highly respected.
Turning her attention to the task at hand Lyra selected the first piece of parchment that would soon become a magic scroll in its own right. The concept for scrolls was a simple one. Create focal point, a series of warding glyphs to contain the aether inside, a set of pathways that directed the aether to the areas one wanted it to go, and finally give it a trigger of some sort. That trigger could be almost anything. A spoken phrase, touching a specific place on the scrollwork, anything would do really. These however Lyra wanted to be works that could contain master level spellwork, if only for a one time use, which meant that there needed to be several layers of scripts involved.
The first parchment was infused for fire resistance, and contained its own trace amounts of fire aether coursing through its own artificial pathways. That meant it could sustain spells of a certain level, and even cast them several times so long as they were within its aether capacity. These current scrolls had enough aether to fuel several Journeyman level spells, roughly 3 expert, and only a single master level, even with the additional layers of protection Lyra intended to add. It would be enough though, and considering the cost of the materials the price was well worth the end result.
Lyra had prepared 3 vials of ink for this occasion, using a small amount of the crystalized aether to make special infused inks of Fire, Frost and Lightning. It wasn’t strictly necessary, but the additional aetheric stability would help improve the overall efficiency. Like most scrolls Lyra started with creating the focus at the center, branching off from there in spiraling pathways that lead to the first layer of warding glyphs. These were focused on containing the flowing magics within, and would help ensure that little aether was lost during the investiture steps that would come later. Lyra created three more layers of protection glyphs around the first, and then expanded the pathways outward in spiriling, vine like lines out to the very edges of the parchment. These pathways were given accents that pulled ambient aether from the environment, refining and filtering it through the fire touched aether within the scroll, and delivering it to the a specific rune learn the top of the page that acted as something of an aether storage area. This allowed the parchment to steadily draw in aether to replace the aether lost while casting a spell, and so long as the amount gathered and contained was not exceeded the scroll would remain in tact. That was the trick to creating reusable scrolls, aether control. Most magic scrolls were designed to capture and use everything all at once, but to Lyra that seemed far too inefficient. Of course it was impossible to continue to use a scroll indefinitely. It would eventually break down and become unusable, not just as the ink began to fade but also by nature of most alchemical goods the base materials would deteriorate as well. Again, though, that was fine. These particular scrolls would be used within just a few days, so she did not need them to last very long.
With the last few scripts completed Lyra turned her eyes toward the focus. This was the most crucial, yet deceptively simple, portion of the entire process. She had to allow the scroll to accept a spell from a mage to be incorporated into the schema. This would allow the scroll to be primed later, instead of right at its creation like she would normally do using Dragonshards. That was what gave true masterwork scrolls their reputation. Nearly any form of spell, so long as the mage implanting it into the scroll could imagine it, could be placed into the scroll and called on again at any point. It was simple. Lyra drew a loosely knotted series of lines around the focus, linked these back to the pathways, and finally lead a line from the aether collection and storage place back to the focus. Magic which was imparted by the mage would be pulled through the focus, spread throughout the multiple layers of warding in the scroll, and the affects written in the very aetheric pathways which made up the scroll itself. The only downside was that, once created, the scroll could not take in any other spell without a new focus being crafted.
Lifting the scroll Lyra smiled at her work contently before setting the parchment aside and beginning on the next one. She created 6 such magic scrolls for each of the 3 different types of parchment. The other 4 sheets she carefully stacked tougher with dividers and placed them into her bag which always remained close by. Later she would send the prepared scrolls to Talon and the pup so that they could do their part and impart their magics into them. That would give them a significant arsenal with which to work with within the depths, and the extra pages Lyra could use to create custom works quickly. Which reminded Lyra that she still had other reagents to prepare.
*****
Back in her lab Lyra set 2 jars of ink on the workbench next to the rest of her alchemy supplies. She eyed the jars for a moment before collecting the rest of the necessary materials. One of each of the crystalized aether pieces, and 3 vials of her own concentrated essence. She set these to the side and carefully opened each jar, being sure not to spill a drop. One of the jars Lyra carefully aliquoted into 3 smaller flasks, more appropriate for holding ink than the larger jar was. Then from a shelf she found a brush and, using the very ink she intended to infuse, dipped the brush and began to make symbols directly on each of the flasks. These where simple sigils of alchemy. Stabilization mixed with evolution, a blend of traditional and occult practices, but Lyra needed to ensure she got exactly what she wanted from this step. She then placed one of each of the aether crystals into the jar of ink and gently stirred them with the agitation rod she carried in her robes. The rod looked closer to a metallic wand, thicker on one end and carved with runes and gave off a strange energy that even those not attuned to magic could sense. It’s entire purpose was to encourage a reaction, and that was just what Lyra used it for now. That was it. She let the infusion carry on from that point, corking each of the flasks and setting them on a shelf where they would steadily integrate the aether over the course of several hours. It would only last for half a season at most, but again Lyra expected this ink to be used in the very near future.
Lyra brought her attention to the larger jar then. Once more she drew sigils and pictographs along its surface, but this time she only used those based in traditional Alchemy. This wasn’t a product she wanted to degrade too rapidly, so she would not force it like she did the other ink. With that finished she gently stirred the ink with the agitation rod and began adding vials of her concentrated essence. When all three were emptied Lyra waved a hand gently over the surface, noticing a few ripples but little more. She added another vial, and then another, and another. 6 vials in total were used, and then she simply let it stir. As the liquid steadily moved Lyra concentrated, frowning as she reached forward, sensing, feeling… She willed the ink to move, and when she released the agitation rod the ink continued to move in slow spirals without her intervention. She smiled and continued to stir with the agitation rod, and after several more long minutes she capped the jar and set it on a shelf. After the ink had time to adjust to the infusion she would aliquot it into smaller vials and keep some in storage. A few would come with her on the trip to the warrens, and she was certain she could find another use for it as well. It was bothersome that Alchemy caused things to deteriorate at a certain point… Perhaps it was near time to investigate runeforging to allow her to create more stable concoctions.