• Closed • Arcanesultation

[Rorom]

32nd of Ymiden 720

Rorom was noticing over the past few years how the element of water, wind, earth, and even fire seemed to react to him in a strange way. Or... not react, but there was something to it. He felt as if he could understand the language of their motions, as the sand parted beneath his feet when walking the beaches, or the way the water seemed to carry him along its currents while swimming. The oddities had come to something of a head as he arrived at Scalvoris. It had come to a point where he knew something was definitely amiss, and the way the light shone on him, as if through the prism of a watery wall... It was all too strange to ignore. He had to get to the bottom of it before something really strange happened.

So as he arrived at Scalvoris, he entered the University, looking for answers. He wasn't here as a student, but a potential subject of study. Perhaps there'd be monetary compensation for allowing these stuffy academic types to examine him. Or some other benefit. Rorom was all for weighing the pros of cooperation in return for compensation. The collaboration wasn't outside of his patron's purview.

He approached the reception hall, hat in hand as the receptionist stared at his approach. Once there, he set a hand down on the desk, and asked, "Who do I go to for information about strange afflictions, curses, and magical influence? I think... I think I might be a mage, or cursed. I'm not sure."

The receptionist froze slightly, then quirked a brow at him, "You THINK you are a mage? Sir, I can assure you there would be little doubt if you were a mage. Curses can be more subtle but... Hmm. I think the Academic might be interested in meeting you, actually. He's requested that anyone with magical afflictions be sent straightaway to his office for an examination. If he can't help you get to the bottom of it, he can direct you to the appropriate Institute to find out what is ailing you. In the meantime, please, have a seat and I'll fetch him."

Having said this, she waited for him to seat himself on a nearby bench. There he waited, and watched as the receptionist departed, presumably to fetch this 'Academic'.

While he waited, Rorom stared at the back of his hand, watching as a ray of light shone upon it in rippling, watery patterns, as if he was deep underwater while the sun shone on him.

[Devin]

Devin was just sitting in his office and definitely not studying, dealing with paperwork or engaging in other typical academic activities, but drinking from a bottle that contained some sort of alcoholic beverage instead, his feet on the desk (because it was more comfortable that way), when someone suddenly knocked on the door. He furrowed his brow, before he shrugged his shoulders indifferently and took another swig from his bottle. He was not in the mood to deal with visitors right now, so he decided to ignore them. He just wanted to drink alcohol and maybe smoke a little, and he was just about to reach for his cigar case when there was another knock – and then another one.

Sighing, he put his bottle into a drawer of his desk, removed his feet from the desk, sat up straighter and called out to enter, frowning a little as he really didn’t want to work right now. A moment later, when the receptionist explained what was going on, his eyes lit up though, and he practically jumped up from his chair in order to follow her to the reception hall, with a spring in his step, a huge smile on his face and nearly brimming with his excitement. A mage who wasn’t sure if he was a mage? That sounded totally awesome! And weird! He loved weird things!

Before long, Rorom found himself facing … well, the Academic that the receptionist had said that she would fetch, didn’t look much like the Academic. He was about the age of a student, and he was wearing an outfit that was kind of on the eccentric side, a light blue jacket and pants with hints of white and purple, a white shirt and blue leather boots. He had decided to forego his usual Grave Gold rings though and just wore a pale golden collar instead.

“Are you the guy who is not sure if he’s mage or cursed?” he asked excitedly and eyed Rorom who he estimated to be approximately fifty which was practically ancient in his opinion for a moment before he came to the decision that it had to be him since he couldn’t see anybody else nearby and extended a hand that ended in fancy (and kind of sharp!) black nails towards him for him to shake. “Maybe you were secretly initiated. An Immortal secretly blessed me once, so such things do happen sometimes.”

“Which magic do you think you got?” he then wanted to know, barely stopping in order to take a breath before he remarked, “You have interesting ears, by the way. Are you a Biqaj? I like Biqaj! Sometimes, I give myself Biqaj ears! Oh, sorry! I’m Devin, Devin Thorn! I have a Diploma in Medicine and a Letter in Arcana, and I specialize in weird magical afflictions, mutations, accidental blessings and similarly unusual things!”

“We can either talk here or in my office, in case you want privacy and such”, he finished, looked at Rorom and smiled absolutely radiantly at him because this promised to be quite an interesting case.

[Rorom]

Rorom didn't quite know what to do with himself while waiting for whoever it was that wanted to see him. While fishing took a certain degree of patience, there were things one could do to occupy the spaces between catches and lost bait. In the time between setting the net and gathering up schools of catch. He was a seaman, and though idle time was a part of that, Rorom never spent much of it just... sitting.

But fortunately the 'Academic' didn't leave him waiting long. The lad came down to the reception hall, dressed and bejeweled to the height of fashion. Rorom took note of his fine clothing and jewelry, and also the sharp nails that tipped his fingers. He reluctantly shook his hand, somewhat uncertainly around the sharp nails. But surprisingly they didn't scratch him.

"Aye that's me. I..." But then Devin skipped to the very next statement, telling him that it was possible that he was secretly initiated. Then went on to say that he himself had been marked by an Immortal without even knowing it. "You were marked by an Immortal without their telling you?" Rorom's brow lifted in disbelief, "I don't believe it. The gods do not mark their people lightly, unless for some fell purpose..." Here Rorom crossed himself against Devin, wondering if he was some sort of cursed man. But then so too, perhaps, was Rorom, so maybe he shouldn't be so judgmental.

He resolved to give the scholar the benefit of the doubt. "Magic... I don't know much about magic, I..." But there went the Academic, speaking over him again and talking on and on. Not that Rorom minded. His enthusiasm was refreshing, where Rorom was more used to dealing with leather-faced old salts who'd seen everything twice.

"Well met, Devin Thorn. I'm Rorom Nji'Ihai of Ne'haer... Do you speak Rakahi? It might be easier for me to give what happened to me in my own native tongue. But I can speak common well enough."

Whether he allowed him to speak in Rakahi or not, Rorom would merely continue in common as far as he could, while interjecting with words in Rakahi as necessary. "This... mer woman, I had a dream of the Lady of Limbs of Ne'haer, a famous sea witch in my home. She's a strange devilish figure that haunts Ne'haer and the seas around. Anyway, rumored to be a mage of sorts.

I had a dream, or at least I thought it was a dream. She sneaked into my cabin, all tentacles and teeth, and dragged me bodily through the decks and overboard. There, had she not done that I would've been lost. The ship I was on ran aground on some rocks. But anyway, what happened with the Lady of Limbs, was she dragged me beneath the waves. At first I thought she was giving me the... err, breath of water? Allowing me to breath in sea water, as some mer have been known to do. She pulled me close, and kissed me, but it wasn't any ordinary kiss. I felt something then, unlike any sensation before. As she dragged me down, more and more leagues under the waves, at last she let go, just as I was about to drown for lack of air.

Something allowed me to push myself up from the depths, as I swam to the surface. By the time my head broke the water, I felt a rush of energy wash over me, and I found a piece of flotsam to rest against. There, I fell asleep, and somehow managed to stay afloat through the night until I was rescued by a passing ship..."

"I never told anyone this story before, as I was afraid they might think I was mad. You don't think me mad do you?"

"Anyway, since then, the water has spoken to me in ways. Not speaking in words, but telling me where a school might be, where I should lay my net to catch the greatest haul of fish. Driving me onwards through a current, or filling my sails with wind. Is this magic? Or some strange blessing? Does it have to do with the Lady of Limbs, that old Sea Witch?"

Rorom shook his head, uncertain.

[Devin]

“Sure!“ Devin replied and beamed at Rorom as the other man asked him if he had been marked by an Immortal without their telling him. “One trial, I could suddenly see the future. I think Ziell marked me since one of his domains is prophecies. He probably snuck into my bedroom while I was asleep one night. It is a little weird, but I don’t mind. Weird things are fun; besides, Ziell looks pretty nice on the pictures that I’ve seen of him!” he informed Rorom in an absolutely enthusiastic (and sincere!) tone of voice before he stopped abruptly and quirked an eyebrow slightly as the older man made some sort of sign. What was that? Some sort of bizarre Biqaj custom?

He frequently changed into a Biqaj. Should he make that sign as well every now and then? He should really have questioned the guy that he had made a totem of before he had extracted one of his teeth and sent him on his way – or at least gone to the library in order to conduct some research. Maybe he could get a bit of information out of Rorom though?

“Of course I do”, he replied and grinned as Rorom asked him if he spoke Rakahi. His Rakahi was incredibly bad, embarrassingly bad in fact, but the old Biqaj had only asked him if he spoke Rakahi, not if he spoke Rakahi well, so he decided to keep that insignificant little piece of information to himself. When Rorom proceeded to talk to him in Common anyway, he shrugged his shoulders before he simply plopped down on the bench next to him in order to listen to him since Rorom had not reacted to his statement about talking in the office and privacy. His violet eyes were a little wide as Rorom talked because it was quite an interesting story, and he listened attentively and didn’t interrupt him at all.

Devin was often loud and exuberant and eccentric; he could act professional if he wanted to though, like an experienced and trustworthy doctor and researcher of magical afflictions.

And besides, he really wanted to find out what exactly had happened to Rorom!

“Oh, no, I don’t think you mad”, he assured Rorom in a very sincere tone of voice once he had finished his story about how he had met the Lady of Limbs before he fell silent again in order to listen to the old Biqaj’s next couple of words, his eyes still quite wide. For a moment, after the other man had ended, he simply looked at him. A moment later, he furrowed his brow, and then his eyes suddenly lit up and he snapped his fingers (which was a little harder since he had gotten those nails).

“I think I know what happened to you, Rorom Nji’hai of Ne’haer”, he proclaimed. “Last season, I studied Defiance and kin elements and initiations and how initiations usually have something to do with kin elements”, he informed him, jumped up from the bench and gestured for Rorom to follow him. “We should talk about the rest somewhere else though, after all. Unless you’d really like to discuss such private matters in public? If you do, I don’t mind”, he told him as talking about absolutely private matters in public was fun in his opinion. Rorom, he realized, might not share his views in that regard though, and he felt like being rather accommodating at the moment because he found the other man quite interesting, so it would be up to him.

“I’d like to know a little more about the Lady of Limbs though”, he admitted – the mer woman of Rorom’s dreams sounded absolutely fascinating in his opinion. He had heard that you shouldn’t use magic in dreams because something might come and eat you, but maybe the guy that had initiated him had exaggerated? “What kind of rumours do they tell about her? What kind of magic is she rumored to practice? And why is she called the Lady of Limbs in the first place? Does she have a lot of tentacles?” he asked.

[Rorom]

Rorom listened to his assertion that he was visited upon by an Immortal in his sleep. Rorom thought it a bit daft of an explanation, yet the Immortals were strange creatures. Rorom didn't know much about Ziell, but Chamadarst had been rather flippant about marking Rorom. He scratched the palms of his hands as Devin finished his story. "Yer can see the future? That's... amazing. What do you see in my future? Wait, let's go somewhere more private to talk, maybe your office?"

So saying, if the Academic led him along to someplace private, he'd remain mostly silent on the way. He didn't want to seem out of place before anyone else in the University. Not that he intended to make visits there a regular occurrence, but he might find clients among the students from time to time, and it wouldn't do to tarnish his image as being that of a strange old, superstitious coot.

Rorom visibly relaxed when Devin said he spoke Rakahi. Then he wouldn't have to try so hard to make himself understood while speaking common. As he spoke to Devin, he would interject the more complex thoughts and subjects with Rakahi in place of common.

When at last they arrived at the place where Devin thought they could speak in private, Rorom spoke, "What is... Defiance? And what has it to do with the elements? Is that why water has been so accomodating to me for the past year or so? The Lady of Limbs abducted me two years ago, by the way."

Then Devin asked to know more about the Lady of Limbs, about what was known or rumored about her. Rorom had heard plenty in his time, yet little of it made total sense. Even so, perhaps it would make sense to a magically knowledgeable person like Devin. "Well... It's said she makes her lair in the Undercrofts of Ne'haer, waiting in the cisterns and hidden waterways beneath the city. There, she can be found to make bargains with. It's said she trades rare body parts and animal parts for favors. What favors? I don't rightly know, but some men are rumored to go in shy a leg or an arm, and come out whole! As for why they call her the lady of Limbs, perhaps its the fact that the trades in limbs, or the fact that she has the lower tail and body of an octopus. A mer of the first kind, if yer take my meaning."

Rorom let those tales hang on the air for a few moments, before he spoke again. Finally, after a moment of consternation, he asked, "Do yer think this magic is a curse? Could it mean something is wrong with me? A lot of lands outlaw magic, lands I will not be welcome if I let the magic take control... What say you, Devin Thorn?"

[Devin]

“Well, yes“, Devin replied when the old (or older?) Biqaj asked him if he could see the future and grinned at him. “I can’t see anything right now though because I need to actively use the ability – which I don’t mind since seeing the future makes me feel kind of weird inside my head. I also need something that I can look into, such as a mirror or a crystal ball since staring at someone’s face is usually not enough”, he explained in a fairly enthusiastic tone of voice (he didn’t like that seeing the future made him feel weird and sick, but he liked talking about that ability of his a great deal, nevertheless).

A few moments later, they were already on their way to his office (apparently Rorom had decided that he preferred to have a bit of privacy after all). The old Biqaj didn’t talk a lot when they walked, but Devin didn’t mind. He usually talked enough for two people, and when he didn’t talk, he still had a lot of thoughts inside his head that kept him entertained. He was just wondering if trying to turn your blood silver, like a Biqaj’s, with Becoming would be a good idea or just kill you when they arrived in front of his door.

He opened it and gestured for Rorom to step inside before he followed him. The Biqaj could see that the office of the Academic was quite luxuriously furnished, although some of the furnishings didn’t quite match. There were a whole lot of books, in pristine condition (mostly because Devin still refused to read any books but those that dealt with magic or had a lot of nudity in them – or both) and knick-knacks such as shiny rocks or small sculptures (Devin was worse than any magpie when it came to collecting stuff).

“So, Defiance”, the young mage remarked in a casual tone of voice and plopped down on his chair before he gestured towards the second chair in the room. “Defiance is elemental magic, more or less. It enables you to … well, it doesn’t enable you to control the elements which would be much more useful in my opinion. Defiers have some sort of relationship with the elements and encourage them to do things.”

“They usually have a kin element that they are especially close to. If water has been so accommodating to you, you may be a water Defier”, he decided before he abruptly stopped, removed the bottle he hadn’t been able to finish from the drawer and asked, “Want a drink? Sometimes a drink helps when you find something big like that out, and besides it’s quite delicious!” he tried to tempt him before he listened to his story about the Lady of Limbs. When Rorom told him that she traded body parts for bargains, his eyes widened, and he looked absolutely fascinated. He wanted to meet her sometime!

“Is she a Becomer?” he wanted to know and explained, because it didn’t seem as if Rorom knew a lot about magic. “A shape-shifting mage. Becomers can turn into other people and all kinds of creatures, even fish and insects and such. I prefer to turn into things that have wings though – or weird eyes. As for magic being a curse”, he continued and furrowed his brow a little as he had never thought of that before, and it seemed strange to him, to be honest. How could people think that something that awesome was a curse?

“No, definitely not!” he told him emphatically. “Magic is great. It allows you to do things you can’t normally do. People like King Cassander who outlaw magic are idiots. Or maybe they are just jealous. King Cassander is probably dead now anyway because of the plague. And if you travel somewhere where they don’t like mages … well, you don’t have to tell anybody, and besides, you can always put a Ring of Paradigm on. That’s a ring that suppresses your magic”, he explained and beamed at him. Not that he would ever do that. Use a Ring of Paradigm, that is. He liked his magic, and he thought his mutations (that the ring suppressed as well) were great!

[Rorom]

Rorom nodded, but said little as Devin explained his ability to see the future. It was interesting, and Rorom would like to put it to some sort of test in time, but for now? What concerned him was the magical affliction or 'Defiance' that filled his every waking moment. There wasn't a moment in his day when the elements weren't whispering or communicating with him. As they went along and arrived to the man's office, Rorom took the seat and spoke, "Having Defiance... It's like you're never alone. Not in a bad way, as if they were spying, but more like a favored pet that follows you around... I have an albatross that I keep as a pet, and it's sort of like that. Also, the wind, the water, nearby flames and even the mud beneath your feet has a tale to tell. If you only listen... Does that sound familiar?"

Devin explained then about kin elements that Defiers were especially close to. Rorom didn't notice any affinity for a specific element yet. "I don't think I have a kin right now. They all seem to be vying for my attention when they're present. Yes I will take a drink."

Once it was poured, Rorom looked at the fluid skeptically, as if he half expected it to jump out at him, or start talking. However he got over his paranoia before long and began drinking from it.

"The Lady of Limbs? Perhaps... do becomers collect body parts?" Devin mentioned something about becoming a fish, which piqued Rorom's interest, "Fish eh? That sounds both dangerous and useful. Depending on the fish." The biqaj chuckled at that. "I wonder if I could learn such an ability... I'd prefer not to learn from the Lady of Limbs, though. She's said to exact terrible prices from those who seek her boons... although if it's true she gave me Defiance, that came without any strings attached, or so it seemed."

A lot of information was streaming from Devin. He seemed a very energetic young man. Yet for all that, he had a lot of good information, which was exactly what Rorom had been seeking.

[Devin]

“That definitely sounds like Defiance“, Devin remarked, smiling brightly, as Rorom talked about never being alone and having a favored pet that followed you around. “Apart from the albatross, that is. Defiance doesn’t give you albatrosses or any other kinds of animals, for that matter. Is it a normal bird, by the way, or some sort of familiar, and can it talk to you?” he wanted to know. At first, he talked incredibly quickly because he just enjoyed magic so much; after a few moments, he slowed down though because he also really wanted to help Rorom with his magical problem. It was just such an interesting problem!

When Rorom accepted the drink, the young mage quickly produced two glasses that he had also hidden away in his desk (there was a lot of weird and/or useful stuff in it!) and filled them before he handed one to him. Having done that, he raised his glass (he saw no reason for why Rorom should be the only one drinking, he was just the one who needed a drink the most) slightly before he took a sip and then a second one, for good measure.

“As for kin elements”, he said as he set the glass down again and licked his lips a little bit because the drink had been quite good. “I think you only get your kin element after a while. Or maybe, you actually choose it”, he mused because he wasn’t familiar with the exact mechanics. He only knew that Defiers had kin elements. “As for Becomers collecting body parts”, he continued and shrugged his shoulders somewhat indifferently as he tried to remember what the other Becomers that he had met had done.

“Some probably do. You can also just extract a tooth though. Easier and less messy, as long as you know something about dentistry, at least”, he explained. He wondered where his mentor Adeline got her totems from. Did she cut animals and people up in order to use them for Becoming? Did she work as a dentist like he did and just keep the teeth that she extracted rather than throwing them away? Or … did she buy the ingredients for her totems? There were probably people that were willing to sell a body part if the price was good enough. He needed to ask her about it sometime, he decided.

For now, he reacted to Rorom’s next statement though. “Sure. Everybody can get initiated”, he replied in a very casual tone of voice, as if the initiation wasn’t very painful and risky (a lot of wannabe initiates didn’t survive the initiation). “You just need someone to put a spark into you. The spark is what gives you your magic”, he explained as it didn’t seem as Rorom was actually aware of the fact that he had a spark.

“Do you want to learn Becoming?” he asked and raised an eyebrow. “The more sparks, the better! You could become a fish that … well, fish can’t shoot fireballs, but you could do all kinds of stuff with water while you are in the water! All you need to do is sacrifice a finger or a toe – or a tooth, and bleed a bit”, he explained and wiggled the nine toes that he had left a bit which was something that Rorom couldn’t see as they were hidden inside of his fancy shoes, smiling quite happily as he did so.

[Rorom]

"Talk? Hrmph, yer might say tha'." Rorom smirked, remembering his pet albatross, that was probably still waiting for a delivery of fish from its companion. "But words? No, not tha'." Rorom's bird was talkative, for certain, but damned if Rorom could understand one quack of it.

"Hmmm..." Rorom hummed as he accepted the drink, taking some gulps of the drink. He looked at the glass, and his eyes went wide. "Tha's good." He drank down the rest of it, setting the glass down on the table once it was gone.

"I would choose the kin...? Actually..." Here Rorom was careful not to offend his educated friend, as he seemed far more knowledgeable about the specifics. But in Rorom's experience with the magic, it'd seemed more inclined to act on the mage rather than the other way around. "I think the element will choose me in time. And I think Iknow which one it'll be."

Rorom stood up, and held his hand up to the window, showing Devin how the light shimmered, distorted, and rippled, as if shining through a glass container of water.

"So yer sayin', the Lady o' Limbs put a spark inter me? Hmm... Tha's probably it." He said, resigned to the fact. "Does it... does it change yer terribly?"

When Devin offered to teach Rorom another magic, one that allowed him to shapeshift, it was almost enough to give the older man a shock. "B...becoming? A fish?" He had to say, as someone who put down his share of fish in his lifetime, he had no desire to become one. But... perhaps an aquatic bird or some such? To fly must be a marvelous sensation. "What about a bird? Sonny, I've put down my share of fish and their lot is not one I'd like to share!"

"I... er..." This seemed like something he had to think about. Maybe it was the combination of the drink that Devin gave him, or else his own curiosity getting the better of him. Or perhaps it was a sudden thirst for power that was growing inside him. But Rorom found himself attracted to the idea of learning this new magic.

"What would yer want fer teachin'?" Rorom squinted at him, "I don't have much coin, and yer lookin' right successful and legitimate. I doubt I have much yer'd wan'. Unless..." Did the lad just want an initiate for the sake of it? Was this a part of bearing the burden of a magical spark? That it wished to propagate and prompted its user to do so at any opportunity?

"But... er... I'm interested... I do have a tooth I need out, it's been botherin' me fer some days." Rorom opened his mouth, to show Devin. If directed, he'd even take a seat so that Devin could do the honors.

[Devin]

When Rorom stood up and held his hand up to the window, Devin stood as well and followed him because he was curious about what the Biqaj wanted to show him. A moment later, when he noticed how the light shimmered when it touched the other man’s skin, as if it were shining through rippling water, his eyes widened. “Oh wow. My hand doesn’t do that”, he remarked, sounding genuinely impressed, and held a hand into the light, as if he wanted to make sure. There was indeed no pretty shimmering light.

“Sometimes it does”, he replied in a light-hearted tone when Rorom wanted to know if the spark changed you terribly and shrugged his shoulders. When he had first found out about how magic could change you, he had gotten a huge shock and been tempted to give his spark back, but he did not tell Rorom that, of course. Instead, he remarked, “You can meditate and such in order to avoid becoming ugly and mutating badly though. There are also Awakenings and witchmarks, but those are great!” he added, grinning.

“Sure!” he confirmed in an almost overly casual tone of voice when he noticed the shocked look on the older man’s face. “Fish, birds and everything in between. You could even turn yourself into a flying fish – because you can combine totems and mix and match! You could become an albatross, or a parrot or a noble falcon!” he tried to tempt Rorom because now that the conversation had turned to the matter of Becoming he really wanted to try and stick a spark into someone. It would be fun!

“Hmmm”, he murmured and scratched his head thoughtfully as he wondered what he should demand in exchange for a spark, if anything. He normally hardly ever did anything for free because he was a greedy priest of Delroth. The chance to stick a spark into someone was too great to pass up on it though. He’d always wanted to give it a try!

“Nothing”, he claimed and grinned. “You just seem to really want to learn Becoming, so I thought I’d offer to initiate and make you happy. Unless you have something that you really, really want to get rid of?” he asked and raised an eyebrow before he abruptly opened a nearby cabinet and removed his shiny black doctor’s case from it.

He always kept a bit of medical equipment nearby just in case an opportunity to create a new totem (or perform a bit of experimental surgery) came up. He loved making new totems (and performing experimental surgery)!

“Huh”, he made and peered into Rorom’s mouth, furrowing his brow a little and sounding surprised. “That tooth does indeed need to be removed. You are quite lucky that it’s in the back of your mouth, by the way! Nobody will notice that it’s missing! You’ll look as pretty as ever!” he remarked before he pulled his gloves on, produced a pair of dental pliers and went to work. Some pushing and pulling and a choice word or two later, he triumphantly held up the bloody tooth and dropped it into a small metal bowl.

“I also need a strand of your hair”, he pointed out and extended his hand, palm facing upwards as if he expected Rorom to pull out some of his own hair (or just cut it off). “For the self-totem”, he continued, realizing that he should probably explain what he needed the hair for (now that it was actually happening, he wanted to do a good job and do it properly).

“So that you can become yourself again once you are tired of being a bird or a fish. You need to combine blood, bone and hair in order to make a totem. I’m not sure what happens when you only use two of those things. You might end up with two thirds of a body”, he mused and shrugged his shoulders again before he told Rorom,

“I don’t think that it matters what you do with the three substances, as long as you do something with them. I mostly make rings for my totems”, he added. “So, make whatever totem you like best, and let me know when you are ready – and if you need any help. I have a couple of rings and necklaces and jewelry making supplies in my desk in case you want to go that route. I like making jewelry”, he explained, as if having things that had something to do with your hobby in the place where you worked was perfectly normal.

There’s a couch over there, in case you want to lie down during the initiation, by the way”, he remarked and pointed at a corner where Rorom could see a soft and comfortable looking dark red couch (because Devin preferred to occasionally relax during work rather than getting a backache because he was sitting in his chair for a couple of breaks in a row).