[Dolwood, Enchanted Glade] – Staff of Arcana Creation (Private; Self-Moderated)

[Raliric Ered`Gard]

Timestamp: Solaria, Brightening I of the Second Cycle of Kalendryas
Winter of the Second Era of the Pax Imperialis,
First Era of the Celestine Mandate,
Thirteenth Era Post Fractum in the Regency of Milo L’Evienne.

It had taken Raliric, and his small entourage of followers, sometime to travel to the location of the Enchanted Glade situated in the dolwood. They had done so with the guidance of the Collantali Elves whom dwelt in the strange forest and thus were, in a way, under the protection of those elves. Not protection in the sense that they would defend them at the cost of their own lives, but rather that the elves knew how to travel in that mysterious wood without incurring the wrath of its inhabitants. It had taken roughly a cycle to reach the Glade and when they did it was a relief. Whilst their journey had been long it had been without event, thankfully.

The party consisted of Raliric, Arminius, Areabwyn, Sorrow, Etheli and the two Collantali. A small party, all mounted, but a party of experienced individuals whom could handle themselves quite well should danger arise; luckily it didn't and the trip was, whilst hard, refreshing and welcomed. When they arrived in the Glade all of them, not just the two Magi, could sense the beauty and power of the place. It was distinctly different from the dolwood which surrounded it, not just in colour but in presence. Here was a power that all could feel whether gem blooded or not. They all took a few minutes to wander within the Glade admiring the wood and the peacefulness, though they did stay relatively together from force of habit. Once this admiration had been allowed for a few minutes it was Sorrow who broke them from their reflections. ”Ered`Gard, we must make camp before you begin... whatever it is you intend to begin. You will have plenty of time to wander about once the camp is seen to.”

The Knight Champion nodded his agreement, as did the other members of the party, and they set about making their camp. They stayed within the Glade because of the mystery that was the dolwood and the dangers that no doubt lurked there. It took them the rest of the light from the suns to set up a suitable camp to last them anywhere from a cycle to a month. Thus it was agreed that the process of obtaining the enchanted wood would begin as suns rose upon Telath the following brightening. That night they spoke of the woods... well it was really only Raliric and Areabwyn (the two magi) that spoke at length for they had both read the documents associated with the Staff of Arcana. The information they brought up was simply all that they had read on the matter and nothing new. Eventually they retired, though the excitement of where they were and what Raliric was about to achieve left two of them awake for a little longer; Raliric and Arminius. Their link was indeed strong in this place, not to mention that they were in the same tent. The glade probably had something to do with the increase in strength, though it made no difference because it only allowed more thoughts and emotions to pass between them and it did so quicker and with less thought than it usually required.

As the suns rose upon the next brightening the Dracon Knight rose to meet it, dressed in the uniform of his knights and with wolf pelts draped over him to keep out the cold he moved off alone into the woods.

OOC: Self Moderation of Staff Creation approved by Tisiphone

[Raliric Ered`Gard]

As he walked he opened his Journal, a leather bound book that contained various notes on anything and everything that was important to him. It was in this book that he had transcribed the information that he had read in one of the many arcana books in the various libraries he had visited. He let his eyes scan down the page until it came to the relevant portion of the information:

Throughout the World of Telath, and presumably, throughout the Material Plane itself, are manifestations of natural energy in that so imbue themselves into the growth of a certain group of rich trees. Enchanted Glades are believed to be perfectly attuned to the Heart of the World, receiving from the planet and the universe the rich blessings that bend space and time. Druids have been able to channel into the Enchanted Glades in order to travel instantaneously between them, and considering that there are Enchanted Glades in the Silrosian Wood, Tirisfal Thicket, the Medonian Forests and elsewhere, this has greatly empowered them for their craft. Yet it was first the Sorcerers who sensed within the Enchanted Glades something more precious than merely a passive affiliation with the world, but a source of power of its own.

Most Enchanted Glades are covered in silver and golden bark, with varying colors open the leaves of the trees that are so married to the Heart of the World. In order to procure Enchanted Wood, a mage must unbind the essence of the tree, as if it were a person bound and shackled to the ignorance of magic. Unbinding an Enchanted Glade takes many nights to perform adequately, and most spellcasters succeed at this task after a full month of continuous effort. When successfully unbound, an Enchanted Glade will yield a single unrefined rod of Enchanted Wood, and then close in upon itself and be bound once more.

Having read this again and again as he contemplated his eventual journey to obtain the enchanted wood he did not really need to look at the words again, they were almost burnt into his subconscious, however he did read them again, however this time he acted upon those words. I must unbind the essence of a tree within the Glade, just as I would a person. A nod, as if confirming that he could do that, simple enough... though he knew it would take a great deal of time to accomplish. The fact that it would be a simple enough procedure did not lighten its intensity nor allow for any ego to rise within himself. He would proceed with the ritual and techniques as he always did, with meticulous attention to detail.

First and foremost he needed to find a tree, now there were plenty around him but in order to make this process a lot more attractive to his mind, and a lot easier in finding the tree in the coming brightenings, he looked for one that stood out to his mind. It did not take long and the tree he found was close enough to the camp to make it easy enough to travel here every brightening that he needed to. He further marked the tree he would be working on by taking one of his long knives and thrusting it into the ground. That brightening he would begin by first studying the tree, thus he sat down before it, closed his eyes and entered Clarity. Using his enhanced sight whilst in this state of mental awareness he studied the tree, much like one would do when about to imbue an object, though this time he was studying it for a different purpose; to become familiar with its construction, its make up, so that he could more effectively unbind it.

He studied the tree for a few candlemarks, taking breaks every candlemark, or so, in order to reacquaint himself with his surroundings before entering clarity again and studying it some more. Upon completion of the study he would begin the unbinding process. Creating the weaves and sending them into the tree he had selected with the equivalent of a Journeyman spell's power. He could feel the effect it made, though the effect was far from enough to unbind the tree. Once he had cast he returned to clarity and saw that he had indeed partially unbound the tree, though within the moments it had healed itself, snapping back to its original state.

He reflected on this, pondering why it had not worked when the technique did on humans; this is what he reflected on as he made his way back to the camp, he thought on it the whole night until he slept and finally, when he awoke he had the answer. He returned the following brightening at the same time, sat before the tree and entered clarity. This time he formed a more powerful unbinding spell; equivalent to perhaps two journeyman spells. The answer to his question the previous brightening was simple and yet complicated; simple in the answer, complicated in practice. He was not unbinding a person here, he was unbinding a tree; thus there would be differences in the process and these differences were what stopped his unbinding from totally taking effect. Thus he would need to experiment, testing and probing with his unbinding attempts until he found one that worked. Thus over the course of the next two cycles he came and went between the tree and the camp, casting the unbinding spell with different variations, slight in their difference.

Each time he came a little bit closer to unbinding the tree, though sometimes he took a step backward in his experiments and hardly even unbound it a little bit. But he persisted and eventually, on the last brightening of the fourth cycle of that month, he succeeded. The tree shuddered visibly and a single rod appeared within his open palm. The rod was white, as white as the tree that had spawned it, and it absolutely pulsed with power, much like the rest of the woods. He reached out tentatively and took the rod with both hands, holding it reverently as he studied it. Finally a smile appeared upon his features, he allowed himself the pleasure of success.

[Raliric Ered`Gard]

Timestamp:
Solaria, Brightening I of the Fifth Cycle of Kalendryas

Arcis Firmitas Pietas, Mage Tower

Orbs of cavernous darkness moved slowly but surely scanning words written upon a page of vellum within the leather bound tome that rested within his lap. Legs crossed beneath him, back straight and arms resting easily with palms down against knees. The Dracon sat within the center of the top most room of his Arcane Tower. The floor surrounding him had been painstakingly reformed to accommodate the Rituals that would follow in the next few months, or the next era. There was only one final piece that needed to be taken into consideration and that select piece would be delivered shortly. For now though, whilst he waited, he studied the pages to ensure everything had been prepared as instructed. Resting beside him, within easy reach, were two objects, one to either side of his form; to his left was an unsheathed longsword, masterfully constructed; and upon his right lay the Rod of Enchanted Wood which would, once these rituals were completed, be his Staff of Arcana.

The Pages he was reading were to do with the construction of the alter and the various ritual setting that surrounded it. It read:

Enchanted Wood, when procured from the Enchanted Glades, pulses with extraordinary energy, though it is largely useless as a reagent of its own for other alchemical or magical purposes. Instead, a mage desiring a Magic Staff of his own must then take the Enchanted Wood back to a private place or domicile and perform a complex ritual to attune the staff to both the spellcaster as well as to the Astral Plane. It is this dual attunement that provides the essential tether between the physical manifestation of the mage and the metaphysical reality of the alternate planes of power. The Ritual of Astral Mastery is performed in accordance with lunar phases of the twin moons of Telath, Majora and Melora, for when both are in alignment, the Material Plane acts as an energy amplifier across the multiverse and makes the ritual possible.

There are five steps to the Ritual of Astral Mastery, each of which can only be performed once per lunar cycle when Majora and Melora are properly aligned. Within an antechamber, the wizard must construct a stable altar to ground the staff in the Material Plane while simultaneously demarcating the four magnetic directions and the four material elements, as well as their corresponding Astral Essences. The preferred format for such an altar is a Pentacle encicled by a Circle of Magic designed to prevent travel out (and, alternatively, a second circle designed to prevent travel inward), each of the five spaces representing the Material, the Celestial, the Infernal, the Ethereal, and the Astral – the five intersecting planes of existence. At the peak of each of the five points, a candle may be lit to signify parallel planar activity. Moonlight must shine upon the altar in such a fashion so that all runic markings, symbols and vectors are properly illuminated. As it presently stands, only a practitioner of a single discipline of Arcana can successfully construct such an altar.

For each step in the Ritual of Astral Mastery, the Rod of Enchanted Wood is to be placed in the center of the Arcane Pentacle, or other such altar that may include the same appropriate markings so ordered and enclosed by a sealed spell, which is then activated, using standard activation arcanomechanic methodology, in clockwise fashion, beginning at North and Life. Given the lunar cycles, it is unlikely that steps would be separated by less than one month of time, so it is important that the mage confer with astrological instruments to confirm proper lunar alignment.

Orbs rose from the pages, along the black granite floor, as he closed the book with an audible thump before he set it to one side and rose to his feet. He turned in a complete circle, taking in the entirety of the room and how it was set out. Beginning with the roof which was, made from stone however it contained panels of metal that could be unlocked and pulled within and then folded back to allow sunlight, or moonlight, into the Chamber itself. Similarly the walls of the Chamber were not walls at all but rather an elaborate collaboration of hardwood panels that could be unlocked and folded back to the stone pillars which supported the roof. Once opened completely, these wooden panels allowed a three hundred and sixty degree view of the landscape surrounding the tower via a complete balcony system surrounding this level of the tower. This allowed light to shine into the room from any angle and also allowed a breeze that, during winter, was bitterly cold. Thus at this point in time the hard wood panels were closed and locked, save for three or four which allowed sunlight into the room.

The main feature of the room was what Raliric stood in the middle of, an elaborate Arcane Pentacle created specifically for his purposes and created for permanence within this Arcane Tower. The Pentagram itself had been created by recessing the shape in the floor and then filling that recess with pure white marble. The recess was sufficient to allow the marble to be thin tiles, thus keeping it inexpensive but still impressive. The pentagon was not all; surrounding it was a circle and then another circle five paces outside the first. These were also made from white marble recessed into the black granite. Further out from these white marble circles were small circles of white marble, eight in number to represent the various directions, elements and spheres of the arcane. Each of these smaller marble circles had, in their black granite centers, a steel plaque recessed into the black granite which named what that particular circle represented. Similar plaques were placed within the larger inner circle to denote the planes of existence. At each corner of the pentagon there was a steel candle holder which would be used during the ritual.

Placed on top of the plaque which read Earth, Nature there was a wooden bowl with a pile of rich soil in it. Similar bowls were placed upon the other plaques denoting the elements: a glass bowl filled with water to signify water, a metal bowl with wood piled into it which could be lit to signify fire, and the last bowl was made of wood but contained nothing to signify air.

All and all the Arcane Pentacle was completed save for one last item, the alter itself. The sound of boots upon the staircase at the back of the room was enough to alert the knight that his men had arrived with the final piece. He turned to watch as four Knights walked up the stairs, two in front and two behind a large white stone alter which was floating on a Platform of Light. Barthanes came up the rear of the group, he was the only mage that Raliric knew of whom had invented such a method of transportation, and flight, and thus he assumed that the Master was the caster of that spell. The five knights and the alter moved to the center of the pentacle and waited whilst Raliric removed the rod, sword and tome to allow the alter to be set upon the ground in the epicenter of the pentacle. The platform lowered the alter down slowly and once only the platform remained between the alter and the floor Barthanes slowly let the platform dissipate, thus causing the alter to be set down lightly onto the ground and not damaging anything.

A smile appeared upon Raliric’s features and he looked at the five knights before him individually; Braradon, Journeyman Thaumaturge; Areabwyn, Journeyman Thaumaturge; Synithyn Taithan, Journeyman Elementalist; Oemaenga, Journeyman Sorcerer; and lastly Barthanes, Master Thaumaturge. These were the most proficient magi of the Knights of the Argent Sword. They were all able to fashion their own Staves and this room was also for their use, hence their assistance in its construction. ”Thank you all. I would like to meditate for a time in preparation for the ritual. Once again, my thanks.”

[Raliric Ered`Gard]

He turned, setting the tome upon the alter and also the Rod then he returned the longsword to the sheath upon his back before opening the tome to the pages he had been studying before. He turned a page and re-read about the first ritual he would perform.

1. The Rite of Identity
The Wizard takes a ceremonial dagger, and imbues it with the essence of his or her craft. The caster then uses the dagger to carve a rune of the mage's selection representing the self, the singular, the individual, upon the palm of the right hand. Blood must flow freely from the palm over the Enchanted Wood, and the Mage should invoke the Material Plane and call upon the four directions and four elements to affirm the identity of the spellcaster and the staff to which he is bound. Continue the invocation repeatedly as needed; only when the wound is magically healed, leaving a scar that tingles but does not hurt, and does the blood then seep into the wood of the staff, is the rite complete.

The knight reached down and withdrew the Graw’lak ‘Honour’ from its sheath at his thigh and set it upon the alter. He would be using his ceremonial dagger for this particular ritual, imbuing it with the essence of light and life so that it could be used as the ceremonial dagger necessary for the Arcane Rite. Dark orbs glanced up through one of the holes in the ceiling to judge how long until night would decend upon him, how long he had left until the ritual was to be undertaken. There was still some time left, thus he began to study the dagger once more. He had been doing this in his spare time since he had returned from retrieving the Enchanted Wood and he believed that he would be able to imbue the blade on this brightening.

Thus he descended into clarity and through this vision he looked upon the Graw’lak, seeing the intricate pattern of weaves that formed its mass. He studied the weapon for another candlemark before he was sure of which weaves could store the spell, once he was sure he began the imbuement. He was not imbuing a specific spell into the object and thus it would be that much easier for the imbuement to be successful; not to mention that the Graw’lak he used was very well crafted and had not even been used since its crafting as it was a ceremonial weapon of the dorin race, an object that he would sully the purpose of. Thus he drew upon the essences of the celestial plane and funneled them into the pockets in the weave of the dagger, compressing the essences and fitting as much in as he was able. Though obviously not enough to drain him completely, he allowed at least two journeyman spells worth of essence to be stored within the pockets of the weaves.

He then created some more unshaped mana so that he could cover the imbuement and thus finish the imbuement. Before he released the object he studied the imbuement, ensuring that everything had been done correctly and that the object was not going to simply release the essences he had fed into the pockets. Happy with the imbuement he released his hold. After waiting for a few seconds to see whether there was a flash of light or a result from the release to give the indication that he had unsuccessfully created the imbuement he smiled. Success. The Graw’lak had been imbued with the essence of his sphere.

[Raliric Ered`Gard]

Setting the imbued Graw’lak down upon the alter he returned his dark orbs to the text of the tome, rereading the Rite of Identity before once more turning that gaze up toward the sky. In the time it had taken for him to imbue the Graw’lak the suns of Telath had descended and moonlight was now streaming down to bath the Alter in its Ethereal glow. It was then that the Journeyman studied the alter to a greater extent, noticing the various arcane runes and symbols which had been carved into its surface, almost unnoticeable at first but now with the change in lighting it was evident in the recessed lines and shapes. Some of those runes were familiar to him for he had read the Treatise on Ikos and could recognize some of the symbols though he did not know what they all meant. Truth be told he had only memorized two of those symbols, the two which he had combined to create his own intricate symbol. A symbol of himself. He had merged the symbols of Bhun and Genas for they both were the main focus of his life and his faith. They were the runes that most resembled him. The rune he had created for himself with their merger he named Gehun and the aspects of it which related to him were: Tranquility, Clara, Logic, Reason, Aetheria, Change, Aslan, Loyalty, Death and Rebirth, Phoenix and Creativity.

The darkening had come and he moved about the room, closing the wooden panels to keep the wind out before lighting the various lanterns throughout the room. Once this was done he placed candles within each of the candle holders then lit them all; he also lit the kindling and wood within the metal bowl. Everything was prepared. He moved to the alter and read the passage once again to memorize exactly what he needed to do during the ritual, then he took the tome and placed it upon his desk before returning to the alter.

He descended into clarity and created the outer Circle of Arcana, forming it with the purpose to prevent travel into the circle. Next he created the inner Circle of Arcana to prevent travel out of the circle. Finally he placed the Rod on top of the alter of white granite with its arcane runes and picked up the Graw’lak. He stayed within clarity while he carved the rune Gehun onto his palm and visualized the traits of this rune that suited him most. He started by carving the Bhan rune, a straight line and then a flick that moved off in a downward direction toward the back of his palm, then he proceeding to carve the two loops and tails that formed the Genas rune. Once this had been completed he turned his hand palm down and allowed the almost black blood to drip down upon the length of white wood. A few moments to ensure that more than just a few drops had fallen onto the wood and then he began the first line of this ritual.

”I, Raliric Ered`Gard, of the Plane of the Material call upon the spirits of the North, the East, the South, and the West. I, Raliric Ered`Gard, of the Plane of the Material call upon the elements of Fire, of Earth, of Water and of Air. I, Raliric Ered`Gard, of the Plane of the Material call upon you to witness who and what I am; to witness this joining. We are offered, accept us.” This first recitation of the words were said normally, his tone naturally cavernous and deep within the room. His cavernous orbs of darkness rose upward to look through the holes in the roof at the moon and its light that bathed him, the staff and the alter in blessed moonlight. He began the words again, saying them with more power as he returned his gaze to the white, blood spotted rod. Again and again he repeated the words his tone and voice increasing in volumn and timber as he continued, his form illuminated in pale moonlight and the flicker of the candles, his form powerful in its posture, in its stance and his mind reaching outward forcing his words into the ether with a mental will far surpassing the power of the words spoken.

Soon he began to feel less pain and his dark orbs could see that the flow of blood from his hand had slowed, though he did not remove it from over the rod to look upon the wound. He looked down instead, upon the rod and realized that there was no where near as much blood upon it as there should be given how long he had been standing there with the open wound. The wound was healing and the staff absorbing the blood; the ritual was working; he and his staff were being accepted. He continued to chant, his words containing more power now that he realized it was working.

He did not know how long he stood their chanting those words; minutes passed, candlemarks perhaps. But by the end of the ritual, by the time he no longer felt pain from the wound on his hand and could see that there was no more of his blood left remaining upon the white rod before him. It was then that he realized the wood was glimmering with new colour, with life, it was changing as it glimmered pure white colours, almost exuding its own aura of light. For those moments the light from the candles, from the moon, were dulled when compared to the changing rod. A glance at his now healed scar before he reached forward with it and grasped the wood.

[Raliric Ered`Gard]

The rod’s shifting, changing of form was slow, fluid, though chaotic as it never gave an indication into the form it would end as. It would move one way and then the next, it would grow longer and then shorter, it was as if the staff itself was trying to find its identity. Eventually the movements slowed and finally it ceased its shifting. As it stopped shifting so did the tingling his palm, thus an indication that the ritual had been completed.

He glanced around the room, once more becoming aware of the world around him; the candles were still lit, as was the fire in the metal bowl. The moon still shone down upon the pentacle, however the ritual had been completed and the moon, he assumed, were no longer in alignment. He took a white cloth from one of the chests in the room and draped it over the rod-soon-to-be-staff and then set it upon one of the shelves of the book cases. Finally he drew the metal covers back over the holes in the roof to keep out any snow or rain during the night.

He cleaned up the room; polishing the alter, blowing out the candles and snuffing the fire in the bowl. Then he locked the various doors leading to the Arcane Tower and moved into his room within that same tower. He slept that brightening before returning to the Knight’s Compound in Siona itself. He would return throughout the next month to continue various pieces of work and imbuements, but he would also be preparing himself for the next ritual.

[Raliric Ered`Gard]

Timestamp:
Solaria, Brightening I of the Fifth Cycle of Immanis

Arcis Firmitas Pietas, Arcane Tower

A month later on the same brightening Raliric stood at the Alter within the Pentacle on the top most floor of the Arcane Tower. The holes once more allowed moonlight to shine upon him and all that surrounded him. The Enchanted Wood rested upon the alter and the Graw’lak, Honour, rested there also. He reviewed the pages within the tome that spoke of this ritual and what to expect from it.

It read:

2. The Rite of Convocation
Taking the ceremonial dagger, and imbuing it as before with the essence of the Wizard's craft, the dagger is then used to carve a rune of the mage's selection representing the other, the plural, the collective, upon the palm of the left hand. Blood must flow freely from the palm, as before, over the Staff of Enchanted Wood, and then should the Mage invoke the Material Plane and call upon the four directions and four elements to affirm the native membership of the caster with the plane in which he performs this ritual. The invocation must be continued repeatedly, as in the first step, and concluded only when the wound is magically healed, leaving a scar in the left palm and blood vanished, absorbed entirely by the staff.

Setting the tome down upon his desk he returned to the Pentacle, lighting the candles and bowl of fire once more before standing behind the Alter again. He took up the dagger and once again descending into clarity in order to charge it once more with the essence of his sphere. He drew upon the essences of the celestial plane, channeling them once more into the dagger those pockets that still existed from the last time he had imbued it. It was easier this time, he had done it before and knew where the pockets were. He was also more confident having been successful at the last ritual; this one was quite similar and thus should be equally as successful. Once more he funneled the essences into the pockets within the weapon’s weave, storing it and then covering it with unshaped mana. Here he took the time he needed to see whether he had formed the imbuement correctly and had covered it correctly before releasing it. There were no untoward effects and thus the imbuement had succeeded.

Now that the dagger was imbued, he was ready to continue with the ritual itself. He formed the Circles of Arcana once more in the same formation as he had before; outer circle to keep things out, inner circle to keep things in. This ritual called for a new rune, he had known that for some time and had thought long and hard on the specific symbol he would use. He did not use one from Ikos for there was nothing there that would fit represent the soon to be staff, the plural and the collective. Thus he had created his own symbol, a symbol which was at the core of his belief and at the core of his sphere.

He grasped the Graw’lak in his right hand and began to carve into his flesh. The first symbol he drew was that of the Holy Triance, the Sacred Three… the Trinity; a symbol of his faith as well as the dedication to Law, Order and Justice. The next symbol he carved over that one was a representation of a sun. It was the source of light and life for those whom lived on Telath and it shone upon everyone and everything. Finished with the rune, which he called simply, Life; he turned his hand over to allow the blood to drip upon the pure white rod and then he began to speak the ritual words once more, slightly changed of course for the new purpose of this ritual.

”I, Raliric Ered`Gard, of the Plane of the Material call upon the spirits of the North, the East, the South, and the West. I, Raliric Ered`Gard, of the Plane of the Material call upon the elements of Fire, of Earth, of Water and of Air. I, Raliric Ered`Gard, of the Plane of the Material call upon you to witness who and what I am; to witness the world which we are in. To witness what we are within this world, our individuality, are equality. We are offered, accept us.” And once again he continued to speak these words, over and over again.

Once again he lost track of time, allowing the words and mental power behind them to flow over him and out into the world. It took a considerably less amount of time than the first ritual though he did not realize it. The only indication was the candles and how far they had melted, though he only realized that later on. His wound healed once more and the flow of blood stopped, thus was the indication that the ritual was finished. Not to mention that the staff began to change its form again. It straightened, growing longer and thinner, it kept its whiteness and even seemed to become more and more pure. Definition began to take form upon its surface, glistening as if it was polished wood. One end began to grow, forming a blob which eventually split though not completely, not yet. The opposite grew also as if forming its own roots though they were only the hints of roots at that point.

Almost as quickly as the transformation had begun so did it stop, the growth, the shifting completed for this stage of the rituals. Raliric dispelled the Circles safely before picking up the staff and moving around the Pentacle blowing out the candles and snuffing out the metal bowl. He returned the staff to the book case, covering it with the cloth once more before shutting the metal panels and then returning to his bed chamber to rest.

[Raliric Ered`Gard]

Timestamp:
Solaria, Brightening I of the First Cycle of Ponutis
Spring of the Third Era of the Pax Imperialis,
Second Era of the Celestine Mandate,
Fourteenth Era Post Fractum in the Regency of Milo L’Evienne.

Arcis Firmitas Pietas, Arcane Tower

A month later on the same brightening Raliric stood at the Alter within the Pentacle on the top most floor of the Arcane Tower. The holes once more allowed moonlight to shine upon him and all that surrounded him. The Enchanted Wood rested upon the alter and that was all. The Graw’lak, Honour, was not needed for the rest of the rituals and thus it had returned to its sheath and there to rest whilst the knight performed the third ritual. He began by reviewed the pages of the tome that he had been reading for the last few months.

It read:

3. The Rite of Arcana
Entering a meditative trance, the Wizard focuses upon the essence of his discipline, but once a proper focus has been established, he must then channel power into the Material Plane and open his eyes and recognize simultaneously both his physical and metaphysical states. Ordinarily, this would cause a spell to fizzle, however, if the Rite of Identity and Rite of Convocation were properly performed, the Arcane Pentacle or Altar will prevent the loss of the meditative trance, and instead, the Enchanted Staff will begin to levitate upon its own will. The Mage should not be alarmed by the presence of sights or sounds that surround said levitation; it is a normal occurrence. The Wizard must then attempt to shape the mana into a spell of Abjuration into the Staff, Alteration throughout the Staff, and Evocation within the Staff. Confirmation of the spell and its success is obtained when the staff glows and descends on its own accord.

It was obvious from the beginning that this ritual was completely different from the others. They focused on the material plane whereas this focused on the Astral, it seemed progressive which direction the rituals were headed in. This time it was all about one’s mind and one’s control of their power. Thus did he descend into clarity drawing upon the essences of the Celestial, of Life, back into the Material Plane. As he did he opened his eyes; which in turn widened in wonder at what he saw. He could see and feel that he was in two places at once; he could see and feel his Material Body, whilst also seeing the Astral essences and feeling his Astral self.

What was truly amazing was that the light within the room was amplified considerably, it was not unexpected for he was aspected to the essences of the Celestial and once of those essences was light, just as he could notice the life force of people more so than he would have before… had there been anyone in the room to look at. The moonlight which surrounded the area was bright, illuminating the entire room with its brilliance, and within the center of that brilliance was the staff which began to levitate right in front of him. Its butt end an inch or two above the alter and there it rotated perfectly.

From that brilliance appeared the ghostly form of an angel, its wings extended and pure brilliance personified flowed over him; wind from its wing beats swept over, around and past him. And as the angel opened it mouth as if to speech came the sounds of a choir singing, though the words were soft, muffled and of a tongue foreign to him. It was calming in a way, whilst also filled with wonder. This angel dissipated but not before another sound graced his ears, one far more fear inspiring. A roar behind him, then within him as a great lion of a ghostly substance leapt through him and into the staff.

He took a deep breath, clenched his hands into fists then forced them open again and forced himself to be calm. More sounds came, hooves, more wing beats, flames, choirs and roars. Other ghostly images passed him; pegasi, fae, pixies and a number of other creatures that probably called the Celestial realm its home. He forced himself to concentrate, to contain his emotions and his wonder at what he was a part of so that he could perform what was necessary. He still needed to Abjure, Alter and Evoke into, throughout and within the staff. He prepared himself just a majestic eagle of brilliant white flew over his shoulder, almost clipping his ear with the end of its wing. The wonder was, whilst there, only spurred him to begin the process.

[Raliric Ered`Gard]

He began by Abjuring the essences he had brought, the formed mana he had created, into the staff which only seemed to make the illusions more real, they took clearer form; the wind grew stronger and the light around him became brighter and consumed everything beyond the circles of arcane. He did not pause but began to Alter the mana throughout the staff, causing the wind and images to become even more real though he seemed to feel it less and less. He was aware that it was becoming greater but it seemed to affect him and his body less.

He began the final phase, Evoking. He began to evoke the mana within the staff, and again the illusional wind and images began more real, more distinct and yet influenced him less. The Angel reappeared right in front of him, its brilliant blue eyes focused upon his own and there they rested, staring at him whilst it slowly drifted backward into the staff and there it dissipated as if it had joined with it. When it had completely dissipated the staff instantly began to levitate toward the ground, slowly, fluidly landing upon the spot it had risen from. There were subtle movements in the brilliance of the light that permeated the staff itself, as if the angel’s wings still beat, and those blue eyes were burnt into his memory, he could feel that they were still there, watching him.

Then the staff began to change once more, it grew longer, thinner again until it was roughly half the thickness of his wrist, easily grasped within his hand. The surface was stuff that of polished wood grain though it was pure white in colour. The end that had formed a bulb grew more so until it split completely a part, though the split revealed that the wood had formed the shape of an angel at that end. The wings enfolding something that was still covered in the wood, however there was the distinct image of the back of an angel that he could see thus far. The butt end of the staff continued to grow as if roots but then they too split and fanned out, creating a half-moon shape of four wings overlapping each other. These wings were plain for now, however he assumed that after the next ritual they would take shape more and become more detailed.

It was there that the staff ceased its shifting. He reached forward and grasped the staff, dispelling the circles and blowing out the candles again. He wrapped the staff in the cloth again and reverently placed it upon the shelf where it could be kept safely. Then he returned to his bed chambers to rest feeling quite exhausted. His dreams were of that angel and what it might mean, those eyes were forever staring at him.

[Raliric Ered`Gard]

Timestamp:
Solaria, Brightening I of the First Cycle of Melora

Arcis Firmitas Pietas, Arcane Tower

A month later on the same brightening Raliric stood at the Alter within the Pentacle on the top most floor of the Arcane Tower. The holes once more allowed moonlight to shine upon him and all that surrounded him. The staff rested upon the alter once again ready to be part of the fourth ritual. As he had done every time before he began by reviewed the pages of the tome.

It read:

4. The Rite of Invocation
The Wizard must activate the Enchanted Staff, causing it to levitate upon its own will. At this point, the Wizard must give a name to the Staff by speaking to it and declaring it to be so. The Mage must repeat this invocation thrice, and after the third time issue a statement affirming that this is his will. Finally, the Wizard must call to the Staff simply by will of mind, concentrating upon the name given to it. When the staff responds by leaving the Pentacle, the Wizard must extend his palms, showing the scars of the two runes which shall never heal, and grasp the staff. The Rite of Invocation concludes when the Staff ceases radiating power.

Returning the tome to the desk before be lit the candles and bowl of fire, he then positioning himself outside the Pentacle; he had come to the conclusion that the ritual was essentially the same as the others and that the power of the staff would allow him to summon it out of the Circles; such was its power, such was its uniqueness. Thus he trusted in the ritual, his reason made him to. Had there been a change in the ritual it would have been noted in the tome. He stood upon the plaque that read North, Life and looked upon the Alter. The staff that rested easily upon it and readied his mind.

He formed the Circles of Arcana once more and then took a deep breath to steady himself before he descended into Clarity. The familiar boost of sensory perception came upon him, the clarity of vision, of thought and process. He could feel and see the arcane objects which surrounded him, he could feel the spells being cast by other magi within the tower and below within the fortress, but most importantly he could feel the staff a few meters away from him.

He reached out with his mind, probing the circles to see if he could move through it with his astral sight and astral mind. He could and thus he moved through the first and then the second circle until his mind reached into the staff. He could feel it pulsating with untapped power; he could feel its connection to him that had been forged by the previous rituals. He hesitated as he visualized the name he would call the staff, a moment of consideration before he continued and activated the white angel staff. As soon as it had been activated it began to levitate again, rising upward from its resting place to float a few inches above the Alter.

This was the part when he was meant to speak to it, to call it its name, to bind a name to it. He spoke the words whilst also mentally imprinting the name upon it. ”I, Raliric Ered`Gard, bestow upon you the name of Luminarium Vita.” His cavernous tone a boom within the room as he commanded the staff with physical and mental will personified. ”I, Raliric Ered`Gard, bestow upon you the name of Luminarium Vita.” He repeated before he said again, the final time, with a slight change. ”You are Luminarium Vita, such is the will of Raliric Ered`Gard, a name to bring fear to the darkness, a name to banish death. Such is my Will.” He said, his words factual, without doubt as if issuing orders to a mass of men, as if commanding his Knights.

The staff began to spin, slowly and fluidly whilst it began to glow a brilliant pure white light. He assumed this to be a sign that he had succeeded thus far in the ritual, there was only one thing left to do. He began to call out to the staff, firstly he did so audibly, ”Luminarium Vita, come to me.” He repeated this a few times, each time his voice became lower until finally he spoke it no longer, but his mind called out to it, sending waves of thoughts pulsating outward from his form. ”Luminarium Vita, Come to me.” It was his will that the staff should come to him and suddenly the staff was not above the Alter, but rather it was levitating next to him.

He reached out; both hands palms open toward the staff, runes visible, and gently grasped the staff. It felt warm to touch, even hot and still glowing that pure white. Once the scars touched the staff it began to calm, no longer vibrating and the glow lessened; its weight slowly returned and the heat fade. Just as it had returned to normal, as if truly becoming used to its name, the staff shifted again, ever so slightly. The angel wings at the head of the staff opened a little more, allowing what was covered by them to be clearly seen; a Moonstone, colorless and nearly transparent with a blue sheen effect. The face of the angel itself, whilst small, was clearly defined and if one looked hard enough could see that its eyes were a brilliant blue. The wings on the butt end of the staff had become more detailed, individual feathers could be seen, though the wings were as thin as a blade and just as sharp.

Once he had the complete weight of the staff in his hands he dispelled the Circles, blew out the candles and snuffed out the bowl of fire, wrapped the staff in the cloth and returned it to the shelf. Then he returned to his bed chamber to return in the new season for the final steps of the staff’s creation.