A Grimoire Gale --- Episode 02
"Binds us together for how long? And what would I have to do to fulfill my side of the contract?" She asks' a bit softer as her interest peaks. "And again I ask, what. powers." She says slow and succinct, opening the book to the middle to get a peek into it's contents. "Being the embodiment of existence, what abilities would be granted to me?"
"I wish that I was able to show you an example before you embarked on an agreement, alas, I am but a vessel. A tool constructed so that you may use the powers to which I am a conduit for your control. What are these powers? Anything, put simply. The only restriction is that you cannot permanently alter the will of others, nor can you create sentient beings." He states. "You could become immortal, or invulnerable. You could bring hellfire upon your foes or reverse the spin of the Earth itself. Your own imagination is your only limitation."
"Your own imagination is your only limitation" She repeats and her eyebrows raise for a moment. "Dangerous words in the hands of the wrong person, Sir." She says, her eyes scanning the pages before her. She tries to focus on the characters on the paper but it's just a jumbled mess of letters and numbers and symbols. Being the studious linguist that she is, this drives her mad, only further making her think this is some sort of fucked up prank. "Say I signed this contract, then what? I have to run errands for Jagheim? Or do a serious of daunting tasks to prove my worth?"
"The only thing required of you is your survival. Upon expiration, the contract is null and void." He says somewhat lazily. "As for your first comment, I am an ancient tome, and I choose my master; would you imply that my judgement is flawed? Would you think of yourself to be the wrong person to wield such immeasurable ability?"
"Well given the fact that neither of us know one another...and I'm talking to a fucking book in my head" She mutters, "I would say that your judgment isn't cautious from my perspective." She explains her side of things aloud. "Also, you've been contradicting yourself here. I can be immortal, but if I don't survive then the contract is over? No limitations but you've already given me two." She says in a less polite tone than before. "If I choose immortality than you and I will be stuck together for, well, ever."
"You confuse immortality with invulnerability. You can have both, but not simultaneously. Not with just one ancient Grimoire." He professes idly. "Do not be confused, they are not limitations that I have beset, for they come from my creator."
"Wait, how many of you are there? Are you all kept here in this cave?" She asks quickly, picking up on that right away. "Well, what other rules has your creator given you? And why were you made in the first place?"
"I have two brothers and six cousins that reside on Earth. However, both of my brothers already have masters, and my cousins have been missing for centuries." He states, slowing his words in an attempt to calm the woman further. "As for all the rules imposed upon either of us from Einxckla-Jagheim? None insurmountable, none that should pose you any threat. I, however, cannot express any free will despite my sentience. However, should you lose possession of me and another mortal force me to sign a contract with them, it would sever our contract and you would die immediately." She nods at the information given to her and takes a deep breath. "How would one force you into a new contract?" She asks, wanting to know all the information before anything continues. "What if I want to end the contract early, would I die then?"
"A voided contract means death for the offending party. Since I cannot act in any meaningful way, you would be the culprit." He pauses a moment, letting her digest his words. "An individual could remove me from your possession and find the contract hidden within my pages and force a new contract with me. I suggest that you keep knowledge of this closely guarded." With all the information given to her, she takes a few minutes to think about the opportunity given to her here on this day.
"And there's no other way you would just want to like, grant my wishes, without a contract?" She asks, because it never hurts to ask. "How do I go about finding this contract amongst all this...clutter." She says, her eyes going back to the mess on the page.
"Since I am unbound and choosing you of my own volition, the contract would be verbal. A simple 'I agree' would suffice. With regards to the previous question, do not confuse me for a Genie. As I stated, I cannot act in any meaningful way, and you are unable to use me until a contract is signed."
"So our contract would be verbal, but someone who tries to take you from me would have to physically find it?"
"That is correct. I will always speak to you telepathically, and you will be the only individual to hear me. Even if I tried to communicate with a perpetrator in such a manor, it would be pointless. I will be bound to you for as long as you live."
"Well Grimoire Beyaz, lets make a deal. What have I got to lose." She laughs, something this impulsive being out of her wheelhouse but hey, lets see what happens.
"The contract is signed." He says plainly. If the woman was looking at the pages, all of a sudden the script written upon them would reappear into a legible format, something which resembles a very detailed biography or journal.
"Holy shit" She whispers and opens it up to the first page, sitting down on the cold wet ground and starting to read. "What is all this?" She asks, crossing her legs and pointing her headlamp to the pages
"This is the record of all my previous masters, dating back to times when language was first being recorded. Everything you do, say, or think will be recorded upon my pages for my next master, that is under the assumption that you are not my last."
"How many have you had exactly? And who was your favorite?" She asks excitedly, being the historian she is, wanting to absorb all the information this book could teach and give her.
"I have not a favorite master, but I have had twenty-seven before you. That number is miniscule in comparison to my brothers. Should you attempt to read the material until your entry, it will take you roughly 883 days. At the front of the book, there is a living index which changes in accordance to knew entries."
"And if I decide to do nothing with you or these powers? What becomes of you then?" She asks, happily planning out how shes going to spend her days becoming absorbed in this living testament.
"Then I will continue to be bored, but I will lack privacy." He states dimly.
"Well then, lets go top side so I can start digging into your pages." She smiles and stands back up, fixing her pants before she starts to head back the way she came
"Now that we are bound, I know everything that you know. I might add that you will most likely be questioned by your crewmates and will likely lose possession of me before you have a chance to use a single spell."
"I- fuck. You're right. I totally forgot about that." Her smile falters and she stands there with her hands on her hips, lost in thought. "Can I like, cloak you to be invisible or take on a different form?"
"You cannot. That would contradict the will of Einxckla-Jagheim, which is for me to be seen by any that may be worthy to possess me."
"Can you poof us out of here then, to some place more private?"
"I cannot, but you can. You must cast either a spell of diction or a spell of intent."
"Well, whats the difference between the two?"
"If you cast a spell of diction, then your will shall be met as precisely or imprecisely as you write or word it. Think of agreements that contain loopholes. A spell of intent, when cast, will meet your intent regardless of vernacular."
"Okay, well, I have to think of something that will make sense why I didn't come out the same way.. I cast a spell of intent, poof us out of here safely and collapse the tunnel." In a near blinding flash which lasted only a second, both Grimoire Beyaz and Rowan appeared in the entryway of her modest apartment.
"So it is done. You will want to think of a reason as to why you not only survived the cave-in, but why you did not wish to see your team before traveling to the United States from Europe. I would suggest that you minimize your digital footprint or cast another spell to create a fake paper trail of your departure. Anyone with the right connections, be it with you or banking institutions, would discover your seemingly impossible travel. You now have 19 mana."
Rowan grabs the nearest wall for support as they are instantly transported to her townhouse. Her head is swimming and her stomach is doing flips at the moment. Motion sickness? Maybe, but there wasnt much motion to begin with. Where was she? The tanned skin girl blinks a few times to get her bearings and is comforted by the sight of her home, in which she hasnt been to in months. The familiar scent of sage and pomegranates fill her senses and her cozy abode make her feel at ease. She takes few steps forward into the living room and sits in the arm chair, placing her head in her hands. "Does it always feel like that? And how did you know where I lived, I figured you'd pop me into my tent and now.." She starts to ramble, worrying about everything left back at the dig site. She takes another deep breath and relays what the book had just said to her. Another spell would work for sure but.. "I have 19 what?" She says, clearly upset.
"I told you very specifically that I know everything that you know, including everything that my previous masters know. Discerning the location of your home was quite simple. As for the sideeffects, yes, but they become manageable with practice." He pauses as she gets her bearings and comes to a full stand. "You have nineteen of a maximum 20 mana in your pool. Each spell, be it one of intent or one of diction, will cost one mana."
"You never said that before we made the contract! So you're telling me I can be immortal but I only have a maximum of 20 spells for my long life?? Soon to be 18 because you decided to send us all the way back to the states without a second thought on how this was going to impact me?" She reprimands the book on the couch beside her.
"I measured your intent, and this is what manifested. Do not blame me. Secondly, you are not restricted to the amount of mana that you can have in your lifetime, however long that might be. You are merely restricted to the amount of mana you can use at one time before you recharge the pool." He states, a simultaneously defensive and dismissive tone.
She picks her head back up and looks over at the seemingly glowing tome. "And how does one recharge the pool, Grimoire?"
"Blood, willingly given. Any amount. A pinprick or an ocean, it does not matter. A single drop would replenish your stores immediately. Be warned, the donor's blood may not touch any material, nor vessel between the host's body and my own."
"Alright, uhm." She cuts herself off and heads into her small kitchen and to the junk drawer before returning with a sewing needle. She pricks her finger and opens the cover of the book to the first page. "Do I just press it against the paper or what?" She asks hesitantly
"Your blood cannot be willingly given, because it cannot be taken from you by yourself. As I said, you require a donor. Any deviation from this will result in a voided contract." If Beyaz had lungs, his voice certainly would lead one to believe that he was about to sigh quite deeply.
"Well that complicates things a bit, doesn't it. However, I will figure it out and make it work. For now, I cast another spell of intent. I need my tracks covered until I can come up with a good reason how I ended up back here. Fool proof coverage, please." She asks Beyaz kindly
"It is done. I shall spare you the details, but you have approximately 3 days worth of alibi. I suggest that you maintain a covert position for the next three days."
"Three days, I can work with that, thank you." She nods and leaves the room, needing a shower and a nap. As Rowen disrobes and starts the water, her mind starts to run at a mile a minute, thinking of how she's gonna cover her ass on this one. "I'm in way over my head." She whispers to herself as the now hot water glides quickly down her body. After about 20 minutes and a good hair wash, she steps out and dries off, putting on some clean clothes and collapsing into bed, hoping to get rid of her headache. Poor girl is catatonic for about 3 hours, waking up and realizing its still pretty early in the evening. "Coffee, I need coffee." She affirms and tosses on something more acceptable to wear out into the public. Some leggings and a sweater will have to do for now. She throws on some shoes and walks into the hall to grab her bag and keys before seeing the book on the couch. Contemplating for a moment, she grabs it and gently places it into her messenger bag and heads out. "Cant take the chance of you just out in the open." She explains before grabbing the shuttle across campus and into her usual coffee shop. Once she steps through the door, she greeted by the familiar scents of espresso. The sounds of milk being steamed. And the smile of a familiar face.
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