Dantia/Stories/Remembering Keishalae
Dantia rubs her temples, trying once again to fend off the weight of worries pressing down on her. The bizarre forces and implications behind the Wild Magic phenomenon were causing her sleepless nights -- but there was just so much work left.
In the aftermath of the events, anyone of a spellcasting Guild with a basic knowledge of Arcana could set about researching this Wild Magic, and the findings all proved to be of great concern. Empaths themselves had concluded that Life mana was buckling under some vast pressure from what felt like above and below. Broadly, Life mana flows from the cycle of life and death, so this was enough to instill a fear that the cycle itself was under threat. And Dantia was not one to sit idly by in the face of a threat.
Around her on the floor are organized stacks of notes, books, scrolls, and messages, all within easy reach. From between these piles, she lifts a small sanowret crystal, the light of a nearby candle flickering across its surface. She lowers her gaze into it and the recollection of wisdom again fills her mind, her lips moving silently to mouth the words memorized as if a mantra.
"Life magic is perhaps the most mysterious realm to Kermorians, lacking the scholarly body of the other three conventional realms and the critical eye placed upon Arcane magic. Broadly, it derives its power from the cycle of life and death, expressions of biological order and entropy."
The tones of the sanowret crystal continue.
"Despite the name, Life mana is strongly identified with the natural process of decay. This has been a matter of confusion, since common sensibilities would place the 'magic of death' as being Necromancy, but this is not the case. Necromancy deals with perversions and unnatural permutations of life and death. The actual process..."
Exhaustion begins to overtake her, the words of the sanowret playing through her mind like a soft lullaby - the kind which brings stillness to your mind and allows you to drift off to sleep more easily. Her chin tilts downwards, aching for someplace to rest. Her own mind begins to wander amidst the words of the sanowret, the two entwining in the space of her mind.
"... of dying and decaying into constituent parts..." Death. Decaying. The cycle of life. "... is part of the power of Life." Life magic. Life cannot defeat Life. The Starry Road.
Finally finding a solid resting place, her chin ends its downward tilt, and her mind finally falls silent. Sleep comes for her, and all is peaceful for a moment. Two. Three.
Her head snaps up, eyes wide as she stares into the distance. "Keishalae..." she chokes out. All at once she spurs into chaotic action. She frantically pushes and pulls at the once organized piles of knowledge around her until she finds a scrap piece of paper with enough space to write on.
"The process of dying and decaying is part of the power of Life," she repeats, urging herself to remember whatever sleep-based thought she has had. The tone of her voice changes, a clear imitation of the last time she heard Keishalae speak: "I have different needs now. The price for your work will be your death."
With a shaky hand she takes up her quill, dabs it into an inkwell, and writes in a hurried script.
"Life magic under pressure. Something threatening cycle of life and death. Font of Creation stymied. Gods, demons, mortals, monsters all helpless. What is responsible? Remember Keishalae." She hastily blows out the nearby candle and hurries from the room.