Balancing the Books

[conjuredskies]

Here’s someone who hasn’t shown his face in public for a while. Felix is sitting on the old Legion desk in his Legion leathers, a small pile of books beside him. For those who get close enough to look, they’re all reference books about Earth, including a children’s encyclopedia and a dictionary. The mage himself still looks a little sleepless, but he’s in far better shape than the gaunt, distracted wraith who showed up for the Halloween party. There’s color in his face, an easy confidence in his posture… and with his hood down around his shoulders, his hair looks like it’s back to its normal black.

Felix draws a deep breath that has nothing at all to do with the letter he’s pretending to read, then folds it and flashes the nearest Nexus-goers a quick smile.

“How forgiving you are you of debts?” he asks. “Those you’re owed, and those you owe.”

Comments

[chiron_survivor]

"Caspar's looking into it a little." She turns her gaze up to her boyfriend. "And you said Hermione was looking into it, too?"

The Cylon nods brusquely. "She offered to do her own research on the subject. But I went to the Grand Library and learned what I could. It's a religion on some Earths, and a form of magic on others. There's a lot of communing with local spirits, and an emphasis on blessing others through charms and potions." His mouth purses into a frown. "There's a darker side to it and that's what Josh seems to be interested in, like creating little dolls and controlling or harming people through them."

"It's how he got here," Adia adds softly. "A voodoo witch opened a portal for him."

[conjuredskies]

"Sounds like my kind of magic." Which is both unsurprising and bolsters his confidence. He's not an easy person to harm that way. But looking into the spirits involved in this form wouldn't hurt...

"Did the witch survive their bargain?"

[chiron_survivor]

Is that supposed to be reassuring, Felix? Caspar raises an eyebrow, but he supposes that the other man isn't referring to the darker side of voodoo. "Your kind of magic. Does it have a name? Do you do any kind of arithmancy?"

"It was more the other way around, I think..." Adia frowns to herself, trying to remember the words written in Josh's journal. It still feels wrong to her, a violation of privacy that she knows such intimate thoughts. "It sounded like the witch offered the portal to him. I don't know if she asked for anything in return, but maybe she had her own reasons for sending him here."

[conjuredskies]

"That business with all the numbers? No, that isn't usual for Tamriel. I specialize in conjuration." He pauses a moment, glancing between their expressions when he elaborates, "The art of binding souls, summoning spirits and communing with other planes."

As for the witch, Felix weighs the risks a moment before he says, "I think I'd like to speak with her, if she could be tracked down."

[chiron_survivor]

It's good he explained. Even though Caspar knew he was probably wrong, the image of Felix pulling a rabbit out of a hat was the only thing that came to mind. "It does sound similar," he agrees. "Too bad you don't know arithmancy. I've found it fairly useful so far. No souls required." It's the only school of magic he's taken an interest in so far. There's math involved.

At Felix's request, he starts to make a sarcastic comment, but Adia cuts him off at the pass. "You'd need to find his home world first. If you could find her, I think talking to her would be very useful." The likelihood of some random witch offering Josh a chance to visit the Nexus in person seems too implausible, even to her.

[conjuredskies]

"Oh, you've been trying your hand then? I gather it's useful enough, but scrying is my brother's kind of craft. I'd rather just find someone to answer my questions." He says that as if it's easier, and maybe if you know the right entities it is.

"Or find out which spirits she's been talking to." Why talk to the underling if it's easier to call on their boss? And he did catch that near-sarcasm. "It's not impossible for a conjurer, Caspar. If you learn anything more about her- or her particular patrons - do let me know. I might be able to make something of it."