“I’m not too fond of explosions myself”, the Mortalborn remarked in a relatively dry tone of voice as Ari’sora informed him that she would rather avoid causing explosions herself. He didn’t mind that she didn’t seem to have any interest in explosives; on the contrary, it was something that he approved of wholeheartedly as he was not particularly keen on teaching what constituted one of the most dangerous aspects of alchemy, apart from Blood Magic, to an absolute beginner again.
Having said that, he turned to answer her next question. “Backlash is”, he began only to furrow his brow fractionally as this was another matter that you could spend an entire class – or a series of classes – talking about, time that Ari’sora and he didn’t have, at least not at the moment. “Backlash essentially encompasses the negative, unwanted effects of alchemy. When working with mage blood – and especially the more aggressive aspects of domain magic – there is a risk of the spell affecting you instead of your target as well as side effects that are similar to overstepping in nature.”
“This is why knowledge of chemistry and medicine is paramount, as I told you. I have treated victims of Blood Magic gone wrong in the Infirmary in Viden, and it was not a pretty sight”, he finished, making use of a slight euphemism rather than sharing all of the gruesome details with her. Such things needed to be mentioned though. Ari’sora needed to know what exactly she would be getting herself into if she decided to become an alchemist.
“As for chemistry books”, he replied a moment later, pleased by the fact that she inquired about literature rather than being content with what he had told her so far, that she wanted to learn more and research things in depth. “I’ll add the titles of a book or two that you might find helpful to my notes for you. Being familiar with making dyes is actually not a bad foundation for alchemy as some of the processes are quite similar. There are actually alchemical dyes”, he informed her as that seemed to be something that she might find interesting.
“Of course, you are allowed to study two subjects at once”, he remarked, smiling lightly, as it seemed as if the idea of earning her Letter in Alchemy appealed to her, hoping that she would find that statement encouraging. He approved of such ambitions. “Some of my own students in Viden study two subjects at the same time. I wish you good luck with your diploma, by the way”, he added, even though he was not sure if she would need such. She seemed to be quite a bright young woman. It seemed polite to him to wish someone good luck with their studies though. She had one more question though, a question that made him pause for a moment and furrow his brow once more.
They were currently in his office where he only had a select few reagents as well as some basic equipment for demonstrations. He did not think that any of the laboratories were currently available. He did not want to deny her though. It would be good if she made her first item with his guidance; besides, he wanted to see how she would handle herself. The lesson had gone so well so far that he was quite curious about her doing some practical work. Maybe …
“We could make an item that is similar to the paperweight that I just imbued, if you are interested”, he suggested before he took another paperweight from another stack of papers (he had quite a few papers on his desk at the moment) and handed it to her, assuming that she agreed. This one had a flower engraved on it. Letting Ari’sora make something that was similar to the item that she had watched him make before would constitute a good introduction to practical alchemy. “There is a variety of Scalvoris sand that is green and cool to the touch”, he said as he handed her a vial that was filled with bright emerald green sand.
“I need a bit or two to make some room for our new experiment though”, he apologized a moment later. “Reusing equipment without cleaning it thoroughly first is a bad idea. In the case of these paperweights, we’d likely just end up with a lukewarm paperweight as I used very simple and harmless reagents and essentially created paint, but it is definitely something that you need to be careful about when handling more potent reagents”, he explained as he removed what was left of the previous setup and placed a clean bowl, and a clean metal rack in front of her – as well as measuring instruments and the rest of the reagents that she would need (other than the sand, which she already had), and gave her some time to take a good look at them.
“As I told you before”, he spoke once she had given him a sign that she was ready, watching her closely (and patiently) in order to make sure that she was doing it correctly and intervene, in case it turned out to be necessary. “The first step is the base. So, I would like you to pour oil into the bowl – there is a dark line on the inside of the bowl that will tell you once there is enough oil in the bowl. The next step is the primer – the blue powder that is derived from resin. I want you to add ten grams of that powder to the oil in the bowl. Finally, I’d like you to add twenty grams of green sand – and stir the mixture thoroughly before you submerge the paperweight in it, let it rest for a few bits and put it on the rack to dry.”
“Do you have any questions?” he wanted to know. If she didn’t, he would give her the go-ahead and allow her to try and imbue her first item. “You may keep the paperweight if you imbue it successfully”, he added as such might constitute an additional incentive for her to give her best. Not that he expected her to not make an effort. She gave him the impression of being a very diligent and hard-working young woman, and teaching her had been a pleasure so far (not all of his students were like her).
Still, a little something to remember her first lesson in alchemy seemed appropriate to him.
Having said that, he turned to answer her next question. “Backlash is”, he began only to furrow his brow fractionally as this was another matter that you could spend an entire class – or a series of classes – talking about, time that Ari’sora and he didn’t have, at least not at the moment. “Backlash essentially encompasses the negative, unwanted effects of alchemy. When working with mage blood – and especially the more aggressive aspects of domain magic – there is a risk of the spell affecting you instead of your target as well as side effects that are similar to overstepping in nature.”
“This is why knowledge of chemistry and medicine is paramount, as I told you. I have treated victims of Blood Magic gone wrong in the Infirmary in Viden, and it was not a pretty sight”, he finished, making use of a slight euphemism rather than sharing all of the gruesome details with her. Such things needed to be mentioned though. Ari’sora needed to know what exactly she would be getting herself into if she decided to become an alchemist.
“As for chemistry books”, he replied a moment later, pleased by the fact that she inquired about literature rather than being content with what he had told her so far, that she wanted to learn more and research things in depth. “I’ll add the titles of a book or two that you might find helpful to my notes for you. Being familiar with making dyes is actually not a bad foundation for alchemy as some of the processes are quite similar. There are actually alchemical dyes”, he informed her as that seemed to be something that she might find interesting.
“Of course, you are allowed to study two subjects at once”, he remarked, smiling lightly, as it seemed as if the idea of earning her Letter in Alchemy appealed to her, hoping that she would find that statement encouraging. He approved of such ambitions. “Some of my own students in Viden study two subjects at the same time. I wish you good luck with your diploma, by the way”, he added, even though he was not sure if she would need such. She seemed to be quite a bright young woman. It seemed polite to him to wish someone good luck with their studies though. She had one more question though, a question that made him pause for a moment and furrow his brow once more.
They were currently in his office where he only had a select few reagents as well as some basic equipment for demonstrations. He did not think that any of the laboratories were currently available. He did not want to deny her though. It would be good if she made her first item with his guidance; besides, he wanted to see how she would handle herself. The lesson had gone so well so far that he was quite curious about her doing some practical work. Maybe …
“We could make an item that is similar to the paperweight that I just imbued, if you are interested”, he suggested before he took another paperweight from another stack of papers (he had quite a few papers on his desk at the moment) and handed it to her, assuming that she agreed. This one had a flower engraved on it. Letting Ari’sora make something that was similar to the item that she had watched him make before would constitute a good introduction to practical alchemy. “There is a variety of Scalvoris sand that is green and cool to the touch”, he said as he handed her a vial that was filled with bright emerald green sand.
“I need a bit or two to make some room for our new experiment though”, he apologized a moment later. “Reusing equipment without cleaning it thoroughly first is a bad idea. In the case of these paperweights, we’d likely just end up with a lukewarm paperweight as I used very simple and harmless reagents and essentially created paint, but it is definitely something that you need to be careful about when handling more potent reagents”, he explained as he removed what was left of the previous setup and placed a clean bowl, and a clean metal rack in front of her – as well as measuring instruments and the rest of the reagents that she would need (other than the sand, which she already had), and gave her some time to take a good look at them.
“As I told you before”, he spoke once she had given him a sign that she was ready, watching her closely (and patiently) in order to make sure that she was doing it correctly and intervene, in case it turned out to be necessary. “The first step is the base. So, I would like you to pour oil into the bowl – there is a dark line on the inside of the bowl that will tell you once there is enough oil in the bowl. The next step is the primer – the blue powder that is derived from resin. I want you to add ten grams of that powder to the oil in the bowl. Finally, I’d like you to add twenty grams of green sand – and stir the mixture thoroughly before you submerge the paperweight in it, let it rest for a few bits and put it on the rack to dry.”
“Do you have any questions?” he wanted to know. If she didn’t, he would give her the go-ahead and allow her to try and imbue her first item. “You may keep the paperweight if you imbue it successfully”, he added as such might constitute an additional incentive for her to give her best. Not that he expected her to not make an effort. She gave him the impression of being a very diligent and hard-working young woman, and teaching her had been a pleasure so far (not all of his students were like her).
Still, a little something to remember her first lesson in alchemy seemed appropriate to him.