Tis his Season

[Chambers]

Chambers fingers entwine as he cracks them. 'Deeply personal yes.' Nodding to the page. 'This one. This one is me. But I can make them for anyone living or dead, if I have the appropriate sympathy to work with.' He grins. 'Fortunately these names, count as having the same sympathy to a mentioned person as the person they represent. So I can essentially build my way towards stronger connections.' Eyes going a little distant as they fix on one particular piece of the page, conspicuous by being left blank. 'I didn't extend it, so this one will only work for an hour give or take. Unless a subject dies before the spell ends in which case the spell itself moves out of my spell control and tolerance, changing its own duration from whatever I set it as, to become a lasting effect.' Something I find very fascinating.

'Well what would be he point of me showing this to you if I don't also give you a hint on how to read it.' He places the balls on his palms over both eyes, applying pressure, the echoed whispers can be heard stirring around the room and ... nothing happens.

Combined cast failure

Date	Action	Roll	Result
2023-12-28 11:32:01	Chambers rolls 9 to Combined cast grim sight and study final name (death2+wits2+occult3+rote spec+1, 2 spells-2,wp+3) (10 Again, WillPower)	3, 1, 7, 5, 3, 4, 6, 3, 4	failure

Hands still over his eyes. 'Erm well that's embarrassing, excuse me a moment.'

I got to excited, calm, composed, bring it together but don't try and force it, its there I just need to find it.

Whispers kicking up again, cold and distant voices murmuring indiscernible words.

combined cast attempt two with penalty 2 successes

Date	Action	Roll	Result
2023-12-28 11:32:51	Chambers rolls 8 to Combined cast grim sight and study final name (death2+wits2+occult3+rote spec+1, 2 spells-2, redo -1,wp+3) (10 Again, WillPower)	10, 1, 2, 3, 2, 5, 5, 8, 2	2 successes

Grim Sight

Death

Mage Sight

  Prolonged

Study Final Name

Fate

view a recorded Final Name or Momentary Name

  Transitory

And both glyphs carve into his pattern at once but it was close. Phew just got it, I need to practice that more.

Hands coming down and blinking against the release of pressure. 'That one.' He points, now able to see his own spells thanks to his sight. 'Is the one you need to be able to read the names. Your welcome to study it if you wish.' Is some novice level work worth hints about great works of magic? I'm not sure but at least I'm trying to show what respect I can.

Casting his own eyes now back to the page. 'So tell me Winter given each name can be used to forge the names its connected strongly enough to, can you see the final goal?' Now this should be interesting.

I forgot to spend the mana for the scribed name, apologies There isn't an option for two willpower and a mana spend so I've spent the willpower now and will catch up the mana in my next post. Hope that is acceptable.

[Winter]

Winter's gaze remains steady, his expression unreadable as he listens to Chambers. He takes a moment to process the information, his mind working to decipher the web of connections under the thin veil of his prime sight.
"It's a fascinating ability, one with plenty of uses", he begins, "My assumption is that it's somewhat akin to Space magic, but I'm afraid my intuition isn't well developed in that department. Through if it works anything like temporal Sympathy..."
He pauses, he considers the question, "Distances too are an illusion, part of the Lie. Is your goal a theory of Everything?"
He silently addresses the man's failed spell attempt, he knows that mistakes are what we learn from, but at the same time they represent flaws.
"I appreciate your offer to study your work. There is always more to learn", and with that, he begins to scrutinize the glyphs.

[Chambers]

Chambers shakes his head. 'No as long as I have the sympathy I need in front of me, Space isn't required.' Eyes squint in contemplation. 'Although I imagine useful in reaching things with sufficient sympathy that I can't otherwise access.' Note to self start developing my understanding of space.

Shaking his head once more. 'Allow me to offer a hypothetical. To create the name of a dead person the connection must be known or better to even try, and the spell to do struggles if less than ten such items are used.' He waves a hand over the sketch book and the symbols that make up his own name. 'Let us say for this example, I an intimately connected to my mother, known to my grandmother but only acquainted with my great grandmother.' He pauses just to keep a level pace. 'My name is not sufficiently connected to be able to be used to create my great grand mothers name.' Eyes watch Winter just to make sure he's following. 'But I can make my grandmothers, who for this example is intimately connected to my great grandmother, and thus I can use my grandmothers name to create my great grandmothers. So on so forth, I know both my true name and hers so neither will inflict additional difficulties.' No time, No space just the ties of fate, for this part at least.

The tips of his fingers entwine, just as he's thinking not to any arcane purpose. 'So no a theory of everything as grand as it would be is not my goal.' A moments pause. This just became a true exercise in trust. 'My goal. Is to build a path through the generations until I have created a sympathetic link to those who lived in Atlantis.' Eyes set, not expecting to see a reaction, but being careful none the less. 'Then once I have learned how, call up their ghosts.' He leaves the rest unfinished. Anyone should be able to fill in the blanks from there.

Sitting back to Watch Winter work on the glyphs and wait for the mans appraisal of the lofty goal chambers has set himself.

[Winter]

He shakes his head, "You don't have much knowledge of the arcanum of Time, don't you?", he states as a matter of fact.

[Chambers]

He nods affirming Winters point. 'None yet.' But that's just one of many pieces I need to move into place. 'I know I'll need it to call up ghosts of the past.' My entire legacy is founded around this one objective, don't think I'm underestimating what it will take. 'But in terms of the spell needed to make names for the dead. Well naturally I can already do that.' Like you said always more to learn. 'No time component nor temporal sympathy needed.' These spells, specialities of my legacy, subvert a lot of expectations. It suggests to me there is much we don't understand.

The short reply is not something that seems to bother him. 'Usually people refer to my legacies work as niche at best, deluded at worst, for similar reasons.' They just don't think its possible. Rather at ease, despite the clear mountain Winter has rightly pointed out he needs to overcome.

Shrugging. 'If you don't believe me. That's on you to reconcile I'm afraid. I would offer to show you but I don't like vulgar displays for the sake of demonstration.' Tone firming, mind set. I won't risk paradox just to prove a point.

[Winter]

"Temporal sympathy is a misunderstood aspect of our craft. It is the connection that a mage has with different points in time, a relationship that can be as strong as those we share with people or places."
"However we perceive time through a flow of causes and effects. As if it was a river flowing in one direction. It is a Lie of course, but we're so deep in it, that we're severely limited by it. Even at the highest level of Mastery this Tapestry of sort is resistant to change. Minor alterations may go unnoticed, but significant changes create ripples, paradoxes, and then what you believed was the past becomes a new present"
Winter sets down his glass, his gaze fixed on a point in the distance as if visualizing the threads of time. "There are barriers, yes. Think like a salmon swimming upstream until there's a waterfall or a cliff that it's too steep to get past. These are the keystones of history, that for one reason or another we can't see past"
He leans forward, his voice dropping to a near whisper, emphasizing the gravity of his words. "Of course there are things from A Time Before, and those phenomena resist our attempts at explaining them, let alone recreate them. Though, if you're really interested in learning more about Time, I can help you"

[Chambers]

He listens. Attentively. 'So I would have to imagine, much as my knowledge and experience of a person.' Indicating the sketch book once more. 'Determines my degree of connection to them. Knowledge and experience of a moment in time would determine your level for sympathy to it. Greater for things you experienced, less so for things you've only heard of?' Having readily admitted to no knowledge of time, he was trying to run it through his mind and what understanding of sympathy he did possess, trying to create a baseline from which to develop.

His face shows he is deep in thought mulling over every word, turning each in an internal multi directional examination. 'I ... I don't rightly know how I viewed time.' Its not something I've focused on questioning but yes, he has a good point. 'But yes thinking about it, close enough to that, one event following another, linear. Its hard not to. A habit I'll need to break now you've pointed it out.' Not dissimilar to how I regard the understanding of death.

That was hard to think about. What I believed was the past becomes the new present? That's a riddle to unpack to be sure.

But some Salmon do overcome such obstacles or else ... no not the time to nit pick imperfect metaphors. 'If the task were easy or even just plain difficult other members of my legacy would have succeeded prior to now.' And to my knowledge they haven't, could it be something has been vastly misunderstood? 'Yet I must believe it to be possible as the study and practice of these arts has lead to the expansion of my soul.' A clear effect and step on the road.

Normally he is able to let people see what he wants, be it a look of contemplation, questioning, gladness, even anger on occasion, ... but that blows past it all and gets genuine surprise. Of all the things I thought today might bring an offer of tutelage was not one. 'I have great interest in advancing my understanding of any of the mysteries, and would accept your offer if not not for the protocols of my order.' And no I have no serious objections to learning from guardians. 'Right exchange would require me to balance that offer with one of my own.' How else do I show value for the knowledge bestowed. 'You mentioned you severely lack when it comes to death, maybe I can assist you in turn there.' The surprise has given way to interest plain and clear.

[Winter]

"If a member of your Legacy has ever succeded in the ordeal, I fear time itself has splintered or rearranged as to accomodate the current status quo", he shrugs, "Let's just say you'll owe me one"

[Chambers]

Rearranged? Splintered? it seems there is much and more I don't know. And need to. He looks to Winter, sitting quite still, weighing his options, and wishing perhaps more than he ever that a curator was present. The other orders aren't required to follow the protocols of course, and if I ever aim to move forward in the Mysterium I need to start getting practical experience in this area. More than that if there are unknown, unforeseen obstacles beyond the already very many to my goal they need to be addressed. Guanxi is all about giving in good faith with expectation to be paid back later so the there is precedent for things like this.

A half smile flickers at the corner of his mouth, more grim resolution than humour. 'I'll owe you one. But proportionate to what is given.' If you've known Mystagogues as you say you should know our modus operandi. 'Agreed?'

[Winter]

He nods, "The Arcanum of Time is often unpredictable, I'll have to set up a place at the circle a bit more insulated from the Lie"