Jon "The Mad Runist" Blackwood's Story

Jon was in his own lab he was given his own lab because his presence among the other worker made them nervous. This suited Jon just fine it allowed him to work on his own experiments without being bothered constantly by others the only person who visited him was the Alpha-Mage and that was to only check his progress on what ever tasks he was given. He has recently have been given the task of making an armor set that would be enchanted to repulse arrows and give the wearer more energy the armor for some noble he doesn't know and the gold reward was very large. Jon found the project a waste of his time his mind has been focused on his old research before he was sent to prison. He looked over his notes finding the mistakes he would have made in the past and correcting them in theory but theory wasn't enough for Jon he wanted to be able to test his results. He removed his shirt reveling thousands of runes that have either been permanently burned into his flesh or cut into his skin for temporary use. Jon looked over to the already finished armor he was stalling till the deadline so he wouldn't be given another useless project to divert his attention. Pulling out a cigarette he wrote a small fire trap at the end of his finger and with a tap he lit his cigarette with his finger which burned him slightly. He picked up his bottle of alcohol special made for him the drink was made with more than the average percent of pure alcohol he drank his death in a bottle and gave a satisfying sighed after two gulps.

The Alpha-Mage came back up from the aura node. The door to the outside slid open with its standard stone on stone sound. The Alpha-Mage walked out into the now empty courtyard. It had a few of the students sitting on benches either reading books or having mid-day snacks. The odd thing was that no one was testing any inventions or potions in the near empty courtyard, and the cleaning staff had already made the main walkways spotless. That was when the Alpha-Mage remembered that many of the longer range students were still coming back from the recent holiday.

Now the next thing on his list was to check up on the two students, or mages, or whatever their titles were. They didn't attend classes, but they didn't do any other work except inventors jobs. Luckily, they would both be in their private labs at the moment, so it would be easy to find them.

Adion was mixing the last batch of the fuel. He had finished the basic automaton in very little time, but the fuel was a different story. It was like most alchemy, a lot of slow mixing and heating and more mixing. The Alpha-Mage had opened the door and seen that Adion was on the prototyping part of the automaton. He would check the automaton later.

So the Alpha-Mage made his way over to Jon's lab. Unlike with Adion, the Alpha-Mage knocked on the door. You never know with Jon. He may drink when he is done with a project or he may start experimenting. That is why the Alpha-Mage gave Jon his own lab. Unlike the local nobles, the Alpha-Mage knew what it was like to want to study your craft, but didn't want Jon doing his studies on others. He was fine when Jon did these things to himself. Of course, skin enchanting was not a thing that any nobles like to hear about. So the Alpha-Mage just stood there waiting for Jon to open the door.

Jon was taking a small white hot rod he started and tracing a rune over his hand he heard a knock on the door finishing the rune he decided to test the rune. He placed his hand on the ground and when he activated it the ground broke down beneath his hand. Jon smiled he walked over to the door and opened it "Yes Arch-Mage have you come for the tin bucket?" he opened the door more allowing the Arch-Mage in Jon led the Arch-Mage to the suit of armor "It's ready to go the enchanting was easy child's play." Jon picked up his bottle and drank whatever was left. He would offer his drink to the Arch-Mage but the percent of pure alcohol in his drink would put anyone but him in their death bed. Jon looked over his reanimation notes and turned to the Arch-Mage "I would like a dead body preferably only a month in the decomposition phase." Jon knew it was a long shot but he wanted to ask even though the nobles and public found reanimation as taboo. Jon took out another cigarette and used the still place fire trap on his finger to lit it up then looking to his hand the fresh burn mark. He took an ink brush and painted it over the wound and taking a piece of paper he slapped it over the rune after a few seconds he peeled it off and wrote down what the rune does and what metals to use to brand his skin with and other notes. After letting the ink dry he folded his paper and put it into and envelope then put his own seal on and gave it to the Arch-Mage.

"You will be getting these back in a week or 2." The Alpha-Mage sighed after saying this. He then contenued with "A body might be hard to get. Would an animal be OK?" The Alpha-Mage could easily get a fresh deer or something to that extent, but a human body would be a different matter. The Alpha-Mage did not want to have a guild with a bad reputation, but if reanimation proves to bring back the intellegence as well, then it may be a good avenue of profit.

Adion finally finished the fuel for the automaton. Filling the tubes and tanks for the automaton's power system. The plating on the automaton was almost 5 times as think as a normal automaton, twice as hard per inch, and severly lighter. This was all thanks to enchanting, but the automaton was still hevier than its standard variant.

Adion carried the automaton down to the down to the Cortyard in pieces, then reassembled it. After letting it run loose for a couple of minutes and doing some battle testing, he deemed it ready for 'orders.'

Adion then took the automaton and went back to his lab. He began to busy himself by ready enchantments for commands.

Jon shook his head "No a animal will only prove I can make a walking pile of dead flesh with no real thoughts. A human body is needed I need to find out if I reanimate the body do I bring back their memory, their skills, emotions, and see if they are truly alive again. I would conduct the test on myself but I don't trust anyone else to successfully bring me back and if the enchantment would fail continue my work the way I would do it. My goal before and now is to bring back the dead and make them as human as possible." he knew that with at least one body he could try his revised works and if the experiment would fail he would have to work a long while fixing things before he would try again. Jon saw things differently than the Arch-Mage in his mind if the lords tried to destroy the academy the lords would fail because of the pure power the academy had not only that but if the lords destroyed everyone then no one would be here to make the items they so treasure.

"I can get you a spade, but I can't get you a human body, Jon. So, do you want the spade?" Said the Alpha-Mage. It was obvious that Jon had at least tried his experiments on animals. The Alpha-Mage also wanted to see a full reanimation. One with memories, emotions, and feelings. One that truly brought the human back. This would make the nobles lose the thought of the walking dead, and think more of a life extension. This would then lead to plenty of money for the Guild, and whoever was good enough to do the enchantments.

Adion finally finished the automaton. It was just too easy. Enchant metal, make fuel, attach hoses, make and attach valves, and enchant on commands. Too easy for Adion's taste. However, money is money and is needed to live. Thus, he needed this job to pay for his food and his lab's rent.

With the automoton finished, Adion went to the chair in the room that overlooked the entire lab. It was time to rest.

Jon gave a smile "The spade will be all I need. I like being able to chose my test subject." his deeply disturbing eyes showed some excitement. The Arch-Mage gave Jon a spade "Visit me tomorrow and I will show you the results." without a further word Jon almost skipped out of his lab like a merry boy who just received his first kiss. Jon walked out and into the entrance of the academy the sun was starting to melt away which gave Jon a smile he walked out of site of the academy and whistled and a horse appeared from a hidden spot the horse had a old cut wound on its neck. Jon patted his morbid horse "My first success good thing you learned to be a horse or you would have died a long time ago." Jon mounted the horse and spurred his beast towards a cemetery. Jon looked at each headstone looking for the most recent death when he came upon a fresh grave. Jon began digging immediately when the moon hit its highest Jon finally reached his body without looking at the body he put it in a bag and started riding back to the academey as fast as lightning. When he made it within the walls he immediately took the bag and walked quickly to his lab once inside he bolted his doors to make sure no one was going to see what he was going to do next. Jon made a diamond shape with black chalk then with various powders and chalks he started to trace different runes into the shape of the body then with a mad smile he pulled out the body and placed it in the diamond. Jon made sure that before he placed the body to cut or burn the runes needed into the persons body. Jon took a deep breath and picked up a bottle drank half of it then poured the rest into his rune formation then pulling out a cigarette he lit it up took a deep drag and threw his cigarette onto the body. Then in a flash the body and the runes turned to fire the runes glowed brightly in a dark blood red glow Jon watched with a smile not saying a word but watching everything happen. Then the room went dark Jon went around the room relighting everything then moved back to the body to wait for movement. He saw the eyes open.

The Alpha-Mage was sitting in his room. Out of nowhere he felt a disturbance in the vis, a skill that comes only to the most adept. He knew it in his head, Jon either failed miserably or succeeded beautifully. He quickly stood up and got his coat, leaving the staff section of the Quarters without a single pause.

The Alpha-Mage unlocked the front door of the labs. Jon should have come in the back. The Alpha-Mage made his way to the lab that Jon resided in. As per his normal, he knocked.

Adion woke up when a strange sensation flowed through his body. Something made 1 hell of a disturbance in the local vis. There might be some Flux removing needed after a disturbance of that size. Something was up. He guessed that someone was doing research that was not publicly approved. It would be interesting to hear what it was from the Alpha-Mage.

Jon was almost jumping for joy "IT WORKED IT WORK MY LIFE'S WORK AND IT WORKS!!!" he ran to the door after hearing a knock he unbolted it and swung the door open for the Arch-Mage to let him in then closed the door behind him "I've done it! I have done something declared impossible by almost everyone. Here he is for everyone to see!" Jon was running and jumping around the place he has never been this excited in his life. Then the body on the floor stood up.

Devan found himself opening his eyes in an odd place he heard a man yelling at the top of his lungs and to see what was happening he stood up. To see two men in front of him with a confused look he said "What happened to me where are those men?" for some reason Devan was calm he felt safe where he was at. A man with runes scared about his body and demonic like eyes said with a smile "You were dead and I brought you back to life. Welcome to the world of the living." the man without warning punched Devan in the gut pain made Devan grab his gut and the air was knocked out of him. The man yelled out "He feels pain and he was out of breath I brought him back as human again!" The man picked Devan up and said "I am Jon Blackwood the person who gave you a second breath. What your name?" Devan answered without thinking "Devan Gorge."

"That just answered my last question. He has his memories. I can't let this go public just yet. We have to see what the lasting effects, because if there is not any, I can just say that the reanimation that was preformed here was just an advanced healing spell that used amplification runes. But we need to make sure that there is no side affects." said the Alpha-Mage. He was just as excited as Jon to see a man come back with his memories.

Jon shrugged "There won't be any negative effects but Devan here will be experiencing an unknown talent in magic. It's because it takes magic to do this along with some other things. He should also be healthy, and stronger then before." Jon turned to Devan "I will be watching over you for a while and you will become my assistant in my lab I will be mostly using you to retrieve some items of interest that I don't want to go out and get myself. You probably don't want to see anyone reason being is your dead and by them seeing you will give away what we done here without informing anyone once we find nothing bad will happen to those brought back from the dead then you are more than free to see whoever was you knew in the past."

"Jon, keep me updated on our new friends condition. I want to know any strange vis or flux changes outside of the rebirth, and if anything strange happens to him. I also want you to do some memory testing on him. That is the key thing that we need if we want this to be publicly accepted." Said the Alpha-Mage. As always, he needed proof. One dead man is not proof, but it will help to allow the furthering of the research that Jon was doing. This would be nice, because then the Alpha-Mage would not have to keep this so hush hush.

Jon only smiled at the Arch-Mage "I can assure you the only side effect that could happen would be some memory lost. Other than that nothing bad should happen to him." Jon couldn't help but to smile now that he had done this he conducted reanimation now that he had completed this part of his work he decided to move on to another task. Jon looked to Devan "You will stay with me for now I have a bed over there its for your use. I don't sleep much and I don't expect you to go without a bed." Devan nodded "Thank you sir. I would like to make myself your apprentice as well so I may understand your work." Jon shrugged "Ok you will be my runner I need you to retrieve some enchanting supplies I have a list." Jon rummaged through his work desk and pulled out a large paper and handed it to Devan "Have the Arch-Mage lead you to the store room to find what is on this list." Jon noticed the old crusted blood on Devans clothing "Change clothes first." Devan was thrown some clothes and Devan followed the Arch-mage to the store room leaving Jon alone in his work place with the door open. Jon left the door open to let out the excess energy from the reanimation. He looked at his old papers on reanimation enchanting and picked them up and simply put them in a chest then pulled out a new journal and started to think what is next.

Adion was now being pulled around by someone not even half his size. However she did ask about the flux wave, and Adion was curious about that. So he said "I'll ask the Alpha-Mage tomorrow. He should come by to pick up some work that I did yesterday."

The Alpha-Mage showed Devon where the storage room was. It was covered in various crystals and bottles, with the occasional machine sticking out from the shelfs. There was also plenty of commonly researched materials, and food for the Guild. It was so large that it took up the back of the Labs, making it look like it had twice the number of labs it actually did, but it was ALL storage. The Alpha-Mage then looked at Devon and said "Grab what you were sent to get. I will most likely have to explain the flux spike to some of the more acute students. However, I will wait until you are ready to go back to Jon."

Devon nodded he looked at the list and then looked at the many shelf's and he quickly found the organization used by the academy this made hunting down the materials needed quick and easy. After a short while Devon had everything on the list then going to the Arch-Mage he was led back to Jon who was sitting at his desk looking at a blank piece of paper intently as if it had some secret that needed to be discovered.

Ciel and her companion walked through the labs, footsteps echoing through the empty hallways. Ciel, for the most part, walked in silence until the ominous feel of the unused Labs grew to be too much for her. She inched closer to Adion, glancing about nervously.

"It's kinda creepy down here... I've never been this deep into the Guild before...." The small girl readjusted her load, so that she could clutch at Adion's sleeve with both hands.

"But I'm sure the flux pulse came from somewhere nearby." As if on cue, in the distance there was a light. Almost unconsciously, Ciel slowed her pace. Weird... I'm not usually such a chicken, but I'm probably reacting to the fact my body isn't strong enough to protect me anymore.

"Hello?" she called, testily. "Is anyone there?"

Jon looked over to his assistant who was still asleep then he hear in a faint echo Hello? Is anyone there? Jon looked out his door and stood outside of it "Yes can I help you?" the red part of his eyes glowed in the dark the only shape that could be made out was his body and the only color that was see able was his eye's that could remind anyone of a demon. He looked over to see two people a little girl and a young gentleman about his age he smiled his teeth shined in the dark. He wondered who would come down to see him he was the only person who worked down here since of his experiment's and research disturbed those who worked around him. Jon had the strong smell of alcohol and tobacco on him which seemed to give him an distinctive smell.

Adion turned down to look at Ciel. He then said "This section of the Guild is the private labs. It's a bit far in the back, but those who are not here for class will usually be seen back here. It's just something that you will get used to if you use this place a lot."

Then Ciel stopped suddenly, calling out to see who was in the lab. A man who obviously experimented on himself popped out and had an overwelming odder of tobacco and alchol. He simply said to him "This girl was doing a sensative experiment when you let out that massive flux wave. It caused a large backfire and reversed her age. We were wondering exactly what would be the cause of such a massive wave of flux."

Jon smiled even more "No I wouldn't the only work I have been doing is working on enchantments on armor for a noble that's all I really do..." then it hit Jon like a sack rocks YES!! That's it my next work is to disrupt flux flows and pulses this would be used to counter act the disasters caused from miracles or to stop a miracle from happening. It would have to be a trap rune and a body enchantment as well. Jon laughed a bit his laughter echoed the dark halls then remembering his visitors "I have work to do now so if you don't mind I will take my leave. With a bow Jon walked back into his lab and started to pace thinking of what needs to be done and such.

Ciel stared in disbelief as the weirdo began to slink back into the darkness. Working on armor- as if! The man looked demonic for Pete's sake, it had to be him! This dude was just way too suspicious.

The little girl tightened her grip on Adion's sleeve. Was she just going to let him walk away like that? If he was really the one responsible for the flux pulse, then she might never regain her true form. Admittedly, this one was cute and flexible and all, but did she really want to relive her childhood? Images of her youth flashed through Ciel's brain and the youth paled visibly. No!

Ciel gritted her teeth. The man was scary, but she could be scarier! The little girl threw down her bundle of clothing, stomped up to the freaky guy's retreating form, noticed he didn't have any sleeves to cling to, and opted instead for latching onto the back of his shirt and pulling with all of her strength. "I know you're lying, you bastard! We know it was you, so fess up already!"