Thom - Depravity: Meeting Nashandra

[07:29:04] Cinderfall provided a decent change of scenery from the Marshlands. It wouldn't be uncommon to see the massively depraved Homunculus appropriating herself some space where ever she saw fit and helped herself to the collevtive's food supply. Liara said it was alright, as such she didn't hold back.

Indulging in a sack of celery nabbed from one of the storage barns, the entity wasn't going to hide the shameless act and continue on munching on the vegetables. Crunching away, it was hard to not notice the silver haired menace, whether it'd be due to the foul effects it'd have on the environment, or just the lack of restraints on the conspicuous sounds formed.

On her free hand, Nashandra held up a journal of sorts. Cover page blank and the contents of the piece of literature were scribbled in a completely foreign language. It did not seem to affect the being's pace, as her dull stare followed the lines, one by one, in order to absorb whatever meaning these characters held behind the veil of a mysterious tongue.
(Nashandra)
[07:34:11] Depravity!

The ominious feeling drew Thom from his tent early in the morning, the boy very quickly moving through the camp with his glaive on his back. His first thought was perhaps they were under attack, perhaps some monster had finally shown up and wished to do the camp in. The boy was prepared to fight... Which.. Faded rather quickly when they approached a girl.

They didn't look like they could be any older then himself. But with this much derpavity rolling off of them.. The reddish lighitng that shrouded the boy would make him jolt around a little, appearing to the girl's left and right as he tilted his head, watching her eat for now. Finally however he would begin to speak up.

"Well you're cute.I don't think you're a vampire. Undead don't eat and have a dead look in their eye. You're not emitting some sort of aura that makes the depravity feeling. I'm stumped!

Whats the depravity coming from? And Hiya! I'm Thom!" The boy called out, hoping to draw the girl away from her reading if only for a moment.
(Thom)
[07:41:52] Bored, unamused eyes peered up to capture the young man's frame. The term 'pushover' was the first thing to pop into her mind as her manifested his presence to the Homunculus.

"I am not cute. I am Miss Nashandra."

Cold and dry, the correction was met with no hesitation of sutter. It was laid out perfectly for the kid to absorb and recognize. His added comment about an 'aura' of sorts coming from depravity was also quite strange. The teen known as Thom would then be blasted by the supposedly non-existent influence of depravity.

The plague and the Dreamer's essence, together forming an etheral cocktail of dispicable depravity. Hatred, anguish and disgust all reigned in the mind of Thom, an occultist quite susceptible to these arts.

"It is best to not ask too many questions of the sorts, Mister Thom. There are some things better left in the Oubliette."

Her nose dove back into the book.
(Nashandra)
[07:47:50] The glowing gold eyes of the young man would blink, their gaze lingering on Nashandra as she spoke then tilting his head. Slowly a grin would start to form on his face before he shook his head back and forth.

"Guess we're going to have to agree to disagree Nashandra!"

Though her words on why she emitted depravity spawned no thought as to reason in his head yet. Once more the red lighting would allow him to jolt to and fro around the female, glancing at her from the left and right as depravity was blasted at him. The reaction would have been much worse had he not been trained in these conditions, worked until he physically couldn't in a womb of depravity. But the thoughts would linger all the same, dispicable hate filled thoughts that he attempted to ward off with a shake of his head.

"Fancy word there.. " the boy said through pouted lips before once more looking towards the girl.

"I know you said i shouldn't ask too many questions, but what are you reading? Looks interesting!"
(Thom)
[07:54:40] "What are we disagreeing on? It is Miss Nashandra. Not 'Nashandra' and not 'Cute'. Is that understood, Mister Thom?"

Her visage stayed facing the pages, but her eyes moved ever so slightly as she uttered the words, in order to see him as she spoke. Nashandra's attention was otherwise fully taken by the reading session she had engaged in since her settling under the healthy tree her back leaned against.

Crunch, crunch.

"It means a secret area of sorts, a dungeon, accessed only via a trap door. In other words, a place where we abandon someone, or something, and they are to never return."

This time she didn't glance at the male. It was a basic regurgitation of a definition of a word, his expression mattered little in this type of lecture.

"A Journal. You cannot understand it. Master runewriters can, but I've been given the ability to read these since birth. I can only assume you are not a runewriter?
(Nashandra)
[08:01:29] Thom chuckled, moving a bit now as to lean against another portion of the tree that Nashandra leaned against. The youth ould have then reached into a sack he kept with them, taking out an orange and peeling it to eatt, slgihtly moving a sleeve to rub his black eye before taking a bite of the fruit, making sure not to get it on any of the silver haired girl's things.

"Disagreeing on whether you're cute or not, course." The boy would grin before shrugging. "And sure Miss Nashandra." It felt odd to be calling a girl younger then him miss, but since she called him mister he would extend the same curtesy.

"Oubliettes sound dark. Putting something away into a place where it can never return to.. Not exactly the most calming way to phrase anything.." Thom admitted.

"And not really a master at rune writing. I can read a few of them. Mostly learning from going to dungeons and taking various rubs of them before looking them up when I get back. To be born with the ability to read them since birth though.. Thats cool!"
(Thom)
[08:08:19] "Cute is far too vague and can be seen as a means to compliment when there's a lack of anything to actually compliment. A more powerful or precise adjective would have more power and better reception, Mister Thom."

Nose still on the journal, pages being turned as she expressed her perspective on compliments. Unwarranted, sure, but her odd voice and demeanor always made these exchanges far more otherworldly than they ever had to be.

"They're a good place to store bad ideas."

Nashandre added to Thom's musing on the specific term she had taught him just recently. And then, he'd hear a light thud as her book would be sealed all of a sudden and her reading session met its end.

"You probably know what a character or two means, but do not comprehend how their structure and interpretation come into play. That is fine, I admit it is a difficult concept to wield, even as someone with innate knowledge on them. I do not fully comprehend them either. But it will be particularly hard for individuals like you, with a not so ... Gracious birthright.

She'd rest the back of her head against the tree's trunk, eyes half shut in a sly manner as she expected a possibly unexpected reply from the lad.
(Nashandra)
[08:16:00] Thom would be very suprised towards her words before nodding.

"Thats true enough. Alright! I like your hair! And your eyes too! The whole silver thing is really cool. Wish my colors looked good but my hair's been orange since a potion blew up on me so.. Yeah. You seem pretty smart too."

Another bite of the orange would have been taken before hearing the girl's next sentence that made him pause slightly. Some sort of dungeon in which to store ideas?.. "Do you mean like mental ideas or do you mean something physically bad that you want to store in there? Or do you mean both?" The boy would fall silent then, recalling a semi recent adventure. "..There are some things that should be stored and hidden I think.

The closing of hte book suprised him however. She had seemed interested in it the entire conversation, to the extent he thought she was almost reading it cover to cover.

"Thats about right. A character, maybe a few in case I need to know when somehting means fire or light or danger but I can't really make things with runes yet. And course it'll be hard but if its worth it, working through hard stuff is worth doing it you know?"
(Thom)
[08:22:49] Ahhhh free compliments. If Thom had opened up with them, he'd appear creepy as all hell, but he obliged as Nashandra asked him to. It was almost amusing how many simply complied with her suggestions and demands.

"That is more like it, Mister Thom. Perhaps even a gentleman's bow and a kiss on my ringless hand would assert you as the charismatic, liked man you wish to be."

An invitation, perhaps? The boy had likely never had such an interaction before, and Nashandra would just keep bombing him with these oddly formulated suggestions.

"No. It's a fancy way to say 'forget about it', Mister Thom. Forget about the idea you've had. You'll live a more comfortably life that way."

The homunculus did have to put it bluntly eventually. No way a teenager could keep up with these oddity she'd be emitting constantly.

"A single element or word would be easy to translate and interpret. The challenge lie in understanding complex circles and paragraphs of runes. Together, what do they mean? Their command? Purpose? Their symbolism? Everything in a runic text is connected, and requires years of dedication to even comprehend them reliably. I have yet to regain these capabilities."
(Nashandra)
[08:28:48] A bow and a kiss on a ringless hand? Nothing like Thom had ever seen or done before, nothing he even heard about in the stories. Still, rather then refuse the boy merely would have shrugged his shoulders a little, flashing a grin as he walked over back towards Nashandra would would indeed do a little bit of a bow and kiss her hand. It wasn't practiced and polished, and the act of bowing may have looked odd in the robes for a second, but he didn't spend much thought on it, drawing back after pressing the brief peck upon her hand.

"So like that?"

He asked curiously, half expecting for the girl to laugh at the way he did such, as indeed he was almost about to let out a chuckle himself over how silly he must have looked.

"And oh. Alright. I forget some ideas sometime's though other things are much harder to forget you know?" A slight frown on his lips for a second before he returned to a relaxed smile.

"It does sound like it would be hard to understand lots of runes together.." Thom said, seemingly imagining the imagery Nashandra put into his head and almost looking dizzy before blinking. Something about her words had seemed off to him.

"What do you mean regain?"
(Thom)
[08:35:37] With the playing dragon at her hand her eyes went wide as she'd recognize the dirt coverred red head. the non play glove would scoop the little dragon up, play was over, for a moment, but with the little dragon yearling on her shoulder quite quickly the blunette would approach the returned head of Cinderfall.

At quite a rapid pace in fact.

Var'thuul was on her shoulder, and she was infront of Maria in seconds, but what came next was quite the hug, Dirty or not, Var'thuul was on her shoulder for the welcome back. "MARIA!~ I"ve missed you so much! I was worried, but I didn't want to step on your toes, I didn't want to interrupt your quest!" With that Liara would finally pull back, resuming Var'Thuul's so suddenly interrupted play by letting him down to the ground and stooping down to get to his level, the thick leather glove tickling at his belly with all the deftness that Liara's bare hand had. And while the other young dragon had been a lightning dragon, this one was clearly younger, by how much smaller it was.

This dragon was Maria's egg for certain! For the rust being in play, he was quite healthy, and it was clear that his surrogate had been going to great lengths to keep him happy and as healthy as one could manage.
(Liara Myr)
[08:37:20] Weirdo after weirdo, Nashandra had to deal with quite the peculiar social baskets. Thom actually did it. With just a little suggestion, he would little himself as a man doing anything for the woman. While amusing, it left the entity more perplexed than anything else.

"You did do as was suggested, so yes. Although perhaps a kneeling would also be good. Considering you find me oh so smart, a kneel with something akin to 'Thank you MADAME Nashandra' would certainly warrant some more of my knowledge to brush your humble mind."

Hitting a bit of arrogance here weren't we? Though it seemed a lot of words and even big ones were easily leading Thom on. She liked that. And so far it was rather harmless. The promise of enlightening him on perhaps the runic department was one of the things she'd put on the table.

"Yes, that is how memory works. It is somewhat faulty. Hence the need to train it, and what better than someone who is quite good at it to initiate you?"

A shrug with a subtle smirk on her visage. Although her expression quickly morphed into one of concern, even discontent.

"As I said, there are some questions better to leave unasked. All you should know is that I am meant to know all of this, but I do not to the fullest extent. As such, I am reading this journal."
(Nashandra)
[08:44:09] Weirdo indeed. But Thom truely wasn't the type to think about or let his brain linger on these things. It appeared however that the teenager would pretty bendable, as after the female suggested kneeling in front of her, he would have done so, but rather then say 'Thank you Madame Nashandra' the words that would have left his mouth would be.

"Beautiful Madame Nashandra, I thank you for humbling me with your presence and your enchating mind and wonderful wordplay. I would beg, and implore you to further grant me your presence and the gift of your words."

Because funnies. The boy seemed not to see that arrogance of the female, only seeming to see this as some sort of game, or fun activity. Once the words left his lips he would glance upwards, making eye contact towards the young girl.

"And thats true. Someone who knows memory and stuff better then me would be really good at teaching me stuff!" the boy said with a grin, though he then would notice the look of concern on her face.

"Sorry for making you uncomfortable. And alright, I'll do my best not to ask so many questions."
(Thom)
[08:50:59] Absolute submission. What a time to be alive. And he actually did it, he kneeled and even addressed her in a way far beyond she had expected him to. The addition of 'beautiful' was even a bit off-putting. But nonetheless, a few blinks were warranted.

"Errr ... Good. I am glad that you understand the value of keeping me on my best of moods.You will become quite the good element."

Her index rose as she claimed the future she foresaw for him. In reality she did not know much about human evolution and how thye could grow with certain behavior, but boy did she know he would live long if he kept this attitude.

"I will teach you what I know, and help you learn the correct means to master these runes. All you have to do, is refer to me as your Madame."

Nashandra finally stood, hand on his head as Thom was still kneeling. It was not a game, however. He had placed himself under Nashandra under her orders, and wanted something in return. If he wished to have such a reward, he would have to comply.

"Ask intelligent questions. I might learn something too if you do so."

Seems there were some implications there ...
(Nashandra)
[08:59:31] Getting to learn a bunch of things, complement a girl, and call her some sort of word that he had never heard before? To Thom this sounded like a great deal! There was nothing that could go wrong with this! Kind of helped that the youth had almost no idea of what shame was.

"Course! I like making people happy! So I'll make sure that you're happy Madame."

A wide pearly toothed smile would be flashed from the boy, though it appeared that.. He had yet to remember to rise from his kneeling position. In fact, he still didn't based on the fact he hadn't moved from it. In fact, even as she rose and placed a hand on his head, possibly ruffling his hair, he didn't seem bothered. Of course, the action having happened to him since he was little from his father certainly didn't make it look or feel like a bad thing.

"And thank you for agreeing to teach me Madame Nashandra! I'll make sure to ask the most intelligent questions I can!" Although it might be a bit odd in the end given there was certain questions he wasn't supposed to ask. He also didn't seem to understand the implications of the words.

Thom, you dense child..
(Thom)
[09:06:20] How could bowing to a massively depraved, abnormal girl ever go wrong?! Poor Thom and his teenage brain. His fate was by no means sealed, but nothing good could ever come out of such an initiative. Though what the lad would say next would lead the being to rest her hand on the boy's shoulder.

"It is good that you are such a valiant man, Thom. But there is always a select few that are ... Precious. A select few you'll put before the good of all the faceless masses. What do you think would qualify someone to be this pecious to you?"

An odd query and subject, though it was accomplanied by the same, sly look she had when starting this little session of sophism.

"Ask away, and I may or may not reply. Answers are like rewards. Some people die for the most trivial of answers to petty questions. Many even become insane due to unanswered questions. Do you understand?"

Her chin rose, placing herself once again above him, as if she were an envoy that would free him of these possible, horrible fates of torment.
(Nashandra)
[09:06:20] Nashandra: (mister thom*
[09:11:28] The question made Thom tilt his head a little bit. A select few which are precious which he was willing to save if the world was willing to turn against them?... Bad anology given that such was very much akin to the relationship of the Eternal flame and the rest of the world but.. Still.

"What would qualiify someone to be precious to me? I think my friends. People that I know the name of and stuff Madame Nashandra! People I respect too." A smile streached across his face. The youth never had truely pondered this sort of question before, but given he wanted to be a hero and to save as many people as possible he had never seen the need.

"And.. I think I understand. There are some questions that people die for that aren't worth it, and othertimes the questions might break them if thye don't find out.." The boy smiled. "Ok! So I guess first question; Whats your favorite thing to eat?"

D-did that count as a petty question?
(Thom)
[09:18:17] "People you respect too. Very broad, Mister Thom. You need a bond. Someone, or a very small, select group, to be entirely devoted to. This camp appears to have a lot of these, and a lot of people devoted to keeping it alive. But in the end, I know they all have their bonds."

A general glance at the encampment. The silver, apathetic eyes of the depraved entity absorbed the lush green mixed witht her remains of the foul rust. Nashandra did enjoy these people's presence, but did not feel this 'bond' with any of them. She did not feel like a part of them altogether.

"Exact- ..."

Looks like Thom was as bone headed as he presented himself to be. Talking about food, just as sharp as Miljana she'd think. While certainly charming it didn't provide much in terms of discussions. Then again, it seemed to be compensated with the ass-kissing.

"Food. I see. I am unsure. A lot of it is rather unremarkable to me. Perhaps foie gras? I understand it is fancy, and the taste is rather rich. Unhealthy but rich."
(Nashandra)
[09:25:58] Thom fell silent a little bit, bringing his hand to his chin for a moment to think before shrugging. "Maybe a lot of people need bonds but.. Besides the bond of friendship I don't think there needs to be a lot. Heck, I wouldn't say my bond with Maria, Liara, Lucius, or a lot of the leaders of our group is honestly that strong but even with that missing link I still want to protect them. They're the leaders and people in Cinderfall need someone to look up to.. Someone like me is more.." The boy would now move up from his kneeling position. "Disposable I think."

"The talk about food however broguht a grin to his lips. "Foie gras? That sounds fancy. Never had it. I'll have to try it out sometime, maybe I'll buy us both some if you show me where to get it. Oh next question;"

"Are you going to be staying around Cinderfall a lot Madame Nashandra? You're pretty nice to talk to."
(Thom)
[09:32:48] An eyebrow rose. And before he knew it, his forehead would recieve quite a string flick, unless he'd avoid it.

"That is ridiculous. Disposable? No. If you are devoted to them, considering yourself disposable is absurd. Insulting to yourself. The only reason they'd see you as disposable is because of your lack of dignity."

There was intensity in her words, breaking off from the usually monotone and unmotivated discourse the homunculus maintained. The foul miasma of depravity was in synch with the intensity, wrapping Thom with desires of empowerment, hitting more the negative than the positive. He could resist it of course, given his power, but it was there, trying to seduce him.

"Get a grip, Mister Thom. You are likely far more valuable than many of their soldiers. Show a little pride and assert yourself, instead of seeing yourself as juts ... A pawn."

Disgust reigned in her voice, expression and the aura of depravity that oozed out of her.

"I'm not picky with food. I will be around here, and now I will be watching, Mister Thom. I will be watching how disposable and worthless you make yourself look when you could most likely be at the top of the chain in this camp. Hopefully, you will positively surprise me."
(Nashandra)
[09:41:20] Flick!

The glowing gold eyes shot open in suprise, not at all expecting this sort of reaction from the silver haired girl. His forehead stung and he moved his hand over it for a moment before listening to her words. There was a mixture of confusion and disbelief on his face.

"Ow.. Madame Nashandra I didn't know you.. cared so much." The boy would say, their voice clearly showing his suprise, perhaps a crack even given his age. "But alright.. I'll try not to think of myself as disposible.. It's just.. A lot of what I do feels like it barely gets noticed.." An admission as he felt the miasma wrap into his mind.

He bareely reconized the depravity trying to seduce him, and much less resisted. Thoughts of grandure likely flowed into his mind, thoughts of power he could obtain, what he could do with it and the like which made his hues blink a few times.

"I just.." The boy would fall dead silent once more for a few seconds, before nodding, looking back towards the silver haired woman. "Yes Madame Nashandra. I'll see myself as more then a pawn." He said, slightly more dignified and with a little pride, not wanting the disgust that rang out of her voice aimed at him.

"And alright. I hope in that case I am greatly able to suprise you Nashandra! I'll try my best." A bit of a smile flashed over his features.
(Thom)
[09:48:09] He saw it as caring. How interesting. She was more disgusted at the idea than anything else.

"Then assert yourself. They're NOTHING without magi like you. They need you. They'll die without you. Make it known. Ask to be recognized. And bring out the dark if it's necessary."

Her chin lowered, silver eyes expressing a slight bit of pity toward the kid's situation. She did not like it. It was very much an eyesore to the Greyrot's destined head.

"Very good. Utilizing force is not necessary, especially not with allies. It may be at one point, but there are other ways. However, simply remember your value, and make sure they know it to. Much like you know mine, and bow to me for the possible knowledge and gain I could provide to you."

There was no point in being subtle about it. Thom absorbed it all, and Nashandra had the knack for formulating this in a slightly more appealing way. Hands off the teen at this point, the young Homunculus would rest her posterior before the tree's trunk once more.

"Show a little pride, Mister Thom. That is how the idiots and thralls clearly understand your value."
(Nashandra)
[09:57:32] The boy was odd, that was for sure. Being good natured was very much at odd with his choice of magic, and his world view.

"Alright. I'll assert myself more. I'll double down, talk to Maria get reconized.. They need me. They'll fall without me.." Thom said, almost in a ritualistic manner as more depravity ebbed and followed into his mind. Almost like a maddening manta only the boy had yet to fall into madness fully.

"I won't fight them or force them.. I'll just talk then. Liara saw me fight when we got the lodestone. They know that I fought Ken Veese.. I'll talk to them, and I'll make them aknowlege what I've done with my words.. I'll remember my value and make them see it too." A wide grin spread once again over his lips as he nodded to the homoculus. "And of course I know your value! You're extremely smart Nashandra! I bet you're a great teacher too! And you're inspirational!"

The black miasa of the boy's own felt as if it were going to appear a little, but he kept it in chance. "And yeah! I'll show pride. As much as is nessasary! Thank you Madame Nashandra!"
(Thom)
[10:06:56] A large grin took shape for the very first time on her expression.

"Excellent."

It was quick to vanish, however, as celery was once against feasted upon once the high of the moment eventually cooled down. Thom was under her influence, and as long as it remained subtle and non-violent, she could mould him in the long term.

"You are very welcome, Mister Thom. I will provide a course one of these days, once my recollections become clearer."

Her words were muffled with the celery in her mouth. Manners only went so far, and Nashandra didn't express any shame with eating while talking. What a strange individual.

"I will have to depart soon, Mister Thom. Mister Lucius unfortunately requires my assistance in order to ... Persist in this cruel world. I will display my value, you see? A leader will owe me their life soon. That is a way to assert yourself, young Mister Thom."

And with that, she stood.
(Nashandra)
[10:12:54] Thom seemed to smile when he noticed the grin on the girl's face. The first time she displayed an emotion to him that didn't seem to be indifference nor disgust.. Something which he assumed as actual joy made him feel good. It was too bad that it faded so quickly.

"Thank you Madame Nashandra. I hope that I get to follow that course!" the boy said, once again a smile settling upon their lips, though not at all bothered by the eating. Growing up near ookami tended to have that sort of effect on people long term.

"I'm sad that you have to go though. I hope that we get to talk again soon. This was fun! But yeah if Lucius needs assistance remaining in this world then.." A nod of his head. "Your value is already giantic and I bet it'll grow and grow and grow! You're really amazing Madame!" the boy said, nearly rocking on the balls of his feet.

"I hope everything goes well for you!"
(Thom)
[10:15:28] Nashandra: Until then, try to keep that small chin of yours high. <*And she's off*>