#basmani

Aimvara,

I found myself a teacher. Well, stumbled across her really. She’s done quite a lot of research into the fields of golemancy and necromancy, working to combine the two to create life from death. I think it’s quite close to what my Dream is leading me to, and she’s already succeeded!

I found myself a teacher. Well, stumbled across her. I dropped by Desider Atum, quite a large market out in the wilds, to restock my supplies and thought I’d check the area out. The entrance was hidden behind a tangle of vines and weeds. I could barely make out the glow of the access pad behind them. I’m not sure what drew me there, perhaps I could sense the faint necromantic energy that still lingered. But, Aimvara, as soon as I activated the pad, I knew I had stumbled on a wealth of information. It’s everything I’ve been looking for.

The lab belongs to an Asura named Oola. Lab genius, she calls herself. I’m inclined to believe that’s not merely Asuran pride speaking. She’s done quite a lot of research into the fields of golemancy and necromancy, working to combine the two to create life from death and it’s not all theory. She’s managed to successfully imbue her soul into a golem and the connection hasn’t faded.

I’d heard of her before, in my light research into golemancy. She was a very prominent name in the field 200 years ago. I had no idea that she was also a necromancer but I get the feeling that was less public knowledge. She’s not the easiest person to get along with, and she has been particularly wary about accepting me into her labs as an apprentice of sorts. She was betrayed by a former student, who publicly burned her books. I’m not sure why, attempting to learn more only sparks more rants so I’ve decided to leave it be.

I’m lucky she’s still around to teach me in person. Such a tremendous loss of knowledge and no one to see the proof of her accomplishments. I think she holed herself up in her lab, working until the last moment to succeed in her experiment, quietly fading away from the public eye. I get the feeling she wasn’t too fond of the general Asuran population.

I know she hasn’t been outside in a long while. One of the reasons I was allowed entry into her lab, I think, is that I was something completely new to her. A walking stick of bark with a mushroom for a hat. She was very interested in learning about us Sylvari. Where we come from, how we function. I admit, it did make me feel very uncomfortable. There I was, trapped in a lab with an old Asura with a fascination for life and death. I couldn’t help but think about all the Sylvari who have suffered at the hands of Asuran experimentation. It still weighs on my mind sometimes. If I hadn’t been able to prove myself, hadn’t shown real interest in her research, would she have seen me more as a research subject than a student?

I said I dropped the questions about her former student, but I can’t help but think about why he burned his mentor’s years of research. Maybe it was out of contempt of the field, many in other races are uncomfortable with the subject of necromancy. Maybe it’s just because she’s hard to get along with and their personalities clashed so splendidly it ended in a blaze. But then, it could be that she’s committed awful deeds in her pursuit of knowledge. And you know? I find that I really don’t want to know about it if that’s the case.

It’s not that I have some great regard for her outside of academics. That’s all I know. What she has accomplished, the things she’s achieved, it’s the closest I’ve ever come to finding what I saw in my Dream: a soul living in a mechanical body. Years of research, and expert knowledge of the intersection of two very different fields of study are all at my fingertips. Not simply words on a page, but an actual person I can talk to, theorize with. I want to learn all I can from her. The failures and successes, half-mad theories and genius ideas. If those results have come as the result of horrible experimentations… Is it bad that I don’t want to know?

This letter seems to have gotten away from me. Apologies for ending it on such a heavy note. I truly am over the moon to have discovered this treasure trove of knowledge.

Lost in studies,