The Scholar's Guild

[Rushu42]

Just now, Ashbringer said:

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That's the thing, I have no idea. Byron's bubble could probably prove the patch is in fact spreading, and whether it's highly invested (in which case it wouldn't be slowed down). I think Byron will wait a little, then come to follow Aln. He wouldn't really enjoy it, but it's better than nothing to do.

 

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Fair enough. There also that balance between what you want to do and what your character wants to do - I've had that come up several times. Like, I realized very early on that Aln being antisocial means that she's probably not going to go start conversations - which is a lot of the basis for this RP. So I've made her character arc about being better at reaching out to people. I'm not saying that that's happening with you, I'm just saying that if you want to be part of a plot, then you can often find a way for your character to be, or vice versa. 

 

[Ashbringer]

Byron was bored.

It was something he'd never really thought much about before. He had a fairly exciting life, full of adventure and thievery and time travel and getting momentum-bounced into walls by speeding vans. But, sitting on the bench in the Scholar's Guild, he didn't know if it was something he really enjoyed. 

Well, definitely not the last part. He'd thought he'd enjoyed the first three. He'd only gotten caught stealing seven times in his life: guards tended to stop chasing after a pickpocket after a week or so, and even the grandest burglaries would lose their importance after a year or decade or so. He'd been working on a few tricks like that: he could make a year pass over the span of four days in his bubble, and he could snatch and scrape enough food to survive for four days within a few real hours.

But in between all that time, he was often just waiting. Trying to remember what the world looked like outside, trying to remember when the next highstorm was supposed to arrive, trying to remember why he was hiding and waiting in the first place.

The reason was always different. Avoiding a guard squadron because he'd stolen from the wrong man. Avoiding a mercenary because he'd stolen from the right man. Waiting for Aln to come back from Guild business that was for some reason not in the Guild building. Once, on Roshar, he'd climbed a mountain high enough to avoid the worst of the highstorms, drank an entire bucket of cadmium, and just... skipped through about 20 years. He'd broken some barrier in him that day, and the years went by as less than hours. He'd watched the highstorms ravage the world below in seconds, a war go on for an hour or to, and a brief spark of some major city or another burning to the ground. He'd been looking for some kind of pattern in the world, like the sand patterns some ardent had shown him after giving him a morsel to eat.

Now that he thought about it, it was a wonder he could have seen anything that way at all. The light and dark should have blinded him better than an Unmade's taint, but he could still... process what had been happening, even at a distance and displacement that should have been impossible. Perhaps Aln would know why. Or maybe there was a book somewhere in here that could explain what cadmium had done to him.

His eyes, staring into space, drifted to a plant in a pot nearby. It looked like it hadn't been watered in a while, but it didn't seem to mind. It was still growing. Byron could even see Rosharian plants growing, let alone the soil-grown ones like these: it was practically vibrating with life, it was growing so fast-

Byron's eyes shot wide open in an instant.

To the observer, this "instant" would have taken about 3 minutes to complete.

How fast am I going? When am I going?

Byron did the only thing he knew: he dropped the bubble entirely. Immediately the world rushed to a standstill as Byron's time rejoined the worlds, and his complaining muscles went into their too-familiar spasms. He barely got an elbow - the hand was uncooperative - in front of a wall before his head smacked into it.

He turned his cadmium back on at a low burn. He couldn't see the plant growing anymore.

He sat up and clasped his hands to his head. "How long has it been?"

Something about this place made him want to go to sleep and let time just vanish. It just felt so... so... it felt like...

It felt like a home. It was partly the best thing he'd ever known. But the rest was so, so... wrong.

Byron jumped up and ran out the door. He had to find something, anything, preferably Aln but really just anyone. He had to get away from here; it felt like his mind was being forced in three directions at once.

 

He didn't notice the small, blue orb under the bench follow him on his way out.

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Surprise character development #2... check!

I'm going to have Byron wander around for a bit. He'll probably end up near the Deadspot, but he might visit a thread or two first.

 

[Gears]

Dr. Gears walked into the Scholar's Guild, holding one end of a statue. "Where should we put it?" he asked Aln.

@Rushu42 @mathiau

[Rushu42]

9 minutes ago, Gears said:

Dr. Gears walked into the Scholar's Guild, holding one end of a statue. "Where should we put it?" he asked Aln.

@Rushu42 @mathiau

Aln looked around. There wasn't really a great lifedraining statue nook in here. "Probably the back room," she decided. Having this thing in the open didn't seem the wisest of choices. 

She led them to the small meeting room in the back and gingerly set the statue down on the table. She made sure to leave the door open so that she could keep an eye on anyone else coming in. The guard that she had healed was gone now, as was Ben. Hopefully neither one had gotten themselves into additional trouble. Aln suddenly realized that she was a little disappointed not to have seen the teenager here. Had she grown fond of him so quickly? She turned back to the statue, refocusing her mind.

"So what do you make of this statue?" she asked Dr. Gears. They would have to unwrap it to observe its effects eventually, but she wanted his take on it first.

@mathiau @Invocation

Edited July 30, 2020 by Rushu42
Tagging, as always

[Gears]

7 minutes ago, Rushu42 said:

"So what do you make of this statue?" she asked Dr. Gears. They would have to unwrap it to observe its effects eventually, but she wanted his take on it first.

Dr. Gears pondered for a moment. "It appears to possess emotions, so some level of sentience. In addition, it is healed by Stormlight, so it possesses an ideal state of being. Given the draining of life, perhaps it is attempting to heal itself? Or perhaps it is a Type IV BioChromatic Entity with a command to drain energy."

Edited July 30, 2020 by Gears

[Rushu42]

22 hours ago, Gears said:

Dr. Gears pondered for a moment. "It appears to possess emotions, so some level of sentience. In addition, it is healed by Stormlight, so it possesses an ideal state of being. Given the draining of life, perhaps it is attempting to heal itself? Or perhaps it is a Type IV BioChromatic Entity with a command to drain energy."

"A Type IV Biochromatic Entity would certainly explain the unusual interaction with other forms of Investiture, as well as the mental projection. I think that theory has merit, though it's not conclusive. We know frustratingly little about such entities, after all."

As she talked, Aln walked over and removed a sphere from a lamp on the wall. "How does this statue react to a contained source of pure Investiture, such as an infused sphere?" 

In answer to her own question, she peeled back a bit of the aluminum and placed the sphere on the small amount of exposed stone.

@Invocation @mathiau

[+Invocation]

On 7/31/2020 at 8:30 AM, Rushu42 said:

In answer to her own question, she peeled back a bit of the aluminum and placed the sphere on the small amount of exposed stone.

The sphere flickers quickly three times, then three more with a slight lengthening, then three more quick flashes before it goes out entirely. 

@mathiau @Gears 

[Gears]

15 minutes ago, Invocation said:

The sphere flickers quickly three times, then three more with a slight lengthening, then three more quick flashes before it goes out entirely. 

@mathiau @Gears 

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Does Morse Code exist in the Alleyverse? If not, ignore the following.

"That was Morse Code," Dr. Gears said. "SOS, a distress signal. Attempt to establish communications by asking yes/no questions and placing spheres against the statue. First question: Are you communicating with us via Morse Code? Answer with Y for yes and N for no."

@Rushu42

[Rushu42]

8 hours ago, Gears said:

Does Morse Code exist in the Alleyverse? If not, ignore the following.

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Earth exists, so I assume Morse Code would too.

Aln gasped when the sphere started flashing in Morse Code. This confirmed both sentience and the ability to siphon Investiture, or at least Stormlight. Plus, Morse code implied some sort of connection to Earth or the Alleyplanet. The aluminum was likely interfering with the previously demonstrated ability to project emotions. 

Aln watched carefully as Dr. Gears asked his question. His suggestion of a BioChromatic Entity still had merit, but she couldn't help but wonder. There were all sorts of mythological stories about someone turning to stone - though it's true that she knew of no magic system explicitly capable of such, aside from fatal soulcasting. Perhaps it was best not to jump to conclusions. She replaced the drained sphere with a full one in preparation for the statue's response.

"A confirmation of sentience," she said aloud. "And at least basic knowledge of Earth, which is unusual for an awakened object. And a BioChromatic Entity similar to those previously seen would have been able to reach out sooner. What else might it be?"

@Gears @Invocation

Edited August 2, 2020 by Rushu42
Adding suggested detail

[+Invocation]

On 8/1/2020 at 3:18 PM, Gears said:

Are you communicating with us via Morse Code? Answer with Y for yes and N for no."

A long flash, a short one, then two long ones come across fairly quickly. The sphere, though now dimmer than it was, is not completely dun yet.

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That's a Y, just so you don't have to double-check.

@Gears @Rushu42

[Gears]

13 minutes ago, Invocation said:

A long flash, a short one, then two long ones come across fairly quickly. The sphere, though now dimmer than it was, is not completely dun yet.

Dr. Gears wrote the response down on his clipboard. "Are you actively choosing to drain Investiture and life from surrounding areas?"

@Rushu42

[Rushu42]

"And do you need help?" Aln added, remembering the first signal.

@Invocation @Gears

[+Invocation]

On 8/2/2020 at 9:24 PM, Gears said:

Dr. Gears wrote the response down on his clipboard. "Are you actively choosing to drain Investiture and life from surrounding areas?"

13 hours ago, Rushu42 said:

"And do you need help?" Aln added, remembering the first signal.

Despite there being two questions, only one came, slowly forming out of the repeated dimming of the sphere: -. . . -.. / -- --- .-. . Need more, it said. It wasn't clear if that was truly the end of the message, or if the sphere was merely drained before the communication could continue. 

[Rushu42]

13 minutes ago, Invocation said:

Despite there being two questions, only one came, slowly forming out of the repeated dimming of the sphere: -. . . -.. / -- --- .-. . Need more, it said. It wasn't clear if that was truly the end of the message, or if the sphere was merely drained before the communication could continue. 

"Need more..." Aln frowned. Need more Stormlight was the obvious conclusion, but it wasn't really an answer to either of their questions. Unless it was trying to say that it was draining plants in an effort to gain investiture? Either way, she was hesitant to give too much power to such an unknown variable. She removed another, single sphere from a pocket and placed it against the statue. "Do you intend to use additional Investiture to cause harm?"

@Gears

[+Invocation]

3 minutes ago, Rushu42 said:

"Need more..." Aln frowned. Need more Stormlight was the obvious conclusion, but it wasn't really an answer to either of their questions. Unless it was trying to say that it was draining plants in an effort to gain investiture? Either way, she was hesitant to give too much power to such an unknown variable. She removed another, single sphere from a pocket and placed it against the statue. "Do you intend to use additional Investiture to cause harm?"

A one word answer this time, extremely brief: .--. . .-. .... .- .--. ... | Perhaps.

[Rushu42]

Just now, Invocation said:

A one word answer this time, extremely brief: .--. . .-. .... .- .--. ... | Perhaps.

Aln looked at Dr. Gears. "'Perhaps'? Are we justified in refusing aid to whatever this entity is because of the possibility that it could cause harm?"

Aln wished that Torenat were here, or maybe Folorian. She had never been great at assessing the unreliability of those around her. Everything would be so much easier if people would just tell the truth. This is exactly the sort of ethically ambiguous situation that spren are rubbish with, isn't it? she asked Pel.

"I mean.." the spren pulsed doubtfully. "You should at least question it more before making a decision on whether or not to help it. You're working with a very limited set of information here."

You're right, of course. I'm still interested to hear what Dr. Gears has to say on the matter, though.

@Gears

[Gears]

9 hours ago, Rushu42 said:

You're right, of course. I'm still interested to hear what Dr. Gears has to say on the matter, though.

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Keep in mind that Dr. Gears has no morals. He is not the best person to ask about ethical dilemmas.

"We should give it more, of course, though probably after some communications," Dr. Gears said. "It is a statue that can drain Investiture. We could learn so much from it. However, it has no incentive to help us when it doesn't need us. Ask it questions now, before it has all that it needs from us. Once it's done with us, it will be less likely to answer our questions." He took a sphere and pressed it against the statue. "Are you an artificial construct?"

[+Invocation]

On 8/4/2020 at 8:38 AM, Gears said:

"Are you an artificial construct?"

This time, just the one three-word phrase drained the sphere entirely: -.-. .-. . .- - . -.. --..-- / -... ..- - / -. .- - ..- .-. .- .-..

Created, but natural.

@Rushu42

Edited August 6, 2020 by Invocation

[Rushu42]

17 minutes ago, Invocation said:

This time, just the one three-word phrase drained the sphere entirely: -.-. .-. . .- - . -.. --..-- / -... ..- - / -. .- - ..- .-. .- .-..

Created, but natural.

@Rushu42

Aln dug in her pocket for another sphere. With all the healing she had already done that night, she was running dangerously low on stormlight. It would be best to avoid dipping into the emergency store, if possible. She looked at Dr. Gears. "We shouldn't waste any questions. I only have so much stormlight available." After a moment's thought, she placed a large broam on the statue. Hopefully it would know to speak briefly.

"What are you?"

@Gears

[+Invocation]

5 minutes ago, Rushu42 said:

"What are you?"

Another three-word phrase (this thing, whatever it was, seemed rather fond of those): -.-. .-. . .- - . -.. --..-- / -... ..- - / -. .- - ..- .-. .- .-..

A living human.

@Gears

[Gears]

Just now, Invocation said:

A living human.

Dr. Gears turned to Aln. "If this is a living human, perhaps the statue form is a stasis state or a defense mechanism. Perhaps giving it Stormlight will revert it out of the statue form." He thought about taking a sphere, but decided against it. Aln didn't want to waste questions. 

@Rushu42

[Rushu42]

9 minutes ago, Gears said:

Dr. Gears turned to Aln. "If this is a living human, perhaps the statue form is a stasis state or a defense mechanism. Perhaps giving it Stormlight will revert it out of the statue form." He thought about taking a sphere, but decided against it. Aln didn't want to waste questions. 

@Rushu42

Aln stared at the statue. A living human... Her mind was so wrapped up in the implications of this that she nearly didn't notice when Dr. Gears started talking. "Hmmm? Oh, right. That's certainly possible. Its cracks did seem to seal when I used Progression, so it's clear that Stormlight does something. It's worth a try. But..." She remembered the conversation of a moment ago. "We can't be sure that it will be willing to answer our questions if we do manage to release it from statue form." She thought for a moment. "We should at least ask it if Progression would have the theorized effect. The question of whether or not to do it could prove irrelevant."

@Invocation

[+Invocation]

9 minutes ago, Rushu42 said:

"We should at least ask it if Progression would have the theorized effect.

Not even a word this time. Not a phrase, not a letter. A punctuation mark only: ..--..

?

@Gears

[Rushu42]

Just now, Invocation said:

Not even a word this time. Not a phrase, not a letter. A punctuation mark only: ..--..

?

@Gears

Aln glanced back at Dr. Gears, then pulled out another sphere and pressed it to the stone. "Would Stormlight be able to return you to a human form?"

@Gears

[+Invocation]

2 minutes ago, Rushu42 said:

Aln glanced back at Dr. Gears, then pulled out another sphere and pressed it to the stone. "Would Stormlight be able to return you to a human form?"

This time more than just a question mark, but that dreaded punctuation of inquisitivity was still there. ... - --- .-. -- .-.. .. --. .... - ..--..

Stormlight?

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She's never been to anywhere other than Reckoner Earth. Her current status is a direct result of an attack by another Epic, and as far as she's aware there's been no time since them. 

@Gears