Chaotic Light: A CBST-Verse Adventure

[Goob]

20 hours ago, Random Bystander said:

"Thank you." She said, satisfied. She continued inspecting it.

 

"Did you not hear my Narration? It's been perfectly restored. There's no need to further inspect it. Do you not see? There's no need for you to continue working this silly Character work. You could fix a thousand engines, a million motorcycles with just your voice once you get powerful enough. And... if you help me, I could help you. Not just with your Narration, but with your memories."

[Random Bystander]

2 hours ago, AmazingGoob said:

"Did you not hear my Narration? It's been perfectly restored. There's no need to further inspect it. Do you not see? There's no need for you to continue working this silly Character work. You could fix a thousand engines, a million motorcycles with just your voice once you get powerful enough. And... if you help me, I could help you. Not just with your Narration, but with your memories."

She shook her head, still inspecting the engine. "You don't understand, do you? You just don't understand the joy of puting your time, blood, sweat, and tears into something and then seeing it work. The fulfilling feeling you get when you take something good, and make it better! The satisfaction of doing something the hard way and seeing it pay off. That wonderful moment of pure gratification, when you can look at something and be able to think: "I made that myself. I took things others might think are useless, and put them together in a way that makes them beneficial, worthwhile, or rewarding. And I didn't take any shortcuts." When was the last time you did something with your own two hands, just to say you could? Or the last time you created something without your narration? Something that makes you proud just looking at it." She looked at him. "Because I feel like you are assuming things that shouldn't be assumed. When did I say I wanted my memories back? And if I do want them back, what gave you the impression that I would want help? I like doing things myself. I enjoy figuring out how things work. I don't mind helping you, but you should be more careful with your assumptions." She looked back to her engine. "And next time, just ask. I don't need you to help me for me to help you. That's not... Well... How I do things. It's not how I work." She ran her hand over it lovingly. "Plus, there is always something new to try, and there is always a way to improve something." She smiled.

[Goob]

2 hours ago, Random Bystander said:

She shook her head, still inspecting the engine. "You don't understand, do you? You just don't understand the joy of puting your time, blood, sweat, and tears into something and then seeing it work. The fulfilling feeling you get when you take something good, and make it better! The satisfaction of doing something the hard way and seeing it pay off. That wonderful moment of pure gratification, when you can look at something and be able to think: "I made that myself. I took things others might think are useless, and put them together in a way that makes them beneficial, worthwhile, or rewarding. And I didn't take any shortcuts." When was the last time you did something with your own two hands, just to say you could? Or the last time you created something without your narration? Something that makes you proud just looking at it." She looked at him. "Because I feel like you are assuming things that shouldn't be assumed. When did I say I wanted my memories back? And if I do want them back, what gave you the impression that I would want help? I like doing things myself. I enjoy figuring out how things work. I don't mind helping you, but you should be more careful with your assumptions." She looked back to her engine. "And next time, just ask. I don't need you to help me for me to help you. That's not... Well... How I do things. It's not how I work." She ran her hand over it lovingly. "Plus, there is always something new to try, and there is always a way to improve something." She smiled.

Oh. Oh yes. This was perfect

Spade frowns, the sighs, face drooping. "I... apologize." Bah, it pained him to say that for the second time. He was a Narrator, weaver of tragedies, not some sniveling character! But to get this girl's sympathy...  "I understand your feelings, girl. I spent years weaving stories, watching characters unfold to their fates, influencing them and leading them to their destinies, to the conclusion. But then the Hall of Words came and destroyed it, wrecked it all within moments, years- no, decades worth of work obliterated before my eyes, and then they took away my ability to fix it. Gah, it crushes me to even think about it."

[Random Bystander]

10 hours ago, AmazingGoob said:

Oh. Oh yes. This was perfect

Spade frowns, the sighs, face drooping. "I... apologize." Bah, it pained him to say that for the second time. He was a Narrator, weaver of tragedies, not some sniveling character! But to get this girl's sympathy...  "I understand your feelings, girl. I spent years weaving stories, watching characters unfold to their fates, influencing them and leading them to their destinies, to the conclusion. But then the Hall of Words came and destroyed it, wrecked it all within moments, years- no, decades worth of work obliterated before my eyes, and then they took away my ability to fix it. Gah, it crushes me to even think about it."

She looked at him skeptically. "Uh, I already said I'd help you. You don't need to try to convince me. Also, I don't think you do understand. You don't seem like that type of person."

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Note: If she says something your character finds offensive, she most likely doesn't think it would be offensive. She often says things that are rude, without knowing they are rude. She has no charisma. 

 

[xinoehp512]

On 3/30/2021 at 11:44 PM, AmazingGoob said:

"Oh? And when was the last time you were in the Hall? Or tell me, do you remember every single person's life you've ruined? From your perspective, I might of been some other character, especially in the whirlwind of Narration in the Hall."

"I feel like I would remember doing something impossible," remarked Xinoehp.

[The Unknown Ajah]

12 hours ago, AmazingGoob said:

Oh. Oh yes. This was perfect

Spade frowns, the sighs, face drooping. "I... apologize." Bah, it pained him to say that for the second time. He was a Narrator, weaver of tragedies, not some sniveling character! But to get this girl's sympathy...  "I understand your feelings, girl. I spent years weaving stories, watching characters unfold to their fates, influencing them and leading them to their destinies, to the conclusion. But then the Hall of Words came and destroyed it, wrecked it all within moments, years- no, decades worth of work obliterated before my eyes, and then they took away my ability to fix it. Gah, it crushes me to even think about it."

The man was lying, obviously, but did he mean to harm Valve? There was no way to know. Watcher decided to keep an eye on this Narrator. 

[xinoehp512]

Grace slowed down as she approached the council room. In front of it stood the very person she wanted to see.

"Jared!" she called out, coming to a stop across the hall from him. "It's been a while!"

Jared glanced up briefly. "Hi, Grace," he said evenly. His expression was unreadable, but his demeanor certainly didn't seem welcoming.

"Well..." said Grace after a brief silence, "how are things going for you?"

"Good," said Jared with even less expressivity than his first phrase. Grace's expression fell slightly, but she kept her disappointment in check. "So," she said. "I... assume you're here about Antonio?"

Jared grunted. It seemed that her statement had at least evoked some reaction. "Why else?" he said. "My father forced me to return. Why? I don't know. It's not like there's anything I can do about it."

Grace sighed. Somehow, this wasn't surprising to her in the slightest. "Couldn't you at least-"

"No," said Jared.

"Or-"

"No."

Grace folded her arms. "He's your brother."

"Yes," said Jared, clearly annoyed now. "And he's probably just distracted by some weird tree again. Or something."

"But-"

"NO," said Jared emphatically. "Final answer." He glanced up at a clock on the wall. "Now, if you'll excuse me, my required time here is about to expire." He stood up. "I am going after my sibling who actually needs finding."

Grace watched him walk down the hallway she had just come from with a sigh. Abigail is dead, she wanted to say. Jared, you just need to let go...

But she said nothing.

[Zephrun’s Imperium]

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Xino, you are an incredible writer and I love you.

 

[Goob]

11 hours ago, Random Bystander said:

She looked at him skeptically. "Uh, I already said I'd help you. You don't need to try to convince me. Also, I don't think you do understand. You don't seem like that type of person."

 

Quote

sweats 

don't completely fail at this character already, Goob, c'mon

He straightens, and scoffs, looking mildly flustered. "Can we just go, girl?"

[Random Bystander]

9 hours ago, AmazingGoob said:

He straightens, and scoffs, looking mildly flustered. "Can we just go, girl?"

"Go where?" She was still inspecting the engine, as she was a very thorough person.

[xinoehp512]

"Yeah," echoed Xinoehp. "Where?"

[Goob]

11 hours ago, Random Bystander said:

"Go where?" She was still inspecting the engine, as she was a very thorough person.

2 hours ago, xinoehp512 said:

"Yeah," echoed Xinoehp. "Where?"

"Well, we need to find one of those two Narrators that brought us. Both seem very powerful and will probably be able to help us, with some convincing."

 

[xinoehp512]

2 hours ago, AmazingGoob said:

"Well, we need to find one of those two Narrators that brought us. Both seem very powerful and will probably be able to help us, with some convincing."

 

"Two- what?" Xinoehp glanced between the two of them. "I sense a story behind this..."

[Zephrun’s Imperium]

The Hall had nothing left for Star. So Star left the Hall.

She appeared in the downtown of an out-of-the-way yet large enough town. Her garb turned to that of a fashionable woman from the 60's, to match the rest of the place. The Narrational Plane was rather odd that way, in and out of decades with no coherence. The place where she'd lived with Maverick had been in a universe faaaaar less developed than the one she'd just appeared in. She'd loved the simpleness of her old home. The fairytale feel of living in the woods, the small cottage, the garden, the stream, the pretty peasant dresses... But for as much as she'd loved it, she couldn't go back to it. It would remind her far too much of what she'd lost... 

[Goob]

On 4/2/2021 at 8:01 PM, xinoehp512 said:

"Two- what?" Xinoehp glanced between the two of them. "I sense a story behind this..."

"Indeed. Two powerful Narrators appeared in this girl's workshop. One appeared to have been spying on her with a shadow-ignitis and the other claimed to be a 'dark lord'. They then began to fight and we had to run to here, wherever this is."

[Random Bystander]

11 hours ago, AmazingGoob said:

"Indeed. Two powerful Narrators appeared in this girl's workshop. One appeared to have been spying on her with a shadow-ignitis and the other claimed to be a 'dark lord'. They then began to fight and we had to run to here, wherever this is."

"And my garage was completely destroyed." She said sadly. "It's been my home for as long as I can remember. I mean, I only remember a few months, but still."

[xinoehp512]

Grace surveyed the shattered landscape.

"Why would Antonio come here?" she muttered. From what she'd heard, this place had recently been a battleground for a full-on Narrator brawl. Not even the first one in this spot- apparently, the most recent battle had been part of a larger conflict that had been raging for some time. Grace had never taken much of an interest in the affairs of Narrators- her area of focus lay elsewhere - but Antonio had always seemed to be fascinated by them. So much so that Grace might have thought that he'd have come to this battle just to spectate if she thought he was dumb enough.

Problem was, he wasn't dumb enough. And he had almost certainly been aware of the battle. So... why had he come here?

Mid-thought, Grace suddenly realized that someone was talking to her. "Sorry," she said, snapping herself out of it. "What did you say?"

"He didn't say," said Michael. Antonio's other brother, the younger one. He'd been the one to ask for her help in finding his wayward sibling. "He was looking through the data from the feeds when he just... ran out. Nearly knocked someone over on his way out the door."

Grace frowned. "So... he saw something. Something urgent- not urgent enough to alert the Elders, or too urgent to waste any time...? But you haven't been able to identify what it was yet?"

Michael sighed. "There are a practically infinite number of feeds. What he saw - if he saw anything - could have been in any one of them. We have a team looking, but..."

Grace nodded. "We'd better get looking ourselves, then. If he came here, chances are whatever he saw was here too. Even if it's gone now, it might have left a sign behind."

[Zephrun’s Imperium]

Star's gaze ran over all the characters around her. Each strolling, chatting, oblivious to the fact that at any moment a Narrator could come down and kill them all. That those evil gods who ruled over them without their knowledge couldn't care less that each one of these beings had a personality, a home, a family. It was absolutely sickening.

She was ashamed to be one of them. 

Well, maybe I can help, Star thought as she walked. (Walked. By the Author, most Narrators had never had to walk more than a few steps...) But... how could she? The Narrators had control over a whole universe - no, hundreds of universes. There was no way she'd be able to protect it all, she was only one person. One Narrator, yes, but... It just wasn't possible. She hadn't even been able to protect her own husband, how could she hope to defend the billions of lives her kind threatened?

Her eyes narrowed. There was a way. One she'd enjoy. She knew it could be done, she'd seen it happen. 

The Narrators deserved to die anyway.

[xinoehp512]

On 4/4/2021 at 11:40 AM, AmazingGoob said:

"Indeed. Two powerful Narrators appeared in this girl's workshop. One appeared to have been spying on her with a shadow-ignitis and the other claimed to be a 'dark lord'. They then began to fight and we had to run to here, wherever this is."

"Dark Lord...?" Xinoehp narrowed his eyes. "Was it a hatchet-wielding teenage girl with a serious drinking problem?"

On 4/5/2021 at 0:18 PM, xinoehp512 said:

Grace surveyed the shattered landscape.

"Why would Antonio come here?" she muttered. From what she'd heard, this place had recently been a battleground for a full-on Narrator brawl. Not even the first one in this spot- apparently, the most recent battle had been part of a larger conflict that had been raging for some time. Grace had never taken much of an interest in the affairs of Narrators- her area of focus lay elsewhere - but Antonio had always seemed to be fascinated by them. So much so that Grace might have thought that he'd have come to this battle just to spectate if she thought he was dumb enough.

Problem was, he wasn't dumb enough. And he had almost certainly been aware of the battle. So... why had he come here?

Mid-thought, Grace suddenly realized that someone was talking to her. "Sorry," she said, snapping herself out of it. "What did you say?"

"He didn't say," said Michael. Antonio's other brother, the younger one. He'd been the one to ask for her help in finding his wayward sibling. "He was looking through the data from the feeds when he just... ran out. Nearly knocked someone over on his way out the door."

Grace frowned. "So... he saw something. Something urgent- not urgent enough to alert the Elders, or too urgent to waste any time...? But you haven't been able to identify what it was yet?"

Michael sighed. "There are a practically infinite number of feeds. What he saw - if he saw anything - could have been in any one of them. We have a team looking, but..."

Grace nodded. "We'd better get looking ourselves, then. If he came here, chances are whatever he saw was here too. Even if it's gone now, it might have left a sign behind."

Michael scratched the final few observations into his notebook and snapped it shut. In front of him, lights began to dance as the information was processed, analyzed, and chrono-reversed within the Ennuler main database. Slowly, a hologram of the battle that had taken place at this spot began to emerge.

Blue light coalesced into a figure. The resolution of the image was too low to identify him, but it was unmistakably Antonio. He looked up, his posture showing surprise as he scrambled along the ground. The blurry outline of some thing crashed into the ground beside him, nearly knocking the blurry figure over. He turned, scrambling away, his posture focused on some point in front of him-

The figure fuzzed out. Michael bit back a scream of frustration. So close! If only they could find what he'd been looking for...

"Hey," called Grace. "I found something! I think he must have been crawling towards this."

Michael looked up and walked over, taking a knee beside Grace. "...What am I looking at?"

"Soul sight," said Grace, tapping the bridge of her nose. "Look."

Michael blinked once, activating his soul sight, and gasped. "A hole!" He knelt down and reached through it. "Careful!" said Grace as he did so. Michael halted for a moment, but nothing happened, so he carefully began to lower himself through. A few moments later, Grace followed.

The two climbed down a ladder carved into the side of a cave the size of a large room. A strange light emanated from somewhere, and a variety of strange flora carpeted the floor and ceiling. At the end of the hallway was a waterfall that cascaded into a pool. Altogether, a rather idyllic scene.

Unfortunately, neither Grace nor Michael was in a position to admire the natural beauty of the cave. They stared speechless together towards the end of the cave and the thing waiting for them at the end of it.

A gaping, yawning hole in the fabric of the thread itself.

[Random Bystander]

Just now, xinoehp512 said:

"Dark Lord...?" Xinoehp narrowed his eyes. "Was it a hatchet-wielding teenage girl with a serious drinking problem?"

"...No. He was neither a teenager or a girl. And I don't remember seeing him with a hatchet either. I mean, he could have a drinking problem, but not one I know of."

[Lecky Twig]

Skadar hopped into the hall and frowned disdainfully around the room, and all was as he had feared, nothing had changed. I'd much rather be back gallivanting around with the humans,  giving the pitiful beings a healthy amount of havoc to chew on. 

It was unfortunate that this place was as immortal as its inhabitants; eternally filled with a bunch of long-nosed narrators, each trying to be more sadistic then the guy beside them. And the worst part of it all, was that at a glance between himself and the other narrators, he could see no difference. 

[xinoehp512]

On 4/7/2021 at 4:41 PM, Random Bystander said:

"...No. He was neither a teenager or a girl. And I don't remember seeing him with a hatchet either. I mean, he could have a drinking problem, but not one I know of."

"Ah. Different Dark Lord, then."

On 4/8/2021 at 9:10 AM, Lecky Twig said:

Skadar hopped into the hall and frowned disdainfully around the room, and all was as he had feared, nothing had changed. I'd much rather be back gallivanting around with the humans,  giving the pitiful beings a healthy amount of havoc to chew on. 

It was unfortunate that this place was as immortal as its inhabitants; eternally filled with a bunch of long-nosed narrators, each trying to be more sadistic then the guy beside them. And the worst part of it all, was that at a glance between himself and the other narrators, he could see no difference. 

"Uh..." said an uncertain voice. "Hello?"

On 4/7/2021 at 4:30 PM, xinoehp512 said:

"Dark Lord...?" Xinoehp narrowed his eyes. "Was it a hatchet-wielding teenage girl with a serious drinking problem?"

Michael scratched the final few observations into his notebook and snapped it shut. In front of him, lights began to dance as the information was processed, analyzed, and chrono-reversed within the Ennuler main database. Slowly, a hologram of the battle that had taken place at this spot began to emerge.

Blue light coalesced into a figure. The resolution of the image was too low to identify him, but it was unmistakably Antonio. He looked up, his posture showing surprise as he scrambled along the ground. The blurry outline of some thing crashed into the ground beside him, nearly knocking the blurry figure over. He turned, scrambling away, his posture focused on some point in front of him-

The figure fuzzed out. Michael bit back a scream of frustration. So close! If only they could find what he'd been looking for...

"Hey," called Grace. "I found something! I think he must have been crawling towards this."

Michael looked up and walked over, taking a knee beside Grace. "...What am I looking at?"

"Soul sight," said Grace, tapping the bridge of her nose. "Look."

Michael blinked once, activating his soul sight, and gasped. "A hole!" He knelt down and reached through it. "Careful!" said Grace as he did so. Michael halted for a moment, but nothing happened, so he carefully began to lower himself through. A few moments later, Grace followed.

The two climbed down a ladder carved into the side of a cave the size of a large room. A strange light emanated from somewhere, and a variety of strange flora carpeted the floor and ceiling. At the end of the hallway was a waterfall that cascaded into a pool. Altogether, a rather idyllic scene.

Unfortunately, neither Grace nor Michael was in a position to admire the natural beauty of the cave. They stared speechless together towards the end of the cave and the thing waiting for them at the end of it.

A gaping, yawning hole in the fabric of the thread itself.

Grace walked speechless to the end of the corridor cave, unable to believe what she was seeing. This... this was a hole in the Wall. And not the wall the Ennullers had constructed themselves, the one she had helped repair this morning. This was the wall created by Silence himself in the Eternity Before, a barrier critical to the protection of every universe in existence. 

And now there was a hole in it

"How is this possible?" said Michael in a hushed voice. "I thought the Outer Wall was unbreakable!"

"Not... quite," said Grace, her gaze still fixated on the hole. "Holes form, sometimes. Small ones. And only rarely. But the sensors always detect them, and they're fixed before they could conceivably cause harm."

The two of them took in the large, jagged hole, stretching nearly to the ceiling of the cave. Michael stepped up and ran his fingers through the waterfall. "Why not this one, then?" he asked, giving voice to the question in both of their minds.

Grace pulled her eyes away and took out her notepad, noting down the dimensions and shape of the hole. A few moments later, the database produced an estimate for how long the hole had existed. 

"Whatever caused this," she said, her stomach twisting, "It isn't really a recent development. According to my calculations.... this hole has been growing for a thousand years."

[Random Bystander]

11 minutes ago, xinoehp512 said:

"Whatever caused this," she said, her stomach twisting, "It isn't really a recent development. According to my calculations.... this hole has been growing for a thousand years."

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Cue the end of episode credits

 

11 minutes ago, xinoehp512 said:

"Ah. Different Dark Lord, then."

"How many dark lords are there?" She said confused. "Because I didn't know there were any this morning..."

[Goob]

7 hours ago, Random Bystander said:

 

"How many dark lords are there?" She said confused. "Because I didn't know there were any this morning..."

"The number rapidly fluctuates under the Hall of Word's gaze. Ones that are also Narrators, however? I would have little idea."

[Random Bystander]

18 hours ago, AmazingGoob said:

"The number rapidly fluctuates under the Hall of Word's gaze. Ones that are also Narrators, however? I would have little idea."

"Huh." She paused. "What exactly is this Hall of Words you keep mentioning?"