Kasimir he/him Posted August 16, 2023 Report Share Posted August 16, 2023 (edited) [TAG: RP, 365 words] 2 minutes ago, Araris Valerian said: There may or may not be an assassin chilling in Imre indefinitely, waiting for the Wind to blow the right way, starting next month. Guess the only way the SDs will know is to go to Imre and have a look! 10 minutes ago, DrakeMarshall said: I am FREE! Sir u r in the wrong game >:( c. sabbatical “I’ve been thinking,” said Master Bob, “About going on sabbatical.” There was the first terrible thought that Kevan had, which was what was going to happen to all the El’the and Re’lar and E’lir that Master Bob was sponsoring. That a Master couldn’t just up and leave like that, but of course, Masters did. They went on sabbatical. It happened. Gillers did that too, but people kicked less of a fuss about that because fewer people, fewer things depended on a giller. “Oh,” he managed. He tried very hard to be supportive. Tried not to think about the consequences trickling downstream if Master Bob left. Tried not to ask what would become of him, of the rest of them. (Master Anders would take him. He knew that. But Rhetoric and Logic wasn’t Physicking and not for the first time, he felt stranded between the two fields.) He wasn’t sure he was entirely successful. “Where would you be going to?” “Gibea,” Master Bob said. “The Duke’s experiments?” Master Bob stiffened. “Good God, no!” he exclaimed. “Those were foul experiments, Kevan, make no mistake about that. Little good that can come out of such disregard for human life and suffering and good physicking principles and scientific practice.” Some of the students had defended the Duke’s practices, Kevan knew. It was in fashion again after Kvothe’s half-apology in the Chronicles. It always seemed to come back to Kvothe, and the tellings of the Chronicles. What need for skindancers, when set against the dreadful, inhuman shadow of a Duke long dead? For the first time, Kevan saw a glimmering of how Rhetoric and Logic and Physicking could come together, two strands of a single path into the future. “I’ve a former student in Gibea, running a practice,” Master Bob was saying. “She’s tried some fascinating techniques in her work and I was thinking of looking into how her small Medica operates. Don’t worry, I’m still figuring out who will replace me while I’m gone. I’m looking for someone reliable. Someone who is deeply interested in doing what is right by my Medica.” Kevan nodded slowly. “You’ll be back then?” “After my sabbatical,” Master Bob said, firmly. “But of course!” Edited August 16, 2023 by Kasimir Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sart he/him Posted August 16, 2023 Report Share Posted August 16, 2023 Sorry for not being active. Just putting my votes on Ashbringer Ashbringer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ashbringer he/him Posted August 17, 2023 Report Share Posted August 17, 2023 7 hours ago, Kasimir said: Before I forget: Ash, Ash Ash, I'm just gonna say this. In my view, and the others are free to dispute this: if you or TJ still want to insist you are Village, then quite frankly, we need a flip from either of you at this point. That's it. I hate saying this to a player as it feels very harsh, but you are unexpellable (or an expulsion would've worked fine), but one way or another, all insistences that Archer is framing you comes back to improbabilities stacked on improbabilities. If TJ is Village, he will give us his own flip, no ifs and buts about it, and then we will all shut Archer down and kill him. It's really that simple. Same deal here. Until then, it's simply a case of following the scans. There's a point at which I just have to play to the most probable world and proceed on that basis. If you are Village, we will basically come down on Archer like a load of bricks. I mean, I get it. The odds of E!Archer rolling a roleblock in Banned Books is very low, odds he had a teammate and more than one Nahlrout are... higher, maybe, but low and still the question of 'why'. And whatever the answer is, it can't really be distinguished from Fae Lore to you guys, and still doesn't let me do any of my Alchemy things unless he's recalled and immune to things anyway. But... well, you know. Kasimir Kasimir Bring it on 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
little wilson she/her Posted August 17, 2023 Author Report Share Posted August 17, 2023 The turn is over! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
little wilson she/her Posted August 17, 2023 Author Report Share Posted August 17, 2023 The game is over and the aftermath will be posted tomorrow. 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Devotary of Spontaneity Posted August 17, 2023 Report Share Posted August 17, 2023 If anyone has anything they'd like their characters to do in the aftermath writeup, please mention it in your GM PM. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Devotary of Spontaneity Posted August 18, 2023 Report Share Posted August 18, 2023 Writeup is not done but should be up 25 hours from now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Devotary of Spontaneity Posted August 19, 2023 Report Share Posted August 19, 2023 (edited) Writeup is not done but it's been two days so you can have the results. Current writeup is posted below with some sections as [outline only]. If there's anything people want to see in the writeup, including admission essays, please ask. Ashbringer has died! He was a Master Yllish Commoner Skindancer. Kas was elevated to Master Physicker! No one was brought on the Horns! Not bothering with votes. The Students have won! Player List Spoiler Matrim's Dice - expelled Skindancer Kasimir Student The Known Novel - expelled Student Steeldancer - Skindancer JNV - insane Student Wonko the Sane - formerly insane Student Archer Student Drake Marshall - formerly insane Student Ashbringer - Skindancer TJ - expelled Skindancer Araris Valerian - expelled Student Szeth Pancakes - Student Stink Student Sart Student Spreadsheet: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1wsES9nQG77ekepIFCWK_7k63NOtMd_hkgr_0LH53DGI/edit#gid=1427977362 Skindancer Doc: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1EqpZkH-ltEkKjFyawWnsg9aJvZgsZOStn-MvDX5pS5E/edit Spec Doc: https://docs.google.com/document/d/16E-1uU4yzIJUVz848VwndQR31JYcPG5RSUmFxI7jvNI/edit?pli=1 [Araris + Velocity save TKN from streets, go to buy an assassin. TJ blocks entrance, Mat ‘saves’ them, goes with. Sorchae identifies skindancer presence, offers discount for identifying them. Group argues, Mat revealed evil, saved by TJ right before death. Two run away, TKN uses wind to boost Sorchae into H&4. meet up with Volatile, Inesta. ] The Mahael-uret currently incarnated as Master Issal fell back on his bed in the Horse & Four and groaned, a human expression of frustration he’d grown quite accustomed to. <And you'll keep hearing it,> Issal responded in his head. Becoming Master Alchemist was supposed to have fixed everything. With his authority in the University unassailable, he should have had the time to expel every single student who disrupted his plans and bone-tar those who failed to cooperate. <Killing students will definitely make you seem less suspicious.> <I won’t need to avoid suspicion if there’s nobody to suspect.> Instead, he’d found himself hounded by Jincs. The so-called ‘Master Archivist’ had canceled all of their classes, citing Alys’s barricading of the Archives, and instead spent all their time in the Alchemy laboratories ‘explaining’ basic facts about Fae to him as if he was a small human child. “Did you know that the Fae Realm and the Fae people are both called Fae?” “Did you know that Fae can’t bear the touch of iron?” “Did you know that the Sithe hunted Skindancers to extinction?” With every ‘fact’, Master Issal had just sat there and smiled through clenched teeth, pretending to be a dumb human who knew nothing about Fae. His resident dumb human was no help. <They’re taunting you with the massacre of your people. You should pour acid down their throat.> Master Issal had nothing to fear from the students, but if he assaulted another Master, or ‘accidentally’ blew them up with bone-tar, the other Masters would intervene, and he didn’t fancy his chances against the remaining seven of them. He would just have to grin and bear it until his three, no two, after that fool Steel had gotten too attached to his human host, which he would never do even though Issal was the only person he could talk to these days without feeling fruitless rage, and abandoned them to go get killed in the streets, could do something. <Like give yourselves up.> For now, all he could do was lie in this very nice bed in a top-story room protected by Sygaldry that looked impressive and guarded by that meddlesome Head of Security and her failed Alchemist companion? employer? wife? who’d thought he and his compatriots would just give themselves up the moment they were asked. <Just think, you could be inhabiting any body you want instead of stealing mine.> “Giving up is sounding pretty good right now,” was his last thought before he heard his unbreakable window shatter above and behind him. He sat up just in time to see an arrow angle downwards into his right calf. Master Issal’s thoughts of “how did that arrow break through the window” and “how could someone shoot down into a upper-story window when there’s no surrounding vantage points” were interrupted when he felt the corruptive touch of holly sink into his flesh. Not just an arrow made of holly, but infused with the Name of holly. Only one group used weapons like that. <Hah. You're dead.> <So are you!> <Better dead than under your control.> Master Issal panicked. He’d prepared contingency plans, of course he had, even though he’d been counting on possessing Alchemical creations he hadn’t had the chance to complete because Jincs was always watching him, but all those months of preparation flew out of his head at the ancient, instinctive terror that pierced all the way to his true body. The Sithe had come to murder him as they’d murdered all of his people that they could find. <You’re the only one they should have killed.> He rolled out of bed as quickly as he could, trying to run, but the arrow in his calf had sliced a tendon and he couldn’t put his weight on it. He fell to the ground as Issal screamed as loudly as he could in his head. Snarling, he took full control of this pathetic human body and commanded it to ignore its pain and weakness, standing up unsteadily just in time to hear another sound of shattering glass as the Sithe sailed down through the window feet first somehow and danced around the liquid tenaculum he hurled at her to put an arrow through his right wrist. The remaining tenaculum dropped and splattered across the floor, already hardening to a consistency like the broken glass that covered the floor. The Sithe smirked, lip drawn up to reveal a single sharpened canine, and Master Issal decided he wasn’t going to turn and run and get an arrow in the back for his trouble. <Why not? It'll be quick.> With his right hand completely unresponsive, he used his left to grab the firestop that was supposed to be his failsafe when using bonetar and dropped in on the ground. Just before the third arrow smashed through his left wrist, he managed to smash a beaker of water onto the firestop. He barely had time to wonder why he wasn’t dead yet, was this Sithe intent on torturing her prey as much as possible before killing him? <please no> before the firestop went volatile, sending shards of hardened tenaculum flying everywhere like shrapnel as the room erupted in flames. Heedless of the hundreds of lacerations he suffered, it was just pain and pain could be ignored since this body was just temporary, never mind Issal trying to distract him with agonizing cries, took the chance to run and bolted through the door. He’d only just reached the emergency fire escape, added to the rebuilt H&4 after it had been burned down last time, when there was a much louder detonation. The fire must have reached Inesta and Volatile’s room. The Alchemist might be enamored with living transmutations now, but her first love, <insomuch as she feels such an emotion,> was explosives. Whatever explosives she’d been keeping in her room must have been set off by the fire, and just as Master Issal was thinking this, there was a second explosion and he was thrown off the fire escape to the ground below. He blacked out for a second when he hit the ground and took inventory of his body when he came back to consciousness. Vital organs, exposed. Legs, broken. Hands, disabled. Neck, sprained. Ears, deafened. Blood, way too little. Issal's body wasn’t going to make it. He needed to find a new body before that Sithe came back and ignore the tinge of regret he felt at leaving Issal to die. His senses scanned out, searching for the distinctive iron-and-fire scent of humans, and found almost nothing. Where was everyone? <They must have been evacuated. We'll die together.> Master Issal despaired, but then caught the hint of human scent. Faint, but enough hope for the desperate. With his teeth, he ripped the arrows out of his wrists, ruining the tendons more but Issal was already doomed and jumping out was impossible with holly arrows in his body. Pinching his forearms together, he wrenched the arrow out of his calf and escaped from Issal’s body as a roiling black shadowy sphere, Master Issal, or no, it wasn't Master or Issal anymore, right? flew to an unmoving body partially buried under rubble. Still alive, no observable fatal injuries, they would have to do. The black sphere took a new host. The first noticeable fact about the new host was that it had no mind. Not just asleep or unconscious, no thoughts happening at all. It didn't seem to be dead, there was still a heartbeat and breathing, but the brain activity was so sporadic and random it was like it had never developed, bizarre for a body that had reached physical maturity. The only signal coming through was an intense pain, which was shut off immediately. There would be time for that later. There were other peculiarities about this host's physiology and physical capabilities, but Issal, keeping that name since this host clearly didn't have one, didn't have the chance to assess them. There was barely enough time to activate the remaining senses using what Issal remembered from previous hosts when some sort of large bird, or reptile, with wickedly sharp claws and teeth, rushed into the scene far faster than a human could run, staring at Issal with a hungry look in her eyes. This new body had no Alchemy supplies, nor could it run faster than this creature, and Issal didn't fancy fighting her. The only option left was possessing her, distasteful but even an animal had more identity than this body. Issal tried to become the black sphere again and failed, tiny sigils etched invisibly in the skin lighting up in a pattern that sent burning pain and the sensation of holly into Issal’s true body. Just as Issal was trying to remember how to make a body move without instinct as a guide, a reptilian hiss echoed through the ruined inn and the creature retreated towards five figures coming into view. From the ground, Issal saw the horse first, a sickeningly familiar breed that served as the steeds for the Sithe. No Sithe rode this horse; instead, Issal recognized Inesta and the expelled students Aralor and Cavothee. Trailing behind them was Volatile, her goat legs permitting powerful leaps forward, but her hands, still needing to be human enough to handle Alchemy equipment, not up to the task of running on all fours. She was the one calling out to evidently another reptile with her serpentine hisses, but the creature ran instead to the two students, who had dismounted. Cavothee floated a piece of meat through the air, which was greedily devoured. Right, Wind. That must be how the Sithe flew through the window. On cue, a shadow dropped from overhead, a cold blade dug into Issal’s throat, and a menacing whisper announced, "I was paid to take you alive, but I'd be ecstatic if you resisted." "Sorchae!" Inesta yelled. "Stop threatening the Skindancer and help save Issal!" "Oh, but I am, dear Nessie," Sorchae purred. Then she slit Issal’s throat and began collecting the blood that came pouring out, slowly since it was flowing against gravity, in an empty flask she must have salvaged from the inn before it exploded. Shocked, terrified, and barely able to move, Issal made no attempts to resist as Sorchae filled the flask and then sewed up the wound with holly before it became fatal. Inesta rode over to the original Issal and confirmed he was still alive, if barely, and began providing emergency medical care as Volatile ran to grab the flask of blood and rushed over to Issal’s dying form. Living Issal didn't see the point, didn't see the point of anything. Inesta wanted them both to live, for some reason, but those injuries were too severe to survive and there was no way a Sithe could simply be paid not to kill a Mahael-uret. These fatalistic musings were disrupted by a sudden mental tug towards the fallen Issal and a drastic sapping of energy. Issal turned to see Volatile administering the vial of blood to replace what had been lost. Ah, of course. Volatile was an Alchemist, but she dabbled heavily in Sympathy, especially with blood bindings. Come along, little Mahael-uret, Sorchae said, assisting with movement. “This procedure is more effective if you're closer.” Issal followed Sorchae willingly, gradually remembering how to walk. The drain on energy intensified with every step, along with the pain of injuries recently sustained, quickly shut off. Surely, there was no point letting what was once a perfectly good host die. Issal was already experiencing the yawning emptiness of being alone in one's head and couldn't help but miss Issal’s voice, hateful as it had been, and for good reason. Inesta began yelling at Sorchae as she approached. "You weren't supposed to mutilate him! You were paid for bare minimum harm needed to make the Skindancer jump bodies." "You can't make a causal relationship between my actions and that human's injuries," Sorchae said in an apologetic tone that rang false with her words, and with her lips curved up in a smile on one side revealing her sharpened teeth. "Perhaps they happened some other way." "I can see the arrow wounds in his wrists and right calf," Volatile observed, flicking her ears, "and I can smell your scent on the arrows that made them." “What good senses you have, sweet Volatile,” Sorchae smiled, showing off all her canines. Volatile opened her mouth enough to reveal her serpent fangs and hissed, lion claws unsheathing. "Volatile, don’t engage with her, she's playing with you,” Inesta chided. “And don't think I’ll forget it was your explosives that destroyed the inn when Sorchae misstepped." Turning to Sorchae, she continued speaking. "You won’t accomplish anything by flirting with her. If we get Issal to Medica in time to save his life, I'll still consider our bargain fulfilled." "Not yet." Sorchae reached into her pocket and cast 21 silver Talents onto the street. "Mortal money is dross to me. You know my price. How about this intriguing creature of yours? Will you permit me to hunt her? Always fascinating to see what innovations humans dream up. Though, she can barely be said to be human anymore." "I'm not human," Volatile offered. "That won't be necessary. She is not mine, but she is useful to have around." Sorchae laughed. "So afraid I might break her? Very well. How about one of your students? Would any of them stand a chance against me?" "I am a bodyguard," Inesta said harshly. "I will not expose those in my care to harm when I can prevent it." "Except for that time you were so distracted by me, my horse stomped your client to death,” Sorchae teased. “No, but I'm delighted Nessie! You've already survived my attentions twice, more than any mortal save those who became the Chandrian. Now, you willingly challenge me a third time! I knew you'd come to enjoy the hunt. You know the rules. I'll give you until nightfall tonight to run, then I'll track you down. If you survive until the third nightfall, you win!" You'll see how much I enjoy it when I strike you down day one for failing to leave well enough alone." Sorchae laughed with genuine mirth this time. "Wonderful! You're so much fun for a mortal. One more thing. I hear dear Cae-Cae's little girl is attending your University. How is she doing? I should like to meet her." "If you have questions about Elena's academic career, you should ask Master Namer Herkimer," Volatile cut in, almost done with her stabilization efforts. "His office is right next to the Medica, you can't miss it." "If you wish to see Elena, I can ask her if she wants one after we complete our bargain," Inesta offered. "You would go unarmed, and be supervised by me." "Do you really think I'd hurt someone so precious to dear Cae-Cae and darling Fiffy? I haven't even killed Elena's human father after all these years. If you survive and get me a meeting with Elena that proves she's being treated well here, I'll hunt down those other Mahael-uret for this project of yours, free of charge. If not, I shall do as I see fit." "Issal’s safe to move," Volatile announced, before Inesta could reply, ending the discussion. Sorchae leapt up onto her horse with a single bound. Inesta, carrying Issal with both arms, allowed Sorchae to hoist her up to the horse in front of her and steady her by wrapping arms around her waist. Issal watched them go, feeling a sense of loss but also a strange hope. If Issal survived, what would that mean? Volatile saw fit to answer those questions, speaking as if Issal was still her student in an Alchemy lecture hall. “Essal, you and all your companions refused to participate in Project Simulacra, but between you and Issal, at least one of you has the skills of a Master Alchemist. It would be a senseless waste to let Sorchae kill either of you. Since you did not make a request and details of your capabilities are unknown, I provided you with a human body. You may be feeling intense pain, drowsiness, dizziness, and weakness in your body. This is the result of a light dose of my venom and a Sympathetic binding tying your life and your blood to Issal’s.” Essal? Issal, Essal? supposed that if Issal survived it would be confusing to have two people with the same name. Essal was good enough for now. The claim of being given a human body was notable. Something was off about this host, something more than venom and Sympathy. Volatile continued. “Since the collaborative aspect of Project Simulacra was shut down after you showed no interest, this body was created with personal resources, a rush job worked on largely after you assumed the position of Master Alchemist. It was grown from a mix of blood contributed from Inesta and what little remains of my human parts. Using my blood to create a new entity is abhorrent, but Inesta refused a duplicate of herself, and this is not as bad as if we’d had children.” Essal had always focused more on Philosopher’s Stone research, but had heard enough about Volatile’s areas of interest to guess where this was going. “I’m chimera?” The words came out more quickly as the mechanisms of speech were remembered. “You made a complete fusion. How did it grow so quickly?” “Yes, the blood was mixed using an alchemical complex treated with fixation, resulting in a host most similar to fraternal twins merged in one body. Fascinating. Should you cooperate enough to be permitted a different body, I’ll have to give this one to Physicking for dissection to observe its internal physiology. I don’t believe this is the same result as with non-Alchemical children.” “Anyway, it grew rapidly via Sympathetic bindings to Inesta and I. I can explain the Alchemy, Sympathy, and general maintenance requirements of that body’s physical functions in more detail later, but for now I’ll just say that this required us to eat far more food than is normally required for functionality, making this procedure non-viable as a method of growing animal meat for consumption, and horribly inefficient for the purposes of producing human body parts for medical use. Rapid growth ensured this body never could have become a properly living human even if stopped by the infancy stage, but it is possible that the chimerical aspect without accelerated growth could produce viable humans.” Well that explained why this body didn’t have any instincts or memories or personality. Essal was well acquainted with Volatile’s tendency to run a topic down every available offshoot for hours on end, but wanted her to get to the point as the effects of venom and Sympathy were taking a toll despite blocking off as many sensations as possible. “What does this have to do with me? If you’re not going to kill me, can I get to Medica before this body drops dead?” Volatile blinked rapidly and swished her serpentine tail as if she’d forgotten that Essal’s body was in poor condition. “Of course. I will escort you to Medica. You should be able to walk. I advise you not to run or fight. If you cannot walk, I will paralyze you before carrying you.” Essal began walking slowly, getting a feel for how these muscles worked. Volatile took this as agreement. “In his admissions letter, Issal mentioned wanting to create a Philosopher’s Stone, one that could do more than grant immortality and turn lead to gold. It is possible you already had possession of him at this point, but since his was one of hundreds of submissions to the Alchemy department from all across the Four Corners, it seems more likely that you did not possess him until after he was accepted and began traveling towards the University. While I cannot imagine how the last ten months may have affected him, I must assume that creation of a Philosopher’s Stone is his most important goal. Should he survive and wish your help with this task, you will assist him. If he dies and you survive the Sympathetic backlash, I will find other Alchemical research for you to pursue.” “You’d trust me in an Alchemy lab?” “I do not know what you hoped to achieve by causing chaos in the University, so I cannot trust that you would be satisfied with free reign to pursue Alchemy with Issal, or perhaps without him. However, you are talented enough that I must make an effort to steer you towards a path of productive research. The successful handling of Kevan and Elena’s entry into the University has provided a model for your readmittance, though you will have stricter safeguards. I will oversee your schedule and at least one El’the or myself will monitor all your lab time. Master Sympathist will bind your life to another, Issal ideally, far more securely than I have. Our new Master Linguist has agreed to verify your compliance. Other measures are being taken that I won’t tell you about, though I will say that you will not have to interact with Master Jincs. Your companions will be offered similar deals with their respective Masters, assuming Sorchae is able to capture them. I'm sure they can find something to do. ” Access to an Alchemy lab again, that was tempting. Essal was already starting to forget the original objective. With Alchemy, all the limitations of being Mahael-uret could be removed, especially if Issal’s Philosopher’s Stone aspirations came to fruition. All that would be needed was to agree to this deal now and fool a bunch of Masters afterwards, easy enough with ten months of experience. Even working with Issal again, as if he’d agree, seemed comforting. “I accept.” “Excellent. The remainder of this term has been called off in order to have a graduation and rearrange the departments and scheduling to accommodate for all the disruptions of this year. You will begin the new year as one of my E’lir. Only Issal and the other Masters will be told that you were once known as Master Issal. You may wish to devise a new name, age, gender, personal history, family relations, all the details other students will expect a human to have, which must be included in your admissions paperwork for the new term. You may ask for assistance in this matter from anyone who knows your identity. “I can pass for human a lot better than you can. I'll just be your child." “Absolutely not. Nobody should have a clear memory of what I used to look like since I always wore multiple layers of concealing clothes to cover as much skin as possible. You do look something like Inesta though. Her estranged mother remarried after she began mercenary work. If people notice the resemblance, you are her half-sibling from that marriage. You should work out the details with her if necessary." Volatile noticed Essal had stopped moving and observed her surroundings. "Here we are at the Medica. El’the Kevan, no Master Kevan I see, is available to treat you. I leave you in his care. You may tell him anything you wish, including that my venom is neutralized by turmeric root. I hope to see you in my labs next term.” The Name of the Wind roared in Elena Resterford's head, lifting her feet off the ground without conscious thought. She'd been using Wind almost constantly since Master Herkimer had permitted her to take classes again once the new term began. She replayed the memory in her head as she floated through the graduation hall, watching Master Drake hand out honorary degrees to Aralor, Cavothee, and some sort of predatory reptile named Velocity, in the fields of Arithmetics, Naming, and Linguistics. Seven days ago, Master Herkimer called her into his office with a Wind-powered note. She'd arrived to see a Sithe woman holding a silver dagger to his still-bleeding throat, smiling at her despite the iron encasing her legs that must be causing her excruciating pain. "Hello, niece," she said. "Your Aunt Sorchae has convinced this nice man to give you the chance to prove your capacity in Naming." Master Herkimer muttered something, but his lips were sewn shut with holly and Elena couldn’t make out his meaning. She'd only heard mentions of her mother once being close to a Sorchae, and her introducing herself with only one name meant she was banished, but those daggers and bow meant that Sorchae could someday regain her place as a Rider of the Dawning Sithe like Elena's mother Caelyriel. She Named Wind and Sorchae's other dagger leapt from its sheath and sliced through the restraining vines. "Release her!" she demanded. Master Herkimer coughed and sputtered, eying the dagger held at his throat and the one hovering in the air pointing at him. The former blade retreated enough for him to speak comfortably, and he Named Blood to heal his injuries and clean his clothes before replying. "This demon assaulted me without provocation when I told her you had been removed from classes due to insanity. She claims a bargain with our Head of Security, but not even Inesta would deal with this creature." She Named Wind again and dust began whipping up and around Master Herkimer's head. While he was distracted calling on Wind to protect himself, Elena pushed the dagger still under her control up against his heart. "Your predecessor died fighting the Fae. Surely you are not so foolish as to make the mistake of dying from insulting one. Release her, and acknowledge my ability in Naming." Master Herkimer glanced around wildly, as if searching for someone he could blame for this. Finally he Named Iron and freed Sorchae's legs. She collapsed to the ground and laid down, wincing. "Fine," he said. "I know you people can't lie or break bargains. You only know one Name, but you wield it with more precision than someone driven mad could have. I'll teach you if you both swear to never attack me again and never let this woman near me again." He called Iron and the restraints that had been encasing Sorchae's legs wrapped around the floating dagger and dragged it away from his heart. Elena swore this oath readily, secure in her ability to both lie and break bargains. Sorchae was not so cooperative. She had lifted her legs off the ground in a headstone and had an arrow drawn in her bow aimed for Master Herkimer's throat. "I shall not promise you anything, human. Your Mastery of Naming, your tactical knowledge, your attitude, fall far short of the human you call the Necromancer. Were you not the simplest option to teach my niece in a setting where she could have peers, you would have died before you could speak a single Name. Should I hear that you have further impeded her progress, I shall kill you and provide her with a suitable replacement." "Just get out!" Master Herkimer yelled. "Both of you! I'll teach Elena as best I can." Sorchae relaxed her bow and fell back to the ground. Master Herkimer released the dagger and Elena grabbed it with Wind and offered it to Sorchae, but she refused. "Keep it, as a gift for completing your first year of University. Could you levitate me off the ground a bit? That much iron for so long still weakens me." Elena had never tried to lift something so heavy with Wind, but as soon as she called upon it she heard Sorchae do the same, floating up a few centimeters off the ground and propelling herself forwards. “Crazy Sithe,” she heard him mutter as they left, the Wind carrying his words to her. “No wonder they call you demons.” Elena resolved to seek retribution for that later. Right now, she had an Aunt to question. "Did you know my father?" Elena asked once they had left Master Herkimer's office. Sorchae laughed. "Briefly! Cae-Cae had brought other humans back with her before to play with, so when she said this one was special, I wanted him to prove himself worthy of her. He accepted my challenge to a grand hunt; we'd start on opposite ends of a patch of woods and use any resource we could find to track the other down and kill them. If he fought well enough, I'd spare him until Cae-Cae got bored of him." "Did he?" "Oh, he did. 'Necromancer' is underselling it, he made the entire woods his weapon. Ivana and I spent a whole span barely sleeping as we fought our way through armies of bone, wood, stone, water, any material that could be animated with Naming and directed to kill. At the end of it I found him standing with Cae-Cae right at the edge of the woods where he'd started. Before I could say anything, or take a shot at the Necromancer, she rode up to me and told me that she didn't care about his skill with Naming, but about him as a person. I didn’t believe her, and despite knowing her predilections, I still can't understand what she could possibly see in a human man besides a toy to play with until he broke. I said as much to her and accused him of controlling her, and she slapped me off Ivana in one blow. When I refused to accept that she wanted to marry him and have children and have a hand in raising them personally, she banished me until I would agree never to harm him or any of his descendants." Elena looked at her inquisitively. Since Sorchae was clearly still banished, she couldn't have made such an oath. Sorchae saw her expression. "No, I still want to kill the Necromancer, but you're safe for lots of reasons. I only kill mortals as part of bargains, I still love your mother and don't want to hurt her, I promised Nessie I wouldn't harm any of her students, and you helped me out back there. I refused to give the oath Cae-Cae asked of me because I wanted to travel the mortal world to see if I could find anyone worth caring about as a person." "Have you found anyone? Nessie, is that Inesta?" "Nessie, yes. She’s glorious, the best human I’ve found in the 25 years I've been banished, but I still don’t understand Cae-Cae’s feelings. To me, Nessie is an excellent plaything, and I dearly want to see how far I can push her before she breaks, and what heights she might achieve before she does. Unlike with the Necromancer, it would be disappointing if she died or lost the traits I admire, but that would just mean I have to find another woman. Ah, but I didn’t want to meet you to discuss myself. How have you been doing? Have you found any peers worth studying with?" Elena hesitated. She didn’t know how to answer that question yet. "Since you are in my debt, make a deal with me, like my mother asked of you,” she requested instead. “I want you to guarantee the safety of my human companions." "I'm an Assassin, not a bodyguard. I don't protect people, but I’ve already promised Nessie not to harm any students." She frowned. "Or did you mean someone you’d want to bring home after you graduated? Did you have someone in mind? You're barely more than a child even by human standards. I’ll grant one human a permanent exemption from killing them, but you don’t have to name them now." It was too early to make that decision. “Wait until graduation. I might have an answer for you then.” “Of course. I’m sticking around for awhile; I haven’t fulfilled my bargain with Nessie yet. One of those Mahael-uret is an Artificer, making capturing him and his companion tricky.” They were passing by the Medica now, and just as they were leaving it behind, Sarenrae burst out. She was wearing only a single glove and wielding a scalpel in her other hand. "Elena! I knew I heard your voice. Who's-" She broke off, seeing that Sorchae was aiming an arrow at her. "Aunt, wait! She's a friend." “Is this your one exemption?” Sorchae asked. “No, but just listen to her. She won’t hurt me.” “Woah!” Sarenrae exclaimed, lifting both hands above her head. “I’m not a Skindancer and I don’t mean to harm either of you.” Sorchae slowly lowered her bow, and Sarenrae took the opportunity to speak. "I'm a Physicker, but I knew Kevan was Bob's favorite so I switched to Naming, and look!" She poked her ungloved hand with the scalpel hard enough for a drop of blood to emerge. Then she spoke the Name of Blood and the drop receded into her skin, the tiny wound sealing up. "Incredible,” Elena observed. “You learned a Name without instruction or background in Naming. I'll be glad to see you in next year's classes." "You got reinstated? Great! I’m gonna be Master Namer, so I'll have to catch up before next term starts. I only learned this Name because my Physicking background gave me an understanding of how blood works. I don’t know where to start with the other Names. Can we study together? I'm busy in the Medica but I can make time.” "Of course. I'd be happy to train together in the Medica. We'll seal the deal in Wind and Blood." Elena drew a drop of blood with her new dagger and gusted it over to Sarenrae, who objected. “Uh, this is a sterilized scalpel. If that’s not clean, you’ll need to come to Medica.” “Never fear, this blade was cleaned in Fire since last it bathed in blood,” Elena reassured her. “Ookay then!” Sarenrae Named Blood again and a drop of her blood pooled out from the recently sealed puncture to mix with Elena’s blood on her gloved hand. “Come by the Medica in two hours when I’m done with my shift.” “I look forward to it,” Elena said, waving Sarenrae goodbye. Once she left, Elena turned back to Sorchae. “Farewell. I’ll see you at graduation. Talk to Inesta. I want to see you reunited with Mother when Aunt Fiffy takes me to Fae next month.” “Hah!” Sorchae laughed, canines flashing. ‘I’d love to see Cae-Cae and Fiffy again. Good luck with graduation and studying.” She let go of Wind, and her now-functional legs carried her away from Elena. Master Physicker, Acting Master Physicker Kevan reminded himself, only while Bob was on sabbatical, wasn’t enjoying the graduation ceremony from this side of the stage. He’d ordered a Medica holiday for every patient fit to travel and not infectious at the advice of some senior El’the after much agonizing back-and-forth reconsiderations in the span since he’d assumed the duties of Master, and even as the MC read off student’s names he couldn’t help but glance around the admissions hall at the patients that should have been recovering. Owyn was jumping up and down, screaming and hollering his support for the graduates even with half his face and all the way down to his chest were covered in burn scars from the explosives he’d stolen from the Alchemy labs. He’d tried to set them off the previous night for some ‘pre-celebration’, not realizing they needed practiced Alar to function properly. Renlin was supposed to be supervising him to make sure he didn’t shift the bandages too much, but was distracted heckling the oldest graduates who’d spent the longest at the University. That wasn’t his concern now, he couldn’t be Kevan, Owyn’s friend who cared about his well-being or Physicker Kevan who treated his injuries, no, right now he had to be Master Physicker Kevan who handed out certificates to students who’d spent years working in the Medica for less accolades than he’d somehow acquired. He kept looking for resentment, anger, disappointment, some indication that these graduates thought they should be where he was standing, but there was only Idris, cashing out of the University as an El’the. “The Medica is always filled to capacity, and our relationship with Imre has never been better. Bob approved my plan to work with Imre’s government to open a new branch of the Medica right there in town, and I’m going to run it once it’s open.” Kevan could only gape at her for a second. “The Physickers, where will they come from?” he managed eventually. “We’re already critically understaffed.” She chuckled, the same way she had when he was just starting out in the Medica as a Re’lar. “They’ll be beating down your door at the start of next term. The Arcane fields, Sympathy, Alchemy, Artificery, Naming? They contributed almost nothing to fending off the Skindancer attack. It was the main University subjects that did that. Everyone with a scrap of medical ambition will want to study under the student who made Master so quickly. Just be sure to send some of them my way once you’ve trained them up.” She turned to leave. “Oh, and invite me to the party tonight!” she called out over her shoulder. Kevan was unaware of a party, but couldn’t think about that with his head swimming with the idea of a glut of new students requesting admission to Physicking just so they could study under him. He was no teacher, had learned Physicking through careful study and long hours of experience but had never had to instruct others. He would have gillers for the introductory classes, but what could he hope to teach the advanced students that they didn’t already know from spending far more time at the University than he had? He distracted himself from these thoughts by looking around the hall again. Idris’s mention of Skindancers had reminded him, and yes, there were Issal and Essal, the latter holding the back of the former’s wheelchair. Issal looked deeply uncomfortable, but it was hard to tell how much of that was his injuries and how much it was Essal’s presence. Essal had spent a lot of time in the Medica over the last span, allegedly to help Issal heal from the truly grievous injuries he’d sustained, but keeping Kevan constantly on edge waiting for some act of sabotage, some desire to hurt the patients under his care. He hadn’t noticed anything yet, but who knew what kind of Alchemical poisons Essal could have smuggled in that he wouldn’t be able to detect until it was too late. He was snapped out of his paranoia when the line was broken up by a Cealdish student he vaguely recognized but he was holding a certificate for achieving the rank of El’the in Artificery with no Physicking elevations at all. “Staven, from Introductory Rhetoric and Logic,” he introduced himself, and Kevan remembered the student who’d been so confident yet so stubborn when a logical argument failed to conform to his worldview. “I know you’re the Master Physicker, but I want you to know that I’m grateful for your tutelage in R&L. I got my Re’lar level in that field, and I’d never have gotten that far without your help. Made me a better Artificer to have a background in logic. If you ever need anything built, just ask me!” Kevan couldn’t imagine anything he wanted to build, still had an instinctive distrust of Artificery even though he knew that was his own disinterest and shortcomings in the field and other Artificers must make devices that functioned properly. He was about to dismiss Staven so the line could keep moving when he remembered something. “Go find Idris. El’the Physicker, just graduated. She’s building a new Medica in Imre.” “Hah! That Master title didn’t change you,” Staven exclaimed before walking away, hopefully to find Idris. The line had gotten very backed up during that conversation and Kevan searched for a distraction from the seemingly endless signatures and smiles and handshakes. There was Inesta, the middle three fingers of her right hand severed at the base, on crutches from a broken leg, and assorted surgical scars left unbandaged from where arrows had been left unremoved for so long before Volatile had managed to drag her into the Medica that holly had begun to grow inside her body. It had been a nightmare for his Re'lar to remove all that, and he couldn’t be sure they’d succeeded. Inesta was still trying to run security even though she wouldn’t be able to fight properly, shaking off suggestions from Sorchae on one side telling her that she simply had to return with her to the Dawning Sithe as her bride and Volatile on the other telling her that having suffered such severe injuries made this a perfect time to substitute parts of her body with Alchemical replacements. Inesta made no attempts to leave, so Kevan figured none of that was his problem, even though Volatile had always been disconcerting and Sorchae from brief experience was a terror, having led her horse up to Medica seven days ago, threads of holly sewn through her body, and demanded he treat her for snakebite and plum bob poisoning. Kevan had desperately wanted to argue that he wasn’t a veterinarian and the Medica wasn’t a stable and there already weren’t enough Physickers to treat all the human patients, but it was hard to deny a Sithe anything, especially one who’d already assaulted two Masters in the past few days and looked ready to make that three. He reached the end of the line without realizing it, still considering what he could possibly do with Sorchae’s offer to spend one day dusk to dusk assassinating anyone of his choosing, and looked up to see two more figures approaching. His heart leapt to see Bob escorting Jenali, who was holding a piece of paper in their hand. “Bob! You’re back from sabbatical already? Are they-” He cut off as Bob shook his head. “I’m still taking the next school year off. I just had to come here to see graduation, and talk to you one more time before next term starts. Jenali here hasn’t recovered fully, but they wanted to give you this. They were quite insistent actually. Wouldn’t let me leave the Crockery without them.” Jenali walked right up to Kevan without assistance and shoved the paper into his hands. “For my faithful warlock Kevan.” He took the paper and flipped it over. It was a graduation certificate like all the others he’d seen tonight, save that it listed his final rank as Master Physicker, and in the box where the Master’s signature went there was instead a chaotic whorl that hurt his eyes to look at too long. “Jenali, I, thank you.” He couldn’t get any other feelings out. “For my faithful warlock Kevan.” “That’s the only coherent thing they can say right now,” Bob said. It’s progress though. Under your supervision, I’m sure they’ll come back to sanity in no time. Happy graduation! You’ve earned it.” He waved to a nearby pair of E’lir, who arrived to take the unresisting Jenali back to the Crockery, their mission achieved. Bob stepped in closer to Kevan, lowering his voice. “I’m also here to talk to you. Don’t worry about your classes, just trust that your gillers and El’the know what they’re doing. The only way to get ahead in Physicking is learning from experience and knowing when not to trust it. Talk to the other Masters if you need help on the logistical side. You’ll make mistakes, but working on a patient is harder. You can’t always fix a person, but you can always fix an instructional error, eventually. You’ll make it through the next year. If it’s too much, I can take over, but if not, well you’ve got a certificate right there that says you’re qualified.” “Did you delay your sabbatical just to reassure me?” “No.” Bob grew more serious. “It’s about your personal life, and your friends. I know you’ve been neglecting them ever since I put you in charge during my absence and I have to tell you that won’t fix anything. You need to work things out with them before the term starts without cutting them out of your life. "I know I have to!” Kevan screamed. Bob motioned to move the conversation somewhere more private, but Kevan stayed where he was and lowered his voice back down again. “What could I possibly say? Treat me just the same, as if I can't alter your trajectory through the University at my whim?" "Alright, alright,” Bob reassured him. “First off, you’re not a dictator. You stand atop your field, but all the Masters work together to run the University, and that includes intervening if a Master rewards loyalty rather than skill, punishes disobedience rather than actual harm to the University." "Really.” Kevan began to pace, walking back and forth without looking Bob in the face. “Where was all this 'intervening' when Master Issal had the run of the school? Every single complaint about him being a Skindancer was ignored! Can you really tell me that if I start getting complaints like 'Master Kevan threatened to confine me to Medica indefinitely if I stop being his friend', or 'I keep getting passed up for promotion because I refuse to call Master Kevan by his first name and treat him like a peer', that anyone would stop me?" He looked up to see Bob flinch. His face suddenly seemed very old, old enough to retire permanently. He sighed. “Look. I’ve been where you’re standing. Next year is going to be hard for you. I was elevated to Master Physicker unexpectedly halfway through my eighth year when the previous Master got sick and died shortly afterwards. I had all the same questions you must have. ‘Why me?’, ‘What have I done to earn this power and responsibility?’, ‘How can I avoid hurting the people I care about?’” “I lost a lot of friends and peers in those days. Some tried to exploit their connection to me for favors, others started showing extreme deference to get on my good side, people I’d known and caused petty trouble with for years started cowering in fear whenever they saw me. I had to break up with the love of my life I’d been dating for years, and that, more than anything, is something I’ve never forgiven the previous Master for.” He took a deep breath and continued. “Despite that, I don’t regret being made Master before I thought myself ready. I've been able to teach hundreds and hundreds of students over the decades, who have been able to treat thousands upon thousands. I encourage my students to be my friends and be familiar with me so that they feel encouraged to challenge me when they think I'm wrong. That makes it easier to set and maintain the boundaries necessary between Master and student while improving our Physicking capacity and without sacrificing personal bonds." Bob saw that Kevan wasn't convinced and made one more argument. "Those friendships I make with my students don't just benefit them. A harsh and cruel Master like you describe will be unpopular with students, making them switch departments or drop out entirely. The Bursar’s office will notice if Physicking isn't bringing in enough tuition revenue. Tehlu knows I've had plenty of meetings with representatives from the Chancellor's office threatening to cut my funding if my enrollment kept lagging. A Master who hemorrhages students by abusing them would face consequences." Kevan heard Bob's words but they kept washing over him. He started raising his voice as if that would make sure Bob heard the words he'd been bottling up since his appointment to Acting Master Physicker. "That's not good enough. It’s not about the behavior of any individual Master. A system that relies on those in power willingly choosing restraint that gives no power for victims to escape and seek restitution is inherently abusive, no matter how well-intentioned and benevolent the authority figure is. Unofficial ways to mitigate the harm caused by cruel Masters does not lessen the fact that they were permitted to cause harm in the first place. Your students' right to complain, to challenge you, to make you reconsider, are all granted at your sufferance and can be taken away at any time because the University seeks to ensure the Masters have all the power and the students have none unless they have rich or noble families supporting them. If you or I choose to hurt our students, the University would protect our ability to do so. If you hadn't decided to break up with your love, the University wouldn't have made you. Not without a ruling from the Chancellor's office, and we both know how hard it is to get them to do anything on a student's behalf even with witnesses and evidence, and the Crockery ensures there won't be either of those if the Masters wish. This isn't something that can be fixed by the Masters or the administration. Students need to take power for themselves as a collective to ensure Masters are experts and educators, not authority figures. " Bob laughed slowly. "Heh. Heh. Heh. Glad to hear all that time in Rhetoric & Logic paid off. I already knew I wasn't what the University needed right now, and perhaps I never will be. Good luck in your endeavors." Master Kevan watched Bob walk away, looking like he'd never wield a scalpel again. A loud sobbing noise was coming from nearby, and he turned to see Jarvik crying, Valerra and Soren at his side. "Kevan, what did you say to him?" Kevan's thoughts fragmented, words dissipating in his head having lost the target of his anger. His friends had ignored his attempts to avoid them. How could he explain this without letting any of them get hurt? "We only heard part of that conversation," Valerra said, "but it was enough to know that you need our help." Kevan's mouth opened but no sound came out. He tried to run away, but he couldn’t move. Soren stepped directly into his path and tried to tap him on the shoulder, and his reactions came back in a panic. He shied away, shaking. “No! No! I can’t let you - I can’t make you -” “That’s it,” Valerra announced. “You’re not making any more decisions tonight. We are going to celebrate together and figure this out.” “All actions are reciprocal, remember?” Soren asked, reaching a hand out to Kevan. “We won’t let you hurt us unopposed. You cannot act on us without giving us a chance to act on you. Now, come along and feast, and make plans for the new term.” Owyn and Renlin had joined the group now, looking more serious than he’d ever seen them. He knew he couldn't keep his friends away any longer. Kevan took Soren's outstretched hand and allowed himself to be dragged towards a dining table now laden with food. Elena pulled herself out of her memories to see that the graduation ceremony was over and the celebration had begun. She glanced around the hall. Sarenrae was over talking to Cavothee and his friends Aralor and Velocity. Of course, someone who aspired to be Master Namer wouldn't miss the chance to confer with another Namer. Elena wished her the best, she’d be a far better Master Namer than Herkimer if she got strong enough in Naming, but Sarenrae wasn't who she wanted to talk to tonight. All that training in the Medica should have given her time to talk to Kevan, but the Master Physicker had been absorbed in his duties. What little time he spent outside the Medica or his office, he stayed in his room and refused to see anyone. Elena had to take this chance to have a conversation with him, even though she didn't know what she wanted to say. Their old discussions and agreements seemed so flimsy now. There was no longer any need to hunt Mahael-uret, and what use would a Master have for a study partner when he had so many new duties in a field she knew almost nothing about, even after she'd had Sarenrae explain a little during breaks. She'd know what to say when she was face to face with him, she decided. That was how it worked with Names. There was no such thing as partial knowledge in Naming, no capacity to assemble a Name piece by piece until you had a whole one. If she had a chance to talk to him as he was now, as a Master, she'd learn enough information that she could produce a whole conversation fully formed. The buzzing in her head was loud enough that she had to be close to understanding. She finally spotted Kevan with his back to her at one of the side tables, small and crowded. The woman sitting across from him said something Elena couldn’t make out even with Wind and he was laughing, throwing his head back so hard he would have tipped over had the man sitting next to him not grabbed him and pulled him close. Kevan leaned into his embrace, still laughing, and the buzzing in Elena’s head resolved into a symphony. The Name of Fire crackled into her mind like she’d never forgotten it as she realized that she couldn’t understand Kevan as an individual without understanding his connections with his friends and loved ones. The Wind buffeting her intensified, synchronizing with the flames that rose up around her as she called on Fire for the first time since the Mahael-uret had attacked her. Having yet failed to learn the Name of Blood despite Sarenrae picking up the Name of Wind, Elena had worried that she might be unable to learn new Names. The Fire comforting her like she belonged to it gave her the final boost of confidence she needed to fly over to Kevan’s table. The woman sitting across from him noticed her first. “Oh? Who’s this?” Another woman at the table who Elena recognized as Idris from her brief time in the Medica waved to her. “Hi Elena!” “Elena?” one of the men at the table asked, looking up. “Elena Resterford?” That wasn’t a good sign, but she answered “Yes,” flames orbiting her body. “Incredible!” howled the man sitting next to him. “Fastest Crockery breakout in school history!” A third man wrapped in bandages pulled out an old piece of blueprint paper that had the words Operation Daybreak written in big letters at the top. “Whaddya think of this? With your Naming and Valerra’s Alchemy, we can make this happen!” Elena hovered closer to get a better look. The schematics showed a detailed diagram of the Crockery being blown up with some sort of Alchemical explosive. Less detailed notes speculated that Names of Earth or Stone or Iron or even Amber would be needed to aid in the destruction, while Wind protected the Crockery’s inhabitants. “Let me see that.” Elena doused the flames around her hands and began making notes on the Crockery’s interior and composition that she’d learned from her brief internment there. “I’ll help you.” “Excellent,” said the woman across from Kas who must have been Valerra. “We’ll keep you, then. I’ll be working with you personally.” “Now, now, Valerra!” said the man still holding Kevan. “We have to make sure she’s on board all the way first.” “I’m sure our fine new companion won’t hesitate to help us weaken the Masters, Soren,” Valerra replied, gazing up at Elena. “You must have plenty of reasons to help us students take away their administrative and disciplinary power.” Elena quickly flipped through all her experiences with the Masters, including the one in front of her. “I’ll help you.” The table cheered. “Our first meeting is at the Eolian tonight,” Valerra explained. “We’ll see you there.” Kevan and Soren turned around to look at her for the first time, and Elena saw they were both smiling. She did as well. She didn’t have an answer for Sorchae, but she had the start of something greater. Edited August 23, 2023 by Devotary of Spontaneity 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Unknown Order he/him Posted August 19, 2023 Report Share Posted August 19, 2023 (edited) 1 hour ago, Devotary of Spontaneity said: Matrim's Dice - expelled Skindancer @Kasimir Is it too late to say I told you so? @Matrim's Dice, how much did you relay to Kas? I kept meaning to make him confirm you were, but was forgetting and running out of time. 1 hour ago, Devotary of Spontaneity said: If there's anything people want to see in the writeup, including admission essays, please ask. I'd love to see some of the other admissions essays, and definitely would like others to see mine. Edit: I am also glad to see that the code was frustrating for you. Btw, "Option B" was Bodyguard, and "Option A" was Assassin. So like the most obvious code ever. Edited August 19, 2023 by The Known Novel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mat he/him Posted August 19, 2023 Report Share Posted August 19, 2023 (edited) …Yeah, I was the most useless deepwolf in the history of ever Which was kind of fun. Kind of. @The Known Novel I relayed everything exactly the first two times, and then nothing after that. By the point you made the code I was far enough in and the game was far enough lost that I didn’t see a point in trying to mess with anything. But I fizzled out. @Ashbringer, @|TJ|, thanks for being great teammates! You guys stuck with it for a good long while. Pity we effectively were a three man team :P. Any admission anything would be cool to see in the writeup :thumbs-up: Thanks for running such a huge game, wilson, El, Devo. Edit: Devo looks like she had fun in the dead doc Quote Mat's sabotaging himself for future games here. Would loooove to know what this is referring to >> Edited August 19, 2023 by Matrim's Dice Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ashbringer he/him Posted August 19, 2023 Report Share Posted August 19, 2023 I just think it’s impressive that I managed to be Roleblocked sending in the Elim Sabotage three times before I got killed It was fun! But our team definitely got the short end of the stick… several times over. Glad Issal (and Essal) are still around, that could be fun. I never got to do my Openwolf RP… because I decided to spin an elaborate story about E!Archer instead… Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kasimir he/him Posted August 19, 2023 Report Share Posted August 19, 2023 (edited) 6 hours ago, The Known Novel said: @Kasimir Is it too late to say I told you so? I hit my 50k goal and never want to do that again, I'm happy enough Prefer my admission essay not be shown as there should be some mysteries left in this world >:P Curious that y'all felt the need to hit JNV/Wonko @Ashbringer et al, as Wilson clarified they'd've lost one ability (i.e. de facto no Name) and also no longer count to the Elim wincon, as they've already been insane even on escaping the Crockery. @|TJ| "Kas totally went into Artificery" Me, having literally RPed every single elevation of mine publicly... -.- I don't really think pushing me on E!Archer changed much as the plan whether it was E!Ash or E!Archer was the same, with the exception that I could've sat on both Ash and Archer in Wonko's Extreme Turtle plan and just trusted Village Imre assets to do what was necessary. I did exaggerate my nahlrout rampage as the whole reason for my being in Imre during the TKN exe cycle was to buy myself a gram, at which point I didn't mind being risky. Other than that: really liked writing Kevan's arc, enough that it was a character headspace I enjoyed getting into. I hard-method-acted at the start, meaning all my elevations were largely driven by Kevan's priorities. Since Kevan was anti-Arcanum, I refused to do any Arcanum subjects, which made things interesting. My writing got steadily worse after 50k because that was the point I engaged solving mode and also had to switch off the 50k to actual "I am just writing this for negative tuition and $ to buy assassins" mode. Not sure I'm really happy about that. Also, nice work from the Elims, y'all FUDed me really hard >> I'd say Village MVPs are some combination of: <Archer/Sart/TKN/Araris> - @Araris Valerian for his insane luck which allowed: TKN to win a 50% roll for Wind to succeed, Archer to keep shutting down Ash with Fae Lore, Archer and TKN to not be recalled, and Archer's shutting down TJ's attempted nahlrout on Araris. Not to mention beating Ash's 50% survival chance. Everytime there's a luck cascade like this, it's Araris. P.S. Made Wilson laugh when Araris was expelled and I said he was Village and Wilson was like "What why" and I said "There's no way in hell E!Araris is this unlucky." @Sart for those clutch blocks right when we needed them. TKN block was bad luck, but helped us clear Sart so that worked fine. Getting lashed and putting in the Naming EP as a back-up, thank you so much. @The Known Novel for the Wind @Archer for all the clutch scanning and Fae Lore, right on target. And thanks Drakebro and Wonko, fun plotting with you >:P Edited August 19, 2023 by Kasimir Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Archer he/him Posted August 19, 2023 Report Share Posted August 19, 2023 (edited) I made nine alignment scans and somehow I missed a skindancer?? (maybe because he bussed TJ so aggressively :P) And both Mat and TJ were evil - again? I'm skookth Quote Still hasn't read the 30 page rule document because honestly who has time for that* Can relate. But I had good results from blindly trusting the first person to volunteer! Quote I wasted two nat 20’s from my dice on this game. It could’ve gone towards my d&d campaign but noooo. They had to go towards JNV and Wonko breaking out. On the same turn. Wut. That was fortunate Quote I can submit it if need to, although on who… not sure. JNV or Archer? RIP Quote Just so y’all know, we didn’t get a sabotage order last turn lol Quote I’m not putting in a sabo this turn lul I will say, I was camping in the Horse & Four the entire game, so it probably wouldn't have worked anyway. You guys did well, given the circumstances. I'd have hated to be evil in this game. That was a writeup worth waiting for! Thanks for running this, GMs and underpaid intern GM. Edit: my essay can be shown, but what I really here for is those song submissions Edited August 19, 2023 by Archer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kasimir he/him Posted August 19, 2023 Report Share Posted August 19, 2023 (edited) Quote I actually don’t know why Kas thinks TJ couldn’t have started with a gram. Does he just think TJ’s drawing wasn’t good enough for that? Misread the rules - my thought at that time was it's either EP or an item, so naturally the fact TJ elevated T1M1 was prima facie evidence he didn't start with an item. I did realise after that, as I noted in one of the study group PMs. I just didn't bother correcting myself because I wanted to see how TJ responded to being immediately and confidently called out. Quote Nobody’s realized that Szeth was a mercenary kill. Huh. I'd assumed it was a sabotage in case Szeth bought anything, but was surprised Araris and Mat didn't get hit, which made me ? about Mat, hence did not loop him into last cycle planning. Araris's TJ shot still seemed intuitively Village to me. Quote Kas is going to get Master Physicker pretty soon and will also be able to roleblock Ash indefinitely. Yep. Cf. Wonko's Extreme Turtle plan (thank you, @Wonko the Sane, you had some pretty kayana but amazing schemes.) Quote Omen recognition is very powerful for an e’lir ability. Yeah….Kas' use of it hadn't occurred to me. That's definitely gonna have to be adjusted for a future run. 1. I had a nice, chill, RPful game until I hit 50k, thank you SDs, thank you @little wilson 2. She called me Aonar sarcastically, my job is done here Edited to add: Worth noting that Drake and I have considered a Banned Books/Omen Recognition swap - Omen Recognition goes to El'the, and Banned Books goes down to E'lir and scales, or swaps with School Records (Wilson mentioned this) so we have E'lir School Records -> Re'lar Banned Books -> Omen Recognition -> Fae Lore which is a bit more reasonable. Edited to add 2: Oh, yeah for the Elims - less a retaliatory Archer vote, more the sense that if Szeth was Village, then we go back to the missing kill. It either implicates the other Noble who could've been recalled, or suggests that Archer was pulling an E!Seeker scam. I didn't articulate my thoughts but that was what pushed me to the Archer vote when Szeth flipped. Edited August 19, 2023 by Kasimir Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JNV Posted August 19, 2023 Report Share Posted August 19, 2023 Thanks for featuring me in the writeup when my only contributons to this game were giong mad from the revelation getting an innocent person expelled and going mad again I had a pretty nice time even though my schemes to be Master Namer kind of immediatley died and honestly highlight of the game was reading Kevans narrative great stuff right there A plus 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kasimir he/him Posted August 19, 2023 Report Share Posted August 19, 2023 11 hours ago, The Known Novel said: @Kasimir Is it too late to say I told you so? So directly: no, it isn't 1 hour ago, JNV said: Thanks for featuring me in the writeup when my only contributons to this game were giong mad from the revelation getting an innocent person expelled and going mad again I had a pretty nice time even though my schemes to be Master Namer kind of immediatley died and honestly highlight of the game was reading Kevans narrative great stuff right there A plus ty just happy that I actually hit 50k, it's been a writing drought for years now and I was beginning to worry I'd lost the capacity to do so. Also haven't had very RPful games in a long while. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ashbringer he/him Posted August 19, 2023 Report Share Posted August 19, 2023 6 hours ago, Kasimir said: Curious that y'all felt the need to hit JNV/Wonko @Ashbringer et al, as Wilson clarified they'd've lost one ability (i.e. de facto no Name) and also no longer count to the Elim wincon, as they've already been insane even on escaping the Crockery. I was legitimately very confused on why you weren’t having Wonko do Naming things I had forgotten that that Ability Loss was a thing, and when I did remember I thought it meant you lost an Elevation and not one random action. Also it was clarified to us in-doc at some point that we would need to kill JNV and Wonko again because they were no longer Insane, really. (If Daybreak had gone through, maybe we wouldn’t have, but they both escaped naturally.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kasimir he/him Posted August 19, 2023 Report Share Posted August 19, 2023 3 minutes ago, Ashbringer said: I was legitimately very confused on why you weren’t having Wonko do Naming things I had forgotten that that Ability Loss was a thing, and when I did remember I thought it meant you lost an Elevation and not one random action. On paper, we were. That was the point of the lie to Mat about the double-boosted scan: I respected TKN's read enough to feel that Archer's identity as the Archivist should be need-to-know only. The idea was we had layers of security, sort of. I'd be the public face to draw the kill as I was at the H&F and had a gram, so could take a few hits. I would act as though Mat (lol) was the scanner or one of them and shield Mat (but not protect him.) Players more in the know like Sart (the RB on TKN ironically gave Archer strong V!Sart credences I agreed with) and Mat knew of the fact there was an Archives scan available, but we lied to them as well. Sart knew Archer was an Archivist, Mat only knew one existed. To both of them, we lied that the mass scan (this much was true) was a Special Thing that needed two Archivists and Wonko to line up Naming to boost it because ritual. The idea was to make Wonko a target as well, even to people in on that layer, to draw kills away from Archer. Wonko was very confused about my lying spree. 8 minutes ago, Ashbringer said: Also it was clarified to us in-doc at some point that we would need to kill JNV and Wonko again because they were no longer Insane, really. (If Daybreak had gone through, maybe we wouldn’t have, but they both escaped naturally.) Ah right. We were working off the Daybreak clarification and believed that JNV and Wonko didn't contribute to the Village numbers as they'd already been sabotaged, hence Wonko's yelling out who'd bought him a bodyguard. Turns out Daybreak escapees and regular escapees worked differently, RIP. It would probably have slightly changed my evaluation of the Village's predicament had I known - I still believe you guys bone-tarring the H&F or expelling Archer that cycle we nearly paranoia-voted him would've been effective losscons for us. Glad you caught the hammer play though I was trying not to say the S word in the thread in the hopes you wouldn't tenaculum me to stop it - I'd the wrong idea of how mutual RBs worked so didn't think I could stop you from RBing me and trying to hammer, but still sent in the Soothe religiously anyway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ashbringer he/him Posted August 19, 2023 Report Share Posted August 19, 2023 8 minutes ago, Kasimir said: Glad you caught the hammer play though I was trying not to say the S word in the thread in the hopes you wouldn't tenaculum me to stop it - I'd the wrong idea of how mutual RBs worked so didn't think I could stop you from RBing me and trying to hammer, but still sent in the Soothe religiously anyway. Yeah, that was the plan would have done it a turn sooner, but I spent half that turn frantically trying to nail down how RB interactions worked, learned that no, I would need Archer to get recalled anyway, and then also learned I would be working during rollover. So I just sent in a Sabotage and stuck with the lie. I think if you had roleblocked me as well, then I could have roleblocked the Soothe through the paradox. As the clarifications stood I could only roleblock Archer’s Banned Books, which didn’t exactly help me. At all. I was also heavily considering RPing terms of my surrender so we wouldn’t all have to theoretically go through a mess of Assassins, Grams, and Horse+Fours until I finally died or somehow killed everyone Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kasimir he/him Posted August 19, 2023 Report Share Posted August 19, 2023 3 minutes ago, Ashbringer said: I think if you had roleblocked me as well, then I could have roleblocked the Soothe through the paradox. As the clarifications stood I could only roleblock Archer’s Banned Books, which didn’t exactly help me. At all. I did, yes, just to be safe, but it didn't help - Archer's Fae Lore still took precedence. (That's what I clarified after the game because I was very confused about what had gone down.) 5 minutes ago, Ashbringer said: I was also heavily considering RPing terms of my surrender so we wouldn’t all have to theoretically go through a mess of Assassins, Grams, and Horse+Fours until I finally died or somehow killed everyone You know... The thing was, I have already been called for election security duty, and that's like twelve-hour insane shifts so I was telling everyone, "k from next week onwards, sorry, you're on your own, I'll just become an Ash-and-TJ RB bot and trust y'all to figure out how to solve them." So...I feel you in that world Ngl an RP-off would've been hilarious though. We never did manage to have Kevan and Issal interact. (Even if it made sense given they don't exactly cross fields.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ashbringer he/him Posted August 19, 2023 Report Share Posted August 19, 2023 1 hour ago, Kasimir said: I did, yes, just to be safe, but it didn't help - Archer's Fae Lore still took precedence. (That's what I clarified after the game because I was very confused about what had gone down.) Ah. Yeah Fae Lore being a super-roleblock vs a normal roleblock confuses me still. 1 hour ago, Kasimir said: Ngl an RP-off would've been hilarious though. We never did manage to have Kevan and Issal interact. (Even if it made sense given they don't exactly cross fields.) Maybe we can fix that at some point They are both Masters, technically, and I'd imagine even human Issal has a lot that he could talk about even besides "I need to spend 6 months in Medica because an assassin shredded me" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kasimir he/him Posted August 19, 2023 Report Share Posted August 19, 2023 1 hour ago, Ashbringer said: Ah. Yeah Fae Lore being a super-roleblock vs a normal roleblock confuses me still. From my understanding, less super-roleblock, more transitivity (but I could be wrong.) Some rulesets like, notoriously, Araris's LG90, and mine (drawing from Araris, e.g. in LG92) don't care about roleblock priority: we just flip for it as they're in the same tier of OoA. Some rulesets have them take place simultaneously. KKC is a bit different in how it regards i) A roleblocking B who roleblocks C, and ii) A and B roleblocking each other. I'd argue the attractiveness of the RNG approach is that our answer to i) and ii) is the same: RNGesus decides! For KKC, it's true that Fae Lore is a super roleblock in that it has priority, cares about alignment and roleblocks everything the way Medica Detainment does, but basically: in i), the answer is that C isn't roleblocked, because A's roleblock goes through, so B is stopped. (What happened, since Archer roleblocked you, and you roleblocked me.) However, in ii), A and B roleblock each other and all other actions they put in are cancelled. (If you and Archer had roleblocked each other.) It's just that my roleblocking you wouldn't have achieved anything helpful for me because my secondary R&L is still cancelled (ii), so it was Fae Lore or bust. 1 hour ago, Ashbringer said: Maybe we can fix that at some point We're the RPers, we should :eyes: 1 hour ago, Ashbringer said: They are both Masters, technically, and I'd imagine even human Issal has a lot that he could talk about even besides "I need to spend 6 months in Medica because an assassin shredded me" Ahem. Placeholder, caretaker Master, happy to give the job up as soon as Bob gets back, but yes RIP Issal, add 'kayana Sithe assassin' and that's just way more terrifying. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ashbringer he/him Posted August 19, 2023 Report Share Posted August 19, 2023 4 minutes ago, Kasimir said: RIP Issal, add 'kayana Sithe assassin' and that's just way more terrifying. See I haven't read KKC so my brain autocorrects it to Sith assassin... which seems somehow less terrifying even though it should be arguably more to me 9 minutes ago, Kasimir said: We're the RPers, we should :eyes: If nothing else, Essal will probably be my RP character if/when KKC happens again might write something up in here too, hopefully I'll have some time. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kasimir he/him Posted August 19, 2023 Report Share Posted August 19, 2023 7 minutes ago, Ashbringer said: See I haven't read KKC so my brain autocorrects it to Sith assassin... which seems somehow less terrifying even though it should be arguably more to me What part of Sorchae doesn't just seem outright terrifying to you sir 8 minutes ago, Ashbringer said: If nothing else, Essal will probably be my RP character if/when KKC happens again might write something up in here too, hopefully I'll have some time. Like Kalabel? Ngl I'd probably just go for something different. Sort of had a wild idea for an Alchemy druglord character who brews bootleg alcohol halfway through that I'm saving for next time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Devotary of Spontaneity Posted August 19, 2023 Report Share Posted August 19, 2023 17 hours ago, The Known Novel said: I'd love to see some of the other admissions essays, and definitely would like others to see mine. Not everyone wants to share theirs, but we'll make a doc with everyone who wants to at some point. People can also post theirs individually. 16 hours ago, Matrim's Dice said: Would loooove to know what this is referring to >> This was when you were saying that defending yourself strongly wasn't an elim tell. 10 hours ago, Kasimir said: Worth noting that Drake and I have considered a Banned Books/Omen Recognition swap - Omen Recognition goes to El'the, and Banned Books goes down to E'lir and scales, or swaps with School Records (Wilson mentioned this) so we have E'lir School Records -> Re'lar Banned Books -> Omen Recognition -> Fae Lore which is a bit more reasonable. That still gives El'the three alignment scans per turn, which is excessive. We'd have to weaken the targeting capabilities or dilute the results or something. 2 hours ago, Ashbringer said: They are both Masters, technically, and I'd imagine even human Issal has a lot that he could talk about even besides "I need to spend 6 months in Medica because an assassin shredded me" If nothing else, Essal will probably be my RP character if/when KKC happens again Issal will have to prove himself capable of regaining Mastery after he's healed enough for lab work. Inesta's actual half-sibling is going to apply to the University and be told "Sorry, we already have another student using your identity. You'll need to pretend to be someone completely unrelated." 21 minutes ago, Kasimir said: What part of Sorchae doesn't just seem outright terrifying to you sir It's only fair that if you're willing to hire an assassin to kill someone, you're willing to have that assassin hunt you for sport afterwards. For everything else, she's just having fun. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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