Voidus

Laurelai was heedless of her footing as she stepped towards the waters, beautiful falling salvation simply awaiting her arrival. It was only a little further, only a few more steps until at last she could receive her answers, receive a reprieve from the pain and worries that had been so persistently- "Ow." Laurelai rubbed a hand up her arm to the shoulder, long fingers meeting the warmer hand of Lita which caused her to blink out of her focus on the water itself. "Sorry, lost myself a little." She did her best to look apologetic but that was definitely difficult when her attention was drawn back to the waters so easily, following them down to the pool below and the figure that waited- The figure? -------------------------------------------------------------- Whisper gave a haunting smile in the direction of the three approaching figures, her eyes sliding easily past the two women to the fox creature that accompanied them in the shadows. She gave the creature an immediate bow, a little shallower than her earlier one to the pair of gods that had arrived at the Chapel, but appropriate for an avatar. It was only with difficulty that she pulled her eyes from the creature back to the redheaded woman who had asked her a question. "Waiting." She replied, voice echoing around the room with no obvious source. "I require Light. If you wish to have a conversation here."' The statement was not strictly true, she had enough Light to speak with for now and would be able to acquire more later. But she knew that both women would be more comfortable if there was an obvious price to their conversation, they were far too suspicious to accept her words if she offered them freely. And she had certain other reasons to request the Light specifically. The god of the Void had brought her enough to sustain and speak, but she needed more if she wished to take any of this knowledge with her when she stepped from beneath these waters. @ZincAboutIt

"The entire city?" Laurelai asked skeptically. "You must realize how suspicious that sounds when what we are dealing with could only be performed by someone with similar abilities to those you-" Her voice grew steadily quieter, dropping to little more than a murmur and then cutting off entirely as something about this Alley drew her attention. The smooth stone, the distant deep sapphire glow, but more than anything else it was the steady and distant dripping of water. It drew her, mothlike towards the source of this great danger and she unwittingly hastened her step to move in front of the others. "-those you claim." She continued absently, barely aware that she was speaking as she floated forwards. "Very suspicious." The sound soothed her anxieties, promising true relief if she approached. Relief not just from headaches and worry, but from all her uncertainties. All her concerns could be washed away if she just stepped into those waters one more time. @ZincAboutIt @kenod

Thanks for being cooperative here, I do like the idea of an Epic warband in the city that's some interesting flavour as long as it doesn't become too overblown too quickly. Abilities look relatively okay, with the notes that Zinc mentioned above. Think we can approve this one.

Each step was leaden as he moved away from the waters and the ominous girl who resided in them now. It was an almost physical pain to part from them, but after moving through a pair of abandoned Alleys Voidus felt the connection that drew him to them begfin to thin again. The obsessive need to step into them, to know, began to fade to tolerable levels. Still a distraction, but no longer dangerous at least. "One trip down Bennington." Voidus said, words echoing between the cold alley walls. "The most dangerous of all of them I think. But the most fruitful as well." He began mentally compiling the information he had received, shifting each point to an actionable item that needed attending to and prioritized accordingly. The Professor had not always been perfectly methodical in his work, there had been bouts of chaotic, frenzied inspiration. But his best work had always been in this mood. When obsession began to overtake his mind and he became terrifyingly efficient. "Thank you." Voidus said, a hint of earnesty peering through his coldness. "For staying with me. For helping. You are a good friend Bennington." Giving a single smile towards the floating creature, Voidus stepped from the Alleys back to the city streets. There was a great deal that had to be done, some of which he could do in the Alleys, but the rest would need to be done here. And most importantly of all... "An Elsecaller." Voidus muttered, eyes latching onto a passing figure walking straightbacked down the street with a small inkspren perched on their shoulder. "Perfect. Bennington would you like to join me for some more baking?"

It took Laurelai a moment longer than she would have liked to catch Lita's meaning and slide a pen from one of her own pockets. A very fine implement that seemed somehow a little different than the one she remembered Lita handing to her but then memories were not entirely trustworthy right now. Deciphering the message went a little faster, some initial hesitancy before slipping into a more natural rhythm which allowed her to translate the odd series of twitches and spins as easily as she would verbal speech. At the mention of memories again Laurelai felt an echoing stab of pain in one of her temples, a new headache to join the one that was already brewing. But she stamped down on the pain, suppressing it to avoid it interfering with her work as she replied. Of course. She replied, pen spinning naturally in a hand. It has had plenty of opportunities already to spring a trap if that was what it intended. It would seem best if we- She paused mid-message, habitually taking a casual, almost friendly tone with Lita. Storms but the woman was charismatic, very few people had ever gotten Laurelai to lower her guard of formality so quickly. After a thoughtful pause she revised her tone slightly, reminding herself that Lita was an employer, not a friend. as you say if we follow along to the end of this journey. I shall do my best to keep an eye on our backs. The words had barely slipped from her pen before Laurelai realized that meant that she would be behind Lita, and therefore last to see that mysterious waterfall in her shattered memories. A cold sensation gripped her chest, followed by a warm rush of jealousy as she imagined Lita getting to it first but she firmly crushed both with a polite but impassive mask that she slipped into. A third headache, one that whispered of cool waters and everything she could ever want, now joined the other two as she followed Lita and the fox into the Alleys. @ZincAboutIt @kenod (DA thread?)

Laurelai Esserethel Whisper Lucien Esserethel (Voidus): (To be added when I can )

Approved! Approved! So for this one I would say that the misting/ferring abilities are not effectively joined enough for me to consider them a single major merit but perhaps Major - Allomantic steel - Particularly when paired with Feruchemical iron Normal - Feruchemical iron, strong willed Minor - Shardaxe, Common sense, Thievery/spycraft skills (Including deception) And approved as such! Also Approved! And Approved, Approved! I'll be adding my sheets shortly as well if one of the other mods could take a look.

She was next to Lita this time, not trailing behind. Laurelai was not under any misapprehension that the change in positioning was due to any alteration in status between the two of them however. It was simply due to the fact that they were now both stepping into unknown territory together. That, and of course Laurelai had chosen to take Lita's arm when they began this dangerous jaunt. What were you thinking? A voice chided. She's not a friend, not close enough for something like this. Far too forward. She ignored the voice, ensuring she did not hold too tightly onto the redhead as they moved into an unknown Alley. She also ignored the piercing headache that sprang up again, a near-constant pain now. But she could put such things to one side easily enough, she would let neither pain nor errant thoughts distract her while on the job. This was a dangerous path, one with a dubious reward at best. And it was almost certainly a trap. Distractions would only get the both of them killed here. Whatever Laurelai had been expecting to see in the Alley when they arrived, this was certainly not it. When they first arrived at the terminus of the map they had been given Laurelai had quickly scanned the area, eyes glazing past each detail so that her mind could categorise them all. But she quickly found herself double taking. Her attention pulled back to a fox that awaited in the middle of the Alley. A fox with three tails, which gave a small bow as it made eye contact with the pair before promptly turning to lead them further into the Alleys with a swish of its tails. "An actual... three tailed fox." Laurelai commented, mixed suspicion and curiosity in her voice. "That was very much not what I expected to... wait!" She raised her voice, trying to call the foxes attention before it shifted into another Alley. Already she could feel them shifting, another placed expectantly in their path, and others still leading them on a path... somewhere. Certainly none of the well-traveled Alleys she had only just started to become accustomed to. She felt her headache pulse again, this time with irritation as well as the usual pain. This damnable letter had sent them on nothing so much as a treasure hunt so far and she would be damned if she would take another step without confirmation that something at least lay at the end of it. "Who... what are you?" She said cooly, looking to the fox. Trusting it to be able to understand. "Where are you taking us?" @ZincAboutIt @kenod

"... will be the option with the highest chance of success." Whisper concluded. Voidus, seemingly now accustomed to the manner in which she spoke, gave a hesitant nod at her words. Almost all of his questions now answered, though he seemed unsure what to make of some of the answers that he had been given. "The last matter then." He said, dark eyes holding hers. "Will be how to pull you from those waters. This was very useful, but I have more need of a denizen with unrestricted access to the Alleys than an Oracle now." Whisper felt a flush of satisfaction at his words, his confirmation that she had been useful and would be given the opportunity to be so again. Almost it was enough to elicit a gasp from her, but that would lose some of her precious Light. "I will leave shortly." She said, wearing her usual smile. "But I can manage to do so myself." "Shortly?" Voidus replied with a dissatisfied frown. "And by yourself? Why? And how?" "Others will be arriving soon." Whisper replied, eyes flickering to an empty space in the cavern. "I will need to be here for that, and you should not be. The time for that meeting has not quite come." Voidus' expression darkened a little further, not for the first time irritation flared on his face, a look that would have terrified her into submission even if he had not been her god. But not today, her work was too important, even for this. If he still held this irritation once he regained himself then she would happily allow him whatever retribution he desired. For now however, he was far weaker, more vulnerable. For now he needed to be protected more than he needed to be feared. "It is almost time." She said simply, facing him fully so that he could read the inevitability in her words. With a final click of the tongue and a last, longing glance towards the waters of the Chapel, Voidus stepped back. He gave her a parting glance, one of suspicion and also trust. A wary alliance that they had struck, but it was perhaps the only one he could manage for now.

The question seemed to bounce around inside her mind, time slowing as Laurelai turned it over in her mind. There was, as Laurelai herself mentioned, barely any reason at all to actually follow this trail which was almost certainly a trap. Already Laurelai's head was aching once more, the tension that had continued building in her pressed desperately against the interior of her skull without even a morning coffee to relieve it now. What possible use could she be, even if she was as Lita had claimed, her most promising acolyte? Laurelai drew herself up, straightening until she reached her full height and gave an intrigued and bewitching smile. The pain and tension vanished from her expression as if dismissed by magic, replaced only with an insatiable hunger and curiosity. "Well I would hardly leave you all the fun of pulling the secrets from this mystery all to yourself. I'm not quite dressed for a fox hunt but I suppose it will have to do for this one." Taking a glance at the map, and then into Lita's green eyes, Laurelai gave a single nod of acceptance and deference, stepping towards the nearby alleyway and offering an arm out. "Shall we?" @ZincAboutIt @kenod

Voidus gave an almost imperceptible nod of agreement at the sudden shift in Bennington's coloration. He was perhaps not as capable as Vivica had been of interpreting the strange creatures attempts at communication but a warning was a simple enough concept to grasp. And one that he most certainly did not need as he felt the draw of the waters on him, already they tugged at his ever curiosity. Whispered to him that it would be so easy for him to remove the small creature that currently received their words and take it for himself. His ever scholarly and scientific curiosity was plucked at once as all the answers he could ever want were only feet away. "Difficult and dangerous." He stated, keeping his feet solidly where they were. It was far more difficult than he would have liked to admit. "Very dangerous." The voice agreed, echoing around him as a smile pulled at the small mouth of the girl in front of him. "And very useful. Ask your questions while I still stand beneath the waters." Voidus frowned at the statement. He was not quite certain how this girl saw him, but something in him grated at what seemed very much to be a demand. But the irritation he felt at those words would only impede him now. He did not have the time to argue. "My first questions have nothing to do with the waters." He said, voice grave and eyes dark as he stared at the girl. "Who are you and why should I trust you." "Whisper." The girl said, words escaping her almost before he had finished asking the question. "If a name is required. I am a denizen of the Dark Alleys, in this life and the other. And right now I act as an Oracle for you. I worship the gods of the Alley, and the gods beyond. And while I do my utmost to prove to be of service, I leave the decision of whether to trust me wholly up to you, but at the very least you should use me." Voidus gave another nod at the statement, glad that she at least had the sense not to presume his good intentions. Especially when so many of his own intentions were still a mystery to himself. "I intend to." He continued, eyes intent. "I need the fastest way to break this Forgery. I need some resources from the Alleys. I need my memories back." Again the reply came almost simultaneously with the demand, and he realised indeed that the threads of Stormlight she wove to give reply were already woven when he began to speak, simply giving him time to voice the question that she already knew. He also realized that the immediacy he had mistaken for impatience and rudeness appeared more simply to be an eagerness to be of use. The dark reflection in her eyes that glinted with a hint of worship was enough for him to accept that this was his most useful tool for the moment. "The Forgery breaks already." The voice stated, echoing from one end of the cavern to the other. "To break it faster would keep you from your other preparations or require you to enter the waters." He nodded again, accepting the statement as given and already having half-expected such. If he, who had been bound so tightly as one of the cornerstones of this Forgery, had begun regaining his memories then assuredly others had already done so long since, and that process was no doubt continuing exponentially through the city. "I shall acquire what you need from the Alleys, though I will need to be reminded once I leave these waters." The voice continued, Whisper's face turning with eerie sluggishness to look to him directly. "And your memories will return as the Forgery breaks, that must not be rushed. But as you suspect, some of the resources you require will expedite this progress safely." His brow furrowed at the words, an innate dislike of having his own plans predicted, especially by one so young as this. But he reminded himself that it was the waters that he really spoke to now, the girl Whisper was merely an intermediary. "And what you truly need must be the last thing you acquire." The voice continued, cutting off even the question this time. "When your memory is regained two things you will still lack. The first lies at the end of the path we first began taking when we came here. And the other... lies on the weary path. The path you began treading before you even became a god."

So caught up in her analysis and musings was she that Laurelai almost completely missed the exchange, the letter dropping to their table, Lita's hand darting for the woman who dropped it. She flinched at the sudden movement then spun in her seat at a loud noise behind her, eyes quickly registering a bartender ducking behind the bar to clean a shattered glass. Her eyes continued to quickly scan and then turned back to Lita but the redheaded woman was already standing and moving for the door to follow after the woman. Idiot. Laurelai chided herself. Letting yourself be distracted like that, what were you thinking? If she thinks you are no longer of any use then Lita would not be above leaving you where she found you. Or perhaps tying off loose ends entirely. She rose with a twirl of her dress, stepping quickly but surely towards the door. Fast enough to give some pursuit but not so fast as to risk tripping an embarrassing herself further. She had just pushed the doors open and spun in place to seek where the pair had gone when she halted. Lita had stopped against a nearby wall, leaning against it and sliding open an envelope. The other, plainer woman had vanished entirely. "Where did she..." Laurelai's eyes darted up and down the street, searching for any hints of illusion or rapid travel. "An Elsecaller perhaps?" It was only a moment later that her eyes slid to the space between two buildings, a small, dimly lit alleyway and the other possibility clicked into place. "Or someone who has other means." She muttered, mostly to herself before moving to stand next to Lita as she unfolded what appeared to be a map, though one of a sort Laurelai had never seen before. "Alleys?" She asked as her eyes scanned the paths and somehow made sense of them in a way she still didn't fully understand. "Quite a lot of effort this person is going to. And with such little bait to offer as well." She gave a soft sigh as she leaned against the wall, eyes glancing longingly back towards the doors where their coffees were still being prepared. "This is going to be one of those days then I suppose." She lamented. @ZincAboutIt

It was an odd thing, Voidus realised, to feel more yourself after losing your mind. He still wasn't entirely himself, barely any at all really, but he remembered a few important things. He remembered the craft that he has spent millennia perfecting. He could remember his name, or at least the name he had worn the longest. He could remember his exhaustion, not the physical kind that he had now relieved himself of by tapping Charlie's Bronzeminds, but the soul-deep emotional and mental weariness of eternity. And he remembered the Alleys. He smiled as he stepped into the cool darkness between two buildings, the in-between place where reality could be blurred a little more easily and one realm could cross into another. As he stepped into the Alleys for just a fraction of a moment he felt something brush up against him, like a comforting wind it refreshed and encouraged him, took the edge off of his weariness and gave another reason to keep stepping forwards even as he left the sensation behind. "Was that her?" Voidus asked his silent, hovering companion. "Whatever is left of her? Or was it just a memory?" Whether some remnant spark of his friend from the hospital or just his own broken memories of her, Voidus felt a thread of Connection between the two of them. It was a tenuous thing, barely even perceivable to him in his current state and certainly not something he could manipulate. But he hoped it would be enough to keep her tethered here, hoped it would let her spirit weather the journey it was on a little better until he could find a solution. "We'll have her back soon enough." Voidus continued, steps unfaltering as he slid from one Alley to the next. "But best not to rush and jeopardise things further. I have had a great deal taken from me, knowledge, power, people. I intend to take it all back." With another step he crossed into a quiet and dim cavern, a peaceful, almost meditative place within the Alleys that would bring him calm if it didn't almost immediately fill him with dread. There, beneath the slowly dripping waters of the Chapel of rain stood a figure that did not appear to have moved since he last saw it. Her face still partially tilted up into the waters and partially tilted in his direction, eyes ever watching and filled with horrific knowledge. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ She was hungry, she was tired, and she was dehydrated. But none of that mattered to Whisper as she waited beneath the waters. She could wait an eternity like this if she needed to. Her gods needed her to be here and so here she would be, until they needed her somewhere else or disposed of her. The waters themselves helped as well, a cool and gentle flood of information, providing her answers as soon as she could even formulate a question. She turned her attention towards an empty section of the cavern, looking even before he arrive to where she knew one of her gods would appear. As he stepped out from the space between spaces she was struck by how different he was from last time. He was covered in blood now for a start, though that was immaterial to her beyond its implication that he had once more realized his place above the petty moralities of those who lived in the city. He also stood taller, more proudly, even as his shoulders hunched beneath an unimaginably large weight. But it was none of these physical differences that Whisper cared about. It was the whispers. Once, this man had stood as a bastion of silence in a city that was endlessly chattering. He had been a blank spot in the canvas, an antiphase that silenced even the already existing whispers around him with his presence. Now he had whispers of his own. Not even the magic of all the world could suppress those whispers that spoke to him of his past life. And those whispers pulsed against the world around them now, tearing holes in the fabric of lies. "So I will be taking knowledge back first." Voidus stated, his gaze drifting to the air next to him as he spoke. Whisper could not see what it was that he spoke to but she knew what was there all the same. The waters had whispered of this to her, of one of her old gods. They had been forgotten to her in this life, but here at least she could remember and worship correctly. She lowered her head slowly, first towards the dark god of the void, and then to the unseen god of madness that was beside him. Voidus gave the gesture little notice, only raising a hand in which he held a large gemstone, part of a fabrial it seemed though now it had been pulled free. But it was what she needed, it was Light. "How much of this did you foresee I wonder." Voidus said, looking to the gemstone in his hand. "It seems far too much of a coincidence that tonight I had both a handy piece of brass at just the right moment and now a full gemstone for you to use." Whisper gave a tiny smile of satisfaction at the praise, even if she was but an instrument of her gods wills, she did take some pride in how well she had served. She drew in a deep breath, and quickly felt the Light fill her. Immediately it drove her other concerns back, her hunger, exhaustion and thirst quickly abated. With a small sigh of relief, she let some of the Light trickle from her to form words. "Difficult to use all that the Chapel offers." She spoke, voice echoing from the nearby walls in a grating cacophony. "But I have some talent with patterns at least."

Any characters who have already been approved with the new template won't need to be reposted, we'll just add them to the list. But anyone with a returning character will need to post here with the new template.

Hello! Greetings to all Denizens, Citizens, and Netizens. We're making this thread to create a place where characters new and old can look for someone to collaborate with for the RP. This may vary from something very specific you have in mind 'My character is in the middle of a difficult time and I was hoping they might bump into someone very irritable and dangerous so that they can gain a new enemy to focus their attention on.', to the casual 'My character is going to the tavern to get some drinks, does anyone want to start up a drinking buddy relationship', or guild recruitment 'My character is alone and scared in this new city and I was hoping they could bump into someone from the Scholar's Guild to give them a reason to join that guild.'. One of the more frequent uses we imagine for this thread however is for new characters to find other characters to interact with and kick off their RP journey. In these circumstances you may not actually know what exactly you're looking for, if your character is new to the city they may not have the means or the resources to begin working towards any of their goals yet, they may need to meet some people first. Whatever the case may be we hope that this provides a useful location for people to work together with their writing and plan things out a little more. We would suggest that you try to be specific with any requests for collaboration when possible, if you know what you're looking for mention it in the post, and ideally post a little bit about your character as well, we have a lot of characters in the RP so no everyone is familiar with all of them.

Hi all, to reflect both the new era and also the updated character sheet that we have started using we've decided to start a new thread. If you need to reference characters from past eras please view the old thread. We will be asking everyone to resubmit characters from previous eras in the new format for consistency and to hopefully get the best use out of it. Steps to create a character Decide what kind of character you want to play. Starting with the base concept, what was it that made you want to create this character? Was it to make a swashbuckling Radiant? A Nobleman thief? A Selish socialite? Try to keep the concept to a few brief, evocative words. Think about your characters merits and flaws, some of these will be obvious from your core concept but others you may need to think about and workshop. Try to answer the following questions: Where is your character from? What happened to them so far? Do they have family/friends? What motivates them, which subjects catch their attention? While not mandatory we would suggest discussing your character concept in the Character Discussion thread. Especially for new players but even for veterans this can help get other people's input and make sure that characters will fit in with the setting and that the community is involved and invested with new characters. We have a lot of great writers who can help flesh a character out, provide suggestions of where they might fit or even just become excited to interact with them. Fill out a character sheet. You can find an empty template below. Please post the character sheet in this thread for one of our mods to look it over (our currently active mods are @AonEne and @Koloss17) so that they can approve it. You may receive some feedback from a mod in the discussion thread, please try to reply in that thread and only repost here when a mod is able to agree the character is suitable. This is to try to keep this thread clear for the mods so that we can find where exactly sheets were submitted more easily and speed up approval. Your character got approved? Great! You are ready to start! If you're not sure where to post yet you can ask in the Chat Thread from others, or you could try one of our short form channels in our Discord server to get used to a character before beginning to work on longer form RP. Character template The astute among you have noticed that merits and flaws have replaced any investiture, equipment, and skills that your character may have. This is deliberate. We've done away with points, and are instead moving toward a more organic system where you get a certain number of merits and flaws. Merits are anything that might help your character (such as abilities, items, skills, or a position), flaws are anything that might hinder them. Here is the breakdown for what might constitute a major minor and normal strength. Minor: Some trivial assistance / time saving measure (Eg. pull a memory from a coppermind rather than grab a book). This should be something that more or less any character could be capable of, your character just has an easier time of it. Normal: Bread and butter usefulness. Abilities that get you through your day to day (Eg. An experienced scholar or a practiced swordsman). Major: Exceptional ability, something that stands out from the crowd (Eg. A world-famous swordsman, an elite assassin, a Knight Radiant) In terms of how many of each boon each character gets, as of right we are allowing characters 3 minor merits, 2 normal merits and 1 major merit. This currently up for debate however and as with all of this we want feedback. Flaws should ideally play off of other sections in your character sheet. All characters must have at least one flaw, but we generally look for characters to have two or more. The best flaws will give something for your character to overcome and allow them to grow. They may also explain why a character has not achieved their motivations yet, which creates a handy character arc for you to RP (Eg. Kaladin has a goal to help those stuck in the same situation as him, but his social status prevents him from being able to meaningfully influence the orders that are killing his people. Additionally his bouts of depression tempt him to give this goal up entirely unless he can somehow overcome it). We hope to help turn the RP into something a little more than just zany antics by encouraging our RPers to help each other out and develop their writing skills further in the coming eras. Era 6 character list:

Laurelai's back naturally straightened as she followed Lita into the tavern, giving a perfectly measured smile to the tavern keeper and a passing glance over the rest of the room. Hardly the most interesting collection of clientele other than what Laurelai could only guess was some kind of Listener in an oddly spiked form she'd never seen before and wrapped tightly in an uncomfortable looking brown wool cloak. "Another whiskey coffee." She said, returning her attention and smile to Davitt. "And perhaps some plain toast, thank you." Watching as Davitt noted the order and left, he seemed the sort to prefer to simply recall an order rather than write it down, Laurelai gave a quick glance over his person. It was a familiar habit of hers, but recently she had been adding a few additional items to her checklist. Not only did she check for posture, gait, visible injuries and to whom he paid attention, but she also noticed a quite sharp knife at his belt, calluses on his knuckles. Signs of potential danger. "Have you been here often?" She asked Lita, even as her own attention wandered the room to perform the same check on the other patrons. "I suppose it's quite convenient to have the means of being almost anywhere in the city moments after leaving your office. Not a tavern or cafe outside of walking distance." @ZincAboutIt

Good to hear. I think there was just some trepidation on our part because a forum in-joke that nobody else in the AV was a part of may not particularly land well and may seem more like 'haha, whacky chaotic randomness' which was a vibe we were somewhat trying to move away from recently. I don't think it would be an issue if played as a very minor part of the character or an occasional just kind of winking reference I suppose but yes we were very much hoping it would not be the sole identity of the character to just be 'That camel girl' or something like that.

It was quiet within the Void. Peaceful almost. Neither the Stranger nor Aylitha making any suspicious moves to intervene or turn the chaos of the city to their advantage. Neither appeared in fact to be anything but even the most rudimentary of oppositions to Sudiovs own efforts. It was the closest to a ceasefire that the three of them had reached since the Stranger begun his experiment with the world. It was deeply suspicious. Sudiov knew not how either of the others could hide their activities from him, but rather than pick apart that mystery or try to discover what they were up to he decided to assume the worst of them both. Likely the Stranger would have no qualms about exterminating Sudiov after pulling what power he could. And who knew what Aylitha had decided to do but it was unlikely to be in his best interests. This meant that Sudiov would need to pursue his own interests as well, less hidden than the others. If they wished to take issue with how he spent his time he would welcome the chance to pull them from their own works. For now however, he would spread his awareness through the city. He needed to know what was happening, to observe as many as possible to try to see the flow of possibility. As he went he repaired the cracks in reality with a touch of power, but they were growing both in number and in size. Far too many spots in the city beginning to crack and come apart. A pair of women who he wished had not reunited with each other strode through the city and the world shuddered and split apart in their passing. Another group discussed in the quiet of an office and reality rent asunder at their words. There was only one place in the city that Sudiov knew he could find quiet. One of the key focal points of the Forgery and effectively a moving linchpin for the entire thing. The man who had once been a god, and his most hated enemy. Voidus would be an oasis of calm in the city. A piercing pain ripped the shining god apart before letting him reform a moment later. A lance of agony pierced through him at the proximity as something important shattered to pieces. In an instant he pulled himself back, looked down at the city from above in abject fear. Had it failed? Had the cracks overwhelmed the Forgery already? It was ahead of all of his possible projections but surely this could only be an entire section of the city pulling free from the altered history. But the city was unchanged. The cracks spread with renewed vigour and more and more were appearing but they were still a long way from consuming the work that had been begun. So what else could this be? Sudiov checked and rechecked all of the loose threads, all the gaps, all the individuals he had marked as cause for concern, but other than a slight increase in the deterioration of their Forgeries nothing had changed. It was not until he had given up and returned to his earlier task of observation that Sudiov realised what had happened. When he saw what had only hours ago been a tired but mild mannered Professor was now leaning over a bloody body with a Hemalurgic spike in hand. A man who should have no knowledge of Hemalurgy had just precisely pierced a bindpoint in some unfortunate barista's heart with a pin of brass and was now looking at it with academic curiosity and unbridled glee. Voidus' memories had begun to return, and his powers would follow soon after. Things were coming to a head far faster than Sudiov had anticipated, and there was now no more time for subtle manoeuvring or clever plays. The time had come when he would simply need to choose a side.

Lucien rubbed at his gritty eyes as he entered the cafe. The warm and cozy air felt even warmer than usual against his skin, such a perfect temperature to lay down in, to simply sink in this spot and let his eyes drift shut. "Late evening again Lucien?" Called a man from behind the counter. He was a little shorter than Lucien himself but still taller than most in the city. Flashing a smile that was the exact same practiced polite smile he gave Lucien every time he had come into this cafe, the man brushed a lock of dark hair out of his eyes before reaching for a cup and raising an expectant brow. "Same as usual? Double shot and far too much sugar?" He asked. "Yes." Lucien replied after a drawn out pause. "Usual please. Thanks Charlie." Charlie gave a quick nod in reply before busying himself with the cups, seeming far too alert for this hour of the night even if he did work in a cafe with access to as much caffeine as he cared to partake in. This was of course not all that unexpected as Charlie was a Sentry, a Bronze Ferring who could very effectively force his own sleep cycle. Of all the various abilities that those in the Alleycity possessed it was one that the Professor perhaps envied the most. Lucien could remember enough even without the assistance of Copperminds and he had no real need to rely on Zincminds for his breakthroughs. But how much more effective would he be if he could simply stave off sleep when he needed? How nice would it be not to be tired? Not to always be tired? He gave a slight shake of his head, standing up from the counter he only just now realised he'd been leaning on and forcing himself to pace to keep his eyes open and his mind on track. These strange thoughts, this idea of constant lethargy had been growing steadily worse. Perhaps it was due only to his continued state of waking, deny enough sleep and it could certainly feel like it stretched into eternity. But he could almost... feel something, something else. Like a mist that was draining away, or a thread being pulled taut. "Sorry Lucien." Charlie said with an apologetic glance, interrupting the Professors thoughts. "Machines acting up, just gonna need to take a few minutes to clean it up, you okay to wait?" Lucien nodded numbly to the question, eyes partially glazed over and barely processing the words until several moments later when they sluggishly made their way into his mind. Wait. He could do that couldn't he? He was very good at waiting, he'd done it practically forever. But at the same time he loathed it so greatly. Why wait when he could have what he wanted now? Surely there was a way wasn't there? He toyed with the Fabrial in his hands, gemstone clattering against the brass fittings. He wasn't quite sure what had inspired him to create such a device, a pin that could be attached to a person to strengthen their speech. The brass carefully calming the captured Windspren down so that it would only provide as much assistance as was needed rather than bursting lungs. As he played with the Fabrial he removed the brass pin from the gemstone and looked it over carefully. This, this was a key to something wasn't it? He just needed... a moment of clarity, a flash of inspiration for pieces to come together. All of it was somehow linked, his tiredness, Charlie's question, this pin, the recipe that he had been trying over and over to get right. He had finally achieved the correct shade of red for the frosting but it was still... lacking. The consistency was off, and the temperature wasn't quite right. But somehow he could solve that problem too, if he could just get a moment without this damnable exhaustion clouding his every thought... The door opened behind him, letting in a chill gust as the only other customer present left for the night with a half-wave of goodbye. Charlie said something in return, but Lucien did not hear it. The chill wind gave only a slight push, opened his eyes just a little and staved off only a fraction of tiredness. But something else acted in that same instant, something that took that taut thread that he had been noticing and pulled it to what felt nearly a breaking point. But it was not the thread that would break, it was something else. It was Lucien himself, some small fracture splitting wider and wider until a hole tore open and allowed a torrent of sudden enlightenment to flood him. In an instant he remembered something, a fundamental truth, and knowledge that seemed so obvious it was a wonder how he'd not known of it moments ago. He reached into his bag with his free hand, stepping up to Charlie as the barista tried to clean the complex mechanisms of the Fabrial that produced coffee. For his part Charlie seemed to involved in his work to even notice as the Professor moved close to him, pulling a beautiful gift of steel from his bag and sliding it carefully into his body. A noise ripped through the cafe, some vocalization that Voidus was far too focussed to notice as he pulled the blade free from Charlie's torso, turned the man carefully around and held the brass pin aloft. "I'm going to need to put this through your chest okay?" Voidus asked with bloodshot eyes and a polite smile. "It will just hurt for a moment, don't worry. And thank you for being so very helpful. This will be much faster than waiting for the machine to be fixed." @ZincAboutIt

Laurelai felt a trickle of heat hit her cheeks. The rush of mixed emotions at the very least provided a distraction from her brewing headache. The trickle of pride and pleasure at the compliment was one she always enjoyed, though the twinge of worry that Lita seemed to have picked up on Laurelai's intentions behind choosing this particular dress were a little less so. Bathing over both of them in an embarrassed glow however was Lita's picking apart Laurelai's own words with a subtle twist. And now your boss is going to think you are outright flirting with her at every opportunity. She chided herself. An infatuated little thing looking overly much into a single encounter. Laurelai quickly covered the blush with a polite smile and stepped quickly to follow after Lita, wary of being caught alone in one of the Alleys that Lita had mentioned. As they travelled she continued to lose herself in thought, reminding herself that what had happened was a once off event, not to be repeated. And that she certainly did not want to give the impression that she was looking for anything beyond that. Laurelai had no intentions of mixing emotions up with her work. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Stepping under the sign, Laurelai glanced up at it with a smile having finally managed to shake both her intrusive thoughts and her blush. A golden fox posing proudly on a green field stared down at her, only a single tail waving behind it. "Just the one tail on this one, as I had thought." She commented as she opened the door to the Goldfox Tavern for Lita to enter. "But perhaps once we've had a coffee or two we'll find ourselves enlightened enough to see more." @ZincAboutIt (Shall we move to the Alleycity thread?)

Laurelai's eyes widened a fraction in surprise at Lita's decision, certainly Laurelai herself had been a little tempted when she walked past it but it was still morning and they were working. Though it was true that this was hardly a usual working environment, and Lita was hardly a normal employer, so perhaps this was simply normal here. And as Lita had mentioned there were few places better than a tavern for listening in on gossip. "Every day a new surprise in this place." Laurelai said, a sly grin chasing the surprise out of her expression. "You are certainly not like other employers ma'am, but I do quite like that." Standing to follow after Lita, Laurelai's attention slid to the redheads eyes, the very subtle redness and the almost invisible bags beneath them. Over the past few days Lita seemed to have the luck of the damned about her sleep, she either seemed to veritably glow with satisfaction or to be plagued by nightmares. But there were any number of explanations for that, perhaps Lita simply had someone warming her bed who was an occasional snorer. And thankfully, whatever her mood, Lita rarely let it actually obstruct their work. And so, beyond simply trying to keep her employer in a good mood there was little for Laurelai to worry about. Enjoyable as she found Lita's company, at the end of the day Lita was her boss, not her friend. "And I could certainly do with a little 'enlightenment' this morning I think." Laurelai continued, gloved fingers pressing against her temple as another piercing headache began. @ZincAboutIt

Second welcome! And a special hello to someone playing a fellow Forger! As Zinc mentioned we will be asking people to use the new character sheets from next era so that would be the preference for character formatting. I would note that we are trying to move a little away from the high-chaos beginnings of the RP into more serious narratives so I do have a little concern around the focus around 'murder camels', would appreciate a little more discussion around that aspect. But welcome to the RP! Very happy to have new people always.

"Placed while I was sleeping." Laurelai said, frowning at her own letter. "On my nightstand. I thought it best to be prudent but if whoever placed it wished harm there were certainly easier methods." Hesitating only a moment before unsealing the wax with a careful flick of her fingers, Laurelai unfolded the letter to read for herself, finding an identical text to that which Lita had read out. She sat opposite the redheaded woman and placed the letter on the table, one gloved hand swivelling it to be easily read. "Do you know if anyone else received one?" Laurelai asked cautiously. "Just that, 'enlightenment' sounds like it could be those waters. But who could have overheard that?" She resisted the urge to scan the office nervously for eavesdroppers. Certainly Lita would do a better job at detecting any than Laurelai could ever hope to do herself. But if not then how had someone known? Or was this indeed something more widespread, something that only seemed relevant to their recent revelations? These were the first two thoughts that had presented themselves to Laurelai on her walk through the Alleys this morning but there was one even more disturbing than an unseeable eavesdropper in Lita's office. Someone who has already found the Chapel and entered it. A voice whispered from the back of her mind. Someone who could know everything you do, everything you have done. Every secret moment of your life. She was not quite able to suppress the slight shiver down her spine at the thought. When engaging in a war of words with someone two things were key, presentation and information. Laurelai rarely felt someone gain the better of her in the former department, barring very tense circumstances, but someone entering a conversation with more knowledge than you was always dangerous. Someone who already knew exactly what to offer you, what to tempt you with, was terrifying indeed. "I don't believe I spotted any foxes on the way here. Except on the sign for the goldfox tavern, but that one had only a single tail." She continued, speaking more to direct her thoughts away from the prospect than any real need to convey information. @ZincAboutIt @kenod

Most important thing, make sure you have fun! Don't burn yourself out, let your players know you might be a little uncertain and tell them if you want / don't want any help from them. I do encourage you, if you're not sure of the official rule for something just try it out your own way, maybe make a note to look it up later. Don't feel like you have to do every little thing right. Ease into it, enjoy yourselves and if you need any help I'm always happy to talk TTRPGs.