Sherlock Holmes

1 hour ago, Grey Knight said:

Rik choked on his cider.

It only took a moment's thought to extract the liquid from his throat and deposit it back into the cup. It was lucky that he could use his powers so unconsciously, because right now he was overwhelmed with sheer, bloody-minded panic.

"This place isn't safe?!" He coughed, trying to clear his throat. "Calamity, woman! When you took us to this store, I assumed you owned everyone in here. Not that we were talking business in a dangerous, unsecured location!"

Tena rolled her eyes. "You wanted to go to a bar, didn't you? I don't own any bars around here. Stop complaining, if you want to have a more explicit conversation, we can go elsewhere." She started to get to her feet, cocking her head at the strange, small man. "I am not one for implications. I will probably tell you if I, as you say, 'own' where we are. The barman already knows not to ask for my money here, though."

On 1/18/2023 at 2:18 PM, Grey Knight said:

"That's unfortunate for your finances," Rik muttered. "But I cannot fault your logic. Are we to deal with the looters violently, then? Liquidating them and seizing a portion of their assets, while publicly returning the rest, would be a boon to our public relations as well."

He took another sip of the cider and shuddered. The flavors were a terrible mix of too strong and too weak, and its aftertaste was revolting. "Of course," he said roughly,  "perhaps that would draw too many eyes to your organization. I'm open to other suggestions. I would also like to hear more about this manufacturing base you've so cleverly hidden from outside forces."

"Hidden?" Tena asked, cocking her head. "You must be new. We manufacture a lot of the palm oil-based products sold here in the Alleycity, since the climate near Oasis City is right for growing palm trees. We don't keep that a secret, though it's not the Ghostbloods specifically that manufacture it. There's a couple companies in Oasis City that do it, they just all run under our regulations and pay taxes to us." She shrugged. "It's nothing special. I'm sure a lot of the other guilds do this sort of thing. I don't know much of what TUBA's up to these days, but in my day, we made a lot of the baked goods sold in the city. Money doesn't come from nowhere, after all."

She leaned back in her seat and cocked her head at Rik. "You speak boldly in public. If someone were listening in on us and I was to say: 'Why, of course we'll illegally seize stolen assets', that would not serve us well. Instead, save your suggestions for a more private place. I appreciate that you speak your mind, though."

On 1/2/2023 at 10:31 AM, Grey Knight said:

"Manufacturing?" He took a sip of the cider, wincing at the flavor. "I didn't realize you had an industrial base to work off of. That... changes the calculations."

He closed his eyes and concentrated, disguising the motion by taking a long swig out of the cider. The woman's mind was guarded. There was almost no feeling emanating from it. He thought she was telling the truth, but couldn't be sure.

"We'll want to establish contact with the bands of looters, I assume?" He winced at the terrible aftertaste of the cider. "If we can get them to hand over a cut of their spoils, it should help with the finances. The ones that refuse will have to be liquidated, of course, as well as any that are too brutal in their methods. We want to control the crime scene, not let it run wild."

Tena frowned. "We eliminate them. This is too fragile a time to allow looting of any sort. No doubt some of them are as confused as the rest of us, but others are simply greedy, and they will be dealt with. I have seen too much of rampant crime in my time, I know it is bad for everyone."

Of course, she couldn't eliminate crime-- she knew that very well-- but she'd try to limit it. She was well-versed in navigating criminal society, so at least infiltration wouldn't be difficult. She knew enough of the various cosmere magics that she doubted people could use them to hide from her, at least not well. But could she herself do that work? Was she too high-profile and recognizable now? Perhaps. Still, she didn't know if she had any employees as skilled as she.

7 hours ago, Grey Knight said:

"I am competent in that field," Rik said. He settled down and looked suspiciously at his own cider. He had never been been fond of the drink back on Earth, but this one was far darker than what he was used to. A thick fragrance surrounded it, though not an unpleasant one.

"What is the Ghostblood's priority at this moment? Are your assets liquid enough to sustain short-term operations, or are you threatened with total insolvency and financial ruin?"

"Financial ruin isn't a problem, since our manufacturing continues," Tena said, careful to keep her words guarded. She didn't intend on saying anything untrue-- being a poor liar, despite herself-- but she didn't want to "give anything away", as she'd so often heard. "We are poorer than we were, but we were never poor. I'm working on recruitment in particular, since I think that's our best hope for recovering."

She finished her drink and set it down on the table, still keeping it close to herself. "We'll be doing some small operations in dealing with crime in the Alleycity, I think. There's a lot of looting and confusion following the shift of everyone's personalities. It's a proper mess."

On 12/8/2022 at 3:10 PM, Grey Knight said:

"I am an excellent assassin," Rik grumbled. "To my great displeasure. It is a waste of my considerable talents to merely crush a man's head from two hundred feet away. And yet, it is what I have been used for this past year." He hopped down from the roof. "If you have need of an accountant, however, I would consider it an adequate use of my time. There are many powerful creatures who keep poor records of their finances, and I find blackmail via this method to be quite satisfying. Research and development in a proper lab would be my dream, but I'm afraid my master stipulates I must be in close contact with you." He sneers. "They do not appreciate the sciences like we do."

He rubbed his chin as he looked around the city. "You may take us to any refreshment spot of your choice. If possible, though, I would prefer somewhere dry and shaded. My constitution is not meant for this intolerable warmth."

"I know of such places," Tena said, jumping down from the Canton of Combat and landing on the street below. Once Rik had joined her, she continued to talk. "I do appreciate science, though I know little enough of it. I am poor with math, my strength is in my body." And my bearing, she thought, hoping it was true. She needed to be a leader. "I think there is research I could have you do, but I do need a scribe firstly. I assume you are competent with record-keeping?" It was entirely possible that her people's ledgers were in poor order, given how many Ghostbloods had left in the past few weeks.

She walked into a small bar, the place full of soft cushions and much quieter than other bars tended to be. After ordering herself a cider and watching during the entirety of its making, she drank it quickly, keeping it in her hands the entire time. She held it close to her body, as if trying to protect it. She waited for Rik to join her in a far corner of the main room, catching the barkeep's eye. He nodded to her and provided Rik with whatever drink he asked for.

@Grey Knight

3 hours ago, Grey Knight said:

"It is elementary work," Rik grumbled. "Given the correct dyes and preparation, I could easily turn this crude matter into something actually useful. But my talents to not extend to creating drinks out of nothing, Tena. I'm afraid you'll have to get me off this roof and take me to a reputable bar before I can provide them."

"As for my work, I'll have you know that back on Earth I was something of a gentleman scholar. Though I initially bumbled about with petty despotism, like so many other Epics, it was never my true calling." He smiled slightly. "I spent many years after Calamity attempting to rediscover the sciences lost in the collapse of society. I wrote a whole book about it. Sent it to Knighthawk Foundry for publishing, but never heard back from the man."

"And then... it happened." He spat over the side, face twisting. "A Great Epic found me. My master, now. It had somehow found the Cosmere, and wanted someone expendable to act as its liaison. Pray you never meet it, Ghostblood."

"I hope I don't, if they're as fearsome as you seem to think they are," Tena said. "I have known powerful beings before, though I can hardly claim to understand them." She started to walk, gesturing for the Epic to join her. "I find your story interesting, and your passion for science commendable. I've not got the mind for it myself, but I'm well aware of how useful it is to employ scientists. Are you adept in fighting as well? We're not the sort to make a lot of mess--" she thought of the Seven Day War and the nonsense Hellbent had caused-- "not usually. I'd prefer if you were a quiet fighter, but I'm no subtle thing myself. Still, I like to think that the only way our victims see us coming is if they're looking in a mirror." She smiled crookedly. "Though I'd have to reprimand the Ghostblood sloppy enough to not wait for a more discreet time."

Mirror. She liked the sound of that word, and the sound of what she'd said. The only way they see us coming is if they're looking in a mirror. Why did that appeal to her so much? The part of her that was eager to be dramatic, to speak clever words and philosophize, clung to the phrase. There was romanticism in the original name: imagining that all of the low-lying, clever killers were given their stealth by supernatural connection, but it was insubstantial, implied no action. Her people should be the ghosts seen in mirrors-- or, ideally, not seen at all-- so were they mirror-ghosts? That lacked the elegant sound of "the Ghostbloods", however. She thought for a moment longer on the matter as she walked uphill, further from the centre of the blast that had carved the Alleycity's biggest canyon.

On 11/18/2022 at 2:52 PM, Grey Knight said:

"Of... course." Rik heaved a shaky breath. "Just... a moment, please."

His head was pounding now. He felt cold, and worst of all sweaty. This was going to ruin his clothes.

"But that window... was boring." He shifted his stance and focused back on the ball of molten glass. It was less compressed now, his grasp having slipped for a moment, but it was still malleable. "Far too sentimental. I will make it better."

Shaping the glass was far simpler than melting it. He split it into streams and set it to a spin. The dyes and paints had been burned to ash, so his creation was unfortunately dull and bland. Nevertheless, in a few minutes he was able to set two freshly formed goblets onto the ground.

"Once they cool, we can use them to drink," he said. "Do you have a preference for beverage, or will it be waters all around?"

Tena grinned. "That's incredible." Watching something like that... It was fascinating, far beyond anything she could do, and she understood the temptation that had made her predecessors so greedy in conquering the Alleyplanet. With control of something like that, how could she avoid taking what was within her reach? Still, the power wasn't hers yet, and still wouldn't be hers if she agreed to take on Rik as a Ghostblood.

No, not a Ghostblood. Not anymore. What were they, then? She thought about it as she continued to talk. "I'll have cider. Can you tell me about yourself? The jobs you've worked, what sort of worker you are, all that." She was eager and didn't bother to keep it from her face. "You can make art with these powers, can't you? How much have you done with them?"

She remembered one time when she'd watched a Willshaper make a flat plane of stone into a carving, depicting a woman climbing a staircase up a mountain. She'd not known what the carving had meant, but it had been beautiful all the same. Was Rik such a man, capable of making beautiful things? Tena had never had any skill in art, and she'd not had any time to work on her skills. At this point in her life, she didn't know if there would be any point in trying. Still, she loved seeing art, even though she couldn't make it.

@Grey Knight

2 minutes ago, Grey Knight said:

I would be down to come along, if that works.

You can be my page, pft. I'll have Rik stay behind so that he doesn't listen in on our big important gamer conversation.

Y'all just let me know when we're having the conversation.

1 minute ago, ZincAboutIt said:

Greetings! I know the release of TLM has everyone’s nose in a book, but I wanted to ping everyone who was interested in having a Guild gathering during the Vigil. So, if you’re here you’re the head of a guild or expressed interest in possibly joining the meeting. Want to get a nice set piece going for this particular thread and this seems a nice way to bring at least some of everyone together.

@AonEne @Voidus @MacThorstenson @Sherlock Holmes @Rushu42 if I missed any do forgive me

I'm down for this, but I'll have to drag Grey Knight's character with me or accept his application and leave him behind. We work at a much slower pace than you and Voidus, so it might take a few days.

On 11/14/2022 at 2:50 PM, Grey Knight said:

So the Rosharan wanted a test of the Grand Magister's abilities, did she? Rik doubted she would be impressed by some brutish display of force. But suspicion rolled thickly off of her mind. A too-subtle display of power would merely disappoint her, or worse convince her that he was-- horror of horrors!-- incompetent.

Rik glanced up. There was a small stained glass window above the doors, depicting some scene of battle with amateurish skill. He decided he could make something better.

"I will provide you an excellent demonstration, Tenareo." He squared his feet and braced his staff into the ground. "However, it will be taxing in the extreme. If I fall unconscious, do catch me before I fall to my death." Then, he stretched forth his hand.

Blades of precisely-directed force sheared the window from the iron bars holding it in the wall. He caught the window it before could fall, gently lowering it down to eye level.

"Pressure is one of the greatest forces in the galaxy, Ghostblood. Greater than all other magicks. For example, Pyromancy may claim mastery of heat and cold, but a proper understanding of the sciences reveals that these things come from the movement of atoms, not arcane elements. Pressure, properly applied, can create a void colder than the Stygian depths or a material hotter than the core of a planet." Rik wiped off the sweat beading on his face. "Observe."

He clenched his hand, and the pane of glass was crushed into a ball the size of a marble. His vision went black for a moment, and he struggled to keep on his feet. Moments passed, and the darkness slowly receded. And directly in front of him, the ball of glass had turned molten.

Tena raised her eyebrows at the display. She'd not seen something quite like that in some time, she seemed to recall. It surprised her more than she allowed to show on her face. "A good display. Can you remake it as it was?" 

When Tena heard the word "Ghostblood", it struck something in her. It didn't apply any more, did it? The Ghostbloods existed all through the cosmere and researched all the magics of it, but they'd abandoned this planet for the most part. Abandoned it and left her in charge. Her group wasn't the Ghostbloods anymore-- they couldn't be, not without the support of all the others-- but what were they? They needed a new name and a new identity, and perhaps new members could help define that. 

"You can call me Tena, by the way," she told Rik. "No one but my grandfather calls me Tenareo, and he gave me that name. You can respect me as you see fit, but just talk to me with my name."

@Grey Knight

This will be an infrequent place for me to post since I have to go out of my way to downsize literally every image I want to post. If anyone wants to see my art as it's posted, join my discord server or follow my Twitter.

I'm already doing a crime ring thing once the Vigil dies down and other plots start up. You can participate in that, if you like.

I agree with Ene in that this seems like a lot to drop on the city just because you want to do it. Unless you can find other people who want to participate in it, it won't so much be a plot as some live-roleplayed backstory for your character.

Looks like I didn't post the Tena piece here, so I'll drop it.

Tena cocked her head at him, somewhat displeased that he'd not failed. However, if he was capable of everything he seemed to think he was... "I'll consider you, but I can't accept you just because you can fly a bit and you might explode and kill me. Can you do a more complete interview, or will I have to reject you because you have so little proof of your abilities?"

Tena had known literally dozens of people who could fly or do other magic, they were as common as street cats in this city. She looked Rik over again, taking in his diminutive frame and his ill-kempt look. Would he be capable enough to be of enough use, even if he was as magically adept as he thought himself to be? Someone under the thrall of a mysterious, supposedly dangerous stranger who looked like he didn't care much for himself wouldn't do work well, it seemed to her. Perhaps he was incapable of keeping a level head under the amount of stress he seemed to be under. 

@Grey Knight

38 minutes ago, Grey Knight said:

Rik could feel his face twitch as he fought down his sudden surge of emotions.

"Tenareo of Roshar," he said, "I do not think you understand. There is a 5 centimeter wide lead-lined cube of nuclear reaction embedded into the back of my head. If I do not join the Ghostbloods right here and now, it will detonate and kill me!" A pause. "As well as you and everyone else nearby, I suppose."

He sighed. "Don't bother calling one of your healers, it won't work. I've tried. The bones simply grow around the bomb, and any attempt to surgically remove it will result in immediate detonation. Forget about it, it won't be relevant to our professional relationship. I am Rik Poot, of the aforementioned titles. I didn't find you, my master did, and I am to act as a liason between you and them.

"As for skills, I will have you know my magical powers are nearly without limit. Set me a task, and the Witch-Lord shall accomplish it before your very eyes!"

Tena raised her eyebrows and couldn't prevent a smile from twitching onto her face. "I think you don't understand something, sorcerer. If your master wants you to join a guild, and wants what I have, then they have to avoid blowing me and everyone else here up. If they want to waste everyone's time and set a guild of unstable soldiers and assassins against them, they can blow me up. Good to know your name, though."

She didn't particularly relish the idea of having someone who appeared to be under the thrall of some kind of mass murderer in her guild, but the Ghostbloods were famously home to murderers and unstable people of all kinds. "As for a task, I don't have anything for you right now." She cocked her head. "Can you fly up to the doors of the Canton of Combat? Do your nearly limitless magic powers allow you to do that?"

Without any more ado, she Steelpushed herself up to the doors of the Canton, finding herself relieved to be distanced from the new man and his hypothetical bomb.

Two sketches from yesterday's stream.

Hank Hill as Solaire for a friend of mine:

Shae, the light of my life, for me:

Day thirty: home.

CW: death.

Day thirty-one: rest.

CW: death.

Some weapon designs from earlier in the year.

Tena was still looking up at the Canton of Combat, thinking, when she heard her name-- her full name, oddly-- spoken, and turned to meet the one who had said it. She was greeted by the sight of a small, mousy-looking man with a pompous air, a staff gripped in one hand, and a body draped in a trench coat. How odd, he didn't look like anyone from any planet she'd been to. A moment later, she registered his words. How had he known what planet she was from? She looked a fair deal like some people from Sel, if with darker skin, so had he done some research on her? Doubtless she'd told many people some vague details of her past, so she decided to not worry about it.

She opened her mouth to ask what Mississippi was, then closed it as she remembered some of the names she'd heard being used to refer to Earth. That was one of them. Then what were "the Arcane Arts"? She hadn't the faintest clue, but something about the small man and his attitude intrigued her. She was reminded, for a moment, of the man she'd spent her time on Scadrial with, but while Tashut had been flamboyant, he'd never presumed himself above her. This man was something entirely new, then.

"Hello, Sorcerer," Tena said, giving him a smile. She wasn't good at putting those on her face yet, even with all the time she'd spent trying to appease people throughout her life. "You say you want to join the Ghostbloods. We are a most particular organisation about who we recruit, I should have you know. I'll talk with you here to see if you meet my standards." She thought for a moment, then continued. "Answer a few questions for me. What's your name? How did you know to find me here? What are your skills?"

@Grey Knight

On 11/2/2022 at 4:09 AM, Ixthos said:

Impressive! What did you use to paint the picture?

My favourite brush in Photoshop.

A painting from the first day of February 2021.

Hello! I figured I'd post my art here daily, since I can. Feel free to offer critique, praise, whatever you like.

Here's the first thing I'll post, a rough painting of my Alleyverse character, Tena.

Tena had been confused for the past week. Everyone she met was disoriented, trying to sort their life out after something had happened. The world had changed massively, supposedly Forged to make itself happier for all the people who lived on the Alleyplanet. That had gone wrong at some point, and she still wasn’t sure how. She was both glad that she had been on vacation at the time, and very upset that she didn’t understand what was going on around her.

Once she'd returned, it had taken her some time to find her house, which had been situated wrong on the cliff she’d had it built on. Instead of being built with most of the rooms sticking out above the canyon and close to the base, it was now most of the way up the cliff and sunken much further into the rock. She’d had to Steelpush to get up to the balcony, and she’d been half-convinced that she wouldn’t be able to Steelpush anymore after the months she’d spent on the ground. Her body felt light as wind after her pregnancy, but she knew her muscles had atrophied and she wouldn’t do herself any good working out excessively while her body was still hormonally unbalanced and recovering from her ordeal.

That ordeal, though… It had been worth it. The previous times, all she’d felt at the end had been grief and it had taken all she had to keep herself alive afterwards. She’d been fueled by irrational rage and deep sadness, she’d torn up everything around her while her mind tore itself up. This time was different. When the baby had been born, she had had a small, squealing face and hands that had tried to grab at Tena’s face and skin once she’d been washed. The child was alive and had her father’s violet eyes, beautiful eyes.

Something had tightened in Tena’s chest when the baby had been given to her. Alive, warm, whining. A vice snapped closed in her mind. This baby was hers, and she would care for her. A name had entered her mind in that moment, not one of those she’d been considering before the child’s birth. Idokai. She had offered it, and her husband had agreed.

Now, two months later, that protectiveness remained, but if Tena had to listen to any more crying, she was certain she’d go insane. Ani handled it much better than she did, thankfully, so she didn’t have to be around the child all the time. Not that she had the time for such indulgence anyway, apparently. She’d received a letter from her friend of many years, Althea, that made her the Ghostbloods’ new leader. Most of the others had fled immediately following the Forgery’s breaking, and now she was, once again, in charge. Not of many people, with how the Forgery had thinned her guild’s numbers, but in charge nonetheless.

She walked the Alleycity’s streets, passing by the wandering flows of people who were still remembering themselves. A surprising number of the people she walked by recognised her, even though the Alleycity had a population in the hundreds of thousands. She’d been here for a long time, she supposed, and she had been important, in some ways.

The city was quiet today, much quieter than usual. The government had decided to hold a vigil for the people who had been lost to the Forgery, whether by death or disappearance. She found herself standing at the base of the spire the Canton of Combat was mounted atop, looking up. She could Steelpush herself up there, if she wanted, but she didn’t need a stroll down memory lane, not now. What she needed was some time to think.

Day twenty-nine: house.

Day twenty-eight: village.

Day twenty-seven: sunrise.