Rushu42

Whoops, that's what I meant. Thanks for the catch.

Basically, it's an annual festival with themes of Rebirth. OOC, it celebrates the start of Era 5/ the Stranger's new world. Various people showed up and held conversations, but this got sidetracked when a mysterious white van was attacked by a KR Leecher named Tyrian. This freed the dangerous prisoner that the van was transporting, a character named Silas. They killed the guards, then Silas vanished and Tyrian fleed to set up an ambush. He is being pursued by Althea, an Elsecaller, while Aln, leader of the SG, and Byron, a cadmium savant, are debating how to help. I think that's a rough overview, but I have no doubt that I missed some important details. Edit: Zinc beat me to it. Curses.

I would totally suggest joining the Scholar's Guild. But then, I'm a bit biased. If you want to check it out, though, there's a thread that you can stop by. I can send my character over once she extricates herself from the current thread - or an NPC if that looks like it'll go on for a while. There's a festival thread called a Masked Dance that you can join. If you're looking for a fight, one's about to start there. There are also various location and guild threads that you could swing by, if you're looking for a conversation.

Given the length of his life, I have no doubt that he's done both great good and great evil. I think seeing who he was at the start will provide some insight into his true character, though.

This is one of the many reasons that I'm excited for Dragonsteel. I want to know how much I should feel bad for Hoid.

Oh, hey, it's been a while since I thought of this thread. Thanks for reviving it! I'll do my best not to let the team down.

I think the argument for which Shardworld to preserve has to be motivated by the number of lives that we could save. Looking at population, Sel has the most, so it seems like it would be the first choice. However, it is famously difficult to worldhop to, so that rules off the possibility of off-worlders taking refuge there. Below is a WoB that discusses the difficulty of accessing various worlds. (Note that I edited it down to the relevant paragraph). That seems to be pointing towards Nalthis as a potential top candidate. Of course, if there's no advance warning for this destruction, then the point about refugees is essentially moot. So far, the assumption seems to be that the resident Shard survives when the planet goes, so the effect this would have on Cosmere politics would just be in making all of the Shards fight over the same planet. While this could lead to some pretty awesome showdowns, I don't think it needs to be specified that this would cause a lot of problems for the mortal residents. In that case, Sel might actually be the best choice, as its relative inaccessibility would force Shards to take their squabbles off-world (at least to some extent). Plus, Selish magic can produce essentially unlimited food, meaning that it could sustain itself for as long as needed. Add that to the point that Selish magic is the one system that could not survive elsewhere, and I think it's earned my vote.

The vending machine hums happily. No one gave it any money, but it spits out a few cookies anyway, and an invitation to its next birthday party. I insert a Cosmere theory that took hours to develop and that was debunked by a single WoB in 5 minutes.

It's very probable that I'm missing the reference here, in which case I sincerely apologize. However, for now I'll give that a 3/10, because I don't really understand it. Points for referencing Stormlight, though.

My friend is a fellow Sanderfan, and she finally managed to get me to read Mistborn a few years ago. As evidenced by the fact that I have an account on this site, I was immediately hooked. At some point while we were talking about it, she mentioned that there was a character that showed up in all of his epic fantasy books. It didn't take me too long to put two and two together, and I devoted myself to reading all the Cosmere (which soon expanded into reading everything Sanderson's ever published - all I have left is Infinity Blade). Add that to my discovery of the Coppermind and this site, and the rest is history.

Fear pounded inside Aln. Who am I to fight these men? she thought once more. "You're a Truthwatcher," came Pel's faint reply. The mental connection grew weaker the further apart they were, but he had clearly been paying close attention. Whatever that means, she replied with a sigh. Nevertheless, she found herself nodding. "Okay. I'll wait."

Aln froze, stammering at the urgent look on Ben's face. "I-I'm not a warrior, Ben. I don't know what I could do." Her eyes roved the scene, taking in the decimated van, the bloodied corpses, and the fleeing merrymakers. Her stomach dropped as she caught a glimpse of a familiar face in the crowd. Her brother craned his neck in search of her, worry in his eyes and a tray of chouta in his lap. It was too much. With him here, she would be worse than helpless. Every instinct within her screamed to flee, and she nearly did. But her eyes caught again Ben's expression, and she hesitated. He was asking for her help. Her help. She took a deep breath. "Look," she said, "I can contact the City Watch. There are people who can apprehend him. But what could we do against a koloss blooded Dustbringer and a man with two Aethers? We're safest if we just head back to my Guild."

Aln stumbled backwards as a column of darkness shot from the prisoner and engulfed the unfortunate guard beside her. In her shock, it took her a moment to identify the investiture used. Storms, was that an Aether? With a Night bond, no less! She ducked behind an abandoned food cart as, finally, people started to run. Squinting back at the remaining warrior, she frowned. It looked as though he had said something about a "Cinder". A name, perhaps? This line of reasoning was immediately interrupted when the man threw a storming corpse at Althea and fled. Follow him, she told her spren upon regaining her breath. Be careful. Then her eyes sought Ben. Had he been hurt? Would he chase the man that he claimed to recognize? @Ashbringer

I think it's meant to serve a symbolic purpose. The brands represent a lot of the guilt that he carries from his past, and when he (to use your example) attacks Amaram, he becomes more aware of those old wounds. Or, at least, that was my reading of it.

@Sorana

Ben's posture shifted, and Aln looked up in time to catch his statement. The young man stood tense, hand gripping some hidden object within his clothing. "I know him." The boy clearly had more to his story than what had already been revealed. Aln looked back at the guard on the floor. "Well?" The man swallowed. "I-I'm not sure. We were transporting this prisoner, a dangerous madman. And then we were attacked by this monster with a shardblade. I- it all happened so fast. He killed the others. He would have killed me..." The man trailed off, looking distraught. Aln turned back toward the van. Whoever was in that van was capable of easily dispatching three elite guards, and he was about to release a dangerous prisoner. This could turn ugly very quickly. At that moment, she saw the familiar form of Folorian running towards her. "Folorian. Thank goodness. Listen, that van several extremely dangerous people. There will likely be a fight, and I don't want anyone getting hurt. Can you try to clear the area of people?" She glanced back at the guard on the ground. "Including this man." At that, he scrambled awkwardly to his feet. "Listen, I can fight. I've trained for this." Aln sighed. "I won't tell you what to do, but Regrowth can be draining. There's a good chance you won't make it." The man wavered for a moment, then began looking around for a weapon. Aln regarded Ben. "You might want to leave as well." That last sentence was said with much less conviction than the others, though; there was something in the boy's eyes, some hint of resolution, that made Aln doubt that he would take her advice. So she turned instead to survey the scene, waiting on tenterhooks for the conflict that seemed inevitable. @Ashbringer @mathiau

Aln watched carefully as Althea stepped up to the van, stormlight still coursing through her own veins. The other woman melted the van's door into water (Elsecaller, Aln noted) and looked inside. Aln felt herself tense. She didn't know what she would do if there was a fight. Probably run, she admitted to herself. Suddenly, a man appeared beside her in a bust of light, dropping prone on the ground. Aln cursed under her breath. So it is a fight, then. I hope Folorian hurries. The man was bleeding from a bad wound in his shoulder, and he wore a crumpled uniform. Aln knelt beside him and began to use Regrowth. Most of her spheres had drained by the time his wounds had sealed. The man looked up with grateful eyes, and Aln couldn't suppress a surge of satisfaction. That's two people I've healed today, Pel, she thought. Then she returned her gaze to the man on the ground. "Could you tell me what happened here, please?" @Ashbringer @bees?

Cryptics. Aln usually found their unique perspective on the world fascinating, but it could make communication difficult. She could at least see his words; Aln had been relieved when she had discovered that her peculiar boon still applied to Splinters. "I'm not sure if we need help, honestly," she replied, glancing up at the van. Something was happening there, that much was obvious, but it was hard to discern precisely what. Are those dents in the sides of the van? That suggested a fight. This could be very dangerous. "There's some commotion surrounding a vehicle up ahead. I was investigating with some acquaintances. Could you tell Folorian to be ready in case something goes wrong? It's very possible that we'll have to clear the area of bystanders."

Aln's stomach lurched as the world jumped around her. She had Elsecalled on several occasions, but had never grown to like it. She dropped Althea's hand immediately as the world settled back into order, then took an instinctive step backward as Ben flailed and fell over. It took her a moment to realize why - Transportation must have interfered with his Cadmium bubble. Indeed, a moment later the shimmer was back in the air around them, and Ben was painfully clambering to his feet. Aln didn't hesitate to give him the requested Progression, but her mind was elsewhere. Cadmium was a rare enough power that she rarely got the chance to observe it in person, and it was even rarer to witness direct interactions with surgebinding. Her mind drifted to the sheaf of papers in the bottom of her desk, but Pel's voice intruded on her thoughts. "Um, Aln? Kerr's here. Folorian's spren." Aln started and looked down. Sure enough, the cryptic crouched on the ground by her feet. "Kerr?" she asked. "What's going on?" Her mask slipped down her nose, obscuring her vision, and she pushed it up irritably. The festival was beginning to wear on her. It wasn't just the confusion around the van; it was the constant presence of crowds of people. It was impossible to watch them all, and the numerous conversations crowded the air in claustrophobia-inducing patterns. She inhaled a small amount of stormlight, relishing the rush of energy, and did her best to pay attention to her companions, the spren, and the van at once. @Sorana @Ashbringer @mathiau

The Benefit of the Doubt It was odd for someone to be gardening at two in the morning, and I said so. He seemed alarmed at the statement, however, so I returned to him his dropped shovel and continued on my walk. I hope I didn't disturb him; his wife's disappearance was enough strain already.

What's your answer to the classic trolley problem? (Would you kill 1 person to save 5?) What's your least favorite class at school, and why?

Aln followed Althea's gaze to the guards. They did indeed appear to be running in the direction that the van had departed. She considered the issue for a moment. It has never been explained how Althea and her friend had known what was in the vehicle, but their suspicions about its dangerous nature seemed to be gaining credibility. "Very well," she said as Ben took Althea's hand. "I am willing to investigate." @Sorana @mathiau @Ashbringer