ZincAboutIt

Mostly I just was thinking of how to produce the sound, like the earth is full of giant digeridoos or something. The sound is the cool part imo

Lots actually but I don’t want to spam this thread. If someone makes a fantasy thread I’ll give you all too many ideas. I had an idea for a world that has a network of underground river tunnels that no longer have water, and instead wind blows through them at speed, creating a constant low hum/whistle. These windways are dangerous but allow for faster travel between places. Another idea: A world in which ~half the planet has phased into another realm, meaning that giant chunks of reality are sort of scooped out of the landscape. Travel is dangerous, so people largely don't move between established safe zones. Cartography is a risky and high-paying profession. Most of the northern polar region is totally gone - you can see directly down through the layers of the earth where that portion of the world has gone missing. The last safe city lies within sight of The Edge, but all is not well. About once every few days, someone will leave the city, walk to The Edge, and step off, vanishing completely. No one knows what calls them, or what happens to them, but no one who has ever stepped off The Edge has ever come back. (This idea largely inspired by the myth of the faerie ring, how stepping inside will take you somewhere else)

Are they actually "moving past" the self-loathing, or giving in to complete apathy? One of those may actually cause the Lihgtweaver to increase in oath level, the other would almost certainly either break or fracture the spren bond imo. If the truth no longer matters to the Lightweaver, the basis for all the Truths may become void.

Agreed. An Oath says "this is what I swear." A Truth says "this is." It's much more intertwined with the Radiant him/herself, in my opinion.

These people are mad, Lita thought, slowly tapping thumb to pinky finger, then ring finger, then middle. I'm mad too, for getting myself mixed up in this. "I killed him," Lita said suddenly, her mouth moving almost of its own accord. "My last employer, I mean. Forian. I killed him." She'd never actually said it out loud; hearing the words rose goosebumps on her arms. It was insanity, being so open with these people. But Lita was getting better and better at ignoring her own sanity. Limits, she thought. Everyone has their limits. "He wanted to frame my father for his smuggling. He told me it was the perfect solution." Lita was surprised that the acid in her voice didn't burn her own tongue. "He was so proud when he told me, like he expected me to be impressed." She stood up suddenly, planting a hand on Mac's desk, breath coming fast through her nose. "What is it about me that would make someone think I'd be rusting impressed by that?" "I put cyanide in his brandy," she said quietly. "It was too good for him." She took a deep breath and sat back down. "I've always wanted to pull back the world's curtain and see the wheels and the lights. I want to know who is pulling the strings, and writing the lines. I want to pull a few strings myself. Improve what can be improved." She looked at the little needle in his hand. "I'm tired of being a sharp tool in the hands of dull men, and duller gods." Lita met Mac's eyes, and she could see he was serious. He wanted to forge a new universe, write his own rules, know all the secrets, have complete control. She could respect that. "I'll find out whatever it is this organization wants to know," she said, tracing a slow circle on the desk. "Just... when you create that new universe of yours, don't create another Forian Tekiel." She sighed, then raised her other hand. "Oh, and that pen trick in the bar. If it's not more than a pen, I'll eat my brassminds. I want to learn." Lita felt a true smile creep onto her face, the first in over two years. "I think I'd rather like to learn everything that I can." She nodded her chin at the slender needle. It shouldn't work, but it does. "Do you have anything else that shouldn't work, but it does?" @Voidus

Lita stepped into the man's office, shocked at the opulence. Something moved out of the corner of her eye and she spun, catching a soft blanket in her arms. She looked at it, then at the man, before shrugging and wrapping the blanket around herself. The brass was already making her warm, but the blanket was so soft. She sat down across from the man at his large desk. He seemed more at ease here than he had the entire time they were talking in the tavern. This is his home, Lita thought, taking in the wood paneling, the stuffed armchairs. The right side of her mouth quirked up a bit. He is like a wealthy banker, all holed up in his counting house. He introduced himself as Mac "with a single C at the end." Particular, Lita noted. Perhaps more scholar than banker. "I'm Lita," she said, fingering one of her brass ear cuffs. Stop fidgeting. "Lita Attar." She looked up at Mac, taking her glasses off and storing them under her fur wrap. "And yes, yes I would like to accept your offer. Though, you'll forgive me for asking what that job entails? I understand that covert intelligence is, by nature, covert, but broad-strokes... what is it that I will be doing?" @MacThorstenson @Voidus

Lita followed the man and Laurelai through an increasingly-odd labyrinth of alleys and side-ways. She didn't miss the fact that he seemed rather anxious. Wonderful, Lita thought, keeping her tin on at a low burn and sticking close. The light above their heads dimmed and brightened as they went along, and eventually Lita just stopped wondering where they were. She concentrated on the man's feet, marking his steps, walking where he walked. When they emerged - seemingly out of nowhere - in some kind of elaborate bathhouse, he started rummaging around in the cupboards. Then, he climbed in. "What?" Lita said, stepping forward. The man was gone. The floor of the cupboard had fallen away to form an odd sort of tunnel, leading straight down. Suddenly, the man's voice floated up the chute. "Hurry up before the path closes! And don't look up for too long." Lita looked back at Laurelai and climbed in, praying that she didn't break her legs on the fall. Then, she slid downward. The floor was... another alley? Lita looked around, bewildered, and had the good sense to step out of the way in case Laurelai was right behind her. She glanced upward. Blackness. Lita shut her eyes hard, shuddering. The man was standing by a plain metal door, waiting for them. Dark Alley indeed, Lita thought, crossing her arms and tapping brass. Some interview this is... @MacThorstenson @Voidus

Lita chewed her lip, pulling a small vial of tin flakes out of her pocket and downing the contents. She'd need all her wits about her now. A mug of choc and two glasses of port, she thought absently. Not bad for a last meal, if this all goes to hell. "Of course," she said, following the two of them into the dark. @Voidus

Lita watched the man's expression cloud for a moment, the shadow of disappointment cross his face. A test, then, Lita thought, pursing her lips. I've answered wrong? She felt a twinge of irritation. I thought you weren't one for subtlety, Mister Bowler Hat. Honesty from me, but not from thee, is that it? Hypocrisy - now there was a trait she did expect from a spymaster. Lita rolled her shoulders, rearranging her face back into a calm facade. She supposed she couldn't be too annoyed - she'd lied too, of course. Lita had her limits; Forian had discovered that first-hand. She just didn't think that it was wise to admit to murdering her former employer at a job interview. Lita said a silent prayer of thanks to the Survivor that her father was safe back in Elendel, away from this city and these people. Away from Lita. "Care to go for a walk?" The man stood suddenly, walking toward the door. Lita felt her face blanch. Rusting damnation, she thought, scampering over to the notice board and ripping her job advertisement off its tack. She balled it up in her hands, drawing her fur wrap tighter over her shoulders and following the man and Laurelai. The knife sticking through the door seemed to echo her own mood of foreboding. She cast one last look over her shoulder at the tavern, then stepped out into the city. @Voidus

More than happy to help plot and worldbuild for the fantasy thread! Zero experience running something like that, but lots of experience plotting/worldbuilding.

Thank you! The trick is zooming in REALLY close so everything is basically a straight line

It was recommended I post this here. Lita artwork for anyone interested aka what I did on my lunch break instead of eating Also, allomantic/feruchemical symbols are really hard to draw when you're only using a mouse

The man in the bowler stood up and slid a metal spike out of his pocket, spinning it about idly. "In my time here I've found that its not what people are willing to do that makes them useful, its what they aren't willing to do. When you reach a persons limits, you find out what makes them mortal. Then you can improve them. Then they can become a god." Lita looked up at that, eyes caught immediately by the glint of that metal spike. "Ruination," she whispered. Then she blushed, not having intended to speak aloud. She cleared her throat and downed the rest of her port. "Who can say what their limits are, until one comes upon them?" Lita said, following the slow twirl of the man's spike. She remembered wiping the white foam off of Forian's lips with his own cravat. His eyes had been so blue, even in that dim light. "But I'll tell you that every time I've found one of those limits, I've found a way to work around it. If something can be improved, well, who am I to say no?" She looked at Laurelai, who had remained silent since her boss walked in. She was twirling her pen again, having taken a few notes in some kind of shorthand. There is something odd about that pen, Lita thought, narrowing her eyes. I think I'd rather like one. "As to what I'm willing to do to find out more about the world's secrets, well..." She leaned forward, looking at that spike again. Curiosity and greed coiled together like twin snakes through her blood. "I ran through a rip in the world to get here. Is that something I'm just supposed to forget? There are rules out there that I didn't even know existed. How many am I breaking without even knowing it?" She licked the tip of her finger and ran it along the rim of her glass. The hollow note hung in the air between the three of them. "How many more could I break, if I did?" @Voidus @MacThorstenson

Lita blinked at the man, taking the cookie automatically, then setting it on the counter. Definitely not, she thought. Well, no subtlety. That was odd for a spymaster but then again, Lita had met people with stranger quirks. She breathed out through her nose, glancing at Laurelai, who seemed nearly as unsettled as Lita felt. She didn't miss that strange little protrusion at the woman's shoulder, visible now as she shifted. Lita shivered, then looked back to the suited man. "Alright then," Lita began, picking up her glass and taking another drink. "My name's Lita Attar. I'm a tineye - well, a Twinborn actually. Brass Ferring, but that's not much use for spying. I have experience working espionage, back in Elendel. My uh... former employer was a minor lord involved in smuggling. He was in the constabulary, and I used to listen in at parties, functions, that sort of thing. No one knew I was a tineye - my father kept it a secret. He had me spying on his customers since I could run drinks through the soothing parlor. My eyesight is absolute rubbish without my tin on, so no one expects it." She took her glasses off the edge of her nose and waved them a little for extra effect. "I like secrets, and I've developed a bit of a taste for..." Murder? that nasty little voice suggested. "...power," Lita finished. "I've heard that your organization has plenty of both, and I'd be willing to gather whatever kind of information you need." She looked up at the man, then her eyes strayed back toward Laurelai's shoulder. Now there is a secret I've never learned, sure as daylight. "After a lifetime of listening at keyholes, I've realized that most people are impossibly dull," she said softly, almost to herself. "Most people have all the same secrets, did you know that? Lovers, addictions, embezzlement, violence. Everyone same as the last. But I've caught glimpses of other kinds of secrets - the kinds of things that flit through the corners of your eyes. The kinds of secrets the world itself keeps from us." Lita could feel her pulse quicken, her cheeks flush a little. Too much port, she thought, but her mouth kept moving. "If you know a man's secret, he'll do whatever you want," she said, swirling the last of the red liquor absently. "But if you know the world's secret, you can do whatever you want." @Voidus

I really like the backstory!

Lita felt that familiar mixture of fear and excitement curl in her stomach, and she forced herself to smile. "I certainly hope so," she said. She expected Laurelai to write down a name or an address for her, or perhaps a meeting time and place, very hush-hush. That was how Forian had done business, all cloak and dagger, intermediaries and drop points. Lita was halfway towards asking her about that strange pen trick when the tavern door opened. The man who walked in was dressed rather like a wealthy banker back in Elendel, with his fine suit and bowler hat. His eyes flicked over the tavern, resting on Laurelai and walking toward her. An absurd thought floated through her mind, and very suddenly, Lita was certain of two things: Laurelai had somehow just sent for this man, and he was incredibly dangerous. With effort, Lita took a sip of port and adopted what she hoped was a polite, curious expression. “Now what do we have here?” the man asked quietly. Lita took another sip of port; it tasted like ashwater. Her eyes flicked toward Laurelai, unsure of the hierarchy here. Think, Lita. What's important to these people? Power, knowledge, subtlety, intelligence. That meant no playing dumb, but she couldn't be too blunt either. If Lita spoke first, would that be taken as insubordinate, or expedient? Ruination, why couldn't she have been born a soother? Hell, Lita thought, setting down her glass and looking up at the man in the bowler hat. The cat's among the pigeons now. "Good afternoon sir," she said, flashing him a small crescent of white teeth. "We were just discussing a potential meeting of two interested parties. I must say, your appearance is quite fortuitous." @MacThorstenson

I really hated Amaram's ending. He was such a fascinating antagonist and I thought that maybe we might actually get a POV from another morally ambiguous character but alas! I honestly wish he had been a POV character this whole time, it would have really upped the tension to hear both "sides" on the Kaladin-Amaram grudge and probably believe both of them to a degree. Amaram's story arc seems to have been "actual honorable person slowly corrupts himself over time." He clearly sees himself as the hero of his own story and he is also obviously torn up inside about what he did to Kaladin. I think going through his POV and then having him succumb to Odium in the end would have been the perfect foil to Dalinar's ending, where he rejects the offer. I still loved Oathbringer but there was so much potential to go deep that wasn't taken. I also thought that the whole portion in Kholinar was weird in that there are two Unmade running around but barely any of the main characters feel their effects. Shallan, who at that point in the story has the mental fortitude of wet tissue paper, is still able to resist the Heart of the Revel. None of the main characters are tempted into excess, hedonism, or corruption - not even Elhokar or Adolin, both non-Radiants. When Elhokar confronts Aesudan in the palace and she turns to him and says something like "Ashertmarn? It's just a distraction," I felt like she was breaking the fourth wall and talking to me. I'm not entirely sure why it was included at all. It was cool, but I felt like it was in that disappointing grey area where it was talked about and hinted at enough for me to think it was important, but it didn't actually create any new lasting character development moments/consequences for the main cast. Ah well!

Lita narrowed her eyes as she watched Laurelai change. It was a subtle thing, but tin let a person catch many subtleties that escaped an untrained eye. She seemed to diminish. No, that's not it, Lita thought, raising her glass toward her mouth automatically and taking a sip. She's rearranging... something. Laurelai's posture changed, all trace of guile and haughtiness replaced with a keen intellect. She looked Lita straight in the eyes now, noble accent now completely abandoned. Lita felt a small surge of pride at having guessed she was faking. It's cards on the table now, Lita told herself. She could still back out, explain that all she was looking for was a little coin, but that door was rapidly closing. Lita felt her skin prickle. Is that really all you want? that small voice whispered. Just a little coin? Lita knew the answer. She could have made a tidy living simply filling brass Excisors for Malwish explorers, but instead she chose to take odd jobs, listen at keyholes, mix poisons that found their way into unsuspecting cups. She felt her hand creep into her pocket, fingering the cold, heavy chain of Forian's gold watch. You miss it, the voice cooed. The secrets, the lies, the power. Lita knew it was true. She'd killed Forian but she'd never been able to forget what it had been like to be his tineye. My secret weapon, Forian used to say, wrapping her in furs and jewelry, whisking her off to parties. My beautiful little secret. Lita swirled her port and gave Laurelai a smile. "Hypothetically," she said, tapping the side of her glass, "I'd say that this city - this world - is built on secrets. I love a good secret, always have. Knowledge is power, after all. And who doesn't want a little more power over one's world?" She set down her glass, willing herself not to fidget. "We're all adults here, we both understand that what you don't know most certainly will kill you. I'd just rather be the one holding all the cards, instead of the one bleeding chips." And some brass allomancy wouldn't go amiss either, she thought, both revolted and intrigued by the possibility. But we'll talk about that later.

"Thank you," said Lita, taking a sip before fishing a few more chrysts out of her pouch. Running rather low on these, she thought ruefully, poking over the remainder of her spending money. I do hope coming here ends up paying off.

Lita jumped when the large newcomer bellowed for wine, extinguishing her tin and squeezing her eyes shut at the ringing in her ears. She put a hand to her head, scolding herself for her own foolishness. When was the last time she left her tin on so high in a crowded bar? She put her spectacles back on and turned toward the bartender, Malu, while still keeping half an eye on Laurelai. "Actually," she said, waving down the barkeep, "if it's not too much trouble, I'll have another glass of port please." @Invocation Don't get drunk, Lita told herself, tapping a nail on the counter and shooting the blonde another glance. But on the other hand, she wasn't sure she wanted to have the rest of this conversation completely sober, either.

Great choices! I have the Hidden Citizens re-make of "Romeo and Juliet" on a Kelsier playlist, I love detailed classical music for Mistborn characters, it's so twirly and mystical.

If she's not a member then I'm the Ascendant Warrior, Lita thought, watching Laurelai swirl her drink. So many secrets in this city, each one pressed up against someone else's neck like a knife. Not for the first time, Lita wished for her father's gift. She'd hardly need tin to catch secrets if she could simply soothe someone into telling her instead. There's only one way to get a second Allomantic power, a little voice whispered into her ear. And you may have walked right into someone who can help you acquire it. She pushed the thought away, chewing her lip and purposely flaring tin to accent the pain. She'd listened to that voice before, the voice of her own greed. It was the reason she was in this rusting city and not back in Elendel with her father. Leave now, the sensible part of her brain urged. Get up, go home, and hope this woman forgets you while you still have some decency left. She remembered Forian Tekiel choking on the floor in the dim light of her father's soothing parlor, nails digging tiny furrows into the wood planking, the shock in his eyes both pitiful and satisfying. Watching him die hadn't brought the sense of peace she had hoped for, but it had brought the world just a little bit more under her control. Lita set her empty glass down on the bartop and breathed out slowly. She was already out of decency. "If only I had the good fortune of meeting someone like that," she said, tapping brass. She shivered anyway.