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Through the Living Heir

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  1. Through the Living Heir
    “Neither.” Rebus said. “At least not yet.” “Did I say that?” “In part.” Rebus said. He put out a hand, and Antagonist materialized within it - the halberd form he used for fighting. - “Can, yes. Should and will are different matters.”
  2. Through the Living Heir
    “Resigned.” There was little else to say.
  3. Through the Living Heir
    A moment being mockingly patted was one not being vivisected, so that was fine with Rebus. “What do you want with me, then?” - Rebus nodded. “The collider is mostly complete, but I don’t have that chemical.” “The Witherlord has been banished before.” Rebus sighed. “Malevolence might bring about his own demise.” Mark hoped that staying within the center of the drawing was wise, but Futility seemed a worse hostage than anticipated. Rebus patched together a coherent conversation scene, although 9/10 had already departed. “That is entirely correct. In fact, I could argue that our goals are quite similar in many ways.” That’s a great question - I barely know. They can be constructed from just about anything, register as more-or-less alive, and involve a hand-wavy particle called an omnion. Unintelligible was correct on all counts. - Rebus started to respond, only to find Malevolence gone. He hadn’t truly known what he was going to say, but as he disappeared he had made up his mind. And so as Malevolence neared the top, Rebus was waiting there for him. He wore his old longcoat, which was buffeted by the storm. - Jack… did know. A little. “Something fundamental about the universe. My creator has talked about it.” - “A certain mountain. I can take you there - conflict may come before Conflict.”
  4. Through the Living Heir
    “We’d be dead, or Withergiests, or hiding in other realities. It would be quite problematic.”
  5. Through the Living Heir
    There legitimately was a villainy class a while back. “I’d been intending to dramatically spin around in a chair…” Rebus had reasons for converting 9/10mmHB#2’s name to micrometers, but as they didn’t make any sense he didn’t share them. “Malevolence believes in evil for its own sake. Quite frankly, it makes no sense - blind belief in ideals is a trapping of the good or short-sighted.” Rebus tugged, futilely, at the chains. “Where’s Evaiya?” he demanded, injecting desperation into his voice. - The stuff that fuels the portal. “Corrupting chemical” I believe you called it.
  6. Through the Living Heir
    Rebus stayed unconscious longer than he should have. He groaned, groggy without nanomachines to wake him up throughly. Still, his powers weren’t what made him dangerous - he grinned at Cyrus, teeth bared and eyes sparkling. Rebuses being held hostage: 3. - Rebus committed the blueprint to memory, and set aside a fairly expendable planet on which to construct it. “I assume input materials are required to active at.” “I shall assist Charnyx; if you won’t allow me to, then I shall fight you.” - “Sure!” Jack walked back towards the forest so they could navigate. - “As soon as he can do what is required, I suspect.” Rebus smiled slightly, watching to see what would happen. Asharak’s plan was clever, and Rebus needed to find a weakness. Rebus continued to scheme, of course. He nodded to Charnyx, moving in bursts as his Author found bits of time to write. “Instructions to summon the Witherlord. If Malevolence can do so, he’ll likely use the power to try and destroy the Thread.” Rebus, on the other hand, believed the Blade compensated for lack of training but allowed cleverness and determination to decide the result of a fight. Rebus would indeed die, but it would be neither ordinary nor particularly impactful. Conflict could certainly stop his body from reforming, though. Rebus smiled - it seemed disabling the security system had let in practically every villain-adjacent character who cared to be around. “900μmHB#2. I see you’ve found yourself a shell - congratulations.”
  7. Through the Living Heir
    He certainly did. Definitely. Very unconscious. - “Not everything,” Rebus replied. “What do you need?” “What would you require?” - Jack thought for a moment, motioning that Lyric should probably write down all there in the journal. “The first one, I think.” - “It was Malevolence.”
  8. Through the Living Heir
    Frankly, I need to write up some other stuff - I’ll deal with more flashbacks later. - Rebus’s own systems interfaced with the lost nanites, sandboxing themselves so tampering would not spread throughout the network. Jack smiled. “Great. Shall we go?” - “Of course Bacon is a better Narrator than I; it is one of the only things he is.” Rebus smiled. “And I’m not here to stop you, Malevolence. I am here to help you.” - “Training with Conflict means very little - it might actually make you weaker.” Rebus chuckled. “You wish to operate under exact wording rather than intent? I am happy to oblige… I’ll give you the time, however - someone to wield that Blade would be of great significance when fighting the Witherlord.” Rebus took off his gauntlet, and stabbed the needle into his hand, right in the center of the burn scar from Redemption. - That was very strange, yet perfectly fitting. Rebus nodded. “You are correct. There are a number of reasons for this - one may be the sizable metaphysical explosion Malevolence just set off.” “Malevolence has surpassed me in pursuit of the Lost Page - I suspect that will quickly become significant to the Thread as a whole.” Rebus disappeared, off to continue his plans.
  9. Through the Living Heir
    Rebus was truly worried - the Thread was stagnant, close to death. Sequence had thought the same, it seemed - everyone was invited to an unscheduled party. - “Neither. l’d thought you understood me better than this.” Rebus grinned, eyes glittering. “I’m not going to stop what is happening. I’m going to take advantage of it.” Rebus smiled - unlike the box, these cuffs certainly had gaps. He didn’t escape immediately, though - the element of surprise was important to maintain. That is indeed Nullite. - Ooh! This shall be good. That was truly intriguing… Rebus waited, watching his memories as he tried to make sense of the development. Rebus was there, standing on the path. Antagonist hummed, but he was patiently waiting to fight. Aelinor seemed to misunderstand the functionality of the Blade, but Unintelligible would be an acceptable opponent regardless.
  10. Through the Living Heir
    Rebus raised an eyebrow at the box. Nullite was quite durable, but not indestructible. Power would be an issue, but there should be enough… Nothing happened outside the box. Rebus remained, gazing at the papers as though frozen in place. Jack nodded. “We should get the events at the mall too.” - “I could have said the same to you.” Rebus spun around in his chair, smiling. Antagonist hummed atop his head, almost as though it was laughing manically. “I am here, in part, to offer my congratulations. You’ve beaten me to the Page, and even avoided me reading it through your computer network.” Time passed. Cricket fought Malevolence, paying no heed to his actual nemesis. Rebus found other things to do, other ways to keep himself important. Then came the party. - Rebus laughed. “Oh, this is a setback, but it is far from over. The Witherlord is fundamentally unstable, narratively - especially when I still hold Antagonist.”
  11. Through the Living Heir
    Rebus simply decohered, flowing through the bars of the cage as a cloud of nanomachines before rebuilding his body outside it. Assuming there to be gaps, that is. “Thank you very much!” Jack smiled at the shopkeeper as she left, then at Lyric. “Sure! We can use the last bit of the notebook for the various wisdom, and the front as your journal.” He wrote “shopkeeper: avoid Narrators and trouble” at the end of the book, then handed it over. Someone was laughing. A dark laugh, echoing throughout the warped space inside the vault. “Congratulations, Malevolence.” I concur - and I probably won’t even kill them this time.
  12. Through the Living Heir
    “I could,” Rebus said, allowing Kyler a moment to get up. Unless something had gone wrong, Evaiya would be waking up now. Jack smiled, accepting the supplies. “Just been on out alone for some time - not used to people.” “Of course.” Rebus smiled, and the lights began to blink on. “Power matters less than you’d think - I am glad to have you as my employee.” That’s legitimately so cool.
  13. Through the Living Heir
    I’m mostly bringing piecemeal dialogue from my ranting at that time, so the emotion is genuine but I can clean up the descriptions. Rebus would have said something - yelled at the Author, mustering every ounce of anger and melodrama. Instead, he ceased to exist. For a time, there was nothing within his Author’s mind - Heir slept, and so Rebus was cast into oblivion. That was terrifying, of course - but it was also empty of thoughts. When his Author woke, however, Rebus flitted on the edges of his mind - unable to act, to make any impact but an endless fog of resets, trapped in little bits of daydreams with neither continuity nor comfort. When Rebus returned to life, it was as he should be. He was calm, manipulative. “I know more than you seem to think - mere age does not determine wisdom. Creating history is not the same as changing it, but perhaps I was unreasonable in my judgement.” Storm was an Author, far more dangerous than he claimed Cricket to be. Still, the anger was important - he brought the feeling into his mind, allowing aggression to seep into his words. “I await the return you have promised. You may not have noticed the relevant post, but my Author did write the beginning of the duel after Cricket appeared to challenge me.” Rebus smiled - the ironic sort of smile one could make to make those you threatened feel you were very very dangerous. “You could alter what has occurred and pick up from there as though none of this has happened. Or you send all of this in a very different direction - because I too am dangerous.” Then he blinked out of existence, leaving only the memory of his words and the sound of a collapsing vacuum. - “Everything achieves something, Asharak.” Rebus gestured, sending a wave of fresh utility fog at him. “This building stops me from replenishing my power - outside it, I could surgically turn you into an elephant if I wanted to.” Rebus’s hand reconstituted itself, and be tried to flip Kyler to the ground.
  14. Through the Living Heir
    Rebus spoke again, softly now - though still full of venom.“If every Author acted as you have, it would destroy this world far more surely than the mere release of the Witherlord. We would fall to chaos - nothing would matter, and none would care. So think on that, Author. Contemplate what you have done, and decide what it is you will do.” And then, Storm laughed at him.“You know nothing, Rebus.” Rebus seethed as the Author spoke of his age and Authority.“I'll have you know, I did not alter continuity, for no fight was happened. I merely altered the deal." "Rebus, beware. I am thinking, and . . . the time is ripe for Cricket's return. His full return. He is dangerous, and, he will not show mercy." It was almost funny. All this time Rebus had waited for Cricket’s return, and he goes to Malevolence while his Author says to beware it. No hard feelings, Storm - though at this time I was quite mad, this is merely a flashback to it. - Rebus raised an eyebrow - this would certainly make things harder. “Now, I assume you plan to fight me?” Rebus grinned, despite the blow, and his hand disassembled in front of Kyler’s face. The gauntlet unfolded and pulled back, but then his hand - skin, muscles, and bone - did the same, separating into component pieces. “I could take you apart atom-by-atom and put you back together again, if this place didn’t stop me from teleporting in more antimatter.”
  15. Through the Living Heir
    Rebus, hovering, continued his rant.“You simply invalidate everything that has been agreed. Continuity is all that this world exists upon!” He was speaking fast, now, and getting louder and louder - it wouldn’t mean much to an Author, but something in the back of his mind knew anger mattered. “Only consensus keeps the Thread as a world. Only respect for decisions and events even allow all of this to exist! Without that, I could kill Cricket a thousand times over with no more effort than a breath. And yet it would mean nothing!” Rebus’s eyes flashed, punctuating the statement as it echoed in the sudden silence. - This… worked. The signals were accessible. The messages between nanomachines themselves made sense - part of it gave direct instructions, moving things around at nanoscale, while the remainder seemed to be bizarre self-modifying commands to relay further directions. From the outside, however, was much stranger. There was clearly some manner of heartbeat protocol, mixed with authentication, new directives in the same emergent compression, and messages of unknown purpose. Rebus frowned, running up the air - utility fog - and over Kyler’s head. Unless his Author was especially oblivious, Vieyk was someone new. “I have a lot of leverage - very little is impossible.” He said, dropping down behind Kyler and beginning to choke him. Nanomachines seeped through her pores, permeating her bloodstream and flooding it with chemicals. Oxygen to supplement what the lungs could gather, stimulants to wake her, and a dash of sedatives to prevent panic. Jack handed them over, tucking the butterfly back into his pocket. - Rebus was… worried. Not terrified - Bacon could be quite resilient - but this still established a clock to his own progress. There was a pirate flying on a frost whale there, as well as some unfathomably gigantic creatures. Each was larger than the last, and would swoop down to swallow it whole.
  16. Through the Living Heir
    “What Author are you attempting to hide from - and how truly hidden do you wish to be?” Huh. Going back, I seem to have missed that Evaiya fell unconscious. Rebus’s nanomachines poked at Evaiya, evaluating the effects of Kyler’s strangling. Rebus raised an eyebrow, stepping forwards to grab his wrist and hold the knife away. “That man seems worse than I,” he said quietly, “in both morals and capabilities. I don’t know what he is doing to keep you in his employ, but I could get you out of here.”
  17. Through the Living Heir
    Rebus smiled. Likewise for Glass: “Of course not,” Rebus said. “There are four different ways that this could be done - the ones not needing Authorial cooperation simply have side effects.” Rebus could have found him anyway - he glanced at the cabin and winked.
  18. Through the Living Heir
    Rebus blinked, then laughed - not mocking, merely stunned by the audacity. “That… it depends upon what your goal is. While the world could be brought completely out of the Thread, anything short of that would rely on that Author to - for lack of a better word - allow the device to work.” Rebus stood there, waiting for Kyler to come at him again. He could negotiate with Cyrus, of course, but Evaiya was the one who actually wanted something from the man. “The deal’s off.” It was Storm, of course. Cricket’s Author, back after all that time only to invalidate all Rebus had waited for. Rebus’s hopes and schemes crumpled. Compassion and mirth were smothered in disappointmen. He smiled, eyes unfocused. It was his deepest facade, cracking as this man ruined the very foundation of Rebus’s world. The duel mattered - but the very foundation of reality, all that stood between TLT and oblivion, every bit of what allowed Rebus to exist? That mattered more. Rebus spoke slowly, rage barely contained. “So this is what you did.” Energy coalesced around him, fury channeled into magic. “You call off our ‘deal’.” Rebus was no longer smiling. His words came faster and harsher, outrage breaking through the fragile placidity. “You simply invalidate everything that has been agreed. Continuity is all that this world exists upon!” Rebus lifted off the ground, magic and rage holding him aloft. - Mindscaping the nanites proved quite effective - their operating systems evidently made them sapient enough for it to take effect. Their memories and fears were completely alien, however - strings of numbers and molecule-level actions, with neither self-preservation nor guilt. “Good.” Rebus said. Then he disappeared, recognizing that each plot thread he was in made it harder for his Author to answer everything in time. All eight of those could conceivably be Plotblades. My rule of thumb is to check TVTropes - if it has a page with at least a few literary examples, it can almost certainly work. Jack was visibly relieved. “The butterfly can run messages, but if there’s someone who can change the money that’s probably better for us both.” Rebus appeared almost instantly.
  19. Through the Living Heir
    Rebus’s expression was a mix of bemused, intrigued, and vaguely disappointed - until Desolation spoke once more. Rebus grinned. “Desolation, I have a sci-fi aesthetic and a doctorate in Applied Metaphysics. What do you need made?” Rebus - calmly walking towards Kyler - held up four fingers. “I could give you these powers, if your boss gave me something in return.” Then he spun, sweeping his leg up for a roundhouse kick even as he continued speaking. “You could also defect, of course.”
  20. Through the Living Heir
    “If you’re unwilling to accept favors, much of what I have to offer is either redundant or esoteric. An Ennuller core is likely the rarest physical object I possess - other than Antagonist and the other Plotblades, of course.” Then Rebus smiled. “Your blade works best on what it strikes, correct?” There was another shockwave, and Rebus appeared next to a mid-jump Kyler, his arm positioned such that it would impact on Kyler’s neck. That’s four-and-a-half flash steps remaining, if anyone cares. Jack rifled through his pockets, pulling out and returning several green pieces of paper in the process. He finally found what he wanted - a wind-up butterfly crafted from beautiful filigree.
  21. Through the Living Heir
    “A physical piece of whatever it is Desolation is composed of - ink, I suppose - would be best, but if you can be around as Desolation absorbs a significant quantity of Narration, that would suffice.” Rebus launched forwards, a pillar of utility fog propelling him into the air at slightly more sedate - and efficient - speeds. Jack gulped. Maybe money would be a problem after all… “Like I said, we are travelers - cressmarks aren’t in use where we’re from. Anything else you’d take?”
  22. Through the Living Heir
    Jack relayed the message. “Scratch that - potatoes, fresh vegetables, and jerky would be nice.” - The High Priest of Random Nonsense hadn’t been seen in quite some time, but that was to be expected.
  23. Through the Living Heir
    “You’re not trying to steal Desolation’s powers to fight me?” Rebus raised an eyebrow, though perhaps it was predictable that Atreides would scheme differently from him. Jack resolved to write that particular philosophy in the book, though the Narrator he met had seemed nice enough. He looked at Lyric, who was presumably still trying to avoid the interaction. “I don’t think we do.”
  24. Through the Living Heir
    “Desolation, if I had any idea what you wanted I would have started the conversation with that. Last I heard from you, you were claiming to somehow be capable of living beyond the Authors - something I neither believe is possible nor am likely capable of helping with.” Unfortunately for Kyler, I think Rebus is pretty clearly the Gojo equivalent in this case. Rebus smiled again, his forearm coming up to block the strike. It worked, too - Rebus’s armor, thin as mundane clothing, was nevertheless completely solid. “Nar ratin?” Jack blinked, before deciphering the accent and connecting it to a word he’d heard only a few times before. “No, we are just ordinary travelers, trying to find someone wise enough to know the meaning of life.” He chuckled, the slightly mechanical edge to it having nothing to do with Jack’s composition. “Wouldn’t want to walk all that way and forget it before we come back, right?” - Rebus considered his clutches to be rather unpathetic, but he’d welcome the attempt as more to do. Rebus smiled. “The first step in fulfilling that obligation would be granting me the fruits of something you might already intend to do. Get me an Inkling energy signature - not necessarily Desolation, but there aren’t too many others around - and you’re absolved of any need to actually defend me. You’re still my general, with the privilege and duties that implies, but this would give you leeway to do anything short of physically attacking me or giving away my empire.”
  25. Through the Living Heir
    I’m not too up to date as to what’s going on - do you mean my world, or this ammonia-y one?
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