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Through the Living Heir

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  1. Through the Living Heir
    Rebus put on the hat - dismissing Antagonist, since it was sharp - then turned the lights on his armor red and green. “I accept the Hat of Santa from thee.” - Jack, therefore, disappeared with another whoosh of displaced vacuum. Rebus remained strapped to the table. - Jack appeared beside them, and Rebus smiled broadly. “This is an entrance to my empire - a place anyone could teleport to. Everything you see is created by utility fog and hence under my control - it could look however I wish, and it would be an impressive feat to progress further without my permission.”
  2. Through the Living Heir
    Rebus blinked, quite some time having passed. “Apologies for my Author’s inactivity.” - Dax blinked out of existence, leaving only the whoosh of air filling vacuum. Rebus, still strapped to the table, turned as best he could towards the remaining occupants of the room. “Do any of you want to go with him?” - Dax appeared on smooth, white ground, the only person in sight. The plain seemed to go off forever, eventually meeting the perfectly black sky. Rebus - perfectly whole, smiling brightly - materialized in front of him. “This is an entrance to my empire - one of the chambers I do not suppress teleportation to. With effort, anyone could enter here, which is why there is no visible way to proceed. Your friends and colleagues may be accompanying us, so I will wait to disable entry and truly begin the tour.” “In some ways, yes. We access powers reminiscent of the Authors, and often serve as their heralds. There was a time where each Author could have only one Narrator, often embodying or named after them.” Rebus turned, speaking further with Malevolence. “A bridge does not mind being stepped upon - why should it? It bears what it can, and does not complain. Pain indicates what cannot be borne, but that is not a need of the bridge, only of the builder.” The stranger paused, contemplative behind the mask. “You place great importance on pain, and perhaps, like the bridge, it will buckle under what has been placed upon it. So I ask of you what has been asked of me - do you have pain?” “Predictability is of use to me, so long as I can account for its use to you. I am here to listen to your proposal, given you’re offering a potential reward for something I already intend to do. Gaining an opportunity to outwit, wear down, or take advantage of you is of course a bonus.” Rebus smiled. “The premise of your competition is intriguing, but stakes, metrics, and targets would need to be established.” - Jack spun, eyes wide, and ran a few steps to drive his shoulder into the closest one. He had no idea what he was doing, of course, but being made of metal and thinking for yourself hopefully counted for something. - “Yes - your brother used some sort of implanted code phrase. Despite that, as you’ve presumably noticed, I haven’t executed you. I am of course taking precautions given the resources you have access to, but your arguments were quite persuasive.” Rebus walked forwards, the data he had managed to recover showing up onscreen. “Try to reconstruct your lost work - once you’ve salvaged it, I have another task for you.”
  3. Through the Living Heir
    “No. I do not.” And as far as Agony could tell, that was true. The person standing before him did not even feel alive.
  4. Through the Living Heir
    So if the victim is hurt by reality’s presence, he gets the power of reality?! Sounds like the withergeist wouldn’t even need to offer him a bond. The stranger did not turn around, but nonetheless seemed to have noticed Agony’s presence.
  5. Through the Living Heir
    “Understood. Now that your questions have been answered, does Dax want to see part of my empire before he accepts our deal?” I’d say yes. Idea generation is important, and canon doesn’t really need to be strictly followed, as long as it contributes ideas. Withergeists are hurt by the presence of reality, but can offer power to destroy it. A stranger in a long coat and mask wandered, carrying a satchel. Perhaps someone would interact with them. Jack stopped in his tracks. “No it won’t,” he stammered. “My mind is… sour. It’s sour, you don’t want it.” Springs wound tighter within him, and he leveled his tone, speaking quietly to Lyric. “I’ll distract him. I’m faster than I look, and whatever it is he does might not work while you keep singing.” - Those were good reasons. Rebus waved a hand, and nanomachines crept into Balitan’s wrist, forming a silvery tattoo. He would leave the man alive, though he would pay far more attention in the future. As for the lab… Rebus stood still for a moment, and all the computers rebooted. Not that it would stop Malevolence, but perhaps it would be helpful all the same. - Rebus raised an eyebrow at Malevolence’s proposal. There was little to gain in accepting, but there was also little to lose. “Prismite,” Rebus said, having materialized without a sound. “But Narrators replenish their supply naturally, so unless they’re fighting another Narrator or split into thousands of copies, the cost is inconsequential.”
  6. Through the Living Heir
    Even if you stuff him full of Chaotic Darkness? “I would let them choose. Of course, the sister planet might very well be one of my places, if Kimo has jurisdiction over it.”
  7. Through the Living Heir
    Not quite a Narrator, no. It would make Agony a Fallen. Rebus nodded. "Very well. I said the following: 'You can't make any decision you would like, but I'll let you do a lot of things, just like how I let the other people working for me make their own choices. Some of the first people in my empire were refugees - they were from when Utility and I fought in the Eternal Mountains, where Bat and Rose are from - and if you let me take you on a tour you'll see it's actually a good place to live.' I didn't actually say I'd let them continue, but I most likely will - I simply want to see if there is an important reason not to before I commit." I should really get to moving the Essence descriptions to the wiki... Long story short, there are three more groups like the Narrators. The Ennullers are one - they can stop things from happening or wipe them out of existence, and work to make sure nothing catastrophically bad happens, like a Narrator leaving TLT and messing around in a realistic roleplay. They also talk like this. The Luxsprites are another - they're all dead, but when they did exist they could control energy and were more calm and supportive than the capricious Narrators. Finally, there are the Withergeists. They live in the Void between worlds, and when they get into reality they try to destroy it, mainly through bonding with people and giving them destructive powers. Anyone bonded to a withergeist can also give orders to the others, but they will eventually be consumed by darkness and turn into a new withergeist (if they had magic, it can yield a more powerful withergeist. Sequence was at one point almost turned into a Narratorgeist, and a number of the Luxsprites were turned into the Fallen). And while withergeists are weaker than the other three (you can kill individual withergeists pretty easily with light or magic), their king, the Witherlord, is astronomically more powerful than pretty much any other entity in the Thread. In retrospect, I could have just linked to Xino's blog:
  8. Through the Living Heir
    "I'm sure you can understand wanting to maintain the ability to deny requests, but I do allow a lot of autonomy for my lieutenants, and some of my first subjects were refugees from the Eternal Mountains." Rebus paused. "If you're uncertain, I could show you the conditions under my reign via a short tour." - "I've read 's page - it is intriguing, though I knew much of it already." Rebus nodded thoughtfully. "As for my own, my Author shall do as you suggest." Nope. How much do you know of TLT's lore? Ah, but what if the person gave Agony the chance to kill reality instead?
  9. Through the Living Heir
    “Should you agree, Kimo Laboratories will have my full backing. I shall protect, direct, and supply your endeavors, incorporating your organization into my own. As my current head scientist has been revealed to have been planning to assassinate me, you will replace him in that position, and he will work under you should I decide not to execute him.” - Rebus nodded, a satisfied smile on his face. “What has been doing?” I wonder what Agony will do to someone for whom the presence of reality causes excruciating pain… Asking for a friend Ping me if you do want someone (said someone will not be Rebus, unless something happens related to him). Rebus, not fooled by o-b-f-u-s-c-a-t-i-o-n, shook his head. “I was not responsible; tragic backstories typically do not reference established characters, though if the Authors truly acknowledged my interplanetary empire I would have effects across the Thread.”
  10. Through the Living Heir
    Rebus laughed as well, though it was interrupted by another coughing fit. “What do you propose?” - Rebus frowned. “It would have been wise of my Author to set up the message before saying he had sent it…”
  11. Through the Living Heir
    “I came here for the Author-Killing-Blade or a chance to merge Erryin and Viper into a new personality. You refused, I attempted to start a fight, this was successful, and I’m quarantined from my powers and strapped to a table as I slowly die. You attempted to convince me to stop being a villain, and ended up repeatedly agreeing with me.” - Rebus nodded, an idea forming in his head - and then materializing in yours, because spoilers. “I think the most promising moment is one that hadn’t happened yet…” Rebus promised to prevent anyone from abusing Parisite - if it likewise becomes a being I think he’s obligated to kill it. You want a character for Anguish to interact with?
  12. Through the Living Heir
    Ah. Meat the Minstrel is the opposite of Bacon the Tax Collector, pretty much. My flu-addled mental state led me to create him, some of Bacon’s lost memories colliding with a dream spirit of the fever variety. He’s crazy and will throw pianos at you and is virtually impossible to understand due to the Plotblade Nonsense. I should do that too, perhaps (I could even contribute some information). I’m imagining a really deep yelp - kind of like the noises some video game characters (Link does this, I think) make when you jump. “You are attempting to portray me in emotional pain,” Rebus pointed out. “With knowledge of your purpose, I might point you to the initial point where I began editing my personality. Alternatively, you could use the times I’m trapped, unwritten, looping over and over without any of my imaginary actions mattering.” I split the writing, but at the bottom of my last post Rebus offers a rebuttal to Dax. If you do, Rebus will get to fight you. (Though since Antagonist did, Protagonist also probably requires a vote)
  13. Through the Living Heir
    You were going to brainwash Jack and Lyric, weren’t you? Oh, and Rebus needs a mercenary to capture Meat for him.
  14. Through the Living Heir
    Thinking a bunch and writing important things down is how I get Rebus as smart as he is - though my memory is already good. Actually, does anyone want me to write up something about how I write Rebus? The glow of darkness around the gem wrapped around your finger, spreading out from the point of contact. Your emotions twisted almost immediately, becoming harsher and darker. The whimsy in curiosity leeched away, edging towards a covetous greed. Joy turned to arrogance, satisfaction to jealous paranoia, and frustration to simmering bitterness. But the emotion that had led to this conversation in the first place, gleefully plotting to cause Rebus angst and regret? The gem latched on to that, amplifying it and twisting any misgivings into justifications and contingencies. “Oh, simply a power I thought would be useful.” You could let go of the gem, and the emotional effects would go away after a few seconds. Or… you could become Evil Hawks. Jack ran forwards a couple steps, then stopped, realizing that this too might be an illusion. He returned to a more measured walk, staying close to Lyric. - Rebus laughed. He’d suspected Balitan would try to betray him eventually, but he’d thought the man would simply rob the lab. Trying to kill him - him, Rebus? Balitan actually thought that would work? “It would be traditional to execute you,” Rebus said, tone and kind smile at total contrast to his words, “I could tear your mind apart and assimilate your skills, then fill your body with Essences and record how you die.” He put a gentle hand on Balitan’s shoulder, nanomachines and magic a single thought away from surging through that hand and doing exactly as Rebus had said. “But I will allow you to dissuade me. Please - for your sake I hope you have a good argument.” - Rebus coughed again, body still trying to reject the Mordite. Strapped to the table and quarantined off from his Narration, he couldn’t do much to address whomever this voice could be. No - they’re in Rebus’s lab. “Those words would be nothing more than a headstone in a vast graveyard of long-gone characters. Perhaps a Lurker would one day return to life a simulacrum of me, and I would be grateful for it, but why forsake my current existence for that slight change?”
  15. Through the Living Heir
    “Yes, because Bacon matters to the story. He’s entertaining and iconic - but Bacon again is a foolish template for success, because Bacon already exists.” - “Research into the Thread’s past and entanglement with the plot makes me seem older than I am. As for angst, unless overdone it can be effective for building engagement in a story.” At the third question, Rebus paused, cocking his head. Antagonist glowed atop it, set with a smoky gem that had not been there before. “Why would I have regrets? My actions are sometimes regrettable - Bat’s death, primarily - but I do not regret them.” Jack got noticeably taller, standing up straighter as his fear dissipated. Someone looking closely would notice more than mere posture had changed - springs within him, especially at his ankles, had literally unwound as he went out of fight-or-flight-mode. “We should get out of here.” - “Even if you have done something, credit is harder to establish among the Authors than one might think. People already forget I have an interstellar empire, and it truly hasn’t been that long.” Rebus raised an eyebrow and put the video up onscreen, then played it.
  16. Through the Living Heir
    "I am living, Dax. You are not real enough for your memory of me to matter - I need the Authors, and for that I need a story. Enough appeal and infamy and I could even end up as a memeplex, propagating my very idea and being between Authors." Jack nodded slowly. "Try it." Rebus supposed that made sense, since (as far as his Author remembered) he'd directly created Balitan, templating off a hypothetical person from one of Omen's trials. If there weren't any withergeist bonds being made, though, the refinement process was probably safe enough to use. "The data is an issue - my backups stopped happening when you dropped out of focus, so I mainly have our old experiments." He frowned, checking any caching on the system that Malevolence may have missed. "I feel, however, that anything that would have worked before will continue to do so - both Malevolence and I have enough established capacity and plot armor that we can draw from 'nebulous villain supplies' for our tools. Changing the Thread requires social engineering of the Authors, not just research." Nebulous Villain Supplies could be a Plotblade, though at the moment Antagonist has domain over the concept. If the Dreamsmith ever unmakes it, though... "Hello, Hawks." He smiled at the Author, then seemed to fuzz, snapping back to reality five days later and frowning at how much time had passed. "What do you have to say?"
  17. Through the Living Heir
    “Backstories are imaginary - hypothetical scenarios imagined by our Authors. Only what is here truly exists and has permanence.” Rebus closed his eyes for a moment. “Only here am I really alive. So if I stop being written, I die. My Author had characters that didn’t care about that - where are they now? I am at the forefront because I worked for it. And what else is there for me to do, besides stay alive?” “This could still be a test…” Jack mused, then shook his head. “What is your idea?” - Rebus frowned - the fact that this could happen despite his technology meant there was plot-relevance to it. “Malevolence broke in… Knowing him, he caught the tracers as well - how much of a setback is this? Luxite is the problem, both in terms of Malevolence possessing it and us losing it - everything else he could acquire another way.” As for the new process… Rebus reached out his awareness, examining Balitan’s soul on a sudden hunch.
  18. Through the Living Heir
    Rebus doubled over coughing once more, which gave the machines time to catch him and strap him to the table. The mask didn’t register any breath - Rebus’s nanomachines were directly keeping his blood oxidized and cells alive. “Power doesn’t matter. I have been too powerful for a long time - but it is the story and the Authors that decide our fates. I do not want the Author-Killing-Blade because I need it for power - I want it because it makes me threatening, makes you want to fight me. It seems to have worked.”
  19. Through the Living Heir
    Rebus coughed a third time, liquid nanomachines running down his face. “Of course I understand. Your trap is clever - it spells a slow death for nearly anyone, and forces me to abandon my body here.” The nanomachines were starting to clot, locking together around specks of Mordite so it couldn’t do more damage. He doubled over coughing once more, and when he stood up his eyes rolled into the back of his head. He kept standing, but his movements were abrupt and inhumanly smooth, computing power spread too thin to bother with natural posture. “You have me in a cage, unconscious and slowly dying. Now, let us see whether or not you have thought this through.”
  20. Through the Living Heir
    Rebus did not move as the cage came down - Narration-nullifying technology was interesting, reminiscent of the Nullite devices used by Bat and Rose, but not truly a threat. His eyes widened, though, as he realized the bars of the cage were Mordite. “Impressive, but you’re-” Rebus coughed, hacking up black phlegm and ruined nanomachines. Cracks spread out from his mouth, bleeding a silver liquid. Antagonist had disappeared, and Rebus coughed again, color and life draining from his shattered face. “Ow,” he said, mouth unmoving as speakers picked up the slack for his dying lungs. Jack shook his head, still walking. “If we keep going the same direction, we can’t not find the edge.” - Rebus’s enhanced eyes took in all of the text, though until it was described his actual knowledge of its contents wouldn’t catch up. “Balitan?” He said, walking closer. “What had occurred?”
  21. Through the Living Heir
    “You passed through what I saw as a wall, and you were able to pull me through. I think that all these walls are not real - unless we both can see them, and maybe not even then.” Jack began to walk forwards, taking hold of Lyric’s wrist to pull him along behind. He continued moving the same way they had before - any direction would hopefully exit the mall eventually. - Rebus constructed himself a body in the lab - if his anti-teleportation fields were still active, there would be enough nanomachines around for that. Rebus raised an eyebrow. This man reminded him of an Ennuller - bureaucratic and difficult to ruffle. Unlike with the Ennullers, however, Rebus held an almost insurmountable combat advantage against this man. Antagonist blinked off of his head and reformed in his hand as a halberd, though he made no other aggressive moves and was silent.
  22. Through the Living Heir
    “I keep every promise I make - Honesty is my middle name. And I do have a stake in this - and given your research, I assume you know I am the Antagonist.” The dark glow of Antagonist intensified for a moment, punctuating the statement. “This is a position I sought out - but there seem to be ever fewer heroes these days. So please, do try to stop me.”
  23. Through the Living Heir
    Dear? Rebus did move backwards, though he left hidden utility fog to snake its way to the table. “Dark Cep… a derivative of those flashbacks. Even if you’ve managed to recover Erryin, the fact that this is a skill that can be learned implies you need help, or any number of people could bring Viper back in an instant.”
  24. Through the Living Heir
    Rebus turned, honestly surprised that this man would be so calm. He was either uninformed, foolish, or highly competent - and from his bearing Rebus suspected the third. “ was responsible,” he said, impeccably pronouncing the whitespace, “and Viper was able to duplicate the feat on me. It plunges you into a vision of your greatest fears and traumas - if you can, please tell me more.” “It may have been - it seems to fluctuate, going from a katana to a dagger and back. It also may be yellow.” “I picked it, Lyric. This is my fault more than yours.” Then Jack had an idea, and tried to remember whether or not he had touched the walls. Perhaps they could simply pick a direction and walk until they got out. “I got us here, but I think I can get us out.” For the record, at one point Jack touched a wall by dejectedly slumping against it. Yeah - he’s taking a little fragment of his power to use as a key, and then copying a twisted version of the emotion warping. “Your actions are logical.” Rebus seemed to recover himself, the aura from Antagonist counteracting what Vengeance had done to him. Still, there was an alarming look in his eyes. “Oh, I am still frustrated, but you are right - you are more useful to me as an ally. I’ve killed most of your Horrors and generals, and intend to retain the remainder - you did instruct me to do so, but if desired I can acquire new underlings.” Rebus thought a message to the key he held, as Mischief was well suited to a task he wanted done. There is a man, perhaps even stranger than you are. Capturing him will not be easy, but I suspect you will find it entertaining. Then he continued, folding his hands together as his smile grew even wider. “So what do you propose of our partnership, Vengeance?”
  25. Through the Living Heir
    I too am in the terrible registration line.
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