18th Shard

Maybe go with the Alleys getting attached to people, preventing the DA from getting in them, and Departments are in a Cold War standoff to "acquire" important Alleys through different means. The normal people are all the ones who get attached to Alleys.

I mean, based off Mac's report: Dept of Sales: Voidus R&D: The Stranger Dept of Advertising: ?? Dept of Recruitment (Acquisitions?): DoCI: Lita (formerly Mac) Dept of Spying (Intelligence?): Dept of Shipping: ?? Dept of Inter-Guild commerce: ?? Dept of Public Relations:?? Dept of Biochemistry: Aylitha (?) Dept of Alleymatics:?? Department of Testing & Analysis: Xanas (though I plan on replacing him at the end of the era). So about 5/12 heads filled, with 2 having been heavily involved in the Forgery and 3 massively affected by it. That power vacuum could Kickstart something.

Idea: I think having Departments themselves splitting under pre-Forgery and during Forgery leaders and groups might be interesting, with each Department Head trying to get consensus that they are in charge.

I'm getting kind of a Malazan vibe from the above ideas. You could have some parts of the Alleys and DA remain affected by the Forgery - when the Forgery breaks, the world is released but parts of the Alleys remain affected. Then the Denizens remaining in those portions would want to reestablish dominance and not bow down to heads they don't know.

I thought Raysium's ability would be cool - siphoning active Investiture out of someone into something else.

I like the idea of meta-investiture as Rushu mentioned above because on its own it isn't too powerful. We already have Seekers and Leechers and Aluminum Gnats. But making it more common for normal people, NPCs and PCs, means that having Investiture is no longer as universally powerful. Maybe we term it as a Resonance that occurred between the Innate Investiture of the people in the Alleyverse and the Forgery. Edit: They're powers that don't lend themselves to conquering but to resisting conquering.

I like this idea. Snapping into powers similar to A-Bronze, Aluminum, A-Nicrosil, Raysium, etc. could also help negate some of the more OP characters' standing out so much.

Xanas is head of the Department of Testing and Analysis.

Sanax smiled. "Of course! I love introductions. Defining variables is an important part of any science, and this seems like a particularly fun experiment." The bubble kept everyone moving slowly, but Sanax was too excited to pay it mind. Too many interesting Investitures illuminated inside the interior of the room. He darted quickly to the other side of Victoria, holding a hand in front of her. He started speaking rapid-fire. "This is Nurse Victoria Estrella. She works here at the hospital." He covered his mouth conspiratorily, "She's a Soother. That means she's probably trying to calm you down right now. It's instinct." He slipped a gloved hand into her pocket and pulled out a small vial of Brass, shaking it with a knowing smile, then slipped it back. Pickpocketing is so much easier when they are a bit in slow motion! He took a step to the other side of the room. "That one called her Vic, though, which is one hundred and four backwards in Roman numerals, though I doubt she means that. Scadrians don't usually use those. But thirteen times two cubed is a good number." Sanax flitted behind Reshilore, jumping onto the bed. That one was holding Vivica's drawing. "This is Reshilore, if I heard correctly. Resh, for short. Could almost be a Tai-na name. Mythology of the Islands - Lore of the Reshi. I don't feel any Investiture at the moment, but that doesn't mean much. I'm not hungry right now." He looked Resh up and down. "You would look better in a coat. You could pull of the absent-minded professor or the mad scientist if you did it right." He bounced back over to Ben. "I am the aforementioned Sanax Khaevarin. Type 1.5 Biochromatic Entity, a non-spontaneous sentient manifestation in a deceased host, without Biochromatic endowment. Though I also eat light, which is a handy control variable." He stepped to the side of the kid. "Introduce yourself for us, good sir. Your bubble's very nice. Very smooth." Sanax picked up a pencil that had rolled near his foot and then dropped it, his eyes following it to the ground. He giggled as it fell slower than it should. Time dilation could be so much fun. @Ashbringer @ZincAboutIt @Fatebreaker

I don't think we've ever had a Fused since I've been active. I'd think there should be a base Fused point value for the healing and potential reincarnation, and then an additional cost based on the Surge (similar to a surge fabrial), but I'm no mod. Also, I think we have had FTL Cytonic mentioned pre-Era 1 in the Alleyverse. Which means they predate the Cytoverse and came only from Defending Elysium.

Just a note on topic, Sanax doesn't actually see them. He is more sensitive to the Investiture of the Forgery acting up, but he doesn't see the creatures until everyone will.

So you're saying that you have two 'holes' in the Forgery in the same room as two of the craziest DA members, and Byron? Poor Byron .

Sanax woke to a trembling in the world. It was an unusual trembling - Sanax knew there was no tectonic activity in this world. Like Roshar, the continents had been made unnaturally. There was no slipping of faultlines, no volcanic turmoil that could unleash this furor. This was the wrath of the gods who had wrapped the world in lies. Sanax stood warily, swaying with the building. He'd never done measured the liquefaction potential of this world. Maybe the ground would fluidize. Sanax had never seen fully fluidized surfaces, though he'd heard about some of the effects. It would make a fascinating experiment. Sanax stepped carefully toward the nearby doors. Down the hall an open door revealed people standing around in the room - four persons to be exact. The first, Victoria, a neat, nurturing nurse, normally nearer the northern wing, Sanax thought. She was a circle, for sure - Soothers often were. The second, hugging her, had curly black hair in tangles about his head. Sanax almost thought he should be blinking or beholding blindly, but perhaps he just reminded Sanax of an old friend - a tangled knot or maybe a spiral. The third - a triangle's point, that number - glowed faintly to Sanax's eyes, and a distortion diaphanously dangled disjointed the doorway. Time bubble. The fourth was a woman who seemed familiar. There was a hunger in her eyes and a piercing look to her eyes, glazed with an empty Light. Sanax had never seen this woman before, he thought, but he recognized the look. This woman was a maze of Alleys, a fractal image. This must be the resident of the room. This must be the one who saw an imaginary octopus. Three more, and we could have a real one, Sanax chuckled internally. Sanax stepped into the room, the slowed time sliding from him like water on a slick slope. The bubble dragged on him, but it had no hold to slow him. Sanax walked with an exaggeratedly slow stride, trying to match the bubble's pace. It was like a gentle dance to a rhythm, pulsing through Sanax's chest spike like an heartbeat. Light swirled about them, and Sanax could feel its attention on them. He smiled and waved at Ms. Victoria, then bowed deeply to the other woman. "Always a pleasure to meet another Baker. My name is Sanax Khaevarin." He paused, straightening. "Oh, I have a last name. That's new. Tell me, is your hallucinatory mollusc also affected by the time dilation occuring?" @Ashbringer @ZincAboutIt @Fatebreaker

Technically, Aylitha is not aligned with the DA this era - she's working with Sudiov and the Stranger. @Rushu42 Aln did have a tracker placed on her at the Scholar's Guild to attract monsters (I just reread that bit).

Yeah, that would be right, unless Sanax starts actively Voidmaking (which he wouldn't do right now).

@ZincAboutIt @Ashbringer Sanax did collapse just down the hall from Vivica, so he's also nearby. It might be fun to have Byron try to handle both of the crazy ex-DA members at the same time. That can also help Sanax meet some of the other characters as well.

Emily heard Folorian call her name out, and turned back towards him. She hesitated, trying to think of recent patients who'd come in. There were a lot of new patients, but the Scholar's Guild did remind her of something. Oh, right, the animal attack. "I remember hearing about an animal attack at the guild recently. A few members were checked in for injuries sustained. Some monsters from the Alleys attacked or something like that. The paramedics said it was pretty messy, but I think the majority of the guild were okay. Some cuts and bruising, couple of concussions, minor infections. A few members hadn't been found last I heard, but I'm not really up to date on the situation. None of them checked into the Cognitive Ward, just the Physical Ward, so I don't know details on patient status, but if you're looking for someone specific, I can tell you who to talk to though. They won't be able to give you a ton of individual information for confidentiality reasons unless the guild head or an emergency contact gives you permission, but you would probably be able to visit them if they're stable." As she finished talking, something that felt like an earthquake rocked the building. Emily was familiar with the sensation - she'd gone to UCI for her BSN degree, but she didn't remember there being any faults near the hospital. @mathiau

@mathiau I know Folorian's question has been left hanging - I've been a bit busy IRL, but I'm hoping to have her response done by tomorrow morning. Sorry for the wait! But pedantry and petulance are so entertaining. Also, presumably at the Worldspike itself, the Forgery has lasted even longer than it has generally in-world, since the large amounts of Investiture should cause at least a little time dilation there.

Or in other words, you want to be the product to work on instead of the raw materials with most DA members.

Oh, boy. Do I have to break out my emergency stash of canned pineapple for safety?

I mean, Aon Kii can cause guilty people to feel pain, but they would probably have to feel guilty. That's the closest, I think. Non-cosmere: The Oath Rod in WoT could be used to that effect, but not unless someone is willing to swear on it. Indirectly, you could use the Daredevil approach of Tin allowing you to sense minor changes in demeanor. Strong enough emotional Allomancy could be used to make someone want to. Edit: There is a pair of Lenses capable of that in Alcatraz, but they're implied to be the only ones. Wolfbrothers in WoT can smell emotions, which can help identify lies, but it's not foolproof.

Sanax was having a bad day. His days fluctuated, good and good and good and good and good and good and then bad. Today was a bad day, not a good day. If it were a good day, he would be able to think and to want to get up. If it were a good day, Sanax would want to look at people, see how their souls were wound, the strands and the veins and the blood. It was not a good day. Sanax hurt inside. His mind ached, his body felt more dead than normal. He could feel each and every ounce of ichor-alchohol running through his arteries, feeling like life and light and thought were flowing out. And deep inside, darkness coiled, like a venomous snake aroused by noise, waiting to strike - to lash out, to devour, to end. An empty, bottomless Void, mouth gaping open like Charybdis. The little light Sanax had eaten this week was too little, pushing too weakly to hold back the force of the Void, like degeneracy pressure in a collapsing neutron star, torn apart by gravity until there was only a hole in reality. Sanax stared at the world with black eyes, as if his pupils hoped to consume all he saw. It was not a good day. If it were a good day, Sanax could pretend to be alive. Today was a bad day. Today, Sanax was death. Dark tendrils coiled out from around the edges of his gloves, eating like moths through the hospital blankets, freeing Sanax to move to stand. He stood wearily, slowly, agonizingly. The room itself glowed with a dim light - faint Investiture stored in the molecules of everything around him. Not enough. That light was a thimbleful compared to the herculean, hateful, huge hole hidden here in him. He needed more. He stumbled to the door, and the Void slipped from his gloved hands, unable to be restrained by the aluminum. The door knob, the lock, melted away like smoke as he brushed against them. Sanax stared down the hallway. The woman next to him was crazy, but the phantagorasmic cephalopod she raved about had no more substance, no more light, than the door he’d passed through. Next down was a man who’d suffered from a poorly created Essence Mark. The hunger in Sanax knew that wouldn’t be enough. Sanax stalked like a dark spectre down the hallway. The lights flicked, electricity arcing from the electrical sockets on the wall into the waiting darkness to vanish forever. Eldritch symbols etched their way into the floor like there was acid dripping from Sanax’s feet. He peered into the next room, where a young girl quivered in her sleep. Pink glasses with odd shaped lenses lay on a side table. The girl struggled as if caught in a nightmare. There was Investiture trapped here, caught in the tangled threads of her mind. A bright Bane beamed with brilliance, blossoming from the girl’s Spiritweb. Connections stretching out of the room, along shimmering lines. A nascent nebulous Nahel nexus nearing annealing. Verdant variegated vines vying to find purchase in the child’s soul. Sanax reached out to take it, to rend the light from the girl’s soul, the darkness surging. Something inside Sanax cried out, a tiny voice screaming at the darkness. Not a child! Not that line! Sanax almost recognized the echo. Perhaps once he’d known the voice once, but no more. The darkness tearing at him, strained reaching to tear the Light, to claim it, but that voice held the darkness to the door, sobbing. Sanax listened with half an ear, the weeping harmonizing with the hunger in his soul. It sang with his own voice, he supposed. A conscience screaming. Con-science. 'With science.' An echo sounded again. Science is the pursuit of truth, of logic divorced from desires. I will be guided by logic, not emotion. The words echoed inside Sanax’s head, pressure building. He screamed, an empty, quiet sound, the vibration vacuumed by the Void. He shoved away from the door, his hands etching grooves into the wall. He could feel ripples dancing along the terrible strands that ensnared the world before him. Light pounded against him, a force insisting he was wrong. He shouldn’t exist. His memories, his powers, his self was not. Sanax fell, crawling, reaching for something, anything to sustain him, blind in the darkness. His hand tore something from the wall - cool metal, tough stone. The darkness jumped, elated. It tore light from the stones, and the cool metal vibrated, repelled by the darkness. The darkness in Sanax’s eyes cleared just a bit. A heating fabrial. Rubies, with terrified flamespren twisting. The spren could buy him another week of life. “I’m sorry,” Sanax whispered. The darkness rushed into the fabrial, tearing the spren apart, snuffing them out like a harsh wind on faint embers. The world went dark again, unconsciousness rather than Void greeting Sanax.

Now where did all this DA activity come from? The Alleyverse certainly* can't have been a ploy to lure other people in to slowly spike out their activity for ourselves. @mathiau Could you direct me where I should look for Aylitha destroying the Scholar's Guild? I don't really remember enough of that to answer from Emily's perspective. Just the page and maybe the season and year if you remember would work. As for playing powerful vs. weaker characters, I have always found that the interactions between them to be the most fun. Like an ancient cosmically powerful organization having to deal with the minutia of accounting (love Ronald @MacThorstenson), or a normal person interacting with a cosmic being. It's part of why I like the Cosmere and and the Alleyverse - you get characters like Ishar and Raboniel alongside ones like Teft and Steris. Emily is one of my favorite characters to write for that reason. @AonEne I'm a math person, so I read that sentence and was like, yeah, exactly my experience. Why would I want to describe things without math? It makes relationships between things so much more clear. However, I understand I'm unusual in that regard. Not quite eldritch blood sacrifices odd, though. And the correct answer to the above question is obviously everyone, but the more interesting question is how long can everyone last and keep the eldritch gods happy? That's the real task.

No, but she's pretty central to the Forgery, being Voidus' daughter. For most everyone else, Aylitha sends a monster to wipe their memories. Also, @Ashbringer, I just added a post from Emily finishing up Poller's visit. If you want me to edit it at all, let me know, but I basically had him sent to the pharmacy and then asked to sit down for 20 minutes or so before being released. That should give you freedom to do as you want with him. @mathiauFolorian can go with him or break off and go somewhere else in the hopsital if you want.