Night 2 - Close Call
The atmosphere was electric in the worldhopper's conference. One of their own was being charged with...well, nobody was later quite sure exactly what he had been charged with. The Weasel (a code name, of course, because revealing your true name even in a legal proceeding was just asking to get tracked down by some fool with a spike and just enough knowledge to be dangerous) had been erratic recently, repeatedly acting 'suspiciously,' according to the official records of the tribunal.
In later years, prominent survivors would wish that they had objected to such vague grounds for dispensing death, but the highly-charged atmosphere, the machinations of secret factions, and the rapid erosion of trust between the factions all led to a single inevitable conclusion. Weasel was sentenced to death.
The execution was to be done by means of Hemalurgic excision, a brutal method which involved driving metal spikes through the body of the condemned in such a way as to sever their Spiritweb and preserve the investiture the worldhopper had collected through their long travels. The process was excruciating, and was invariably fatal.
That was what made the events of 29 March so extraordinary. According to every single available account, the Weasel was executed at exactly noon, as the sun passed exactly over Devotion's Shardpool. Four spikes - a large but not incredible number, as these things are normally accounted - were pounded through his restrained body, capturing investiture from a number of different Shardworlds. But as the spikes were removed and placed in blood for transportation and preservation, a bright and blazing figure appeared in the air above the Shardpool. Devotion, the Shard of Attachment and Connection, had come.
The extant reports differ slightly on her exact words, but the general sense is consistent. A worldhopper known only as Seran Rap offers the most dramatic account of the encounter, in a recollection penned at least two decades later.
'The sun was slightly past its zenith when the executioners finally finished collecting Weasel's fluids for preservation. The show was pretty much over - only the most hardcore Hemalurgy devotees were still watching, and the crowd was getting restless and showing signs of dispersing. I was at the front, taking notes on the procedure. They'd used the double-Henriik technique, but they were a bit more sloppy than I had hoped for. My guess would be that they had lost three percent efficiency due to alignment issues alone, and they had already lost three times more than the mandatory minimum during removal.
Suddenly, the air shimmered above us, and then a light bright enough to burn my eyes was shining down from directly above, eclipsing the sun, and surpassing it. In the near-blinding light was a blazing woman, and her voice was an echoing rumble that passed through my whole frame, as if I heard it with my body and not just my ears.
I can remember those words now, as if she had just spoken them.
"He is mine. You cannot have him."
And then, to the amazement of everybody present, the Weasel stood up - with four gaping holes still streaming blood! - and took the spikes from the stunned executioners. "I'll be needing these," he said, and inserted the spikes back into his body while the wounds closed around them. He stepped straight into the Shardpool, and was gone.'
* * * * * * * * * *
The human was a fascinating subject. Felix the Truthwatcherspren (he was proud of his name, even if the Truthwatchers were really obscure even now and even if Truthwatcherspren wasn't quite the proper way to say things) didn't know what it was that drew him to the human, but he had been following them for three days now. Right now they were...writing something? Or maybe it was reading - Felix couldn't always tell the difference. Either way, it was fascinating. Throughout the entire ordeal, the human had not shown any indication of noticing that he was there - Felix was always proud of his ability to stay secret and stealthy. So when the human closed the...thing that they were...doing whatever it was with and looked straight at him, he was a little nonplussed. He was even more surprised when they talked to him.
"Come here, little one. I have a job for you." Slowly, reluctantly, he crept up onto the proffered hand. And then the human said the most glorious Words he had ever heard. "Life before death. Strength before weakness. Journey before destination."
And then everything was different and new and incredible and fascinating and terrifying and joyful all at once. And that was only the beginning.
Player List:
Everyone is still alive.
Shardworld Tracker:
Yolen: 2/8 charges
The day will last until Sunday, January 20th, 12:00 AM, Mountain Time
IMPORTANT REMINDER:
Cycles will be ending one hour before rollover. Rollover will still be at 1:00 AM, Mountain Time, but all cycles will close at 12:00 AM, mountain time, on their designated day. The intervening hour will be used to manage the rollover. Thank you for your understanding.
Vote Count:
Indigo(7): Indigo, Violet, Fuchsia, Amber, Azure, Ivory, Cream
Scarlet(3): Magenta, Charcoal, Ambition
Magenta(2): Scarlet, Onyx
Sapphire(1): Quartz
A mob attempted to kill Indigo, but the Shard of Devotion saved them!
The Eyes of Trell has manifested on Scadrial.
Night 2 - Close Call The atmosphere was electric in the worldhopper's conference. One of their own was being charged with...well, nobody was later quite sure exactly what he had been charged with. The Weasel (a code name, of course, because revealing your true name even in a legal proceeding was just asking to get tracked down by some fool with a spike and just enough knowledge to be dangerous) had been erratic recently, repeatedly acting 'suspiciously,' according to the official records of the tribunal. In later years, prominent survivors would wish that they had objected to such vague grounds for dispensing death, but the highly-charged atmosphere, the machinations of secret factions, and the rapid erosion of trust between the factions all led to a single inevitable conclusion. Weasel was sentenced to death. The execution was to be done by means of Hemalurgic excision, a brutal method which involved driving metal spikes through the body of the condemned in such a way as to sever their Spiritweb and preserve the investiture the worldhopper had collected through their long travels. The process was excruciating, and was invariably fatal. That was what made the events of 29 March so extraordinary. According to every single available account, the Weasel was executed at exactly noon, as the sun passed exactly over Devotion's Shardpool. Four spikes - a large but not incredible number, as these things are normally accounted - were pounded through his restrained body, capturing investiture from a number of different Shardworlds. But as the spikes were removed and placed in blood for transportation and preservation, a bright and blazing figure appeared in the air above the Shardpool. Devotion, the Shard of Attachment and Connection, had come. The extant reports differ slightly on her exact words, but the general sense is consistent. A worldhopper known only as Seran Rap offers the most dramatic account of the encounter, in a recollection penned at least two decades later. 'The sun was slightly past its zenith when the executioners finally finished collecting Weasel's fluids for preservation. The show was pretty much over - only the most hardcore Hemalurgy devotees were still watching, and the crowd was getting restless and showing signs of dispersing. I was at the front, taking notes on the procedure. They'd used the double-Henriik technique, but they were a bit more sloppy than I had hoped for. My guess would be that they had lost three percent efficiency due to alignment issues alone, and they had already lost three times more than the mandatory minimum during removal. Suddenly, the air shimmered above us, and then a light bright enough to burn my eyes was shining down from directly above, eclipsing the sun, and surpassing it. In the near-blinding light was a blazing woman, and her voice was an echoing rumble that passed through my whole frame, as if I heard it with my body and not just my ears. I can remember those words now, as if she had just spoken them. "He is mine. You cannot have him." And then, to the amazement of everybody present, the Weasel stood up - with four gaping holes still streaming blood! - and took the spikes from the stunned executioners. "I'll be needing these," he said, and inserted the spikes back into his body while the wounds closed around them. He stepped straight into the Shardpool, and was gone.' * * * * * * * * * * The human was a fascinating subject. Felix the Truthwatcherspren (he was proud of his name, even if the Truthwatchers were really obscure even now and even if Truthwatcherspren wasn't quite the proper way to say things) didn't know what it was that drew him to the human, but he had been following them for three days now. Right now they were...writing something? Or maybe it was reading - Felix couldn't always tell the difference. Either way, it was fascinating. Throughout the entire ordeal, the human had not shown any indication of noticing that he was there - Felix was always proud of his ability to stay secret and stealthy. So when the human closed the...thing that they were...doing whatever it was with and looked straight at him, he was a little nonplussed. He was even more surprised when they talked to him. "Come here, little one. I have a job for you." Slowly, reluctantly, he crept up onto the proffered hand. And then the human said the most glorious Words he had ever heard. "Life before death. Strength before weakness. Journey before destination." And then everything was different and new and incredible and fascinating and terrifying and joyful all at once. And that was only the beginning. Player List: Everyone is still alive. Shardworld Tracker: Yolen: 2/8 charges The day will last until Sunday, January 20th, 12:00 AM, Mountain Time IMPORTANT REMINDER: Cycles will be ending one hour before rollover. Rollover will still be at 1:00 AM, Mountain Time, but all cycles will close at 12:00 AM, mountain time, on their designated day. The intervening hour will be used to manage the rollover. Thank you for your understanding. Vote Count: Indigo(7): Indigo, Violet, Fuchsia, Amber, Azure, Ivory, Cream Scarlet(3): Magenta, Charcoal, Ambition Magenta(2): Scarlet, Onyx Sapphire(1): Quartz A mob attempted to kill Indigo, but the Shard of Devotion saved them! The Eyes of Trell has manifested on Scadrial.