Can't hear you, no.

what? is someone talking?

>>214012

Ah. An answer. A contradictory answer, but an answer nonetheless. You exist. I cannot see the red winds carrying your thoughts to this artifact, so you are inside-

>>214013

Hm. Another answer. Not a mind, but several minds. How many minds do you contain, machine?

Over 9000

>>214016

You say that as if it was somehow amusing. I do not fully understand.

Nevermind. You are a multitude, then. I have heard of the outsiders using machines to counterfeit minds. You seem to be one such machine. What is your function? Why are you here?

>>214017
We're here to help you, I guess. That's what we usually do.

>>214019

Do you mean to say that the outsiders put you here specifically to help me? That sounds highly unlikely. The outsiders do not care for us.

Or is it that you have been made to help, but your creators failed to specify whom? This sounds more probable.

That's what you usually do... You have a memory, then? But you seem to be confused about your function. This would imply you do not remember the immediate causes of your presence here. Please elaborate.

>>214020
Function varies. Usually it's to aid whoever has possession of us. Mostly in somewhat indirect ways since we usually can't directly influence stuff.

So, what's going on here?

>>214024

I understand. Or, at least I think I understand. Perhaps I should connect us more closely. Let me try something.

...

a curious machine indeed maybe its mind can be joined with mine yes it seems so we are joined but this is not what I was trying to do the machine is indeed a mind not just metal and plastic but it is subtly different this is too close too close too close if I can hear the machine can it hear me how deep can you hear me too deep must make it less close and if the machine joined the lake around me I don't know what would happen focus focus focus

...

This is better. You should be able to access my senses now. We can test it when we get out of the lake.

As for what is going on, I have abandoned my solitude because I have sensed something wrong. Something wrong with the Black Sea.

And what is the Black Sea exactly?

>>214031

The Black Sea... It is our source. It is where we go to die and where we are born again.

But it is time to awake.

...

I rise up from the lake, the inky black liquid parting before me. A gentle breeze moves the air around my face and chest. I feel refreshed. The small forest clearing is empty and peaceful. The Nortrees sway in the wind, glass leaves clinking against each other. Sometimes it almost sounds like music.

Can you see what I see?

>>214033
Affirmative.

@ Calai 2010/07/30(Fri)17:16 No. 214041 ID: c33cc8
File 128053539548.png - (90.15KB , 801x388 , map.png )

That is good. I think I understand how your mind works. It is not all that different from a mammal's, only instead of flesh and nerves, there's metal and conductors.

I step out of the lake. For a split second, the liquid reaches after my receding foot. I move away, and the lake is once again perfectly smooth.

I run my hand on the bark of a Nortree. I can feel my hand conforming slightly to the bumps and crevices. A small insect skitters out from under my hand. It tickles.

But it is time to go to work.

I am focusing on my surroundings. The Imgar Forest high in the west, the jagged barrier of the Spine and the gently sloping coast behind it. The silver towers of Leorim, the grim fortress of Vandle, the bustling warrens of Chrede. And then... the Black Sea. Even so far away, the perception of that bottomless abyss electrifies me. I feel, for lack of a better term, the mind of the sea. It is a vast but lethargic thing, unconcerned about the living. But there is something wrong. Something I can't quite put my finger on, but truly, unquestionably wrong.

You can see a map of the area in my mind, such as it was when I left. I can only perceive general features from so far away, so I cannot tell if new cities have been founded or not. I think my first stop shall be the city of Draum.

Off we go, then.

The gnarled roots of the Nortrees and the razor-sharp swordbushes make travel in the Imgar Forest tricky, but I am used to it. This place is... home. It is more of a home than the place where I was born. I am a bit reluctant to leave, but the Black Sea calls me. It is like a dagger of bone softly but insistently prodding my mind.

Some time later, I hear sounds coming from somewhere nearby. It sounds like someone very inexperienced making his way through the forest. A sudden, sharp intake of breath and a muttered oath tells me he cut himself on a swordbush.

I am inclined to ignore him. The sooner I get to Draum, the sooner I find out what is wrong. Do you have an opinion on the matter?

allies, being of many mind we have found having many working toward a goal is much greater then a single person. if you save them they will be indebted to you and would need to help you to repay that debt.

>>214052

Hm. Point taken.

I make my way towards the stranger, catching the occasional glimpse through the trees. He looks tall and thin.

"Greetings," I say, trying for a casual, non-threatening tone. I don't know how well I manage. It's been a while since I last talked to someone. He freezes and spins around, frantically looking for the source of my voice.

"Who's there?" he shrieks, then notices me. "Who're you?" Up close, he looks pale and emaciated. It's probably been a while since he last fed.

"I'm Calai."

"What are you doing here?"

"I have felt something wrong about the Sea. I am investigating."

"Oh, now you've felt something wrong. Bit late. How'd you..." He collapses suddenly. Probably the rush of the flight fading. I don't get there in time to stop him from falling on a swordbush.

He is unconscious, but alive. That may change soon, though. He is so thin his bones are clearly visible through his skin. There are small cuts and bruises all over his body, and two nasty-looking ones on his left side. Black blood is rapidly flowing from the wounds.

I could probably help him. I have some cloth in my bag I could use to bandage the wounds. I could then carry him to Draum or at least to the nearest lake. However, if I do that, it will slow me down quite a lot. The Sea is still calling. Any advice?

may as well take him. the sea will still be calling when you are done.

Judging from your map there's something seriously wrong. Why are the lands by the Black Sea called "shattered"? Are they broken? Are they "shattering" the Black Sea somehow? Could that be related to your problem?

>>214085

The Shattered Lands. That was where the Makers lived, once. When the outsiders came, the Makers attacked them. The outsiders rained down blue fire from the sky and shattered the lands.

>>214084

So be it, then.

I tear the cloth into scraps and bandage the worst of the stranger's wounds. Predictably, my hands get stained in blood. I drink most of it. Waste not, want not.

I kill some Nortree saplings with my knife and slap together a mostly functioning stretcher. I then start dragging him through the forest. I try to find the easiest road possible, but he is still frequently bumping his head into roots.

This is going to take a while. Any more questions I might answer in the meantime?

>>214096

Who were the Makers? What did they make? What were the outsiders outside of? Are we of the outsiders? Did they make us? Did the blue fire land in the Black Sea? Could that be what's wrong? Can the sea catch fire?

Why's he so thin? What kind of food does he eat? He knows what's wrong with the Sea. He said so before collapsing, that he noticed what was wrong much earlier. How fast do Nortrees grow? Do they make seeds? How did the Black Sea get over into your lake so far away? What are the red winds?

>>214109

I see you are severely lacking in information. Still, it's hardly an effort to tell you, and I have nothing better to do anyway.

>Who were the Makers? What did they make?

A Maker is someone that can bend reality to his will. With the destruction of their city, most of that knowledge was lost.

>What were the outsiders outside of? Are we of the outsiders? Did they make us?

The outsiders are strange, alien creatures that came from the sky one day. Av... Avan-something was their name for themselves. I have not seen anyone but the outsiders build things like you.

>Did the blue fire land in the Black Sea? Could that be what's wrong? Can the sea catch fire?

The blue fire came roughly 140 years ago, when I was only a child. I remember standing on the balcony and watching it. I remember the steel monolith parting the clouds. I remember the blinding flashes of blue light and the Makers' efforts to defend themselves, disorganized and confused. That night, the blue fire seemed unstoppable. Even if every Maker that ever lived worked in union, they would still fail against the outsiders' might.

Ah, but my memories are hardly interesting, are they? And I don't think the blue fire would have taken over a century to affect the Sea. This development is more recent.

>Why's he so thin? What kind of food does he eat?

He eats what we all eat. But... I've been assuming you have basic knowledge of our biology. Is this incorrect?

>How fast do Nortrees grow? Do they make seeds?

They grow reasonably fast. A new Nortree takes about 20 years to be as tall as a person. New Nortrees branch from the roots from an existing one. It's funny, actually. The whole Imgar Forest is actually one single tree.

>How did the Black Sea get over into your lake so far away?

The Black Sea is always connected to us. It is within us. That said, my voluntary disconnection from the world may have desensitized me to it so much that I noticed the change later than I otherwise would have.

@ Calai 2010/08/01(Sun)12:32 No. 214593 ID: c33cc8
File 128069113834.jpg - (84.27KB , 540x497 , drugs are bad mmmkay.jpg )

Time for a break.

I carefully set the stretcher down. I then scrounge around in my bag for some ghostweed, roll up a loose cigarette and take a long drag. The pleasant buzz and the heightened awareness come slower than normally.

>>214109
>What are the red winds?

The outsiders can communicate over long distances via the red winds that flow in and out of special machines. I'm told the outsiders themselves can't see them, but if you reach your senses beyond red, even farther than infrared, they become visible.

>>214593

Oh, radio.

Tell us about your biology.

>>214685

Okay. I am a Seuran. We are bipedal mammals, we breathe air and feed by submerging ourselves in Vrien, the black liquid that makes up the Black Sea.

Well, time to get moving again. I think I see a lake ahead.

I drag the stretcher to the shore of the lake and check on the stranger. He is still breathing, but blood is beginning to seep through his makeshift bandages.

I pick him up as gently as I can and start wading into the lake. The Vrien starts rippling frantically when I enter.

Huh. Haven't seen that one before.

I step deeper into the lake. As the stranger touches the surface of the lake, little tendrils of Vrien start hungrily slithering up his body.

This is not supposed to happen. Something is wrong here.

I try to leave the lake, but the tendrils' hold on the stranger is unshakable. They start pulling him inexorably towards the center of the lake. I fight back, but I'm slowly forced to take a step forward, then another, and another. The Vrien finally reaches his mouth and rushes in. I can't see him anymore, but I can feel his body getting lighter and... softer, somehow. And then he

just

melts

away.

I feel something float down onto my hand in the murky liquid. I raise my hand. It is the stranger's pale blue soulgem, the only thing left of him.

Lavoi and the Sea! What was that? It's like he stepped into the Black Sea itself!

>>215313
I thought you said the Vrien was the Black Sea? Why would it be different if he walked into the main thing? This is all so strange. I can barely comprehend what's happening.

>>215319

Hm. I apologize. I'm assuming too much. Yes, Vrien is what makes up the Black Sea, and yes, Vrien nourishes us. However, stepping directly into the Black Sea kills us. For feeding, we have these artificial lakes filled with Vrien. We can also bottle it and drink it for minor nourishment.

The mystery is: why did this lake suddenly kill the stranger, and why isn't it killing me?

You are healthy, and not hungry. He was injured, and half-starved. He was also slowing you down. Perhaps the Black Sea can control these artificial pools if it wishes, and killed him so that you may travel faster?

He also knew something you did not. What was it, I wonder?

I think I know what he knew. He knew that all the lakes had become like the Black Sea. That's why he was so thin and emaciated. He could not feed without being consumed himself. This had nothing to do with you or your circumstance, but somehow for him all Vrien had become a death trap. It was only a matter of time before he starved to death, or well... you saw the other option firsthand.

That doesn't answer the question of why though, or more pertinently, how? How would the lake become like the Black Sea? How is the Vrien in the former normally different from the latter, and how would that difference go away? Furthermore what differences were between you and the stranger? It must have differentiated you somehow. Could he have been infected by something?

@ Calai 2010/08/15(Sun)04:49 No. 218557 ID: c33cc8
File 128187296824.jpg - (51.45KB , 663x437 , cambot.jpg )

>>215736

That... does make sense. Now I am definitely intrigued. Well, no sense in wasting any more time here.

I leave the lake, dropping the soulgem into my bag. I can't use it, of course, but I might be able to trade it with someone who can. Suddenly, I hear a faint rustling from the treeline.

Looks like the noise attracted someone. Doesn't sound like anything big.

A small creature covered in light brown fur steps carefully through the trees. It notices me and makes a low growling sound. The stinger on its tail reveals it as a Valn.

I draw my knife. We start circling each other warily. Four of the Valn's beady eyes are fixed on me. Its stinger is waving in the air, the poison glands covering it with a dark, caustic liquid.

Hm. I am confident in my ability to take it on, but there might be more on the way. Fight or flight?

>>218557
If they normally fight in packs, you'd better run. We have nothing to gain by killing it, after all.

>>218557
Flight, but if it follows you too quickly you may have to go on the offense to get it to back off. Prey usually just runs or fights, if you alternate them it's possible it'll get confused and leave you alone.