Episode 43: Introspection, and a Corprus Dilemma
Cherishing your victory in having finally learned to see and channel Magicka, you take a moment to talk to the voices in your head.
Michael, how well do you know the 36 sermons of Vivec? If you are the Nerevarine, after all,
then they are written for you. If you don't know them that well, it'd be good to study a bit.
:
"...erm, actually I've never read them. Not all of them anyway. They're kind of boring. The way I remember it, they're mostly Vivec talking about how cool he thinks he is."Dear Michael, you are now breathing manually. Love, anonymous voice.
+1
Michael blinks a couple times then shrugs.
:
"...ok."here's a less confusing question: do each of us sound distinct to you?
Michael thinks about that for a moment.
:
"Well, yes. More or less. I don't exactly "hear" your voice in the same way I'd hear someone talking in the room with me. It's more like an internal mental diaglogue, kind of like when you think to yourself verbally...except this is like somebody else is putting the words in my head, and they can hear me I can I think back. Actually, now that I think about it, this is pretty much what I'd expect telepathy to be like if telepathy were on a conference call. Where are you guys?"We are players much like you, only instead of playing you, we speak to you and hold sway over your actions
:
"...wait. So you're saying I'm the character? But that doesn't make sense. First off, Morrowind is only a single player game and there are a bunch of you. Second, there's way too much going on here for this to just be a game of Morrowind. I came to Morrowind by playing Morrowind, then falling out of the sky. Granted, my memory of what happened before that is sketchy, but I didn't arrive on the boat. Hell, I have a CELLPHONE with me."Michael digs through his backpack and pulls out his cellphone, opens it and turns it on.
:
"See? Cellphone. No reception, but I wouldn't have this if I were just a character in the game."Factions are beautiful! All hail head voice overlords!
OBEY.
Okay, you may be right about us having factions Michael.
:
"Yeah, I'm starting to think you guys are daedra. That would explain a lot." find Creeper and sell your eternal soul
Do not sell our soul to Clavicus Vile.
:
"Yeah. Like that. You guys obviously aren't all on the same side. I think you're daedra. Some of you are trying to be helpful, some of you are trying to trick me into getting killed or selling my soul or some crazy thing, and some of you are just toying with me. But even THAT doesn't make sense, because if you were daedra, how would you know about the command console?"Michael, I'm a new voice. Normally I'm just an ordinary person like you were, or at least you thought you were. However, much in the same way we take on the existence of another while playing a game, I believe that I, as well as the other voices, become something else when speaking to you, while still being the same entity they were before.
Michael looks down at his hand. With his new magical sight, he gazes at the light that constitutes his body, flowing freely from the sun, penetrating all that is.
:
"Vivec called you guys my 'higher self.' I think that means that on some level, I am you. I don't know what's going on here. But I'm starting to think neither do you, because you are me too."With the nature of your being still unresolved, you sigh and return to more practical matters.
Report back to Caius
need to report back to Caius
support checking in with Gaius first
apologize to that one guy, Caius or something or another.
You cross the river and head to Caius' house.
:
"Michael? I'm surprised to see you. What happened?":
"Hey, Caius. Sorry for the delay. I, uhh...got recall swapped after delivering that letter. Ended up in a tomb out near Sadrith Mora.":
"Oh? That's highly unusual. Well, no matter. You're back. And it seems you were right about Ilunibi. Clover returned a few hours ago with corprus, just like you predicted, and told me a story about an ash creature working for Dagoth Ur just like you told me back in Gnisis."So Clover finally got around to clearing Ilunibi. Though you wonder whether she cleared it before or after you last saw her standing motionless in the Mage's Guild. It was just a few days ago that you tucked a note into her robe, then left for Ald'rhun where you ended up getting recall swapped. She wasn't there when you got back to Balmora, and you've spent the past two days training with Fast Eddie. So she would have had at least two days to clear Ilunibi, contract corpus, then report in to Caius. You didn't notice any corprus sores when you saw her, so that's probably what happened.
:
"Fortunately, since you'd already informed me that Divayth Fyr was working on a cure, I sent her to speak to him. Well done. Thanks to you, one of my other Operatives won't have to suffer and die from corprus."...wait. Doesn't that mean that...
:
"You sent her to Divayth Fyr?":
"Of course. Since your story about Ilunibu and Dagoth Gares checked out, and you told me that he had a cure...a cure that would 'render her immune to corprus but she has to catch it first' was how you put it, I sent her to him straightaway."Did you just alter the course of the main quest?
:
"This might be bad."Caius raises an eyebrow.
:
"Why?":
"Remember I said I might be the Nerevarine?":
"Of course. And I also remember that the Emperor thinks Clover is.":
"Right. And that's the problem. According to the prophecy, the Nerevarine contracts corprus and then Divayth Fyr gives him a potion that...well, it's complicated, but the potion makes the disease beneficial rather than harmful. If I'm the Nerevarine, then I have to contract corprus and be cured. But...you sent Clover to drink the potion.":
"I don't see a problem. It's not like there will only be one potion. Divayth Fyr has an entire corprusarium full of infected. As soon as he sees that his cure works, surely he'll make more.":
"Except that the potion ONLY works on the Nerevarine. Everyone else who takes it dies."Caius looks at you sternly.
:
"You didn't mention that when you told me about the cure.":
"I'm sorry, it slipped my mind, ok? A lot of stuff's been going on.":
"So if Clover isn't the Nerevarine, she's going to die.":
"Pretty much."Caius nods silently.
:
"So what do you propose?":
"Well, obviously I have to go after her.":
"So that she can infect you with corprus?":
"...wait, what?":
"What else could you have in mind? She's already infected. If she's the Neravarine, then drinking the potion and being cured is the next logical step. If she's not the Nerevarine, and you are...then for you to be cured you first need to contract it. You told me this yourself. If the cure kills anyone but 'the one' then Clover is dead either way. Even if Divayth Fyr can make more of his potion, he'll probably be hesitant to do so if he gives it to Clover and it kills her. If you can get to her first, she can infect you then you can take the cure in her place.":
"But what if I'm not the Nerevarine?":
"Then I suppose you'd be better of letting Clover drink the potion. How sure are you that you're the Nerevarine?":
"...umm..."
What do you do?
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Topic: Marooned in Morrowind (FINISHED) (Read 434865 times)