Hmph. No time. Find the source of this disturbance and end it.
Climb something to get away from the ground
Nothingness Grand Prix: Awake: 4 / Sand: 5 / Ira: 4
Ira: 3 v Sand: 1Awake can no longer ask the sand to guide him towards the threat, but after a moment of contemplation he realizes that the first wave of pain was tied to a location. He knows where it originated from in the same way he might feel a needle piercing his arm, except that the part which hurt was entirely unconnected to his body. In fact, it was several miles away from the glass crater, near the site of ALTERTH's first death. The Shardform runs there as quickly as he can - and with his capabilities augmented by the Armor, that turns out to be very quickly indeed.
As he sprints towards the center of the known world, Awake glimpses an enormous sandworm. If not for the massive black heart that Ira is dragging behind her, she would likely be covering just as much ground as he is. Instead he is gaining on her, but not quickly enough to catch up before she makes her escape. The omnipresent sand, on the other hand, is not burdened by mortal concepts like "distance." Tendrils spring up from the ground, but in a stunning display, the World-Eater dispatches them with bites and tail-slaps before they can coalesce more fully. For her finale she climbs up the nearest strand of the Great Web, where sand cannot pursue her.
If I have any left, I take control of one of the ooze spheres, if not then the anti star.
Ooze-Spheres: 3
AJAMA: 3The ooze-spheres were all heavily damaged by the explosion, but a few of them are still intact enough for AJAMA's purposes. It combines two chunks of semisolid ooze to create a new sphere the same size as its previous body, then slips its essence inside. The Demiurge feels several seconds of utter sensory deprivation once it abandons its astral perception, but sense-experience resumes once a proper connection is established between body and soul. The new form feels slightly different, but handles exactly like the old one did. It only takes AJAMA a few moments to acclimate and lift itself into the air.
Hm, the winged were already invited, they are my children despite their flaws.
But, to be honest, Gral, silken nest is not connected to great web even by single tread.
Suggest the council several things, have council offer its own proposals and have the vote
Send ambassadors to light folk.
To have weavers study stars and develop tiny versions of them as energy source.
Use knowledge gained by group of weavers with experience of creating life to create vegetation designed to survive in desert and produce nutritious fruit, aswell as attempt to use bone from bone fortress to create more bone fortresses across the desert to expand spiderkind living space.
To connect silken nest, bone fortress and great web for sake of unity and to further increase size of the web.
Create dedicated order of weavers focusing their efforts on demon banishment
Nazir's first two proposals pass with the full support of the Council. While some Spiderlings would prefer that the web expand through other means, none actively oppose courting the favor of Hynsyr and the Lightfolk. Caution is warranted, given the reception that Gral was given when it entered the Titan's domain, but a few Spiderlings point out that the Contractor was given a chance to leave the city rather than starting a fight. With luck, Hynsyr will offer their ambassadors the same courtesy.
The Ancestors and Order of Strands both agree that studying the stars would be a logical way to begin researching light magic. They resolve to begin their study as quickly as possible. Since many of their most prominent Aetherweavers are currently participating in the Council, it seems reasonable to assume that experimentation will begin once this meeting adjourns. A few Weavers are so excited by the idea that they start tying equations into knotwork right then and there.
Not everyone is on board with Nazir's plans for desert vegetation and the Bone Fortress. While the Dustwalkers would be eager to terraform the sand, they also feel that this proposal would make them bear a great deal of risk. The tribe's representatives are hesitant to tamper with the Bone Tree, which as of right now is their only home, and fear that other Spiderlings might try to displace them if their fortress were connected directly to the Web. The Ironweavers refuse to connect the Web to the Silken Nest for similar reasons. The others decide that they may have a point, given that they were invaded when they first took control of the star.
Opinions on a demon-banishing Order are neutral. While the assembled delegates do believe that it would be a good idea, Aetherweavers from various clans argue that they are already spread too thin. Unless other projects are abandoned, more Spiderlings will need to be trained in Weaving if the warders are to have any chance of success.
Gather the hemp and potato seeds I made and plant them in the sand next to the moat and see if they grow, the deer men can play in the water or make sand castles or whatever they want.
Dr. Bob: 5
Deer-Men: 5+1Dr. Bob sweeps up the pile of seeds and brings them outside in a dustpan. He digs a series of small holes just next to the tower's door, along the thin strip of land that separates it from the moat. Then he places one seed in each of the holes, grouping together the ones that have a similar size and shape. Afterwards he sweeps sand back into the holes and stands up to admire his handiwork. The plants should, technically, take several weeks to grow, but it's impossible to tell how the primordial-fueled water cycle will affect them. In any case, Dr. Bob's garden is complete, so he goes back into the Tower and observes his various creations through the glass.
The Deer-Men have decided to hold a sandcastle contest. The rules dictate that they gather into teams of two or three people, then spend ten minutes building castles at the edge of the moat. Winners will be decided by a panel of three judges, based upon size, skill, and hypothetical defensive utility. The automaton tags along behind them, occasionally plowing through a sandcastle that stands in the way of its pathfinding.
When the timer rings, the beach has been covered in dozens of elaborate structures. The entries vary wildly, but each is lovingly-crafted and larger than is strictly necessary. Highlights include a replica of the Dustwalkers' bone fortress, a five-meter high medieval fortress, a glass model of the Great Web, the Eiffel Tower, and a city under siege by fake demons. Being made of sand, they actually look quite lifelike.
The Web-model is disqualified for unauthorized use of glass, but the judges are split more or less evenly between the other castles. One walks into the Tower and invites Dr. Bob to act as a tiebreaker.
Back in the garden, a few sprouts emerge from the soil.
Hynsyr returns to attempting to build the Fortress-Temple for Yig.
2Hynsyr leaves the routed demons behind and walks back into the city, where he once again assumes his position in the central plaza. After clearing away the rubble that resulted from his previous attempt to build a fortress, he flares his aura, producing vast quantities of new light. The Titan takes twelve giant handfuls of radiance and pours them out onto the ground, willing them to take the shape of a temple for the Golden Flower. The light coalesces into pure, glowing gold, which looks glorious in the spires' lights. Unfortunately, it's a misshapen mound rather than the building that Hynsyr intended it to be. There's a door, and a small antechamber where Yig could conceivably be placed, but Titan's grand temple-fortress doesn't look like either. If anything, it might resemble a piece of modern art.
Have the Ironweavers, mindful of the Pact-arms scandal, create a new form of Barter: Tribute Tokens, flat metal disks marked with the symbol of the Silken Nest and infused with the power of Bargain. These forms of currency can be used amongst groups reluctant to abide by traditional Pacts.
For the most dissatisfied Buzzards, a new solution can be put in place: Have them work out a contract with the Bone Fort as mercenaries, providing for food, nesting space , and armorers, in exchange for free reign on its enemies.
In order to rectify this new weapon, Gral crafts a set of protective talon coverings out of Ironwoven metal, enabling easy handling of the pinions.
Ironweavers: 2
Buzzards: 6
Gral: 3The Ironweavers mint a large quantity of Tribute Tokens and infuse them Aetherweaving that channels the power of the Bargain. The currency is a novelty, and many of the Spiderlings present at the council use it to trade for small items or favors, but they are slow to adopt it in larger dealings. While tokens are considered far less dangerous than Pact magic, most delegates don't consider it inherently valuable. The steel and magic within the coins are both moderately useful to Weavers who can craft which such things, but are not particularly useful for anyone else.
Every single Buzzard immediately flies towards the Bone Fortress, where they are received with open arms. The sand has been particularly angry recently, despite a drop on Nothingness activity, and the Dustwalkers are happy to pay for a team of highly lethal mercenaries. Relations get off to an awkward start when the Buzzards mention disembowelment in polite conversation, but rapidly improve once they start directing that same savage energy at the sand.
Gral has a few Ironweavers supply it with metal thread, which the Contractor then wraps around the bases of the pinion-blades. It is possible to prevent most accidental injuries by using loops of steel to attach the feathers to it talons more securely, although it is still very important to avoid pointing sharp edges at anything that should remain uncut. One accidental flick of a leg could bisect anything, from a valuable piece of property to a mortal's torso.
Dr. Bob, the Unmoved Mover
-Spidersilk net.
-Glass chunks
-Improvised glass tools.
-Glass automaton
-Perpetual-motion bus
-Vial of Einyar
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Kūhaku, the Mirror
-Catatonia
-Rain-Maker
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Nazir, the Weaver
-God of the great web.
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Ira, the World-Eater
-Blackened Scars
-Woven together
-Debt: Gral: Three Favors Owed
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Gral, the Contractor
-Contract: Winged Spiderlings.
-Contract: Deer-Men: One Favor
-Contract: Ira: Three Favors
-Heavily bandaged.
--------------------------------
AJAMA, the Demiurge
-Ooze-born Body
-Ooze-born Spheres
-Sphere of Darkness
-Cannibalized exterior
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Hynsyr, the Titan
-Yig, the Golden Flower
-Twelve spears of light
--------------------------------
Awake
-Echoes and instincts
-Smelter's Armor
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The Living Sands: An awakened desert that extends outwards indefinitely. It consumed ALTERTHENTERRINTARTINTH, the being which brought it to life, and subsumed a part of their consciousness known as the Empty.
--Demons: Crude imitations of the primordials made from sand and absence.
--Obsidian Archdemon: An obsidian dragon crafted by the Empty itself. It was granted the power to manipulate nothingness.
--Fragments of Emptiness: ?
--Shardforms: Obsidian creatures which absorbed the Empty's already-incomplete consciousness. The broken pieces of ALTERTH's identity they have absorbed give them animalistic intelligence.
--Absent Heart: ?
-Steel Maggots: Metallic larvae which Gral accidentally created while trying to create bird Emissaries. After they were pulled off of the vulture, few escaped into the desert, where they accepted Gral's peace terms and moved into the shifting bog.
-Brass Buzzards: Brass birds crafted from Gral's feathers. They are infused with the pain it felt while creating them.
The Stars: Glass spheres filled with fire. Gyaweft created them and threw them into the air to illuminate the world.
--New Stars: A second set that isn't accessible through the Great Web. Fortunately, that means they can't be blotted out by Spiderlings.
--Negative Star: A black sphere which radiates darkness, created by AJAMA after Gyaweft's death. It hangs above the bone tree.
Nazir's Web: A giant web that begins in the desert and reaches up towards the stars.
--Silken Nest: A new star that the winged spiderlings have claimed as a nest. It can only be reached by gliding or descending on strands of silk.
Knot-Writing: A written language Nazir formulated so that Aetherweavers could record their spells. It involves weaving complex knots into silk, and therefore comes intuitively to Spiderlings but is almost impossible for anyone else to comprehend.
--Tapestries: Libraries of spells and other knotwork which have been woven together and hung from the great web. Some have begun to collect aetheric cobwebs.
Spiderlings: A race of intelligent spiders which can live on light. They cover both the stars and the great web.
--Dustwalkers: A Spiderling subspecies which can feed on sand as well as light. They live on the sand and fight an asymmetrical war against it for survival.
--Winged Spiderlings: Defeated Spiderlings who made a deal with Gral. They received wings in exchange for service, and have built a nest on one of the new stars. They were later granted the ability to weave metal.
--Aetherweavers: A few Spiderlings who can perform magic by spinning aetheric webs. Nazir taught them the basics of their craft, allowing them to create fairly intricate wards against evil.
-Order of Strands: The first Spiderlings to learn the art of Aetherweaving. Many have strained their minds and bodies to hone their abilities, making them feeble despite their mystical strength.
--Ancestors: Weavers who have achieved immortality by becoming spirits bound to the great web. They are incorporeal, and their astral bodies make it easier for them to manipulate aether.
--Scarred Spiderlings: Spiderlings who have gained great strength and endurance because of their mistreatment by the Brass Buzzards. They built a market but have mixed feelings about Gral and his servants.
--Sentinels: A army of biologically and magically augmented Spiderlings, created by elite Aetherweavers with Nazir's guidance. They serve the Spider Demigods, and stand ready to protect the Web alongside them.
Pact-Arms: Metal weapons, armor, and tools which can compel their wielders to carry out tasks for the Winged Spiderlings. Most are in the possession of Spiderlings on the Web.
Primelings: Ten entities created by Nazir and a group of the most powerful Aetherweavers. They watch over the Web in Nazir's stead, but are weakened by flaws in their weaving.
Shifting Bog: A large pool of mud drawn from the sand by Kuhaku. Islands rapidly form and dissolve as the sand beneath it moves. It has been tainted with Nazir's venom.
Glass Tower: A tower made of glass, raised from the sands by Gyaweft. It extends upwards through the web, tall enough that its upper floors reach the stars.
Black Ooze: A patch of black goo created by AJAMA which can grow by absorbing sand. A column of ooze goes deep beneath the earth, where it breached a reservoir of Emptiness.
--Chaos Ooze: Blobs of ooze which have accidentally been made to assimilate a variety of substances and concepts.
Lightfolk: A species of humanoid mortals born from Hynsyr's golden light. Their powers of creation threaten to overwhelm their bodies, causing their inner light to warp chaotically. Many have begun to train so that they can gain more control over this ability.
--Prismatics: Seven lightfolk which glow brighter than the rest. They were hewn from the rainbow light of Hynsyr's eyes.
The Seven Rainbow Spears: Weapons Hynsyr forged from a rogue splinter of his soul and gave to the Prismatics. They amplify their wielders' magic immensely, and provide slightly more control over their powers of creation.
Light Spires: A glowing city made by the Lightfolk using their creation magic.
Einyar: A sea of golden light drawn from Hynsyr's aura. It preserves the spirits of the Lightfolk after death, so that the cycle may advance.
Deer-Men: A humanoid race with the heads of deer. Dr. Bob originally crafted them from the silk of Nazir's web. They were granted superior dexterity through a contract with Gral.
Bone Fortress: A giant tree grown from one of Ira's teeth, and given to the Dustwalkers as a gift. It has become a large fortress.
Three-Headed Worm: A juvenile sandworm created by Ira to serve the Dustwalkers.
Glass Crater: When Gyaweft flew his Sunship into the ground, it melted a wide swathe of the sand into glass. Fiery essence spilled from the ship still burns here, and sealed fault lines radiate from the impact site.
--Smelter's Grave: The center of the crater. Gyaweft's corpse lies here, alongside the molten remains of his Sunship.
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Topic: Sand & Souls - Let There Be Turns (Read 61933 times)