Among the humans of the Azentu, there exists an old custom; each child, upon reaching adulthood, must undertake a spiritual journey to discover the idea that they'll devote their lives to. Of course, most see it as little more than a tradition followed only to avoid the disappointment of their elders, but you want something more out of it. You want to figure out what happened to the sky.
Though the history of the Zigent is a tangled and confusing affair that has driven many a scholar to madness, some of the luckier and more tenacious facts have managed to transcend their origins and become enshrined into cultural memory. One such piece of information is the tale of the God Eaters, a legendary order of esoteric wanderers practicing an eclectic blend of philosophy and cooking, dedicated – as the name would imply – to eating God, though of course nobody could quite agree what that actually meant. Some say that it was a metaphor for dismantling structural inequalities and systems of oppression, others that it was a set of techniques for exploiting loopholes in the fundamental laws of the universe. A few of the less imaginative sort suggest that perhaps they were entirely literal with their name; after all, what greater ingredient than the flesh of God itself? Despite the differences between retellings, stories of the God Eaters always agree that…
"Aha, I thought I would find you in here. Did you already forget what today is?"
Suppressing the urge to jump in your seat, you very carefully close the history book you had been reading and turn to face the one who had dared transgress your studies. As expected, it was Inexhaustible Nature. He was, as people generally tended to be, quite aptly named. Although, right now, you rather wished he wasn't.
"Well, allow me to remind you." He's bouncing slightly on his heels, shoulder-length hair fluffing in the soft endcycle light, eager to explain something you already knew. Or at least you assume that's the reason. Maybe he just likes talking to you.
You sigh, as people keep telling you that you do too often. "No, I didn't forget. Today is the trimonth parallax, as you are so fond of telling me." By your count, it had been less than a full day since he last mentioned the upcoming celebration. Why was he so excited about it?
"Just the…" he begins to shout, before you hurriedly shush him. This was a library after all. "Just the trimonth parallax?" he repeats, thankfully quieter this time. "Do you know how often this happens?"
Another sigh. Perhaps people were right when they said you do it too much. "Once or twice every five years or so, depending on which calendar system the plants feel like using."
Nature nods at that, having somehow interpreted your words as agreeing with him. "Yeah, pretty much never." To be fair, if you weren't still annoyed by how he had interrupted you, you probably would have. The trimonth parallax was a rare event; three different calendars all lining up didn't happen every day, especially when they didn't even agree on what a day was most of the time. Of course, you could never admit to Nature that he was right, he would be insufferable about it for days. Human days. No, it was time for your specialty; being flippant.
"Eh, if I miss it, I miss it. No big deal." Nature made a face that would defy explanation for any lesser being, but fortunately for the comedic value of the situation, you were an expert at metaphors.
"What's wrong? You look like I just took your beetle jerky and ate it in front of you." Ha, get it? Because his eyes bugged out, and beetles are bugs, and Nature always gets huffy when you stealindefinitely borrow his food. It works on so many levels. You're a literary genius.
Emerging from the depths of your own self-congratulation, you realize that Nature had stopped making the metaphorical face and started making an unamused one while you were distracted. Shit, he realized that you were messing with him.
"Alas, there is no hope. I have done all I can for you." You could use his voice as a measuring device with how flat it is. Thankfully, he stops quickly. "In all seriousness though, don't miss it. I know you'd rather be holed up in here all day, but you should get out once in a while, y'know?"
"I'll consider it," you lie. Nature seems to realize it though, and it's his turn to sigh.
"I suppose I'll leave you to it then." He starts to leave before quickly whirling around. "Oh, just one more thing," May the ground open up beneath him and swallow him whole for this treachery, he was supposed to let you get back to reading. "Did you ever get around to picking a name? I know you said that you 'wanted more time to make an informed decision', but that was weeks ago. Human weeks, I mean. Surely you've come up with something by now?"
It takes you a deep breath before you can answer. "First of all, I wish I were surprised that you actually made air quotes at that. You should have called yourself Inexhaustible Stupidity for how little thought you put into these things." He has the audacity to laugh at that, but you ignore him and continue on. "Secondly, I have. It's …"
[] Empathy With Stone
The saying goes that walls have ears, but for those willing to listen, they also have mouths. Upon entering an area for the first time, you learn a secret relevant to that area.
[] Ever-Rising Sum
All behavior is economic behavior. The particulars may vary, but everyone desires something. Upon meeting a faction or individual for the first time, you automatically learn the topics that they're interested in.
[] Fading Rhythm
You've read just about every book on the Tenju you could get your hands on; you know their metonyms and lore like your own skin. Upon reading a Tenju inscription for the first time, you can roll to decipher it yourself instead of asking an expert.
"Hmm." Nature rolls it around a few times in his mouth before nodding. "I like it! It definitely fits you." He ruffles your hair – that bastard, he's barely older than you – before running off. "See you at the festival!"
Ah, free at last. Back to the loving embrace of literature. But, as much as you hate to admit it, Nature did have a point. Days like today don't come around every week, and the books won't run off without you. You could consider following his advice and go out for once this time.
[] Explore the festival
You're definitely not giving in to Nature's pleading, you've just … carefully considered your options and found this one to be the best.
[] Continue reading
Books will never let you down. Books will never lie to you. Books will never hurt you. You don't need social interaction, you need more books.
Hello everyone, and welcome to Eight Last Embers, my first ever quest. After reading I. F. Ister's Salted Sands, I got reminded of an old Qud draft I had lying around and decided to finally post it. I hope you all enjoy it, and please bear with me as I learn how running a quest works.
Kindly leave space for three informational posts before you begin posting.
This is the mechanics sheet; it keeps track of all the mechanics you will encounter throughout the Zigent. As more come up, I'll explain them both in the post where they're first encountered and here for easy reference. Note that the mechanics are still a work in progress and that some older posts may differ from what is presented here. This sheet reflects the most up-to-date information as of the latest post.
Relationships
Everything in this world can speak, and making use of that fact is usually the best way to get what you want. To that end, each faction has a relationship score from -100 to 100, modeling their opinion of you. Most will start out as neutral (0), but some may begin as hostile or allied. In order for a faction to become allied, their relationship score must be higher than 75, and they will remain allied until their relationship score reaches 0. Likewise, a faction will be hostile once its relationship score is below -75, and they will remain hostile until it is brought back up to 0. Relationship score is affected both by actions during active diplomatic talks and your general behavior in the world. Beyond their own personal interactions with you, factions have relationships between each other, and allying yourself with one may make their enemies your own. Also be wary of how you conduct yourself in public; few will want to associate with those that treat others poorly.
Secrets
You do not grow more powerful in the traditional sense, but as you progress, you will learn more and more secrets of the world, ranging from the location of hidden artifacts and translations of ancient Tenju inscriptions to the more mundane (but perhaps more useful) movements of notable individuals and updated maps of specific regions. You don't need to learn everything yourself however; factions are often willing to part with information if you're on good enough terms, and they are themselves interested in many secrets of your own. Remember, just because you think that something is important doesn't mean that anybody else will.
Locations and Travel
The Zigent is composed of eighteen distinct regions, which are numbered on the map found in the information threadmarks. Your location will always be within one of these regions. Traveling between adjacent regions takes two days, outside of a few exceptions involving travel over water and through hazardous areas, both of which are marked on the map. Ocean travel can only start and end in regions containing a port. It takes one day for the process of launching and coming ashore and one day per region of ocean being crossed. (e.g. Traveling from 16 to 17 will take three days; one to transition between water and land and two for the two ocean regions being crossed.) Hazardous regions are difficult to traverse and take three days instead of two both to enter and to leave.
You cannot travel to an ocean region, only pass through it, and you cannot travel to a region if it would start raining before you arrive.
Actions and Turns
In the Zigent, weather is rather simple; it is either raining or clear. (If you're interested, the formula is 21 - d10 clear days followed by d10 days of rain.) If it is clear at the beginning of your turn, you will be given the number of days before the next rain. Actions each take a number of days to complete. The total number of days that your actions during a turn take must not exceed the number of days remaining before the rain starts, as you must be inside the shelters before it does. Turns end either when you travel to a new location or when the rain hits.
Some actions have a DC. In these cases, a d10 will be rolled; the value obtained must be equal to or greater than the DC for the action to succeed. A value above the DC will be a normal success, while a value exactly equal to the DC will be a bare success, with some sort of complication attached.
Movement actions require a specific format of write in, as the path taken can greatly change the time needed. Format these actions as a series of hyphenated numbers listing every region traveled through, starting with the current region and ending with the region you want to travel to. Also include the calculated number of days it will take according to the travel rules. (e.g. Traveling from region 7 to region 14: 7-8-14, 4 days; 7-13-14, 6 days; and 7-6-12-13-14, 12 days would all be valid travel actions.)
Inventory
As a pilgrim, you'll want to travel light. You can comfortably carry ten items without too much difficulty, but if you really need to transport more, any number of items over the limit can be carried at the cost of doubled travel time for as long as you're overburdened. Settlements with banks allow you to store items that can later be recovered with no risk, but you can also choose to stash things out in the wilderness and hope that they aren't damaged by the rain. Water does count as an item, with a flask holding up to ten aums being up one individual item. Partially filled and empty flasks still count as items.
Expeditions
The Zigent is home to many secrets, and much of its depths are still untouched. To that end, each region may contain expedition locations, which you may invest time into exploring in hopes of discovering secrets or artifacts.
Each expedition location has both a difficulty and a length. Any number of days can be devoted to exploring it, with each day giving one additional d10 roll for progress. Each roll has the difficulty value subtracted from it, which may result in a low roll giving negative progress if the difficulty is high enough. After all rolls are made and the difficulty subtracted, the sum of the new values is added together to determine your total progress completing the expedition. If this number is at or above the length of the expedition, you will finish it and achieve its rewards.
Additional progress above the length will not grant any rewards; the time spent will be wasted. However, if progress is below the length of the expedition, you'll need to wait for the next turn to try exploring it again. Progress carries over between turns, but each day of rain since you've last explored an expedition subtracts one from the progress total.
Action Tags
The default action can only be taken once, and remains available indefinitely. However, this description does not fit all actions. Action tags are placed in parentheses after the action, indicating what about it is different from the standard. The currently known action tags are as follows:
(Repeatable): This action can be performed every cycle, with no upper limit
(Scaling): This action can be performed multiple times, but it will become more difficult or less useful as it is repeated
(Fleeting): This action can only be taken the cycle it is offered, after which it will disappear
(Dangerous): This action is somehow risky, and failing at it will have consequences beyond simply wasted time (Formerly, Illegal)
This is the secrets sheet; it keeps track of the secrets you have discovered throughout the Zigent, rare pieces of information that could be very valuable to the right ears. Of course, you could always be mistaken about just how important they actually are.
The Shape of Air: Everyone treats it like it's normal, but something is wrong with the sky. Whenever you ask about it, all you're told is that this is the way things have always been, that the rain has always has and will always will exist as the eternal foe of civilization. There has to be more to it than this. (Cannot be traded.)
As Above, So Below: Monument Valley is a city of new growth amidst decaying ruins, and this metaphor is continued with a secret fungal enclave underneath the settlement. Extremely insular, it does not seem interested in further contact. (Untraded.)
Monument Valley Tenju Inscription: An inscription in the Tenju language. Translated by Nothr as "Find warm hard object. Remove bad/complex machine. Bright above event repeat." (Untraded.)
One Ring to Find Them: Nothr is secretly a member of an underground society dedicated to making knowledge of the Tenju available to everyone in the Zigent. Apparently, you're a good fit for membership and the ring will identify you to them if you go to Shrine of Dust. (Untraded.)
Heart of the Cards: The card that you found in the abandoned tower is apparently very important, and Nothr wants it for unspecified reasons. There's definitely something xyr not telling you. (Untraded.)
Compass Thorn
Nestled in the wilderness between Monument Valley and the Wire Dunes, there's a small patch of ground where your compass needle spins wildly. You didn't find anything there, but perhaps that's a consequence of insufficient searching rather than a lack of anything interesting to find. (Untraded.)
Ancient Machinery
You've discovered a potentially very promising piece of salvage in the Wire Dunes, but getting it out without arousing suspicion would be an ordeal. Instead, why not just carry the much lighter and more easily concealed information on where you found it? (Untraded.)
Peaked Curiosity
Very few people ever travel over the slopes of Mount Shan, preferring to take more hospitable routes. However, at some point, someone laid a trail up to the peak. Why would anyone want to do such a thing? (Untraded.)
Route 666
The roads in Wind-Key are laid out in a mysterious pattern, one apparently part of some Animist religious doctrine. But is that really enough of a reason for the entire region to be left barren? (Untraded.)
Dust in the Wind
The air quality inside Thunder-Bell is on the poorer side – probably to be expected from an industrial hub. Still, the foundries are all outside the dome, and it didn't smell like smoke. (Untraded.)
This is the character sheet. It tracks your names and titles, your relationships with encountered factions, things you have said that people will hold you to, and your current inventory.
Names and Titles:
Empathy With Stone
That all living beings can speak is an almost axiomatic truth of the world, but you go beyond it. From the playful dance of sand around your feet to the joyous cries of a rung bell, you can hear the voices of even the most insignificant of objects. Upon entering an area for the first time, you learn a secret relevant to that area.
Scion of Azentu
Although the Azentu cast their seeds far and wide, they never forget about them. You can always rely on your home. Unlocks diplomacy option Scion of Azentu. Though you may ask it only once, any being you ask this of will be honor-bound to assist you in your return to the Azentu in any way they can. So long, of course, that they care about maintaining good relations.
Faction Reputation:
Azentu: 39
The humans of the Azentu see you as just one among their many pilgrims; still young and untested, but worthy of consideration nonetheless. Known representatives: Elder Vision (Monument Valley)
Librarians' Union: 15
Close friends with one of their members, you're at the start of the path to a good working relationship. Known representatives: Nothr (???)
Monument Farmer's Consortium: 0
While they're willing to talk, they don't particularly care to do much more than that. Known representatives: Brasa, child of Olea (Monument Valley)
Sky-Deed: 0
While you've visited one of their embassies, it's more of an acquaintance than anything significant. Known representatives: Ambassador Sweet-Fur (Monument Valley)
Animist Temple: 2
You've shown interest in learning about their faith, which already puts you ahead of the pack.
Known representatives: Bright-Fleck (Thunder-Bell)
Promises
You have told Elder Vision that, should your life ever be endangered, you will stop exploring and return home.
You have told the Thunder-Bell investigators that you are not associated with the Librarian's Guild, and that you had no knowledge about their disappearance.
Inventory: (7/10)
- A beautifully illustrated map (Does not take up space.)
- A black ring (Does not take up space.)
-- It's made of an unknown material, with an inscription on the inside. Apparently, it's related to a secret society of librarians.
- A tiny spring (Does not take up space.) --Your new traveling partner, always ready with companionable silence.
- A collapsible pole
-- Useful for long-distance poking and general tomfoolery. (Increases expedition rolls by 1 while held.)
- A water flask with two aums
- An empty water flask
- An empty water flask
- A trade good from Monument Valley
- A trade good from Monument Valley
- A Tenju kinetic sculpture
-- A set of nested rings that spin at different rates, creating a mesmerizing visual pattern. Appraised value of at least thirty aums.
[X] Empathy With Stone
The value secrets hold could be weighed in, well, the English stone. And if secrets are our 'leveling' system, then it's likely a good idea to have a semi-reliable source.
[X] Explore the festival
I have no real preference, but opportunity rarely knocks twice.
[x] Fading Rhythm
Not sure how frequent experts are, or how costly going to them would be, but I like how the name sounds.
[x] Explore the festival
I personally would probably keep reading but that's not necessarily healthy...
My intention with the naming-benefits were that they would all add up to a similar amount of time-savings with the mechanical value; the real meat and potatoes would be in how they affect your narrative outlook on things. Don't worry about missing out on anything irreplaceable.
Alright folks, I'm going to close up voting later this evening, but we've got a pretty clear consensus for exploring the festival so expect the update around that same time.
You are tentatively willing to explore the idea that it might, might, be a good idea to abandon your safe haven of knowledge. People kept telling you that you were lucky the parallax was so close to your coming of age; you've heard the horror stories of some having to wait for years for a suitably auspicious time to begin their pilgrimage. Yes, it could certainly be much worse. You should feel blessed that you've been given such a good opportunity to begin your journey of self-discovery.
But before you can stand from your chair, you feel some deep part of yourself pushing back against your decision. How could you, who call yourself a daughter of knowledge, ever claim that abandoning such holy treasures could ever be justified? You don't need a journey of self-discovery to figure out what you want to do with your life, you already know perfectly well that everything you could ever need lies within these walls.
Ridiculous, you think to your rebellious inner self, every new adult thinks they have it all figured out and they're all invariably wrong. Besides, traditions don't just come about for no reason; they provide some sort of social good to the community. You should go out, even if not for the respect it will grant you from your peers, then for the understanding you will gain of yourself and your ideals.
Your sense of youthful defiance, either swayed by your arguments or intimidated by your monopoly of mental force, is silent at that. You'll take it as a hard-earned victory, and so it is with a weary resignation that you steel yourself to the plaintive cries of historical documents, ancient manuscripts, and … no, you can't keep the bit going, you'll actually talk yourself out of it at this rate. You unceremoniously push your chair out and move to take Cultural Genealogy of the Zigent back to the shelf you found it on.
Technically you're supposed to give them back to Nothr to reshelve them, but you know where everything goes. Besides, what xe doesn't know won't hurt xem.
"Forgetting something, Stone?" You freeze, and before you can get your unruly muscles back into line they traitorously defect to the enemy and turn you around to face the unimpressed foliage of Nothr, child of Limnir, child of Spuri, the local librarian.
"Oh, uh, Nothr. I was … just about to bring this back to you." You hope that it counts as changing your mind instead of lying if you haven't actually done anything yet, but apparently the stars have abandoned you because Nothr just keeps giving you that horrible disapproving gaze. You wilt. (Only metaphorically though, you're not racist.) "Sorry." And, before you can stop yourself, "And how did you know my new name? I only just told Nature about it."
Nothr keeps up the disappointed act for a few torturous seconds before letting up and unfurling xyr fronds. You're almost certain that's the plant equivalent of a smile, but it's not like Nothr has given you very many real life examples to compare it to.
"I was listening in." Xe admit. "It's going to be a lot quieter around here without my favorite little knowledge-seeker to keep me company." Xe lightly tousles your hair. (What is it with older people and messing with your hair?) "And don't worry about the book. I'll let it slide this time."
You laugh a little at xyr faux-stern demeanor before realizing something very important. "Wait, why were you listening to my conversation?" You almost laugh again at the sudden transition to overexaggerated panic, but Nothr makes a quick recovery.
"I'm a librarian, poking my leaves in where they don't belong is my job." Credit where it's due, it was a very good comeback, very snappy. "But what about you, Stone? Where do you think you'll head off first?"
That is a very good question. So good, in fact, that you'd rather not answer it right now. "Um," you very eloquently reply. "I haven't really decided yet." Why must your body betray you at every turn?
"Well, that's alright. I don't imagine that many had by your age." Nothr waves magnanimously. "But, when you do figure it out, I think that this might help." With a little flourish, xe pulls out a beautiful hand(root?)-illustrated map of the Zigent and offers it to you.
(Gained Map of the Zigent.)
You suddenly become aware of a strange heaving noise, not unlike a librarian dramatically gasping for breath after you've given xem a hug tight enough to crack nonexistent ribs. After you manage to get it out of your system, you pull back and beam at Nothr. Xe looks a little sheepish for showing so much emotional vulnerability (xe still thinks that academics are supposed to be aloof), but you can't bring yourself to care too much about little details like that. This is the best pilgrimage gift you could have possibly been given, and you say as such.
"Oh, don't worry about it. Just make sure you don't forget about your old friend Nothr, alright?"
"I won't." How could you? You swear to yourself that you will always remember this moment.
"But enough of this sappiness. Your friend Inexhaustible Nature was right, go out and enjoy the festival." Nothr picks up the book and heads deeper into the library. A clear end to the conversation.
After one last beaming smile, you carefully tuck the map away in your satchel and head out into the town of Azentu.
—
By the stars, Nature was definitely right. This was incredible! They had really pulled out all the stops for today. Traders, performers, and pilgrims flood the streets, more banners hang from windows than seem physically possible, and the whole experience feels like a single endless moment, free from the banalities of linear time.
Right now, you're listening to a farmer complain about issues with his business associates. You were just trying to buy a few of the delicious-looking rambutan fruit he was selling, but the farmer turned out to be one of those old men who take any excuse to talk they can, and to be honest, you're a little too intimidated to interrupt.
"It's those damn beetles and their damn union. I'm telling them that this is going to be our big break, we're going to use the festival to popularize our produce and invest in the operation, but it's like they don't care about profit at all! They just keep talking about having a healthy workplace. The trees don't care either; they're happy to just sit around growing with no regard to the selling. I'm of half a mind to…"
Luckily, you manage to spot a friendly face in the crowd. Sound Vindicates Vision, one of the elders you're more familiar with, is swiftly lured over by your frantic waving in her direction when the farmer isn't paying attention.
"Good day, Mr. …" The farmer looks a little surprised at the sudden appearance of Elder Vision and his leading question, but unfortunately he recovers quickly.
"Coincidental Appearance. Interested in my wares?" A hungry look enters his eye – he was probably imagining the economic ramifications of an Elder being seen purchasing fruits from him. You don't have the heart to tell him that nobody actually cares that much. He probably wouldn't listen to you though, even if you tried; he has all the hallmarks of a nepo-hire that tries too hard to leverage minor social interactions into profit.
"No. I merely came to collect my student here." You suppress a giggle as Coincidental Appearance's face falls faster than the rain. "Her pilgrimage begins tomorrow, and I wouldn't wish for her to be unprepared."
"Well, be sure to keep me in mind!" he calls out fruitlessly (You crack yourself up sometimes.) as you both head away from his stall. "Best fruit in Azentu!"
After you get far enough away that he probably won't hear you over the dull roar of the crowd, you turn to Elder Vision. "Thank you Elder, I thought that he was going to keep me trapped there all day."
Elder Vision does one of those little smiles she always does and waves your words away. "It was no trouble, my child. Or should I say, Empathy With Stone?"
"Agh, how does everyone already know about that?" Seriously, it's been just a few hours since you picked out your name. Is there an underground market for secrets that you don't know about?
"Your friend Inexhaustible Nature told me. He seemed quite smitten with it." Wait, smitten? What did she mean by smitten?
Something must have been showing on your face because the elder just chuckles. "No need to be so surprised, Stone. I hear that such feelings are quite natural for those of your age."
… No. You aren't going to think about this right now. There has to be another topic you can talk about. Thankfully, Elder Vision is apparently capable of using her supernatural abilities of perception for good as well as evil.
"I wasn't lying to that merchant; I did want to speak to you about your pilgrimage. Now, I'm sure that you've prepared yourself adequately, but there was one more thing that I wanted to bring up before you leave tomorrow."
You nod for her to go on.
"I don't want to make you feel singled out or incapable, this is something we offer to all pilgrims from Azentu, …"
"Elder," you interrupt. "It's okay. I won't be offended."
Elder Vision looks a little relieved, but the moment passes quickly. "Thank you, Stone. What I'm trying to get at is that if you ever need help, please, please ask for it. Sometimes people, they feel like they have something to prove, and …"
Once again, you cut the elder off. You know what she's saying. "I understand, Elder. Not all pilgrims come back. You just want me to be safe."
It seems that you've cut straight to the heart of the matter. Elder Vision sighs. "You've always been a smart child, Stone. I know you understand what we want. But it would reassure a great many to hear you say it. Promise that you won't throw your life away to make a point."
[ ] "I promise."
Weakness is not shameful. Gain new diplomacy option Scion of Azentu. Though you may ask it only once, any being you ask this of will be honor-bound to assist you in your return to Azentu in any way they can.
[ ] Remain silent.
You can handle yourself. Elder Vision will be disappointed in you, though perhaps not surprised. Other potential effects, if any, are unknown.
The elder signs again. "It was good to speak with you, Stone. I'll leave you to enjoy yourself."
The rest of the celebration seemed to pass in a blur, but you do particularly remember the time that…
[ ] You heard a few stories from an experienced explorer.
Mostly bragging, of course, but there were a few interesting parts about the local caverns and what might lie within them. Discover a new expedition site.
[ ] You won a high-stakes game.
The accusation of you speaking to the tokens to gain an advantage was probably a joke about your name. Probably. Gain three aums of water.
Next turn, you will begin your pilgrimage.
Alright, that's our turn zero wrapped up. Voting for the first real turn will probably go up tomorrow, seeing as it's getting pretty late for me. As a reminder, the information sheet has been updated with more background knowledge about things described in this post.
Thanks for the correction, should be fixed now. To answer your question, yes, I will continue with the neopronouns. They are a part of the story I would like to tell.
You suddenly become aware of a strange heaving noise, not unlike a librarian dramatically gasping for breath after you've given xem a hug tight enough to crack nonexistent ribs.
I suppose if we're too weak to even end a conversation ourselves, we may as well put this in the back pocket. The Elder seems concerned for us, which is nice.
[X] You won a high-stakes game.
Money and destinations - only one is easy to find out there.
Thank you for your question; no, it actually doesn't.
Background Information said:
The Sun: The Sun is revered by many for a variety of reasons. Humans consider it to be the largest star in the sky, and thus especially auspicious; plants, of course, rely on it to survive, and it even features in many animal legends in one way or another. Permanently staying close to the northern horizon, the sun is a useful fixture for navigators and farmers alike.
Just a quick question for everyone, how long would you all like voting periods to be? I could probably get a new post in every day or two if you wanted, but I wouldn't be opposed to a longer timeframe if that's what people are more interested in.
Interesting… well, if we're on a tidally locked planet it could explain the rain? Also makes sense that there are so many calendars. 'Day' would be an entirely arbitrary concept, based on the movements of the stars, etc. are there any moons? I could see that being relevant also.
We could also be on a screwed up space station/megastructure of some description instead of a planet i suppose? Not a ringworld, o'neil cylinder, or dyson sphere though, i imagine, as we'd probably be able to tell just by looking up? Though if it is always overcast… but we can see the stars so it can't always be…
Drawing a blank in what could cause a fixed position sun aside from a tidally locked planet honestly. Maybe it could be a large space station that uses artificial gravity, rather than centrifugal force?
Just a quick question for everyone, how long would you all like voting periods to be? I could probably get a new post in every day or two if you wanted, but I wouldn't be opposed to a longer timeframe if that's what people are more interested in.
