All Level, No Experience (Worm/Pathfinder Amnesia Quest)

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You decided that above all else, the ability to communicate without relying on magic and info-gathering took priority in this instance, and so decided to go back up to study the language more directly, and possibly seek out how the locals gathered information, if they had any libraries or other equivalent convienent repositories of information. Soon enough you were skittering about in the early daytime, managing to keep yourself well hidden between alleys as you went, and based on the total lack of reaction you had been managing well enough to keep yourself hidden by sheer skill alone. That, and being able to simply feel footsteps around corners as well as a healthy dose of simply swimming under the ground for major parts of your travels, being able to simply come close to breaching and finding that you were more than able to listen in on conversations through the ground, that you were slowly but steadily beginning to pick up on, after one particularly well frequented location that a very quick and discreet check revealed to be the equivalent of the central market, called a 'mall' by the locals.

The discovery had actually practically spiked your speed of learning the language, as it was a source of a constant stream of novel conversations mixed with, by the sound of the tone alone, rote messages from employees to customers repeated almost exactly the same, which was exceptionally convenient. Especially as more people kept slowly filtering in, you had suspected that at this rate, if you simply spent half of the day here you could finish learning the language entirely by the end- one of the languages, as you realized a few others were being spoken as well, though not as often as the primary one that you were confident by now was called English. Well, later you caught what sounded like a complaint with 'American' pre-empting English, but you had quickly figured that it was likely a regional dialect of English as a whole.

Regardless, during what you recognized as being near the peak hours, you ducked further into the ground- having to carefully and constantly maneuver around the various pipes, wires, and other non-earth or stone materials- so you could be absolutely certain no errant sounds would travel as you attempted to cast your only other prepared Comprehend Languages to ensure you didn't miss any truly vital information.

And oh, what information it was. The year was 'twenty-ten', though the very last day of it, going on to 'twenty-eleven'. There were quite a few parties, gatherings, and celebrations going on for it, which certainly made sense, the people in ____ ___ would always throw immense fireworks displays and the like for the coming of a new year. Quite a lot of people had even left, driving down to 'New York' to see 'the countdown' in person. It was even known that Legend (not a legend, but simply Legend, in the singular) was going to be there this year, like he had been a few times.

On the knowledge front, there were multiple schools in the city alone and a college on one of the edges of the 'nicer part' as well, which a part of you found quite approving of, though based on some of the (thankfully in this case) endless flow of conversation from various teens you found yourself feeling a fair amount of approval for this 'Arcadia', and in equal if not greater measure disapproval with this 'Winslow'. Perhaps if you really did go through with pre-Amnesia you's goal you'd include improving that place as a part along the plan.

More than that, magic was simply cultural fiction here, though you suspected that these Capes who gain powers when- well there was quite the disagreement on just what caused it- were perhaps some odd variation on hyper-specialized sorcerers (or bloodragers, in some instances). There had even been an instance where you realized there was one within the mall, as you listened in on a young man's voice speaking with a young woman's, where only the man's voice had footsteps beneath it, and he had thankfully asked her if she had to fly everywhere, where she had responded in the affirmative. You felt quite curious on the matter, especially now that there was a cape so nearby, and so decided that it wouldn't hurt to follow them where you could. An extended dialogue between two familiar people would also serve as a useful learning context.

Thankfully, the mall was only single story, so it proved not too difficult to follow and listen, soon learning their names were Dean and Vicky respectively- dean and Victoria, actually, as Vicky appeared to simply be a nickname. For a few moments they had gone silent, though that seemed to be from Dean having a conversation via Text on his phone- and oh what phones were! Things that were overall an improvement on the commset for nearly all purposes, perhaps their only downside being requiring some external signal to piggyback off of, but an issue clearly solved simply by proper infrastructure. While you were fairly certain you had the majority of the idea from a glance, you considered at some point that you ought to get yourself one, perhaps even integrate it into the commset. They were so much more efficient, too, not even taking a single megawatt to run and- oh, he had stopped texting and returned to speaking with his girlfriend. Interesting. Hm, chiding her over some sort of 'aura'? Odd, you hadn't noticed anything of the sort.

Oh, and even with your abysmal social skills, by the way she seemed to have landed on the ground, they seemed to be about to have something of a lover's spat. Right, not overly glad to rediscover the feeling of secondhand embarrassment, you elected to leave for elsewhere. You didn't manage the full half-day you'd need beneath the floor here, but you were more than confident at this point that with an actual dictionary, perhaps even an encyclopedia or two, you could almost certainly figure out the language by the end of the night.

Quite soon enough, that's what you did, smoothly making your way to said library, with about twenty minutes left on your Comprehend Languages, having learned from the first casting that each one lasted for 350 minutes straight, and what do you know, it was a delightfully slow day. Making it more than simple enough to find a place out of the way to slip up from the ground, and apply a simple Invisibility spell. From there, it was easy enough to slip forwards and enter right behind a dark haired and vaguely owlish girl, who quickly went to-

Oh, so that was what a computer was. It was glorious, and sure, you could already see a number of improvements, but you had overheard these were outdated by the standards of the locals, and even then it was certainly exceptionally impressive.

Regardless, the more immediate task, you continued onwards towards the wonderfully high stacks of books, the feeling of a library simply being correct within a deep, near fundamental part of yourself. The dictionaries (they updated them! Regularly! And kept the past editions around for reference!) and encyclopedias very much in the far back. So, thankfully being hidden by a few corners, invisible yourself, and more than able to sense if anyone stepped nearby, you quickly took out the most recent dictionary to peruse, and soon enough after a nice three minutes had it memorized and put it back where you found it, now having a full comprehending of the English language, you'd simply need to speak a few sentences to get the correct flow of pronunciation once you had a moment, likely back in the sewers or anywhere else you'd like to call a base of operations in the meanwhile- there had been a surprisingly plentiful variety of choices in abandoned warehouses that could be fairly easily converted.

With your newfound understanding, you were deeply tempted to try and use a computer yourself, but couldn't find a good opportunity to cast a spell without the invisibility dropping, and the quiet of the library would make the sound of your spellcasting exceptionally obvious. It was also a touch too slow of a day, as you made your way to the front doors, but ten, then twenty minutes passed and nobody else had entered or left in that time for you to slip by. You were starting to get dangerously low on time with your Invisibility as the thirtieth total minute came sine entering- There!

Another young woman, dark blonde hair, green eyes, based on the overall features possibly a disguised kitsune of some sort, who appeared puzzled over something (which was fair enough, she was going to a library) had just opened the door, and for some particular reason paused as she examed a part of the old shag carpet in the entranceway. Regardless of what that was, probably an odd pattern or something, you immediately took the opportunity to slip past and out, requiring a touch of surprisingly well done contortions on your part, before you soon made it out into the setting sun, quickly diving from the top of the stairway leading to the library proper directly into the dirt next to it, only a couple minutes left of invisibility.

You were tempted to immediately go back to the sewers, but instead decided to go listen in, beneath the large public celebration at a park in the nice part of the town. It was slow gathering at first, but some hours later it was going quite well along, and well, you were here in part because, a deep part of you wanted to be here.

In one of the hearts of this community,

"5!"

One step over in an unusual direction,

"4!"

But still a part of it, with the people, around you,

"3!"

That you would walk with and ahead of, leading the way, with them at your back,

"2!"

Into a new and bettter community, All shall be United. Into a new and better city, All shall be Supported. Into a new and better them, All shall be Prosperous. All under a new leader, All shall be Guided. A new You.

"1!"

Except, to be New, one needs something Old, first. A point of comparison.

"Happy New Year!"

A new Memory.

[ ] What were my greatest accomplishments? (Remember some of your past legendary deeds.)
[ ] What was my most regretful failure? (Remember what you feel is among your greatest failures.)
[ ] Something Else? (Write In)

You can only pick one.

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The party chatters above you, but your mind is far elsewhere. In this moment, you remember your greatest failure, and the context around it.

In your earliest days, you grew, first all but isolated, only yourself and your father and no others, in a tower in the middle of nowhere. Then, your apprenticeship came to an end, and you were off, into the world. You lived, and acted, and though you took and gave orders in parts and places, you had never yet found your place. You lashed out, at anything you could, though at the time you had not yet realized it, rationalizing away your rage, particularly at the gods, as disdain for them not 'having earned' their power.

For an unknown reason, you are certain of the fact that it was utterly hypocritical.

In your loathing, a billowing mountain wind that carried neither snow nor ice nor rain, biting and cold and clear and constant, you made what you believed to be allies of convenience, but only later realized were simply using you. Until your actions, doing everything in your power to make any and every aspect of that world that you could break under your will, caught up to you.

Sold out by your previous greatest ally, and hundreds of Righteous sacrificing themselves to pull off a sudden and immense ritual, one only possible by you having made enemies of even The Overdeity.

And so, you had been laid low, again and again, and when you had managed to slink off, greatly dimished, you were left with only foes in that world, until at some point by some means you had left it behind. But still, you regretted very little of it, and it was not in itself your greatest failure. Simply context, for now.

In your second world, bereft even of what purpose you had had, realizing the betrayal, and without the constant harrying forces, you had time to truly think, to come to terms and look at yourself. So, you took up simple labor, for a time, and found yourself woeful in most any physical task, though eventually found a suitable job. The exercise was enlightening, at the time. Then, you got yourself back up, and went on another adventure, investigating a spire of green crystal, going down, down. Realizing and marvelling at something you didn't understand.

Then, at the bottom, you found the person who would become your first friend, driven mad by his circumstances. Cold and without emotion was his first conversation with you, without pretense of greetings, all but an interrogation upon what you were, until he decided he was done with speaking, and began the fight. You had, by then, come to know his own plans.

They were what had stayed your hand, to make the effort to incapacitate, and not kill. Since you had seen in his madness what you once were, and so decided not only to give him another chance, but that you would help him. Whether he wanted to let you or not, knowing what you would have done at that point in your life.

And so, you did. It took a great span of your life, on and on, weeks on end of daily attempts to murder you, several months of every type of verbal tactic he could think of. Another set of years where it was only you and one other, alone in a tower in the middle of nowhere.

You later learned that that was the tipping point, when he recognized how you had kept yourself purposefully imprisoned there, beside him, and how you would be stubborn and capable of simpy staying there, holding him off while staying beside him, perhaps forever. And so, Iluchtewhar was the first being you had ever called a friend.

Through him, you met others of his kind- no, of your kind, even if at that period your flesh did not match theirs. In mind, in soul, you and they were of the same, and they saw it too. Finally you had had a people.

But, this is only context for your greatest failure.

You had created something, your greatest achievement, though you cannot remember what it was, only that it was immense and grand and wonderful. For it, you had been praised, accolades upon you, an achievement of the type that gives people their names- where you had cast off whatever you had been called, and gaining the name you have now come to remember, that finally resonated with who you were. You had even been offered, for your achievement, a place amongst the highest council of your people, your knowledge valued.

In your greatest, most regretful failure, you rejected the call to leadership.

You had believed yourself best suited to simply be directed. A wellspring of logistics to tap on homeground, a blade that never glints in the dark when directed elsewhere. Because of this, you were not able to help them again, to council them away from an action you yourself would have known to be foolish, that you could have been able to prevent, even by force if it had been necessary.

They had long feared a prophesied downfall of their people, and in making one single move just a touch too quickly, with just a slightest bit of error, ran right into it. You were not there to learn of it until the very end, to witness your best friend fall in a battle where five tall old crones with blonde hair and silver shears observed from the side, who only joined to try and fell you too, to try and prevent you from bringing him back.

You proved victorious over them and the rest in that battle, but still you were too late. Your best friend, and all the rest of your people were dead, their souls already judged and unrecoverable to the last. You were the only survivor of the fate long ago laid against your people.

You are Iluontar, the last surviving xiomorn.

What now?

[ ] Write In.

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