I think he gave away the Crystal and not the equipment that produced it.
The Guardian likely thought that the converter could only produce one Crystal before self-destruction.
For all his Light, he didn't seem all that bright.
Last edited:
Merchant of Dust (Destiny Celestial forge SI)
- Thread starter dgr11897
- Start date
The Guardian likely thought that the converter could only produce one Crystal before self-destruction.
For all his Light, he didn't seem all that bright.
- Location
- United States
You mean the Beetle? Depends on how many Workshop additions he gets. Though things like the Skyforge and Volcano would just end up combining, so it won't necessarily grow for each new addition.
Yes, sorry the autocorrect struck again.
- Location
- United States
Yeah, a Forum Posters most Malicious Foe, that Autocorrect...
Interlude 1.1
dgr11897
FBI surveillance Tank
- Location
- Behind you
Interlude 1 Kaleidescope, part 1:
Cayde-6, Hunter Vanguard:
Gavriks was a strange kind of merchant, Cayde had come to realize. Prizing a substance that only he seemed to know how to use, giving an exotic weapon to the first Guardian he saw, and the way he called Ghosts "Little Lights" in the same manner as the Fallen. There was almost certainly a connection there, but Cayde and his hunters didn't pry and made sure the rest of the Vanguard didn't pry too deep into such secrets either. The weapons that Gavriks sold to Guardians were too valuable to lose.
Cayde stifled the thought as he and the small team of hunters he was leading came up to one of Gavriks' portals. This was the third such raid, they were easy, and strange. The enemies didn't use guns, but instead crossbows, fireballs and axes. Most of the time they couldn't even touch the Guardians sacking their fortress, their fire just washing over the Guardians' shields. The so-called blazes were an interesting form of life, but also weak, unused to fighting foes with shields, grenades, and guns. They fell easily, forfeiting their prize of what Gavriks called Blaze Rods.
However, the Withers, the enemy they fought at the end of each of these raids, that thing... It was incredibly strong and mildly terrifying, even being near it you could feel yourself withering away under its influence. Its attacks ignored shields, ignored armor, to directly wither the flesh beneath away to nothing. They soon learned the tricks though, keep shooting at it, make sure its focus stays on one person and keep them moving around. Drawing its fire away and dodging the attacks. The first one Gavriks just had them kill after assembling it from the heads of twisted skeleton creatures and blocks of black sand. The killing blow would cause it to crumble to pieces, revealing a gleaming star shaped object at its heart.
The second time he had them perform the raid he had them make a short march through the other dimension, beyond the fortress to another fortification to loot it as well, angering the local piglike inhabitants in the process. That raid one of them had also found something Gavriks had apparently been looking for from these, a massive blue diamond, several of them actually. The Guardian who found them got some extra rewards in exchange for the gems. Shortly after he started offering a service to improve pieces of armor and certain simple weapons. For that Wither though, he had them weaken it, before doing something to it with a piece of paper, somehow sucking it up into a rock. Cayde could still feel the raw power of the being even sealed with some sort of magic inside a stone; like standing next to an avatar of Entropy and decay, though it was far weaker, more distant, but still present.
This was the third time he had them charge into this other world, and now their objective was to gather a certain metal from a fortress of black stone. Checking his handgun, Cayde stepped through the portal into hell. The place had become almost mundane at this point. A single shot to the head of each was all it took to dispatch the hostiles crowding around their insertion point.
The following hike up a cliff to get into the fortress is honestly harder than killing the inhabitants.
As soon as they got within line of sight of the fortress, bolts started flying out, only to be dodged, blocked by energy shields, or hit their target only for that guardian to fully heal shortly afterwards. In return the inhabitants of the fortress were riddled with gunfire and blasted to bits by grenades as the Guardians advanced unhindered. Entering the fortress the team seemed to dance through its defenders, becoming a whirlwind of death and fire and metal. Then once the area was clear they searched the somehow untouched wooden chests in the area, and retrieved what they could.
To think, jaunting into hell had become such a boring chore.
The Fortress's guardians slain and its contents looted, Cayde and his team waltzed back through the portal. Eyeing all they had retrieved, Gavriks declared that now he had enough materials for Ikora's weapon. Good. This whole thing had been a pain in the ass.
Gavriks said he changed plans a few times, but finally settled on a shotgun. He calls it "Bane", says it'll be lighter than other weapons, more durable, have bullets that are infused with the power of the wither and covered in poison, able to make just about any target rot away on a good hit. Hopefully Ikora likes her Rising day gift.
Bapas, Shrine Eliksni:
Gavriks is a strange Kell, a strange human. There wasn't a lot about him that wasn't strange. In fairness, House Dust was definitely no ordinary House, the closest thing they had to a Kell was a human with powers no one had ever seen before, while they lacked a Prime servitor or an Archon, or any official Barons. His touch seemed to revitalize our people, things seemed cleaner, our equipment and people improving in appearance after we joined him.
A new strangeness started when Gavriks returned from his efforts on the moon. He planted the seeds he seemed to have an endless supply of, just 4 of each type, in neat little rows, with instructions for some Eliksni to take care of them. Called them Seeds of Dust and Seeds of Metal.
Then he began experimenting with making Dye of all things out of Dusklight crystals, after sticking one in his strange machine which could apparently turn energy into a crystalline form if his words were to be believed. He painted strange symbols on small strips of paper, calling these strange things "Ofuda". It soon became apparent they were another of his magics, as he used them to erect those glowing walls of light he used in combat, to paralyze some rats, and apparently bind spirits up into objects. He tested so many different ways of making those small things, those "Ofuda", stamps, stencils, and even printed some out at one point.
He created strange objects, a black table with a floating book which opened and turned to whoever stepped near, a small stand with bottles that he used to brew strange "Potions" which he showed could do anything from instantly heal a broken leg, to making one stronger and faster. The most superstitious of our number started referring to him as the "Kell of Mystics", after his mysterious ways and strange magics.
Finally one day he gathered a bunch of us who didn't have any particular job in House dust, and asked if we wanted to learn a portion of his magic, things beyond the so-called Dust magics we had already learned upon entering House Dust, minor as our knowledge of that form of sorcery was, limited to simple making of lights and assembly of small objects.
Very few rejected the offer, such power was prized, and we had all seen how Gavriks had used his magics to rip through the forces of the Hive.
What he taught was eclectic, a spread of different techniques, from crude potions he put together through trial and error, which required a great degree of focus to prevent explosions, to combat Dust magic, but the one I gravitated towards ended up being those paper charms.
There was a particular focus on them, on writing the symbols and learning the rules. It was a strange magic, seemingly more of a legal system than anything else. At first we struggled, messing up symbols we were drawing, not giving the process of crafting enough focus, and straight up not believing Gavriks about certain things.
Eventually, I was the first to succeed. On my own. I remembered what Gavriks taught us about how the Ofuda functioned. What the symbols we were drawing meant, the natures of certain Ofuda. In particular, a type he didn't have us use; an Ofuda called a "Shinsatsu", meant to channel the power of a "Kami" a god or spirit. I ditched the old symbols, instead writing in proper Eliksni, altering the symbols to match the rules Gavriks stated about the way the symbols must flow, the way they needed to point and curve for optimal power. I wrote the symbols for the Great Machine, and went out to seek the seal of the place which holds it. Eventually I found a worn down badge with the Shield of the City upon it, after asking several Eliskni for ideas. Dipping it in ink derived from Dusklight crystals I pressed it upon the charm.
With bated breath I looked upon my creation. Nothing seemed to happen, for a moment, then nothing continued to happen. I discarded it in my room as a failure, and went about my day.
Then, the next night while I prayed to the Great Machine before sleeping, when all was dark and quiet, I saw a glimmer of light from the corner of my eye. As my prayer stopped it started to die. Going through a pile of junk looking for the source of the rapidly fading glow, I was eventually left holding a faintly glowing Ofuda. Setting it down, I offered another prayer, and again it began to glow, with the warm, flowing power of the Great Machine's Light. It was faint, but there, and knowing the sensation, I recognized it inside myself, even long after the glow went away.
The next day I showed Gavriks my Ofuda, and demonstrated how it could channel the Traveler. Soon we were all writing our Ofuda in altered Eliksni, it felt easier to understand the purpose, the intent.
Now that I could, to some degree, sense the Light, I noticed that the Light inside of Dusklight crystals, while definitely present, was both in an incredibly miniscule amount, and... Twisted. Impure. Telling Gavriks of this he began researching, with my help, Purification Ofuda, creating and using them to purify the Light present in the crystals, amplifying it in the process.
As I was taught more advanced forms of Dust magic, I soon grew to appreciate Dust as a similar level of power to the Light, a Semi-divine thing. After this realization, the creation of Dust based Ofuda, and my first Barrier Ofuda, was simply a logical extension of the things I had already learnt of this magic. Others followed in my footsteps shortly after. Soon we were using Dust infused inks and paper to create weak standardized barrier Ofuda for the camp.
Eventually, I grasped a more advanced lesson of Gavriks'. He said that Ofuda originally fed off of the power of minor spirits that existed in everything. He described these "Kami" as forces of nature, somewhere between god and spirit, that existed in various objects. But, those are human "Kami" not Eliksni "Kami", we Eliksni hold the belief that machines act as vessels, holding in them a shard from the collective spirit of a House. We revere Prime Servitors as Gods, and by that logic they hold and provide that same spirit, lesser servitors are treated closer in nature to minor divine spirits, Holding in them both a piece of the greater Spirit of the House and of the Spirit that flows through all Prime Servitors.
So it was that I attempted to create an Ofuda through a contract with our main Servitor. Against all odds, it worked, allowing me to channel the strength of the servitor to create a small barrier of void energy. This soon became a huge jump forward, the ability to channel the Spirit of our House which resided inside machines. A uniquely Eliksni take on "Ofuda", though, the spirits we called through it, they were... weak, and felt... empty. Like they were missing some vital component. Regardless, such Ofuda became commonplace carved into equipment and vehicles of the House. Ofuda, as it turned out, could be carved into metal, though it was much less effective.
Soon we began to branch out into more human interpretations, "Kami" and nature spirits. First for minor things, gusts of wind and droplets of water, but eventually we started creating plans for things like rituals that would change the weather or call down lightning, or effectively ban the Hive from an area. But they felt far more distant to me, more alien. We are not of this planet, it's spirits are alien to us, and the human conception of them is somewhat alien to our native understanding of the world. And… I don't know if they really exist, I've never felt their influence on my life, so for all I know it could simply be me who is powering these Ofuda subconsciously.
Then, one day I made the decision to strike out on my own, to further my magic and knowledge independently, to walk this world and learn the ways of its spirits, and contemplate the spirits of Eliksni make, contemplate what is missing. I had learned all I could from Gavriks, it was time for me to go beyond what my teacher showed me. And so, I told Gavriks I wanted to leave and further my studies in the outside world.
Gavriks just nodded, looking very pleased. He said, "I had hoped something like this would happen. Teaching can only go so far, eventually you must advance into discovering things on your own. I always thought an eliksni should be the one to lead the House's magic development eventually."
Grateful for his support, I gathered supplies from the camp, several months of Ether in containers, a Dust magic focus, some healing potions, a good luck Ofuda made by Gavriks' hand, numerous barrier and offensive Ofuda of my own and other Eliksni's creation, a tent, and a Pike to carry it all. Supplies in hand I departed, seeking other horizons.
Little did I know how much would change over the course of my journey, little did I know how I would change.
Balthazar, Hopeful Little light:
I was an unfortunate Ghost, over four hundred years of searching, with nothing to show for it. But I have faith, I know my Chosen is out there. Ever since I was created I have been searching, Mars, Venus, Earth, and worlds beyond those. I've searched high and low for centuries without finding... anything. Not even a hint, but I keep up hope. There has to be some reason I haven't found them yet. It is all in the Traveler's plans. By mother's grace, I know I will find my Guardian, someday.
Changes have been happening around me while I search. Some small, some large, some sudden and others slowly occurring over time. Recently someone from places unknown appeared and suddenly everyone is doing their best to raise funds to buy from his shop. He doesn't particularly prize Glimmer though, instead, something he calls Dust is what he requires as payment for many things.
I scanned a sample of Dust once. I couldn't understand any of it. It seemed to be composed of thousands of bits of something smaller than even my sensors can perceive.
It also felt like... Something. It wasn't Light or Darkness, but I could feel how it held a similar power regardless.
The stuff is definitely safe from all tests performed. The worst that can happen is if humans or awoken eat it they might have a bad reaction and explode, but you do have to eat the mysterious coin made of a golden substance in order for that to happen. All observations indicate it's harmless as long as you don't ingest it.
Having looked so many other places, I think it's time I started looking in more hazardous areas, the places I was too afraid to go into the first time around. My Chosen must surely simply be residing in a place I've been too afraid to look. I was probably overthinking it the first time, being too cautious. Surely this time I'll find my Chosen there.
Cayde-6, Hunter Vanguard:
Finally the day came, Ikora's rising day.
"Did you complete the gift?" I ask.
"Yep, here it is." Gavriks replied, showing Cayde the fruits of their collective labor.
"Got your plus one?"
Gavriks nods. "Right here. Meet Betker. She's made something for Ms Rey as well." He gestures behind him at what is, to me, evidently a young Eliksni in a parka with an illusion over exposed parts of her body. She hides behind Gavriks, seemingly scared of me.
"Cute kid. Yours?" I ask, kneeling down to get a closer look. The kid seems skittish. Hiding even further behind Gavriks.
"No, Adopted, along with her brother, their parents..." Gavriks trails off. I try to calm her down, making a few silly faces at the little Eliksni, eventually getting her to smile just a bit.
"Ah. Well, sorry to bring up old wounds. Ready to go?"
"If you're providing transport then yes, we are ready to depart."
Ikora Rey, Warlock Vanguard:
Cayde went overboard on celebrating her Rising day, again. Not that she particularly minded it. Cayde had invited everyone he could this year, again, from the cryptarchs to Gavriks and someone he brought along, Betker, a little girl wearing a parka and seemingly very shy, hiding from strangers behind Gavriks.
Gavriks was apparently involved in whatever Cayde got her for a present this year. As things calmed down after some very delicious Cake, Cayde called Gavriks over. Taking a package from his back Gavriks walked up to her and took a knee.
"Courtesy of several months of work, slaying several avatars of Entropy itself, and the alloying of a selection of different metals, I present to you Bane, Destroyer of faces. Happy rising day Ms Rey." Gavriks declares, opening the cloth package to reveal a shotgun.
It was definitely unique. Black metal plates formed the outer shell; within, she could see a material whose surface was a mixture of blue and yellow, and which seemed to shift subtly, purple, orange, and blue glows subtly playing across its surface. In the rear of the gun was a small vial, made of black glass which seemed to shimmer in the light.
Under the outer plating near the rear of the gun's stock, she could see several pieces of paper wrapped around the underlying structure. They looked like charms of some sort.
Pushing her Light into the weapon, Ikora could feel the weapon responding, studying her Light even as she studied it, learning how best to channel it. Putting the weapon to the side she thanked Gavriks and Cayde-6 who had commissioned the weapon. "I will use it well."
Many other presents soon followed, none as particularly impressive as the shotgun, but all nice in their own ways. Then the little one, Betker, came up. Ikora paused, blinking once, then twice, then raising her eyebrow at the little fallen, disguised as she was beneath an illusion, Betker's secondary arms hidden beneath her coat. Betker shivered under Ikora's gaze, but took her gift from her pocket. At first glance it seemed to be a small metal tube, made of the same black metal as her shotgun, but laced with golden veins.
Then, Betker whispered to it. "Awake little spirit. You are to meet your new owner."
Golden light flowed around the tube with those words, springing forth into a cat seemingly made of golden light, the tube at the center with veins of golden light spreading out from it. The little golden kitten walked up to Ikora and she reached down to pick it up.
It mewled at her, as Betker explained all it could do. "Awake is one of the commands, you can also tell it to sleep, grow, or rest. Telling it to sleep will return it to tube form for easy transport, telling it to rest will make it simulate sleeping while maintaining its body. To use any of the command words, whisper the word to it, followed by 'little spirit'."
Ikora nods. "I admire your tenacity, little one, I will take good care of this gift. Does it require any form of recharging?"
Betker shakes her head. "No, it should be self-powering."
Ikora sincerely thanks the little fallen, and the party continues. Eventually things calm down, and Ikora goes to a firing range to test her new weapon.
Pulling the trigger she hears a roar like thunder, as the target is hit with a powerful blast of chaotically charged shrapnel, instantly upon contact wounds open up all over the target, then from every single scratch spreads a black rot which soon dissolves the entire target.
"This gun is not going to help curb my reputation." Ikora chuckles.
"But I do like how much damage it does. I'll save it for special occasions." Muttering to herself she stores Bane and continues with her day. Managing a massive spy network takes a lot of work, after all.
Betker, Dust illusionist:
I sigh while sinking into my bed, printed a few days ago now. Today has been exhausting. When Gavriks had come to me to ask if I wanted to go with him to a party while disguised as a human, I accepted enthusiastically, throwing myself into creating a gift worthy of the mighty Warlock vanguard.
I think I did quite well with it, some spare netherite alloyed with dust and used to protect a large number of small Ofuda, one to bind the spirit and allow it to control the illusion, one to strengthen the illusion and help project the barrier that would grant it physical form, and one to bind the spirit to the commands. My knowledge of Dust magic illusions has become very advanced, but making something like this was a massive challenge.
Real time dust illusions bound to something I didn't even know could be made a few weeks ago? That takes skill. Skill I thankfully have. But even my illusions could't protect me from the eyes of some. The hunter and warlock vanguards, they saw through my illusion, I was sure of it.
Being in the tower, it was... terrifying, and exhilarating. Being that close to the Great Machine, it was incredible. I could feel it's Light just standing there. And all the people and the food. It was amazing. But terrifying. Hell, some of the others even brought their kids as well, I don't know why it was decided it would be a family gathering, but it turned out to be so. One awkward introduction at the start and suddenly I'm part of the group, just, playing with the rest. They don't treat me any differently, it's... really nice. It gives me hope, maybe someday there can be peace, and things like this will happen every day between Eliksni and Humans.
I… hoped so, I also hoped I could return to the tower again, see some of the friends I made again. That would be nice, I thought, drifting off to sleep. A smile adorning my face.
A/N Many perspectives, many voices. 400 CP in the bank and the interlude isn't even over, I'll spend all the CP then. If anyone cares the reason he can make potions even without the perk which gives minecraft potions, I generally tend towards REALLY low Fiat in my perks, so if something is part of a universe you can reproduce it even without the relevant perks if you have the right stuff, in this case access to the nether and a lab built for this kind of research. Finally. Some news, I've decided to hold an Omake contest, just to see if I can get some Omakes to get my creative juices flowing. Winner gets to make an eliksni member of the House of Dust who will show up at some point, said character is subject to my vetoing though.
Cayde-6, Hunter Vanguard:
Gavriks was a strange kind of merchant, Cayde had come to realize. Prizing a substance that only he seemed to know how to use, giving an exotic weapon to the first Guardian he saw, and the way he called Ghosts "Little Lights" in the same manner as the Fallen. There was almost certainly a connection there, but Cayde and his hunters didn't pry and made sure the rest of the Vanguard didn't pry too deep into such secrets either. The weapons that Gavriks sold to Guardians were too valuable to lose.
Cayde stifled the thought as he and the small team of hunters he was leading came up to one of Gavriks' portals. This was the third such raid, they were easy, and strange. The enemies didn't use guns, but instead crossbows, fireballs and axes. Most of the time they couldn't even touch the Guardians sacking their fortress, their fire just washing over the Guardians' shields. The so-called blazes were an interesting form of life, but also weak, unused to fighting foes with shields, grenades, and guns. They fell easily, forfeiting their prize of what Gavriks called Blaze Rods.
However, the Withers, the enemy they fought at the end of each of these raids, that thing... It was incredibly strong and mildly terrifying, even being near it you could feel yourself withering away under its influence. Its attacks ignored shields, ignored armor, to directly wither the flesh beneath away to nothing. They soon learned the tricks though, keep shooting at it, make sure its focus stays on one person and keep them moving around. Drawing its fire away and dodging the attacks. The first one Gavriks just had them kill after assembling it from the heads of twisted skeleton creatures and blocks of black sand. The killing blow would cause it to crumble to pieces, revealing a gleaming star shaped object at its heart.
The second time he had them perform the raid he had them make a short march through the other dimension, beyond the fortress to another fortification to loot it as well, angering the local piglike inhabitants in the process. That raid one of them had also found something Gavriks had apparently been looking for from these, a massive blue diamond, several of them actually. The Guardian who found them got some extra rewards in exchange for the gems. Shortly after he started offering a service to improve pieces of armor and certain simple weapons. For that Wither though, he had them weaken it, before doing something to it with a piece of paper, somehow sucking it up into a rock. Cayde could still feel the raw power of the being even sealed with some sort of magic inside a stone; like standing next to an avatar of Entropy and decay, though it was far weaker, more distant, but still present.
This was the third time he had them charge into this other world, and now their objective was to gather a certain metal from a fortress of black stone. Checking his handgun, Cayde stepped through the portal into hell. The place had become almost mundane at this point. A single shot to the head of each was all it took to dispatch the hostiles crowding around their insertion point.
The following hike up a cliff to get into the fortress is honestly harder than killing the inhabitants.
As soon as they got within line of sight of the fortress, bolts started flying out, only to be dodged, blocked by energy shields, or hit their target only for that guardian to fully heal shortly afterwards. In return the inhabitants of the fortress were riddled with gunfire and blasted to bits by grenades as the Guardians advanced unhindered. Entering the fortress the team seemed to dance through its defenders, becoming a whirlwind of death and fire and metal. Then once the area was clear they searched the somehow untouched wooden chests in the area, and retrieved what they could.
To think, jaunting into hell had become such a boring chore.
The Fortress's guardians slain and its contents looted, Cayde and his team waltzed back through the portal. Eyeing all they had retrieved, Gavriks declared that now he had enough materials for Ikora's weapon. Good. This whole thing had been a pain in the ass.
Gavriks said he changed plans a few times, but finally settled on a shotgun. He calls it "Bane", says it'll be lighter than other weapons, more durable, have bullets that are infused with the power of the wither and covered in poison, able to make just about any target rot away on a good hit. Hopefully Ikora likes her Rising day gift.
Bapas, Shrine Eliksni:
Gavriks is a strange Kell, a strange human. There wasn't a lot about him that wasn't strange. In fairness, House Dust was definitely no ordinary House, the closest thing they had to a Kell was a human with powers no one had ever seen before, while they lacked a Prime servitor or an Archon, or any official Barons. His touch seemed to revitalize our people, things seemed cleaner, our equipment and people improving in appearance after we joined him.
A new strangeness started when Gavriks returned from his efforts on the moon. He planted the seeds he seemed to have an endless supply of, just 4 of each type, in neat little rows, with instructions for some Eliksni to take care of them. Called them Seeds of Dust and Seeds of Metal.
Then he began experimenting with making Dye of all things out of Dusklight crystals, after sticking one in his strange machine which could apparently turn energy into a crystalline form if his words were to be believed. He painted strange symbols on small strips of paper, calling these strange things "Ofuda". It soon became apparent they were another of his magics, as he used them to erect those glowing walls of light he used in combat, to paralyze some rats, and apparently bind spirits up into objects. He tested so many different ways of making those small things, those "Ofuda", stamps, stencils, and even printed some out at one point.
He created strange objects, a black table with a floating book which opened and turned to whoever stepped near, a small stand with bottles that he used to brew strange "Potions" which he showed could do anything from instantly heal a broken leg, to making one stronger and faster. The most superstitious of our number started referring to him as the "Kell of Mystics", after his mysterious ways and strange magics.
Finally one day he gathered a bunch of us who didn't have any particular job in House dust, and asked if we wanted to learn a portion of his magic, things beyond the so-called Dust magics we had already learned upon entering House Dust, minor as our knowledge of that form of sorcery was, limited to simple making of lights and assembly of small objects.
Very few rejected the offer, such power was prized, and we had all seen how Gavriks had used his magics to rip through the forces of the Hive.
What he taught was eclectic, a spread of different techniques, from crude potions he put together through trial and error, which required a great degree of focus to prevent explosions, to combat Dust magic, but the one I gravitated towards ended up being those paper charms.
There was a particular focus on them, on writing the symbols and learning the rules. It was a strange magic, seemingly more of a legal system than anything else. At first we struggled, messing up symbols we were drawing, not giving the process of crafting enough focus, and straight up not believing Gavriks about certain things.
Eventually, I was the first to succeed. On my own. I remembered what Gavriks taught us about how the Ofuda functioned. What the symbols we were drawing meant, the natures of certain Ofuda. In particular, a type he didn't have us use; an Ofuda called a "Shinsatsu", meant to channel the power of a "Kami" a god or spirit. I ditched the old symbols, instead writing in proper Eliksni, altering the symbols to match the rules Gavriks stated about the way the symbols must flow, the way they needed to point and curve for optimal power. I wrote the symbols for the Great Machine, and went out to seek the seal of the place which holds it. Eventually I found a worn down badge with the Shield of the City upon it, after asking several Eliskni for ideas. Dipping it in ink derived from Dusklight crystals I pressed it upon the charm.
With bated breath I looked upon my creation. Nothing seemed to happen, for a moment, then nothing continued to happen. I discarded it in my room as a failure, and went about my day.
Then, the next night while I prayed to the Great Machine before sleeping, when all was dark and quiet, I saw a glimmer of light from the corner of my eye. As my prayer stopped it started to die. Going through a pile of junk looking for the source of the rapidly fading glow, I was eventually left holding a faintly glowing Ofuda. Setting it down, I offered another prayer, and again it began to glow, with the warm, flowing power of the Great Machine's Light. It was faint, but there, and knowing the sensation, I recognized it inside myself, even long after the glow went away.
The next day I showed Gavriks my Ofuda, and demonstrated how it could channel the Traveler. Soon we were all writing our Ofuda in altered Eliksni, it felt easier to understand the purpose, the intent.
Now that I could, to some degree, sense the Light, I noticed that the Light inside of Dusklight crystals, while definitely present, was both in an incredibly miniscule amount, and... Twisted. Impure. Telling Gavriks of this he began researching, with my help, Purification Ofuda, creating and using them to purify the Light present in the crystals, amplifying it in the process.
As I was taught more advanced forms of Dust magic, I soon grew to appreciate Dust as a similar level of power to the Light, a Semi-divine thing. After this realization, the creation of Dust based Ofuda, and my first Barrier Ofuda, was simply a logical extension of the things I had already learnt of this magic. Others followed in my footsteps shortly after. Soon we were using Dust infused inks and paper to create weak standardized barrier Ofuda for the camp.
Eventually, I grasped a more advanced lesson of Gavriks'. He said that Ofuda originally fed off of the power of minor spirits that existed in everything. He described these "Kami" as forces of nature, somewhere between god and spirit, that existed in various objects. But, those are human "Kami" not Eliksni "Kami", we Eliksni hold the belief that machines act as vessels, holding in them a shard from the collective spirit of a House. We revere Prime Servitors as Gods, and by that logic they hold and provide that same spirit, lesser servitors are treated closer in nature to minor divine spirits, Holding in them both a piece of the greater Spirit of the House and of the Spirit that flows through all Prime Servitors.
So it was that I attempted to create an Ofuda through a contract with our main Servitor. Against all odds, it worked, allowing me to channel the strength of the servitor to create a small barrier of void energy. This soon became a huge jump forward, the ability to channel the Spirit of our House which resided inside machines. A uniquely Eliksni take on "Ofuda", though, the spirits we called through it, they were... weak, and felt... empty. Like they were missing some vital component. Regardless, such Ofuda became commonplace carved into equipment and vehicles of the House. Ofuda, as it turned out, could be carved into metal, though it was much less effective.
Soon we began to branch out into more human interpretations, "Kami" and nature spirits. First for minor things, gusts of wind and droplets of water, but eventually we started creating plans for things like rituals that would change the weather or call down lightning, or effectively ban the Hive from an area. But they felt far more distant to me, more alien. We are not of this planet, it's spirits are alien to us, and the human conception of them is somewhat alien to our native understanding of the world. And… I don't know if they really exist, I've never felt their influence on my life, so for all I know it could simply be me who is powering these Ofuda subconsciously.
Then, one day I made the decision to strike out on my own, to further my magic and knowledge independently, to walk this world and learn the ways of its spirits, and contemplate the spirits of Eliksni make, contemplate what is missing. I had learned all I could from Gavriks, it was time for me to go beyond what my teacher showed me. And so, I told Gavriks I wanted to leave and further my studies in the outside world.
Gavriks just nodded, looking very pleased. He said, "I had hoped something like this would happen. Teaching can only go so far, eventually you must advance into discovering things on your own. I always thought an eliksni should be the one to lead the House's magic development eventually."
Grateful for his support, I gathered supplies from the camp, several months of Ether in containers, a Dust magic focus, some healing potions, a good luck Ofuda made by Gavriks' hand, numerous barrier and offensive Ofuda of my own and other Eliksni's creation, a tent, and a Pike to carry it all. Supplies in hand I departed, seeking other horizons.
Little did I know how much would change over the course of my journey, little did I know how I would change.
Balthazar, Hopeful Little light:
I was an unfortunate Ghost, over four hundred years of searching, with nothing to show for it. But I have faith, I know my Chosen is out there. Ever since I was created I have been searching, Mars, Venus, Earth, and worlds beyond those. I've searched high and low for centuries without finding... anything. Not even a hint, but I keep up hope. There has to be some reason I haven't found them yet. It is all in the Traveler's plans. By mother's grace, I know I will find my Guardian, someday.
Changes have been happening around me while I search. Some small, some large, some sudden and others slowly occurring over time. Recently someone from places unknown appeared and suddenly everyone is doing their best to raise funds to buy from his shop. He doesn't particularly prize Glimmer though, instead, something he calls Dust is what he requires as payment for many things.
I scanned a sample of Dust once. I couldn't understand any of it. It seemed to be composed of thousands of bits of something smaller than even my sensors can perceive.
It also felt like... Something. It wasn't Light or Darkness, but I could feel how it held a similar power regardless.
The stuff is definitely safe from all tests performed. The worst that can happen is if humans or awoken eat it they might have a bad reaction and explode, but you do have to eat the mysterious coin made of a golden substance in order for that to happen. All observations indicate it's harmless as long as you don't ingest it.
Having looked so many other places, I think it's time I started looking in more hazardous areas, the places I was too afraid to go into the first time around. My Chosen must surely simply be residing in a place I've been too afraid to look. I was probably overthinking it the first time, being too cautious. Surely this time I'll find my Chosen there.
Cayde-6, Hunter Vanguard:
Finally the day came, Ikora's rising day.
"Did you complete the gift?" I ask.
"Yep, here it is." Gavriks replied, showing Cayde the fruits of their collective labor.
"Got your plus one?"
Gavriks nods. "Right here. Meet Betker. She's made something for Ms Rey as well." He gestures behind him at what is, to me, evidently a young Eliksni in a parka with an illusion over exposed parts of her body. She hides behind Gavriks, seemingly scared of me.
"Cute kid. Yours?" I ask, kneeling down to get a closer look. The kid seems skittish. Hiding even further behind Gavriks.
"No, Adopted, along with her brother, their parents..." Gavriks trails off. I try to calm her down, making a few silly faces at the little Eliksni, eventually getting her to smile just a bit.
"Ah. Well, sorry to bring up old wounds. Ready to go?"
"If you're providing transport then yes, we are ready to depart."
Ikora Rey, Warlock Vanguard:
Cayde went overboard on celebrating her Rising day, again. Not that she particularly minded it. Cayde had invited everyone he could this year, again, from the cryptarchs to Gavriks and someone he brought along, Betker, a little girl wearing a parka and seemingly very shy, hiding from strangers behind Gavriks.
Gavriks was apparently involved in whatever Cayde got her for a present this year. As things calmed down after some very delicious Cake, Cayde called Gavriks over. Taking a package from his back Gavriks walked up to her and took a knee.
"Courtesy of several months of work, slaying several avatars of Entropy itself, and the alloying of a selection of different metals, I present to you Bane, Destroyer of faces. Happy rising day Ms Rey." Gavriks declares, opening the cloth package to reveal a shotgun.
It was definitely unique. Black metal plates formed the outer shell; within, she could see a material whose surface was a mixture of blue and yellow, and which seemed to shift subtly, purple, orange, and blue glows subtly playing across its surface. In the rear of the gun was a small vial, made of black glass which seemed to shimmer in the light.
Under the outer plating near the rear of the gun's stock, she could see several pieces of paper wrapped around the underlying structure. They looked like charms of some sort.
Pushing her Light into the weapon, Ikora could feel the weapon responding, studying her Light even as she studied it, learning how best to channel it. Putting the weapon to the side she thanked Gavriks and Cayde-6 who had commissioned the weapon. "I will use it well."
Many other presents soon followed, none as particularly impressive as the shotgun, but all nice in their own ways. Then the little one, Betker, came up. Ikora paused, blinking once, then twice, then raising her eyebrow at the little fallen, disguised as she was beneath an illusion, Betker's secondary arms hidden beneath her coat. Betker shivered under Ikora's gaze, but took her gift from her pocket. At first glance it seemed to be a small metal tube, made of the same black metal as her shotgun, but laced with golden veins.
Then, Betker whispered to it. "Awake little spirit. You are to meet your new owner."
Golden light flowed around the tube with those words, springing forth into a cat seemingly made of golden light, the tube at the center with veins of golden light spreading out from it. The little golden kitten walked up to Ikora and she reached down to pick it up.
It mewled at her, as Betker explained all it could do. "Awake is one of the commands, you can also tell it to sleep, grow, or rest. Telling it to sleep will return it to tube form for easy transport, telling it to rest will make it simulate sleeping while maintaining its body. To use any of the command words, whisper the word to it, followed by 'little spirit'."
Ikora nods. "I admire your tenacity, little one, I will take good care of this gift. Does it require any form of recharging?"
Betker shakes her head. "No, it should be self-powering."
Ikora sincerely thanks the little fallen, and the party continues. Eventually things calm down, and Ikora goes to a firing range to test her new weapon.
Pulling the trigger she hears a roar like thunder, as the target is hit with a powerful blast of chaotically charged shrapnel, instantly upon contact wounds open up all over the target, then from every single scratch spreads a black rot which soon dissolves the entire target.
"This gun is not going to help curb my reputation." Ikora chuckles.
"But I do like how much damage it does. I'll save it for special occasions." Muttering to herself she stores Bane and continues with her day. Managing a massive spy network takes a lot of work, after all.
Betker, Dust illusionist:
I sigh while sinking into my bed, printed a few days ago now. Today has been exhausting. When Gavriks had come to me to ask if I wanted to go with him to a party while disguised as a human, I accepted enthusiastically, throwing myself into creating a gift worthy of the mighty Warlock vanguard.
I think I did quite well with it, some spare netherite alloyed with dust and used to protect a large number of small Ofuda, one to bind the spirit and allow it to control the illusion, one to strengthen the illusion and help project the barrier that would grant it physical form, and one to bind the spirit to the commands. My knowledge of Dust magic illusions has become very advanced, but making something like this was a massive challenge.
Real time dust illusions bound to something I didn't even know could be made a few weeks ago? That takes skill. Skill I thankfully have. But even my illusions could't protect me from the eyes of some. The hunter and warlock vanguards, they saw through my illusion, I was sure of it.
Being in the tower, it was... terrifying, and exhilarating. Being that close to the Great Machine, it was incredible. I could feel it's Light just standing there. And all the people and the food. It was amazing. But terrifying. Hell, some of the others even brought their kids as well, I don't know why it was decided it would be a family gathering, but it turned out to be so. One awkward introduction at the start and suddenly I'm part of the group, just, playing with the rest. They don't treat me any differently, it's... really nice. It gives me hope, maybe someday there can be peace, and things like this will happen every day between Eliksni and Humans.
I… hoped so, I also hoped I could return to the tower again, see some of the friends I made again. That would be nice, I thought, drifting off to sleep. A smile adorning my face.
A/N Many perspectives, many voices. 400 CP in the bank and the interlude isn't even over, I'll spend all the CP then. If anyone cares the reason he can make potions even without the perk which gives minecraft potions, I generally tend towards REALLY low Fiat in my perks, so if something is part of a universe you can reproduce it even without the relevant perks if you have the right stuff, in this case access to the nether and a lab built for this kind of research. Finally. Some news, I've decided to hold an Omake contest, just to see if I can get some Omakes to get my creative juices flowing. Winner gets to make an eliksni member of the House of Dust who will show up at some point, said character is subject to my vetoing though.
Omake 1: Dust to Dust
Eh, what could possibly go wrong?
Omake: Dust to Dust
Cayde-6
Days had passed since Ikora's rising day. Ikora's gift had already seen use on a particularly flirty guardian that didn't quite understand that, no, Ikora wasn't playing hard to get. A job well done as far as he concerned, though topping it next year may be tricky. Fortunately for him, that fell squarely under the domain of "future me problems". Today, he was going to do something no Exo had done before. He was going to use the leftover dust to make things look like other things. Somehow. Probably. After all, even a child had used it. A fallen tutored by the only guy who understood this stuff, sure, but a literal child had managed to fool Ikora for a minute. He, Hunter extraordinaire, would manage to pin his prank on anybody he so desires if- no when he could pull it of. A day, maybe a week working with this admitably extraordinairy dust and he should be golden. After all, what's the worst that could happen?
Ikora, 6 hours later
Bane was an even better gift than she realized. This piece of enigmatic engineering appeared to be the result of hybridizing at least three different disciplines adjacent but separate to both Light and Darkness. Simply maintaining the gun provided insights into new paths of research she had never considered. When she next saw Cayce-6 she was going to-
"Ikora, Cayde-6 was playing with dust, and somehow covered himself in a layer of pure gold that we can't break. Worse, it appears to be spreading."
-Make that piece of scrap wish he could stay dead by the time she was done with him.
Omake: Dust to Dust
Cayde-6
Days had passed since Ikora's rising day. Ikora's gift had already seen use on a particularly flirty guardian that didn't quite understand that, no, Ikora wasn't playing hard to get. A job well done as far as he concerned, though topping it next year may be tricky. Fortunately for him, that fell squarely under the domain of "future me problems". Today, he was going to do something no Exo had done before. He was going to use the leftover dust to make things look like other things. Somehow. Probably. After all, even a child had used it. A fallen tutored by the only guy who understood this stuff, sure, but a literal child had managed to fool Ikora for a minute. He, Hunter extraordinaire, would manage to pin his prank on anybody he so desires if- no when he could pull it of. A day, maybe a week working with this admitably extraordinairy dust and he should be golden. After all, what's the worst that could happen?
Ikora, 6 hours later
Bane was an even better gift than she realized. This piece of enigmatic engineering appeared to be the result of hybridizing at least three different disciplines adjacent but separate to both Light and Darkness. Simply maintaining the gun provided insights into new paths of research she had never considered. When she next saw Cayce-6 she was going to-
"Ikora, Cayde-6 was playing with dust, and somehow covered himself in a layer of pure gold that we can't break. Worse, it appears to be spreading."
-Make that piece of scrap wish he could stay dead by the time she was done with him.
Last edited:
dgr11897
FBI surveillance Tank
- Location
- Behind you
Yeah... I was going to mention it at some point, but the Eliksni are effectively already doing it since their servitor has so much dust in it making it work that it leaks dust into the ether. So all Eliksni members of the house of dust are snorting dust for very minor superpowers at this point. The SI... well there's more there but I won't reveal it right now.
Short but sweet, I really like this Omake. It's a great start and makes me almost want to make it somewhat canon.
- Location
- Earth
w
I know this is a celestial forge fic and all but I can't help but wish that this was focused on the Endless Universe interacting with the Destiny universe . As much as I love everything else there's just so much to explore without adding in James Bond, Minecraft and what have you. Either way though I have enjoyed everything so far thanks for the fee entertainment
I know this is a celestial forge fic and all but I can't help but wish that this was focused on the Endless Universe interacting with the Destiny universe . As much as I love everything else there's just so much to explore without adding in James Bond, Minecraft and what have you. Either way though I have enjoyed everything so far thanks for the fee entertainment
dgr11897
FBI surveillance Tank
- Location
- Behind you
Well, from a place of wanting to read such a fic, I really encourage you to take a shot at it. Seriously! There's nowhere near enough endless universe fics. If you have an idea, take a shot at writing it, see what happens.I know this is a celestial forge fic and all but I can't help but wish that this was focused on the Endless Universe interacting with the Destiny universe . As much as I love everything else there's just so much to explore without adding in James Bond, Minecraft and what have you. Either way though I have enjoyed everything so far thanks for the fee entertainment
I wonder how big your beetle is at this time now. I would imagine it growing to the size of the settlement now.
I would strongly suggest capitalizing when talking about the celestial forge vs just a regular forge.
Examples: It was then that The Forge triggered, or, It was then that the Forge triggered
something like that
- Location
- Earth
Well if I were to do something like it I'd start it off from the position of a Dust Bishop, far too many stuck in a suit of armor jokes that can be made with that. Though I'd have to think on it some more
dgr11897
FBI surveillance Tank
- Location
- Behind you
It's not quite that big. It has been growing, but rather slowly.
I actually considered starting as a Broken lord, but decided it would be wayyy too much of a pain in the ass. A dust bishop could be a fun one though, since they heal by hurting shit, and also probably have a deep relationship with dust.Well if I were to do something like it I'd start it off from the position of a Dust Bishop, far too many stuck in a suit of armor jokes that can be made with that. Though I'd have to think on it some more
I suppose I should get to work on the second half of the interlude.
I love destiny fanfictions keep up the good work
- Location
- USA
Dust is pretty much nanotechnology left behind by an alien race called the Endless, that terraformed the galaxy...I think? But basically it can cause amazing things that is almost like magic. It's from the Endless legends/space strategy games.
It look like gold "dust" and it's used as currency or magical catalyst for the different races in the game.
Last edited:
Arimai
Curmudgeon
Especially the Broken Lords faction. They ascended to Dust bodies from human origins. They are basically sane Necrons who make more of themselves the more Dust they acquire. And they specialize in extraction and transmutation of Dust. The most overpowered faction for the turtle tech snowball strategy in game. In both game play and lore
Last edited:
- Location
- USA
According to lore, the downside is that the broken lords need to drain life-force and convert it to Dust to survive though. Kinda like the vampire aristocracy.
It's the easiest way of getting dust. Their first main quest is all about the schism caused by the use of the life drain.
Pico-tech not nanotech its the size of atoms or smaller