Threads Of Destiny(Eastern Fantasy, Sequel to Forge of Destiny)
- Thread starter yrsillar
- Start date
- Original Users' Choice!
Voted best in category in the Users' Choice awards.
Sirrocco
Pedantic
I'm realizing... one of the things that makes the Empire so strong is the whole process of getting to White and then ascending to become a Great Spirit. In particular, the fact that they've found a path that consistently lets a few people do that from time to time and then survived for the millennia to accumulate them means that they've had a whole bunch of different Laws written into the world in a big way, to a degree that other civilizations that don't reach as high, or don't ascend in quite the same way, can't manage.
So what kind of Law will Shenhua write in, when she ascends? For surely being overthrown is but the final step in her own ascenscion.
So what kind of Law will Shenhua write in, when she ascends? For surely being overthrown is but the final step in her own ascenscion.
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[X] A beautifully illuminated book written and illustrated by an artist who had risen from the rootways and become an Elder of the Blue Mountain Sect (Gift for Xuan Shi Unlocks Isolation Boosting Personal action)
BagFullOfLizards
Some bag, mostly lizards
- Location
- A bag
[X] A set of notes and a disassembled puppet of ivory and wood reclaimed from an abandoned workshop after its owner passed away with no next of kin. (Gift for Li Suyin, Unlocks Creation Boosting personal action)
- Pronouns
- He/Him
Let me see if I can pull up the map
NaanContributor
Provider of delicious flatbread, and nothing else.
- Location
- Hawaii
[X] A beautifully illuminated book written and illustrated by an artist who had risen from the rootways and become an Elder of the Blue Mountain Sect (Gift for Xuan Shi Unlocks Isolation Boosting Personal action)
ElizatronicWarfa
Himejoshi Supreme
- Pronouns
- She/They
[X] A set of recordings made recently in Xiangmen itself, you don't know the name of the rising star touted, but perhaps someone more embedded in the 'scene' would? (Gift for Bao Qian. Unlocks Expression boosting personal action.
- Location
- United States of America
So, it'll be interesting to see what Li Suyin can do to meld these notes from a different school of puppetry with the stuff she is already working with. If I remember correctly, her puppets don't typically use wood, but rather bone and iron. I'm not entirely sure whether ivory would fall under Li Suyin's experience with bone or would be considered a different thing all together.
According to google it should be the "same" thing.
- Location
- United States of America
We are, however, dealing in Xianxia world. And ivory, with its connotations of wealth and elegance, might be metaphysically different than bone, with its connotations of death and disgust, even if their actual makeup is pretty much the same.
It would be a shitty gift then if it was incompatible with a bone
- Location
- USA
Not so much. The base material handling might be handy, along with some of the insights. Further Ivory having a different metaphysical resonance would help Suyin widen her puppets purposes and abilities.
It sounds like Imperial take on the same subject Li Suying was trying to accomplish.
Making distinction between material atributes of ivory and bone in accordence to how culture is perciving it, sounds like overcomplicated magic mombojumbo, especialy when she is trying to joing the crafting of two different cultures into one since the beginning. And since she is trying not to use sacrifices in the bone-puppet making. And now she has imperial notes on how they did a similar thing.
Storywise it just doesnt make sence to diverge in this from the reality in this case for there is no reason for it.
Making distinction between material atributes of ivory and bone in accordence to how culture is perciving it, sounds like overcomplicated magic mombojumbo, especialy when she is trying to joing the crafting of two different cultures into one since the beginning. And since she is trying not to use sacrifices in the bone-puppet making. And now she has imperial notes on how they did a similar thing.
Storywise it just doesnt make sence to diverge in this from the reality in this case for there is no reason for it.
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- Location
- the internet
The whole point is that she's basically an artist, she'll find a way to make it compatible. She's just that creative. If nothing else, the notes from this higher cultivator should give her some insight on how to build her own constructs. Yrsillar wouldn't have given an option that Li Suyin couldn't use.
Even that Yun whatever Black worm guy, that we stole the pillfurnace from, had some puppet making skill, its not that rare so that Li Suying couldnt get some elder to work her through it with sect points. Especialy since she is a rising start of a crafting diciple.
The very thing that we found Ivory pupet notes is because ivory is close/same as bone. If it was not compatible with her bone pupets why would it be ivory that one thing that is bone, but its snob enough to be used in the empire. its just make sence in a story to tie things to real life paralels. Therefore Its compatible somehow because its Ivory.
- Location
- the internet
I think we're all talking past each other here.....it really sounded like you were saying Li Suyin may not be able to come work with the stuff because the materials might not be compatible? Or something? Correct me if I'm wrong.
No I was saying that since Ivory is almost bone it should be perfectly suitible for her dollmaking.
- Location
- the internet
Ah misunderstanding then. Nvm.
Turn 14: Arc 4-12
"Why in the world did you want such a thing?" Xia Lin asked in confusion, looking around her shoulder at the disassembled construct lying on the table.
"I have a friend who studies and uses constructs," Ling Qi said, laying a hand over the puppets meticulously carved ivory face, it was just stylized enough to be kind of unsettling if she was honest, with too large colored glass eyes. "I thought it would make a good souvenir."
"Expensive for that," Xia Lin said dubiously.
"We made out well enough for a little indulgence," Ling Qi said. "Besides, what about you and that partially animated go set."
Xia Lin glanced away, seeming embarassed."My younger brother enjoys games of strategy, a rare place our interests intersect. I… well you're right, I can't speak against indulgence here."
"I didn't know you had any siblings, will you be alright leaving them behind?" Ling Qi asked curiously, there was a faint pop as the puppet vanished into her storage ring. Thankfully without a power source its formations were inactive so it could be stored easily. A second wave took care of the leather bound portfolio full of design documents.
"My visits are already limited. A bit more distance will not change that," Xia Lin replied. Without her armor and its shielding formations, Ling Qi caught some stiffness in the reply. She cast a glance at her companion and decided not to press further.
"Well, we'll just keep our mutual indulgences to ourselves then, yes?" Ling Qi said.
"My word on it," Xia Lin replied, turning to follow her out. "Your opinion on our sortie into court politics?"
"I think our Lady is well supported… for now. She is doing something new, and many see opportunity in that," Ling Qi said. "But I don't think we have the sort of support we can rely on yet. Things could change too quickly."
"Xiangmen's nobility can be fickle, despite everything I suppose," Xia Lin said with a frown. "I'd not like to campaign on such unsteady support."
"And we won't, We can count on the Wang at least," Ling Qi replied. "But let's leave that aside. Anywhere in particular you want to visit tonight?"
Xia Lin tilted her head. "Perhaps a restaurant? I have heard good things of Xiangmen's food culture."
Ling Qi gave her a curious look.
Xia Lin huffed irritably, looking away. "There is nothing wrong with enjoying good food, even if it is unnecessary."
"There isn't," Ling Qi said. "Hm, how do you feel about street food?"
"I am inexperienced," Xia Lin admitted, but she looked intrigued.
"Well, we can begin with snacks, and perhaps see a show? We can stop for a proper meal later."
"Agreeable," Xia Lin said with a nod
Sixiang snorted out a laugh in her head, but said nothing as they left the auction house behind.
Unlike when Ling Qi went out on her own, they did have to make a brief stop to get Xia Lin changed into something less ostentatious, since her clothes were not so self adjusting, but thankfully the other girl was just as good at controlling her qi so as Ling Qi, thanks to her discipline.
That made their stroll through the twigward streets much less awkward than it could have been, though to Ling Qi's amusement, the intensity of Xia Lin's expression and gaze was enough to cow a lot of otherwise rude people, even without much qi backing it. In deference to her, the first place they stopped at was a corner stall selling skewers of berries in a sweet syrupy covering. A Xiangmen specialty apparently, since the little berries and the covering alike occurred in such quantities that no one had ever been able to really take control of their harvesting.
Or that was the story the seller told anyway. Up here in the clouds obviously he had higher quality sources and so on and so on.
Ling Qi stopped listening fairly early, but Xia Lin was intent on it, and the seller was happy to keep talking as long as Xia Lin kept buying more. The skewers were good though. They moved on eventually, stopping here and there to listen in to musicians on the street, or sit in on a tea house for poetry readings or performances.
It went hand in hand with more stalls. At each one they would sample the sweet buns or crepes or stranger concoctions and offerings. And each street chef assured them that their recipes and secrets were the best and passed down so on and so on.
It seemed, in Xiangmen, even food had a touch of art to it.
Although… that wasn't really strange. Ling Qi hadn't had the time or ability to appreciate it, but it wasn't as if the vendors in Tonghou weren't proud of their work. People wanted to feel like what they were doing mattered. Even if it was something as small as a clumsy poem or a slightly bland meat bun.
"I am not sure what secrets of cultivation you see in the filling of your dumpling, but it is getting cold," Xia Lin said to her as they stopped under the awning of a theater, falling into line for the ticketeer.
Ling Qi blinked, and gave her a dirty look, taking another bite. The plum filling was really good. "If you wanted another you could have bought one."
"I've had enough. It's just a shame for good work to go to waste," Xia Lin replied, folding her arms behind her back. "This is the place then?"
"Yes," Ling Qi replied, glancing up at the theaters sign. "I saw a show here yesterday, I wanted another opinion on it."
Xia Lin hummed in response.
"What do you think of Xiangmen anyway? The place seems so frantic," Ling Qi said. "You must find the chaotic feel unpleasant."
Xia Lin pressed her lips together in a thin line. "I do not think it is for me, but that is because I have chosen war as my profession. That does not make it bad."
"Oh?" Ling Qi asked, moving forward with the line. "That's not what I would have expected. You don't look down on all this indiscipline?"
"War is not and cannot be a nation's purpose," Xia Lin replied contemplatively. "Although a soldier must separate themselves, this is what it means to be victorious, isn't it?"
Ling Qi hummed to herself, looking over the crowd. She could understand Xia Lin's meaning. There was no fear of invasion or beast incursions here, but there were more dangers than that in the world.
"But I am an unsuited tool for addressing those dangers, so I must trust that those who hone themselves for such battles are up to their tasks," Xia Lin replied. Ling Qi blinked, realizing she had spoken aloud.
"That is awfully trusting of you," Ling Qi replied.
"A soldier must trust, or else they will break. I charge into an enemy unit, trusting that my fellows will be swift behind me to take advantage of the break I create. My unit must trust that our higher officers will coordinate our attacks, relieve our defenses, or at least find advantage in our sacrifice. The officers must trust that the General's plan of operation is sound. The General must trust that we will be supplied and supported in a manner sufficient to complete our orders. Doubt kills," Xia Lin said.
"And if your trust is mistaken?" Ling Qi asked curiously.
"Then we lose, and we die. That was the ultimate lesson of Ogodei," Xia Lin said simply.
"An ugly choice," Ling Qi said with a grimace.
"It is as it is. Without trust, we can only be squabbling beasts," Xia Lin said.
Thinking back to much dirtier streets, Ling Qi could only give a small nod.
"I see my accusations were correct though. You are truly an example to follow, finding such contemplation in plum jam," Xia Lin said dryly.
Ling Qi just stared at her. "D-did you just make fun of me for being too serious?"
"I did no such thing," Xia Lin replied seriously. "Come, we must purchase our tickets."
Xia Lin found the show rather absurd, as it turned out, and seemed rather baffled by the humor involved. After, they did stop at a proper restaurant to enjoy meal, and then, with it over, parted ways.
Ling Qi found herself once again walking the streets with only the muse in her head for company, watching the faint outline of bright moonlight twinkling the the gaps between titanic leaves overhead
Ling Qi wasn't sure she really agreed with Xia Lin. Or at least, she didn't think trust was the right word.
Well, she wasn't really sure of that.
"It's a little fiddly, ain't language a rough one?" Sixiang drawled.
Ling Qi nodded, tracing her fingers through the air, feeling at seams invisible to even the average cultivator as she passed into the dark between a closed shop and a roaring tavern, into the shadow dappled alley that lay between, strewn with crates and detritus. "I think trust implies something too personal and conscious."
"Belief then," Sixiang said, fading into view around her shoulders, a fluttering phantom with their arms around her neck. Ling Qi herself was little more than a drifting shadow, a patch of the night sky manifesting in the space between buildings as she plucked at threads, seeking the seam loose enough to dart through.
"People want to matter, but they can't matter on their own," Ling Qi said. "Belief works. Everyone, or at least most people need to believe there's something bigger than them, or…"
Frantic scrabbling in the dark, betraying and being betrayed. Cold and hunger and want that can never ever be filled.
Isolation and Endings.
Creation was a defiance of Isolation. It said to the world, 'Look, I am here'. It said to others 'See, I have meaning to give'.
It didn't matter if it was music, or carvings, or poems, or food, or anything else. To create was a denial of meaninglessness.
Creation advances to II
Abundance begets creation. Creation denies Isolation.
Ling Qi felt the seam and her fingers slid through, splitting the fabric of the the dingy alleyway open, ever so briefly into the kaleidoscopic chaos beyond lit the dust and dirt and trash and made it gleam.
And then Ling Qi was through, and the weight of the world crushed her gate behind her.
She found herself again among the drifting bubbles and winds that she had the night before. She looked on the vortex at its core, felt the pressure and currents flowing around her.
"Ready for the party now?" Sixiang asked, presence wrapped around her like a shawl.
"How do you know it's on right now?" She asked absently, drifting toward the towering column of whirling dreams.
"The party never ends for long in Xiangmen," Sixiang said cheerfully. "And I'm pretty sure grandmother is expecting you.
"Then I shouldn't keep her waiting," Ling Qi said, the roar of the wind was loud now, countless dreams and images flashed by her as she plunged into the core of the Dreams of Xiangmen. She felt her mind pulled in a hundred directions, felt a thousand identities overlaying her own and a million thoughts wriggling in her mind that were not her own.
But she was Ling Qi, she knew that much, if nothing else.
[ ] Whirl into the glittering Gala of crystal and light, the great ballroom, under the dome of Xiangmen's crown. Ignore the tarry darkness still clinging beneath the tables, the scorch marks upon the beautiful walls. Witness Fantasia.
[ ] Dive unto the dim, warm halls, where bodies are packed, where revelry abounds, where the halls are scented with food and sweat and life. Ignore the crawling shadows, the webs spun in corners, the strained smiles. Witness Reverie
[ ] Drown in the deepest places, where nightmares rule and history lives, dance the dance that has been since the days of beasts and dragons. Ignore the light, held close in clasped hands, the tales told in warm hovels, the defiance of cruel and mocking gods. Witness Pandemonium. Locked due to previous vote.
"I have a friend who studies and uses constructs," Ling Qi said, laying a hand over the puppets meticulously carved ivory face, it was just stylized enough to be kind of unsettling if she was honest, with too large colored glass eyes. "I thought it would make a good souvenir."
"Expensive for that," Xia Lin said dubiously.
"We made out well enough for a little indulgence," Ling Qi said. "Besides, what about you and that partially animated go set."
Xia Lin glanced away, seeming embarassed."My younger brother enjoys games of strategy, a rare place our interests intersect. I… well you're right, I can't speak against indulgence here."
"I didn't know you had any siblings, will you be alright leaving them behind?" Ling Qi asked curiously, there was a faint pop as the puppet vanished into her storage ring. Thankfully without a power source its formations were inactive so it could be stored easily. A second wave took care of the leather bound portfolio full of design documents.
"My visits are already limited. A bit more distance will not change that," Xia Lin replied. Without her armor and its shielding formations, Ling Qi caught some stiffness in the reply. She cast a glance at her companion and decided not to press further.
"Well, we'll just keep our mutual indulgences to ourselves then, yes?" Ling Qi said.
"My word on it," Xia Lin replied, turning to follow her out. "Your opinion on our sortie into court politics?"
"I think our Lady is well supported… for now. She is doing something new, and many see opportunity in that," Ling Qi said. "But I don't think we have the sort of support we can rely on yet. Things could change too quickly."
"Xiangmen's nobility can be fickle, despite everything I suppose," Xia Lin said with a frown. "I'd not like to campaign on such unsteady support."
"And we won't, We can count on the Wang at least," Ling Qi replied. "But let's leave that aside. Anywhere in particular you want to visit tonight?"
Xia Lin tilted her head. "Perhaps a restaurant? I have heard good things of Xiangmen's food culture."
Ling Qi gave her a curious look.
Xia Lin huffed irritably, looking away. "There is nothing wrong with enjoying good food, even if it is unnecessary."
"There isn't," Ling Qi said. "Hm, how do you feel about street food?"
"I am inexperienced," Xia Lin admitted, but she looked intrigued.
"Well, we can begin with snacks, and perhaps see a show? We can stop for a proper meal later."
"Agreeable," Xia Lin said with a nod
Sixiang snorted out a laugh in her head, but said nothing as they left the auction house behind.
Unlike when Ling Qi went out on her own, they did have to make a brief stop to get Xia Lin changed into something less ostentatious, since her clothes were not so self adjusting, but thankfully the other girl was just as good at controlling her qi so as Ling Qi, thanks to her discipline.
That made their stroll through the twigward streets much less awkward than it could have been, though to Ling Qi's amusement, the intensity of Xia Lin's expression and gaze was enough to cow a lot of otherwise rude people, even without much qi backing it. In deference to her, the first place they stopped at was a corner stall selling skewers of berries in a sweet syrupy covering. A Xiangmen specialty apparently, since the little berries and the covering alike occurred in such quantities that no one had ever been able to really take control of their harvesting.
Or that was the story the seller told anyway. Up here in the clouds obviously he had higher quality sources and so on and so on.
Ling Qi stopped listening fairly early, but Xia Lin was intent on it, and the seller was happy to keep talking as long as Xia Lin kept buying more. The skewers were good though. They moved on eventually, stopping here and there to listen in to musicians on the street, or sit in on a tea house for poetry readings or performances.
It went hand in hand with more stalls. At each one they would sample the sweet buns or crepes or stranger concoctions and offerings. And each street chef assured them that their recipes and secrets were the best and passed down so on and so on.
It seemed, in Xiangmen, even food had a touch of art to it.
Although… that wasn't really strange. Ling Qi hadn't had the time or ability to appreciate it, but it wasn't as if the vendors in Tonghou weren't proud of their work. People wanted to feel like what they were doing mattered. Even if it was something as small as a clumsy poem or a slightly bland meat bun.
"I am not sure what secrets of cultivation you see in the filling of your dumpling, but it is getting cold," Xia Lin said to her as they stopped under the awning of a theater, falling into line for the ticketeer.
Ling Qi blinked, and gave her a dirty look, taking another bite. The plum filling was really good. "If you wanted another you could have bought one."
"I've had enough. It's just a shame for good work to go to waste," Xia Lin replied, folding her arms behind her back. "This is the place then?"
"Yes," Ling Qi replied, glancing up at the theaters sign. "I saw a show here yesterday, I wanted another opinion on it."
Xia Lin hummed in response.
"What do you think of Xiangmen anyway? The place seems so frantic," Ling Qi said. "You must find the chaotic feel unpleasant."
Xia Lin pressed her lips together in a thin line. "I do not think it is for me, but that is because I have chosen war as my profession. That does not make it bad."
"Oh?" Ling Qi asked, moving forward with the line. "That's not what I would have expected. You don't look down on all this indiscipline?"
"War is not and cannot be a nation's purpose," Xia Lin replied contemplatively. "Although a soldier must separate themselves, this is what it means to be victorious, isn't it?"
Ling Qi hummed to herself, looking over the crowd. She could understand Xia Lin's meaning. There was no fear of invasion or beast incursions here, but there were more dangers than that in the world.
"But I am an unsuited tool for addressing those dangers, so I must trust that those who hone themselves for such battles are up to their tasks," Xia Lin replied. Ling Qi blinked, realizing she had spoken aloud.
"That is awfully trusting of you," Ling Qi replied.
"A soldier must trust, or else they will break. I charge into an enemy unit, trusting that my fellows will be swift behind me to take advantage of the break I create. My unit must trust that our higher officers will coordinate our attacks, relieve our defenses, or at least find advantage in our sacrifice. The officers must trust that the General's plan of operation is sound. The General must trust that we will be supplied and supported in a manner sufficient to complete our orders. Doubt kills," Xia Lin said.
"And if your trust is mistaken?" Ling Qi asked curiously.
"Then we lose, and we die. That was the ultimate lesson of Ogodei," Xia Lin said simply.
"An ugly choice," Ling Qi said with a grimace.
"It is as it is. Without trust, we can only be squabbling beasts," Xia Lin said.
Thinking back to much dirtier streets, Ling Qi could only give a small nod.
"I see my accusations were correct though. You are truly an example to follow, finding such contemplation in plum jam," Xia Lin said dryly.
Ling Qi just stared at her. "D-did you just make fun of me for being too serious?"
"I did no such thing," Xia Lin replied seriously. "Come, we must purchase our tickets."
Xia Lin found the show rather absurd, as it turned out, and seemed rather baffled by the humor involved. After, they did stop at a proper restaurant to enjoy meal, and then, with it over, parted ways.
Ling Qi found herself once again walking the streets with only the muse in her head for company, watching the faint outline of bright moonlight twinkling the the gaps between titanic leaves overhead
Ling Qi wasn't sure she really agreed with Xia Lin. Or at least, she didn't think trust was the right word.
Well, she wasn't really sure of that.
"It's a little fiddly, ain't language a rough one?" Sixiang drawled.
Ling Qi nodded, tracing her fingers through the air, feeling at seams invisible to even the average cultivator as she passed into the dark between a closed shop and a roaring tavern, into the shadow dappled alley that lay between, strewn with crates and detritus. "I think trust implies something too personal and conscious."
"Belief then," Sixiang said, fading into view around her shoulders, a fluttering phantom with their arms around her neck. Ling Qi herself was little more than a drifting shadow, a patch of the night sky manifesting in the space between buildings as she plucked at threads, seeking the seam loose enough to dart through.
"People want to matter, but they can't matter on their own," Ling Qi said. "Belief works. Everyone, or at least most people need to believe there's something bigger than them, or…"
Frantic scrabbling in the dark, betraying and being betrayed. Cold and hunger and want that can never ever be filled.
Isolation and Endings.
Creation was a defiance of Isolation. It said to the world, 'Look, I am here'. It said to others 'See, I have meaning to give'.
It didn't matter if it was music, or carvings, or poems, or food, or anything else. To create was a denial of meaninglessness.
Creation advances to II
Abundance begets creation. Creation denies Isolation.
Ling Qi felt the seam and her fingers slid through, splitting the fabric of the the dingy alleyway open, ever so briefly into the kaleidoscopic chaos beyond lit the dust and dirt and trash and made it gleam.
And then Ling Qi was through, and the weight of the world crushed her gate behind her.
She found herself again among the drifting bubbles and winds that she had the night before. She looked on the vortex at its core, felt the pressure and currents flowing around her.
"Ready for the party now?" Sixiang asked, presence wrapped around her like a shawl.
"How do you know it's on right now?" She asked absently, drifting toward the towering column of whirling dreams.
"The party never ends for long in Xiangmen," Sixiang said cheerfully. "And I'm pretty sure grandmother is expecting you.
"Then I shouldn't keep her waiting," Ling Qi said, the roar of the wind was loud now, countless dreams and images flashed by her as she plunged into the core of the Dreams of Xiangmen. She felt her mind pulled in a hundred directions, felt a thousand identities overlaying her own and a million thoughts wriggling in her mind that were not her own.
But she was Ling Qi, she knew that much, if nothing else.
[ ] Whirl into the glittering Gala of crystal and light, the great ballroom, under the dome of Xiangmen's crown. Ignore the tarry darkness still clinging beneath the tables, the scorch marks upon the beautiful walls. Witness Fantasia.
[ ] Dive unto the dim, warm halls, where bodies are packed, where revelry abounds, where the halls are scented with food and sweat and life. Ignore the crawling shadows, the webs spun in corners, the strained smiles. Witness Reverie