voice; un: eliasainsworth

[thornydisposition]

I believe I have some information that might be of use, or at least to consider.

[The voice is low and very even, having only the barest hint of a conversational cadence.]

My companion, Shuyi, and I managed to locate and capture Miz Poppy. We captured her and two of her Deemer companions, and as we began to take them back to Perdition's Rest, she had some very interesting things to say.

She reaffirmed that there was no way to safely separate a Taraxa from its host without the destruction of the latter. What is more troubling, however, was that she insisted that hers and her compatriots' mission of destruction was something which the TIMELINE.EXE asked of them.

Before we could deliver her back here, one of the other captured Deemers sacrificed himself so that she may escape in the confusion.

It is not my intention to offer this information in order to incite mass confusion or doubt, as it is quite possible she was lying. But I do not think we can completely discount that she might be telling the truth—or that she and her fellows are somehow deluded enough to believe that they are. It is, as I originally said, something to at the very least keep in mind.

Comments

[fateality]

Fair enough. And there's only so far a pair of eyes can see.

Sounds pretty damned useful, stranger. Got a real knack for spell casting, then?

[selfimage]

I wonder if there are one or more instances, or if it's the same instance with different opinions on how to handle the outcome. Measure how much energy is in the multiverse then come up with a plan to best handle it toward the most preferable outcome.

[ one to destroy, one to save.

it was a game of who was wrong and who was right—both the groups (or one side of it, anyway) seemed to have little idea of where the calculations had once come from. ]

Calculations generally don't come with biases.

But this is just all talk, of course.

video; un: G.SLQHV

[twinpeak]

—Wait, what? But... that would mean they have access to a computer in Oska. Getting into that thing without anyone noticing should be impossible!

[ Because that is, truly, the surprising part here. ]

video; un: shuyi

[gunah]

[ Why is there a child here? Why are there so many children in Audentes? ]

They would not need to. She claimed that Zymandis has their own TIMELINE.EXE. A superior one.

[gunah]

But at the cost of killing each other?

[ Then again, he's right. This wouldn't be the first either. It doesn't make the thought any easier to swallow. ]

I hope this is okay!!

[gunah]

An ending is a form of completion.

[ But Koltira is the one who has been here far longer than her or Elias, so. ]

You seem to trust ALASTAIR. Why?

[thornydisposition]

I am a mage, yes.

I am unfortunately... limited with what I can do currently, considering external factors, but rituals such as the guiding totem are easier to manage.

[Anything with a process, a chant, a spell was easier—it lessened the amount of magical energy he had to use to leverage open the "door" which would allow him to change something with magic.]

Are you familiar with magic yourself?

[gunah]

So what she told us maybe a lie. A half-lie, at best.

[ She doesn't fancy herself smart enough to discuss the nature of living. ]

[twinpeak]

... For real?

[ Well, that's just dandy. ]

Wow. Definitely one programmed differently than ours, then. Now I'm stuck wondering who the heck is handing out these timeline machines, 'cause yeesh, what a candidate to pick.

[predomination]

It was probably a truth as she sees it, especially since it corresponds with the file we received from Keith-san about the Taraxa. They wipe everything clean when they invade the host. I had hoped that perhaps the host's dormant personality would simply be pushed aside and resurface when the Taraxa was gone.

I didn't believe for a moment anything could erase a person's entire mind.

[he's seen spiritual bodies dissipate, he's seen hollowfication, but this is entirely new to him. and selfishly, he's glad he would be immune to the Taraxa, though there's quite a few people here who aren't that he'd be pressed to see ruined in such a way.]

[predomination]

[this just gets better and better]

This is going to take some investigating then. It might be they're using an outdated version or it might be that we're using an outdated version or... It might be that whoever programmed the file intentionally pitted us against each other.

[gunah]

It could all be a lie.

[ Everything would be simpler that way. ]

Both of us, Zymandis and ALASTAIR, believe ourselves to be the ones standing on the right side. We are no better --if she spoke the truth.

[gunah]

If we give them time, will their true personalities recover? Maybe more time will tell.

[ She does want to believe that Miz Poppy was lying. ]

[predomination]

We've left the ones who survived with their people for the most part, just in case. Time will tell, I guess.

[ex_adept136]

That's good to hear. Keith and I once discussed that notion, but neither of us had the experience or skill with which to pursue it. The diversity of our team really can be very fortunate.

[And this is one solace to come out of all of this]

If either of you end up needing any supplies or assistance, please let me know. While I may not be useful for research and development, I can at least handle mundane tasks if it saves you time.

[ex_adept136]

Keeping that in mind, I question whether they'll confirm or deny on this matter. If they're unwilling to answer, we'll simply have to rely on our own discretion, but there's no way of knowing for now.

The implication has generally been the destruction of a world, or damage to the timeline. I recall on Nalawi, we were told if we didn't follow the data interpreted from their program, the planet would die out sooner rather than later.

[And he's still wondering whether that was the right thing to do or not]

text | un; sieglindesullivan (icly backdated)

[grunehexe]

[The problem with this magitech is that it picks up on subconscious thoughts from time to time. Including,]

Naturally the moment I am sent on a different mission this world descends to the seventh circle of hell...

[Don't you... mind that...]

Once again it seems like Audentes will be first divided... still, I must thank you for sharing this information, whether it proves itself true or false in the end.

[predomination]

There's always more to do. All of us have had to cobble together a lot of scrap to get anything at all done in a place like this, and it'll be easier if we have someone to fetch things we need than having to go ourselves.

[he respects you more than as a gopher, Haise, but... well, if SOMEONE IS OFFERING HE'LL DEFINITELY JUMP ON THE EXCUSE TO BE A LAZY ASS.]

audio | un: Princess

[assent]

Elias... [ When she starts the audio, delayed after reading and listening to everything else, she sounds uncertain. Her voice doesn't shake, but it's softer and definitely more hesitant. ]

Who is to say that the system is even functioning properly? Software of any kind can be manipulated... who is to say that is not the case here? From what I understand of what has been said, ALASTAIR receives its information from this program and does not entirely know how it works... it could be possible.

[gunah]

I hope.

Do you think it is foolish to hope for the most comfortable truth?

finally!!!

[gunah]

We thought, for a long time, whether or not to share this.

But in the end, we felt you deserve to choose for yourselves.

[gunah]

Perhaps each of them sees from a different angle.

Perhaps-- there are multiple Timelines. Perhaps she lies.

[ex_adept136]

Then by all means, if you have specifics, I can give you a hand.

[What's superhuman strength and speed for anyway?

He might be book-smart but darned if he'd be useful for the actual Science part...]

[grunehexe]

Well you were right to share it. Even if it were to be the worst case and it turns out to be divisive lies, it is better to know what people have heard than to have a few making decisions on what to dissiminate to the team.

[gunah]

All the same, it is no good to sow discord where possible.

What do you believe?