The Royal Artificery Society - IC

[Prehysterical]

Bolten shrugs slightly in embarrassment. "Honestly, there was so much going on that it was difficult to pick out any one thing. Please don't take offense, but I didn't notice your machines in all the hubbub."

[DeTess]

"Ah, it's no problem." Vaigr shakes his head. "It's a big town, and there where probably a dozen different parades, so it's not odd if you didn't see ours." A moment of silence falls before the goliath speaks up again. "Ah, I'm sorry if I was mistaken, but I thought you might have come here because you wanted to ask some more about those clockwork creatures."

[WindStruck]

Shandara's expression brightens up a bit. "Ah, yes. The events of the festival tonight did not interest us much.. I thought that perhaps it would be a good idea to try to find you, instead."

"I was curious about you and your people.. and yes, of course, we were both curious about the clockwork creatures as well..."

She is gesturing a bit awkwardly as she struggles to be somewhat outgoing. "Um. In any case, I guess the idea of talking to you more and trying the Xlotl's Nest was appealing."

[DeTess]

"Well, there's a lot I could tell you, primarily about my people, but also about the creatures me and Banbas have made. Do keep in mind that I don't know much about the clockwork itself though." Vaigr shrugs. "That's my business partner's area of expertise. Is there anything in particular you would like to know?"

[WindStruck]

Shandara says, "I think Bolten and I were wondering about the state of the spirits inside of the crystals. I assume since they don't rampage around in their clockwork bodies, that they are content with the arrangement? But something tells me it still isn't ideal. Are they trapped in the crystals somehow, or was there something the spirits did before moving around in clockwork?"

[DeTess]

"They're not entirely content but..." Vaigr shakes his head. "I should probably start at the beginning, with what those crystals are. Fair warnign though, this is not going to be a happy story."

"The Himsnar tribes used to be closely tied to their environments, and the animals living within them. Most members of the tribe would bond with an animal throughout their live, sometimes more than one. The shamans would formalise these bonds using small crystals, usually quartz or similar crystals that they found in the highlands and mountains. When either partner in the bond would die, the crystals would grow and start changing color. I'm not sure why. The souls of the Goliath or animal involved would pass on, but before doing so they'd leave a little bit of themselves in the crystal. Eventually all those little bits added up and created an actually sentient soul, which the Shaman's venerated as a guardian spirit and advisor for the clan."

Vaigr pauses a moment to let that sink in and take a sip of his newly arrived drink. "When the empire invaded the domains of the Himsnar tribes, most of these guardian spirits where called on to fight beside us, the Shaman's using their magic to waken the crystals and give form to the guardian spirits. The empire kept advancing though, and the Shaman's became ever more desperate. In the final battles too much was asked of the Guardian spirits, and as their forms died, so did their souls, leaving the crystals empty. Only the smaller crystals, belonging to spirits that had only recently woken up and who couldn't fight yet, or who woke up during the battles themselves survived."

The Goliath takes another sip of his drink, and is quiet for almost a minute, seemingly in the process of gathering his thoughts. "The Himsnar tribes then ended up following the same path as most other 'primitive' tribes inducted in the empire. Our lands got colonised, and the members of the tribe slowly left for supposedly easier lives in the cities, with the occasionally round of disease further thinning our numbers. I was born in the last tribe, with barely thirty of us left at that time. I was raised to be a shaman, to venerate the ancestor spirits of the tribe and the spirits of the land, but the tribe had been reduced too far already by that point. Shortly after I came of age, a plague went through my tribe, killing off all of the elders. And that was pretty much it for us." Vaigr falls silent again, a sad look crossing his face.

"I do wonder what our culture had been like in it's prime, but I knew we where a dying people. Maybe I would have remained to try and pass our way of living on to one more generation if the plague hadn't come, but I don't think so. When I left for Vaungate, I took the remaining spirits with me, as I was the only one capable of communicating with them. I eventually met Banbas and we partnered up to create clockwork bodies for the spirits, as I lack the strength and knowledge to give them form, and without that they're perpetually locked inside those crystals." A slightly embarrassed look crosses the Goliath's face. "I do apologise for foisting my life story on you, but it is important that you understand that these crystals are the last remnants of a dead culture, and they're irreplaceable."

"Now, the spirits themselves are intelligent creatures, similar to you or me, but they tend to also take after a particular animal in their outlooks, like mountain cats or goats or similar. They have a unique wisdom to them, which makes them valuable companions. However, as I cannot manifest them in any way, they're bound to their crystals. They can somewhat perceive the world around them without help, but it's very limited. This is why I partnered with Banbas to create bodies for them, so they could explore and live, rather than just sitting there, locked in with their own thoughts. The spirits welcome our efforts. They themselves are unsure about what they want to do. They also understand that the world has changed, and that they no longer have a tribe to watch over. They'll eventually find some new purpose once they're free to choose their own path." The goliath falls silent again. A couple of different emotions war on his face, most some flavor of sadness. He masters his emotions pretty quickly though. It's clear that this isn't the first time he's told this story, and it likely does get easier.

Finally, a smile breaks through on his face. "I'm sorry to be telling you such a sad story during such a festive time, but it's hard to explain the nature of those crystals without going over the story of my people."

[WindStruck]

Shandara listens intently to Vaigr's story, not touching her food or drink, except perhaps for when he took long pauses.

"That is an intriguing tale. And tragic," she says thoughtfully, though she did not appear very impacted herself.

"To think the spirits manifested almost autonomously.. a consciousness and will of their own.. how fascinating."

"And I assume perhaps a way to make them a bit happier is to be able to help give them a form? Surely that can't be easy though.. creating a physical body from nothing. That would take some sort of .. magic..."

Shandara trailed off and went silent for a while. The idea of being able to research this and help somehow tickled her mind in a flight of fancy. She was curious if this was even possible. But working with spirits, and shaman.. that was an entirely different brand of magic, wasn't it?

[DeTess]

Vaigr nods at Shandara's questions. "The shamans of old could summon forms for them through magic alone. I know how that ritual is done, but I can't perform it on my own, and it requires a tie to the spirits and the land that very few people have. The way the constructs work is that I use a weaker version of the ritual to temporarily expand the spirit's senses and give them the ability to lightly touch their surroundings, which allows them to control the constructs and look around while doing so. It's not perfect, but it's the best we've managed so far."

[WindStruck]

Shandara softly smiles, "That's very interesting indeed. I imagine while most other clockwork menageries we've seen are merely mindless automatons, your little group has something unique: an intelligence that none of the others can match."

"Though I suppose maybe some elementals could be summoned, or.. something else." Devils came to her mind, and possibly little halfling children inside controlling them. That would be weird.

[DeTess]

"That's certainly true." Vaigr responds. "I know of one designer of similar constructs that tried to use elementals in a similar way, and it did work, but it didn't look as natural as Banbas' creations do. Probably because the spirits in the crystals have the instincts for moving like an animal would, while an elemental force wouldn't."

[WindStruck]

"Well I'm sorry we missed that. I think it would have been entertaining to watch.."

"Do they only roam about like that during the harvest festival?" Shandara asks.

[DeTess]

"We let them roam outside the city sometimes too." Vaigr adds. "But controlling the clockwork creatures is draining for the spirits, and the creatures themselves aren't too sturdy yet either. After a couple of hours they generally need at least some repairs, especially when they're out and about in the wilder areas outside the city. Banbas is constantly working to improve them, and I'm working with the spirits to refine their control of the clockwork and make it easier for them to control their mechanical bodies, but it's a long road yet before they're anywhere near self-sufficient."

[Prehysterical]

As Vaigr lays out the tragic origins of his people and the crystal creatures, Bolten has the exact opposite reaction of Shandara. His xorn cake and emerald wine are soon forgotten as he becomes increasingly uncomfortable about the crystalline texture of his treats. The dwarf's features grow forlorn and sympathetic as Vaigr details the downfall of his people and the loss of their ancestor spirits. Bolten remains quiet for a good while Shandara questions the goliath, stroking his bearded chin as his expression becomes very serious. All traces of uncertainty vanish when he pipes into the conversation.

"I will help you in this. It is an awful thing, to be trapped in a body that doesn't work the way you want it to...

We might need to approach this problem from another angle. With most clockwork contraptions, the biggest obstacle is finding a way to power the apparatus. Rather than finding supplemental power sources for the skeletature, we might need to adjust how efficiently the inside mechanisms move. If we can make it easier for the spirits to exert the forces necessary to move the body as they wish, that would go a long way to making their clockwork bodies feel more natural. As for the damage, perhaps a self-repairing enchantment or an alloy blend that is harder and sturdier than any brass or steel.

Vair, could you supply me with the address for your workshop? I will try to coordinate with Banbas and see what I can do."

[WindStruck]

"That is very generous of you, Bolton," Shandara says.

"Though I still can't help but think. There must be some way to.." she shakes her head. "Well I suppose Vaigr here is the leading expert on how it was originally done, and if he doesn't know..."

"There is still much about magic we don't know. Especially regarding spirits, souls, and the divine."

[DeTess]

"You can find the workshop on the Bronze avenue, number 40." Vaigr responds to Bolten. "I certainly welcome the help, and I expect Banbas will think the same. He seemed to have heard of some of your previous work and was quite happy to have talked to you earlier."

"If you wish to study the rituals involved, I could send you some notes." The Goliath responds to Shandara's musings. "I'm not a scholar of magic, so you might be able to figure out things I've missed."

[WindStruck]

Shandara nods. "It sounds like a worthwhile idea."

"I suppose you're also usually around that workshop?"

[Prehysterical]

Bolten adds, "Just to be clear, every spirit needs a distinct physical form to properly function, yes? By which I mean, er, a specific animal."

[DeTess]

"Yes, you can generally find me at the workshop as well." Vaigr confirms. "Regarding their form, some variation is possible, but not much. For example, we've created several different bodies resembling large cats for Muud, but if we tried to put him in a stag or a boar-like creature, it just wouldn't work. He'd have a lot of trouble making it move as it should, even if we made the controls identical to that of of the cats. We've actually tested this a while back, as Banbas thought there was something odd going on with the ways the spirits moved the clockwork contraptions. They move very natural, beyond what the controls Banbas built should have allowed them to do, at least as long as they're in an appropriate creature. We don't really know why that is yet though."

[WindStruck]

"Seems to me that's because that's the type of animal the spirit is affiliated with.. Which makes sense. But the curious thing is the exact mechanics of it.. Hm.."

Shandara takes a bite of her food as she mulls over the situation. "I think it's something intriguing to look into. I don't think I could be as helpful as Bolten, but if you'd like, perhaps I could study the crystals and their spirits within as well?"

[Prehysterical]

"Hmmm... An interesting conundrum," Bolten mulls. "Does Banbas still the original schematics for those bodies? It might be worthwhile to see what common factors influence which forms the spirits find most effective. I agree with Shandara in that much of it comes from the spirit's identity, but for identical controls to have differing results... This bears investigating."

[DeTess]

"I'd definitely welcome the help."Vaigr states. "If you could give me an idea of when you're planning on stopping by the workshop, I'll make sure we've got out notes on the crystals and older designs ready and I'm sure Banbas will be happy to arrange a demonstration."

[WindStruck]

Shandara thinks a bit and says, "I think some days after the festival should work. Several days, perhaps four or five? Or longer if you need time. There is no rush, of course..."

[Prehysterical]

Reminded of their job from the mysterious dwarf, Bolten suggests, "Why not make it easy and just say a week from tomorrow? We have a new project that we will be working on and our employer likely wouldn't appreciate us trying to juggle multiple jobs at once."

[WindStruck]

Shandara exchanges a glance with Bolten and eventually nods.

"..right. I doubt it's something that will consume every hour of the day though. And a short visit wouldn't hurt. What times would be the best to come by?"

[DeTess]

"It's always okay to stop by the workshop during daylight hours. Sometimes we work on till well in the night, but that's not always guaranteed." Maybe catching some emotion on Shandara's face at the mention of 'daylight hours', Vaigr quickly continues. "If you want to stop by earlier or later than that we can work something out, but we'd definitely need some advance warning."

[WindStruck]

Shandara shrugs and says, "Daylight hours are fine. I'm just usually resting around noon. But that still leaves the morning or afternoon available."

[DeTess]

The rest of the evening passed with conversation on lighter topics, before Shandara, Bolten and Vaigr eventually split up, Bolten and Vaigr heading home to rest. Shandara, however, had slightly different plans for that evening.

[WindStruck]

Before leaving the Xlotl's nest, Shandara asked if they had any spare scraps of raw meat in their kitchen. She wasn't looking for anything rare or exotic. She was just looking for something fresh.

[DeTess]

Shandara was given a small bag of meat scraps. They smelled fresh enough, but the strips had an unusual white-ish color, suggesting they most certainly where not standard pork or beef strips.

[WindStruck]

Shandara thanks the staff and pays for the meat. It was already well into the evening, the night sky above her, as she made her way back into her home. Her day had only started a handful of hours ago. She and that owl would be up long throughout the night.

She went upstairs and first opened the curtains in her bedroom to get a clearer look outside. She also cracks the window open a little, though it's not nearly enough for the owl to get through. But it wasn't around yet, it seemed. Shandara busied herself, thinking about that competition that was supposed to be tomorrow, and she reviewed some books regarding arcana and familiars.

She didn't believe a familiar would have any magical auras normally, but one might if its master had cast a spell on it. She eventually went to her kitchen, cutting the strips of meat into small pieces and she tried cooking a bit herself to taste it.