[open] march catchall

[techmaturgy]

Who: Viktor and special guests and YOU
When: throughout March
Where: Cadens, the Horizon
What: open stuff, closed stuff, general nerdery, horizon visits, whatever I WANT
Warnings: the usual references to terminal illness, will list additional warnings as needed.

[open and closed starters in comments! If you want a custom starter or something specific, just hit me up. full horizon details are here for any and all wildcarding needs. For everything else, I’m on plurk at whitticus and on discord at whitticus#8139.]

Comments

[OPEN] cadens

[techmaturgy]

i. workshopping

[By now, Viktor is “settled”—whatever that’s supposed to mean. He’s certainly more comfortable than he was upon initial arrival, but despite his continuing distaste for the entire situation, he has a plan, now, and work to do. He’s well aware that taking Goro's offer of money and workspace is a bad idea. Despite reassurances otherwise, he knows where things stand, and that he needs to be extremely careful about the situation he’s found himself in, as tempting as it might be to use this newfound patronage as carte blanche to go as big as possible as quickly as he can.

Of course, he’s very good at convincing himself that he has everything under control. This is all going to start small, anyway, as much of the work will be theoretical in nature, at least initially. Still, he would be remiss not to get himself situated in the workspace offered to him, which is what has him out in the marketplace, engaging in various transactions, loading up a crate of parts under his free arm and then puzzling out what to do with the rest. Sure, he could make a few trips. Why do that, however, when there’s another Summoned right here?

(That’s you).]

Excuse me. [Maybe he already knows you. Maybe not. Either way, he needs an extra pair of hands.] Yes, you. Do you have a moment?

ii. miscellaneous nerd stuff (jk it’s all nerd stuff)

[If he’s not handling his own business, it’s easy to find him floating from workshop to storefront to makeshift lab, doing odd repair jobs around the neighborhood or offering general equipment improvements to anyone who might need it—including (and perhaps especially) fellow Summoned. Given the fact that he’s more-or-less just starting out, you may have to bring him the materials yourself—but depending on what you need, he’s happy to figure something out.

By now, he’s also frequenting the science academy, sitting in on lectures, asking a lot (A LOT) of annoying questions, hassling professors with more annoying questions post-lecture, getting into heated discussions with people about metaphysics, or something. You Have To Stop HIm.

After the eclipse, he spends more time in the academy libraries, researching the cosmic phenomena of this world. If someone else is there for the same purpose, well. He’s not surprised, exactly, and in the spirit of collaboration is more than happy to share his research.]

i-ish, something of a wildcard? boss comes to check in.

[fourarmedandangerous]

It's two or three days after Viktor settles into his new workshop before a familiar hulking shadow darkens its door. Goro doesn't bother to knock; he simply opens the door and steps inside. After all, this workshop is the result of his generosity (his followers, really, but in Goro's mind they are one and the same).

It takes a moment for his bulk to fit through the door, but once he does, he surveys the lab. "Good. You have made yourself comfortable, it seems." He says by way of greetings. "I am pleased to see you taking to the work." In a tone as warm and comforting as a hunk of granite.

"The facilities are proving sufficient?"

😬

[techmaturgy]

Ah. Well, he should have expected this. He needs to recalibrate--Viktor is not a stranger to other people's money and all the expectations that come with it, but now there's no real buffer. In a more ideal situation, Jayce would be the one to meet Goro at the door, to handle all the questions about progress and the state of things and to mostly keep the people doling out the money and resources as far away from Viktor as possible.

But it isn't as though he can't handle this. He just prefers not to, and he's adjusting to the fact that he's fully removed from Piltover's social hierarchy. Back home, it had been preferable to stay relatively out of sight, not wanting to remind anyone of the ugly fact that the prosperity of recent years was at least partially thanks to a citizen of the Undercity. None of that matters here--nobody cares where he's from and there's no unwritten rules to navigate (at least, not the same ones). It's taking some getting used to, to be the face of his own research.

"I try to be as industrious as possible."

There are a variety of reasons for that, but none that he cares to elaborate on, especially when he knows Goro is more interested in the final product. But he nods when asked about the workshop, moving to stand and giving everything an appraising sort of look.

"Yes. As you can see, I'm still settling in. Acquiring materials."

workshopping!

[piqure]

[ to say that peter has a routine would be greatly overstating. but, there's places he's starting to venture out into with more frequency, more consistency, between the university, sam's and the market. its scattered between the horizon, and whatever exploration might catch his attention but he always seems to return. maybe its a semblance of familiarity in an otherwise displaced world.

maybe he's hoping to painstakingly gather better things he can use to construct his webshooters. the ones wanda created are a staple around his wrists now but — well, habits are difficult to break. this felt like a challenge. like exactly something tony stark would rise to the occasion of.

besides, focusing on schematics and possible projects helps peter not focus on things like tony being gone, so it worked well enough. and as it happened, distractions were inherently welcome.

like now, with the accented voice tearing his attention away from a stall, from running through a mental checklist and — ] Oh — Viktor. Hey, [ brows flick up in recognition, a small press of a smile and he's pivoting around. eyes are on the crate tucked under viktor's arm, and the rest sitting besides him. it looks like quite the handful, and he ventures an offer, without a moment's pause, hoping not to be entirely too presumptuous: ] Do you — need any help with those?

hello this got lost and I am sorry

[techmaturgy]

[Viktor, as usual, seems to be extremely focused on the task at hand, piling up one gadget or another into the crate, but he does appear glad to see a familiar face, offering a tight-lipped smile. He looks a little tired--but then again, when does he not?]

Actually, yes.

[He’s more than capable of making multiple trips, but hey, Peter is right here, and offering, and he’s not about to say no if his help streamlines the process. It's possible he asked in the first place because Peter is nearby, increasing the odds of getting the hand that he needs. He seems like an agreeable kid, which Viktor has no real objections to.]

If you don’t mind. I’m not going far.

makes this an april catchall too and you can't stop me (ii)

[solmate]

[ It's hard to not notice Viktor at the Academy. Alina, whose education was largely self-taught and sourced from a library that had more religious texts than science books, can hardly follow the lectures, let alone the spirited questions and heated discussions he manages to start with the professors.

She isn't really here to learn though. She's here to find someone. She pokes her finger on one of the points of the antlers hidden beneath her scarf pulled around her neck and hanging loosely to cover her head. A fabrikator had put them there. Perhaps one could be the answer to this little problem.

The campus is busy enough that she doesn't really have to make an effort to pretend that she's not following him. She's not subtle anyway, and neither is the way she moves from chair to chair across the library until she is seated at his table. ]

Are you a scientist? An inventor?

i love to rp in april

[techmaturgy]

[If Viktor cares at all about having eyes on him as a result of general academic curiosity (sometimes belligerence), he doesn't seem to acknowledge it. Interrupting a lecture or asking an increasing string of elaborate questions is not the worst thing he's ever done to a professor, so anyone who may or may not have a problem with the way he goes about things at the academy is met with a genuine lack of understanding as to why his behavior might be odd or aggravating. He's just pursuing knowledge! There's nothing wrong with that!

This girl--the one following him--doesn't seem to have a problem, but she clearly has something to say. It's almost a relief when she finally joins him at his study table.]

Something like that.

[He is both, but despite the fact that all of these things are very obvious, his first instinct is to play things close to the chest. Viktor, at least, doesn't appear to be put off by the interruption, marking his place in his current book and setting it aside so that he can give Alina his attention. Perhaps he's glad that she's finally decided to address him directly, rather than watch him from afar.]

If you need something, you're welcome to ask.

[OPEN] horizon

[techmaturgy]

[Of course he likes this—how can he not? Viktor is an inventor, someone who has spent his entire life building things, and once he makes his second trip to the Horizon, with an understanding of what it is and what he can do in it, he wastes no time.

Frequent visitors to the Horizon might notice that there is a new domain in town, a wall that follows the line of a river, cutting between two cities, one with a prominent skyline, the other built into the ravines below. The bulk of it is not accessible—more of a backdrop, the real contents of the domain contained inside the wall and in the crevasse below. Very little has been done to keep prying visitors out—might as well take a look around, right?]

i. you can't waste taxpayer dollars in the mind palace

[Most of the domain is housed in the interior of the wall—heading up the stairs (or lift) and past the clockwork machinery of what appears to be a water treatment facility reveals a long hallway and double doors. Not ominous!

Possibly it’s the sound of an explosion that brings you into the space. Something has most certainly just blown up—Viktor is standing in the middle of the cavernous room that is the lab and possibly also some smoldering ruins, seemingly thrilled with what has just transpired, and looking slightly maniacal. Apparently, given free rein to imagine up any experiment that he could possibly want, his first inclination is to do the most volatile thing imaginable. It quite literally can’t hurt, right? Possibly it takes him a moment to realize he has company, and when he does he has the wherewithal to look slightly embarrassed.]

Just, uh. Testing the limits.

ii. intellectual property

[When Viktor is here, the door to the study is open, and possibly this place is a little more welcoming to visitors (and less full of weird equipment test runs and explosions). This is clearly a personal space—there are books everywhere, and houseplants, and coffee, and even though he’s probably been here for like, an hour tops, every table and blackboard is filled with notes and schematics. You are welcome to take a look, but Viktor is quick to speak up from his workspace if you decide to peek at something he’d rather you didn’t.]

Do you mind? That’s proprietary.

[If you've met Viktor outsize of the Horizon, the difference may seem a little striking. Given the ability, he seems to have done away with whatever ails him in the real world—his face is fuller, less pale, and he stands straighter, using a cane instead of his usual crutch. If you haven't met him, well. Good. Less opportunity for prying questions (outside of the sensitive blueprints, of course).]

iii. what's this weird cave doing here

[If you’re particularly intrepid, it’s just as easy to go down as it is up, and exploring below the wall leads into a rocky crevasse. he water that flows through is unnaturally clear. One gets the sense that it's probably not this clean in reality, and is, instead, the result of a conscious decision to construct this place in a way that it could (or, perhaps, should) be. Continue on and the path heads underground, into a cave entrance and grotto.

It’s slightly rarer to find Viktor here—you’re more likely to be ambushed by the creature-in-residence, instead, but in the event of such misfortune he is quick to intervene.]

Don’t worry, she’s harmless. [Well, he hopes, but the real Rio had always been docile, and therefore it follows that his faithful mental recreation would be as well. Ideally. He’s still wrapping his mind around the apparent ability to conjure sentient entities within the Horizon, even if this is simply the recreation of a memory. It’s possible he looks a little bewildered, not only at someone finding their way down here, but at the situation itself. Isn’t this comforting!]

iv. casual b&e

[He is also, of course, snooping. A naturally curious mind, Faced with something so incredible as the Horizon, the first thing Viktor wants to do is test its limits. Though he seems to have enough awareness that it might be rude to actually enact changes or to otherwise encroach on someone else’s domain, that doesn’t stop him from, you know, taking a few little walks, leading to the inevitable.

He’s in your house (domain)!! He’s touching your stuff!!! He sees nothing wrong with any of this!!!! Maybe you should have locked it up better if you didn’t want anyone poking around!!!!!!]

i

[cryptsleeper]

[Alucard had intended to enjoy some quiet walking outside of his own domain, skirting the edges of others. He likes his privacy, after all, and does his level best to balance curiosity without doing a light bit of b&e. There are a few places he knows he can walk if he'd like (Sypha's, Jaskier's), but--

--he has not seen a whole Horizon with a skyline like that before. On the outskirts, he has to pause and marvel, committing the shape of it to memory. The question of whose space this might be is...okay, he isn't going to assume, but the dhampir has a pretty good guess.

It is the only reason he enters the space without feeling his usual sense of awkwardness and guilt. Why he walks the streets with a careful eye, committing the sights to memory. The aesthetics are absolutely wonderful, and--

Oh, okay that was an explosion.

Alucard being Alucard finds his way to the source by the smell. A very strong one, that comes from a single room (that would match some of his father's castle's aesthetics) and--

--Alucard raises his eyebrows slowly.]

You've a remarkably resilient workspace.

[techmaturgy]

[It sure was an explosion!

The good news is that no real property damage is occurring (possibly that's the point of all this, to see exactly how resilient this place is, or how it can be repaired if damaged. Faced with, more or less, the unlimited power of creation, he's going to test everything about it that he possibly can. He's a scientist--how can he not?

Viktor looks momentarily surprised by the intrusion, but when he sees that his visitor is Alucard, he grins broadly in a way he doesn't necessarily do outside of the Horizon. It helps that he seems less generally exhausted, seemingly unhindered by whatever it is that plagues him in the real world.]

It's very important to determine, uh. Just how resilient.

[He would never do this in his real lab. Maybe. It's possible he's done this in his real lab. Viktor pushes the goggles up his forehead, disconnecting the two extremely ominous plugs he's holding, thick black cables snaking somewhere unseen, into the darker corners of the cavernous room.]

Which, I suppose is as much as I allow it to be. [A shrug, as if that's meant to explain everything.] I'm getting my bearings.

ii

[carmesi]

[she was not, particularly, invited, but she still felt compelled enough to walk in—making her was towards the city and the inside of the wall, giving way to high ceilings, high walls, tall windows. a door is open, and her curiosity wins her over as she presses a hand to its surface, pushing it further enough to allow herself space to walk in.

there's a familiar face for wanda, sitting at the workspace. he does look different, from what she remembers, and she can't help the small smile at the lack of greeting — just a bit of a scolding for peering at some notes scattered on a table.]

Don't worry. [wanda presses a finger to the flat of a paper, slides it a bit on the table.] I would not know how to make heads or tails of it.

[she raises her head now.]

You look busy.

[techmaturgy]

That's what they all say. Then, before you know it, you're in front of the university tribunal, trying to prove it was your work in the first place.

[That's a joke. She's given him no reason to think she's after his secrets, and he was the one who left the door open anyway, so perhaps he's only half-serious about the notes being sensitive. Still, he's not rude, so he closes his notebook and straightens, standing to properly greet his visitor. (Because that's what he should do, right? Even though he has no real idea of how they're all supposed to behave in this strange mind realm. Weird. It's fine. He'll figure it out.)

She says he looks busy and he casts a glance down at the desk, as if he's trying to catalogue what he's already recreated and how much is left to go.]

Well, there's a lot to remember. An incomplete set of notes isn't very useful.

iii

[subhuman]

[ He's not exactly sure what he's doing her, but a rocky crevasse being guarded by a fearsome beasts seemed apropos. At least initially. Originally he'd come to investigate for the aesthetics alone and a desire to go down, down, as far as he can. There's something beneath the ground waiting for him, that's the sense he gets. So when he sees an opening he has to go for it.

But the beastie that guards it is...somehow not what he would expect. A little too.

Cute?

It's definitely cute. Definitely clashes with his own appearance, covered in hard black scales with a magma-like glow between the cracks.

Despite his own fearsome appearance, he regards the creature and her keeper with as much of a curious expression as his face is capable. ]

Not exactly a good guard dog if that's the case.

[techmaturgy]

[Correct. Rio is definitely cute but Viktor is fully aware that most people are probably not going to think that, upon first glance, so he makes an appearance fairly quickly in an effort to preempt any unfortunate altercations. The last thing he needs is violence, even if it's between a fellow summoned and something he quite literally conjured from the depths of his memory. He's still, perhaps, a little startled that he could even create something like this in the first place.

There are too many strange implications to think about, with regards to this place, but anything he was about to say doesn't make it out of his mouth because he's rounding the corner of some rocky outcropping and this guy is a whole entire lava monster.]

Uh--

[Okay, no. That's rude. Viktor needs a moment to wrangle his expression, and Rio (who is, in fact, extremely harmless), slinks back around behind him (which is at least a little funny, because she is very large and Viktor is not), apparently having second thoughts about this situation.]

This isn't--she's not guarding anything.

[This is just where the giant pink salamander thing lives, apparently. He's still figuring this out.]

I can't resist! I.

[itookashot]

[ As soon as Jesper got through his first Horizon visit and learned how it works, he started trying more frequently to go. It's a surreal experience, especially when he's walking through places that are and aren't exactly like he remembers from home. But his area is frankly a bit depressing since it's connected so strongly with his loved ones, so he starts wandering. It suits his easily distracted mind to bounce places without meaning to.

He doesn't know whose place he's in at first, curiously looking around and appreciating it. It does kind of remind him of parts of Ketterdam. There doesn't seem to be anything clearly established as something he'd know, but he keeps wandering. Until he hears the explosion. He runs toward it for two reasons: Explosions are exciting and maybe it'll tell him where he is.

Jesper looks the same more or less in here than he does outside, but with a very fashionable suit of hunter green with a lime green button up shirt, and two beautiful pearl-handed pistols hanging off his belt. He gets those at least here. He brightens when he recognizes Viktor, smiling and waving a hand. ]

Oh I would do the absolute same. You don't really give off the explosives are fun energy though, in the real world.

[ More the serious scientist demanding exact metrics and stuff. ]

[techmaturgy]

[Controlled explosions are fun, thanks. Viktor looks a little surprised at the suggestion that anyone would think they aren't fun. Still, he's a responsible adult or something, and is not about to cause such destruction in the real world, where there are actual consequences. There is, however, something to be said for doing it where he theoretically can't hurt anything or anyone (including himself), and besides, this is all for science, anyway. Testing the limits of this strange realm of his own creation.]

Yes, well. I thought we talked about not making judgements based on appearance.

[Or energy, as it were. Viktor pushes his goggles up his forehead, the only indication that he was paying any attention at all to lab safety, and scuffs a blackened pice of metal across the floor with his shoe. He knows he doesn't need to make excuses for himself--it's his mind realm, and he'll blow it up if he wants--but there's still a part of him that strives for decorum, he supposes, at least when it comes to dealing with relative strangers.

Jasper seems enthused, however. That's a start.]

iii

[funbreaker]

[ With the summit in the past and faction lines drawn yet again, Thancred realizes how vital the Horizon will be to existing in this world. It's the Summoned's secret weapon, a byproduct of their connection to the Singularity and something he intends to use to great effect. He can see now why Stephen had made a point of inviting him in, as this is going to make collaboration between factions much easier than it might have been otherwise.

There is the other mental link they have where they can send written messages, but it will be far more productive in most cases to meet "face-to-face," he would think.

He has made a habit of visiting the Horizon for brief moments daily, usually either right after he wakes or right before he sleeps. He doesn't want to do it enough to catch the attention of Thorne natives, but he also wants to learn as much about the domains of his fellow Summoned as he can.

During this particular visit, he comes across what looks to be an entire city, though it's quite different from Amaurot, gleaming and full of life. Though rather than being drawn to those city streets and the buildings they lead to, Thancred can't help but notice the other path, down into some manner of dark crevasse. That is the path he will always walk first, the one less commonly trod, the underbelly where secrets could so often be found or shared.

Thus he climbs his way down on sure feet, taking note of the perfectly clear water before continuing on into the interior of the cave system. He isn't expecting anyone or anything to be there, necessarily. He's walked through a number of domains without encountering anyone by now, and it's rare for two Summoned to be in the Horizon at the exact same point at the same exact time unless they planned it in advance.

When the giant salamander-like creature barrels toward him, Thancred reaches for his gunblade out of instinct before a voice follows, and he glances up to see none other than Viktor. He's not quite who he expected to find here, in all honesty.

Nonetheless, Thancred lowers his sword arm and gives the creature a more careful look, though doesn't approach just yet. ] Is she? Are such creatures common where you're from? [ There's no shortage of monsters of all types back home, of course, but most of them are not docile. A few have been domesticated, such as the chocobo or even Norvrandt's amaro, but Thancred's quite more used to something that looks like this thing being feral. ]

[techmaturgy]

[The truth is that Viktor is also a little bewildered by this--the lab, a study, the halls of the Academy--that had all been fairly intuitive. The more he worked, however, the more everything had expanded seemingly of its own accord, drawing from memory, letting it all iterate on itself until the domain was complete (for now, anyway). Some of it has caught him a little off-guard, his own subconscious producing places he hasn't been in many years (barring his most recent trip, though he's not sure it counts, when it looks the way it did when he was a child). He'd been tentative, at first, to try and conjure something living, but Rio seems to be an obvious test subject, despite the implications and he's almost surprised at how easy it is and how well it works.

The Horizon in general has given him a lot to think about, to say nothing of the slightly painful memories it brings up--so much so that he doesn't hear Thancred approach until it's too late, and he can't head off the potential altercation. Viktor sees the gun (gunblade, he remembers. He remembers thinking it sounded very ridiculous), and is quick to put himself between it and Rio, holding out placating hands in either direction before things get out of control.]

Not...exactly.

[Well. At least Thancred seems to understand that he's not in any danger, here. It's occurring to Viktor that this is probably a weird thing to explain, especially to a relative stranger, who probably did not expect the cave basement to belong to the generally reserved science guy.]

I only ever encountered one. [Implying that this is his recreation of that singular creature. The gunblade is lowered but Viktor gives it a prolonged glance anyway.] But you're not in any danger here.

iii

[exoterminator]

[Once Samus realized with a little more concentration she could traverse and explore other Horizons, well, what was an intrepid explorer expected to do?

The divided cities are claustrophobic in both directions, buildings so tightly compacted together it's as if they had no choice but to build up and up. The verticality she's used to... the crowds, not so much. So she's eager to seek sanctuary in the rocky crevasse and caves. Upon seeing Rio she does raise her arm cannon but stands her ground, keeps her distance, still and calm. It's quickly apparent this creature means no harm. Samus, still with some reserved caution, carefully closes the distance. She gets down on one knee and when it seems safe gives Rio the attention she was clearly wanting.

She will definitely make a note of this place to come back later, whoever it belonged to. ]

[techmaturgy]

[Surprise it's this guy

And he's here, actually, just doing something outside (something important and sciencey obviously)--Samus gets in a few good pets before the sound of his approach interrupts the moment. He seems a little unprepared to find someone else in here, but to his credit wrangles his expression fairly quickly when he sees who it is and what's going on.]

Ah. You've made a friend.

[Is he talking to Samus? Or Rio? Probably both. Perhaps he's just pleasantly surprised that someone wandered in here and didn't immediately react with alarm or violence. This is. This is cute.]

[CLOSED] geralt

[techmaturgy]

[So, he can literally conjure up living creatures in the Horizon. That's one thing to know, theoretically, and quite another to actually do. It takes him by surprise, the fact that the Singularity can take a memory that he gives it and extrapolate accordingly, but he supposes the point of this place is that it functions on the seemingly limitless power of creation. He’ll start with what he knows, because that’s easiest, and then see what happens.

The next thing to do is test the parameters. Systematically, methodically, like the scientist he is. Can he bring things out of his domain? Objects? Can he bring an ostensibly living thing out of his domain, and into someone else's? Are there limits to any of this, beyond the relatively small size of the Horizon itself? He knows not to infringe on anyone else's space (though he imagines he could, if he really wanted to, it just seems rude and unnecessarily aggressive), but he sees no reason why he can’t take walks through them. Anything he can glean about his fellow summoned is useful, after all, so he takes Rio and goes for a walk.

It’s more an experiment than anything, to see if there’s anything preventing him from doing something like this—if there’s a distance limit to his own constructs, or if anything he makes might be affected by someone else’s creations, this will probably be the easiest way to find them. What it looks like, probably, is a guy out with his weird dog. Everything is cool and normal here.]

i'm so sorry this kept slipping through the cracks of my sieve brain.

[gynvael]

[ It took time before Geralt began to visit the Horizon for reasons past needing to speak to someone he can't otherwise. After all these months, though, this tether, his connection—it isn't going anywhere. More and more, the Horizon becomes as much a place to enter as the tavern next door. Get away from the heat of the city.

So it isn't for any real reason that Geralt is in it this time. He's avoiding his own domain for reasons he doesn't want to get into (sometimes traumatic events cause unwanted rooms to spawn; it's nothing to be concerned about). He has instead taken his wolf—large, scruffy, white, and marked with scars—and gone on what he intends to be a quiet stroll about the Horizon. It's often quiet. Few people wander about, preferring to visit others directly or stay within their own.

Naturally, this can only mean the precise time he chooses to go on this walk is when another happens to be doing the exact same. Another he recognizes, in fact. With a—

Hm. Geralt stops short in front of Viktor. The last time he saw the man, they were delivering a pigeon. Now he's got a. What the fuck is that? ]

Friend of yours?

[techmaturgy]

[Viktor understands that unless meetings are pre-arranged, it's probably difficult to run into other Summoned by chance--so this is already a surprise. Then again, he's technically trespassing, and it has occurred to him that if one can do anything in here, what's to stop someone from setting up some kind of alert system?

Something to test later, he thinks. For now, the more pressing issue (???) is Geralt. Or maybe the wolf? He's not really one to talk, considering his own current companion, so they'll just be mutually surprised.]

Something like that.

[Just, you know, that moment when your childhood best friend is a giant pink salamander and you wanted to see if you could bring her back in the mind realm because at home she is comatose and lives in a tube in your old mentor's cave basement where he is probably using her to produce the mutagenic drug that is currently ravaging your hometown.

Normal stuff.]

This is only my second visit here. I'm...testing the limits.

[CLOSED] ciri

[techmaturgy]

[He's "settled", sure, but he's not comfortable, really. It's going to take more time for that, but Viktor is nothing if not industrious. Despite his first forays into the general scientific community of Cadens, a few bruised egos haven’t necessarily harmed his endeavors. It helps that Viktor is both incredibly sharp and generally industrious, which gets him a few odd jobs here and there—fixing one thing or the other, making improvements to something else. Nothing permanent, yet, but he understands that reputation is just as important as everything else he’s trying to secure, and the more he ingratiates himself with he locals, the more they’ll come to trust his skills and the more momentum he’ll gain.

So he isn’t settled. But he's in a better place than he was a few weeks ago, thanks to some actual patronage, and part of this process includes maintaining even tenuous connections. Luckily, Ciri isn’t difficult to locate (she’d said as much), and it takes only some cursory asking around to determine her usual haunts. She'd said to come find her when he'd secured space, and, well. He's done that. As promised, he's waiting for her in one of the alchemical shops that she frequents, fiddling with some kind of delicate glass alembic as he waits.]

It took me a few weeks, but--

[He's not really bothering with any formalities--Ciri seems like someone who means business, so he'll get right to the point.]

I'm in a better position to discuss a potential arrangement.

[wiedzminka]

[ Ah. There's a familiar face. Ciri pauses at the door when she spots him and cocks her head, a question and a greeting in one. ]

Faster than I expected, considering what I'd assumed to be the breadth of your social skills previous.

[ It's said lightly, clearly poking fun more than meant to be actually insulting. Striding up to join him at the worktable, Ciri leans casually against the wood as though it's not covered in delicate instruments, one hand on her hip. ]

I'm listening.