abraxaslogs | [open] march catchall

Oh, thank the gods.

[ That exclamation might seem a bit overblown, and Thancred realizes this even as he follows after Viktor toward the promised lift. ]

Not that I would have minded climbing! But there is another domain here that has an unreasonably tall staircase, which I climbed for some godsforsaken reason. [ Reflecting on it now, he knows how absurd it had been for himself, Geralt, and Jaskier to be so stubborn about the entire affair. To his credit, he'd more or less understood that in the moment as well. ] It's only after we reached the top that we realized we could have taken a lift the whole time.

[ The lesson to be learned here? Make sure there is well-marked signage in your domain, to do your fellow summoned a favor. As they reach the lift, Thancred reaches out to grab Viktor's shoulder and gives him what seems to be a deadly serious stare. ]

If you come across a very tall, singular building, I can tell you now it's not worth the effort.

[Well, that is. Quite the reaction. Viktor seems more than a little puzzled, even after the closes the door to the lift and it starts rising back up into the wall. Clearly there is some kind of stair trauma at play here.]

Noted. [It's not that he seeks out places with excessive amounts of stairs, really, but he does have one question.] Couldn't you simply have willed yourself to the top? Or was there something in place to prevent that?

[ That is quite the pointed question and Thancred crosses his arms tight over his chest, sending Viktor a knowing look before he speaks to defend himself. ]

For one thing, it was only my second time in the Horizon. [ In other words: his first time with his memories. He hadn't quite been accustomed to how the Horizon worked, back then. He's frankly still getting used to it. ] For another... have you never fallen prey to a stubborn sort of pride?

[ To his credit, Thancred doesn't seem at all disturbed by the lift jerking to life and quickly carrying them up, up, up. He's clearly ridden them before. He also isn't referring simply to pride in the face of some physical challenge, which based on what he knows of Viktor might be a sore spot (and hopefully it isn't taken the wrong way). People can be stubborn about all sorts of things, and in Thancred's experience, there is no one who hasn't pointlessly dug their heels in about one thing or another in their lives. ]

I think that, if I encountered that many stairs at once, I would simply...not.

[It isn't like there's a lack of things to explore, here. Or, you know, if he really wanted to see what was at the top, will himself there or otherwise conjure a lift or something. Truthfully, Viktor is still kind of sorting out how he feels about changing himself, while he's in here, beyond the obvious benefit of ridding himself of his illness. The fact that he seems to have built an elevator into his own domain is probably evidence enough of that.

There is no real way to make elevator rides less awkward, and he imagines that Thancred is probably finished being ridiculed for his stair adventure, so he moves on to the next thing. It occurs to him that he has no idea what Thancred might be interested in.]

I could...show you my lab?

Then you are a wiser man than I.

[ Thancred says it with a little smile. No harm is truly done and it's not as if Viktor is wrong to question these things. Mayhap Thancred would have thought better of the entire affair if he hadn't had Geralt and Jaskier there to egg him on, even if they did so unconsciously. Something about seeing Geralt ascend the stairs with little effort at all, however, had been the final nail in the coffin.

That's all in the past, however, and Thancred is happy to change the subject to what it is he's about to see of Viktor's domain. At the mention of a lab, he cants his head in curiosity. ]

A lab, you say. Are you an engineer, then? Or some other manner of researcher? What is your area of study?

[ Thancred recalls his first conversation with Viktor and how he had insisted that his skills would be of better use in Cadens than Thorne. Yet he'd been interested in magick as well, there is no denying that. Then again, since he comes from a place where use of magick is more frowned upon, it could be an interest in the unknown, the less-understood. ]

Generally, I need to be realistic.

[Some things simply aren't worth the effort, and Viktor is acutely aware of his own physical limitations. If that means passing up an entire domain made of stairs, well. That's fine. His curiosity isn't that insatiable (usually).

Thancred asks if he's an engineer and he nods, the doors to the lift sliding closed behind them--the ride is short, but it's enough for him to present his resume, and, at least, a little context before they arrive at the lab.]

Broadly speaking, mechanical engineering, applied mathematics and theoretical physics. My current work involves research and development involving practical applications of arcane forces harnessed via technological means.

[You're trapped in here with him, Thancred.]

[ All it took was a question or two to get Viktor going, but Thancred knows better than most that this is the way with any scholar. While he may not be used to hearing talk of these particular subjects, he has heard Y'shtola and Urianger go on at length. Sometimes to him, sometimes to each other.

That being said, he does listen a bit more closely in this case. He hasn't yet had reason to tire of Viktor's lectures, and what he's researching is different from what Thancred's used to. To an extent, anyway. ]

Marrying magick with technology, in other words? Aye, I'm familiar enough with the concept, though I imagine it takes quite a different form than what I've seen.

[ Thancred pauses then, as the lift continues to carry them up, up, up to so-called greener pastures. ]

What is the ultimate goal of this research? What do you intend to do with such power? [ Based on the little he knows so far, he's hoping that Viktor is more of a Cid Garlond than a Nero Scaeva, but one can never be too sure. ]

[Oh yes. He's going. He'll continue to go, oblivious to anyone's potential lack of interest, until he is told to stop. Sometimes, not even then. The ride in the lift is short, at least, even if it doesn't interrupt their conversation. When the door slides open, he gestures for Thancred to make his way out first, assuming that he'll wait a few moments for Viktor to follow after and lead the way down the hallway.]

Where I'm from, it involves the use of a conduit and a rune-based system to provide instruction.

[Through a set of doors is the lab proper, which feels somewhat cavernous, but mostly as a result of Viktor not wanting to leave anything potentially dangerous lying around for anyone to experience. Or steal.]

Before arriving here, my research partner and I developed a stabilized source of this energy for use in portable devices.

[ Thancred exits out through the doors once they open, then turns back to hold his hand in front of them so that they don't attempt to slide close while Viktor exits. Simply common courtesy, that. From there on, he'll let him lead them on down an ornately decorated hallway to the main event of sorts, a workspace.

He has no idea what a rune-based system might look like, if he's honest. Would it be similar to the ley lines that black mages made use of, perhaps? There are so many potential possibilities that it would be hard to narrow it down. ]

Portable devices... [ Thancred assumes this energy source is somehow like ceruleum, but that is also the only point of reference he truly has. He's seen enough Garlean technology and consoles, which can be used to send remote instructions to other machines or constructs, that he's more or less following. ] And what would you use these for? To send instructions to automated machines?

[ He pauses then, taking a moment to study the space they've entered. There's chalkboards filled with equations that are set to slide around and a desk piled with papers. And... what is that device that's on display there? Thancred tilts his head, then begins to walk closer before he catches Viktor's gaze. ] May I? [ He isn't going to poke at anything, he simply wants to look. ]

Instructions, yes, but also a power source.

[Among other things, but he's still feeling out how much Thancred is interested in, or wants to know. Best not to scare him off, right away. The good news is that he can make anything that he wants for a physical demonstration--the gems themselves, the Hexclaw, and, of course, the core. He's not surprised that Thancred goes there, first.]

If you like. Just, ah. Don't touch.

[Mind realm or not, he isn't sure it's a good idea.]

Why not?

[ While Thancred is not foolish enough to simply ignore such a warning, he's naturally going to ask about it. The Horizon supposedly cannot kill them or do them any harm, but he isn't eager to test that theory either. Surely one of the other Summoned already has, but the point still stands. Not-dying might still be unpleasant, after all.

He moves his hands to rest behind him at his lower back and then leans in to examine the strange device, as if he were inspecting a painting in a museum. He's never seen these exact symbols before, though he would have been more surprised if he had recognized them. ]

A rune-based system, you said. How does it work? [ This is well outside his area of knowledge, but he's been forced to pick up the slack of his missing Scions. Besides, cataloguing the skillsets and interests of his fellow Summoned is always worth doing. ]

It has the potential to be...volatile.

[Truthfully, even Viktor is trying to unlock the mysteries of it, still. He's not about to say that it responds to organic matter, and that he doesn't want to introduce it to a new variable. Best to keep all the Hexcore touching to himself.

The good news is that Thancred seems to understand, and doesn't move to touch it (though the leaning in makes him slightly nervous--he tries not to show it).]

The runes dictate the function. This particular device is...configurable. Meant to serve a variety of uses.

[It might be clear that Viktor is testing the waters--starting broadly and then narrowing it down if Thancred seems to understand, or otherwise won't balk at the Hexcore's transformative abilities.]

[ Volatile. Thancred takes that to mean that this is a technology that Viktor doesn't quite understand, and maybe cannot control. Granted, this is his own domain, which means that in theory the device isn't going to do anything that's outside his realm of understanding. Or so Thancred would assume. There's much about the Horizon that's still mysterious.

He has noticed how Viktor continues to be rather vague with his answers. Surely he wouldn't have brought him here unless he was willing to field questions; it was the depths of that cave system that he hadn't wanted Thancred to see.

Picking up on some of that nervousness, Thancred takes a few steps away from the device and turns to Viktor with one hand on his hip. ]

That's all rather vague. Do you have an example?

[ A demonstration would be even better, but he knows when to not push his luck. ]

[Okay, so maybe Thancred is picking up on the fact that he's being vague and kind of shady. Maybe he knows more about this than he's letting on. Still, he willingly brought a guest up here, knowing full well what was in the lab, so he should, theoretically, be prepared for these kinds of questions.

Perhaps he's still weighing the dangers of being public about what he's working on, even if it only exists in the Horizon. The last thing he wants is for someone to misuse his research, but he reminds himself that the Hexcore is so esoteric that it will be difficult to utilize, to say nothing of replication.

So, maybe he can provide a little demonstration. That will be fine.]

I'm exploring environmental restoration applications, currently.

[He nods towards the device, and with a simple thought, recreates the experiment he's been doing with his houseplants--the rig above the Hexcore, a plant atop it. Viktor reaches toward the desk and pulls a lever, seemingly arranging the right combination of runes, and the plant blossoms, unfurling larger and larger, almost unnaturally.]

The device channels arcane energies through the plant--the runes providing the necessary instruction.

[Unlike the real world, he can stop it here. Thancred doesn't have to witness the point at which he gets stuck, when the plant inevitably reaches its limit and dies.]

As you can see, the transformative power of the device is...revolutionary.

[ Environmental restoration. It is not what Thancred was expecting to hear, but it is also to some extent a familiar concept. What he helped Ryne do to restore the Empty through the use of Eden could easily be called the same thing, though this device is a good deal smaller, and therefore likely also works on a smaller scale.

As the device begins to rotate around into different configurations, Thancred takes a few more steps back to watch as the plants overhead sprout and grow at an alarming rate. It's impressive and likely should be impossible, but with enough aether — or "arcane energy," as Viktor calls it — the impossible becomes possible.

Thancred's seen it himself. It's the only reason that he isn't completely awed by what has just taken place. ]

To say the least. [ Once the demonstration has ended, Thancred steps forward to take hold of a leaf off of a vine that's grown enough to fall within reach. It looks real and smells real, though given that this is the Horizon, that doesn't necessarily mean anything. This is still only theoretical.

He releases the leaf from between his fingertips and then turns back to Viktor. ] I was only assisting, but I've seen this sort of thing before. Not precisely the same, of course, but we were able to restore life to a land that had been made completely barren by an overabundance of light. Granted, the device we used to do so was much, much larger than this.

[Oh. Perhaps he does understand. This is something of a surprise, and Viktor isn’t necessarily good at hiding it on his face. He almost feels guilty, for forcibly halting the experiment before its natural conclusion, making Thancred think that he’s succeeded, or something, when that’s far from the truth.]

That’s—it’s exactly what I’m trying to do.

[Water purification systems. Air scrubbers. A boundless energy source that adapts to various tasks, without the need for constant instruction by an operator. He doubts that whatever Thancred used would be a one-to-one translation to his own work, but any information would be helpful to him.]

What sort of device?

[ Thancred doesn't hold that flash of surprise against Viktor. This is not the sort of thing that anyone should expect him to know about, in all honesty, and it's not as if he'd directly impacted much of what they'd done with Eden. It had mainly been the combined work of Ryne and Himeka, along with Urianger's knowledge around aetherology.

Knowing that this will not be the fastest of explanations, Thancred glances about for the closest set of chairs and moves to sit in one, expecting that Viktor will join him before long. He's seen what that device etched in runes can do, he understands what it's for, so now he can offer what he knows. On the off chance it helps, even if the situations are quite different.

Once he's seated, he leans forward to rest his forearms on his thighs and starts to explain. ]

I say device, but it was enormous. It was a ship, really. It could be moved around via control panels inside, to travel across the Empty. That's the land stripped of aether I mentioned. [ Self explanatory, perhaps. ] But it was also sentient, to some degree. It was a massive sin eater — a creature of such abounding light that it was responsible for bleeding the land dry in the first place. Yet it also had the energy and ability to reverse that damage, with the right encouragement.

[ Thancred pauses then, realizing how much information he's conveying, much of it likely incomprehensible to someone who isn't from the Source or the First. He wants to offer the space for Viktor to process, or ask questions if need be. ]

[Viktor seems to have no objections to Thancred having a seat, but he's apparently too focused on this new information to take one himself. There it is, again--the notion of a machine that can think. Hearing more and more about other worlds that have this technology, or something like it only furthers his desire to perfect what he's working on. He knows it's possible. He just has to crack the code, with the level of technology he's been given.]

What kind of propulsion system?

[A ship that's also a thinking computer...it seems almost unbelievable, if not for the fact that he has no reason to assume that Thancred is lying to him. He has half a mind to ask for Thancred to show him, given the fact that they're in the Horizon, but there are a few other questions he can ask firs,t without seeing anything.]

Do you know the mechanism by which it was able to reverse the damage?

[ At the first question Thancred can do little more than pull his face and give a small shrug. He is no engineer and had not investigated the means by which the ship was able to move. He simply understood that Ryne had the ability to control it, using her innate power as an Oracle of Light. ]

I imagine that it used aether to propel itself — it was ultimately a living being of sorts. I can't answer that question with much confidence, I'm afraid.

[ The second question he at least knows how to answer, though he isn't certain that Viktor will be able to follow. He lets out a small breath and squares his shoulders. Viktor seems to be a dedicated scientist, which means that Thancred can assume he'll be able to parse what he's about to explain with more ease than a layperson. ]

On the First, there is a natural balance between various aetheric elements, with some trending more toward umbral — or dark, and others toward astral, or light. Eden initially caused the damage by flooding the land with an abundance of astral energy, as I said, but it also had the ability to shift the balance back to umbral. [ He lifts a hand to draw back through his hair. ] My companion, who is far more versed in these matters than myself, theorized that if we made this correction too quickly, over too wide a swath of land, that it could be disastrous. Therefore, we aimed to dispense different elements over a smaller area, in land where it should have naturally occurred. For example, releasing the element of water in a place where there had once been rivers or oceans.

[ He pauses then, shaking his head to himself. If only Urianger could see him now — though it's for the best that he can't. ] ... Giving lectures of this sort isn't my area of expertise, but are you following along?

A living ship... [He laughs a little, shaking his head, apparently in an attempt to disguise some of his awe.] I can hardly imagine such a thing.

[Viktor is following--of course he's following. Thancred might be having some difficulties explaining, but Viktor works with these principles constantly. Different terms for them across universes, sure, but simple enough for someone like him to grasp.]

I think I understand the basic principles. [Balance. Everything in moderation.] If it's easier, perhaps you could show me?

[Provided he remembers the details, of course.]

Nor could I have, had I not stepped foot in one.

[ There are certain things that one cannot truly comprehend until seeing them with one's own eyes, and even now Thancred only understands the basics of how Eden functioned. He could go into more detail on how it had been discovered that Eden was in fact an Ascian turned into a Sin Eater, but it won't mean much to the likes of Viktor.

It barely means much to him.

At the suggestion that Thancred show Viktor what he means, there's a moment of confusion before meaning clicks into place. ] Ah, right. This is the Horizon.

[ He stands then, taking a moment to glance down at his hands. The act of creation, even in this liminal space, is something he is still not quite used to. It doesn't come to him naturally the way that it does others. He knows he needs to merely will something into being, however, and it should work.

Therefore, he spreads his hands apart from each other in front of him, and after a moment or two of concentration, a semi-translucent miniature model of Eden floats between his hands. Its design is quite unusual, with parts of it that almost look like feathers, contrasted with rings of metal near the back of its "head." Its top-heavy body tapers down into a point. ]

Imagine this, but much, much larger.

[ Nor is he done. The model shifts to hover over one of his hands and then he brings forth another image, this time of leviathan, a double-headed sea serpent. Why Himeka had imagined it this way he could hardly say, but the recreation shifts around in place, its heads darting to and fro, as if it were truly alive. If quite small. ]

On my star there are beings such as this called primals, made of pure aether and generally summoned to enact great destruction. In this case we used them to our advantage, using Eden to bring forth their likeness as concentrated aether. Once they were defeated, it dispersed the elemental energy as I described.

Edited 2022-05-18 21:23 (UTC)

[He can follow along just fine with general descriptions and talk about the function of such a thing, but it’s something else entirely to be able to see it—one of the greatest advantages of a place like the Horizon. Viktor is always attempting to accumulate more knowledge. Being exposed to information from other worlds and universes is more than he could have ever hoped for.

So this is more than a little fascinating, and he follows along as Thancred starts to conjure the ship and the thing they were, apparently, fighting against. He studies it closely, rubbing his chin. Not applicable to him, or what he’s trying to do, but fascinating nonetheless. At the very least, he can absorb the principles of it all, with the hope that the information might come in handy later.]

And the land was restored?

[ Thancred drops his hands and steps away from the floating images so that Viktor can inspect them to his liking. He nods in response to the question. ]

Eventually, yes. It took time. And defeating a good number of these primals to account for each element.

[ He'd had to leave the finishing of the job in Himeka, Ryne, and Gaia's hands, but they had pulled it off. Himeka had done her best to describe everything to him in the aftermath, and while it had felt wrong to return home without seeing it through, it's not as if he had much choice. ]

If you end up having further questions about all this, you're welcome to ask me. [ Who knows? Maybe some of this information will somehow help adjust Viktor's theorizing for his own research. ] I'll do my best to answer, in any case.

I don't want to keep you.

[An implication that, if given the opportunity, Viktor will likely ask dozens of follow-ups. He can see, however, that Thancred doesn't necessarily consider himself the expert in this sort of thing, so perhaps he should give him a reprieve, for now. It's certainly enough for him to consider, for now.]

But, thank you for showing me. It's interesting, to hear about other worlds. You're welcome back here anytime you like.

[open] march catchall

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