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Post by Admin on Apr 14, 2023 6:08:35 GMT
#s://i~ibb~co/QQq3fVm/dworkinmaybe1~jpg "Curiosity. Other things were about in this part of Arden, and things that do not take well to strangers and interlopers. Did you see those ghosts? More and more are always coming, and no one seems to know why.
"Caretaker? Yes, I suppose that would be the best word to use. But not apprentice, no, no, no. Inventor and builder once, but now just, as you said, the caretaker."He stops with his cleaning to inspect Eivor's work. "You picked the toughest one to begin your clean. I can see you have the hands for it - that's some deft work with your fingers. Are you a fellow artist? And warrior?"
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Post by Eivor on Apr 14, 2023 7:18:53 GMT
Eivor shrugs, continuing the work of cleaning. "A little of both. My father made me muck out the stables same as everyone else, so I know there is merit in hard work. Sometimes the reward is great, more often small. Still worth doing."
"I'm Eivor by the way. You may have another visitor before long; my cousin Ryland is sniffing about, though he didn't say why. Edmund's trail led me here but there was something else I was looking for. Have you ever heard of the Horns of Anubis?"
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Post by Admin on Apr 17, 2023 5:50:46 GMT
#s://i~ibb~co/QQq3fVm/dworkinmaybe1~jpg "The Horns of Anubis? Yes! From long, long ago. I can't be sure that they still exist. Let me see."He pokes about he garbage picking up the large rings, staring at the symbols, sometimes rubbing a portion of one clean with his sleeve. They all meet with his disapproval and he tosses them back into the corners. Finally only the one Eivor holds has not been studied. His head an inch away from the ring he watches the symbols spin by and Eivor continues to clean. "There! That's it!" he says with a shout of glee, grabbing the ring with surprising strength. "Oh, um, may I?" he asks.
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Post by Eivor on Apr 17, 2023 7:34:57 GMT
"Of course," Eivor replies, somewhat startled by his sudden enthusiasm. "What's is *it*, exactly?"
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Post by Admin on Apr 18, 2023 4:37:24 GMT
#s://i~ibb~co/QQq3fVm/dworkinmaybe1~jpg "Right here, you see? The carved dog's head with horns? Of course, it is on this ring. Why would I have thought it would be on one of the others?"He steps away from Eivor in a dance-like manoeuvre. Not unskilled at dancing, she sees. As he moves and stares and the ring, his body changes slightly, shrinking a bit, though when he reaches the odd telescope apparatus, he has resumed his usual shape. "I never much like that Anubis in the name. It makes sense since I never agreed with Anubis in life. I always called the place the Horns of Nimon or the Twin Peaks of the Dogged Pass. You can't fight the people's will when it comes to names.He undoes a few latches on the device, which comes apart in two pieces. He places the ring on one part the snaps the machine back together. His hands hover over the device's buttons, levers, and knobs. "You have arrived at an auspicious time, Eivor Daughter of Julian. This will be the first time the Shadowscope will be used in many hundreds of years."
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Post by Eivor on Apr 18, 2023 7:36:22 GMT
"I always thought of the Horns as place in the forest, perhaps some abandoned ruin overgrown with vines. Now seeing it on this ring the message I was given makes more sense: 'When the moons spin widdershins upon widdershins'. Symbols on a ring spin far more readily than the moon rotates in the heavens," Eivor replies.
"The Shadowscope...is it safe? After my brothers' visit here he started behaving erratically. I'd rather avoid any side-effects, if you don't mind."
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Post by Admin on Apr 19, 2023 6:10:26 GMT
#s://i~ibb~co/QQq3fVm/dworkinmaybe1~jpg "I can't say that I have heard poets speak of the place, but there are three moons which tend to follow unstable paths through the sky."The ring now in place, he begins to adjust knobs, dials, press buttons, and pull levers, and the device rotates and tilts. The ring spins and clicks through its engraved radius. "Him," he says with distaste. "When he first came here, he took something away with him, which allowed me to return. Then his return gave me a reason to move back in. I suppose I owe him twice over. Not a pleasing thought."
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Post by Eivor on Apr 19, 2023 7:08:19 GMT
Eivor chuckles. "I don't suppose he's aware of the debt so I won't remind him," she says. "So am I to understand this is an observatory? If so what do you hope to observe?"
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Post by Admin on Apr 21, 2023 3:42:36 GMT
#s://i~ibb~co/QQq3fVm/dworkinmaybe1~jpg "An Observatory, yes. And once observed an Infuenceatory? If that is a word. It's all based on Pattern, Trump, and other magical forces, which I'm sure doesn't interest warrior-types like you." he says while continuing to fiddle with the device's controls.
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Post by Eivor on Apr 21, 2023 7:10:52 GMT
"Don't be so quick to judge," Eivor replies. "You said you saw the look of Pattern about me, and while these particular symbols are unfamiliar I come from a place where runes have power. These things are not without their fascination."
"You didn't tell me what you were hoping to observe. Or influence*."
[OOC:*I'm assuming "Infuenceatory" meant to read "Influenceatory"]
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Post by Admin on Apr 23, 2023 7:31:28 GMT
#s://i~ibb~co/QQq3fVm/dworkinmaybe1~jpg [OOC: Yup. My spelling is so bad that I even misspell my made up words.] "Ah. The spear and shield and armour made me think you were one of them, not one of us. What place was it you came from?
"From here I can see just about anywhere I have an inscribed icon. Although, as I said, it has been a while. Add to that all the mess Brand, Corwin, and what's-her-face...Deirdre? - made of shadow may have broken or miscalibrated everything. Sometimes things need a bit of a push, or pull, or editing, you see? Tremendously useful back in the early days. Makes me wonder how we all managed to get along all these ages without it."
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Post by Eivor on Apr 23, 2023 8:35:06 GMT
"A place where it is necessary to defend yourself," Eivor replies. "You don't survive in Arden without being able to handle a weapon."
"So your vision is limited by the number of drawn symbols? I presume therefore each symbol has particular significance; you can't drawn an infinite number of these, so presumably the sites are carefully chosen. Is it just places, or people too?"
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Post by Admin on Apr 25, 2023 6:05:42 GMT
#s://i~ibb~co/ZfYtFSJ/dworkin06~jpg "That answers my question about you; no warrior mind could so quickly identify the uses and complications with this machine. Yes, as you say, limited to what has been inscribed. One could always make more if one had the time and ability, and ability to travel to the place to get the work done. A tedious process, so it is usually limited to only the sorts of places built on fixed points. And even those require recalibration every few centuries or so.
"Look at this one; pyramids and jungles, a Hummingbird Warrior Elite ruling clan. They caused Oberon no end of trouble back in the early days. I could have my fun causing an earthquake one day, volcanic eruption the next, and so- oh, damn, it's moved completely beyond focus.""People! No, no, no! Aside from the moving problem, there are also ethical considerations and the risks of being discovered. That's impossible, unethical, and risky. No one would do such a thing."He becomes agitated at the thought. His shape begins to flow, and by the time he has stabilized, he is a few feet shorter but broader and hunched over.
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Post by Eivor on Apr 25, 2023 7:23:20 GMT
Eivor nods. "I see. So is there particular significance to the Horns of Anubis? I wonder why the poet chose to describe that place rather than, for example, the home of the Hummingbird clan."
"It strikes me that the poem was meant to lead me here, so that I can assist you with this work."
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Post by Admin on Apr 26, 2023 5:17:59 GMT
#s://i~ibb~co/QQq3fVm/dworkinmaybe1~jpg "The Horns are an interesting place. Have you seen The Keep of the Four Worlds? Also interesting to see the four different elemental worlds crashing into one spot. Not the usual configuration, and some sort of special shadow editing was done there but by who? and why? Those Horns are also the result of some delicate Shadow-work.
"I hope the poem wasn't what led you here! I can't stand having some other power directing my steps. Never again! That's why I did it, and I'll do it again if I have to!" he yells at no one in particular.
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