WEEK FOUR

[shimmermods]

FOURTH WEEK

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The Shimmer may have left you physically, but it's always with you; it's something it had insisted on yesterday, and it's something that continues to be pervasive even now, both in thoughts and within you in other, perhaps more noticeable ways. The statements that have been made weigh heavily; your surroundings continue to be influenced by something or other - plants you recognize are still present here, even as the trees themselves continue to crystallize, growing glassy white and transparent around mechanical insides - and the changes to your physical bodies are becoming more evident and difficult to ignore.

Perhaps more disturbingly, when you went to sleep in the clearing there were sixteen of you.

When you wake up, there are fifteen.

No matter how many headcounts you take, you keep coming up one short; the fact of the matter is that Rean Schwarzer is no longer among you. There's no visible evidence of where he's gone, and all of his belongings are still here; perhaps in some part of your mind, the possibility registers itself - maybe he's not with you because he went to the Shimmer. Not in the same way the cultists went, and not in the same way the ring of bodies seems to have gone, but maybe...

The thought is difficult to shake; the fact of the matter is that he isn't here, and you probably don't want to stay here. After all, your options are currently either to do what you set out to do, to return to the base and very possibly be killed for your efforts, or to remain here with the corpses.

The hike uphill is steep; perhaps it's fortunate that you're no longer tiring out like you used to. It's easier to keep going nowadays, even if it feels somewhat mechanical in doing so; your limbs know what they're doing, even if there's some reason for your mind to disagree. You seem to be making good time in moving toward the site of the initial impact of the meteorite; perhaps it won't be much longer before you find your objective.

That is, if all goes according to plan.

SUNDAY | MONDAY | TUESDAY | WEDNESDAY | THURSDAY | FRIDAY

code by vuvuzela

Comments

[klematis]

I don't think I could resist two for the price of the one. Would you prefer to start, or shall I?

[crestological]

Oh, now you’re making me curious about what you have! But I suppose I am a bit excited to talk about the time two of my former students tracked down a magic beast...

[klematis]

Then by all means, I cede the floor.

[ With a flourish of his hand too. ]

[crestological]

Well, then! Two of my students managed to track down the location of a legendary bow said to have been crafted by Saint Indech. One is a fairly talented scholar, you see, and the other is not in possession of a crest, which is a sort of power passed down through family lines that confers various abilities on the holder. If you have any questions about them, I have all day! Why, in fact, this particular expedition was of interest to me, as I myself hold a minor crest of Indech, so...

...Oh, erm, pardon me. I am getting better at catching myself on this sort of thing...

[klematis]

No pardons needed.

A magical crest, is it? What do they look like?

[crestological]

Ah, well, while they all have associated symbols, they don’t really manifest physically. You can occasionally see said symbols manifest in light whenever someone’s crest activates, and if you have equipment that detects crests it will show the symbol, but for the most part, it’s simply a characteristic inherent in somebody’s blood. Many of Fodlan’s noble lineages have crests associated with them, and they are considered a very desirable trait to have when it comes to arranging marriages and the like.

[klematis]

[ His head tilts to the side slightly. ]

And your crest, you said it was minor? The difference lies in its properties, then?

[crestological]

Basically, yes. It mostly boils down to how often it activates and how powerful it is, really.

[klematis]

I was hoping it was something you could show me here.

[crestological]

Ah, I wish I could as well. It is a bit strange to, well, not have it, I think... it is mostly combat-related, but sometimes it's a bit helpful with things like cleaning and whatnot.