This is Dr. Darien Mason, live from the shopping frenzy at the Silverscreen sim!
Eccentric Inventors across the Realm of the Roses are up in arms over Stark International's flooding of the market with free Iron Man suits of armour from the Silverscreen sim.
Even after a lorry delivering the crates was attacked by an areoplane, a temporal device froze the attack just as it was severing the bridge upon which the vehicle was driving.
"What garish colours!", howled a Professor K________ as he examined the box. "Bright red and yellow! Where's the shine of copper and brass? Why do they call it Iron Man if there's not so much as a steel rivet on it?"
"And there's no moving parts!", quipped Miss M_______ as she kicked the shin of a display model. "No rotating gears, no steam vents, no coal chute or even a clockwork key! No Caledonian would be caught dead in this contraption!"
Then I mentioned that it was fully modifiable, copiable, and transferrable, and they fainted dead away.
Not only Steam Age technologists were upset at this giveaway. A pale female android in black leather was seen tapping the chest repulsor plate and lamenting, "Oi chummer! I paid multi-K Lincreds to 'quip a fusion reactor portal to my bodybox, and here you haz it freewarez! GOLDMINE! True, it's not transparent like mine, but still...OI!"
"I think it's great!", cheered a clockwork Mr. A______. "My builder is on a limited budget and sometimes a simple dermal layer just won't do. I can retrofit this easily! And the detachable AO-gyroscope will give me a heroic stance even when I'm not wearing it the rig! Maybe now I can 'get chicks' like the Founder..."
Whoa there! Oh, these new constructs...straight from the mouths of babes as it were!
From a neighboring diarama, King L______ scoffed at the idea of equiping his hoplite infantry with 21st century technology.
"Repulsors? We don't need any stinking REPULSORS! THIS! IS! SPAR-TA!!!"
After which he kicked this reporter down a well.
At another platform I tried to ask to interview a large construct but he seemed to be...running a diagnostic on a horseless carriage.
"Beat it! Give some Autobots some privacy! You think poseballs this big grow on energon trees?"
*rushes off with a cart full of boxes*
Wednesday, April 30
Tuesday, April 29
OOC: Mazel Tov to the Guvna and Lunar-san
Caledon Downs and Steelhead Boomtown have now risen from the sea.
Now if the Grid will stay stable enough for me to visit them...
Now if the Grid will stay stable enough for me to visit them...
Monday, April 28
From the Helm of the Black Trireme
Bloodwing turned to face his second in command. He resembled as much a cooked lobester as he did your classic demon.
"The Nights of Terror have passed. My Firstborn's kin will emerge from their palaces in which they have been cowering, seeking revenge on the pretender just as we. We must make haste if we are to stake our claim."
"Aye, Commodore."
The crustacean turned towads the wedge of ancient vessels drifting impossibly through the void of space, their oars weaving through the aether like the bubbling surf they were designed to navigate eons before. Mermet flailed his antennae as he lifted the great twisted ram's horn, blowing shrill stacatto notes that scraped across the souls of all who heard it in defiance of the vacuum. Every row of oars found two more extending over them. The sides of the triremes now seemed to undulate like crawling centipedes.
Bloodwing looked to his side at the rusted astrolabe retooled for sailing through space. A red ember burned brighter, signaling a tripling of speed.
"Excellent. This will be an eventful family reunion indeed! "
He laughed mercilessly as the spirits in the black hulls shouted in rhythm with the drums that kept the time of their oars.
"The Nights of Terror have passed. My Firstborn's kin will emerge from their palaces in which they have been cowering, seeking revenge on the pretender just as we. We must make haste if we are to stake our claim."
"Aye, Commodore."
The crustacean turned towads the wedge of ancient vessels drifting impossibly through the void of space, their oars weaving through the aether like the bubbling surf they were designed to navigate eons before. Mermet flailed his antennae as he lifted the great twisted ram's horn, blowing shrill stacatto notes that scraped across the souls of all who heard it in defiance of the vacuum. Every row of oars found two more extending over them. The sides of the triremes now seemed to undulate like crawling centipedes.
Bloodwing looked to his side at the rusted astrolabe retooled for sailing through space. A red ember burned brighter, signaling a tripling of speed.
"Excellent. This will be an eventful family reunion indeed! "
He laughed mercilessly as the spirits in the black hulls shouted in rhythm with the drums that kept the time of their oars.
The Oldest Trick in the Book
"I assure you Darien, the course of the Replicator virus is relatively painless..."
*Jeremiah twists dials and punches buttons on the console. He double-takes and presses them again.*
"Blast it! There's a malfunction! I'll have to do this myself!"
*He flips a switch and the stasis tube rises. The image of Darien floating helplessly in the fluid rises with the tube into the ceiling. A large circular hole in the tube rises from below the floor level, spilling the fluid across the floor and shorting out equipment across the chamber in a shower of sparks. Jeremiah covers his face protectively*
"DARIEN!! What deception is this!!"
Oh please, Father. Get a hold of yourself. You forgot to scan my body for cybernetics. My surgical prosthesis is always hidden beneath a synthetic dermal layer. While you were busy repairing your hypno-device in your Spark-induced haze I severed the tubes cut through the glass cylinder. Once I slipped out the airlock it was easy enough to project a hologram in the tube and reverse the polarity on your transducer.
"WHAT? That means you had to be..."
You thought I was one of your Steel units helping you, didn't you? Amazing how oblivious the Spark makes you, doesn't it? I could have slain you right then and there. But knowing you, you'd probably have at least one clone on standby.
"But you never disconnected the wireless voice link!"
Of course not! Since YOU were the one hypnotized it only took me some subtle suggestions for you to lapse into soliloquy and reveal your Master Plan, as all Evil Masterminds are want to do.
"DAMN YOU DARIEN! WHERE ARE YOU?"
Sorry, your twenty questions are up. And with your command console fried you can't track me down. Don't worry, Father. I *will* find you first.
*SCREEEEEEEE!!!*
*Jeremiah pulls off his headphones and throws them across the chamber.*
"Feedback! How obnoxious!"
*Jeremiah twists dials and punches buttons on the console. He double-takes and presses them again.*
"Blast it! There's a malfunction! I'll have to do this myself!"
*He flips a switch and the stasis tube rises. The image of Darien floating helplessly in the fluid rises with the tube into the ceiling. A large circular hole in the tube rises from below the floor level, spilling the fluid across the floor and shorting out equipment across the chamber in a shower of sparks. Jeremiah covers his face protectively*
"DARIEN!! What deception is this!!"
Oh please, Father. Get a hold of yourself. You forgot to scan my body for cybernetics. My surgical prosthesis is always hidden beneath a synthetic dermal layer. While you were busy repairing your hypno-device in your Spark-induced haze I severed the tubes cut through the glass cylinder. Once I slipped out the airlock it was easy enough to project a hologram in the tube and reverse the polarity on your transducer.
"WHAT? That means you had to be..."
You thought I was one of your Steel units helping you, didn't you? Amazing how oblivious the Spark makes you, doesn't it? I could have slain you right then and there. But knowing you, you'd probably have at least one clone on standby.
"But you never disconnected the wireless voice link!"
Of course not! Since YOU were the one hypnotized it only took me some subtle suggestions for you to lapse into soliloquy and reveal your Master Plan, as all Evil Masterminds are want to do.
"DAMN YOU DARIEN! WHERE ARE YOU?"
Sorry, your twenty questions are up. And with your command console fried you can't track me down. Don't worry, Father. I *will* find you first.
*SCREEEEEEEE!!!*
*Jeremiah pulls off his headphones and throws them across the chamber.*
"Feedback! How obnoxious!"
Friday, April 25
More Distractions
"Now answer me, Darien. Why did you impersonate me?"
I had to preserve the Time Continuum as best I could...without become a monster like you.
"And the neko and humans you experimented on?"
I was trying to CURE them of YOUR venom! They begged me to finish them off, but I couldn't...my Oath would not let me. My Spark would not let me. I kept trying to extract an antidote from my own resistant blood, but it never worked on any of the others.
"Oh, it worked, Darien. It just fulfilled their last wishes in the process. And Lucian?"
I never told her. But somehow I think she knew. All those games she played with my younger self were actually divination rituals. She was casting runes...
"You had your lost love right there in your own home, and you never surrendered to your old habits?"
It took every ounce of will I had. I immersed myself in trying to cure the survivors of the expedition. All the while the Hydra was building resistance to my antibodies, growing stronger.
"Until it took you over. But it did not know the secret of its own demise."
I hid it deep in my heart.
"HA! LITERALLY! You removed it and turned it into an abomination!"
I knew Qli would destroy it. After I captured her and Koen, I told her to dissect the heart while Koen was still unconscious. Then I released them both and fled.
"The whole circular sequence, hidden in your mutated heart...along with the coordinates for her to propel you back to the First Temple at the Mobius event?"
Yes.
"Brilliant work! Woefully misapplied genius, but brilliant nonetheless! Perhaps you'll be useful to me as a Replicator..."
*BZZT!* Regent! Qli-249 reporting! Legacy Guardian construct is encountering intruders in the Greenhouse! Your food supply is in danger! Sending an attack squad!
"The Greenhouse! Do NOT breach the structure, 249! Meelee weapons ONLY, do you hear?"
*BBZT!* Confirmed! Deploying bladed units!
*BZZT!* Regent! Qli-109 reporting! Armed aethership detected on intercept course with New Erebus!"
"FOOLS! Send an Interceptor squad and channel the Vortex energy to construct an anti-aether funnel to pull the ship towards Caledon! WE shall intercept THEM!"
*BZZT!* Confirmed!
Towards...Caledon??
*evil laughter*
I had to preserve the Time Continuum as best I could...without become a monster like you.
"And the neko and humans you experimented on?"
I was trying to CURE them of YOUR venom! They begged me to finish them off, but I couldn't...my Oath would not let me. My Spark would not let me. I kept trying to extract an antidote from my own resistant blood, but it never worked on any of the others.
"Oh, it worked, Darien. It just fulfilled their last wishes in the process. And Lucian?"
I never told her. But somehow I think she knew. All those games she played with my younger self were actually divination rituals. She was casting runes...
"You had your lost love right there in your own home, and you never surrendered to your old habits?"
It took every ounce of will I had. I immersed myself in trying to cure the survivors of the expedition. All the while the Hydra was building resistance to my antibodies, growing stronger.
"Until it took you over. But it did not know the secret of its own demise."
I hid it deep in my heart.
"HA! LITERALLY! You removed it and turned it into an abomination!"
I knew Qli would destroy it. After I captured her and Koen, I told her to dissect the heart while Koen was still unconscious. Then I released them both and fled.
"The whole circular sequence, hidden in your mutated heart...along with the coordinates for her to propel you back to the First Temple at the Mobius event?"
Yes.
"Brilliant work! Woefully misapplied genius, but brilliant nonetheless! Perhaps you'll be useful to me as a Replicator..."
*BZZT!* Regent! Qli-249 reporting! Legacy Guardian construct is encountering intruders in the Greenhouse! Your food supply is in danger! Sending an attack squad!
"The Greenhouse! Do NOT breach the structure, 249! Meelee weapons ONLY, do you hear?"
*BBZT!* Confirmed! Deploying bladed units!
*BZZT!* Regent! Qli-109 reporting! Armed aethership detected on intercept course with New Erebus!"
"FOOLS! Send an Interceptor squad and channel the Vortex energy to construct an anti-aether funnel to pull the ship towards Caledon! WE shall intercept THEM!"
*BZZT!* Confirmed!
Towards...Caledon??
*evil laughter*
Tuesday, April 22
OOC: The First Annual Donate Life in Second Life Ball
April 21st was declared Donate Life USA Day by Congress. In honor of that day, Frau Lowey and I decided it was a perfect time to raise awareness as to the shortage of declared donors in the United States. I must admit I was surprised to find myself hosting in Steelhead again. Sadly, the good Sheriff was unable to play music for us, but the stream played an interesting mix of Classical and Soundtrack pieces.
The event was somber for me, since my late Mother had two transplant operations during her life. First for a liver, which gave her an extra ten years to see her family grow, and when that failed due to the poor judgement of her doctors she required a second operation for both a liver and a kidney. There were unexpected complications, and she never fully recovered. The date of her passing is April the 27th.
While we Miss Lowey and I had no luck in convincing the Transplant Recipients International Organization that Virtual Reality can be a powerful fundraising tool, we did distribute notecards listing non-profits that support the cause.
~DM
The event was somber for me, since my late Mother had two transplant operations during her life. First for a liver, which gave her an extra ten years to see her family grow, and when that failed due to the poor judgement of her doctors she required a second operation for both a liver and a kidney. There were unexpected complications, and she never fully recovered. The date of her passing is April the 27th.
While we Miss Lowey and I had no luck in convincing the Transplant Recipients International Organization that Virtual Reality can be a powerful fundraising tool, we did distribute notecards listing non-profits that support the cause.
~DM
Monday, April 21
The drums of war are calling
I hear them echo through the canyons of the Iron City and drift across the shores of the the Styx. The Boatmen hurry to the banks of the river as the Black Triremes cut a deadly wake through the silent waters.
The ship at the head of the formation bears a yellow sail with a black ziggurat, adorned with crimson wings and and offering pyre.
My crest.
Praise the Fates! The warships anchor to lower the plank for me! My redemption has come at last!
~τέφραδράκων φτερώναίματος
The ship at the head of the formation bears a yellow sail with a black ziggurat, adorned with crimson wings and and offering pyre.
My crest.
Praise the Fates! The warships anchor to lower the plank for me! My redemption has come at last!
~τέφραδράκων φτερώναίματος
The False Prophet
"You think of the irony of being my prisoner on your precious holiday, Darien. But in truth you are more a Ramses than a Moses than you can ever imagine! I could have been the greatest hero of our age, but instead our nation shall forever bear the scars of War from a battle I could have averted, had you not exiled me here!"
Oh. Are you ranting again? I was just trying to take a nap...AGGGHH!!
"Show me disrespect again and I'll turn up the amperage! Did you ever wonder why I was the only plantation owner with construct servants instead of human ones?"
No souls to break?
"A cynical interpretation, but essentially true. Don't mistake my choice for compassion. I knew that this unresolved contradiction in the founding of our nnation would rip it apart. What's more, I had investigated reports of Sparks among the slaves at other estates, and found truth to those rumors! It was only a matter of time before they posed a serious risk! For the sake of stability I sought a solution that abolitionist and plantation owner alike could accept!"
The Neko. You thought you could sell neko as slaves to the American South as a replacement for human slaves?
"EXACTLY! Being non-human, neko enslavement sidesteps all those quandries the philosophers have! Eventually we could have used them to build constructs to undertake all the menial labor, so the later generations could lead peaceful lives as beasts of the fields or as pets of the ruling class!"
Replacing one race of slaves for another would have done nothing, Doctor. Just as the New World was built on the backs of Indians, Jews, Gypsies, and criminals before the Slave Trade began...
"SILENCE! Don't you realize my solution could have prevented the War Between the States? A grateful nation would have elected me as President of the United States by now!"
But you care nothing for the ideals America was founded on. You only care about Progress and Stability.
"The People always have to believe in something to keep them in line. And what did YOU do when the shooting started? Oh, wait...weren't there! You arrived in Steelhead in the 1830's and rode the paradigm shift into the 1890's! You missed the war entirely!"
I did not know the war was going to occur!
"If you had spent less time making a mockery of military discipline in the Capper Brigade, or strutting around with a badge or tinkering with constructs you might have! Had you even spent those years in a field hospital I would have absolved you! Eh? What's this?"
*Jeremiah manipulates the controls to bring up images of Qli-2, Qli-3 and Kira on the viewscreen*
"It seems your friends have squandered their chance to escape my wrath! One of my larger creations should crush your companions very shortly!"
*evil laughter*
TO BE CONTINUED
Oh. Are you ranting again? I was just trying to take a nap...AGGGHH!!
"Show me disrespect again and I'll turn up the amperage! Did you ever wonder why I was the only plantation owner with construct servants instead of human ones?"
No souls to break?
"A cynical interpretation, but essentially true. Don't mistake my choice for compassion. I knew that this unresolved contradiction in the founding of our nnation would rip it apart. What's more, I had investigated reports of Sparks among the slaves at other estates, and found truth to those rumors! It was only a matter of time before they posed a serious risk! For the sake of stability I sought a solution that abolitionist and plantation owner alike could accept!"
The Neko. You thought you could sell neko as slaves to the American South as a replacement for human slaves?
"EXACTLY! Being non-human, neko enslavement sidesteps all those quandries the philosophers have! Eventually we could have used them to build constructs to undertake all the menial labor, so the later generations could lead peaceful lives as beasts of the fields or as pets of the ruling class!"
Replacing one race of slaves for another would have done nothing, Doctor. Just as the New World was built on the backs of Indians, Jews, Gypsies, and criminals before the Slave Trade began...
"SILENCE! Don't you realize my solution could have prevented the War Between the States? A grateful nation would have elected me as President of the United States by now!"
But you care nothing for the ideals America was founded on. You only care about Progress and Stability.
"The People always have to believe in something to keep them in line. And what did YOU do when the shooting started? Oh, wait...weren't there! You arrived in Steelhead in the 1830's and rode the paradigm shift into the 1890's! You missed the war entirely!"
I did not know the war was going to occur!
"If you had spent less time making a mockery of military discipline in the Capper Brigade, or strutting around with a badge or tinkering with constructs you might have! Had you even spent those years in a field hospital I would have absolved you! Eh? What's this?"
*Jeremiah manipulates the controls to bring up images of Qli-2, Qli-3 and Kira on the viewscreen*
"It seems your friends have squandered their chance to escape my wrath! One of my larger creations should crush your companions very shortly!"
*evil laughter*
TO BE CONTINUED
Friday, April 18
Ripples through the Infinite
I was still bereft from the shock of my Firstborn's death. Of all the souls I expected to see come to dark shores of the Styx, I did not expect to see my dear Qlippothic as well. Not this soon. She stood before me, her shade still weeping not from her destruction, but from the circuitry drilled and woven through her essence, ever after death. I did my best to soothe her, and painstakingly unthreaded the corruption from her synthetic soul.
As she did so, she explained how this all went wrong when she tried to undo the death of Dr. Darien Mason, who had perished in one of his mad experiments. The device I designed did work, but with unexpected side effects. She was displaced to a realm of Nothingness with a gathering of duplicates, hundreds all from splintered histories made counterfactual by my invention.
A light did shine in the darkness, a floating city of grandeur. It was of Avarian build as she recognized from my archives. Their Sparkfather, Dr. Mason, welcomed each and every one of them when they arrived. He explained he was displaced himself from fighting the Hydra, and found this lost masterpiece of a fallen race. They would make the best of things as a family, in the spirit of my Heartsong, to make this Hell a Heaven.
It was all lies. That was the Sixth Son, Jerimiah, not his cloned son Darien. Each Qli innocently followed the signs to the maintenance bay, only to be deactivated and sealed in Replicator pods to re-emerge as helpless drones for his infernal plans!
What was worse was my Seventh Son was now at his father's mercy...and I knew the Sixth Son was always cursed to be born without any such trait. She heard Koen's death wail as well, and could only scream inside at the cruelties surrounding her. She said she met her end by a hybrid Qlippothic untouched by the Replicator virus that crushed her soul chip to set her free.
Then...another Qlippothic arrived, reconfigured in the guise of a neko, but just as ravaged by defacement by that madman, with five more catlike Qlis in tow. The one I had just cured assisted me in untangling the others as they related their demise at the hands of a clockwork rat that transformed into a sandblasting cat-dragon.
Could that be Kira, I thought? Not even I can change from one guise straight to another without returning to my old shape first. That is the gift of a true Shifter...or perhaps...the dragon was her true form?
Charon's boat drifted from the mists, beckoning my daughters to dwell in the kingdom to which I could never return.
"Charon, those are Princesses of Erebus, and they shall be treated as such! Tell the guards to escort them to the Obsidian King's court immediately!"
He did not respond, but my daughters thanked me as they faded beyond my sight.
"New Erebus", I muttered. "Hades will not be pleased to hear of a mortal impostor."
I was just starting to sit down by the riverbank again to continue my wait as I heard more calls of "Demonfather!" growing louder in the distance.
At least I'll be kept busy.
~BW
As she did so, she explained how this all went wrong when she tried to undo the death of Dr. Darien Mason, who had perished in one of his mad experiments. The device I designed did work, but with unexpected side effects. She was displaced to a realm of Nothingness with a gathering of duplicates, hundreds all from splintered histories made counterfactual by my invention.
A light did shine in the darkness, a floating city of grandeur. It was of Avarian build as she recognized from my archives. Their Sparkfather, Dr. Mason, welcomed each and every one of them when they arrived. He explained he was displaced himself from fighting the Hydra, and found this lost masterpiece of a fallen race. They would make the best of things as a family, in the spirit of my Heartsong, to make this Hell a Heaven.
It was all lies. That was the Sixth Son, Jerimiah, not his cloned son Darien. Each Qli innocently followed the signs to the maintenance bay, only to be deactivated and sealed in Replicator pods to re-emerge as helpless drones for his infernal plans!
What was worse was my Seventh Son was now at his father's mercy...and I knew the Sixth Son was always cursed to be born without any such trait. She heard Koen's death wail as well, and could only scream inside at the cruelties surrounding her. She said she met her end by a hybrid Qlippothic untouched by the Replicator virus that crushed her soul chip to set her free.
Then...another Qlippothic arrived, reconfigured in the guise of a neko, but just as ravaged by defacement by that madman, with five more catlike Qlis in tow. The one I had just cured assisted me in untangling the others as they related their demise at the hands of a clockwork rat that transformed into a sandblasting cat-dragon.
Could that be Kira, I thought? Not even I can change from one guise straight to another without returning to my old shape first. That is the gift of a true Shifter...or perhaps...the dragon was her true form?
Charon's boat drifted from the mists, beckoning my daughters to dwell in the kingdom to which I could never return.
"Charon, those are Princesses of Erebus, and they shall be treated as such! Tell the guards to escort them to the Obsidian King's court immediately!"
He did not respond, but my daughters thanked me as they faded beyond my sight.
"New Erebus", I muttered. "Hades will not be pleased to hear of a mortal impostor."
I was just starting to sit down by the riverbank again to continue my wait as I heard more calls of "Demonfather!" growing louder in the distance.
At least I'll be kept busy.
~BW
Wednesday, April 16
We now return to the Trial, already in progress
"Now where were we, Darien? Oh yes, your Serpents grabbed me by my belt buckle and hurled me through the time portal you came from! An interesting move. I'd have suspected something more lethal."
I had just defeated the Hydra. My body had already built up an immunity to the venom. Instead of the Hydra controlling me, I now controlled the Hydra. Obviously, you landed here.
"Of course. One minute I'm in the jungle and the next I'm hurtling through the Void... landing eons in the past! I woke up surrounded by Trolls in white robes. Luckily they already knew of other sentient races, but they had never seen a Human before. Luckily, the Founder left several tomes on translating Avarian to Latin in the volumes he's written over the centuries. As you know many of our inventions are reverse engineered if not inspired by the scraps of parchment that survived the ages. While I had no clue as to how to pronounce their runes I could write in the manner of their scholarly texts. From there it was simple enough to prove that I was a genius and a Spark. They welcomed me into their ranks as a visiting Scholar!"
A Snake in the Garden...
"Please! The feuding between the Magi and the Scientists had already put them on a collision course! I made outward, superficial attempts to reconcile the factions, relaying messages as a neutral outworlder, but subtle alterations of runes can change the meaning so much..."
...which brought you to the attention of the Replicator Queen.
"Yes, she offered me protection among their number just before civil war became imminent. In order to sustain myself in the long hibernation of their pods, however, certain...accommodations had to be made..."
I had just defeated the Hydra. My body had already built up an immunity to the venom. Instead of the Hydra controlling me, I now controlled the Hydra. Obviously, you landed here.
"Of course. One minute I'm in the jungle and the next I'm hurtling through the Void... landing eons in the past! I woke up surrounded by Trolls in white robes. Luckily they already knew of other sentient races, but they had never seen a Human before. Luckily, the Founder left several tomes on translating Avarian to Latin in the volumes he's written over the centuries. As you know many of our inventions are reverse engineered if not inspired by the scraps of parchment that survived the ages. While I had no clue as to how to pronounce their runes I could write in the manner of their scholarly texts. From there it was simple enough to prove that I was a genius and a Spark. They welcomed me into their ranks as a visiting Scholar!"
A Snake in the Garden...
"Please! The feuding between the Magi and the Scientists had already put them on a collision course! I made outward, superficial attempts to reconcile the factions, relaying messages as a neutral outworlder, but subtle alterations of runes can change the meaning so much..."
...which brought you to the attention of the Replicator Queen.
"Yes, she offered me protection among their number just before civil war became imminent. In order to sustain myself in the long hibernation of their pods, however, certain...accommodations had to be made..."
And now a word from our Legal Representative
Hello everyone! I hope you're enjoying this adventure. I understand some SL bloggers out there are going to go silent for three or even as much as thirty days! Well, we here at the Bloodwing Foundation prefer to take a different tack. We prefer to confront this legal beast head on. May I present to Mr. Vortex Koenkamp, Esq. from Sekhmet & O'sirus, LLC to clarify this whole hulabaloo. Mr. Koenkamp? Take it away!
Tank Youz! Widdout a witten wicense agweement, Winden Wab does not autowize youz to makes any use of its twademarks. Youz agwees to weview and adhere to da guidewines on usin’ "Second Wife," "SL," "Winden," de Eye-in-Hand wogo, and Winden Wab's udda twademarks, soivice marks, twade names, wogos, domain names, tagwines, and twade dwess (cowwectivewy, the "Winden Wab Marks") at http://secondlife.com/corporate/brand and its subpages, which mights be updated from time to time. Except for de wicenses expresswy gwanted dere ors in a sepwate witten agweement signed by youz and Winden Wab, Winden Wab weserves aww wight, titel, and intwest in de Winden Wab Marks and does not autowize youz to dispway or use any Winden Wab Mark in any mannah whatsoebah. If youz haz a witten wicense agweement wit Winden Wab to use a Winden Wab Mark, yourz use shaww compwy stwictwy widdat agweement's toims and condishuns and use guidewines.
Thank you Mr. Koenkamp! That clarifies everything now, doesn't it? Now, back to our show!
Tuesday, April 15
casting away the mask
In an age yet to come, the Prince of a fallen kingdom finds a bottle of ancient spirits on a shelf in the palace. He secrets it under his wing and walks with his friend Darkling up winding stairs to the highest tower of the obsidian castle that is his new home.
As the hooks tug and pull at the cat's soul and body, draining his essense into the crystals suspended in impossible angles. he instinctively cries out one last time for the first source of comfort he ever had. The voice within responds.
I am sorry, Little One. It is time I cast brightest light on the Truth...she is gone from this plane.
Trapped in a chamber of fluid, the mask affixed to Darien's face pumps oxygen faster as tears well and overflow. The interrogator looks up and sees the anguish behinds two layers of glass, and frowns.
He unstoppers the cork. A red wisp of enchanting aroma rises from the neck and dissipates into the wind.
"How? When?", he barely utters from a face no longer recognizable.
Qli-3 screams Koen's name as she rips away the steel door from its hinges, swinging it again and again to crush the Replicant guard to rubble.
It matters not. Your search is over. There will be no vengence.
"I tried so hard..."
Let no one doubt your bravery. You will inspire others in your sacrifice.
"Let no one doubt his sacrifice..."
"Kira...?"
K'rra daughter of Bast has always been your ally through the ages. Life after life you inspire each other. Be certain you shall see her again, when you both wear new masks. As you remember who you truly are, she will see a glimpse of what she truly is. That glimpse alone will give her new Gifts to use in this life.
The clockwork rat shifts to a feline form, then turns on the catlike construct that chases her, fangs and claws bared as she roars.
"Even by the Styx I felt him slipping away. How I cried out...I burned my tongue pleading to the Creator Himself. Take my wings, I said! Take my horns! Take my face! Rip this wretched soul to shreds but save my Firstborn!"
Koen feels the rattle is his throat. His chest heaves. His body trembles.
"Charon laid his skeletal hand on my shoulder and whispered to me. 'He shall not come here. The kin of Osiris never do. He will return to whence he came and journey to the living world again with a new face and a new name.'"
New Erebus quakes. The glow of the crystals blink out, clouds of darkess billow within them as they jostle to remain where they float.
"My son..."
Darkling weeps, clutching his arm as she looks on. Black tears trail down his marked face as he slowly inverts the bottle. The draught floats like a crimson snake down the endless void that serves as a moat.
"For Koen..."
The broken body of ebony fur vanishes like a dream, replaced by a crimson coat that refuses to bleed, even with the hooks tugging stronger in all directions.
In Caledon, a hulking figure clinging to the side of a rocketship by a series of pulleys drops his wrench. He shudders a moment, then slides down the rope so fast it catches fire. He drops the last six feet to a crouch on the pavement.
"Frau Lowey! Something is wrong! We need to get them NOW!!"
Through a receiver, the scientist's channels his mournful wails into an ancient song of comfort.
"Veyiska'dal, Veyiska'dash..."
Quietly, the city's master reads the dials on his instruments.
"Somewhere out there, Darkling, in the toxic fog that shrouds the cities, a neko has been born with a black coat and red tips. That is my son returned. Help me find him."
"Congratulations, Darien. You've overloaded my hypnotic inducer. Go ahead and mourn your pets while I recalibrate."
He fails to notice the lights on the communications console are all binking furiously...
Bloodwing drops the bottle to descend forever into the Abyss.
As the hooks tug and pull at the cat's soul and body, draining his essense into the crystals suspended in impossible angles. he instinctively cries out one last time for the first source of comfort he ever had. The voice within responds.
I am sorry, Little One. It is time I cast brightest light on the Truth...she is gone from this plane.
Trapped in a chamber of fluid, the mask affixed to Darien's face pumps oxygen faster as tears well and overflow. The interrogator looks up and sees the anguish behinds two layers of glass, and frowns.
He unstoppers the cork. A red wisp of enchanting aroma rises from the neck and dissipates into the wind.
"How? When?", he barely utters from a face no longer recognizable.
Qli-3 screams Koen's name as she rips away the steel door from its hinges, swinging it again and again to crush the Replicant guard to rubble.
It matters not. Your search is over. There will be no vengence.
"I tried so hard..."
Let no one doubt your bravery. You will inspire others in your sacrifice.
"Let no one doubt his sacrifice..."
"Kira...?"
K'rra daughter of Bast has always been your ally through the ages. Life after life you inspire each other. Be certain you shall see her again, when you both wear new masks. As you remember who you truly are, she will see a glimpse of what she truly is. That glimpse alone will give her new Gifts to use in this life.
The clockwork rat shifts to a feline form, then turns on the catlike construct that chases her, fangs and claws bared as she roars.
"Even by the Styx I felt him slipping away. How I cried out...I burned my tongue pleading to the Creator Himself. Take my wings, I said! Take my horns! Take my face! Rip this wretched soul to shreds but save my Firstborn!"
Koen feels the rattle is his throat. His chest heaves. His body trembles.
"Charon laid his skeletal hand on my shoulder and whispered to me. 'He shall not come here. The kin of Osiris never do. He will return to whence he came and journey to the living world again with a new face and a new name.'"
New Erebus quakes. The glow of the crystals blink out, clouds of darkess billow within them as they jostle to remain where they float.
"My son..."
Darkling weeps, clutching his arm as she looks on. Black tears trail down his marked face as he slowly inverts the bottle. The draught floats like a crimson snake down the endless void that serves as a moat.
"For Koen..."
The broken body of ebony fur vanishes like a dream, replaced by a crimson coat that refuses to bleed, even with the hooks tugging stronger in all directions.
In Caledon, a hulking figure clinging to the side of a rocketship by a series of pulleys drops his wrench. He shudders a moment, then slides down the rope so fast it catches fire. He drops the last six feet to a crouch on the pavement.
"Frau Lowey! Something is wrong! We need to get them NOW!!"
Through a receiver, the scientist's channels his mournful wails into an ancient song of comfort.
"Veyiska'dal, Veyiska'dash..."
Quietly, the city's master reads the dials on his instruments.
"Somewhere out there, Darkling, in the toxic fog that shrouds the cities, a neko has been born with a black coat and red tips. That is my son returned. Help me find him."
"Congratulations, Darien. You've overloaded my hypnotic inducer. Go ahead and mourn your pets while I recalibrate."
He fails to notice the lights on the communications console are all binking furiously...
Bloodwing drops the bottle to descend forever into the Abyss.
Sunday, April 13
The Cross-Examination
"Now, Darien...your mind is an open book to me. Your treachery against mankind shall be visualized through this equipment and broadcast through the aether. And I shall be vindicated!"
"Let us begin the moment after Bloodwing threw that Tesseractor Grenade at you, shall we? What was going through your mind after the explosion ripped you free of the Hydra's control and Reality itself?"
I see Bloodwing bolting skywards and hurtling a cube towards me. A flash of energy. The Serpents ripped away...and darkness. Solace.
"I am sure...being free of that ancient parasite must have been a relief. And it's not often a terror from the Mythic Age is defeated by a mortal. Now...how does a mortal lost in Absolute Elsewhere without an Etheric Time Cabinet arrive at my doorstep, at the worst possible moment?"
I see a light that quickly expands to a glowing circle...the portal. I land on worn stone dusted with sand. The tropical sun feels like liquid fire on my cold bare skin.
"The ruins of the first temple of Bloodwing in Sumatra of course. Just completing my expedition..."
You were crouching over a neko black fur, red tail, red ears. A silver ankh fallen beside her...you laid your pliers on it. Sumalee! The dart in her shoulder...the sand stained as red as her paws... The syringe in your hand. You monster!
"Tranquilization and de-clawing is standard procedure on these expeditions...knowing what I know now I should have spayed her too!"
I tackled you. I wrestled you for that syringe.
"Yes, I didn't expect to accosted by a screaming,lunatic doppleganger in the middle of the jungle. You did indeed have the element of surprise. You wasted my last dose of Hydra venom! I had bargained with Hades Himself for that priceless supply!"
The needle pierced my torso...the liquid curse spreading again through me.
"What a fool of monumental proportions you were! Purging the Hydra from your body only to go back in time to immediately re-infect yourself all over again!"
Friday, April 11
The Trial Begins
"Are you transmitting, Qli-341? Yes? Very Good. Let us begin."
"Doctor Darien James Mason! I, Doctor Jermiah Wilhelm Mason, as your Creator, as rightful Regent of the Bloodwing Foundation, and as Ruler of New Erebus, do hereby charge you with crimes against humanity..."
"What madness is this! Release me at once!"
"SILENCE, CLONE! You should be grateful I am giving you at least the trappings of a trial!"
"Trappings, indeed! You dare to call me a criminal?"
"You usurped my place in the midst of critical research! I could have saved over half a million American lives and brought out nation closer to true democracy! Instead you squandered your Spark and the Foundation's resources to feed the Bloodwing demon!'
"Your interpretation of the past is so hopelessly twisted I will not even waste my time trying to reason with you...FATHER!"
"YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO CALL ME THAT! You shall address me as DOCTOR Mason! And YOU have no right to speak of the past that you have so conveniently made yourself forget after you mangled it! And need I say anything about these lovely constructs you have corrupted and thrown away like so much medical waste!"
"I am as horrified as you about the existence of this Legion, Doctor. But you have obviously put it to your advantage and altered them further with Replicator nanobytes."
"That, Doctor Mason, is to make them function as a unit. Otherwise they would be completely erratic! Now, about your memories...I cannot punish you for actions you have purged from your memory in false atonement, now can I? The Angel Heart Effect I believe it's called. Qli-341, the sound barrier helmet and the mnemonic oscillator, please."
*gasp!* "That device! That's...that's...!"
"The Deadly Ringer? It is based on the same priciples of neurovibratory stimulus. But that is like comparing a battle axe to a surgeon's scalpel..."
"Of all the cruelties you could inflict upon me..."
"Now now, Doctor. I'm not going to drive you mad with this like the other weapon did to Captain Ramsey. I'm going to repair the neurons you cauterized to block the memories of what you did to me and our legacy after you ambushed me in Sumatra."
*the sound of a high-pitched ring...and screams*
TO BE CONTINUED
"Doctor Darien James Mason! I, Doctor Jermiah Wilhelm Mason, as your Creator, as rightful Regent of the Bloodwing Foundation, and as Ruler of New Erebus, do hereby charge you with crimes against humanity..."
"What madness is this! Release me at once!"
"SILENCE, CLONE! You should be grateful I am giving you at least the trappings of a trial!"
"Trappings, indeed! You dare to call me a criminal?"
"You usurped my place in the midst of critical research! I could have saved over half a million American lives and brought out nation closer to true democracy! Instead you squandered your Spark and the Foundation's resources to feed the Bloodwing demon!'
"Your interpretation of the past is so hopelessly twisted I will not even waste my time trying to reason with you...FATHER!"
"YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO CALL ME THAT! You shall address me as DOCTOR Mason! And YOU have no right to speak of the past that you have so conveniently made yourself forget after you mangled it! And need I say anything about these lovely constructs you have corrupted and thrown away like so much medical waste!"
"I am as horrified as you about the existence of this Legion, Doctor. But you have obviously put it to your advantage and altered them further with Replicator nanobytes."
"That, Doctor Mason, is to make them function as a unit. Otherwise they would be completely erratic! Now, about your memories...I cannot punish you for actions you have purged from your memory in false atonement, now can I? The Angel Heart Effect I believe it's called. Qli-341, the sound barrier helmet and the mnemonic oscillator, please."
*gasp!* "That device! That's...that's...!"
"The Deadly Ringer? It is based on the same priciples of neurovibratory stimulus. But that is like comparing a battle axe to a surgeon's scalpel..."
"Of all the cruelties you could inflict upon me..."
"Now now, Doctor. I'm not going to drive you mad with this like the other weapon did to Captain Ramsey. I'm going to repair the neurons you cauterized to block the memories of what you did to me and our legacy after you ambushed me in Sumatra."
*the sound of a high-pitched ring...and screams*
TO BE CONTINUED
Thursday, April 10
OOC: For the sake of coordination...
I've started a group for everyone who wants to contribute to the RP adventures churned out of this blog:
bloodwing-foundation@googlegroups.com
Please message me at my gmail account or IM me in-world if you are interested.
~Dr. Mason
bloodwing-foundation@googlegroups.com
Please message me at my gmail account or IM me in-world if you are interested.
~Dr. Mason
Wednesday, April 9
Sunday, April 6
Gygax Captain's Log - 6th of April
BEGIN TRANSMISSION
-------------------
We are surrounded. They are swarming our ship like a nest of angry hornets. They are too fast for us to aim at any of them. They have clearly been modified...the configurations are new to me but they are clearly Avarian Replicator designs.
I have negotiated the release of the crew members that are not family members of the Foundation. The Baron and Captain O'Toole have been offered free passage in the escape pods. They also demanded Kiralette, the Guvna and Bloodwing. I explained m y father's message was garbled and that none of them are on board. They were obviously upset.
Now they are escorting our ship to their base. I can see it from here! I've never seen a vessel this huge! It's a whole cit...
--------------------------------
TRANSMISSION INTERRUPTED
-------------------
We are surrounded. They are swarming our ship like a nest of angry hornets. They are too fast for us to aim at any of them. They have clearly been modified...the configurations are new to me but they are clearly Avarian Replicator designs.
I have negotiated the release of the crew members that are not family members of the Foundation. The Baron and Captain O'Toole have been offered free passage in the escape pods. They also demanded Kiralette, the Guvna and Bloodwing. I explained m y father's message was garbled and that none of them are on board. They were obviously upset.
Now they are escorting our ship to their base. I can see it from here! I've never seen a vessel this huge! It's a whole cit...
--------------------------------
TRANSMISSION INTERRUPTED
OOC: The World Turns on Art
I refer of course to the new sim Axis Mundi, co-owned by my Chief Nurse Katat0nic Pidgeon and Miss 713. It is located on the border of the Victorian metaverse cluster and the so-called Modern Era. It is definitely in the running for a new site for the Foundation. Like Miss Poppy's realm it is a world where Art reigns supreme. I would show you the wonderful buildings and stores, but due to the crowds and the problematic new browser the view was a bit strained. However, the music of my dear friend Nova Sakigake came in loud and clear. And, I finally had a chance to show off the new Occult Investigator outfit she bought for me at Bare Rose. The billowing coattails ans luxurious ruffles...throw in an Evil Laugh and I was channeling Vincent Price for sure!
~Dr. Mason
~Dr. Mason
Thursday, April 3
Gygax Captain's Log - 3rd of April
Luckily my proxybot was not seriously damaged, for I was able to attended the Steelhead Town Hall. While I was marvelling at the silks the Ladies of Steelhead were wearing, I had the strangest feeling I was being...watched.
That's when I realized that the vessel of a mysterious race called the LOLKAT had pulled close to our ship, flying parallel. I did see one of them staring at me through a porthole. I tried to establish voice content by aether. They insisted on text transmission. They asked if we had "warez", to which I responded that we had no technology for sale. Then they asked for "pr0n". I informed them that I kept a kosher kitchen on this ship and had no shellfish of any kind. In response they sent me a colorized image of a long eared rodentlike creature with a flat circular object on its head. I am not sure if this was a member of their crew, possibly their Captain?
Tuesday night my improved proxybot will be in attendance of the Steelhead Dance. Treat it as you would the real me.
Meanwhile it seems someone has usurped Ash's aethernet transmission signature. It has sent out several transmissions, heavily encrypted. Whoever it is is countering my reassertion protocols. He or she seems to know me well. Almost too well.
~Dr. Mason
That's when I realized that the vessel of a mysterious race called the LOLKAT had pulled close to our ship, flying parallel. I did see one of them staring at me through a porthole. I tried to establish voice content by aether. They insisted on text transmission. They asked if we had "warez", to which I responded that we had no technology for sale. Then they asked for "pr0n". I informed them that I kept a kosher kitchen on this ship and had no shellfish of any kind. In response they sent me a colorized image of a long eared rodentlike creature with a flat circular object on its head. I am not sure if this was a member of their crew, possibly their Captain?
Tuesday night my improved proxybot will be in attendance of the Steelhead Dance. Treat it as you would the real me.
Meanwhile it seems someone has usurped Ash's aethernet transmission signature. It has sent out several transmissions, heavily encrypted. Whoever it is is countering my reassertion protocols. He or she seems to know me well. Almost too well.
~Dr. Mason
Consider how far we have come...
...and how much farther we still must go.
Early morning, April 4
Shot rings out in the Memphis sky
Free at last, they took your life
They could not take your pride
-U2, Pride (In the Name of Love)
Early morning, April 4
Shot rings out in the Memphis sky
Free at last, they took your life
They could not take your pride
-U2, Pride (In the Name of Love)
Wednesday, April 2
Only embers now smoulder where bridges once burned
It seems I miscalculated the energy of the Tesla Drive. Even as we propelled ourselves into orbit the engines acted as a Tesla cannon, demolishing the surface level of the Bloodwing Foundation, leaving only the basement. Thank Goodness there was no other property damage or injuries below. It seems my moving plans have come a few weeks early. I will miss the place, to be sure.
Citizens have already started approaching me about purchasing the land. Please contact TotalLunar Eclips about rentals on the Foundation grounds and in Harborside, arriving next month.
Though Fortune may guide the fools I have no wish to be free until I am gone.
-VNV Nation, Rubicon
Citizens have already started approaching me about purchasing the land. Please contact TotalLunar Eclips about rentals on the Foundation grounds and in Harborside, arriving next month.
Though Fortune may guide the fools I have no wish to be free until I am gone.
-VNV Nation, Rubicon
Tuesday, April 1
THE TIME HAS COME!!
NOW! MARCH my dollies! Wave our banners high!
First Division! Take the Town Hall!
Second Division! Surround the Consulate!
Bathtub Fleet! Surround Lighthouse Island!
Model Airplane Fleet! Seize the Airport!
Where the Founder has failed, *I* DOCTOR DARIEN JAMES MASON SHALL...
Wait. They're not moving. WHY AREN'T YOU STUPID...
Oy gevalt...I forgot to wind them first...
Does anyone have a KEYYYYYYYYY!!!
*orbitted*
First Division! Take the Town Hall!
Second Division! Surround the Consulate!
Bathtub Fleet! Surround Lighthouse Island!
Model Airplane Fleet! Seize the Airport!
Where the Founder has failed, *I* DOCTOR DARIEN JAMES MASON SHALL...
Wait. They're not moving. WHY AREN'T YOU STUPID...
Oy gevalt...I forgot to wind them first...
Does anyone have a KEYYYYYYYYY!!!
*orbitted*
Google Stole My Idea!!!
Even if it's only to sent aether communications, this will still create paradoxes on a massive scale!
http://mail.google.com/mail/help/customtime/index.html
http://mail.google.com/mail/help/customtime/index.html
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