random pointless swirls

[sturdycoldsteel]

The shaper known as Steel is flying down the right side of a road, shoring up the edges of the bluestream that lets her lift herself off the ground as she goes. Sure, she'll be a bit clumsy and weak when she gets to Opri, but she's not planning on doing much more stream-shaping today, so might as well.

She glances at the bluestream (the magical vision blinds her physical vision for a short moment, but not long enough to crash into anything) and determines that this next crossroads is where she needs to turn. She tilts to the right...

...And lands on a patch of orange grass in a forest clearing. This is not the town of Opri. She opens her eyes and ears to the bluestream, trying to figure out what the hell is going on.

The bluestream here isn't a nice, orderly, useful pattern like on the roads, or the formless fog that it usually decays to after a while. Instead it's a riot of random patterns swirling around, wispy and confused and obviously not designed to do anything useful.

Steel, deaf and blind for a few seconds thanks to her peek at the bluestream, stands very still and is very confused.

Comments

[imeanforever]

"I think she cultivates some underwater plants."

[sturdycoldsteel]

"That'd probably do it, huh. Well, I purified it. I'm starting to dislike this place. There's no bluestream infrastructure, I can't do things nearly as easily as I'm used to."

[imeanforever]

"You know, if harmonics and bluestream are really exactly the same thing I wonder why there's a rumor that sorcery doesn't work in the mortal world. Weird mutable harmonics shouldn't make it impossible, just awkward."

[sturdycoldsteel]

"Maybe the fog makes it completely impossible, and weird patterns just make it hard? I can make a little patch of fog off in the forest if you want to try, and disappear it after too. In a few minutes. Still recovering."

[imeanforever]

"I'd definitely be curious to try it. No rush. I'm going to need to fly to the library to get books on how to make gates; do you want me to let you into my tree first or would you rather stay out here?"

[sturdycoldsteel]

"Tree's probably safer. If River found me right now, she could probably force-feed me."

[imeanforever]

"All right. Please do not break anything or rearrange my books. The water in the pitcher's pure. If you leave the tree you won't be able to get back in without me. You might fit in my bed above the bookshelf if you scrunched up, if you want a nap." Promise lets her into the tree.

[sturdycoldsteel]

"Oh, I don't need a bed to sleep." Into the tree she goes. She's taller than average, which makes it a bit difficult, but she manages. "Mind if I read the books? I'll try to put them back in the right order."

[imeanforever]

"You can read the ones on the shelf, sure. If you find any that aren't there don't read those."

[sturdycoldsteel]

"Got it." For now, though, she's apparently going to close her eyes and stay absolutely still.

[imeanforever]

Promise lets herself out and flies away.

[sturdycoldsteel]

Steel naps, and reads some books, and maps the bluestream of the tree (it's good for light and not much else). She's still there when Promise comes back.

[imeanforever]

"How are you doing?" Promise asks, putting her bag of books on her table and going to the kitchen to get some nuts and eat them.

[sturdycoldsteel]

"Well enough. I've got all my muscles back. Getting a bit hungry, but I'm saving my food. If there's at least a few hours of sunshine left today, I can go build the pattern I need to take in sunlight. Was your library visit productive?"

[imeanforever]

"...hours of...? It's usually afternoon here, we don't have a regular day cycle. And yes, I have all the books I should need."

[sturdycoldsteel]

"No day/night cycle? That makes no sense. Does the planet just stop most of the time?"

[imeanforever]

"The what?"

[sturdycoldsteel]

"The planet. The giant ball of rock that orbits the sun, the place where everything important is. D'you guys have telescopes?"

[imeanforever]

"No. But I don't think this is a planet."

[sturdycoldsteel]

"With no regular day cycle, I don't see how it could be. Horray for weird physics."

[imeanforever]

Promise shrugs.

[sturdycoldsteel]

Steel stands up. "Is it time to try sorcering in the middle of some fog?"

[imeanforever]

"If you're up for it, sure."

[sturdycoldsteel]

She walks out of the tree and into the forest. A few hundred feet out, she finds a particularly ugly harmonic tangle. She leans on a tree and turns it into fog. "There's some fog right there, between the rock and the mushrooms."

[imeanforever]

Promise stares down the spot between the rock and the mushrooms.








"Not working," she reports.