THE ADVOCATE ORACLE - A RIP VAN WINKLE IN TIME

[beleos]

Sweet dreams are made of Bliss

As the twilight falls, and bearers begin to tuck in for their evenings on the night of the 15th of March (OOC time) and whether they tuck themselves into bed fully, or simply drift away in the middle of their dinner, work, indulgences, or what have you; bearers will fall into a deep, deep sleep. Perhaps you slump in your chair, or you wrap your arms around a teddy bear, or partner, or cup a precious shard in your sleep, it doesn’t matter, because as you drift away, into a sleep that seems to tug you under like the undertow itself, a question will echo in bearer’s minds: “If given the choice, would you show compassion in the face of adversity?”

It sticks with you, even as you fall into a dreamless sleep. As if it rotates in your mind, over and over, letting you worm over that. You know for certain what it is, that it is the calming, soothing voice of the Oracle, reaching out to you across the ether, telling you – promise you – that if you accept its promise, you will find that the Oracle could be in your hands. That thought leads you to dream of something else – of home, or your loved ones – of what you are fighting this war for. Even as you dream, you feel a presence next to you, and unlike the Harbinger’s winding, rough digging, this is more akin to a friend, who is asking you soft, coaxing questions. Things like: what was your childhood like? What were your friends like? What did you do? You cannot help but think of them, think of your home and your loved ones. Of where you came from, and how it made you what you are.

The advocate seeks to understand you, and where you come from. You can feel it, that overwhelming Acceptance and love from it, even as you reminisce, compelled to answer the multitude of questions, you can feel something building behind you, around you. “Don’t you want them all to understand this?” the impression is given through communion, and you cannot help but answer: yes.

Click your Heels together, Dorothy!

As you awake for the first time, it’s alien, the world that meets you. New smells fill your nostrils, new sights, the gravity is perhaps different than you’ve gotten used to on Kenos, even those slight shifts enough to make the world feel wholly different. You remember the advocate’s words, and it wants you to feel what it feels. Understanding. Compassion, and perhaps there is a sense that doing so would hurt yourself in turn, if you understood too much. That is the advocate’s way, after all, isn’t it?

You feel an inexorable, slight tug in your chest. Something subtle and gentle, the slightest of sensations, that gives you a direction. You know it, your mind only just now comprehending the advocate’s confusing impressions via communion, that there is something of this world’s… Soul/center/heart or whatever word you want to use for it. Something about this world that will help you along your path, and help you with the results you so desire. You know it will not guarantee a victory, but surely it will help. Especially as your numbers dwindle from world to world. You are left with an impression from the Advocate -- if you die, they cannot bring you back. There is apology in this, but alone, one oracle is limited. Only united, can they truly change your fate.

The lingering presence of the advocate starts to fade. You know this is a bearer’s world, if not your own. You look around, to see perhaps a familiar face nearby? Or perhaps you are alone. Does it matter? You know that this place belongs to a bearer, but whether they are a friend or an enemy, one has to begin to determine that. You’ll need your wits, you’ll need your strength and resolve to make it to the end of this, won’t you?

After all, as bearers were recently reminded: this is War. This is not simply the fate of this world, but perhaps all, as it will require you to find the answer to this question. So you start to move, you start to look around, explore, and search. For the soul of each world, for the bearers that lie dreaming within, and your foes that will seek you out. Stay steadfast, for the way out will come, if you make it to the end. The longer you spend in each world, however, the more the shadows look darker, and deeper. Hungrier. The more the spaces seem smaller or compressed. As if there is something gnawing away at the sides, making their way to the heart.

Around the world in 60 seconds 12 hours

When you find yourself at the end, when you close your eyes – only a blink, but it hangs, as if the momentary motion is enough to suspend you into a suspended space before. You can see the two options stretched out before you – metaphysically – the impression of it. A long, long shadow cast over one. As if there is a presence hovering over and above, like waiting jaws, ready to strike. In the other, there remains…nothing. It is not pleasant, it is not comforting, it simply… is. A sense that there is now a lack of anything, almost like it had never existed before.

Does this world have value? You can feel the Advocate ask. Do you want to give them a chance to live? Or does should this world cease, is there nothing here to save?

And though you are compelled, required to answer, you know this question for what it is. Short-sighted. Both, in the end, will lead to its destruction, but which will you choose? Will you allow the world to continue, even with that long shadow cast, like a hungry beast with snapping jaws; or will you erase it from existence and spare it that oncoming apocalypse?

Catch [???] Winks

The last world’s fate decided, bearers float in an endless sea of stars. You can see them all, spread before you. Intermittently, they wink out, swallowed into the darkness, consumed as the shadows, that inky-black nothingness grows ever-larger. It looks upon you, bearers. It is nothing, but you have its attention, and your blood runs cold, your limbs frozen. You cannot move, you cannot speak, you cannot breathe. You feel it, the power of being drawn into it, like it wants to consume you. Like it knows you.

T̸̢̼̯͓̬̘́̀̋̆͊h̷͔̣̱̝͍̬̣͕̄̂͗̆͒͌͜ͅẹ̶̱̩̅͒̿̇͠ ̵̭̹͇͖̔̀ṃ̸̢̧͙̟̼̜͌͆̍͝͝ͅo̴̟̞̓̆̇̐̆͊̽͆̂̀r̶͈̺̮̠͙̗͌ę̸̤̻̈́͐͂̓̊͐̂͆ ̵̡̛͎̩̳̤͔͚̱̼̆̒̓y̴̺̞̹̺̝̤͂ǫ̷̡̣̱̥͊̈́̓͑̕͘ű̵̼͜͜ ̶̨̨̝̟̘̱͇̲̻̪̊͂̽̈̒͊f̴̱̐͌̌̓̋̔́̀͝i̶͖̤͎̬̝̦͒̂g̸̳̰̟̀̓̽̈́̐h̸̼͍̮͎̊̅͗͊̈͋̽̀͘t̴͔͚́̓,̷̨̧̱̠̙̠̙̱̒̍̽̾ ̷̖̰̼̬̟͐̊̂t̶̖̄͂̅̃̍͐̊̑̅͜͝h̴̢̛͙̪̞̫̝̺̋̅̿͛̇̚͝͝ͅͅȩ̶͉̤͍̠́̈͑̏͋̚͘͝ ̸̢̨̧͚̖̤̪̬̪̀̉̐͗̂͆͑̚̕̚c̴̠̩̳͎̲̪͔̟̈́͂̉͑́l̶̡̲̻̣̘̏́ͅo̶̢̧͔͈̬̳̰͈̝̻͌̋̆̃͒͗̏͘ş̴̪̺̣̥̎̽̿͗̒́͛̕̚̚e̴̺͍̤͖͂̇͑͂̋͂̆̾r̴̨̩̈́͋͠ ̷̧͚̲̩̖̋͒̉́͗y̶̘̖̝̑̈͊ǒ̵͚̽u̵͎͍̇̀̏̊̕͝ŕ̷͎̜̘͙̀̋ ̶͇̲̝̞̖̝̣̘̝̬͋d̷͔͈͔̀̿õ̴̝̯͇̹̘̏͗͜ö̵͚͓͆m̵͉̦̫̥̦̞̫͐̆͐̿͊͒͌͋͜.̷̼͈̻̥̜̾̏͐̾̐͆͘͜

You gasp, as you startle awake, and open your eyes for the first time in a long time.

CODING

Comments

[hauntedking]

Oripathy? Doesn't sound familiar.

[ He glances over his shoulder, voice low but carrying. ]

Maybe it's something unique to this world? I'd say we could ask Gavial, but...

[wolfish]

It seems incredibly common. Almost like— [ He hesitates to say it, frowning as the thought. Yet the more he reads, the more certain the impression becomes. ] like the plague.

[ The one that ravaged Faerghus for years. ]

[hauntedking]

...ah.

[ Dimitri frowns. ]

That's possible. If it afflicts these people in the same way... well. That sounds awful.

[wolfish]

It seems they crystallize, somehow. I don't know how it spreads, but so many of these mention the same condition.

[ In that, he's reminded of the fate so many suffered in his village. ]

Seems it's terminal.

[hauntedking]

...that's terrible. And they don't know how to stop it?

[ It sounds absolutely horrific. ]

And I thought our world had problems.

[wolfish]

Strange to think that, for all the many worlds there must be out there, there are afflictions like this.

[ It's a sobering thought, when they know all too well the toll of rampant disease. ]

Best I can tell, they've no remedy.

[hauntedking]

...how awful. And it's widespread? How do they expect to survive...?

[wolfish]

Good question. I suspect we'd have to ask Gavial that, but.

[ He flaps a hand at their surroundings. ]

[hauntedking]

True... maybe some other time. If we have time.

[wolfish]

There may be opportunities. If nothing else, she knows we're not interested in tearing heads off.

[ For now, he slides the filing cabinet door shut. ]

Not much by way of clues... But busy as this place is, we may want to make our exit.

[hauntedking]

True. Let's-

[ There's the sound of a door opening and a light flickers to life down the hall. Dimitri freezes and then looks at Yuri for a moment, gesturing.

Hide! ]

[wolfish]

[ Yuri stills for an instant. Then he quickly looks around to pointing to a side door roughly midway between their positions. He anticipates that it's a broom closet, hastening over to it and only stealing the briefest glance inside before he waves Dimitri over and ducks inside.

It'll be a tight squeeze, no doubt, but they'll both be out of sight. ]

[hauntedking]

[ Dimitri hurries over to join Yuri, ducking in behind him and tugging the door shut. It is a but of a tight squeeze (and also quite dark), but they do fit. He's quiet, hardly daring to breathe as he hears footsteps approach and then the light flicks on in the room, showing underneath the door. ]

[wolfish]

[ They just made it, and fortunately for them, the sound of footsteps doesn't pause in front of the door. Instead, they carry a short distance away, followed by the scrape of the file cabinet scraping open. Yuri listens intently to the muted sounds of papers shuffling, surmising that whoever it is must be seeking out documentation on a particular patient.

After several drawn moments, one drawer scraping shut before another is opened, he places a hand on Dimitri's arm. Hiding can be hard on the nerves, but at least they aren't in the middle of enemy territory. ]

[hauntedking]

[ Dimitri is still in the close confines of the closet, listening intently as the clinic work searches for something or perhaps files something away. He cannot be sure what it is, only that it seems to be taking an eternity. He glances down as Yuri touches his arm, only just able to make out his expression in the dim light. He offers a sheepish smile and a slight shrug.

What can they do?

Outside as the seconds tick by the worker shuffles some more papers. There's a cough and then the scratch of a pen, as if they're making a note. ]

[wolfish]

[ Yuri has done enough recon in his life to know that sometimes it involves a great deal of waiting. His background taught him patience among other things, though he wonders how long they have until they're swept off someplace else.

The quiet sounds of deskwork continue. Most likely one of the clinic workers is updating documentation, he surmises. With the desk between them and the door, they'll have to stay put.

It does make him wish they had worked out signals in advance so they could communicate without making noise, but it isn't as though they could know what to expect. So he just gently drums a finger against Dimitri's arm (taking a while, isn't it?) and offers him a small smile in return. ]

[hauntedking]

[ Dimitri feels like he's going to fidget a little, but he tries to hold still. Although there's a slight jump when he feels Yuri's touch. He shrugs a little sheepishly and gives his arm a squeeze in return.

So far, so good.

They just have to wait for this to end. ]

[wolfish]

[ Ah, he startled him. Yuri's expression turns apologetic just before the scrape of a chair pulls his attention. More papers are shuffled in the vicinity of the desk, then a drawer closes. Their opportunity to leave might just be in sight—

So Yuri hopes, until the sound of another drawer dashes that. He very nearly utters an oh come on, but then comes approaching footsteps and a high voice calling a name.

Hope of escape after all? ]

[hauntedking]

[ Dimitri winces. He's mentally preparing to burst out and just make an opening for them to run, but-

Fortunately it's a coworker calling for them. There's muffled conversation and then the drawer closes, the light goes off, and there are receding footsteps... ]

[wolfish]

[ Once the footfalls have given way to silence, Yuri puffs out a tense breath. ]

I was starting to think we'd run out the clock in here.

[ He muses, reaching around Dimitri to nudge the door open. ]

[hauntedking]

Wouldn't that have been a little funny? Suddenly swapping to another world...?

[ He shakes his head as he steps out and glances one way and then another. ]

Still. Better not to linger.

[wolfish]

It would have, I'll admit.

[ He follows Dimitri out, closing the door behind them. Best not leave anything out of place here. ]

Let's clear out while we can.

[ Who knows when the next clinic staff will buzz back here... ]

[hauntedking]

Agreed.

[ Dimitri laughs a little breathlessly and then hurries out into the corridor and out the back door they let themselves into. Fortunately, the alleyway is still empty. He gestures. ]

I think we've made it.

[wolfish]

In and out with no trouble at all.

[ Yuri spares a moment to lock the door before closing it, just so no one with less benign motives can slip in too easily.

He turns then, nudging Dimitri's side with his elbow. ]

You're good at this, despite your height.

[hauntedking]

...I suppose I did spend quite a lot of time on the run.

[ He shrugs a bit sheepishly. ]

But I'm not exactly a stealth expert.