EliteCommander

The Eye of the Needle (where Fantasy and Sci-fi collide)

Kareet of Arcaeda

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At first, Kareet was unsure of the approach that Castigator Nellara was taking. She moved up to the breach in the wall and took cover on one side, peering out only slightly to avoid exposing herself. She wondered if the Castigator was not overstepping her authority, as the Ascendancy would most certainly be interested in claiming this fortress. They would be interested in learning whatever they could about it, and as a bonus could provide ample protection for the Humans within. She was not sure that Nellara’s superiors would agree with her guaranteeing them such unrestricted independence.

However, Kareet also was not blind to the complex, and frankly irritating, politics surrounding this situation. As much as she hated to admit it, they were right on the border to Mythadia. As far as she knew, there were no precisely defined borders in this region. They could talk about who had the “right” to the land all they wanted, but ultimately, that right would lie with whoever could enforce their claim. This was a prize that was worth fighting for, but the Ascendancy had been involved for years with a territorial dispute with the S’tor over the Sovereignty to the north. Mythadia and Acanata, for all their flaws, were still a powerful force to be reckoned with. The Ascendancy would have to commit substantial forces to have a hope of challenging them, and if that happened, they would not be able to stop the S’tor from claiming everything they wanted. Of course, the Glen were also in a similar situation. There were other S’tor nations farther west on Mythadia’s northern border that would not hesitate to jump on the opportunity if the majority of Mythadia’s forces were tied up in a war in the east. In the end, only the S’tor would benefit from this escalating too far. No, war simply would not do. With the Humans caught in the middle, it could end up with neither nation being able to learn anything at all from the crash. There was no greater tragedy Kareet could imagine than that.

Perhaps the Castigator was right? The Humans themselves could be the difference-maker here. This Jotunheim was theirs, and they clearly had capabilities beyond their understanding. If they could not bring armies in so close to Mythadia, perhaps diplomacy would yield better results? They could be helpful and polite to the Humans, make a show of respecting their independence, and gain their favor. It might make it more difficult to gain some secrets that they would rather hold close, but something was better than nothing, and “nothing” would be exactly what they would get for as long as they remained in a standoff with Mythadia.

Cautiously, Kareet stepped up alongside Nellara. “We have a choke point here, Castigator.” She said softly, gesturing to the hole in the wall. “And several mages as force multipliers. But we shouldn’t fight them if we can help it, and certainly shouldn’t make the first attack. Too risky. Your approach may be the right one. We need to find a way to get the support of the Humans here. I suggest we send for a Thought mage as soon as we can. Perhaps invite this Silbermine to parley? At least something to buy time until we can communicate properly with the Humans.”

The Eye of the Needle (where Fantasy and Sci-fi collide)

Wodan (Huginn and Muninn)

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Amid the relative chaos of this first contact, there was another set of eyes observing in silence. Or, an amalgam of eyes, watching and listening from every angle available. To the natives, Humans were alien, but they were still recognizable as living beings. It was best not to introduce additional, even more “alien” surprises on top of there. So, Wodan observed. Recorded. Analyzed. The phenomena he witnessed seemed to operate in defiance of wide swathes of his pre-programmed knowledge base in regard to physics. Huginn and Muninn scoured volumes and volumes of reference material to identify and rank possible explanations by their likelihood. Technologies existed that could replicate the observed feats. Powerful electromagnets controlled by simple AI systems, or perhaps neural links. Carefully controlled flammable gasses could reproduce the patterns one being was creating. Their attire and armaments would suggest a far more primitive society than such explanations would imply, but that discrepancy seemed more likely answered by bizarre societal restrictions than a complete defiance of physics.

However, each subsequent act that he witnessed created new problems; forced more compromises in the explanations. Answers, one by one, were being eliminated. The internal debate came to its peak when it observed two of the avian beings that had stepped outside the ship. While many of Wodan’s external sensors were damaged, he could view through the eyes of the droids that were currently standing idle. What he saw were two beings, both substantially larger than any Human aboard, that had their bodies essentially reshaped into that of a much smaller, flying alien bird.

It was the role of Huginn and Muninn to bring forth and analyze new information. However, in their current power-restricted state, this revelation brought a pause within Wodan’s mind that could be observed on the timescales of Human thought.

<H:Nanite swarms could have the theoretical capability to reform cellular structure.>
<The method for meeting energy and material requirements is not observed.>

<M:That would be far more advanced than anything Humanity has created or seen.>
<I reiterate, the locals have arms and armor consistent with Earth’s late Medieval period.>

<H:Incongruence between the local technology and societal progress is still more likely than a challenge to physical laws.>
<If we accept that the appearance of the locals as primitive is genuine, then there remains no possible explanation for the observed phenomena.>

<M:Perhaps it is time to expand our search criteria to include impossible explanations?>

Another alert: movement. After one of the droids noted a disturbance in the fog beneath them, Wodan focused its optics on the area. There were more natives of the species that had been identified as “Glen”. Given the current power restrictions, Wodan re-prioritized the majority of his thought processes onto what was potentially a more time-sensitive issue.

<H:Mobile platform observes 22 quadrupedal lifeforms on approach.>
<Armed and equipped in a manner consistent with already observed local sapients.>

<M:The other natives in the shuttle bay have noticed as well.>
<The two who had transformed returned to tell them.>
<Their behavior makes it seem like they are agitated or worried about the new arrivals.>
<They are probably not allies.>

<H:Not allies to these natives.>

In Zey’s earpiece, she would soon hear Wodan’s voice. “There are 22 additional natives approaching the Jotunheim. They are of the same species as what the locals referred to as a ‘Glen’. They are armed, but no differently from the natives you have already encountered. However, it is safest to assume they have similar capabilities.”

The Eye of the Needle (where Fantasy and Sci-fi collide)

The words being exchanged between some of the Humans did not seem too calm. Perhaps Kareet was misinterpreting their outward attitudes, but it felt like they were having disagreements among one another. If that was truly the case, then perhaps they had more in common than she thought…

For the moment, Kareet was not bothering to focus on how this seemingly nonmagical object Itxaro was using was creating those images in light, and instead just focused on the content of what the Humans were trying to communicate to them. Vigdis used more conventional means to make an image for Nellara, though as she peered over to see what was being drawn, she was somewhat puzzled by what it was trying to convey. The images looked to be Human, but they were not very…detailed. Their hands looked to be together. For Tekeri, bringing the hands together and interlocking the fingers was a show of affection, so that was where her mind naturally went on a first reaction. Were they meant to be lovers? Is that what “friends” meant? The second image appeared to depict a fight, so perhaps ”foes” meant a fight or war? Was it intended to be something about love and war?

Kareet was distracted momentarily from Itxaro as she watched Vigdis extend a hand towards Nellara, seemingly to mimic the first image. Kareet hummed momentarily to herself. She supposed it did not mean “lover” after all.

Before Kareet could interject in any way, however, the soldier Nellara had sent out suddenly returned obviously having just been returned back to his natural form. Kerchak was not far behind, still transformed. He was quick to give his report, which spurred Kareet back to her feet. Glen, and soldiers by the sound of it. This interruption was the last thing they needed.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

“Hmm, I think it is a bit generous to call what I did a ‘spell’. No mortal could possibly control that amount of power. The best I could do was to give it a bit of shape as I released it. I know that the magic I released from that staff would destroy any living thing in its path. I imagine it did just that.” Meesei answered.

Meesei turned her head to face Fendros. “I know that Clavicus Vile was defeated by the hands of the Godhunter, Fendros Avarul. I know that my pack…your pack still lives. Between those two alone, I know I will be able to rest easy as I await the day you join me again. Do not worry, though, I can wait. I can just imagine the smiles on Rhazii and Julan’s faces when they saw you all return safely. I have to wonder what your plans are, now that it is over? Not for the clans, not as the Champion, but for you and your family.”

The Eye of the Needle (where Fantasy and Sci-fi collide)

Itxaro did succeed in clarifying, to an extent. The few words they had exchanged did become more clear to her, but understanding the words only ended up raising more questions for Kareet. It was fascinating beyond compare, but still undeniably confusing. As absurd as it seemed, she could not refute the conclusion Nellara and Shirik had come to. “How could they possibly be unfamiliar with magic?” Kareet questioned. “You mean to say that this ‘Jotunheim’ can somehow fly with no need for magic? I try to keep my mind open to things I do not understand, but that…is a difficult notion to accept.”

Kareet took in a deep breath and paused a moment to focus. “Okay, let’s assume for a moment that they do not use magic. I don’t know if we are going to be able to teach them like they want. If none of them have had an awakening, then nothing we could do will work for them. Let’s just…hope that showing them is good enough to sate their curiosity.”

The Eye of the Needle (where Fantasy and Sci-fi collide)

“How…” Kareet stammered. It seemed this Itxaro could create a show of lights with some sort of object, much like Shirik. It was more clear and detailed, though, and it painted a picture that she could not rationalize away. Not another continent, but a different planet entirely? That was not something she had ever even considered. Not only were there entire other worlds out there, but it was possible to move between them. This planet of theirs seemed to be named either “Earth” or “Home”, based on what Itxaro indicated. This flying fortress of theirs seemed to be called a “Jotunheim.” There were other words too, but Kareet could not guarantee she understood their meaning. “Travel” they associated with the same motion Shirik had used for walking. Or maybe just moving in general? “Broken”, they said alongside what looked like an explosion, so perhaps the word meant “explosion”? In that case, the Human was saying their fortress exploded, then the Humans moved to their planet “Home”. Or maybe that they wanted to go back to Home? That would make more sense in their circumstances.

Once she was spoken to, Kareet seemed to be shaken back into reality. “I don’t understand how this could be possible. It couldn’t mean anything else, could it?” She turned her head towards Kerchak. “Yes…do what the Castigator says. Take a soldier back to Lenkik, hurry. We have to be able to communicate. You’ll need to go to the Inquisitors’ Guild there. Let the soldier guide the way; they’ll know what to do.”

The Eye of the Needle (where Fantasy and Sci-fi collide)

Initially, Kareet was worried about what Shirik might do. Yet another voice, pulling in a different direction. However, it did not take her long to see the value in it. These little dancing flames were more than just a simple trick for impressing children or peasants. Images could convey thought, to an extent, and Shirik could create them on-demand. This was actually useful, and it was probably the most progress they had made since they started.

“They are right. If we want to make any progress here, I am going to have to take some risks.” Kareet said, glancing to Nellara beside her. After a moment, she stepped out of formation alongside Nellara and instead approached Shirik. She pulled off her backpack, then sat down in front of Shirik. Strategically speaking, it put her at a disadvantage if a fight were to break out, but it also made her appear less threatening. Reaching into her bag, she pulled out a parchment, then unrolled it on the floor in front of Shirik. No matter how strange these outsiders were, it would have to be obvious that it was a map.

“I want to get one of these Humans in front of a thought mage. Either by getting some of them to come with me to Lenkik, or as Kerchack suggests, using his shapeshifting to fly back there. If we can communicate clearly, we can clear up all of these misunderstandings. Can you help me convey that, Shirik?” Kareet asked. As she spoke, she magnetized her pen into her hand, then drew a small symbol on the map in their current location, in the rough shape of this crashed fortress. Then, she pointed a talon at a different symbol, which resembled a collection of buildings. It was labeled “Lenkik”, though they certainly could not read the writing.

“Lenkik.” Kareet said, loudly and clearly.

The Eye of the Needle (where Fantasy and Sci-fi collide)

Unfortunately, there was quite a lot happening around them in such a short time. The arrival of more of the beings, “Humans”, as they seemed to identify themselves, was not too worrying in itself. The Castigator had good reason to believe that the objects they were carrying were weapons, but again, that did not alarm Kareet. The Castigator’s soldiers were armed as well, and it was only natural that they would show some degree of caution when meeting something new and unknown. But then, there was more movement across the room. Smaller beings, like insects, but clearly not natural. They were made from metal and moved on their own, and on top of all that, the armor that Kareet had observed earlier began to move as well. All of that coincided with the Castigator’s soldiers alerting them of something approaching from outside. Perhaps the only thing that prevented the situation from escalating further was the fact that the metal insects did back away after a moment.

For a few seconds, Kareet had her eyes on the moving armor. She took a few steps back, falling in line alongside Nellara. It was a subtle thing, but the way that Kareet fell into a proper defensive formation did seem reflexive. J’eon had made the decision to try to leave entirely. There was good reason to be afraid, she had to admit, but she could not give up. Not something like this. Being among the first on-site for a discovery such as this…there would never be another opportunity like it. It was worth the risk. “These things…golems, maybe? They have to have some sort of magic to be able to make such a thing.”

Kareet was growing increasingly frustrated by their inability to effectively communicate. She had a strong suspicion that much of this tension was the result of misunderstanding. These Humans were entirely new, their ways entirely foreign. What would be offensive from their perspective? Or threatening? “This fortress, it is their home. In this land, they have nowhere else to retreat to…let us be careful not to provoke them. We need to find some way to communicate. A Thought mage could bridge this gap. If we could get to Lenkik, we could requisition the services of one. Either convince the Humans to send one of them with us, or bring a Thought mage back here.”

The Eye of the Needle (where Fantasy and Sci-fi collide)

Kareet was only half-listening to what was going on around her, preferring to put most of her focus on trying to interpret what Vigdis has written. Unfortunately, she and Kerchak did not have too much success this time. The fundamentals of mathematics had not been too difficult to convey. Counting was easy enough, and they could relate counting to symbols and basic operations. However, whatever Vigdis was writing now was difficult to convey without words. She doubted the math was too complicated in itself, but whatever notation Vigdis was using was entirely foreign to her. There was no frame of reference to what they were trying to convey. Perhaps, with more time and effort, they might have been able to discern it, but it seemed they would not have the time now.

Kareet gave a glance back at J’eon, having picked up on some of what he had been saying. “J’eon, we are in Ascendancy territory, and Nellara is an enforcer of Ascendancy law. Or can be, at least. It is in your best interest to be polite and cooperative with the Castigator.” Kareet warned.

It was just a few moments later, though, that a noise turned everyone’s attention to what looked like a door nearby, albeit a rather strange door. It hissed, then seemed to slide open on its own. From the other side, more of these beings stepped into the room. They were dressed just as strangely, or at least some were. One had a mask, though Kareet could not guess at its purpose. If it was armor, then why was the rest of its body not armored as well? They all looked like they could be the same kind of being as Vigdis, though even in this small group, Kareet could already note some variety in their bodies. There was considerable difference in size and build between some of them. Male and female, perhaps, though she would have to figure out how to confirm which was which. They also had significantly different hues to their skin, much like the variety in scale colors of the S’tor. Some of them were carrying large objects of some sort; tools or weapons perhaps? The safest choice was to assume the latter and be watchful of what they were doing with them.

Kareet stood up to her feet, looking down on the new arrivals, though staying in place near to where they had been writing on the wall. After a moment’s pause, she pointed a finger down to Vigdis. “Vigdis.” She said as clearly as she could, then pointed to herself. “Kareet.”

The Eye of the Needle (where Fantasy and Sci-fi collide)

Kareet and Kolvar

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“Vigdis. Okay, that is progress. It calls itself Vigdis.” Kareet remarked. Though, what Vigdis did next was more complex. It moved over and started writing on the wall, so naturally, Kareet flipped to a new page in her notebook and copied every single thing it wrote, just as it wrote it. It started off with simple lines, though all the symbols beyond that were completely unrecognizable. But Vigdis could write, and it was a part of the species that had made this machine. It had to be intelligent, which meant it had to expect that they would not be able to understand what it had written. If Vigdis was showing them this, then there had to be something they were meant to be able to figure out from it.

“These symbols…maybe their language? But how would we make any sense of it? We don’t know their language; how would we put symbols to words? Let’s see, it starts off with these lines. They’re separated out, one more each time…counting, maybe?” Kareet spoke aloud to no one in particular.

Kolvar was impressed by the architecture and how technologically advanced the ship seemed. “Wow.” Muttering this to himself as he was now standing side by side with Kareet. “These foreigners have a fascinating method of building their ships.” He took a moment to touch his claw to the cold metal of the shuttle bay. Kolvar wanted to know how they were able to make this ship fly. Which he would need to ask if these people could even speak the common tongue. Something that seemed highly unlikely.

His attention turned towards something hiding in the corner of the room. Turning his body so he was facing them. It looked petrified seeing them. He slowly pointed a single claw towards himself and spoke slowly. “Kerchak.” He just came up with this fake name, and now both Kareet and the pink thing knew his name. His intention was not to scare or be killed by this fleshy looking S’tor.

He watched as the hairless started writing something on the wall. He squinted his eyes trying to figure out what it meant. “Some sort of mathematical equation, but what could it mean? Do you know what it means? Maybe this is how they communicate, though math?” He turned towards Kareet hoping she knew what it meant.

Kareet tilted her head slightly towards Kerchak. “Communicate through mathematics? I hope not. I’m not sure what that would even be like; that would make finding common ground quite a bit more difficult. Let’s just figure this out, though. If we’re going down the right path with this being mathematics, then these symbols in the middle here might be associated with the count of these dashes up here. It starts with none of them, so zero, and in increments up to…hmm.” Kareet crossed her arms. “There are ten symbols here. Zero up to seven, then two more. Why is that?”

“I have no clue what it could mean. But…” He trailed off for a moment to look back at the equation .”Could it be these numbers match where their alphabets are? Five, four, ten, nine, six, four, thirty four, and six. Perhaps it is some kind of code that they use to communicate.” He places his claw on the metallic wall, tapping it the number of times of the answered equation. Hoping the thing would know what he means.

“Maybe, but…why would they start with that? They have to know that we have no concept of their language. If they’re expecting us to understand a code, it would have to be a code based on something common between us.” Kareet replied, letting out a sigh. “I can see how these dashes match to these symbols, but if they are numbers and these down here are equations…not all of these work out. I mean, look at this one. The symbol for 1 and 7 go together, then there is the symbol for two, then 3 and 4 seem to be together here. But in what way can 17 and 2 make 34? If it’s addition, it would be 21. Subtraction would be 15. Multiplication would be 36. This can’t be like our number system.”

Kolvar was rubbing his beak, math was not really his strong suit. But someone like his master could probably figure it out. “Perhaps their numeral system is much different than ours. So certain things would not make sense with our mathematical basis.” He once again squinted his eyes again. “Perhaps we could use our numerical system to try and figure out this equation?”

For a few more seconds, Kareet just stared at the symbols in front of her. “A different system? Mathematics is universal. It should always be the same, unless…you mean it could be a different base?” She revisited the symbols above the equations. “Of course…our number system is base eight, but it doesn’t have to be. Mathematics are the same no matter the base, it’s just another way of writing it. If these two symbols are just two extra numbers, then this would be…a base ten system. So 17 multiplied by 2 in base eight is 36, but in base ten the answer is…34.”

Immediately, Kareet went silent as she checked several of the other equations, this time with a base ten numerical system. This time, she could find some way to combine two of the numbers to make the third. That also told her the meanings of the symbols they were using to denote mathematical operations. At this point, Kareet was looking visibly excited.

“Okay, okay, we have something here. Numbers, mathematics, that’s…something, at least. I think you’re right. We can do the same thing they did, and put up these same equations with our numbers.” Kareet said, nodding in agreement.

Reaching out her hand towards the pen Vigdis had left on the floor, Kareet tried to magnetize it into her hand, only to find that it would not move at all. Curiously, she reached down and picked it up to get a closer look. “Wait…is this pen made from aluminum?” Considering that aluminum was a metal more valuable than gold in Kanth-Aremek, her surprise was understandable.

Kolvar looked over at the pen Kareet was holding. “Aluminum? By the gods these foreigners must be very wealthy to have such a mundane object made out of such an expensive material.” His face was quite close towards the pen Kareet was holding. Looking quite mesmerized by it. “I believe that would be a good idea. Perhaps doing so would help gain a connection to this pinkie thing. I shall help you.”

The pair of them soon got to work on writing their own version of what Vigdis had given them. Or rather, versions. By Kareet’s suggestion, they first wrote out a copy with the same symbols Vigdis had used, except in a base eight number system. The dashes at the top went from zero, to seven dashes, which were associated with the numbers 0 to 7 beneath them. They then converted the equations to base eight as well. Afterwards, they wrote it out again a third time, but using the S’toric numerals that were commonly used across the continent. Hopefully between the three, Vigdis too would be able to understand how their mathematics were different.