deernet | video; un: viktor

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video; un: viktor

[the video starts near one of the blood blisters, though by 'near' it's clear the video taker has no particular interest in getting close enough to be in a potential splash zone. the video itself is more focused on the pair of blood hounds gathered around it.

when a voice speaks it's with a heavy czech accent and only after scratching that sounds like he's writing something.] I suppose it is customary to make greetings here, as a new arrival, so hello. I am Viktor.

[he clears his throat like he's glad that's over with, onto what he apparently really wants to talk about. the video pans down to a pale finger tapping his notebook, one page blurred and off the the side with what looks like confused formulas trying to figure out how the hell an omni works in his frame of knowledge, the others with notes on the bloodhounds.

one noticeable feature to people without paleblood is he keeps drawing/referencing mushrooms on the beasts, which clearly aren't there.] I've been curious about this fungal growth, especially as I've noticed it on more than just the eh... stag dogs.

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I cannot imagine there is way to impart this information any other way. Thank you, for informing me. [whether it ends up relevant or not it still feels important to know, one way or another.]

Oh, yes. It was used in a great war that wiped out countless lives, so as you can imagine it is... frowned upon. To see it so freely used here is odd.

That I would not say no to. When are these classes you give and what price do you accept? I am good with repairs and machinery, if need be.

Jason. [a nod as he commits that to memory] It is good to meet you.

[ Chizuru hums. ]

Sorry.. I haven't really used it. [ If anything, it would have felt stranger to her if she had already used it, so relatively soon after arriving here. After all.. ] I'm not sure what it's like in other places, but.. where I come from, things like magic don't exist. So the entire idea of it is still a little much for me, I suppose..

[ Does she feel a little bit like a weenie while saying that?

Sure. But it's also the truth. Going from no magic to suddenly having weird blood magic is a lot. ]

Oh, um, but-- my name is Chizuru. Chizuru Yukimura. It's nice to meet you regardless..

[ So, no, giving out names is perfectly fine here. Or at the very least, the girl doesn't seem to be making even a single attempt to keep hers secret. ]

If you ever find a paleblood who is willing to teach I would be very interested as well. I have only really dabbled in summoning my omen, whatever else is possible I could not say. My congratulations on your cottage - have you found employment here yet? That is another matter to tackle I am afraid.

She was able to save you then? Those spores sound... aggressive, is certainly a term. And ah, you mean the dream they were in before? I have heard very little of the matter.

[only that the dream ended with the death of a little girl, apparently, and that is still an unsettling thought. he of course imagines she means self reflection in the carnage here and not in her home world, but no, some people really aren't so lucky, are they? corpses wherever they go.]

Ah, none at all? [he sounds fascinated by this- because he is, curious about what makes some worlds absent of what others seem to have in spades.] In my world magic exists but one must be born with the power. I am not certain where one would even start.

[and he keeps hearing odd things, corruption and blood pollution, beasthood. he's a risktaker but that doesn't mean playing with fire just for the sake of it.

regardless he nods his head in greeting.] It is nice to meet you, Chizuru.

We meet at the Gate. Mostly we've been goin' over the basics of fendin' off attackers, then we move on to weapons trainin'.

[He shakes his head at the offer of payment] No need to pay me. It's important that everybody knows how to defend themselves in this place.

Of course. I hope that my request would serve as a resource for all of us who are palebloods and unsure of how to control our abilities yet. Or how to use them properly. Thank you, I'm just settling into it. I may wind up painting or papering some of the walls, they're so white. And I have. I'm an Arcane Scholar. I suppose that doesn't seem like a real job, but I spend a great deal of time listening to lectures and reading on various subjects. They were terribly aggressive. I was honestly terrified that I'd never stop growing mushrooms. As have I, only that they were trapped in the dream of a little girl.

[she's heard that part. it sounded terrible, to have to buy one's freedom through the death of another. frozen corpses in the North Atlantic, a truly awful sight]

Honestly I am surprised there isn't a resource like that already, though I suppose things are chaotic here. Survival trumping organization. Oh, it seems very real to me, I promise you. I am a scientist and once worked as the assistant to the Academy's dean.

In truth I've been curious about your job as an option myself. What are your thoughts so far?

And of course now we are surrounded by mushrooms to keep you properly on edge. Lovely. I wonder how such a thing came to be - blood magic, I suppose?

[because really, how long was this child asleep? was the child human? there's a lot of questions there, but this place fills him with endless questions honestly.]

[At least it means the knowledge of what happened can be passed on.]

I can imagine. Where I am from, magic does not exist, but when it does, it being used as a destructive force is something I could sadly believe is all too common.

[ vi keeps rounding back to the same placating thought: it doesn’t matter anymore. they can talk freely about their previous lives because there is no imbalance of privilege between them. the slate is as clean as it can be and perhaps here, they can even be agreeable acquaintances. nonetheless, even in telling herself all this, vi doesn’t take up the cue for honesty. there is one aspect that does still matter: powder. even without enforcers, vi isn’t about to out her sister. or let slip that vi knows where a certain blue marble is.

because that’s what this is about, right? vi can put two and two together, okay, even though getting straight answers from powder is… difficult. she’s got some cryptic footnotes of it being a power source fueled by magic and some grumblings about how it enriches the pilties, to allow them to lord over zaun. most of all, powder says it’s hers. that she needs it.

so sorry, dude, but fuck property rights. vi’s going by finders keepers. that isn’t to say she isn’t curious enough to try to figure out what powder’s favorite knickknack is though. ]

Could it be? [ it comes out a little more invested than she means for it to. giving herself a mental shake, she consciously downplays her interest, voice casual. ] I mean – how powerful is this prototype?

Yes. [viktor answers, more curious about her reaction than anything. so far she's been so careful, the fact she's even asked so directly is more than he expected.]

It is a stable crystal called the hexgem- all Hextech devices, including the gates, were built around stabilizing a very dangerous source of arcane energy. This takes that source and allows it to be manipulated far more easily. [very simplified explanation but he thinks in this case short and sweet is better than a lecture.

especially since the point is this:] It is, at it's core, all the possibility of magic. So yes, it can be made into a weapon capable of incredible amounts of destruction. Incredibly unlikely, but if someone clever enough to crack and adapt our notes had enough time with it... yes, maybe.

[ yes. oh. very dangerous, possibility of magic, destruction. one, two, three, none of that sounds good. someone clever. ah shit. when she’s attentive enough on the execute, vi has a superb poker face. here, it serves her well. she watches him throughout, making no significant reaction to any of it, despite reeling on the inside. powder is – powder’s good. all the shit everyone’s been mouthing off about her sister? it isn’t going to hold water in trench, not when vi is around to take care of her.

so it’s fine. it’s okay that vi lets powder keep this hexgem. powder won’t do anything with it. she doesn’t have the notes… right? besides, she’s already got pow-pow and fishbones and the bombs she’s been piecing together in her spare time…

… everything is totally fine. ]

Hm. Guess that isn’t something you have to worry about here. [ … heh. a pause and then a thought. actually: ] Unless you’re planning on continuing your research…?

[ maybe not hexwhatevers specifically; who knows what resources this place has. but vi remembers some jibber-jabber equations in his notebook. is he going to find a new project? ]

Not that research, no, given there's no way to continue it without the gem. [and sure that is far, far away, never to be a part of his life as long as he's here. he is content with that knowledge, a heavy problem now clearly completely off his shoulders.

besides, jayce was always better with the runework. maybe if he had the hexcore he could manage something but that is also beyond him now. no chance of popping up again. etc.]

I do plan on researching lunar energy at the very least. [he offers a shrug there. what else is he going to do? the blood magic intrigues him as well, but you don't work for heimendinger for years without having at least some caution when magic is involved. again, he's not the type to just fall to dangerous blood magic. surely.] It's a fascinating energy source, far more streamlined than any our world held.

[a pause and he sighs.] I was about to make a wry comment on my research hopefully not being stolen for nefarious purposes here, but... what is the term? Knock on wood.

You can imagine then what a shock it was hearing blood magic is something of a norm here. Needless to say I know quite a few people who would have fainted at the very idea of it.

I suppose it as they say about power and how it can corrupt. Personally I do not believe demonizing magic does any better.

That... is kind of you. Still, my offer stands if you are ever in need of repairs or mechanical knowledge. [not really used to help not being transactional, the undercity and piltover way. sometimes it can be, and he is glad someone is offering this particular skillset in such a dangerous world.]

It can do good, even if the term brings to mind something terrible.

I have not had a chance to test it out myself, but one could fashion some amount of paleblood into a jewel of some kind could put a person into a trance. Some sort of... self-soothing item of some sort.

Though I suppose it could still be used for something terrible.

Or die trying, which seems to be at least someone's hope.

Somewhat off topic but I have been trying to gather more information on certain aspects of this world. For example, have you used this 'blood magic' yet?

haven't really gotten the hang of it just yet

but what's your interest in blood magic about, viktor?
planning on blue balling trench too?

[ well. so much for subtlety then. ]

I'm afraid I don't know what you are referring to.

[oh he does, or he can guess it might have to do with hextech at the very least. what concerns him is the potential double meaning of 'blue ball,' but surely that's just his paranoia making itself known. surely.]

It's foolish that there isn't. Many of the powers we can have are extremely dangerous in the wrong hands or without understanding of how they worked. I've been in one set of circumstances where survival trumped organization and it didn't end well for anyone, except for a precious few. The rest of us were left to fend for ourselves and not all of us had, shall we say, survival skills? Or someone with us who did and could help? And you're a scientist? What branch of science, biology, chemistry, or physics? I think there's so much to learn that it will be impossible to know it all. I'm doing my best to try and sort all of it out. My personal goal is to write the equivalent of Gibbon's "Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire" for the former world, but I'm not sure if that's possible. All of the sources I've found have been biased. It's awful. It's making me question the line between reality and illusion. Because even the illusionary mushrooms feel like mushrooms and smell like them.

[she can't get straight answers for either question. maybe the longer she was here, the more others would be willing to share?]

[ lunar energy seems harmless enough. not that vi understands it beyond, lunar activity + crystal ball catching system = power, but sure, yeah, knock yourself out, buddy. have fun looking into that and good luck improving on it…? or expanding it.

uncrossing her arms, she half-smiles to his sigh, some levity finding her. ]

I never said mugging you was off the table. [ though, even as she says this, she flips back her hood, giving her heavy fringe a flick. ] Maybe I’ll swing by in a few weeks when you’ve jotted down something valuable.

[ kidding, kidding… probably. ]

If it helps I have been making notes on what I observe and what I am told. Perhaps if we cannot find anyone who has already developed a guide for understanding Paleblood we can simply make our own as the knowledge comes. Not ideal for us in the moment, but a possibility.

Engineering largely, biomedical engineering is a particular passion. I hope to find work finding a way to utilize lunar energy in new ways, I find it quite fascinating as an energy source.

We must be from different worlds, I cannot say I have heard of the Roman Empire before. I think I can grasp your intent though, if it helps I will keep notes of what accounts I get of the history of this place. I have the distinct feeling it would be better the Trench know as much as it can of what's transpired rather than repeat it.

That aspect of the hallucination is the most irritating without a doubt. I admit it concerns me just what other illusions can be forced upon us and seem undeniably physical.

[he doesn't envy her, wrangling people for their accounts or second hand accounts of this rather mad place and the place before. if they're here hallucinating mushrooms on the whims of jerks how are they supposed to know what accounts aren't similarly tampered with?]

That... is fascinating. Troubling, but fascinating. Do you know if the other blood types can make similar jewels?

I am tempted to delve more into the magic myself but what little I have learned of blood pollution makes it seem treacherous for more than just my own health.

That's certainly a scenario, though I'd like to think that someone would be kind enough to step forward and offer to teach us what they knew. I would like to believe in kindness and charity? Not the same that my old life offered, the ones which required effusive gestures of gratitude from the recipients, but the kind of kindness and charity which were their own rewards. Perhaps you could be both an Arcane Scholar and a Blood Minister? I've heard that some people have multiple career paths and with your background I'd be hard pressed to say which one would suit you better. It's all right. The Roman Empire no longer exists where I'm from. When I ask others about what happened between Point A and Point B, they always say that it was the dream clouding their judgement. Which is all well and good for those who were trapped in the dream, but there have to be old family stories. Letters, recordings, photographs as time progressed? And that was carved into an important building where I was from: Those who refuse to learn from the past are doomed to repeat it. We can't let history be repeated. It's unlike anything I've experienced or heard of. I know that mushrooms are important to this society, both as a food source and as a drug, but all I can think when I see them is that someone left a food item in the pantry too long and that mushrooms are growing from it.

[Rose has always been one who'd bite off more than she could chew. ask Cal about it. or Jack, really. that for a girl of her station, she'd always aspired to learning more, doing more than the life of an old money family allowed]

Ah, so I should write in code. I will keep that in mind. [he answers with a soft snort. not entirely kidding there, though more because of the whole 'someone stole our very dangerous work and notes so maybe i should be more careful' than because he's particularly worried about this odd woman making good on finally mugging him.

not that he's entirely convinced she won't. for all he knows she's a good actor and works for silco. thankfully he doesn't even jokingly bring up that possibility.] If you can keep from mugging me and leaving me for dead for a few moments more would you know any places to round up scrap? I haven't had much luck, unfortunately this place isn't quite as fruitful in that regard.

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