Sweet Memory

It has taken Thoth quite a bit to come to terms with this idea of what it has been feeling. It has held onto the beautiful orb for a while now, knowing it may very well contain its own memories. Or perhaps it will contain someone else's memories. Yet, in truth, it is afraid of what it might find out.

That maybe, its own memories aren't accurate. It has investigated these orbs before. Divination magic. No altering. No corruption or evil. So then why has it been afraid to look at it.

Eventually, one day when Rune happens to deliver mail to the local Artificer's guild, Thoth approaches. A day much like today, because that day IS today. The small War Golem click-clacking with its metallic feet on the stone floor, its gaze up towards her. From her perspective, she might see more beak than bird with how it's craning its head up.

Clack clack, goes its beak, as it holds out the big orb towards her. As it speaks to her; "This one requests your assistance." It remarks to Rune.

"And this is the invoice from the smith." Rune hands over a rolled bit of parchment to one of the Artificers, "He also asked me to inform you that if you break it a third time, that he likely won't be able to do any additional repairs and you'll have to commission a new one." It's a vague enough comment to draw a few looks from others working in the vicinity, but the Artificer in question just nods with a sheepish look.

That is when the messenger turns, ready to head out, only to be met with the clanking approach of the small bird-like War Golem and the orb that they hold up. It's like watching trouble toddling your way on two very mechanical legs.

"Oh, hey Thoth. I was actually wanting to talk to you about something." She looks at the orb, and then at the wayward robot. She seems hesitant, at least for a moment. "Has anyone else talked to you about your... friend? About what he likely could be and the danger involved?" It seems she wants to know this first, before she'll get involved with another of the memory orbs.

"Hmm? Hmm..." Pause. Then, a shake of its head. "This one does not recall anyone speaking to me of my Friend." It then answers. Rune. "Should someone have?" It follows this up with. Notably, some of its speech has sloooowly been turning less archaic. But it's an exceptionally long process, it would seem.

Sometimes, living beings have this habit of giving off these long sighs that suggest that there is something they really would rather not talk about. "Yeah, someone really should have." Rune mutters, then slips into a the growling, clicking tones of draconic. Something about a goblin.

"So... your 'friend' may not be as much of a friend as you think he is. Best I can tell from talking with Fidget is that he's some kind of Fey, likely the dark kind from what I've seen, at least." She folds her arms across her chest, lips pressed together. "Fidget fucked up and ended up under his power due to giving out her name. Not sure I understand all the specifics of it."

Her brows lift, then, raising one hand to motion from the orb, to Thoth. "I know you don't have any good reason to believe me over him, especially with memories that put him in your life a long time ago. Just... be careful, yeah? If I've learned anything from my own dealings with the Fey, it's that they don't do anything unless it benefits them."

Thoth speaks Draconic, so it understands those words quite well. "This one believes that is one silver coin for the swear jar." Before pointing at the swear jar near one of the counters. It is notably /filled to the brim/. Artificers are a rather cantankerous lot sometimes.

The swear jar just goes to booze.

It then turns its head down, looking at the orb, as she explains on the matters of the Fey that took Fidget's name. A dark kind of Fae? Unfortunately, the world of Nature the Fey belong to isn't a topic that Thoth is very strong on.

"This one... wishes to be careful." It answers Rune. "The memories within, it only becomes one with the one they belong to. Can... can this one ask you to see into this Orb first?" Before offering it out to Rune. "With the information you grant, this one will understand if you rather not." It adds. "But this one has good memories of Friend. This one believes you."

Rune gives a glance towards the swear jar, then smirks, "I'll owe one the next time it isn't full to spilling over." The rogue is known for her colorful language, which is often only vaguely disguised by her use of other languages.

However, that bit of humor lasts only so long before she adjusts her stance, trying to relax, as much as she can, given the topic at hand. "You should probably do some research. Maybe talk to Telamon, or some of the folks involved in the Arcanist's Guild. I'm not sure how Fey magic works with... all this." She just motioned to all of Thoth.

As the orb is offered out to her again, there is a moment of hesitation before she reluctantly takes it. "Harkashan warned me to not go touching strange things when there's potential magic involved. Guess I still haven't learned that lesson." So, she holds it up a little, seeming uncertain, "What do I do?"

Thoth slowly offers the Orb towards Rune. "You hold it like this..." It begins to explain this, while giving her a still kind of look. "This one does not know of this Telamon. But perhaps this one should talk to this Arcanist Guild about such matters. Yes. This is a good idea, this one believes."

"He's a half-sil Arch Mage, though he'll tell you he isn't. Not sure what it is about powerful mages acting like they are hedge-wizards. Must be a magic thing." Rune comments, the idle words likely a way of her dealing with her anxiety at the moment. "I don't really do magic..." And yet, here she is, holding some sort of magical memory orb. Wary, Rune is all too careful when touching the orb, but she follows the instructions as provided.

Once she has her fingers in the right place, the memory slips easily into her mind.

The memory begins with darkness.

Slowly, a piercing light enters view. Eyes close against the brightness. Then open more cautiously. Carefully. There’s a familiar face hovering worriedly in a space that is equally familiar. Long white hair, pale skin, crimson eyes. Familiar. Welcoming. Home.

Worry on those features transforms into soft wonder, and a hand is reached out. “Canst thou?”

“M-m.” There’s sound rising from the throat, an expression of noise. Everything is unfamiliar. Everything is new. A limb reaches out to touch the familiar, but this limb is not familiar. It is not a wing it is an… arm. Curiosity causes the limb to reach out, the smaller extremities on that arm to splay… fingers. Strange things, but they belong. They are a part of this new body. Like the sounds that are crawling out of the… throat.

“Thou art doing well. Come thee, with me.” That hand is still being offered. There is something so important about that hand. The one that belongs to this body reaches out, carefully, gingerly for the other.

A sound is falling out. A sound like nothing that can be remembered in the past. “M-m.”

“Thou canst do it.” The encouragement brings a spark of familiar emotion to the… chest. That is a familiar place, though bigger now. Something inside pounds loudly against its cage. Everything is bigger. Louder than it was before. But there is something important. Something demanding to be let out of this throat. Something that has always been waiting to be said.

“Master!” Those familiar features light up with pride, and joy, and embarrassment. Hands connect to hands and what was touching becomes an embrace.

Rune had touched a memory once before, through magic. Though there are certainly similarities - the feeling of looking out through someone else's eyes - there is also something entirely /other/ here. The feelings, sensations, emotions, uncertainty... it isn't just about watching a memory, it is about living inside that moment.

Rune doesn't fight against the feelings, both foreign and familiar. Instead, she lets them come, taking it in as well as she can without the context for what it is like to be a creature like Thoth. She tries to remember what details she can, but it is hard not to get swept up in the moment, in that feeling of trying to understand what this body is, how it functions.

And then, there is that connection with the man that Rune has every reason to be suspicious of. The emotions of the memory certainly war against her own feelings on the matter. Thankfully, it is not long before she is back in her own body and her own skin, her expression left perplexed.

"I don't know what I was expecting but..." She shakes her head slightly, shifting her hold on the orb so she can offer it back to Thoth. "It's another memory of him. The Fey man. And you, I would imagine. It's as if you had just been given a new body. One that was different from your old one." Rune pauses, thoughtful, "Do you remember a body before this one?"

There's a most curious expression on Thoth, as he watches Rune take in the memories of the Orb. Watching the expressions that may play out there, on the outside. Tilting its head from time to time. Tapping its beak now and again. Until finally, she moves the orb away from her. It remains, which means the memory isn't Rune's. But then, that is as it had expected.

At the question, it slowly nods its head. "Yes. Before this one was in this shape, it was a small bird. This one was not as intelligent back then. It... flew across Master's workshop." It explains to her with a look in its eyes that spells worry.

"This one, when it pictures Master, can't quite tell what they look like. It knows it has walked many years alongside him. It remembers many fond days. But... this one is broken." It touches its beak to its utterly broken wings.

"Physically, but also its memories were damaged after... a long time." It doesn't want to touch the subject too directly. Avoiding speaking of that experience. Hoping to rush past the subject. To avoid the pangs of anguish and anxiety.

"You are saying... Friend isn't Friend." It then asks. "This one has... forgotten what Master looked like. And Master is... Master?" Its voice is smaller than usual. Like it were feeling guilt.

Thoth's answer seems to clarify the feelings and experiences that the memory had portrayed. "It... seems to be a memory of your first time in this new body, I think." She explains, "But I suspect you'll experience it for yourself soon enough." And yet, there is still worry there in her expression.

"The fact that you have those gaps in your memory. That you don't remember your master on your own... That's what worries me." Rune explains, "It makes you vulnerable to people who would take advantage of those things. Those who would use it against you." Her lips press together again, followed by another of those long sighs.

"I don't know, Thoth." She admits. "Not all Fey are 'bad' in a sense, but they all do have their own purposes. If you align with those, if you can offer them something they want or need, they may be allies. However... if you interfere in something they want, you can quickly become an enemy." That uncertainty lingers, "That seems to be the case with Fidget. I don't know everything about it, but they didn't seem very happy to have the Goblin poking around. And they've proven they'll use their Fey magic to stop people from interfering."

Reaching a hand up, Rune runs it through her hair, "I really don't know shit about magic. I don't know if these memory orbs can be tampered with. If they can be tampered with, I haven't a clue as to /why/ he might do so in order to ingratiate himself with you, other than that you're important to something." She lowers her hand again to her side, then lifts her shoulders in a shrug.

"The Arcanists will likely know more about this than I do. All I'm saying is... until we're certain these things can't be tampered with, we should assume that not everything is as it seems. Take whatever you see and experience with a bit of skepticism, since we don't know /why/ he wants you to see them."

Thoth takes the orb back from Rune, looking a bit concerned at the warnings that Rune is giving it. Then ends up staring at it, its beak practically touching it as it looks down. Seeings its own reflection in the orb while it continues to listen.

"But... the Fey knew my name. He was looking for me. He gave me these orbs, which are my memories. Why would one wait this long... just to seek me out? Know so much about this one." It tilts its head a bit. There's confusion. "How could one fabricate a memory like this, if it is not this one's?"

"This one agrees. This one has not used this orb, because this one is worried too. But this one doesn't understand who would do all of this, just to draw this one to their side. This one is but a mere assistant." It explains.

It then looks back up to Rune. It has clearly been thinking about all of this. "What did Master do to this 'Fidget'?" It then asks. Perhaps, at least, it can assist in this matter. Come to understand this.

"This one has another concern. These Orbs have been found amongst Curses. Draining the magic from these Orbs." It explains. "Someone is using them for evil. So this one should gather the Orbs either way, and stop this evil from being done by... using this one's Memories." It remarks.

It then nods its head, and closes its eyes as it takes the orb and lifts it up. Turning it the correct way and... lets it enter it. Letting all of it wash inside.

Light. Then, the Fey's face once more. Long white hair. Pale skin. There isn't that sense of a failed spell hanging around them. But, they're welcoming. And Thoth's heart rises in kind.

It remembers that member. Remembers how exhilarated it was. How happy. How new everything was. Slight tones of what it now recognizes as fear, or perhaps small bits of anxiety at having a new body. But most of all, how it actualized itself in that moment. Going from a bird with a birdbrain, to something in which it could evolve. And grow.

It remembers trying to speak. Unfamiliar. Wings on its back, but reaching out with an arm first. Everything being different. Touch. It remembers truly feeling that limb, in a way it never felt before. Fingers.

It came so readily to the one before itself. Yes, this one remembers. Sound trying to reach the one before it. So glad. So happy. So many more emotions that were new as well. It is taller.

Then, finding its voice, and that embrace...

Were it possible for Thoth to cry, to truly cry, it would in that moment, as the orb undoubtedly stills as its owner takes on that memory. Remaining quiet.

"How did this one permit this memory to be destroyed, when it was crushed?" It then whispers. "This one... allowed something this precious to be damaged. This one failed Master..."

The orb in Thoth's hand cracks, splinters, and then turns to dust.

"I wish I had answers for you, Thoth, but I'm as lost on the matter as you are. Neither of us truly know this individual, so it's hard to even guess at what their true intentions might be." Rune does incline her head towards them, though. "But I think it is clear that you're important in some way. Though you might see yourself as just an assistant... there are memories missing, right? For all you know, you may have been more than that."

Shifting her weight slightly, Rune hooks her thumbs against her belt. "I never thought my life worth all that much, or my importance, but I've learned that we all have a part to play in whatever tapestry fate has in store for us." Even in her own life, it's obvious that Rune doesn't have it all figured out.

However, she does wait while he takes on the memory, waiting until it is over to comment further. "Can't say I know much about curses. I'd just say it's convenient that there's a Fey being, who knows where these things are, and there's magic effecting them, and he is sending you to go after them." By this point, Rune may just sound paranoid. Maybe she is. Who knows.

"The jist I got out of it is that he stole Fidget's name. In order to get it back, Fidget is sworn to help you recover your memories and to protect you. If it was just that, it seem a kind enough request... except that the agreement was made under duress. With your friend threatening to destroy the name, or force Fidget to act if they didn't agree." Rune explains, her voice dropping to a quieter tone. "Not the sort of thing that a good person usually does."

She doesn't comment on the memory, on the 'failure'. There are things she doesn't understand about Thoth, and that seems one that she may have to ask about later. Thoth clicks its beak a few times. Considering the words of an Adventurer who has far more experience than it does. "This is correct. There are memories missing." It admits in between it all, and will actually nod its head a few times to show it is listening. It has learned that doing this makes it less 'awkward' to be around it.

As it allows the remains of the orb to fall to the ground, it notes; "This one will reach out and ask Master. Perhaps, he is desperate. But it is still unkind."

The avian War Golem then looks at its hands for a moment, as if realizing for the first time once-again how strange they are compared to the wings it was originally created with, then looks up to Rune. "This one thanks Rune. This one has much to thank her for. And this one should apologize to Fidget for having endangered them."

For the moment, Rune seems to think it best not to press further. She bends down to grab her messenger bag and sling it over her shoulder. It's obvious she hadn't intended on lingering for long, but the strange events that surround the War Golem always seemed to drag her in, despite her best efforts.

"Well, if you /do/ need help, all you need to do is ask. There's plenty of folks around here, myself included, who would be glad to lend you a hand. No strings attached and no magical bindings required." Rune replies.

She doesn't quite know what to think of the plan to ask the Fey creature to explain themselves, but Rune knows she can't push too hard against someone who seems important to Thoth. "If you think that's a good idea. Your friend has quite a bit of unusual magic around them, so they were bound to draw the attention of people like Fidget. That Goblin can't help sticking her nose into anything magical."

Then, with the thanks given, Rune adds one more thing, "By the way... advice for dealing with the Fey. Don't give your name if you can help it. Especially if they ask for it. Don't ever thank them for anything, they'll consider it a debt owed."

Adjusting the strap of her bag, "And try talking to the Archanists. I still recommend Telamon Lupecyll-Atlon if you can find him. He and his wife know a lot about the Fey."

With that, and some hint of reluctance, "I should get going. If you ever need anything, leave a note at the messenger's hall. I usually stop in every few days for work when I'm in town."

"This one will do so."

After Rune has finished explaining what she can about the Fae and the concerns she still holds, Thoth finishes it all with that. "This one will visit this Telamon Lupecyll-Atlon and their wife." It clicks its beak. "And this one will consider contacting Rune in the future using a letter at the messengers' hall." It adds. It doesn't comment on the goblin's propensity to stick her nose into anything magic. They're in the Artificer's hall. There's a lot of that here.

"And do not forget to return here to put a silver into the Swear Jar." It then adds before bowing in thanks to her - and watching her depart.

-End