Looking Into the Eye

Abstract:

Dramatic Purpose: Major plot exposition.

Metagaming Purpose: Sets up the whole next year of gaming.

Setting: Inside the chamber of the Eye of Autochthon

Order: After Interview with a Glass Sorcerer

Principals: Eye of Autochthon

Specifics: The room is pretty bloody with the remains of the alchemicals, and reeks of burned flesh and vaporized metal.

• Heavenly Bitter Metal looks to have exploded, and parts of his body, both flesh and mechanical can be seen all over the place. All of the soulsteel bits have been shattered into globs, each containing exactly one soul. They are all moaning.
• Unrepentantly Battleworn Servant's organic parts have turned to salt. Her gear and implants are undamaged.
• Gloriously Still Alloy's implants became molten rock, quickly burning his flesh. The magma has cooled significantly, but still glows. His gear is intact.
• Silkily Descending Mountain has been turned into pale blue glass, and slightly melted, like wax caught in a strong breeze. She appears to have been averting her eyes from the blast. Her gear is intact.

The Eye will answer a question, then start to stutter and freeze. It will retract into the ground, which closes around it. The light gets much dimmer. About two seconds later, the ground opens and the Eye rises again. From this point, it will be completely oblivious that it has seen the exalts before, and will have forgotten about the alchemicals.

"Eternal Monitoring Method resumed." "Condition critical. Elsewhere sheath breached." "Executing primary protocol". The lights come back on in full, and energy surges into the eye. "Exaltation beacon activated." Laser light scans the circle. "Greetings to authorized exalted. Name lookup fails. Please restate your names." "Have you knowledge of the condition of Autochthonia?" It will interrogate the characters of what it knows of Yugash and the Locust Crusade. It will ask about the Seal of Divinities and why it was broken. "Analysis... All functions critical. Essence supply recovering, but soul-capacity of Radiant Amphora of Celestial Accumulation nearing depletion. Full entropic collapse imminent. Action: Refill Radiant Amphora. Locating Well of Souls. Scanning..."

A map comes up, depicting an area much larger than the current creation (similar to the First Age map seen before). The map begins to shrink to the current borders. Around the map come images of the constellations. Superimposed through it all is a very faint, three dimentional spider web. Certain strands light up in rapid succession. This goes on a long time, with periodic stalls when strands cluster around a particular constellation (the Mask).

It will answer questions while this happens, though curtly.

"Location process fails. Tapestry discrepancy detected. Well of Souls inaccessible."

Radiant Amphora of Celestial Accumulation was original filled with souls to sustain the Great Maker. Either in response to a question about it, or on its own, it will change gears:

"Analysis... Action: Check Creation-based connections to Amphora." "Locks of Yugash found. Alchemical Manses marked." The icons light up. "Setting manses to primary functional mode." "Activation fails." "Manual recalibration required." "Analysis..." It thinks for a while. It will answer questions.

"Contingency 51762389 activated." "Potent exalts, the Great Maker calls upon you to aid in his hour of need. The probability of refilling the Radiant Amphora of Celestial Accumulation before total entropic collapse is barely measurable. Contingency 51762389 requires the need to pull the Great Maker back into creation. To accomplish this, the manses connected to the Amphora must be reconfigured during the next Calibration. The Great Maker requires you to visit these manses, open the locks Yugash placed on them and place the manse's hearthstones in this device..."

...a crystal pod materializes...

"...on the first day of Calibration. The device must be guarded until the final day of Calibration. Do you accept?"

If they ask for help, talk about the marks.

If they ask about the keys "secrets of the locks entrusted to the original eight".

Will react to Abyssal as before.

As things wind on, Eye will show more signs of malfunction, and energy will start sparking from various spots. A flash will teleport the circle miles into the air. Below them, the city is destroyed in a mushroom cloud.

Exposition about restarting the maker, including map.

Set deadline of next Calibration.

Offer of the Mark of Autochthon.

Map will collapse into a crystal. Crystal can bring up the map at any time.

• Source map notes

Aspects: In the Presence of the Eye, Reek of Death

Variations:

Outcome:

Debugging:

Field Testing: