The Affair of the Image in Flesh
The crater the Djaru call Kandimalal hosts a lush grove in the arid wilderness. Its plants have suddenly grown strange-colored fruit, and any who eat speak of memories not their own.
Aspects
- Relevance: Rose
- Relevance: Nectar
- Incident
Visitors: Rose
| Visitor | Start | Failure | Success | Effect |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sra Bartolina Mamani | ’When I first heard of this, it reminded me of Huashan, near the Grove of Green Immortals. Something like this was there too…' | 'A specific flower grew exclusively from bones, and projected the memories within them on its petals. I see the memory, but not the remains.' | 'So their roots are tapped into the world’s spine, stretching into History and Eternity alike. Kandimalal is like this place, then - except you, Librarian, can choose what will be seen. I’d advise you to choose wisely.‘ | Bartolina thought the memories were drawn from ‘the world’s spine’ and compared their propogation to the Haustorium - then departed with a warning to choose wisely. |
| ‘Libreng Ibon' | 'A stranger arrived at Crossrow, claiming to have followed the path these fruits showed her. I was asked to look into the matter.' | 'These plants aren’t native to western Australia. I would like to know how they arrived, and where they may go.' | 'Seeds travel much as gossip does, always changing in the mouths of others. I think an aviform Hour carried these, but not a member of the Roost - not one you hear of, anyway. Best to keep anyone else from partaking, to keep these fruits from spreading further.‘ | Libreng Ibon concluded an aviform Hour - but not an Hour of the Roost - spread the seeds of these fruits, and left to prevent their further propogation. |
| Capt Tuponotanga | ’Strange glowing fruits… they are not of this world, but I must understand in what way.' | 'In the Land Beyond the Wave, certain fruits of perilous change grow. If these share the same seed, I must uproot them. Yet I must be certain. Acting rashly may draw more dangerous attentions.' | 'Fortunately, they are not what I thought. Unfortunately, they are touched by Nowhere. The Hour who planted them is gentler, but she is no less hungry, and I understand the Witch enough to leave her plans untouched.‘ | Tuponotanga determined the fruits hailed not from the Land Beyond the Wave, but from Nowhere, and ultimately resolved not to interfere in their growth. |
Visitors: Nectar
| Visitor | Start | Failure | Success | Effect |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sra Maruja Mallo | ’I’m tempted to eat some, but I want to know what to expect, and what to prepare for.' | 'Some describe vivid and otherworldly scenes. Others are driven into despair, or into fascination. I hope to paint the first and avoid the rest.' | 'I must keep around the richest colors, neither bright nor dark - but I will have nothing pale. It is not the Contentum who I aim to paint for.‘ | Armored with bright colors, Maruja planned to partake of the fruit for her own artistic pursuits. |
| Sr Jesus Choqne | ’There are roots of plants, and roots of memories. This is their hybrid child.' | 'Plants are to be nurtured. Memories are to be kept. Neither seem to be the purpose of this fruit. Help me understand what is.' | 'Locked within are old lessons, taking new forms. Similar to what I underwent, but ever so different - a lesson of Nowhere. Something I never had the chance to learn. Perhaps I should.‘ | Jesus believed the fruits were old lessons in new forms, originating from Nowhere, and considered learning them for himself. |
| Dr Yukie Chiri | ’Some traditions outlast their makers. Sometimes, they continue in strange ways. This is certainly one of the strangest kinds…' | 'I suspect the Hour called the Applebright is involved. As for why, I cannot yet say, not until I confirm her presence.' | 'She preserves fragile beauty with monstrous means, according to some. If you touch it, you will find no comfort - poisons at best, experiences at worst. That is why you should not shake my hand, Librarian, though you may take this, alongside my gratitude.‘ | Dr Chiri deduced the strange fruits involved the Nowhere-Hour called the Applebright - and hinted at her own dealings with the Hour. |
Faculty Consultations
| Faculty | Start | Finish | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| La Magdalena | Cats are not fond of fruits, as far as I’m aware, but she purrs quietly as I tell her of the strange fruits. And quickly, the purring deepens. | The purring is deep - far too deep for a creature of her size. She lifts a paw, claws bared, and I startle. For a moment, my vision turns black, and in that blackness are whipping branches, drowning vines. I close my eyes against the dark. Is the sting in my foot from a thorn or an insect? Did a rose stem or monster bite pierce my hand? Both may be true, but only one smells sweet. I open my eyes to a warm, well-lit room. No wounds are upon me. It wasn’t real. But if it wasn’t real, why do I taste holly? | Lesson: Leaves & Thorns |
| Isidoro Dahlmann | ’Nyctodromy did not begin in Australia - that was a few seas over - but their nyctodromists practice some of its oldest traditions, an unbroken line dating back to the dawn of the world.' | 'You can write of roads and histories as much as you want, but what is written will always be inaccurate, for what is traveled is always changed and changing. Perhaps they have lost detail, but the shapes of these stories are intact. I sometimes wonder if they are why the Hooded Princes moved eastward. They certainly appreciate the powers and ways of words.‘ | Lesson: Preliminal Meter |
| Robigo | ’I’m already aware. No, my master did not tell me, but his attentions are drawn there - as are the attentions of his compatriots in living memory.' | 'The Contentum have set many chilly creations into the world. They enjoy the preservation and propogation of the lost and forgotten, but this foray into their domain, well… I will say there is delight, there is envy, and there is hunger. You know better than to assume them different things.‘ | Lesson: Edicts Hospitable |
| The Feathered Woman | ’The roots go deep, as they always do, and what is dead below finds new life above.' | 'This is one place, perhaps the only place, I can find an understanding with your Protector. Even if he covers the earth, he cannot deny the return. One who grows from death must value life.‘ | Lesson: Fermentation & Sustentation |