TLV: IC Contact

[sixfeetofdirt]

Careful; I bite.

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[greatoldjohn]

You should be good to go. I just got the go-ahead.

Everything working?

[sixfeetofdirt]

Let me -

[There's a quiet but audible sound of electrical crackling.]

Ha. Yes, that's much better.

[greatoldjohn]

Good!

No rush on showing off. Unless you want to show off.

[sixfeetofdirt]

I would love to show off, darling. The Enclosure this evening?

[greatoldjohn]

Yes! I'll meet you there after dinner.

[sixfeetofdirt]

Perfect.

[He adds nothing more over the network, but he'll be waiting for John's arrival later on.]

[greatoldjohn]

[ John will be there right after, since most of his work is done before dinner, and he'll look to the console before turning to Astarion. ]

Did you get it all set up?

[sixfeetofdirt]

He frowns thoughtfully at the console.

"No? I've only watched someone else do this, do I just...tell it what I want? I'm not sure how much precision it allows for."

[greatoldjohn]

"Right. Just tell it what you want, as exactly as you can. It can't make people but it can make places just fine. I've used it before."

[sixfeetofdirt]

Places. Well, he resisted the urge when Jedao gave him the opportunity to spend some time alone here, but - it's not as if he's actually feeling homesick. Maybe John will consider this a show of confidence.

"Baldur's Gate," he tells the device at the door. "The lower city."

The door opens into Bloomridge Park.

The space is as much statuary and paving as it is greenery and planting; the trees are mature and their trunks encased in vines, the grass dotted with patches of little purple flowers. There's a fountain. It's scenic.

To the south is the scattering of houses, shops and taverns spilling downhill towards the harbour; to the north is the gothic rear facade of Szarr Palace, one of the many grand homes encircling the upper city.

Astarion doesn't look up at it. Instead, he steps out into the sunshine, spreading his arms.

"Welcome to my hometown, darling! Just - imagine that it's much busier and smells a little worse."

[greatoldjohn]

John has never seen a place like this.

He's never been to a park. He's never seen the greenery and the fountain and a city like this. He's never seen a harbour, a proper harbor, beyond a couple of docks here or there. And a palace! He's never seen a palace. Not like this. His memories are vast and varied but all of them come from when he was the King and the King's perception doesn't allow for beauty or the play of light over the stones or delicate purple flowers along a path.

He's going to float over towards some of those flowers and it's so obvious he's overwhelmed by how lovely it is, examining each little bit and piece and view that he can before he can even speak. He'll realize Astarion is probably waiting for him to say something and there's something awed and fragile as he turns to look at the man himself.

"...thank you for showing me your hometown. It's... lovely."

[sixfeetofdirt]

"It has its charms," Astarion permits.

His former comrades who hadn't seen the city before were either aggressively unimpressed by everything (Lae'zel) or slightly dismayed by cities in general (Halsin). Before then, his marks had usually been in the city for at least long enough to get the first impression out of the way. Seeing the city anew through the eyes of someone who's never seen its like is...something.

"We can take a walk, if you want; I can demonstrate my talents along the way. I assume the Barge has never stopped in a place like this?"

[greatoldjohn]

"Not yet, no," he says, though he takes a moment to consider. But no, nothing quite like this.

And it's obvious that John is distracted by all the little things: the little line of pennants between two stalls, the lattice of wood that makes up a railing, in the distance the shape of the Blushing Mermaid. His robes are swaying as he aborts movements to look here or there.

"If that's all right. A walk would be... nice."

He wants to see! Everything!

[sixfeetofdirt]

"Then let's meander our way down towards the docks," Astarion decides. "The Upper City is above us, it's...fine. Rather ostentatious. I didn't spend much time there after I was turned. This way."

His first choice of spell is Misty Step: he vanishes mid-pace and reappears about thirty feet away, at the gateway into the park.

[greatoldjohn]

John startles at that before zooming to catch up immediately and it's absolutely a childlike glee.

"That's amazing! You were there and then you weren't!"

[sixfeetofdirt]

Astarion finds himself smiling. It's...sweet, almost, to find him so fascinated by something that his world has rendered positively mundane.

"Useful for getting out of a tight spot, in my experience. And as for things that weren't there..."

His next trick is a familiar summons, a raven which emerges into being near his shoulder and settles atop a nearby stonework.

"It's a fey creature. A spirit in animal form."

As he moves to keep walking away from the park and into the city, the bird follows in steady wingbeats, staying close.

[greatoldjohn]

"I can see!" he says, floating around the raven, looking at it from one side and then the other. He's just as fascinated as he was with the Misty Step, maybe even more so.

"You even gave it a form. It's a small spirit, but still a powerful spell. Does your friend have a name?"

this is canon so presumably edgar allan poe exists i

[sixfeetofdirt]

"Quoth," Astarion says, with a faint smile. "There are other forms - cats, spiders, frogs, rats."

He does not summon rats.

"Personally, if I've nowhere to hide then I prefer having a familiar who can blind an opponent."

Ehdgar Alyn Pohe, of course

[greatoldjohn]

"That makes sense! It would be very useful."

There were times, back when he was the King, that he could summon creatures like that.

"...remind me to show you a byakhee sometime."

For another time! It's not like it's something can do right now.

"What else?"

Verbal bounce verbal bounce verbal bounce.

Re: Ehdgar Alyn Pohe, of course

[sixfeetofdirt]

"Let me see."

They pass by the Blushing Mermaid, with its various nautical features. The place is normally rather raucous, particularly compared to more staid venues like the Elfsong, and it's strange to see it just...empty. Even at the very edge between night and morning, there were at least a few patrons stumbling out into the gloom.

He looks around. There's a brazier not far away, on the deck of outdoor seating, for the comfort of its patrons. Firebolt, then.

"Ignis-"

The flaming mote bursts from his hand, catching at the wood and coals in the metal bowl.

Re: Ehdgar Alyn Pohe, of course

[greatoldjohn]

"Fire!!!"

There's a cackle of glee at that. That's so neat!

"Do it again!" And then, getting a handle on himself. "Er, please. Astarion. If you don't mind."

[sixfeetofdirt]

"Oh, we're a fan of that one?"

He casts it again, into mid-air this time, showing its range. It's twilight here and the flame is vivid in the darkening sky.

"I should really ask - do you have any tricks up your sleeve, so to speak?"

[greatoldjohn]

He takes a moment to watch the flames with obvious delight before he shakes it off and answers.

"Oh. No. I don't really have much of anything like this. This is just a projection, after all. If I tried to take up the fullness of my power-

"...let's just say Arthur wouldn't be able to handle it. He's handled me like this already better than most things do. I'd rather not test it and hurt him permanently."

A pause.

"...I can hide things in a place that most beings on board can't even see, let alone reach into. If you ever need me to hide something for you, I can do that."

He considers again.

"And if I touch someone with my mask, I possess one of their senses and I'll end up with one of their limbs as well. It's been helpful a few times in an emergency, but mostly I do it with friends. It's the best way to spend time with someone."

He has and never will suggest it with Astarion. Astarion has had his body taken over and commanded by something already. He won't even trust him to help him with most things; that level of trust is lightyears away yet.

[sixfeetofdirt]

However, Mr. No Personal Boundaries over here simply looks curious.

"Is it? What makes it better than just...talking to them?"

[greatoldjohn]

"They can get a sense of my expression. Like a smile or a frown you can feel. The mask doesn't really... convey much. And I'm not very good at reading body language or facial expressions. That kind of feeling tells me a lot better how someone means something. Sometimes I can't tell otherwise. Faces are... not actually something I'm used to."

A pause.

"For most people, there's a big difference between text on the communicators and meeting in person. That's the best comparison I can make. Things feel more real."