[(aki voice) Takes his lil paw in his own lil paw. Kiraman gets the usual brain blast of being jettisoned right into the astral plane.
Except it isn't the astral plane exactly.
It's a room-sized cocoon of the familiar fibrous, organic webbing. The more colorful Viktor is floating here in the center, curled forward into a fetal-like position with his arms draped around his raised knees. Halogen tubing connects him from the webbing's ceiling to several spots along his exposed spine. At least, where it would be in the glow.
His eyes flutter open slowly at Kiraman's presence.]
[ he's getting used to being thrown around, he supposes. but he waits, bracing himself when they arrive and his immediate thought is oh. he looks at Viktor in the center, slowly drifting his way closer while glancing at the state of the webbing. ]
... the core? [ hm. don't like the tubing connections either. ]
[Slowly, he unfurls as Kiraman approaches and settles down onto his feet. The webbing ripples at Kiraman's presence. There are shards of blue in Viktor's eyes, and the lax to his face mimics how subdued he is on the outside.
But then the blue shifts away as he blinks, and his eyes are golden again. Life returns to his expression, and he glances at Kiraman almost like an excited puppy.]
I found it.
[He stretches a hand out and, like Kiraman on the initial days, turns it to shift the dome around them. The environment warps away, a turning page, and leaves them in a completely white, sterile void. At the center is a car-sized matrix of metal plates with strange runes emblazoned on them.
Between the gaps in the plates, an orb can be seen churning in the center, imprisoned.]
[ this is a little creepy, but at the same time not. this is still viktor, and he stays within reach.
he's surprised by the sudden shift, and he watches as the environment warps and they're back in a void. he's staring at the metal plates, blinking as he comes up along side him. ]
... so that's it. What... do you think happens if we actually free it from the confines? [ can he gets closer? he wants to snoop on the runes. ]
[Kiraman can get closer! The song-like hum vibrates in the back of Kiraman's brain as he approaches. The runes look similar to what Norse runes would look like, but they aren't the same.
Viktor follows after, turning the housing like a globe as he does. It brings a section into their view on this side where a plate is missing from the many pates. The part left opened has been sealed tightly by webbing.]
It's missing a rune. I don't know what one.
[It's the Jayce one, but he doesn't know this, of course.]
[ hm. don't know if he likes that, he's just aware of the humming as he approaches and he crouches to get a closer look. ]
... wonder if we could build a makeshift one. Something to cover and stabilize it? [ frowns. ] Can you read the rest of these runes? Maybe knowing what they are we can piece together what's missing.
[Though the space is closed up tightly, it's clear another plate should be there, at least. Kiraman can see the small Hexcore bobbling in the center through the semi-opaque webbing.]
Perhaps...
[Viktor glances over the housing.]
Yes. It's what Jayce and I studied endlessly as we created Hextech. Each rune is... an artifact of magical power. They stand for... words of magic, so to speak. Precision, resolve, things like that.
When I was studying the Hexcore initially, it looked like this. I made a matrix I would alter to find combinations of runes which would work to do magic. But when it came to restoration... something was missing. Everything I tested would wither after renewing.
[ he wants to touch it. if he tries to reach forward and touch it, does viktor stop him? mysteries. ]
But it had to have been completed once. A combination that would make sense... maybe something that fell in line with the runes around it to make a complete picture. [ looking at him again. ] Where do the runes come from? Can you create new ones, or are your combinations just whatever's available?
[Kiraman, you dumbass. But no, he may try to touch it. The webbing warbles as his hand draws closer, and pieces of it stretch out after his fingers. The sensation without even touching Kiraman's skin is cold, like a steel. Something artificial, but alive and electric beneath. The blend of primordial magic and machine.
It feels as if it would like to... assimilate Kiraman is the only notion which makes sense. So it is up to Kiraman if he wants to keep touching.]
We were the pioneers of this sort of research, as far as we know. Jayce and I. Magic had become... forbidden and feared because of the devastation it could entice out of people.
We had to dig into texts which were hard to find, or missing pieces themselves, or were not translated. We had to build our own bridges between. This piece was always missing, not in general, but in my matrix. It's a rune we haven't found yet maybe? Or we didn't know.
The runes all exist, and history says they have existed perhaps since the dawn of our world. We just give identities to them so we can understand what they mean in our own language. Does that make sense? They are symbols attached to powers, and we fill in the definitions based on what they can do.
More can be found. More are likely out there in Runeterra. We never tried to create any runes exactly... Just used the runes to enhance our technological inventions.
[ kiraman is a dumbass, yeah. he's poking and prodding a little, eyebrows furrowed together as he tries to get a feel and understanding. it should be alive, but it should be artificial, and caspian feels a very weird way about this given he, too, is both alive and artificial. the robot hand is the one touching the webbing, so it's even stranger for steel on steel to feel. ]
We've talked about this before. You've told me a little about the work you and Jayce have put into this, so this makes sense. [ there is a thought sort of percolating in his head though. ] Change a symbol even slightly, it becomes a whole new power. No different than coding.
I wonder if it could work if they were created in the same fashion. But without the arcane fueling it, maybe they wouldn't power on?
[Not Kiraman becoming the dog in the mirror about the Hexcore. Same hat!]
I've found from watching you this long that it is a similar.
[Of course, Viktor, even though he is now some Eldritch messiah, has grown really fond of trying to piece together all of Kiraman's advanced technology. The digital age appeals to him deeply.]
We could... see if it could be tricked. Not tricked - satisfied? By a stand-in. I'm not sure if it requires the actual magic, or I could... put magic into it?
makes the exact same face he makes when Jayce asks him if he knows what he's doing when they are about to figure out how the Hexgates work in concept.]
I mean... It's science, right? I would have to experiment to see if the hypothesis works. I've never tried before.
If this is my mind, I could make a filler for the space, and put magic into it. Maybe it would be similar to an unknown variable, and the matrix would simply fill in what it needed to go there.
[ i appreciate you used both the icon and a gif example. ]
It's science, but considering what you're working with this goes right back to what kind of experiments, Viktor. [ but okay. he is thinking. he is... thinking. ]
That's one way to do it. But without specific instructions it's also possible it'll get stuck in a loop of overwriting itself because it doesn't know what is actually needed, or there are multiple needs that can be met.
If I can still use its power even inside the staff...
[He comes closer to Caspian and the matrix housing, so he can also look even though he has seen it before.
He frowns; it's sort of forlorn actually, but thoughtful. He really, truly does not want to give up his ability to help others regardless of how misguided that might become.]
...I'm willing to take big risks.
[Of course. He has taken so many big ones in his life.]
Might just need to reconstruct part of the staff to allow for an even distribution. [ this is mumbled a little, but he's already thinking twenty thousand mph. ]
I don't think you're wrong. For wanting to help people, and to heal them. But... you know my thoughts on everything. [ still. ] If you're sure then... let's give it a try.
[He glances at Caspian if only because he is listening, even if Caspian is ruminating to himself. It's fine. He understands that, too. Damn, they are the same person.]
I know.
[It's said quietly. Here, he has enough decency to be a little ashamed still, as Viktor, his true self not muffled by the orb floating in front of them.
He hesitates, if briefly. The feelings inside of him are tense, like the knot within before a high leap. Will he be worthless again? Will he be anything? He's in Heaven right now, but will he die? Will he succumb again later to his illness if he's redeemed? It's a strength difficult to give up.]
...I'm sure.
[He slowly stands up again and takes a few steps back from the matrix.]
[ they are the same person and it's for that reason that caspian goes quiet and lets Viktor take the time to process. he doesn't move away from the matrix, instead staring it down as his hands hover a little. he can guess what viktor is afraid of and it's also what makes him slow down instead of charging ahead into his ideas. ]
... we're not gonna let you die as soon as you leave. It's okay. [ to ease the worries. ] Are you okay if I remove it? [ or would Viktor prefer to do it himself? ]
[The reassurance helps and still makes him feel hot with embarrassment all the same. The idea he needs someone else's help simply to live like any other person has the luxury to receive.
That he can't be the master of his own fate.
He stands for a long moment, feeling the indifferent viscosity of the Hexcore's connection to him. It had grown comforting in a way. Like the solitude he sat within before. Had it really helped him do as wrong as others say?
He had almost been a god.
The thin vines of astral and organic material attached to his spine finally pull away, one by one, and disappear into the halogen edges of their surroundings.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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Except it isn't the astral plane exactly.
It's a room-sized cocoon of the familiar fibrous, organic webbing. The more colorful Viktor is floating here in the center, curled forward into a fetal-like position with his arms draped around his raised knees. Halogen tubing connects him from the webbing's ceiling to several spots along his exposed spine. At least, where it would be in the glow.
His eyes flutter open slowly at Kiraman's presence.]
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... the core? [ hm. don't like the tubing connections either. ]
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But then the blue shifts away as he blinks, and his eyes are golden again. Life returns to his expression, and he glances at Kiraman almost like an excited puppy.]
I found it.
[He stretches a hand out and, like Kiraman on the initial days, turns it to shift the dome around them. The environment warps away, a turning page, and leaves them in a completely white, sterile void. At the center is a car-sized matrix of metal plates with strange runes emblazoned on them.
Between the gaps in the plates, an orb can be seen churning in the center, imprisoned.]
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he's surprised by the sudden shift, and he watches as the environment warps and they're back in a void. he's staring at the metal plates, blinking as he comes up along side him. ]
... so that's it. What... do you think happens if we actually free it from the confines? [ can he gets closer? he wants to snoop on the runes. ]
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[Kiraman can get closer! The song-like hum vibrates in the back of Kiraman's brain as he approaches. The runes look similar to what Norse runes would look like, but they aren't the same.
Viktor follows after, turning the housing like a globe as he does. It brings a section into their view on this side where a plate is missing from the many pates. The part left opened has been sealed tightly by webbing.]
It's missing a rune. I don't know what one.
[It's the Jayce one, but he doesn't know this, of course.]
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... wonder if we could build a makeshift one. Something to cover and stabilize it? [ frowns. ] Can you read the rest of these runes? Maybe knowing what they are we can piece together what's missing.
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Perhaps...
[Viktor glances over the housing.]
Yes. It's what Jayce and I studied endlessly as we created Hextech. Each rune is... an artifact of magical power. They stand for... words of magic, so to speak. Precision, resolve, things like that.
When I was studying the Hexcore initially, it looked like this. I made a matrix I would alter to find combinations of runes which would work to do magic. But when it came to restoration... something was missing. Everything I tested would wither after renewing.
I could never find the unknown.
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But it had to have been completed once. A combination that would make sense... maybe something that fell in line with the runes around it to make a complete picture. [ looking at him again. ] Where do the runes come from? Can you create new ones, or are your combinations just whatever's available?
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It feels as if it would like to... assimilate Kiraman is the only notion which makes sense. So it is up to Kiraman if he wants to keep touching.]
We were the pioneers of this sort of research, as far as we know. Jayce and I. Magic had become... forbidden and feared because of the devastation it could entice out of people.
We had to dig into texts which were hard to find, or missing pieces themselves, or were not translated. We had to build our own bridges between. This piece was always missing, not in general, but in my matrix. It's a rune we haven't found yet maybe? Or we didn't know.
The runes all exist, and history says they have existed perhaps since the dawn of our world. We just give identities to them so we can understand what they mean in our own language. Does that make sense? They are symbols attached to powers, and we fill in the definitions based on what they can do.
More can be found. More are likely out there in Runeterra. We never tried to create any runes exactly... Just used the runes to enhance our technological inventions.
no subject
We've talked about this before. You've told me a little about the work you and Jayce have put into this, so this makes sense. [ there is a thought sort of percolating in his head though. ] Change a symbol even slightly, it becomes a whole new power. No different than coding.
I wonder if it could work if they were created in the same fashion. But without the arcane fueling it, maybe they wouldn't power on?
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I've found from watching you this long that it is a similar.
[Of course, Viktor, even though he is now some Eldritch messiah, has grown really fond of trying to piece together all of Kiraman's advanced technology. The digital age appeals to him deeply.]
We could... see if it could be tricked. Not tricked - satisfied? By a stand-in. I'm not sure if it requires the actual magic, or I could... put magic into it?
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I sort of figured. It really has a lot of the same components, just kind of generated differently.
[ but he is...considering things. ]
Do you know how to put in enough magic that it'd actually be tricked into working? Without hurting yourself, I mean.
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makes the exact same face he makes when Jayce asks him if he knows what he's doing when they are about to figure out how the Hexgates work in concept.]
I mean... It's science, right? I would have to experiment to see if the hypothesis works. I've never tried before.
If this is my mind, I could make a filler for the space, and put magic into it. Maybe it would be similar to an unknown variable, and the matrix would simply fill in what it needed to go there.
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It's science, but considering what you're working with this goes right back to what kind of experiments, Viktor. [ but okay. he is thinking. he is... thinking. ]
That's one way to do it. But without specific instructions it's also possible it'll get stuck in a loop of overwriting itself because it doesn't know what is actually needed, or there are multiple needs that can be met.
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You didn't have to say it out loud.
[But that's fair. LISTEN. He's trying his best while he still has pieces of himself left.]
Well, it's either we try, or we do not try. A lot of other things are going on, too, so we should keep that in mind.
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I would rather see you try. You know this. But it's if there's time to explore that option... we should see what might work.
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I'll try to make a bridge. [Hmmm.] In the event it fails...
I will consider... trying to remove it somehow.
[Just remove it and put it in your staff you stupid fruit.]
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... if we make another container, that should be safe to house right, right? It doesn't look that big to begin with.
[ put it in your staff you stupid fruit!! ]
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It takes a few moments, but his pinched brows lift.]
The staff... If it can remain stabilized, it could fit in my staff.
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Like an actual catalyst. [ the emotion is basically ! and he's frowning equally thoughtfully as he bends a little to get a closer look. ]
... how big of a risk are you willing to take on this?
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[He comes closer to Caspian and the matrix housing, so he can also look even though he has seen it before.
He frowns; it's sort of forlorn actually, but thoughtful. He really, truly does not want to give up his ability to help others regardless of how misguided that might become.]
...I'm willing to take big risks.
[Of course. He has taken so many big ones in his life.]
I have taken big risks all my life.
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I don't think you're wrong. For wanting to help people, and to heal them. But... you know my thoughts on everything. [ still. ] If you're sure then... let's give it a try.
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I know.
[It's said quietly. Here, he has enough decency to be a little ashamed still, as Viktor, his true self not muffled by the orb floating in front of them.
He hesitates, if briefly. The feelings inside of him are tense, like the knot within before a high leap. Will he be worthless again? Will he be anything? He's in Heaven right now, but will he die? Will he succumb again later to his illness if he's redeemed? It's a strength difficult to give up.]
...I'm sure.
[He slowly stands up again and takes a few steps back from the matrix.]
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... we're not gonna let you die as soon as you leave. It's okay. [ to ease the worries. ] Are you okay if I remove it? [ or would Viktor prefer to do it himself? ]
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That he can't be the master of his own fate.
He stands for a long moment, feeling the indifferent viscosity of the Hexcore's connection to him. It had grown comforting in a way. Like the solitude he sat within before. Had it really helped him do as wrong as others say?
He had almost been a god.
The thin vines of astral and organic material attached to his spine finally pull away, one by one, and disappear into the halogen edges of their surroundings.
He nods at Caspian, affirmatively.]
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