✨ two truths and a lie!

[icyspicy]

Username/Display Name: summer / 𝖜𝖎𝖓𝖙𝖊𝖗 🐙✨
Server Channel: #general
Time: idk sometime in the afternoon

Well well, would you look at that? The place didn’t burn itself down while I was gone, though not for lack of trying. Or so I’ve been told.

Anyway, it looks like we’ve acquired some new faces in the last month. In the grand tradition of the hotel forcing us to get to know one another, why don’t we play a little game?

Is everyone familiar with “two truths and a lie”? It’s simple enough. List three things about yourself, one of which is not true. Others must guess which is the lie.

Here, I’ll go first.

[ TL;DR - We’re playing two truths and a lie now! Thread hop around and tag each other! Winter will be hopping around to play too, but if folks just want to chat with him now that he’s back that is also fine! ]

Comments

[airdnd]

[ HOL UP ]

I'm afraid you'll have to start from the very beginning of this tale. Whose soul? Why was it in a flask? How was it in a flask? Were you actually considering drinking it? And what would happen if you did?

[historicallyloaded]

Mister Bazso Baz's tale is quite an interesting one.

A friend was seeking information from a private party, and in exchange she wanted us to put a wedge between two groups of former laborers turned gangs—the Lampblacks and the Gondoliers. Our tack was to dig up dirt on the leader of the Lampblacks, none other than Mister Baz.

Disguised as an aspiring law student, I infiltrated the Sergeant's quarters and um... perhaps overplayed my hand a little. Though my identity was compromised I was able to gleam some very important hidden information before I was unceremoniously booted out. Old arrest records noted Baz under a different affiliation... formerly he was with the highly secretive "Empty Vessel" cult.

Now, what this cult does is both questionable and illegal; they worship a god called, well The Empty Vessel, and perform rituals to separate one's spirit from their body creating what we call a "hollow". All of their members are branded.

What a salacious discovery for someone touts himself as a "man of the people", a "traditionalist"! We, however, needed more definitive proof. What could be more definitive than revealing a damning mark or branding on his body?

So, uh... said friend and I privately challenged Mister Baz to a game of strip poker...

[airdnd]

[ Sumina reads this entire message, and all the while, Brickston's voice echoes in her head from their first meeting: "I attend Charterhall University which is one of the most esteemed learning facilities in Doskvol..."

Though it goes unseen, she's laughing. Though she'll at least offer a spirited: ]

Hahaha.

Mr. Bricks, what interesting scholarly activities you get up to at this Charterhall University of yours. I was not expecting "subterfuge" to be one of your academic fields in addition to electroplasmic engineering, alchemy, spectrology and metaphysics.

So? Did you find a mark in the end?

[historicallyloaded]

I'm um... a man of many talents.

[ His cover should have been fool proof—a science student disguised as a law student! Brilliant if you ask him. Should have been flawless. ]

Actually, no! Funny thing, that.

So our poker game was not going great, to be frank. Not ideal. Ol' Baz is a tough one. Had my friend down his boots and beanie and me down to my knickers. I tapped out and everyone had a good laugh of it. I wasn't so amused but my friend took the opportunity of my misfortune to distract Baz. They went off for a smoke break and I deduced something was obfuscating his spirit, either a necklace or something similar close to his chest. It should be noted Baszo Baz is something of a whiskey connoisseur so it wasn't very unusual to see him pull a flask out from his jacket when he returned to the table and had to further disrobe. Drinks were abound, yet, he never drank from that one. I asked if I could sample it in particular. He described it as "very vintage" yet insisted I wouldn't be able to handle it. The nerve of him!

My friend then interjected, also asked to try it. He's no small man and I believe he rightly called Mister Baz's bluff on it. His spirit was contained in that flask for certain! Things got very tense for a tick until a third party ceased our game. We left drawing only minor suspicion.

Later, we were able to corroborate with another friend who did more shall we say in-depth research on the cult, and confirmed Mister Baz's leaving of it resulted in him well... creating his own flasktery.

[airdnd]

Has anyone ever told you that you are an excellent storyteller, Mr. Bricks?

What an interesting tale, indeed. Mr. Baz' flask contained a spirit - but not the sort one would expect.

[ get it ??? ]

[historicallyloaded]

[ NO ACTUALLY. Now he's all giddy and flustered. Compliment going straight to his head do not pass go do not collect 200$. ]

[historicallyloaded]

Hahaha! A vintage spirit, indeed. [ He does enjoy a little pun here and there, she's got him laughing. ]

As for what might have happened if either of us had consumed it, well... I imagine nothing good. Spirits fare better being contained within something, be it a flask, or machinery, or another body...

[airdnd]

No, I can't imagine imbibing another's spirit being good for anyone.

That does bring to mind, though... How do these "Hollows" exist? How can someone exist with their spirit separated from them...? Based on your description of Mr. Baz, it doesn't seem as if he acted like one would expect someone described as hollow would.

[historicallyloaded]

Indeed, it's unusual. Hollows are typically dimwitted, dulled, and obedient, following simple instructions or base instincts with little other thought. I've found in other literature in this hotel describe "zombies" to similar effect. Another spirit can occupy a Hollow, but...

There must be something The Empty Vessel cult does in their spirit extraction process that allows them to maintain their faculties, despite being separated. They're effectively immortal this way. Since Mr. Baz's leaving, I suspect his proclivity in keeping his spirit physically close to his person may also play a role.