Cat's Cradle
From: TRAVIS
To: Abelina Tremont
CC: Captain Chamas
Date: 16/12/4045
Subject: Cat's Cradle Dear Abelina, I have come to the inevitable conclusion that teaching Flay the art of Alignmatism was a terrible mistake. At first, I found her abilities to create bindings far inferior to other Alignmatists I have known, and her lack of change since leaving the Infinity Petal waylaid any fear of Flay losing her path. Oh what fools we were... I see now that touching Azkhrumdar didn't change Mist, it merely accelerated his natural growth. By my measurement — which you know to be extremely exact and finely calibrated — Flay is now taller than her cousin, the majority of her feline features gone in favor of the sharpness of the Fey. It is difficult to capture with my sensors — her left eye swallows all the light around it. That happened not long after we entered the Infinity Cluster, on our first voyage into one of the Petals. There was nothing but a black hole, a universe where the First World was also the last. Unlike previous attempts, Flay did not maim herself... She merely blinked, and the black hole was gone. That's when she started to change in earnest, her fur fading over several weeks, although I don't think she noticed. She was too busy trying to tie bindings between the Petals. That's when I started to become nervous (nervous is the appropriate emotion, correct?). It took nearly a year (as measured by my infallible chronometer) before she succeeded. After that her right eye became a star, and she never failed again. It's been another year since then, and I imagine it will take many years for this message to reach you... We can't stop what she's building, Abelina. I don't even know if we should. I merely think... Maybe evaluate the scale? One hundred and thirty-seven Petals seems to be a tad overkill for an art project, but I have never understood art. It is at the very least impractical, and probably dangerous. Did I mention she was taming nightmares? That does seem important to mention. You should see them, Captain Chamas (CC'd)! All the nightmares Flay's universes couldn't handle, bundled away in her web of dreams. She says that they're like her pets, but I've kept careful track, and the oldest slowly disappear... My current hypothesis is that she's eating them, but I haven't been able to confirm: I must remind you that her eyes are a black hole and a star — it is very hard to look directly at Flay these days. Perhaps I wouldn't have minded watching Flay get her divinity back, had the citizens of her Petals never noticed her presence. Oh yes, they have most certainly noticed her comings and goings. Some have even started to worship her like a god. The Dreamweaver. The Eater in the Dark. The Spider of Sleep. Worse yet, some have begun to realize that they can communicate across Flay's bindings — it's only a matter of time before they realize they can Skip across them as well. I have received your missive that the Infinity Cluster is considered outside the Consortium's territory, but since that may one day change, and Flay is breaking many, many laws in that potential, future juristiction... Maybe someone should check in? Regards,
TRAVIS
To: Abelina Tremont
CC: Captain Chamas
Date: 16/12/4045
Subject: Cat's Cradle Dear Abelina, I have come to the inevitable conclusion that teaching Flay the art of Alignmatism was a terrible mistake. At first, I found her abilities to create bindings far inferior to other Alignmatists I have known, and her lack of change since leaving the Infinity Petal waylaid any fear of Flay losing her path. Oh what fools we were... I see now that touching Azkhrumdar didn't change Mist, it merely accelerated his natural growth. By my measurement — which you know to be extremely exact and finely calibrated — Flay is now taller than her cousin, the majority of her feline features gone in favor of the sharpness of the Fey. It is difficult to capture with my sensors — her left eye swallows all the light around it. That happened not long after we entered the Infinity Cluster, on our first voyage into one of the Petals. There was nothing but a black hole, a universe where the First World was also the last. Unlike previous attempts, Flay did not maim herself... She merely blinked, and the black hole was gone. That's when she started to change in earnest, her fur fading over several weeks, although I don't think she noticed. She was too busy trying to tie bindings between the Petals. That's when I started to become nervous (nervous is the appropriate emotion, correct?). It took nearly a year (as measured by my infallible chronometer) before she succeeded. After that her right eye became a star, and she never failed again. It's been another year since then, and I imagine it will take many years for this message to reach you... We can't stop what she's building, Abelina. I don't even know if we should. I merely think... Maybe evaluate the scale? One hundred and thirty-seven Petals seems to be a tad overkill for an art project, but I have never understood art. It is at the very least impractical, and probably dangerous. Did I mention she was taming nightmares? That does seem important to mention. You should see them, Captain Chamas (CC'd)! All the nightmares Flay's universes couldn't handle, bundled away in her web of dreams. She says that they're like her pets, but I've kept careful track, and the oldest slowly disappear... My current hypothesis is that she's eating them, but I haven't been able to confirm: I must remind you that her eyes are a black hole and a star — it is very hard to look directly at Flay these days. Perhaps I wouldn't have minded watching Flay get her divinity back, had the citizens of her Petals never noticed her presence. Oh yes, they have most certainly noticed her comings and goings. Some have even started to worship her like a god. The Dreamweaver. The Eater in the Dark. The Spider of Sleep. Worse yet, some have begun to realize that they can communicate across Flay's bindings — it's only a matter of time before they realize they can Skip across them as well. I have received your missive that the Infinity Cluster is considered outside the Consortium's territory, but since that may one day change, and Flay is breaking many, many laws in that potential, future juristiction... Maybe someone should check in? Regards,
TRAVIS
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